Croatian writers left the PEN Center BiH after the glorification of the Nazis
Writers Milenko Jergović and Ivan Lovrenović (see main photo) left the PEN Center of Bosnia and Herzegovina after forty-two of their colleagues issued an appeal by May 9 condemning the holding of a mass in Sarajevo for the Ustaše partisans executed by partisans.
Bosnian media reported this, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
“Since I do not find an ideological, cultural or identity connection between the PEN Center Bosnia and Herzegovina, in which I participated in the creation on October 31, 1992, and the PEN Center Bosnia and Herzegovina that exists today, I inform you that I do not believe yourself as a member of your organization. I demand that you remove me from your lists as of today,” Jergovich wrote.
“I do not think that history can be classified, except within ideological constraints, as better or worse, humane or inhumane, and that the writer has the task of “representing” some of these sides, as was suggested in the PEN members’ letter from May 9, 2020.
In my opinion, it is the writer who explores history and strives to comprehend it in its satirical influence on specific human lives and destinies. I had reasons for distancing myself and even leaving BiH PEN even earlier, now the last reasons I stayed have disappeared. I ask you from today to exclude me from the membership of the PEN Center in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Lovrenovic wrote in turn.
A similar step was taken by Bosnian-Croat writers after their 42 now former colleagues at the PEN Center wrote a letter on May 9 condemning Cardinal Vinko Pulic’s intention to hold a mass of memory for the Ustasha Nazis executed by Yugoslav partisans.
Outraged Sarajevo residents against the Ustashe Mass.
“We, the undersigned members of the PEN Center of Bosnia and Herzegovina, on the occasion of the European Day of Victory over Fascism, reaffirm our commitment to the anti-fascist values of freedom, equality and tolerance among peoples, which at the same time are the values defended by the charter of PEN International,” it said handling. “We therefore believe that the idea of organizing a memorial mass in Sarajevo for the fascists and their supporters who died during the withdrawal of fascist and Nazi forces towards Bleiburg is shameful for this city and for this country.
The anti-fascist position we represent is the better and more humane side of history, and in this sense, out of respect for the many innocent victims of Ustasha crimes, we demand that the planned mass be cancelled."
It is symptomatic that before Jergović and Lovrenović, two more Croatian writers left the meeting of writers – Zeljko Ivanković and Ivica Dzhikic. And the mass itself, despite the stormy protests and the demonstration of many thousands of anti-fascists who came to the church where the mass was held, still went ahead.
Despite the EU’s condemnation of this act, Croatia partially supported its fellow tribesmen, as did the leadership of the Bosnian Croats, led by the speaker of one of the chambers of the Bosnian Parliament and the leader of the leading Bosnian Croat party, the Croatian Democratic Community of BiH, Dragan Covic. At the moment, the Bosnian-Croat press is actively engaged in apologetics for the “victims of the partisans” and condemnation of “attacks on the Catholic Church.”
English version :: Read in English Croatian writers left the PEN Center BiH after the glorification of the Nazis