Stockholm: Dina and Jovan Rajs received a decoration at the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia

In addition to members of the Rajs family, the reception at the Serbian Embassy was attended by their friends, such as Anja Jan Günter, who is in charge of Serbia in the EU Directorate for Foreign Affairs of the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Austrian Ambassador to Sweden Gudrun Graf and the entire Embassy staff.

Ambassador Momčilović pointed out that the “Orders of the Serbian Flag of the Third Degree” were awarded to Dina and Jovan Rajs, as the Jews from Serbia and well-known intellectuals in Sweden who continuously contribute to preserving the culture of Holocaust remembrance and combating anti-Semitism.

Ambassador Momčilović emphasised that Dina and Jovan Rajs, originally from Zrenjanin and Ruma, survived the horrors of the World War Two in the former Yugoslavia and several concentration camps.

He emphasised that owing to Dina and Jovan Rajs, to their literary works and testimonies about personal experiences from the World War Two, on the territory of former Yugoslavia, especially in Novi Sad and Belgrade (on Staro Sajmište,  where Jovan Rajs' closest relatives were killed) present and future generations will cherish the memories of the suffering of Jews, Serbs and Roma, as well as remembrance of significant assistance from Serbian families provided for the Jews in order to save their lives during that period.

Representative of the Swedish Foreign Ministry Anja Jan Günter said that she had the honour of meeting Dina and Jovan Rajs during her earlier engagement in marking the commemorative anniversary of Raoul Wallenberg (Swedish diplomat who rescued Jews in Hungary during World War Two) in 2012, stressing that they represented “true and multiple heroes, both for Sweden and for Serbia”.

In an extremely touching tone, Dina and Jovan Rajs expressed gratitude for the award of the “Order of the Serbian Flag of the Third Degree”, as well as for the merits of the Serbian people, whose members selflessly sacrificed themselves to save Jews during World War Two.

Jovan Rajs pointed out that had survived the horrors of the Holocaust only owing to the sacrifice of a close relative who was of Serbian origin, and that he owed immense gratitude to the Serbian people, to whom he has been feeling very close. He emphasised that Serbia has never shown anti-Semitism, and Serbian people were the only ones in Europe who protected and saved their Jews, including them, during World War Two.