Ministers of culture and veterans’ affairs were accompanied by many representatives of right-wing parties.
On Sunday night, at a packed town square in Drage that bears his name, a monument to Miro Barešić was inaugurated. He was a man who assassinated Yugoslav Ambassador in Sweden Vladimir Rolović in 1971. At the beginning of the Homeland War, he returned from the exile and in 1991 was killed in an operation in the hinterland of Biograd under still unexplained circumstances, reports Jutarnji List and N1 on August 1, 2016.
Among many people who attended the inauguration of the monument, there was no doubt whether he was a terrorist or a patriot, and the organizers and members of the security staff wore shirts with the inscription “Miro Barešić – Croatian Knight”.
Before the inauguration, historian Josip Jurčević called Barešić “a martyr and hero who represented Croatian values”. Persecuted and belittled, Miro was consistent and returned to Croatia, putting himself in the services of the homeland, said Jurčević.
Among those present at the ceremony, the loudest applause was received by Culture Minister Zlatko Hasanbegović and General Ante Gotovina. Also present were generals Josip Lukić and Ljubo Ćesić Rojs, HSP AS general secretary Pero Ćorić and party president Ivan Tepeš, as well as Dražen Keleminec, the organizer of recent protests against events marking the anniversary of antifascist uprising in Srb. The event was also attended by MPs Željko Glasnović, Miro Bulj and Goran Dodig, and several local politicians, including president of HDZ Zadar city branch Joso Nekić. The monument was blessed by the Archbishop Emeritus of Lika-Senj Mile Bogović.
Tomo Medved, the Minister of Veterans’ Affairs, held a speech at the event. “Miro Barešić is one of the largest Croatian patriots whose work and sacrifice must be respected. For years, in the Diaspora and during the Homeland War, he fought for a free and independent Croatia and has never given up on his idea, even though he felt for years the injustice that was systematically inflicted against Croats. He returned from Paraguay, even though he knew that in Croatia there were people who had persecuted him. Thank you, Miro, for independent, sovereign and free Croatia”, said Minister Medved.
