Barbara pit
Encyclopedia
The Barbara Pit is a pit near Huda Jama
in Slovenia
, known as the site of a World War II
-era mass grave. The mass grave site was first publicly discussed in 1990, after the fall of communism
in Yugoslavia
. In the 1990s a memorial chapel
was raised at the Barbara Pit site, although the exact location of any graves at that time was unknown.
Investigation of the Barbara Pit site began in August 2008. On March 3, 2009 investigators removed concrete walls built after the war to seal the cave. Behind the walls were found around 350 unidentified bodies. The victims, among whom there appear to be also women, were stripped naked before being killed, so identification is difficult. By November 7, 2009 there were 726 bodies removed from the site.
soldiers, probably Croatia
n Domobrani regulars and members of the Slovene Home Guard militia, killed by the Yugoslav People's Army
between May and September 1945. According to Marko Štrovs, head of the Slovenian government's military graves department, the victims appear to have been killed by gas. Some of the victims may also have been civilians. Andreja Valić, head of the Slovenian Research Centre for National Reconciliation, said that "current information, based on oral testimony, indicate that the slain people could have been Slovenian or Croatian citizens." It was also reported that residents in the local area had indicated the victims may be "pro-Nazi collaborators from Slovenia or Croatia".
The remains are to be removed to the nearby city of Maribor
for further analysis. Slovenian investigators believe that the soldiers were brought from the nearby Teharje
concentration camp to the site by Yugoslav officials where they were killed. Officials believe that further investigation of the area may reveal many more human remains (at least 1,000 more corpses). Croatian medical doctors offered their assistance in DNA
analysis of the remains, which could potentially be used to identify Croat victims.
, who described the scene as "horrific". In the following days, the site was visited by Slovenian Member of European Parliament and former Prime Minister Lojze Peterle
. Peterle criticised President of Slovenia
Danilo Türk
for failing to vistit the site. When asked to comment on the issue during a visit to the town of Trbovlje
on the 8th of March, the International Woman's Day, only 10 kilometers away from the mass grave, Türk refused to comment on the issue, qualifying political manipulations with the mass grave as a "second rate theme". He also dismissed the calls to visit the grave as "political manipulation"
In polemics to Türk's statements that these killings must be understood "in the context of World War Two", the Slovenian Minister of Defence Ljubica Jelušič
maintained that there cannot be any excuses for not condemning the communist killings, thus being the first high-ranking official of the Slovenian left wing government to take a stance on the issue.
On March 9, the vice-prime minister of the Croatian Government Jadranka Kosor
and the minister of internal affairs Tomislav Karamarko
visited the site. On March 10, Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader
called for a joint Croatian-Slovenian investigation into the grave.
On March 15, Montenegrin
opposition parties, the People's Party
and the Democratic Serb Party, called on Montenegro to sign an international agreement with Slovenia to facilitate the exhumation of Montenegrin victims of the war.
Huda Jama
Huda Jama is a settlement to the east of Laško in east-central Slovenia. The area was traditionally part of the Lower Styria region. It is now included with the rest of the Municipality of Laško in the Savinja statistical region....
in Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, known as the site of a World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
-era mass grave. The mass grave site was first publicly discussed in 1990, after the fall of communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
in Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
. In the 1990s a memorial chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
was raised at the Barbara Pit site, although the exact location of any graves at that time was unknown.
Investigation of the Barbara Pit site began in August 2008. On March 3, 2009 investigators removed concrete walls built after the war to seal the cave. Behind the walls were found around 350 unidentified bodies. The victims, among whom there appear to be also women, were stripped naked before being killed, so identification is difficult. By November 7, 2009 there were 726 bodies removed from the site.
Investigation
According to eyewitness accounts, the victims were mostly AxisAxis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
soldiers, probably Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n Domobrani regulars and members of the Slovene Home Guard militia, killed by the Yugoslav People's Army
Yugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army , also referred to as the Yugoslav National Army , was the military of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.-Origins:The origins of the JNA can...
between May and September 1945. According to Marko Štrovs, head of the Slovenian government's military graves department, the victims appear to have been killed by gas. Some of the victims may also have been civilians. Andreja Valić, head of the Slovenian Research Centre for National Reconciliation, said that "current information, based on oral testimony, indicate that the slain people could have been Slovenian or Croatian citizens." It was also reported that residents in the local area had indicated the victims may be "pro-Nazi collaborators from Slovenia or Croatia".
The remains are to be removed to the nearby city of Maribor
Maribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
for further analysis. Slovenian investigators believe that the soldiers were brought from the nearby Teharje
Teharje
Teharje is a settlement in the municipality of Celje in eastern Slovenia. It lies on the right bank of the Voglajna River on the eastern outskirts of Celje. The area was traditionally part of the Lower Styria region...
concentration camp to the site by Yugoslav officials where they were killed. Officials believe that further investigation of the area may reveal many more human remains (at least 1,000 more corpses). Croatian medical doctors offered their assistance in DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
analysis of the remains, which could potentially be used to identify Croat victims.
Political and institutional response
The first high-ranking official to visit the mass grave was the Slovenian General Prosecutor Barbara BrezigarBarbara Brezigar
Barbara Brezigar is a Slovenian lawyer and politician. She currently serves as State Prosecutor General of the Republic of Slovenia.She was born in a middle class family in Ljubljana as Barbara Gregorin...
, who described the scene as "horrific". In the following days, the site was visited by Slovenian Member of European Parliament and former Prime Minister Lojze Peterle
Lojze Peterle
Alojz "Lojze" Peterle is a Slovenian politician. He was the leader of the Slovene Christian Democrats from the founding of the party in 1990 until it merged with the Slovenian People's Party in 2000. Between 1990 and 1992, he was the president of the first freely elected Slovenian government, and...
. Peterle criticised President of Slovenia
President of Slovenia
The function of President of the Republic of Slovenia was established on 23 December 1991, when the National Assembly of Slovenia passed a new constitution as a result of independence from Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia....
Danilo Türk
Danilo Türk
- Early life :Türk was born in a lower middle class family in Maribor, Slovenia . His father died when he was a child. He attended the prestigious II. Gymnasium High school in Maribor. In 1971 he enrolled to the University of Ljubljana where he studied law...
for failing to vistit the site. When asked to comment on the issue during a visit to the town of Trbovlje
Trbovlje
Trbovlje is a town and municipality in central Slovenia. Traditionally the area was part of the Lower Styria region. The entire municipality is now included in the Central Sava statistical region. Located in the valley of a minor left bank tributary of the Sava River, the area is known for its...
on the 8th of March, the International Woman's Day, only 10 kilometers away from the mass grave, Türk refused to comment on the issue, qualifying political manipulations with the mass grave as a "second rate theme". He also dismissed the calls to visit the grave as "political manipulation"
In polemics to Türk's statements that these killings must be understood "in the context of World War Two", the Slovenian Minister of Defence Ljubica Jelušič
Ljubica Jelušič
Ljubica Jelušič is a Slovenian politician, currently the Minister of Defence in the government of Borut Pahor.-External links:* http://www.mo.gov.si/en/about_the_ministry/leadership/#header...
maintained that there cannot be any excuses for not condemning the communist killings, thus being the first high-ranking official of the Slovenian left wing government to take a stance on the issue.
On March 9, the vice-prime minister of the Croatian Government Jadranka Kosor
Jadranka Kosor
Jadranka Kosor is a Croatian politician and former journalist. She is the current Prime Minister of Croatia, having taken office on July 6, 2009, following the sudden resignation of her predecessor Ivo Sanader. She is Croatia's first female Prime Minister since independence.-Early life:Jadranka...
and the minister of internal affairs Tomislav Karamarko
Tomislav Karamarko
Tomislav Karamarko is a Croatian politician, and the current Minister of Internal Affairs in the Government of Croatia....
visited the site. On March 10, Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader |Split]]) is a Croatian politician who served as the Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.Sanader obtained his education in comparative literature in Austria, where he also later worked in the 1980s. He worked as a journalist, in marketing, publishing and also as a private...
called for a joint Croatian-Slovenian investigation into the grave.
On March 15, Montenegrin
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
opposition parties, the People's Party
People's Party (Montenegro)
The People's Party is an opposition populist political party in Montenegro. It is the main conservative party in Montenegro, as opposed to ruling party and its main opposition, both of which are socialist orientated.At the last legislative elections in Montenegro, in March 2009, NS formed a...
and the Democratic Serb Party, called on Montenegro to sign an international agreement with Slovenia to facilitate the exhumation of Montenegrin victims of the war.
See also
- Commission on Concealed Mass Graves in SloveniaCommission on Concealed Mass Graves in SloveniaThe Commission on Concealed Mass Graves in Slovenia is an office of the Slovenian government whose task is to find and document mass grave sites from the Second World War and the period immediately after it. It was established on November 10, 2005...
- Bleiburg massacreBleiburg massacreThe Bleiburg massacre, which also encompasses Operation Keelhaul is a term encompassing events that took place during mid-May 1945 near the Carinthian town of Bleiburg, itself some four kilometres from the Austrian-Slovenian border....
- Foibe killingsFoibe killingsThe Foibe killings or Foibe massacres refers to the killings that took place mainly in Istria during and shortly after World War II from 1943 to 1949, perpetrated mainly by Yugoslav Partisans. The name derives from a local geological feature, a type of deep karst sinkhole called a foiba...
- Kočevski RogKocevski RogThe Kočevski Rog or Kočevje Rog or simply Rog is a karstified plateau in the Kočevje Highlands above the Črmošnjice Valley. The plateau is part of the traditional Lower Carniola region of Slovenia and of the Dinaric Alps. The highest area is the central part, with the 1099 meter high peak Veliki...
External links
- Post-war Killings: Enter the Bloody History, The Slovenia Times, 03.04.2009