Memorial Plaque to Šemsudin Ajanović, a University of Sarajevo Employee and Recipient of the “Zlatni Ljiljan” and “Zlatna Policijska Značka” Awards Unveiled

The unveiling of the memorial plaque in memory of Šemsudin Ajanović, a University Of Sarajevo Employee and Recipient of the “Zlatni Ljiljan” And “Zlatna Policijska Značka” Awards, was held on Friday, 23 October 2020 at the University of Sarajevo Rectorate, in the presence of family members and University of Sarajevo representatives.

On behalf of Šemsudin Ajanović's comrades-in-arms, Mr. Munir Karahodžić, commander of the 1st and 3rd Battalions of the 309th and later the 329th Mountain Brigade, addressed them, emphasizing that Šemsudin Ajanović was a hero who fought for the whole of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He stated that he was a member of the Patriotic League and visited many battlefields, and recalled that he led the platoon in 1992, the first attempt to break through towards Sarajevo and Semizovac. "In November 1993, he moved as the chief of staff of the 309th Mountain Brigade, and he died in that position," Karahodžić recalls.
"All of us fighters had a dream, and that is for our state to become united, independent, free with all peoples and nationalities, and I believe that this is how it should be and that BiH will not exist differently until we are all together," he concluded.

University of Sarajevo Rector, Prof. Dr. Rifat Škrijelj points out that Šemsudin Ajanović died as a hero and recipient of the “Zlatni Ljiljan” And “Zlatna Policijska Značka” Awards. “It is the merit of an ordinary man - the patriot of this country, for his university, for his country and for his family. Today, when after 27 years we find in the oblivion the memory of the hero of who me as Rector is proud. It has become a practice to forget those who gave their lives for this country, or at least if we do not forget them, then some institutions and individuals ignore them or push them to the pillar of humiliation” stated Rector Škrijelj, adding that this must not happen to Šemsudin.
“Obviously his life was too important and he 'emerged' from oblivion after 27 years. Everything he did for this country and this university was honorable and he gave what it is possible for one man to give, and that is life. In that name, I ask his family to continue on his path of honesty” said Rector Škrijelj.

On behalf of Šemsudin Ajanović’s family, the moderator of the meeting, Mr. Sc. Miroslav Živanović, the head of the Rector's Office, read a text prepared by the family, which states that Šemsudin Ajanović was a friend, an altruistic man and a cosmopolitan. He was a person immensely loved and respected by a large number of friends who were then, during his life, as now scattered in all parts of the world. He was a man who nurtured immense love for all living beings, always positive, smiling and enthusiastic. He didn't just love him when he didn't meet him.

The Rectorate was his second home and his work colleagues were another family. Perhaps because of the nature of the work he performed or because of his character, they used to say that he was always welcome in the company of respected academics as well as employees. He respected his superiors and helped not only those he did not know about. And when he stayed outside Sarajevo due to a visit to his family, because the city remained blocked overnight, after several unsuccessful attempts to return, he could not do without his University again, and through the Zenica working unit of the University of Sarajevo he continued his duties in constant communication, thinking like all of us that it is impossible to "hermetically isolate one city", especially cosmopolitan Sarajevo, and that it is all short-lived.

When the song “Ja ti odoh majko Bosnu braniti, ako poginem nemoj žaliti” spread throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, he already knew that he was one of them and that he had to defend Sarajevo, and with him the whole of Bosnia and Herzegovina… as a volunteer, in Breza, Kralupe, Misoč ... towards his Sarajevo.

And here, he returned to his Sarajevo and Rectorate. He entered with a white nišan/monument of the martyr/fallen fighter, and as it is written on the stećak, the epitaph “he will live in eternity” will continue to watch over his Homeland, the unique Bosnia and Herzegovina, Goražde and the beloved Sarajevo.

Šemsudin Ajanović (1960-1993) graduated from the Faculty of Political Sciences in Sarajevo, Department of National Defense and Social Self-Defense. He was nearing the end of his postgraduate studies in Zagreb, and at the same time was a third-year student at the Faculty of Law in Sarajevo. He also performed the duty of student Vice-Dean for Teaching, and was also an advisor to the University of Sarajevo Rector.
He volunteered for the Kakanj Territorial Defense as a member of the Patriotic League from Sarajevo, and fought bravely with the rank of captain in the ranks of the Kakanj 309th Mountain Brigade. He continued his war journey as chief of the “Lašva” Operational Group, and later as chief of the 329th Mountain Brigade. He died on 44 November 1993, on the Vozuća battlefield at Čauševac.
Šemsudin Ajanović posthumously received the highest war award “Zlatni ljiljan” and promoted to the rank of colonel.