The NGO covers the plaque with a letter.
The memorial plaque, which was put up on the building of a kindergarten in Jasenovac by HOS association and which includes names of HOS members killed during the Homeland War, as well as the controversial Ustasha salute “For Homeland Ready”, was covered by a letter on Thursday by the Youth Initiative, reports Novi List on December 29, 2016.
“We have done this in order to defend the basic values of Croatia, in the absence of adequate response by government institutions of this country. The plaque contains ‘For Homeland Ready’ inscription which, as confirmed by the Constitutional Court, represents a manifestation of racist ideology and praises the fascist regime of the Independent State of Croatia”, said the NGO in a statement.
Parliamentary Committee on the Constitution and Political System decided at a session held on 14 December that the text on the plaque was an insult to the victims of the Jasenovac concentration camp and to all the victims of the Ustasha regime. The Committee called on “competent authorities to take the necessary actions that will protect the dignity of the victims and the memory of them”.
“Since the government led by Prime Minister Andrej Plenković has not taken any significant action and has not shown a minimum of political courage in protecting the values and fundamental principles of Croatia, we have covered the plaque, without damaging it, with a letter addressed to members of association which has put it up”, said the Youth Initiative in a statement.
In the letter, the Youth Initiative points out that HOS members oppose the fundamental values of Croatian state and have used their killed comrades for promoting efforts which oppose the constitutional principles. The Initiative says that the Republic of Croatia is constitutionally defined as a state which guarantees to all its citizens civil and human rights, and whose institutions are based on democratic principles.
“It is shameful and discouraging that there is no adequate response of those in power and state institutions, which are required, in the name of defence of constitutional principles of the Republic of Croatia, to sanction acts such as yours”, says the Initiative in its letter, calling on HOS members to remove symbols of fascism and hatred.
“If you really care about the national interests of Croatia, about democracy, peace, stability and security, you should remove from this and every other place all symbols of fascism and hatred. We hope that you will understand that in this way, in addition to honouring your comrades, you would also show respect for the state you live in and its fundamental principles”, concluded the Youth Initiative in a letter which covered the memorial plaque in Jasenovac.
In the afternoon, the Sisak-Moslavina Police Department announced that police officers identified persons who covered the plaque and talked with them. The police added that the perpetrators admitted that they had covered the plaque and did not resist, so there were no coercion measures applied. A special police report will be forwarded to the State Prosecutor’s Office, which will decide whether there are any elements of a criminal offense.
