In the Croatian town of Vukovar, this year’s commemoration for the victims killed in the months-long siege by the Yugoslav Army (JNA) and Serbian militias in 1991 was marked by strong nationalist tones.
Tens of thousands of people, including the entire state leadership, took part on Saturday in the annual memorial parade, which, according to the media, was accompanied this year by numerous flags with the controversial salute of the fascist Ustasha.
The slogan “Za dom – spremni” (For the Fatherland – Ready), which was reportedly chanted repeatedly on the streets of Vukovar on Saturday, is featured in the emblem of the right-wing paramilitary group HOS from the Croatian War. This was given a visible role in this year’s commemoration ceremony.
The mayor of Vukovar and leader of the right-wing populist Homeland Movement (Domovinski pokret), Ivan Penavathe HOS members led the memorial march on the grounds that they too had fought for the liberation of the city.
Weeks earlier, he had caused a stir with the event’s official poster, which, in addition to the inscription HOS, also highlighted the letter “U”, which was interpreted as an allusion to the Ustasha.
The town on the border with Serbia was razed to the ground after the fall of Yugoslavia, 22,000 non-Serb residents were expelled and about 7,000 prisoners were taken to camps in Serbia. According to Croatian sources, approximately 2,700 Croatian soldiers and civilians were killed during the siege. Today, more than 380 city residents are still missing.
Ahead of next year’s parliamentary elections, Penava has been criticized from all sides for exploiting the memorial event and Vukovar’s victims for political purposes. Prime Minister Andrej Plenković accused him of misusing the most important days in Croatian history.
On Saturday, the Croatian head of government in Vukovar emphasized that the city should be a place of unity and not division. In addition to the Prime Minister, President Zoran Milanović and Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković were in Vukovar on Saturday.
However, the co-ruling Serbian minority party SDSS stayed away this year. In previous years, Croatian Serb representatives had commemorated the Serb and Croatian victims by throwing wreaths into the Danube the day before the official commemoration ceremony. This year they were told they were not welcome, and the homeland movement even threatened to prevent them from doing so with a human chain.
(dsc/sda/apa)
Soource :Watson
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
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