“I am shocked at the murder of Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, whom I knew personally, and extend my condolences to his family, and to the people of Serbia” said High Representative, Paddy Ashdown this afternoon.
Praising Zoran Djindjic’s role the High Representative said “Zoran Djindjic will go down in history as one of the leaders who removed Slobodan Milosevic and brought democracy to Serbia. He set his country firmly on the road of reform. Thanks to Zoran Djindjic’s leadership, Serbia has made huge progress in recent years, both as a democracy, and towards modern Europe. The best tribute to Zoran Djindjic’s memory will be for Serbia to continue with the work he began, and in so doing to prove that criminal attacks like this cannot defeat democracy.”
“It also falls to the international community to continue to work with the countries of the Balkans to rid this region of those who believe that the future lies with a gun rather than the ballot box” added the High Representative.