March Remembrance – In anticipation of Easter 2025
A new humanitarian and memorial initiative, “March Remembrance – In anticipation of Easter 2025,” gathers all those whose hearts are with Kosovo and Metohija — that Kosovo and Metohija which preserves all its inhabitants and all its holy sites. The initiative was conceived and is led by members of the NGO Pandurica from Nikšić, university professors from Podgorica, and priests of the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral and the Diocese of Budimlje-Nikšić of the Serbian Orthodox Church, with the support of many good people from Serbia, the Republic of Srpska, and Montenegro.
Last year, “March Remembrance” brought back from oblivion the memory of countless people who were expelled from their homes during waves of violence against Serbian and other non-Albanian populations over the centuries — particularly the 200,000 who were displaced during March 1999 and 2004. These last two March pogroms against the Kosovo-Metohija Serbs and Serbian sanctuaries are especially remembered, as they occurred under the presence of the NATO military alliance and despite unfulfilled promises of protection given by the Western democracies of the North Atlantic. In those tragedies, dozens of Serbian Orthodox churches were destroyed, and more than 2,000 people lost their lives.
In this way, the March suffering no longer represents only the suffering of our compatriots living on the sacred Serbian land, but also the moral failure of major European and global political systems that proved powerless to protect an entire people. They showed themselves incapable of safeguarding peace, human freedom, and the dignity of the citizens of Kosovo and Metohija. Today, it is clear that this was just one manifestation of their inconsistency in defending, politically and legally, Kosovo and Metohija as part of the territory of the Republic of Serbia, as recognized by UN resolutions and the Serbian Constitution.
Last year’s “March Remembrance” initiative spread throughout Europe and the world a powerful artistic and visual symbol — the Kosovo Peony badge. By wearing it, we ourselves become living monuments and reminders that injustice must be corrected, displaced people must return to their homes, and spiritual sanctuaries must be restored. Purchasing this badge, for a symbolic price, helps create a fund to support those who still persevere there, despite new threats and violence — both civilian families and monastic communities alike.
In 2024, “March Remembrance” raised €30,000, which members of NGO Pandurica from Nikšić, with the help of the brotherhood of Dečani Monastery, distributed to around 20 Serbian families in Kosovo and Metohija. This gesture is much more than material assistance; it is an expression of unity among all those who see the sacred sites of Kosovo and Metohija as their own, and the Serbian people living there as their brothers.
“March Remembrance” was launched from Montenegro precisely because of the generational memory of the living spiritual connection (blood, historical, covenantal, and prayerful) between Kosovo and Lovćen. It is difficult to count all the historical destinies, from the late Middle Ages until today, that remember migrations and hardships of numerous families — from Kosovo through Herzegovina to Montenegro, and back “from here to there,” from Montenegro toward Peć and Prizren. Montenegro today, especially after the spiritual awakening led by Metropolitan Amfilohije and the large prayer processions (litije), represents a high vantage point from which the troubles and hopes of Kosovo are seen more clearly than from anywhere else in the world. The people of Montenegro look toward the Patriarchate of Peć as their spiritual and identity center, and they cannot experience true happiness unless their brothers on their ancestral lands in Kosovo and Metohija live in peace and dignity.
Therefore, “March Remembrance” moves from Montenegro toward all places where people live bound by the Kosovo Covenant.
This year, as additional support to the initiative, we present to you the portal “March Remembrance”, which will provide timely information on how each of us can join this noble cause and where exactly our help and care are reaching on the territory of Kosovo and Metohija. Of course, this portal, connected to NGO Pandurica, will also give you the opportunity to share your ideas for improving this initiative.
Though “March Remembrance” may seem at first to focus on past events that must not be forgotten, in essence, it opens before us a spiritual task — to become better, more compassionate, and more devoted to the community to which we belong, especially in the days to come.
Father Gojko Perovic