The 78th anniversary of the Bleiburg tragedy and the Croatian people's Way of the Cross was commemorated at Zagreb's Mirogoj cemetery on Saturday, with Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic laying wreaths in honour of the victims.

The delegations accompanying Plenkovic and Jandrokovic included War Veterans Minister Tomo Medved, Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic and Defence Ministry state secretary Branko Hrg.

The commemoration was organised by the Honorary Bleiburg Platoon, the Croatian Bishops Conference was the co-organiser for the religious part, and it was held under the auspices of the Croatian parliament, with the Croatian National Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina as co-sponsor.

Speaking to the press, Jandrokovic said today was a commemoration for a tragic event in Croatian history, a crime committed in retaliation, out of revenge, a crime which had not been talked about for 45 years.

“Those who ordered it and those who executed it kept quiet because they knew what atrocities those were and they knew that it was contrary to both international law and all conventions. But those who lost their loved ones also kept quiet, those who survived the Way of the Cross, for fear of a new retaliation by the communist system,” Jandrokovic said.

The Bleiburg tragedy showed the “character of the communist Yugoslavia, which was a totalitarian, undemocratic state which also had elements of a criminal state,” he added. “This case of Bleiburg and the Way of the Cross confirms that and there were events later on in those 45 years which pointed to the criminal character of that state.”

That’s why today, as a strong democratic state, we must look truthfully on our history and “condemn all totalitarian systems that existed in this region, condemn the crimes and the criminals and pay our respects to the victims,” Jandrokovic said.

Future generations must know that freedom, democracy and peace don’t come automatically, that there are always those ready to commit crimes, to take away other people’s freedom and peace, so it’s necessary to strengthen the institutions and, in particular, awareness among youth that it is always worth it to fight for freedom and peace, he added.

It is better to commemorate the Bleiburg tragedy in Croatia than in Austria because it’s an event from Croatian history, and the fact that it is no longer commemorated in Austria is not a defeat of Croatia’s foreign policy, Jandrokovic said.

“It’s a matter of choice. What happened should also be commemorated at Bleiburg field, a mass was celebrated, the Croatian ambassador to Austria laid a wreath on behalf of the government and parliament. I repeat, this is about our compatriots, this is part of Croatian history, this is a tragedy of the Croatian people and we should commemorate it here,” he added.

The prime minister does not consider that a defeat of Croatia’s foreign policy either. He said it was important that such events were “commemorated in a dignified manner” and that today’s commemoration at Mirogoj and the mass to be held in the town of Macelj were appropriate.

Plenković underlined the importance of nurturing a culture of remembrance “which will talk respectfully and truthfully about the victims, about the crimes of which, unfortunately, there were many in our history, so that young generations know what happened in the key moments in Croatian history.”

The end of World War Two brought victory over Nazism, freedom and peace to the European continent, but the crimes that happened represent one of the painful memories, a tragedy of the Croatian people in the 20th century, and “are a reminder of the criminal character of totalitarian systems and the great pain and suffering which that tragedy caused to a huge number of Croatian families, Croatian people,” Plenkovic said.

That’s why this commemoration, and others during the year, particularly those for key moments from the Homeland War, “are extremely important for the cohesion of our people, for a better understanding, for a tolerant society, and for nurturing the culture of remembrance as one of the key European values,” he added.

After the commemoration, the Archbishop of Zagreb, Monsignor Dražen Kutleša, will celebrate mass at Macelj, with the heads of government and parliament attending.

Tens of thousands of Croatian civilians and soldiers of the defeated pro-Nazi Independent State of Croatia (NDH) surrendered to Allied forces at Bleiburg, Austria in May 1945, but were handed over by British troops to Tito-led Yugoslav Partizan forces.

Some were executed on the spot, while many perished during death marches, known in Croatia as the Way of the Cross, on their way back to Yugoslavia in the second half of 1945.

Based on the 1,247 victims exhumed to date, Macelj is among the largest killing sites of the communist regime in Croatia. According to some estimates, in Macelj and nearby forests more than 10,000 people were killed in early June 1945.