Page 137 - Dark Shades of Istria
P. 137
6.4 Other Contemporary Memorial Practices and Dark Tourism
wreath-laying ceremonies at Homeland War-related monuments in Is-
trian cities are carried out; the biggest (civil) veterans parade in Croatia
is also organised each August in Pula (hi na, 2018). In this context, a spe-
cial feature in Croatian cities are ceremonies at the crosses in cemeteries,
which is not practiced in the Slovenian part of Istria. There are fewer
examples of dark commemorative events. One of them was the opening
of a memorial at Bivje near Koper on 29 June 2016 as a remembrance of
the police clash with the ypa (Benevol, 2016). Veterans of the Slovenian
war of independence often attend dark commemorative events of wwi i
veterans and vice versa. Slovenians in general attribute great importance
to the Sovereignty Day on 25 October, which commemorates the with-
drawal of the last ypa soldier from the territory of Slovenia; the residents
of Pula/Istrian County remember a similar historic event on 16 Decem-
ber (Grad Pula, 2016). Although in Slovenia this happened in Koper, the
state celebration does not take place right in the city every year.
In 2007 a memorial called ‘the Arch of Independence’ was unveiled in
Koper. Interestingly, it was pointed out at the event that the monument is
dedicated to all anti-fascists and fighters for freedom and independence
(Združenje sever, n.d.). This is another clear sign that the connection be-
tween the values of wwi i/anti-fascism and of the War of Independence
in Slovenia⁵⁸ is more evident than in Croatia. On the other hand, the em-
pathetic attitude toward places of crime in the areas of the former fed-
eration is more explicit in the Croatian part of Istria. In Umag (Grad
Umag, 2018) and in Pula (Grad Pula, 2018b), for example, they symbol-
ically remembered the victims of Vukovar and Škabrnja in November
2017; the Roman Catholic Diocese of Poreč and Pula was also involved
in the programme of the commemoration (Porečka i Pulska biskupija,
2015a), which is not a common practice in Slovenia at all. Moreover, the
people of Istria express a certain degree of empathy towards the victims
of Srebrenica as well, e.g. in Buzet (Čalić Šverko, 2018b) or in Pula (Grad
Pula, 2017). Preservation of memory and compassion are therefore im-
portant elements of Istrian memorial practices, including cases of tragic
(military) events and victims outside the region. Such memory practices,
however, are not characteristic of the Slovenian part of Istria.
Before the conclusion, it is necessary to highlight some examples of
Istrian tourism that do not completely support the idea of demilitarisa-
⁵⁸ More examples can be found on the web page of the Association of Slovenian officers
(http://www.zsc.si/location/koper/).
137
wreath-laying ceremonies at Homeland War-related monuments in Is-
trian cities are carried out; the biggest (civil) veterans parade in Croatia
is also organised each August in Pula (hi na, 2018). In this context, a spe-
cial feature in Croatian cities are ceremonies at the crosses in cemeteries,
which is not practiced in the Slovenian part of Istria. There are fewer
examples of dark commemorative events. One of them was the opening
of a memorial at Bivje near Koper on 29 June 2016 as a remembrance of
the police clash with the ypa (Benevol, 2016). Veterans of the Slovenian
war of independence often attend dark commemorative events of wwi i
veterans and vice versa. Slovenians in general attribute great importance
to the Sovereignty Day on 25 October, which commemorates the with-
drawal of the last ypa soldier from the territory of Slovenia; the residents
of Pula/Istrian County remember a similar historic event on 16 Decem-
ber (Grad Pula, 2016). Although in Slovenia this happened in Koper, the
state celebration does not take place right in the city every year.
In 2007 a memorial called ‘the Arch of Independence’ was unveiled in
Koper. Interestingly, it was pointed out at the event that the monument is
dedicated to all anti-fascists and fighters for freedom and independence
(Združenje sever, n.d.). This is another clear sign that the connection be-
tween the values of wwi i/anti-fascism and of the War of Independence
in Slovenia⁵⁸ is more evident than in Croatia. On the other hand, the em-
pathetic attitude toward places of crime in the areas of the former fed-
eration is more explicit in the Croatian part of Istria. In Umag (Grad
Umag, 2018) and in Pula (Grad Pula, 2018b), for example, they symbol-
ically remembered the victims of Vukovar and Škabrnja in November
2017; the Roman Catholic Diocese of Poreč and Pula was also involved
in the programme of the commemoration (Porečka i Pulska biskupija,
2015a), which is not a common practice in Slovenia at all. Moreover, the
people of Istria express a certain degree of empathy towards the victims
of Srebrenica as well, e.g. in Buzet (Čalić Šverko, 2018b) or in Pula (Grad
Pula, 2017). Preservation of memory and compassion are therefore im-
portant elements of Istrian memorial practices, including cases of tragic
(military) events and victims outside the region. Such memory practices,
however, are not characteristic of the Slovenian part of Istria.
Before the conclusion, it is necessary to highlight some examples of
Istrian tourism that do not completely support the idea of demilitarisa-
⁵⁸ More examples can be found on the web page of the Association of Slovenian officers
(http://www.zsc.si/location/koper/).
137
