Zagreb, September 9, 2022
On the occasion of the 29th anniversary of the murders of civilians and prisoners of war in the Medak pocket, we commemorated the victims of the war by going to Divoselo near Gospić.
Operation "Pocket '93" was carried out from September 9 to 17, 1993, in the vicinity of Gospić, in the area of Medak Pocket. During and after the action, war crimes were committed against the civilian population and prisoners of war. A large number of civilians were killed on the first day, including 10 women, and at least 27 civilians were killed by the end of the operation.
We want to point out the fact that during and after the "Pocket '93" military-police action, our fellow citizens were killed, tortured and abused, thrown into septic tanks, their property was burned and destroyed, and wells were polluted with the bodies of killed animals and with oil in order to prevent any further life in that area.
We came to Divoselo to lay flowers, to remember those who were killed, to point out that it is the responsibility of the highest state officials, the president, prime minister, and ministers, to speak publicly, clearly, honestly, and openly about these war crimes and to make available to the public the entirety of facts about the military police operation "Pocket '93".
The victims and their families deserve to have the fate of their loved ones discussed publicly, to be recognized as civilian victims, to be given adequate compensation for the unjustly inflicted pain, and to have the political successors of those who held leadership positions in the nineties apologize for what was done to them. Society in Croatia has the right to know what marked its past.
We, who were born after the war or were small children during the war, want to live in society where the past is not interpreted in accordance with nationalistic myths, but in accordance with facts and truth because this is the only fair and just way for an optimistic future.
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Below is the judicial epilogue:
In the period from September 9 to 17, 1993, units of the Croatian Army, specifically the Home Defense Battalions Lovinac and Gospić and the 11th Home Defense Regiment, together with units of the Special Police of the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia, carried out the "Pocket '93" military operation.
Mirko Norac, commander of the 9th Motorized Guards Brigade of the Croatian Army, was sentenced to a total of 15 years in prison for war crimes in Gospić and the Medak Pocket. Norac, who had been in prison since 2001, was released in November 2011 by the decision of the Parole Commission appointed by the Minister of Justice.
Josip Krmpotić, commander of the Reconnaissance Company of the 9th Guards Brigade, was sentenced by the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia to three years in prison for burning and destroying houses, while he was acquitted of murdering prisoners of war. Members of his unit, Velibor Šolaja and Josip Mršić, were sentenced for the murder of an unidentified woman: Velibor Šolaja was sentenced to 5 years in prison by a final verdict, and Josip Mršić was sentenced to 3 years in prison by a non-final verdict.
Too young to remember, determined not to forget.