Serbian cardinal pleads against country’s exclusion after Ratko Mladic’s burial with honors

Cardinal Ladislav Nemet of Belgrade is urging Western governments not to let the controversy surrounding the funeral of Ratko Mladic damage Serbia's integration into Europe. The Divine Word Missionary expressed surprise that international calls for delaying Serbia's Western ties followed the Sept. 7 Orthodox funeral in Belgrade.

Mladic, a former Bosnian Serb leader, died Aug. 27 in a United Nations prison hospital in The Hague. He had been serving a life sentence from the International Criminal Court for genocide and crimes against humanity. Approximately 12,500 people attended the funeral, which included state officials.

Cardinal Nemet stated that the incident involved a small group of people rather than the nation as a whole. He noted that everyone has a right to a funeral and suggested that the international media used the event to portray Serbia negatively.