20.11.2009.

The Belgrade dailies are reporting on their front pages about the funeral of Patriarch Pavle. Mladen Bijelic flips through the pages in the Press Review.

The POLITIKA daily dedicated three pages, with details and photographs, to the funeral of the late Serbian Patriarch, while quoting the words of President Boris Tadic and church dignitaries, from the ceremony. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew has stressed that the personality and deeds of Patriarch Pavle were radiating the holiness and righteousness. These days the holy elder has awaken the hidden goodness, humanity, love of God and fellow humans in hundreds of thousands of souls, stated Metropolitan of Montenegro and Littoral Amfilohije. President Tadic thanked his holiness on behalf of Serbia for always being there for us, reminding through his words and actions to be humane and never respond to evil with our own evil.

The dailies write that the 44th patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church was escorted to the eternal resting place by 600 thousand people. The BLIC reports on its front page that the cross was carried by late patriarch’s great-grandson Mihailo Vukoicic, a piano professor in the Music School “Stevan Mokranjac”. “I felt as if someone was helping me carry the cross”, said Mihailo, while explaining that at no time did the cross feel heavy. The paper also quotes the writings in the foreign media, regarding the funeral in Belgrade, and prints the full list of state officials and church dignitaries who attended the last farewell.

The VECERNJE NOVOSTI illustrates the article about the funeral with photos of the escorting column of people in downtown Belgrade. With regards to more daily topics, the same paper writes that Belgrade might become one of the most popular weekend tourist destinations, known as the “city break” tours. At issue is the action of the Belgrade Tourist Organization, national air-carrier and several Belgrade hotels, aimed at creating arrangements for the foreign tourists next year, the price of which would not exceed 250 euro. Three agencies from Great Britain have already shown interest in this kind of arrangements, so it seems that many visitors from the British islands will be coming to Belgrade.

The DANAS daily quotes the statement of newly appointed US Ambassador in Belgrade Marry Burce Warlick, given before the Committee of International Relations in the US Senate, and claiming that since the elections and establishing of the pro-European government in 2008 Serbia has embarked on the road towards the full integration with Europe and its institutions, while also taking resolute steps in the implementation of the democratic reforms and strengthening of institutions that should uphold the rule of the law.

In the local section, the BLIC writes about the changes of the Belgrade urban planning, which should enable the city to approach the rivers, i.e. create a systematic base to change the purpose of 70 hectares of the land that currently belongs the Belgrade port. That way, it would make possible the construction of residential and commercial complexes in the spot that is right now unused. The readers are invited to give their suggestions and create the future of Belgrade until 2020. The daily also comments on the new resident of the Belgrade ZOO. Namely, after two-day trip from Jakarta, white tiger named Kane has arrived to the Serbian capital. He will soon be joined by a white tigress from Switzerland, and there is hope that along with white lions who are already successfully reproducing in the Belgrade ZOO, the white tigers will soon do the same, explains manager of this ZOO Vuk Bojovic.