Communists Devastated HOS Monument in Split

Monument to the IX Battalion of Croatian Defense Forces (HOS) in Split was devastated during the night from 20^th onto 21^st October 2023 by an unknown individual. The person removed the part of the monument where slogan “Za Dom Spremni” (“For Home Ready”) was written. This act was immediately condemned by the Domovinski Pokret (“Homeland Movement”) of the Split-Dalmatian Region.

The Association of the IX Battalion of HOS made a statement, reading as follows:

“Under cover of night from Friday onto Saturday, in a cowardly and arrogant manner following the already established pattern, the monument to fallen members of the IX HOS Battalion “Rafael vitez Boban” in the Ruđer Bošković street in Split was yet again damaged.

For now unknown vandals had demolished the official coat of arms of the unit of Croatian Defense Forces, placed in memory of 46 members of the unit that were killed in the Homeland War, during Serbian aggression on Croatia.

>We hope that Croatian police will find the culprits who in such an inconsiderate way damaged the monument to heroes who had defended our country, our homeland. A similar incident had occured in 2017, and culprits were never discovered despite extensive camera coverage of the plaza, so now we are expecting quicker reaction of the members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Republic of Croatia<, said the Major Miće Ćuk, wartime commander of this unit, and Captain Renato Hittel, vice-president of the Association of the IX Battalion of HOS “Rafael vitez Boban”.

Similar feelings were expressed by other members of the unit which had passed many battlefieds, suffering many wounded and 46 dead in defense of Croatia.

They are thus disappointed and saddened by destruction of a memorial to brave soldiers who had helped win freedom for Croatia. Today they are sadly witnessing desecration of the official insignia of the unit, under which they had fought against the enemy who was murdering Croats and occupying Croatian cities with the ultimate goal of conquering Croatia itself.”.

While desecration may have been the work of a “lone-wolf” far-left activist, another possible culprit is also the urban government of the city of Split. In the last elections for the city council, majority of the votes were won by left-wing parties, that is, successors of the Communist Party of Croatia. Specifically, the division was as follows:

• Left-Wing (Communist Party successors): 13 437 votes (29,44%)
  • Hrvatska Demokratska Zajednica (HDZ) / Hrvatska Seljačka Stranka (HSS) – Zoran Đogaš: 10 866 votes (23,81%)
  • Socijaldemokratska Partija Hrvatske (SDP) / Hrvatska Stranka Umirovljenika (HSU) – Davor Matijević: 2 571 votes (5,63%)
• Left-Wing (independent and mixed): 4 036 votes (8,83%)
  • Most – Josip Markotić: 3 017 votes (6,61%)
  • Nezavisna Lista Mladih (NLM) / Hrvatska Socijalno-Liberalna Stranka (HSLS) – Hrvoje Bašić: 562 votes (1,23%)
  • Kandidacijska Lista Grupe Birača – Ante Franić: 335 votes (0,73%)
  • Hrvatska Narodna Stranka – Liberalni Demokrati (HNS) / Hrvatski Laburisti – Stranka Rada (Laburisti) – Zdenka Šarolić: 122 votes (0,26%)
• Far Left / Extreme Left: 22 277 votes (48,82%)
  • Centar – Ivica Puljak: 19 376 votes (42,47%)
  • Možemo! / Nova Ljevica – Tamara Visković: 1 733 votes (3,79%)
  • Pametno za Split i Dalmaciju – Kristina Vidan: 1 168 votes (2,56%)
• Center to Moderate Right: 3 246 votes (7,11%)
  • Hrvatska Građanska Stranka (HGS) – Željko Kerum: 3 246 votes (7,11%)
• Right-Wing: 2 571 votes (5,63%)
  • Domovinski Pokret (DP) / Hrvatska Demokršćanska Stranka (HDS) / Hrvatska Stranka Prava (HSP) / Hrvatski Suverenisti (HS) – Aris Zlodre: 2 571 votes (5,63%)

Due to the manner in which Croatian election system works, HDZ – being the biggest winner – will have received over 30% of positions in the city countil for said 24% votes. Centar, with 42,47% votes, will have received absolute majority of well over 50%. Note also that any groups noted above that failed to pass 5% of the votes did not enter the urban government.

Therefore, with Left-wing holding large majority of positions in the city council, and many – potentially majority – of them being far left, it would not be surprising if the desecration had been organized by the urban government.

In fact, the far-left government of Split had already taken the responsibility. Heads of government Ivica Puljak and Bojan Ivošević had admitted to having ordered desecration of the monument on 23.10.2023. Government, acting under cover of the darkness, had ordered secret desecration of HOS monument. It is likely not an accident that the order came after unveilling of the monument to Miljenko Smoje. Smoje was an extremist Split Leftist and Tito sympathizer, Yugoslav Nationalist, Communist, and pro-Serbian supremacy. But while there are monuments to Smoje, no such monuments exist to Oliver Dragojević and Frano Tente.

This is already the second time that monument for HOS unit had been devastated. Vandals removed the part of the monument which reads “Za Dom Spremni” (“For Home – Ready”), an old Croatian salute that had also been used by the Ustashi during World War 2 as well as by HOS during the Homeland War. While general usage is controversial due to Ustashi connections, the salute had been legally recognized as an element of official heraldry of Croatian Defense Forces as well as the associations connected to Croatian Defense Forces. Therefore the insignia is not illegal, and its removal is an act of extremist activism. Greeting had also been used by non-HOS (that is, by Croatian National Guard and Croatian Home Guard) troops and cannot really be restricted even by HOS alone. Men had died defending Croatia under this greeting, fighting not just for HOS but also for the Croatian National Guard and Special Task Forces of Croatian Police.

IX Battalion of HOS was responsible for successful defense of Škabrnja which lasted for 43 days during January and February 1992. General Gotovina sent 23 members of the battalion to Škabrnja which then was defended only by 12 members of Special Battalion “Zrinski”. Eventually number of HOS troops in Škabrnja reached 80 men. The order was simple: “protect”. Defense of Škabrnja was crucial for defense of Šibenik, and thus also Zadar and Split. HOS itself was also crucial on many other battlefields, such as Vukovar, Dubrovnik, Osijek and so on. Meanwhile, the very people who are now speaking out against HOS insignia and monuments were busy running away into foreign countries, or studying on state expense.

Rulers of Croatia are trying to forbid HOS insignia, but have no issue with the red five-pointed star under which the aggressor had killed so many during the 1990s. Already before, Croatian pro-Communist president Zoran Milanović had spoken out against other monuments to HOS, and his Minister of Police Ranko Ostojić had ordered desecration of this particular HOS monument several times before. Vesna Pusić, also known as “Mad Vesna”, and other SDP representatives had also spoken against HOS monuments. Leftists had also attacked monuments to Franjo Tudjman, who himself was opposed to HOS as he used to be a member of Tito’s Partisans, merely because Tudjman had played a role in creation of the modern, independent Croatia. Meanwhile Ivo Goldstein, while serving as Croatian ambassador in Paris, had Josip Broz Tito’s image in his office. Croatian government had also removed removal of monument in Bleiburg.

Such desecration of historical monuments and attempts at outright destruction of history are typical behavior of the leftists world over. In the United States, Leftists are destroying historical monuments all across the country. Targeted monuments include ones of Confederate generals, but also monuments of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant. It has to be understood that violent attacks against statues and monuments are no mere vandalism. They are in fact attacks on values that monuments represent: in this case, patriotism, nationalism and tradition, defense of heritage and culture. In short, desecration of monuments is an assault on civilization itself.

If not stopped, the vandals will not remain content with merely destroying the monuments. They will move onto the society itself, because that is their goal: absolute destruction in service of their ideals.

Yet Leftists oppose any demolition of monuments to Communist mass murderers. Latvian leftists opposed demolition of Soviet era and Red Army monuments, in spite of the extreme crimes – such as rapes and mass murder – that said Communist “liberators” had carried out in their very countries.