Vjekoslav "Vjeko" Ćurić (26 April 1957 in Lupoglav,
Žepče,
Bosnia and Herzegovina – 31 January 1998 in
Kigali
Kigali () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is near the nation's geographic centre in a region of rolling hills, with a series of valleys and ridges joined by steep slopes. As a primate city, Kigali has been Rwa ...
,
Rwanda
Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...
) was a
Bosnian Franciscan
friar and humanitarian. He is one of the recognized martyrs of
Franciscan Province of Bosna Srebrena. In Rwanda he is known as "African
Oskar Schindler" (who saved many
Jews during the
Holocaust). A school in
Kivumu, the Father Vjeko Center, is named for him.
Early years
Ćurić was born as a second of six children born to Petar and Ana Ćurić,
Bosnian Croat
The Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina (), often referred to as Bosnian Croats () or Herzegovinian Croats () are the third most populous ethnic groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina, ethnic group in the country after Bosniaks and Serbs of Bosnia and H ...
family.
He studied at the
Franciscan Minor Seminary in
Visoko
Visoko ( sr-cyrl, Високо, ) is a city located in the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, the municipality had a population of 39,938 inhabitants with 11,205 livi ...
, did his
novitiate
The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...
in Visoko and studied theology in
Sarajevo, after which he was ordained. Ćurić entered the Franciscan order on 15 July 1976 and was ordained to the priesthood on 21 June 1982 in
Sarajevo. That same year, he went to
Paris to prepare for his missionary calling. On 18 August 1983 he began his missionary activity in Rwanda.
Life and work
Ćurić gained worldwide recognition during the time of the 1994
Rwandan genocide, when he worked to help the victims of both tribes involved, the
Hutu and the
Tutsi. He also brought numerous white people (bishops, priests, monks, nuns and others) to safety. When the killing began in Kivumu, people turned to Ćurić for help. He had lived in Nyamabuye 1, Gitarama for more than ten years, and had long worked to promote development in the area. Ćurić was well known and loved by his congregation at the Parish of Kivumu; his decision to remain in Rwanda during the genocide brought him to the heart of the local community. While most other expatriates were evacuated, Ćurić stood by the people of Kivumu during the worst experiences of their lives.
He devoted himself to providing practical and medical assistance to the displaced and to helping people escape. Ćurić was outspoken in his condemnation of the violence and continued to preach the values of peace and unity throughout the genocide. More often than not, he was threatened by the
Interahamwe for having stood in their way. In the aftermath, Ćurić demonstrated his impartiality, helping both Hutus and Tutsis to rebuild their communities. The homes and buildings Fr. Vjeko helped to fund are still standing in Kivumu. Ćurić was killed under unclear circumstances on 31 January 1998. He was 40 years old.
"Sedma obljetnica smrti fra Vjeke Ćurića
, svjetlorijeci.ba; accessed 18 March 2016.
The Franciscan order and Ćurić's Province of Bosna Srebrena received special recognition from Pope John Paul II for the work of Ćurić. In order to rescue and help others, Fra Vjeko endured a martyr's death, according to the statement by his provincialate. He was buried in Kivumu in a church which he and his congregation had built.
See also
* List of unsolved murders
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curic, Vjekoslav
1957 births
1998 deaths
Croat Roman Catholic clergy from Bosnia and Herzegovina
20th-century Bosnia and Herzegovina Roman Catholic priests
Franciscans of the Franciscan Province of Bosnia
People from Žepče
People of the Rwandan genocide
Unsolved murders in Rwanda
Bosnia and Herzegovina people murdered abroad
People murdered in Rwanda