‘Thinking in his granite head how he is making God knows what kind of astute demonstration, the Catholic Bishop of Mostar has with this deed shown once again - but in what masterly fashion, with what baneful consistency - the full ferocity of his own religious and ethnic backwardness, his social and ethical obtuseness, his political narrow-mindedness, and a hardness of heart quite incompatible with love, first and last letter of the Christian alphabet...

The destructive effect of Perić’s elephantine tread in the political china shop of the Mostar festivities was reinforced by the absence of another B-H Catholic leader - Cardinal Puljić, who was likewise invited. He gave no explanation and - judging by his customary behaviour in such matters - nor will he. Although this scarcely serves to remedy the bad effect, the presence at the Mostar ceremony of the Papal envoy, and of the Provincials of the Bosnian and Herzegovinian Franciscans, Fra Slavko Soldo and Fra Mijo Džolan, nevertheless deserves to be recorded.’

                                     Translated from Feral Tribune (Split), 30 July 2004