Bleiburg

Bleiburg: "It is a story that ought also to be well
known in Britain, because it was largely due to
British policies that the terrible events occurred."


The Independent
Croatians gather to mourn victims of 1945 atrocities
By Peter Popham
12 May 2003


Croatians stood in mourning at two separate places
yesterday. On the site of the most notorious
concentration camp run during the Second World War by
Croatia's Nazi regime, President Stipe Mesic expressed
his "deepest regret for the innocent victims of those
who tarnished Croatia's name".

It was the first time a Croatian head of state had
joined former inmates of the camp at Jasenovac and
others who commemorate the day in 1945 when 600
inmates tried to flee the camp where tens and perhaps
hundreds of thousands of Serbs, Jews, gypsies and
anti-fascist Croats had been exterminated during the
war. Of the 600 who tried to break out, only about 70
succeeded.

Meanwhile, in the southern Austrian town of Bleiburg,
thousands of Croats gathered as they do every year to
mark one of the atrocities of the last months of the
war that is all but forgotten outside Croatia. Last
week, the Croatian government announced that it
planned to buy land in Austria on which to build a
permanent memorial to the horror. It is a story that
ought also to be well known in Britain, because it was
largely due to British policies that the terrible
events occurred.

In May 1945, hundreds of thousands of Croats, soldiers
in the army and civilians, congregated in Bleiburg
after fleeing the Croatian capital, Zagreb, before
Tito's advancing partisans. The Croatians believed,
without good reason, that they would be welcomed by
the British and Americans and allowed to surrender.
But at the Yalta conference of 1945, Stalin had made
clear that he required the repatriation of citizens of
Eastern Bloc countries. And since surrender was a
criminal act in the Soviet Union, those returned would
be subject to the death penalty.

Agreement was reached between the Soviets and the
British on the repatriation of Soviet citizens
"irrespective of whether the individuals desire to
return ... or not" according to the words of the
agreement.

As Tito had yet to fall out with Stalin, the same
policy applied in Yugoslavia. The Croatians gathered
at Bleiburg were duly sent back across the border by
British forces, on foot or by train. The killing by
the partisans began on 16 May 1945, and continued for
two years. No one knows how many died, but Croatian
sources quote figures between 100,000 and 250,000.

The atrocity was covered up as long as Tito's regime
lasted, but with the end of Communist rule in 1990,
Croats began abseiling into underground caves in
Slovenia and northern Croatia, long sealed by the
authorities, and finding thousands of corpses in mass
graves. 

C.A.M.E.O.
Croatian Arts Media & Entertainment Organization

The Wednesday Nite Tradition LIVES!
Come and Join Us As We Continue This Great Tradition
Every 2nd Wednesday of the Month

Drink, Network & Exchange Thoughts and Ideas
With Other Croats, Croatian-Americans & Friends in 
The Art and Entertainment Industry!

Wednesday, May 14th
7:30 PM

The Cat and The Fiddle
'MAIN ROOM'
6530 W. Sunset Blvd.
Between Cahuenga and Highland

If you know someone that would like to be a part of our email list 
Please forward the information to
CAMEO1997@aol.com. 

Ante Gotovina

Azil uEngleskoj, ljetovanje u Hrvatskoj?

I sent the following letter to Croatia's President Mesic, Prime Minister Racan, Sabor President Tomcic and Foreign Minister Picula in March 2003 when I first read about it. 

Postovani gospodine Predsjednice!

Sa zgrazanjem citamo medju vijestima iz Engleske, da ta zemlja zeli da Hrvatska primi u neki privremeni logor osobe koje traze azil u Engleskoj, dok Engleska ne odluci, kojima ce pruziti azil. Preklinjemo Vas, da to nikako ne odobrite. To je jos jedna smicalica Engleske da ugrozi Hrvatsku. Bila bi krajnja ludost dopustiti raznim Arapima i drugim ljudima iz siromasnih zemalja da se nastane u Hrvatskoj na tko zna koliko godina, dok se Engleska odluci neke od njih primiti. Drugi ce onda ostati u Hrvatskoj. Zar to Hrvatskoj treba? Nikako ne!
Engleska to zeli, jer sama ima velike poteskoce s tim ljudima. Mnogi pobjegnu iz tih logora, te zive ilegalno u Engleskoj. Isto bi se dogodilo i u Hrvatskoj.

Engleska valjda mase hrvatskoj vladi pred ocima obecanje da ce potpisati SAA, Sporazum za stabilizaciju, ako Hrvatska pristane na taj prijedlog. I bolje je da ne potpisu, jer taj Sporazum (Stabilization and Association Agreement) Hrvatskoj uopce ne pomaze, nego joj steti. Taj Sporazum stavlja Hrvatsku na Balkan, opet sa Srbijom, od koje se uz mnogo krvi i patnje konacno odijelila. Sa Srbijom, koja jos uvijek ima vojsku i gradjane koji na tipicno balkansko-srpski nacin ubijaju svoje predstavnike i zele, kako je Seselj rekao pred nekoliko dana, opet osvojiti "srpski Dubrovnik, srpsku Dalmaciju, srpsku Slavoniju, srpsku Liku i Knin". Isto tako su nerazumljivi nedavni pregovori u Grckoj, koja zeli osnovati neku novu asocijaciju "Balkanskih drzava". 

Vrijeme je, da Hrvatska ustane i kaze jasno i glasno da ne spada na Balkan u udruzenje s takvim drzavama, nego da spada u Srednju i Mediteransku Europu, i kulturno i povijesno, te da EU i SAD nemaju pravo da je na tako nesto prisile. Jasno je, da unatoc svih nepotrebnih hrvatskih popustanja, koja su joj stetna, EU svejedno ne kani primiti Hrvatsku u EU i NATO u dogledno vrijeme. Zaista je krajnje vrijeme, da hrvatska vlada to shvati, te da se odgovorno brine samo za ono, sto je za dobrobit Hrvatske.

S postovanjem,

Hilda Marija Foley

Policy Question: Oxford Electronic EncyclopediaRound 2

To: jane.gardner@oup.com  


Dear Ms. Gardner,

Thank you for your prompt reply to my email inquiry. Allow me to supply you with the information you have requested. 

1) For the German dictionary referred to in my original email, here is the following reference:

The Consise (sic) Oxford-Duden German Dictionary Š Oxford University Press and Bibliographisches Institut & F.A. Brockhaus 1991, 1997, 1998 [This is the reference from my computer source. Jane somebody at iFinger might want to clean up the spelling for "concise!" At the iFinger tab when you right click in the corner and then at the dictionary icon double-click on the second of the two German dictionary icons, the spelling there is "consise"] Anyway, at iFinger downloads,http://www.ifinger.com/registration/userdownloads.asp  
I found a reference to this dictionary and there "concise" is spelled correctly:

The Concise Oxford German Dictionary 
English-German/German-English With over 150,000 words and phrases, and 250,000 translations, The Concise Oxford German Dictionary is one of the leading intermediate English-German/German-English dictionaries. 

However the more important devil in the detail at this point is the lack of an entry for Croatia/Kroatien (refer back to original email). 

2) With respect to the encyclopedia, that product was purchased here in New York and downloaded into my computer. It is The Oxford World Encyclopedia Š Oxford University Press 1998. 

I do not have a URL on this product purchase. I did purchase this at a Barnes & Nobles Bookstore in New York City. 

Jane when you research this second issue, namely the idea of a "Serbo-Croatian" culture in Dubrovnik, you might want to speak to your policy person who overlooks content matters especially when it concerns Southeastern Europe and especially the former Yugoslavia. You should ask the following question: why it is that Dubrovnik, an important Croatian port city on the Adriatic, is erroneously contextualized as "Serbo-Croatian"? It isa historic and inappropriate to hyphenate national languages and nationalities this way when describing the historical Dubrovnik. And what's more, especially in light of the most recent past, this is a downright painful issue for many people from that region. But be that as it may, aside from the emotional issues conjured up by this subject, Oxford must have some sort of sophisticated think-tank on hand to handle all these gradations with respect to proper nomenclature for this complex part of the world. I'm truly astounded that your content person would allow an assertion to a "Serbo-Croatian culture" to casually slip right by. Believe me, the premise of my gripe is not rooted in any nationalistic impulse, rather in setting the record straight and shedding more truth on the matter here. Simply put, Dubrovnik is and was a Croatian city and it serves no purpose to allude to a "Serbo-Croatian" connection. 

Thank you for your further follow-up with respect to the above two matters, and I do look forward to hearing from you as soon as this topic is carried further. On the whole, I do enjoy your electronic dictionary and reference products and a number of colleagues and friends here in New York are aware of your products; aside from the aforementioned oversights, there is of course much valuable content to be gleaned from these resource tools. This is why I am so concerned that the quality of information is fine-tuned to a level befitting a dictionary or encyclopedia that carries the Oxford imprimatur. 

Jane, once again, thanks for your further indulgence in this matter. 

Best regards,

Michael Spudic
Forest Hills, New York, USA

NFCA HOSTS CROATIAN AMERICAN BUSINESS LEADERS AND
COMMUNITY ACTIVISTS AT ITS 10TH ANNUAL CONVENTION

For Immediate Release Contact: ErikMilman, 202-331-2830 

Washington, DC (May 9, 2003). The National Federation of Croatian Americans
(NFCA) will hold its Tenth Annual Assembly of Delegates in Washington, DC on May
30-June 1. The convention will be held at the Marriott Hotel at the Metro Center,
Washington, DC. Approximately forty delegates from throughout the country, some
journeying from as far away as California and Nebraska, are expected to attend the
Assembly.

The theme of this years Assembly will be "Croatia and the United States: The Basis for
Partnership." Among other things that will be focused on is the NFCA’s continued
promotion of Croatia’s economic development. In that connection, members of the 
NFCA’s Commercial Advisory Committee and selected NFCA delegates and invitees
will participate in a private meeting with members of the United States Chamber of
Commerce on Friday afternoon, May 30. 

During the public portion of the Assembly beginning Saturday, May 31, at 1:00 p.m., Mr.
Stjepan Safran, President of Hrvatska Obrtnicka Komora (the Croatian Small Business
Chamber of Commerce) based in Zagreb, Croatia, will be the featured speaker. Delegates
will further hear about the NFCA’s continuing work on its plans to help implement the
US-Croatia Business Partnering Initiative with the US Chamber of Commerce. 
Croatia’s Ambassador to the United States, Dr. Ivan Grdesic, a featured speaker will
address the Assembly and the public on Saturday afternoon. There will be additional speakers that will address Croatia’s role in Euro-Atlantic alliances.

The Assembly will open on an informal note on Friday night, May 30 with a reception in
a downtown Washington, DC location which will feature Croatian wine. The NFCA will
recognize a number of individuals who were instrumental in establishing the organization. A more formal reception will be held for delegates and guests on Saturday night, May 31 at the Croatian Embassy on Embassy Row which will feature the superb cuisine of ChefIvo. 
You can still be part of all these events as a delegate. The NFCA Executive Committee
can appoint a number of at-large delegates who must be dues paying members of the
NFCA. The NFCA encourages everyone who wants to be a delegate to submit a letter of
interest to our national office as soon as possible. For more convention information,
please call Erik Milman at the NFCA office at 202-331-2830.

Erik Milman
710 Roeder Road
Silver Spring, MD 20910
(301)651-8879 (Cell)
erik_milman@hotmail.com  

FiftiethAnniversary Celebration    

Saturday,May 17, 2003 in New York City

THECROATIANACADEMY OF AMERICA

Requests thepleasure of your company at the

Gala Dinner andRecital

TO CELEBRATE THE50^TH ANNIVERSARY

OF THE ACADEMY

19 5 3 – 2 0 0 3

Saturday, May 17,  2003

Cocktailsat 6:00 pm

Dinnerat 7:00 pm

THE NEW YORKHILTON HOTEL

1335 Avenue of theAmericas

New York, New York

TrianonRendezvous Ballroom 

KEYNOTE ADDRESS:

Dr. JasnaHelena Mencer, Rector, University of  Zagreb

RECITAL:

Krunoslav Cigoj,tenor

Black tieoptional.

Please reply by May 14, 2003

E mail: croatacad@aol.com Fax: 516-935-0019  Telephone: 212-957-5808

Tickets at $ 125 per person. Students at $ 75 per person.

www.croatianacademy.org

                                                Tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.

PROFESIONALIZACIJA AMERICKO HRVATSKE GOSPODARSKE KOMORE

U njujorskom restoranu "Terrace in the Sky" okupilo se u petak, 9. svibnja vise desetaka americkih poslovnih ljudi hrvatskog porijekla, kako bi prikupili sredstva potrebna za profesionalizaciju Americko hrvatske gospodarske komore. 
Okupljene poslovne ljude pozdravili su hrvatski generalni konzul u New Yorku Domagoj Kero, te predsjednik odbora udruge Nereo Valencic i sam uspjesan poduzetnik, koji je zajedno sa suprugom Nadom Brnic Valencic kao vlasnik restorana "Terrace in the Sky" ujedno bio i domacin te veceri. 

Brz protok i razmjena informacija o gospodarskim kretanjima i mogucnostima investiranja kapitala te povezivanje s onima koji imaju pozitivna iskustva u poslovanju s Hrvatskom samo su neki od projekata koje ova udruga namjerava realizirati, istaknuo je Valencic pozdravljajuci okupljene te naglasio kako se svakim danom sve vise osjeca potreba da ova udruga, koja zadnje cetiri godine djeluje kao neprofitna i neprofesionalna, preraste u profesionalnu organizaciju koja ce u svakom trenutku biti na usluzi i na raspolaganju brojnim poslovnim ljudima na ovom podrucju.
Generalni konzul Domagoj Kero, koji je prije cetiri godine bio jedan od inicijatora osnivanja Americo hrvatske gospodarske komore, naglasio je kako samo na podrucju New Yorka danas zivi oko sto tisuca Hrvata, sto samo po sebi namece potrebu za poslovnim povezivanjem i organiziranim, profesionalnim djelovanjem hrvatskih poduzetnika. 
"Od 1999. Godine od kada je Udruga osnovana do danas napravljeno je puno. Organizirali smo susrete nasih poslovnih ljudi sa svim relevantnim predstavnicima hrvatske vlasti i hrvatskog poslovnog svijeta kad se za to ukazala prilika, organizirali smo posjet Hrvatskoj, upoznavali smo ljude s uvjetima poslovanja i poslovnim tijekovima u domovini, no sada treba ici dalje. Vrijeme je da se udruga profesionalizira, a to je moguce jedino ako se sami organizirate i prikupite sredstva potrebna za realiziranje konkretnih projekata" naglasio je Kero. On je istaknuo kako bi osnovni smjer djelovanja udruge trebao biti medusobno povezivanje poslovnih ljudi na podrucju New Yorka i Amerike a isto tako rad na suradnji s hrvatskim poduzecima i upoznavanje s uvjetima ulaganja u Hrvatskoj. 
Tiskanje poslovnog vodica sa podacima o poduzecima u ovom djelu Sjeverne Amerike, kao i svih relevantnih ustanova, kako u Americi tako i u Hrvatskoj koje se bave pitanjima iseljenika, istrazivanje trzista, suradnja s hrvatskim i americkim poduzecima u trgovinskoj razmjeni izmedu Hrvatske i SAD-a te pravovremeno i aktualno informiranje samo su neki od projekata koje bi se na taj nacin mogli realizirati, istaknuto je tom prilikom, a prvi konkretan potez bio bi otvaranje stalnog ureda Komore u New Yorku.
Medu prisutnim poduzetnicima ideja o profesionaliziranju Americko hrvatske gospodarske komore naisla je na veliko odobravanje. Naglasena je spremnost da se organiziranim, zajednickim naporima stvori udruga koja ce svojim radom biti od koristi, kako brojnim hrvatskim poslovnim ljudima, tako i cjelokupnoj hrvatskoj zajednici u ovom djelu Amerike.

Visnja Miocic

Monsignior John J. Antoncic

Below is an obtiuary of Monsignior John J. Antoncic. Though born in New
York, his family hailed from Omisalj on Krk Island. Msgr. Antoncic was
based at St. Mel's Parish, the parish next to mine, and he washighly
regarded in the community of northeast Queens.

John Kraljic


Msgr. Antoncic Praised As a Leader of Priests

Msgr. John J. Antoncic, pastor of St. Mel's parish, Flushing, and a
leader in the Presbyteral Council and the former Priests' Senate, died
suddenly May 1 of cardiac arrest at Booth Memorial Hospital, Flushing.
He was 61 years old.

Born in Manhattan, he attended St. Bartholomew's School, Elmhurst; Power
Memorial H.S., Manhattan; Cathedral College, Brooklyn, and Immaculate
Conception Seminary, Huntington. He was ordained at St. James
Pro-Cathedral June 1, 1968. It was the only class ordained by Auxiliary
Bishop John J. Boardman.

He served as an assistant at St. Charles Borromeo, Brooklyn Heights,
1968-77 and was part of a team ministry at St. Augustine, Park Slope,
1977-83. He also served at St. Ephrem, Dyker Heights, 1983-85.

He was pastor at three parishes: St. Vincent de Paul, Williamsburg,
1985-89; Holy Child Jesus, Richmond Hill, 1989-2000, and St. Mel's since
June, 2000.

Among the many diocesan agencies with which he was associated were the
Priests' Senate, the Presbyteral Council, the Pastoral Council, Parish
Renewal Committee, board of directors of Mercy Home, Northside Senior
Citizens' Center and the Richmond Hill Development Assn.

Msgr. Antoncic was held in high respect by his brother priests, having
been elected president of the Priests' Senate from 1979 to 1985. He was
the current executive secretary of the Presbyteral Council, a post he
held since 1985.

For many years, he represented the diocesan priests at the national
meetings of the National Federation of Priests Council.

Bishop Thomas V. Daily was the main concelebrant. He was joined on the
altar by Auxiliary Bishops Joseph M. Sullivan, Rene A. Valero and
Ignatius A. Catanello and Bishop Paul Bootkoski of Metuchen, N.J.

Special concelebrants included Msgrs. Otto L. Garcia, Andrew Vaccari,
Martin P. Bannan, Peter Kane and Fathers Sean Ogle, the episcopal vicar;
Thomas Doyle, William Dulaney, William Krlis, Marcello Latona, Kevin
McBrien, Gregory Wielunski, and James Tugwood.

In his homily, Father Lewis Maynard spoke about his friendship with
Msgr. Antoncic that went back to their seminary days when they were in
the same support group.

"That support continued as priests as we continued to do that all
through our priesthood."

Father Maynard said that "It meant so much to him - this priesthood that
we live and share together. How many of us were helped, comforted and
confronted by John to carry our crosses.

"He knew the importance of regular spiritual direction."

Pointing out that Msgr Antoncic was "a good friend to so many of us,"
Father Maynard recalled numerous phone calls from him when he would say,
"Lew, let's get the guys together for a day of prayer at Precious Blood
Monastery. Then afterwards, we all would have dinner together."

"John had this joy, that deep down joy.... He prayed a lot... He read a
lot... He was solid, yet gentle and understanding.

"He loved being with his fellow priests and he loved being with his lay
friends, both male and female.

"John worked hard in this diocese on many different and difficult
committees," explained Father Maynard.

Bishop's Tribute

Bishop Daily said that Msgr. Antoncic "certainly made a great impact on
all of us. He was a source of comfort and help to me, personally. He was
a great gift to the Church of Brooklyn and Queens.

"He wasn't a showy man, He was a pious man in the real sense of being
pious. He had a deep spiritual personality."

Survivors

Msgr. Antoncic is survived by his mother, Mary Mahoney of Sag Harbor,
L.I.; his sister, Ann Schramek of Gilford, N.H., and brother, Thomas of
Farmington Hills, Mich.

Burial was in St. Charles Cemetery, Farmingdale, L.I.

Yugoslavism: Histories of a Failed Idea, 1918-1992

The Centre for South-East European Studies and Hurst & Co. cordially
invite you to a Round Table Discussion of the recently published
Yugoslavism: Histories of a Failed Idea, 1918-1992 (London: Hurst & Co.,
2003)

Tuesday 13th May, 5.30pm, Middle Common Room, 21 Russell Square

Discussants will include Dejan Djokic (Editor, Birkbeck), Dr. Lucy Riall
(Birkbeck), Dr. Sumantra Bose (LSE), Prof. Stevan Pavlowitch (Southampton).
--

You can access our catalogue on the world wide web:

http://www.hurstpub.co.uk/ 

Tomislav Z. Kuzmanovic
Hinshaw & Culbertson
100 E. Wisconsin Ave., Ste 2600
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53202