Persecution of Croats in Serbia during the Yugoslav Wars

Persecution of Croats in Serbia during the Yugoslav Wars
Part of The Yugoslav Wars
LocationHrtkovci, Šid, Nikinci, Ruma, Slankamen, Vojvodina, FR Yugoslavia
Date1991-1999
TargetCroats
Attack type
Deportations, Mass Murder
Deaths17
Victims20,000-50,000 Croats deported
PerpetratorsSerbian Radical Party
ConvictedVojislav Šešelj

During the Yugoslav Wars, members of the Serbian Radical Party conducted a campaign of intimidation and persecution against the Croats of Serbia through hate speech.[1][2][3][4] These acts forced a part of the local Croat population to leave the area in 1992. Most of them were resettled in Croatia.[1][2][5][6] The affected locations included Hrtkovci, Nikinci, Novi Slankamen, Ruma, Šid, and other places bordering Croatia.[1] According to some estimates, around 10,000 Croats left Vojvodina under political pressure in three months of 1992,[7] and a total of 20,000 fled by the end of the year.[8] Between 20,000[7][8] and 25,000[9] to 30,000 according to Human Rights NGOs [10] to 50,000 [11][12] Croats fled Vojvodina in the 1990s in total. Another 6,000 left Kosovo and 5,000 Serbia Proper, including Belgrade.[13]

The U.N.-backed International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) later indicted Vojislav Šešelj for the specific case of the departure of Croats from Hrtkovci. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison for persecution on political, racial or religious grounds, deportation and forced transfer as a crime against humanity, making it the only conviction of the Tribunal in relation to Yugoslav Wars on the territory of Vojvodina.

Description

Vojvodina is a province of Serbia. According to the 1991 census, its population was 2,012,517. Serbs comprised 57.2%, Hungarians 16.9% of its population, or 1,151,353 and 430,946 members, respectively. Croats numbered 74,226 members or 3.7% of Vojvodina's population (down from 109,203 from the 1981 census),[14][15] and 105,406 members in Serbia as a whole.[16]

Hrtkovci incident

Affected places on the map of Serbia

Following the Dissolution of Yugoslavia and Yugoslav Wars, the Serb-Croat relations deteriorated. In 1991, Hrtkovci was an ethnically mixed village with Croatian plurality (40.2%),[13] located roughly 40 miles west of Belgrade. Vojislav Šešelj, the leader of the Serbian Radical Party, made numerous public threats to Croats in Hrtkovci in May 1992.[17][18] On 1 and 7 April 1992, Šešelj called for the expulsion of Croats from Serbia at the Serbian Parliament.[19] Radicals replaced all Latin signs with Cyrillic ones and even renamed Hrtkovci to "Srbislavci" – 'place of Serbs' – though only for a short amount of time.[2] Šešelj personally visited Hrtkovci on 6 May 1992 and gave a hate speech in front of a rally of Serb nationalists by publicly reading out a list of 17 Croat "traitors" who must leave the village.[2][20][4] In the speech, Šešelj said:

In this village, too, in Hrtkovci, in this place in Serbian Srem, there is no room for Croats... Including those from here, from Hrtkovci, who locked up their houses and left, reckoning, I suppose, that they would come back one day, but our message to them is: no, you have nowhere to return to. Serbian refugees will move into their houses...I firmly believe that you, Serbs from Hrtkovci and other villages around here, will also know how to preserve your harmony and unity, that you will promptly get rid of the remaining Croats in your village and the surrounding villages.[21]

Following the threats, one part of local Croats rushed to Croatia to see the houses which were offered to them in the planned population transfer. Incoming Serb refugees labeled Croats as "fascists".[5] One Croat was even murdered by the radicals.[22] Šešelj's party even crafted a slogan for their campaign: "All Croats out of Hrtkovci".[4] In 1991, Hrtkovci had 2,684 residents, including 1,080 Croats (40.2%), 555 Serbs and Montenegrins (20.7%), 515 Hungarians (19.2%), and 445 Yugoslavs (16.6%).[13] By the end of 1992, 75% of its residents were Serbs.[5]

The number of Croats who left from the village of Hrtkovci was between 722[23] and 1,200.[24] Their empty homes were settled by Serb refugees from Croatia and Bosnia. Likewise, some Serbs tried to protect their Croatian neighbors.[25] After the events, Yugoslav authorities arrested five radicals who were responsible for harassment of Croats. [2]

Rest of Serbia

In its 1993 report, published during its 49th session, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights wrote that Hungarians and Croats in Vojvodina were subjected to "verbal and physical threats and other acts of intimidation, including setting houses on fire and destroying cultural and religious monuments", and thus left their homes in large numbers after Vojvodina lost its autonomy. Another reason for their departure was that many were refusing to be drafted in the Yugoslav army, fearing they might be sent to the battle front.[3] Besides Hrtkovci, the report documented an exodus of Croats from Kukujevci and Novi Slankamen, as a result of threats and the bombing of their houses. The villages of Beška and Golubinci were said to have lost their entire respective Croat population. Other means of intimidation included threatening telephone calls and letters. The report alleged that "the police have acquiesced in some of the incidents which have been attributed to individuals."[3] On 23 February 1993, the Commission adopted a resolution expressing its "grave concern" at the "violations of human rights occurring in Sandžak and Vojvodina, particularly acts of physical harassment, abductions, the burning of homes, warrantless searches, confiscation of property and other practices intended to change the ethnic structure in favour of the Serbian population."[26]

On 29 August 1992, the BBC reported bombings of Croatian homes in the village of Nikinci.[27] In Golubinci, twenty cases were recorded where bombs were planted inside Croat houses. A 28-year old Croat woman was killed in her home on 7 February 1994.[13] The Serbian Humanitarian Law Centre, based in Belgrade, has documented at least 17 instances of killings or disappearances of Croats from Vojvodina from 1991-1995.[28] In many instances, entire Croat families were abducted and murdered. On the 20 April 1992, the Matijević family, consisting of Ana and Jozo Matijević and their underage son, Franjo, were kidnapped by unknown Serb militiamen from the village of Kukujevci. From there, they were taken to Mohovo, then occupied by Croatian Serb forces, where the family was then murdered and buried in the village cemetery.[29] In July 1993, another Croat family from Kukujevci, consisting of Nikola and Agica Oksomić and 87-year-old Marija Tomić, Agica's mother, were murdered by two local Serb volunteers fighting for Croatian Serb forces in Croatia.[30]

According to different sources, between 20,000[8] and 25,000[31] Croats left Vojvodina in the 1990s. Some sources even place the number at up to 50,000. [32] [33] Another 6,000 left Kosovo and 5,000 Serbia Proper, including Belgrade.[13]

In 2003, Vojislav Šešelj was indicted by the U.N. established International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). On 11 April 2018, the Appeals Chamber of the follow-up International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) sentenced him to 10 years in prison under Counts 1, 10, and 11 of the indictment for instigating deportation, persecution on political, racial or religious ground (forcible displacement), and other inhumane acts (forcible transfer) as crimes against humanity due to his speech in Hrtkovci on 6 May 1992, in which he called for the expulsion of Croats from Vojvodina. [34][35][36] The verdict was compared with similar hate speech propaganda judgements, such as the ICTY case of Radoslav Brđanin, and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda case of Jean-Paul Akayesu, where it was ruled that instigation is punishable when the speech is followed by subsequent criminal conduct.[19] The Appeals Chamber concluded the following:

...many non-Serbian civilians left Hrtkovci by way of housing exchanges with Serbian refugees in the context of coercion, harassment, and intimidation... In addition, given that the acts of violence and intimidation were aimed at non-Serbian civilians, particularly Croatians, the only reasonable inference is that the acts of forcible displacement amounted to discrimination in fact, were carried out with discriminatory intent on ethnic grounds, and constituted part of a widespread or systematic attack against the non-Serbian civilian population, encompassing also areas in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.[37]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "The Prosecutor against Vojislav Seselj - Third Amended Indictment" (PDF). ICTY. December 2007. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d e Marcus Tanner (August 1992). "'Cleansing' row prompts crisis in Vojvodina". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
  3. ^ a b c "Situation of Human Rights in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia" (PDF). United Nations Commission on Human Rights. 10 February 1993. p. 40—41. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  4. ^ a b c Final report of the United Nations Commission of Experts, established pursuant to UN Security Council resolution 780 (1992), Annex III.A — M. Cherif Bassiouni; S/1994/674/Add.2 (Vol. IV), 27 May 1994, Special Forces Archived 2011-04-30 at the Wayback Machine, (paragraph 1091). Accessdate January 20, 2011
  5. ^ a b c Chuck Sudetic (July 26, 1992). "Serbs Force An Exodus From Plain". New York Times. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
  6. ^ "Podsećanje na slučaj Hrtkovci". B92. May 4, 2005. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
  7. ^ a b Naegele, Jolyon (February 21, 2003). "Serbia: Witnesses Recall Ethnic Cleansing As Seselj Prepares For Hague Surrender". Radio Free Europe. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  8. ^ a b c Ahrens, Geert-Hinrich (2007). Diplomacy on the Edge: Containment of Ethnic Conflict and the Minorities Working Group of the Conferences on Yugoslavia. Woodrow Wilson Center Press. p. 258. ISBN 9780801885570.
  9. ^ "The Economist". Vol. 336, no. 7926–7929. Economist Newspaper Limited. 1995. p. 42. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  10. ^ "Two Decades Since Expulsion of Vojvodina Croats". Balkan Insight. 8 May 2012.
  11. ^ "Anniversary of SRS rally in Vojvodina town". Archived from the original on 2010-05-10. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
  12. ^ (in Serbian) Sedamnaest godina od proterivanja Hrvata iz Hrtkovaca, Zoran Glavonjić
  13. ^ a b c d e "Položaj manjina u Vojvodini" (PDF). Zrenjanin: Center for Development of Civil Society. 1998. p. 13, 14, 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 May 2018. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
  14. ^ Andreas Klinke; Ortwin Renn; Jean-Paul Lehners, eds. (2018). Ethnic Conflicts and Civil Society: Proposals for a New Era in Eastern Europe. Routledge. p. 144. ISBN 9781351758758.
  15. ^ B. Hunter, ed. (2016). The Statesman's Year-Book 1993-94. Springer. p. 1621. ISBN 9780230271227.
  16. ^ "Ethnic Minorities in Serbia" (PDF). OSCE. February 2008. p. 12.
  17. ^ "Slučaj Šešelj - Vojislav Šešelj - Izjave" (in Serbian). Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia. Retrieved 2011-09-02.
  18. ^ "Warning that couldn't be ignored". Sense Agency. 2010-02-16. Retrieved 2011-09-02.
  19. ^ a b Elewa Badar, Mohamed; Florijančič, Polona (2020). "The Prosecutor v. Vojislav Šešelj: A Symptom of the Fragmented International Criminalisation of Hate and Fear Propaganda". International Criminal Law Review. 20 (3): 405–491. doi:10.1163/15718123-bja10002.
  20. ^ "Drastic Changes in Ethnic Composition of Population". Sense Agency. 21 October 2008. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  21. ^ "D. Šešelj's crimes in Hrtkovci" (PDF). The Hague: International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. 5 February 2012. pp. 149–150.
  22. ^ Roger Cohen (August 31, 1992). "A Farm Village in Serbia Distills War Into Hatred". New York Times. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
  23. ^ "The charges against Vojislav Seselj". BBC News. 2003-02-24. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
  24. ^ "Anniversary of SRS rally in Vojvodina town". B92. Archived from the original on 2010-05-10. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
  25. ^ "Kandić: Šešelja za Hrtkovce optužuju i Srbi". Vesti online. May 6, 2010. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
  26. ^ "Situation of Human Rights in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia—49th session". United Nations Commission on Human Rights. 23 February 1993. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  27. ^ "Chronology for Croats in Yugoslavia". Minorities at Risk Project. 2004. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  28. ^ "Dossier Documents Serbian State Involvement in Driving Out Croats". 31 January 2019.
  29. ^ "Complaint Filed About Croat Family's Wartime Murder in Serbia".
  30. ^ "Complaint Filed About Croat Family's Wartime Murder in Serbia".
  31. ^ "The Economist". Vol. 336, no. 7926–7929. Economist Newspaper Limited. 1995. p. 42. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  32. ^ "Anniversary of SRS rally in Vojvodina town". Archived from the original on 2010-05-10. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
  33. ^ (in Serbian) Sedamnaest godina od proterivanja Hrvata iz Hrtkovaca, Zoran Glavonjić
  34. ^ "APPEALS CHAMBER REVERSES ŠEŠELJ'S ACQUITTAL, IN PART, AND CONVICTS HIM OF CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY". United Nations Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals. 11 April 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  35. ^ "UN court sentences ultranationalist Serb leader to 10 years". TRT World. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  36. ^ "Serbia: Conviction of war criminal delivers long overdue justice to victims". Amnesty International. 11 April 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  37. ^ "Prosecutor v. Vojislav Šešelj - Judgement" (PDF). The Hague: International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals. 11 April 2018. p. 66.

Read other articles:

Questa voce sull'argomento stagioni delle società calcistiche italiane è solo un abbozzo. Contribuisci a migliorarla secondo le convenzioni di Wikipedia. Segui i suggerimenti del progetto di riferimento. Voce principale: Associazione Calcio Fanfulla 1874. Associazione Sportiva FanfullaStagione 1946-1947Sport calcio Squadra Fanfulla Allenatore Mario Villini Presidente Enzo Paolo Tacchini Serie B11º posto nel girone A. Maggiori presenzeCampionato: Mario Begni (41) Miglior marcator...

 

Colombian Space CommissionComisión Colombiana del EspacioAgency overviewFormedJuly 18, 2006; 17 years ago (2006-07-18)Website[1] The Colombian Space Commission (CSC) is Colombia’s government body for the promotion and use of space. It is in charge of promoting the development of space technology and communication satellites as well as applications for the navigation and maritime transportation in Colombia. It also works in the observation and surveillance of the country's...

 

ProyekWiki Perkeretaapian (Dinilai kelas templat) PerkeretaapianWikipedia:ProyekWiki PerkeretaapianTemplat:ProyekWiki PerkeretaapianArtikel perkeretaapian Portal Perkeretaapian Indonesia lbsTemplat ini berada dalam ruang lingkup ProyekWiki Perkeretaapian, salah satu proyek bersama komunitas Wikipedia yang dibuat untuk memajukan artikel bertopik Perkeretaapian dan Transportasi rel di Wikipedia. Jika Anda hendak berpartisipasi, silakan kunjungi ProyekWiki Perkeretaapian, tempat Anda dapat berg...

Most recent period in the history of German This article is about the history of New High German. For a description of New High German grammar, see German language. New High GermanNeuhochdeutschNative toGermany, Austria, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Netherlands,Language familyIndo-European GermanicWest GermanicGermanHigh GermanNew High GermanEarly formsOld High German Middle High German Early New High German Writing systemGerman alphabetOfficial statusOfficial language in...

 

 本表是動態列表,或許永遠不會完結。歡迎您參考可靠來源來查漏補缺。 潛伏於中華民國國軍中的中共間諜列表收錄根據公開資料來源,曾潛伏於中華民國國軍、被中國共產黨聲稱或承認,或者遭中華民國政府調查審判,為中華人民共和國和中國人民解放軍進行間諜行為的人物。以下列表以現今可查知時間為準,正確的間諜活動或洩漏機密時間可能早於或晚於以下所歸�...

 

Stadium in Adelaide, South Australia This article may be too long to read and navigate comfortably. Consider splitting content into sub-articles, condensing it, or adding subheadings. Please discuss this issue on the article's talk page. (January 2023) Adelaide OvalThe renovated Adelaide Oval in 2015Full nameAdelaide OvalLocationWar Memorial DriveNorth Adelaide, South AustraliaAustraliaCoordinates34°54′56″S 138°35′46″E / 34.91556°S 138.59611°E / -34.91556; ...

This article is about former units of USMC stationed in China. For the various Marine Corps of China, see Chinese Marine Corps (disambiguation). For the memoir by EB Sledge, see China Marine (memoir). China MarinesNorth China MarinesA detachment of U.S. China Marines, in a relief party, in Peiping, China, during the Boxer Rebellion of 1900.Active1844–1941, 1900, 1925, 1927–1941Disbanded1941Allegiance United States of AmericaBranch United States Marine CorpsTypeMarine Embassy Gua...

 

Material from the tusks of a walrus Pacific Walrus at Cape Peirce Ceremonial ivory masks produced by Yupik in Alaska A walrus ivory chess set, mid-18th century, Russia Engraved walrus tusk depicting polar bears attacking walrus, dating from the 1940s in Chukotka (Magadan Regional Museum). Walrus ivory, also known as morse,[1] comes from two modified upper canines of a walrus. The tusks grow throughout life and may, in the Pacific walrus, attain a length of one metre.[2] Walrus...

 

Pride March Dili, 2019 A Timor Est le persone LGBT non sono perseguitate all'interno del paese e godono di qualche tutela contro la discriminazione. Le coppie omosessuali non godono di alcuna tutela legale per la propria unione. Indice 1 Legge sull'attività sessuale tra persone dello stesso sesso 2 Protezioni contro la discriminazione 3 Condizioni di vita 4 Tabella riassuntiva 5 Note 6 Altri progetti Legge sull'attività sessuale tra persone dello stesso sesso L'omosessualità è legale dal ...

Wakil Bupati Tulang BawangPetahanaHendriwansyahsejak 18 Desember 2017Masa jabatan5 tahunDibentuk2002Pejabat pertamaA.A. SofyandiSitus webtulangbawangkab.go.id Berikut ini adalah daftar Wakil Bupati Tulang Bawang dari masa ke masa. No Potret Wakil Bupati Mulai Jabatan Akhir Jabatan Prd. Ket. Bupati 1 A.A. Sofyandi 2002 2007 1   Drs. H.Abdurachman SarbiniS.H., M.M. 2 Drs.Agus MardihartonoM.M. 2007 2012 2   3 Heri WardoyoS.H. 17 Desember 2012 28 Oktober 2016 3 [Ket. 1] Ir....

 

Solomon Schonfeld Solomon Schonfeld (21 febbraio 1912 – 6 febbraio 1984) è stato un rabbino britannico considerato uno degli eroi dell'Olocausto più importanti e al tempo stesso anche uno dei meno conosciuti[1]. Indice 1 Biografia 2 Gli anni dell'Olocausto 2.1 Dopo la seconda guerra mondiale 3 Note 4 Bibliografia 5 Collegamenti esterni Biografia Schonfeld era il secondo di sette figli del rabbino Avigdor e di Rochel Leah Schonfeld.[2] È vissuto a Londra[1] e fu is...

 

此條目没有列出任何参考或来源。 (2016年6月26日)維基百科所有的內容都應該可供查證。请协助補充可靠来源以改善这篇条目。无法查证的內容可能會因為異議提出而被移除。 拳皇'99 千年之战ザ・キング・オブ・ファイターズ'99The King of Fighters '99: Millennium Battle类型格斗游戏平台街机、Neo Geo、Neo-Geo CD、PlayStation、Dreamcast、PlayStation Network(PlayStation 3、PlayStation Portable)、Wii(V...

Pencak silat padaPekan Olahraga Nasional XIX Seni Putra Putri   Tunggal     Tunggal     Ganda Ganda Regu Regu Tanding Putra Putri   Kelas A     Kelas A     Kelas B Kelas B Kelas C Kelas C Kelas D Kelas D Kelas E Kelas E Kelas F Kelas F Kelas G Kelas H Kelas I Pencak silat kelas F putri pada Pekan Olahraga Nasional XIX dilaksanakan pada tanggal 20 sampai 24 september 2016 di Graha Laga Satria, ITB Jatinangor,Kabupaten Sumedang, Jawa Barat.[...

 

Device used to focus light using diffraction Binary zone plate: The areas of each ring, both light and dark, are equal. Sinusoidal zone plate: This type has a single focal point. A zone plate is a device used to focus light or other things exhibiting wave character.[1] Unlike lenses or curved mirrors, zone plates use diffraction instead of refraction or reflection. Based on analysis by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel, they are sometimes called Fresnel zone plates in his honor. ...

 

Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat DaerahKabupaten Mamberamo RayaDewan Perwakilan RakyatKabupaten Mamberamo Raya2019-2024JenisJenisUnikameral Jangka waktu5 tahunSejarahSesi baru dimulai29 Mei 2020PimpinanKetuaElias Basutey, S.Pd. (Golkar) sejak 11 September 2020 Wakil Ketua IMathius Fuyeri (PBB) sejak 11 September 2020 Wakil Ketua IIOktovianus Meop (Hanura) sejak 11 September 2020 KomposisiAnggota20Partai & kursi  PSI (2)   PDI-P (1)   NasDem (2)   ...

British Army general (1804–1870) For other people named Charles Grey, see Charles Grey (disambiguation). GeneralThe Honourable[1]Charles GreyPrivate Secretary to the SovereignIn office1861–1870MonarchVictoriaPreceded byAlbert, Prince Consort (unofficial)Succeeded bySir Henry Ponsonby Personal detailsBorn(1804-03-15)15 March 1804Died31 March 1870(1870-03-31) (aged 66)NationalityBritishSpouseCaroline Eliza Grey (née Farquhar)Children5, including Albert and LouisaParent(s)Charl...

 

German sculptor (1776–1851) This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please help improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (December 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Self portrait 1805/1806 C. F. Tieck: Clemens Brentano, 1803 Alexander von Humboldt by Christian Friedrich Tieck 1805, Albertinum, Dresden Christian Friedrich Tieck (14 August 1776 – 24 Ma...

 

Argentine tennis player This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentially libelous.Find sources: Agustín Calleri – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (November 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)...

この記事には参考文献や外部リンクの一覧が含まれていますが、脚注による参照が不十分であるため、情報源が依然不明確です。 適切な位置に脚注を追加して、記事の信頼性向上にご協力ください。(2020年5月) この記事で示されている出典について、該当する記述が具体的にその文献の何ページあるいはどの章節にあるのか、特定が求められています。 ご存知の方は...

 

بلاد الباسك أو بلاد البشكنش (بالباسكية Euskal Herria وتلفظ ‎[eus̺kal‿eri.´a]‏) هو إقليم ضخم يمتد عبر جبال البيرينييه الغربية على الحدود ما بين فرنسا وإسبانيا تصل مساحتها لحوالي 20 ألف كم². بلاد الباسك مقسوم سياسيا بين دولتي فرنسا وإسبانيا. ويمتد الإقليم حتى شاطئ خليج البسكاي. وتع�...