Na zgarištu njihovih tijela očituje se govor mržnje koja u konačnici ne može pobijediti

General pukovnik Alexander Löhr, zapovjednik njemačkih vojnih postrojbi na području NDH kao i oružanih snaga NDH, u noći sa 7. na 8. svibnja predao je zapovjedništvo oružanih snaga NDH poglavniku Anti Paveliću. Potonji je izdao zapovijed da se povlačenje postrojbi NDH nastavi u pravcu Koruške, te da se vojska preda s oružjem Britancima, a nikako partizanima.

S cijelog teritorija NDH organizirano se povlačila vojska i civili u Zagreb koji se često opisuje kao “prava košnica ljudstva, kao da se cijela Hrvatska u njega slegla”. Posljednje vojne postrojbe NDH, II. zbor pod vodstvom generala Vjekoslava Luburića, Zagreb su napustile 8. svibnja kada u grad ulaze prve partizanske postrojbe I. i II. Jugoslavenske armije.

Sutradan, 9. svibnja postrojbe X. zagrebačkog korpusa JA ušle su u Zagreb. Konačan slom Nezavisne Države Hrvatske obuhvaća politički i vojnički slom. Politički slom započinje kada njezino političko vodstvo napušta državni teritorij i kada prestaju raditi državne i političke institucije. Vojnički slom jest predaja oružanih snaga NDH na Bleiburškom polju bez zapovjednika poglavnika Ante Pavelića koji se, zajedno s odanim ljudstvom, predao Saveznicima američke okupacijske zone. Saveznici su ostavili vojsku na milost i nemilost partizanima.

Nakon pregovora 15. svibnja 1945. oružane snage NDH kao i ostale poražene grupacije, srpskih i crnogorskih četničkih skupina, postrojba slovenskog domobranstva na strani Trećeg Reicha i civila u zbjegu, Britanci su izručili partizanima. Prva izručenja započela su već 10. svibnja na području Weldena, a već 16. svibnja nastavljena su masovna izručenja među kojima su izručeni pripadnici Pavelićeve straže i civili, a izručenja su se nastavila idućih dana sve do 25. svibnja kada su zarobljenici odlazili prema jugoslavenskoj granici. U istom smjeru krenuo je 19. svibnja i veći broj izbjeglica iz logora Grafensteina. Posljednji, oko 11 sati 21. svibnja, krenuli su svećenici i bogoslovi.

Kada je riječ o članovima Provincije, od svibnja do srpnja 1945. na različitim mjestima Križnog puta ubijeno je ukupno 15 franjevaca. Zahvaljujući dosadašnjim istraživanjima vicepostulatora fra Miljenka Stojića pronađeni su grobovi fratara ubijenih u Maceljskoj šumi na lokalitetu “Lepa Bukva” te grob fra Ante Majića na groblju Mirogoj u Zagrebu.

Pretpostavlja se da su između 15. i 20. svibnja fra Anđelko Nuić, fra Dane Čolak, fra Tihomir Zubac, fra Lujo Miličević i fra Svetislav Markotić pobijeni zajedno s civilima i vojnicima oružanih snaga NDH i zatrpani u protutenkovske rovove kod Maribora.

Svjedoci su kod Celja krajem svibnja 1945. vidjeli fra Brunu Adamčika. Fra Metod Puljić, fra Darinko Mikulić i fra Julijan Petrović pobijeni su 4./5. lipnja u Maceljskoj šumi na lokalitetu Lepa Bukva. Ne zna se mjesto ubojstva ni groba fra Jenka Vasilja. Postoje dvije inačice o njegovoj smrti. Prema jednoj je ubijen u Klanjcu, a prema drugoj u Zagrebu. U Zagrebu su ubijeni fra Ante Majić i fra Radoslav Glavaš. Potonji je presudom Vojnog suda Komande grada osuđen 29. lipnja, a strijeljan 30. lipnja u Zagrebu.

Svećenici koji su preživjeli Križni put odvedeni su u logore i zatvore na području Jugoslavije, a jedan od najpoznatijih zatvora bio je na Savskoj cesti u Zagrebu. Fra Ante Majić je u zatvor na Savskoj cesti stigao zajedno s fra Brunom Raspudićem, fra Ferdom Vlašićem, fra Ivom Sivrićem te s tridesetak svećenika. Iscrpljen i zlostavljan na Križnom putu, u zatvoru je dobio meningitis, od čijih je posljedica umro u Bolnici sestara milosrdnica u Zagrebu. Pokopan je na Mirogoju u franjevačku grobnicu: odjel RKT, polje 59., razred II., grobno mjesto 136.

Pretpostavlja se da je 11. svibnja u Velikoj Gorici ubijen fra Bono Jelavić. Mjesto njegovog groba još uvijek nije utvrđeno. Fra Branko Šušak posljednji put je viđen negdje oko Siska polovicom svibnja. Povjesničar fra Robert Jolić smatra da je ubijen 18. svibnja oko Maribora. Za grob mu se još uvijek ne zna. Fra Emil Stipić je odveden, između 15. i 21. svibnja 1945., iz logora u Požegi i ubijen na nepoznatom mjestu.

Odgovornost za pokolj hrvatskih civila i oružanih snaga NDH na Bleiburgu snosi vrhovni zapovjednik Jugoslavenske armije Josip Broz Tito. U izvršenju masovnih pokolja angažirane su postrojbe OZN-e (Odjeljenje za zaštitu naroda), KNOJ (Korpus narodne obrane Jugoslavije), 11. dalmatinska brigada iz sastava XXVI. dalmatinske divizije, 51. divizija III. armije JA,  6. (istočnobosanska) brigade 17. divizije JA te mnoge druge postrojbe JA. Među znanstvenicima još uvijek nema zajedničkog stava o broju pobijenih civila i vojnika na Bleiburgu.

Prema istraživanjima povjesničarke Martine Grahek Ravančić broj ubijenih civila i vojnika oružanih snaga NDH iznosi oko 50 tisuća i njima pridodaje deset tisuća Srba i deset tisuća Slovenaca što je ukupno 70 tisuća ljudi. Prema mišljenju demografa Stjepana Šterca, na Bleiburgu i Križnom putu ubijeno je između 350 tisuća i 500 tisuća Hrvata iz Hrvatske i Bosne i Hercegovine. Unatoč neslaganjima u broju žrtava možemo zaključiti kako je prvi genocid nakon završetka Drugog svjetskog rata počinjen upravo nad Hrvatima u Bleiburgu i Križnom putu od strane postrojbi JA pod vodstvo Josipa Broza Tita.

dr. sc. Hrvoje Mandić, povjesničar

EN

On the night of the 7th of May, 1945, General Alexander Löhr, the commander of the German forces on the territory of NDH [Independent State of Croatia] relinquished his command over the military forces of NDH to the Croatian head of state, Ante Pavelić. Pavelić gave the command to withdraw the NDH forces toward Koruška, and that the armed forces surrender to the British armed forces, but, in no manner, to the Partisans. The Croatian army and civilians from across the entire territory of Croatia began to withdraw toward Zagreb. This movement is often described as a “true bee hive of humanity.” It was as though all of Croatia descended upon Zagreb. The armed forces under the command of General Vjekoslav Luburić, namely, the 2nd Corpus of the Croatian Army, abandoned Zagreb on the 8th of May. Units I and II of the Partisan forces of the Jugoslav Army began to enter Zagreb that same day. The following day, the 9th of May, 1945, the units of the 10th Corps of the Jugoslav Army entered Zagreb. The Independent State of Croatia saw its final political and military defeat that day. The political defeat began when Croatia’s political leadership abandoned Croatian territory and when Croatia’s political institutions ceased to function. The military defeat took place when the armed forces of NDH surrendered in Bleiburg’s field without the presence of Croatia’s head of state, Ante Pavelić. Along with civilians loyal to Croatia, Pavelić surrendered to the Allied American Forces in the occupied zone. Meanwhile, the Allied forces abandoned the Croatian Army to the mercy—or lack thereof—of the Partisans.

Following negotiations held on the 15th of May, 1945, the Armed Forces of NDH, including other defeated Jugoslav forces such as the Serbian and Montenegrin Četnik groups, and the Slovenian Homeland Forces allied with the Third Reich, as well as the civilians who fled with the military forces were handed over to the Partisans. The very first handing over already began as early as the 10th of May, 1945, on the territory of Welden. Massive handovers of civilians who were part of Pavelić’s guard began as early as the 16th of May, 1945. These handovers continued through the 25th of May that same year, as the war-captives were force-marched toward the Jugoslav border. On the 19th of May, 1945, a large number of fugitives housed in the refugee camp in Grafenstein, began the same journey toward the Jugoslav border. The last to leave, the priests and clerics, departed the camp at eleven o’clock on the 21st of May, l945.

From May through July of 1945, fifteen members of the Hercegovinian Franciscan Province were killed on what has subsequently come to be known as the “Way of the Cross.” Thanks to the investigations of vice-postulator fra Miljenko Stojić, the graves of the friars killed in Macelj Forrest, and in the locality of Lepa Bukva, as well as the grave of fra Ante Majić in the Mirogoj Cemetery in Zagreb, were finally revealed.

It is surmised that in the period between the 15th and 20th of May, 1945, fra Anđelko Nuić, fra Dane Čolak, fra Tihomir Zubac, fra Lujo Miličević, and fra Svetislav Markotić, were slain along with civilians and soldiers of the NDH army. Their bodies were literally dumped into anti-tank ditches near the vicinity of Maribor.

Witnesses saw fra Bruno Adamčik, fra Metod Puljić, fra Darinko Mikulić, and fra Julijan Petrović near Celj toward the end of May, 1945. They were murdered on the 4th and 5th of June in the Macelj Forrest in the locality of Lepa Bukva. Neither the grave, nor the place of the murder of fra Jenko Vasilj, are known. There are two conflicting opinions as to where Jenko’s remains are located. According to one opinion, he was killed in Klanjac, while the second opinion holds that he is buried in Zagreb. Fra Ante Majić and fra Radoslav Glavaš are buried in Zagreb. By order of the Military Command, fra Radoslav Glavaš was found guilty on the 29th of June, 1945, and faced the firing squad on the 30th of June, 1945, in Zagreb.

Priests who managed to survive the “Way of the Cross” were dispatched to various camps and prisons across Jugoslavia. One of the most notorious such prisons was located on Savska Road in Zagreb. Fra Ante Majić was imprisoned along with fra Bruno Raspudić, fra Ferdo Vlašić, fra Ivo Sivrić, and thirty other priests in that same prison on Savska Road. Completely exhausted and debilitated from his forced-march along the “Way of the Cross,” fra Ante Majić developed meningitis while in prison, and died in Zagreb in the hospital under the care of the Sisters of Mercy. He was buried in the Franciscan section RKT, section 59, Class II, grave 136, in Mirogoj Cemetery, also in Zagreb. Meanwhile, it is postulated that fra Bono Jelavić was killed on the 11th of May, l945, in Velika Gorica. To date, his grave has not been verified. Fra Branko Šušak was last seen alive in the vicinity of Sisak toward the end of May 1945. Fra Robert Jolić, a historian, thinks he was killed on the 18th of May 1945, in the vicinity of Maribor. Again, his grave is still unknown. Fra Emil Stipić was captured between the 15th and 21st of May 1945, from the camp in Požega, and was killed in a yet unknown place.

The responsibility for the Bleiburg slaughter of Croatian civilians and military forces of NDH rests on the shoulders of the Commander-in-chief of the Jugoslav Army, namely, Josip Broz Tito. The massive slaughter spoken of above can be laid at the feet of the units of OZNA (Division for the Protection of the People), KNOJ (The People’s Defense Corps of Jugoslavia), the 11th Dalmatian Brigade composed of members of the XXVI Dalmatian Division, the 51st Division of the III Army of the Jugoslav Army, the 6th (East Bosnian) brigade, 17th Division of the Jugoslav Army, along with many other military units. To this day, there is little agreement among experts as to the number of civilians and soldiers killed in Bleiburg. According to the investigation undertaken by the historian Martina Grahek Ravančić, the number of civilians and soldiers of the NDH army killed by the Partisans revolves around the number 50,000. Along with them can be added some 10,000 Serbians and Slovenians. The resulting number borders on some 70,000. According to the thinking put forth by Stjepan Šterc, a demographer, somewhere between 350,000 and 500,000 Croatians from Croatia, Bosnia, and Hercegovina, were killed in Bleiburg, and along the “Way of the Cross.” Despite lack of agreement as to the number of victims slaughtered, we can, nonetheless, conclude that the first genocide committed in Bleiburg and on the forced march of the „Way of the Cross“ against Croatians directly after the cessession of hostilities at the end of World War II, was at the hands of the Jugoslav Army under the leadership of Josip Broz Tito.

Ključne riječi #Hrvoje Mandić #Martina Grahek Ravančić #pobijeni hrvatski franjevci