Unresolved issues after the wars on the territory of the former Yugoslavia in the 20th century. century
The round table “Unresolved issues after the wars in the former Yugoslavia in the 20th century” was held at the Faculty of Philosophy in Rijeka.
The event was organized by CHDR in cooperation with the Department of History and the Department of Cultural Studies of the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Rijeka (Croatia). It was attended by professors, students and media representatives. The meeting was also attended by the Consul of the Republic of Serbia in Croatia, Mira Jegdić, and members of the regional Serbian People’s Council.
The meeting was opened by the dean of the Faculty of Philosophy in Rijeka, Elvio Baccarini.
After the opening speech, Vjekoslav Perica , associate professor at the Department of History (Rijeka), opened the session and introduced the round table participants.
Then Darko Gavrilović , director of CHDR, head of the Department of History at the Faculty of Philosophy in Banja Luka (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and professor at the Faculty of European Legal and Political Studies in Novi Sad (Serbia), presented the mission and projects of CHDR. In his words, “our task is to enable sustainable peace and development for every individual through the implementation of a regional policy of stability and reconciliation. As much as we support the survival and equal development of national communities and minorities, we give even greater support to every individual who is looking for the complete peace that he longs for in himself.” as well as in their community. All CHDR projects are dedicated to this goal. Every time our historical projects refer to the rights of national minorities, to sustainable development, Serbian-Croatian relations, the Holocaust, wars and crimes, they are carried by one thought – peace is achieved not by avoiding historical truth but by preserving it.”
What after the wars in the territory of the former Yugoslavia?
Vjeran Pavlaković , assistant professor at the Department of Cultural Studies (Rijeka), spoke about CHDR projects from the past year. The importance of the projects was reflected in the fact that they dealt with myths and stereotypes of nationalism and communism in the former Yugoslavia, the Second World War and the national question.
The projects tried to approach sensitive issues of recent regional history from different perspectives and disciplines. Pavlaković also presented the research project he is currently coordinating, entitled “Cooperation and resistance in Yugoslavia during the Second World War: myths and legacies, Josip Broz Tito and the national question”. This project is part of a larger CHDR project, entitled “Facing the Past – Looking for the Future”.
Mila Dragojević from Brown University in the USA discussed her doctoral research. The research deals with the integration of post-conflict migrants in their respective ethnic homelands. She briefly presented the methodology and scope of her research in Serbia in the context of the recent CHDR conference on refugees and emigrants in the former Yugoslavia , held in Sremska Kamenica, Serbia, in November 2008. years.
Igor Graovac , from the Croatian Institute of History (Zagreb), spoke about issues related to the victims of the Second World War and the war in Croatia in 1991-1995, as well as the idea of reconciliation. Graovac emphasized one particular aspect of reconciliation – intra-ethnic dialogue. Such dialogues take place among groups of different ideological orientations. They appeared during the efforts of historians from Croatia and Serbia who joined together as part of the ten-year Historian-Historian Dialogue initiative.
Darko Gavrilović added that the dialogue is only the first step in the long process of reconciliation after the conflict. Reconciliation requires that the parties to the conflict first accept their past, and only then understand the shared past.
The day after the meeting, Graovac, Gavrilović and Dragojević visited the Consulate of the Republic of Serbia in Rijeka. They continued their conversation with the consul Mirom Jegić. Important post-conflict issues in Southeast European countries, such as victims, war crimes and refugees, were discussed.
