Darjan Godić

Civilian and Military Relations of the Yugoslav People’s Army and Insurgent Serbs — A Case Study of the Occupied Lika Municipality provides an insight into the relationships developed by civic institutions of insurgent Serbs in the Lika region and the Yugoslav People’s Army. Even though scarcely populated and underdeveloped, the Lika Municipality nonetheless had settlements with a predominantly Serbian population that, helped by the Serbian population in Northern Dalmatia, started the so-called log revolution.  The rebelled municipalities however did not have the capacity (human or material) to confront Croatian authorities up until they received support from the Yugoslav People’s Army in 1991 and proclaimed a flstate of emergency«. Thus, Serbian insurgent authorities were ill-equipped to manage their state of affairs under war circumstances, a task which was then overtaken by the Yugoslav People’s Army, resulting in limited and often negative effects on warfare performance in the Lika region.

In collective human memory, there have always been years that are remembered for the major political and social changes that took place during them. Thus, 1918 and 1945 were the years when the two world wars ended, and their outcomes shaped the political architecture of the world for many years. We can consider 1989 another such historical year, because it marked the collapse of a decades-long bipolar political world order. In 1989, the democratisation process began in communist Croatia, during which Franjo Tuđman became the key personality of the newly established non-Communist opposition. Tuđman's political ascent can today be reconstructed very easily with the help of the available documents from the former State Security Service of the Republican Secretariat of the Interior of the Socialist Republic of Croatia and the relevant literature. The main chronological divide in this paper is 17 June 1989, when the Croatian Democratic Union was established in a non-public space, and Franjo Tuđman was elected its first president.

On 2 May 1991, Serbian property in Zadar and its surrounding area came under attack. The attacks took place after months of tensions between Croats and Serbs, and later became known as the ‘Night of Broken Glass’. These tensions were the direct consequence of the Serbian armed rebellion that erupted in northern Dalmatia, Lika, and the hinterland of Zadar in August 1990. The public security system that met the rebellion was created in January 1990, when the Secretariat of the Interior for the area of the Benkovac, Biograd na Moru, Obrovac, Pag, and Zadar municipalities was established in Zadar. In this area, Croats were an absolute majority in the Biograd na Moru and Zadar municipalities, and the Serbs in the Benkovac and Obrovac municipalities. The rebellion prompted divisions not only among the population, but also among the police. By January 1991, most policemen of Serbian nationality had left the Zadar police force and joined the rebels. Despite being weakened in terms of manpower, the Zadar police for the most part managed to successfully preserve public safety. The security situation worsened after a skirmish between Croatian police and rebel Serbs at the Plitvice Lakes on 31 March 1991. A significant increase in shootings, setting of bombs, road blockades, and other forms of criminal activity, mostly nationally motivated, was recorded. In addition to the rebel Serbs, the instability was caused by the Yugoslav People’s Army (YPA), which deployed its forces in Zadar’s hinterland in early April 1991, causing alarm among the Croatian population. This deployment was part of a broader plan through which the YPA sought to set up a ‘buffer zone’ in order to close off the areas held by rebel Serbs and prevent the Croatian police from interfering. On 2 May 1991, the security situation throughout Croatia, and therefore in the area under the jurisdiction of the Zadar police, collapsed. Serb rebels killed 12 Croatian policemen in Borovo Selo near Vukovar, and severely wounded Zadar policeman Franko Lisica in Polača near Biograd na Moru; he soon died of his wounds. Despite the Croatian authorities’ calls for peace, spontaneous unrest erupted throughout Croatia, and Serbian property and companies were attacked. Furthermore, there were incidents involving the YPA. The mood of the Croatian population in Zadar after the murder of the policeman Lisica was similar to that in other parts of Croatia. Despite the municipal authorities’ calls for peace and their organising of a peaceful protest march, various uncoordinated groups demolished and plundered Serbian property on 2 May. The Zadar police failed to stop them because most of the policemen were engaged in the area affected by the Serb rebellion, while others were busy protecting the residential buildings in Zadar in which members of the YPA and their families resided. Soon, due to a feeling of insecurity, a mass exodus of Serbs from Zadar took place; these Serbs took refuge in the areas occupied by the rebels. Apart from the Zadar Serbs, Croats in the areas held by Serb rebels also began to leave their homes in early May 1991. On 1 May 1991, rebel Serbs drove many Croats from the areas around Knin. On the night of 6 to 7 May, as an act of revenge for the events in Zadar, the property of Croats, Albanians, and Croatian companies was attacked and plundered. Different sources give different data regarding the extent of the damage caused to Serbian property. Criminal charges raised by the Croatian police against unknown perpetrators on 2 May 1991 mention that 175 catering establishments, commercial premises, stands, kiosks, and automobiles were damaged. Apart from the property of Serbs, property belonging to Croats, Muslims, Roma, and Croatian companies was also damaged. There are numerous prejudices and controversies regarding the ‘Night of Broken Glass’, which mostly ignore the then security-political context. Certainly, there were those among the Croats who did not consider the attacks on Serbian property and their exodus from Zadar as anything controversial, but available sources clearly point towards the conclusion that the destruction of Serbian property was not organised and was not a part of the policy of the Croatian leadership.

The Grgo Šore Goli Otok Collection is part of a broader collection consisting of documents from personal and family bequests and is kept in the Croatian History Museum. The collection includes documentation about Goli otok (a small rocky island in the Adriatic Sea), official correspondence, newspapers and photographs. In his manuscripts, Grgo Šore described in detail all of the horrors he experienced on Goli otok during his captivity as a falsely accused "Cominformist." Particularly noteworthy are the drawings depicting the brutal treatment of inmates by the prison guards.

Rad se temelji na izvornoj arhivskoj građi Srpske vojske Krajine i literaturi. Tema rada je nastanak, razvoj, stanje i teškoće u djelovanju 18. korpusa Srpske vojske Krajine. Naglasak je na problemima logistike, odnosno problemima opskrbe jedinica, medicinske skrbi za ozlijeđene i oboljele vojnike, osiguranja prehrane i smještaja vojnika. Analizira se specifi čan položaj 18. korpusa Srpske vojske Krajine i uloga logistike u izgradnji borbenoga morala i bojne spremnosti među njegovim pripadnicima. Osim što nije mogla poduprijeti 18. korpus u izvršavanju bojnih zadataka, logistika nije uspijevala zadovoljiti primarne i sekundarne potrebe njegovih pripadnika. Logistika je bila u lošem stanju zbog općega siromaštva i neimaštine područja, nedostatka školovanoga logističkog kadra i nepostojanja vojne infrastrukture.

Rad se temelji na izvornoj arhivskoj građi Srpske vojske Krajine i literaturi. Tema rada je nastanak, razvoj, stanje i poteskoce u djelovanju 18. korpusa Srpske vojske Krajine. Naglasak rada je na problemima logistike odnosno problemima opskrbe jedinica, medicinske skrbi za ozlijeđene i oboljele vojnike, osiguranja prehrane i smjestaja vojnika. Analizira se specifican položaj 18. korpusa Srpske vojske Krajine i uloga logistike u izgradnji borbenog morala i bojne spremnosti među njegovim pripadnicima. Osim sto nije mogla poduprijeti 18. korpus u izvrsavanju bojnih zadataka, logistika nije uspijevala zadovoljiti primarne i sekundarne potrebe njegovih pripadnika. Logistika je bila u losem stanju zbog opceg siromastva i neimastine podrucja, nedostatka skolovanog logistickog kadra i nepostojanja vojne infrastrukture.

U radu se na osnovu dokumenata i svjedocenja tadasnjih politickih prvaka razmatra odvijanje vojnog manevra „Sloboda 71“ Oružanih snaga SFRJ. Manevar je održan od 2. do 9. listopada 1971. godine na podrucju tri jugoslavenske republike–Slovenije, Hrvatske i Bosne i Hercegovine. Cilj manevra bio je provjeriti spremnost jugoslavenskog socijalistickog i samoupravnog drustva za opcenarodni rat. No, manevar je bio i poruka svim neprijateljima režima da su ga OS SFRJ spremne braniti.

Autori analiziraju kako se u vodećim društveno-humanističkim znanstvenim časopisima u Hrvatskoj obrađivala tematika Domovinskoga rata. Kronološki je rad podijeljen na dva razdoblja: od 1991. do 1999. te od 2000. do 2018. godine. Rad ne sadržava bibliografiju znanstvenih i stručnih radova na temu Domovinskoga rata, nego samo one najvažnije koji su, prema mišljenju autora, pridonijeli boljem razumijevanju Domovinskoga rata.

Sigurnost je stanje u kojem su isključeni materijalni protupravni akti, osobito oni uz uporabu fizičke sile, kojima se narušavaju ili ugrožavaju osnovna prava građana i osnovni elementi društvenog poretka. Javni red i mir stanje je u kojem je osigurano neometano ostvarivanje sloboda, prava i dužnosti koje su građanima utvrđeni Usta-vom i zakonima. 1 U ljeto 1990. započela je srpska oružana pobuna u Hrvatskoj koja je zahvatila dijelove Like i Dalmacije. Na području općine Virovitica nije došlo do oružane pobune, ali je došlo do narušavanja sigurnosti, javnog reda i mira. Uhićenje Virovitičke skupine u siječnju 1991. dovelo je do prosvjeda na kojima su građani Vi-rovitice tražili bezuvjetno oslobađanje uhićenih. Prosvjedi su potrajali sve do osloba-đanja uhićenih. Od ljeta 1991. pa do početka 1992. virovitička općina bila je poprište stalnih narušavanja sigurnosti, javnog reda i mira. Ključne riječi: srpska oružana pobuna, pobunjeni Srbi, policija, sigurnost, javni red i mir, JNA, općina Virovitica.

The work uses archives and testimonies of the then political champions to analyze the course of the “Sloboda 71” military operation which was carried out by the armed forces of the SFRY. The operation took place in October 1971 on the soil of three Yugoslavian republics – Slovenia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The goal of the operation, according to the official records, was to analyze the idea of armed fighting that existed in Yugoslavian doctrine of National
defense. Units form the Yugoslavian National Army, Territorial Defense, civil care and socio-political structures took part in the operation. The large number of participants was supposed to show the readiness of the Yugoslavian socialistic and self-managing society for a nationwide war. However, from later statements made by Tito and general Nikola Ljubičić there arises an alternate explanation of the operation. It was supposed to intimidate their political opponents, which was, at that time, Croatia, because of its demands for the reconstruction of the relations within Yugoslavia.

Th e author analyses the state of logistics and combat morale in the 18th Army Corps of the Serbian Krajina. Th is Army Corps was established through reorganization of the Territorial Defence in the occupied territories of Western Slavonia. It consisted of three infantry brigades, two squadrons, a tactical group, an intervention battalion, a mixed artillery regiment and a background base. At the level of the Corps Command, logistics services were established with the purpose of supplying and equipping the units. Due to the lack of material and technical resources, as well as manpower, the corps was the smallest and the weakest within the Serbian Army of Krajina and it never reached the level anticipated in the organisation and formation plans. Th e Corps Logistics could not supply suffi cient amounts of food and equipment for the recruits. Poor nutrition and badly equipped troops had led to declining levels of morale and ability to perform combat tasks. General poverty resulted in the increase of crime and decline of military discipline among the troops. Alcoholism and disobedience had led to frequent fatal accidents among soldiers. Although the Headquarters were aware of all the problems in the Corps, they failed to entice discipline among compulsorily enlisted soldiers and to ensure regular and adequate supply of the subordinate units. Th e decline of morale, indiscipline and the lack of military equipment had caused the inability of the 18th Corps to carry out everyday combat tasks. For all its weaknesses, the Corps had not been able to successfully resist the attack from Croatian forces, which brought its fi nal collapse in May 1995.

Jugoslavenska narodna armija je od početka srpske pobune u ljeto 1990. onemogućavala hrvatskim vlastima uspostavu ustavnog poretka Republike Hrvatske na pobunjenim područjima. Nakon što su pobunjeni Srbi u srpnju 1991. proglasili ratno stanje, Jugoslavenska narodna armija otvoreno se priključila agresiji na Hrvatsku. Oružane snage pobunjenih Srba sastojale su se od Teritorijalne obrane i milicije koje je podržavala i naoružavala Jugoslavenska narodna armija, a od rujna 1991. do svibnja 1992. njima je i zapovijedala. Jugoslavenska narodna armija je na području Like od jedinica Teritorijalne obrane ustrojila 2. operativnu zonu. Prije povlačenja i dolaska mirovnih snaga Ujedinjenih naroda, Jugoslavenska narodna armija je krajem veljače 1992. preustrojila 2. operativnu zonu u Zonski štab Teritorijalne obrane. Krajem 1992. Teritorijalna obrana preimenovana je u Srpsku vojsku Krajine, dok je Zonski štab preimenovan u Lički korpus. Korpus se sastojao od pet brigada, jednog bataljuna, jedinica za potporu i pozadinske baze. Od kraja 1992. do konačnog sloma u ljeto 1995. Lički korpus nije imao većih organizacijskih promjena, ali je imao velikih poteškoća u funkcioniranju.