Page 211 - Dark Shades of Istria
P. 211
9.6 Discussion on History-Centric Dark Commemorative Events in Istria
nology, the case of w w i can be classified as historical memory, while
according to Hirsch (2008), this is third-generation memory. The hun-
dredth anniversary of wwi (2014–2018) and the related events certainly
brought a change, but apparently not a significant one in comparison with
wwi i. Pula, as the main military port of Austria-Hungary and the target
of bombing during wwi, as well as other sites linked to this war in Istria,
remain victims of a now unsystematic (and perhaps even unconscious)
damnatio memoriae. This is completely in line with the claims of Uroše-
vić (2013, p. 93) on Pula’s undefined image of a former military and port
city, and the possibilities offered by this legacy.
On the other hand, w w i i-related events dominate in the first three
out of four created groups (clusters) of dark commemorative events. Ac-
cording to this criterion, more than 80 of events are marked by wwi i,
which clearly demonstrates its importance for contemporary Istrian soci-
ety, including regional electronic media, which provide transfer of knowl-
edge and values. This can be understood as Halbwach’s (1992) collective
memory. We can say that today dark commemorative events are only a
reflection of the Istrian dark past, especially the period of fascist terror
and following w w i i, which significantly affected Slavic culture and so-
cial life. They also had an impact on the formation of the characteristic
regional identity – see sub-chapters 5.2 ‘Istrian Identity’ and 5.3 ‘Region
of Istria: A Brief Historical Overview.’ In the context of the most devel-
oped tourism region and within the dark tourism context, they can be
further typologised as ‘war tourism,’ including battlefield tourism (Fon-
seca et al., 2016; Kužnik, 2015; Kužnik and Veble, 2017) or ‘grief tourism’
(Kendle, 2008), whereas their related sites are classified as ‘dark conflict
sites associated with war and battlefields’ (Stone, 2006).
Post-w w i i-related memorial services within the mixed Cluster 3 are
related to the socialist revolution end emigration (exodus) of Italians as
well as Slavs who did not support the then new Tito’s regime – see sub-
chapter ‘w w i i, Liberation and the Cold War in Istria’ (p. 90). These
events should be in line with the claims of D’Alessio (2012b, p. 66) on fos-
tering intercultural dialogue among esuli and rimasti, the Croatians and
Slovenians, which was very difficult in the past, especially before 1991.
We found that multiculturalism codes turned out to be irrelevant and
that foreign visitors (in this case from the Upper Adriatic) do not par-
ticipate at events (or they were just not observed by journalists), which
does not demonstrate intercultural dialogue. The foibe, the Italian exo-
dus and post-w w i i violence are elements of the divided memory and
211
nology, the case of w w i can be classified as historical memory, while
according to Hirsch (2008), this is third-generation memory. The hun-
dredth anniversary of wwi (2014–2018) and the related events certainly
brought a change, but apparently not a significant one in comparison with
wwi i. Pula, as the main military port of Austria-Hungary and the target
of bombing during wwi, as well as other sites linked to this war in Istria,
remain victims of a now unsystematic (and perhaps even unconscious)
damnatio memoriae. This is completely in line with the claims of Uroše-
vić (2013, p. 93) on Pula’s undefined image of a former military and port
city, and the possibilities offered by this legacy.
On the other hand, w w i i-related events dominate in the first three
out of four created groups (clusters) of dark commemorative events. Ac-
cording to this criterion, more than 80 of events are marked by wwi i,
which clearly demonstrates its importance for contemporary Istrian soci-
ety, including regional electronic media, which provide transfer of knowl-
edge and values. This can be understood as Halbwach’s (1992) collective
memory. We can say that today dark commemorative events are only a
reflection of the Istrian dark past, especially the period of fascist terror
and following w w i i, which significantly affected Slavic culture and so-
cial life. They also had an impact on the formation of the characteristic
regional identity – see sub-chapters 5.2 ‘Istrian Identity’ and 5.3 ‘Region
of Istria: A Brief Historical Overview.’ In the context of the most devel-
oped tourism region and within the dark tourism context, they can be
further typologised as ‘war tourism,’ including battlefield tourism (Fon-
seca et al., 2016; Kužnik, 2015; Kužnik and Veble, 2017) or ‘grief tourism’
(Kendle, 2008), whereas their related sites are classified as ‘dark conflict
sites associated with war and battlefields’ (Stone, 2006).
Post-w w i i-related memorial services within the mixed Cluster 3 are
related to the socialist revolution end emigration (exodus) of Italians as
well as Slavs who did not support the then new Tito’s regime – see sub-
chapter ‘w w i i, Liberation and the Cold War in Istria’ (p. 90). These
events should be in line with the claims of D’Alessio (2012b, p. 66) on fos-
tering intercultural dialogue among esuli and rimasti, the Croatians and
Slovenians, which was very difficult in the past, especially before 1991.
We found that multiculturalism codes turned out to be irrelevant and
that foreign visitors (in this case from the Upper Adriatic) do not par-
ticipate at events (or they were just not observed by journalists), which
does not demonstrate intercultural dialogue. The foibe, the Italian exo-
dus and post-w w i i violence are elements of the divided memory and
211
