This speech was given at Triglav Park on Memorial Day, May 28th, 2007 by Helen Frohna. It speaks to the atrocities that were perpetrated on the Slovenian people in WWII.
What does this day mean to you? A day off of work, a day off of school, the start of the summer season, maybe having a picnic in the park, watching parades, catching up on yard work or to some, just another day?
Here at Triglav Park for the past 40 years we have gathered to remember the deceased members of our society, the men and women who died to keep our country safe, and dearest to our hearts, we remember the mothers, fathers, grand-parents, innocent children and the 12,000 domobranci that were massacred at the hands of the communist.
As we look around, we see fewer and fewer of our parents, those who had to undergo such unbearable conditions that most of us here cannot even begin to imagine. Put yourself for a moment in their shoes. How would you feel if you had to all of a sudden pack a few of your most precious processions, find whatever means of transportation was near and go as quickly as possible toward the Austrian boarder not knowing if you would be returning or ever see your home or loved ones again.
Each family here has a story that they could share with us today how they had to quickly flea; leaving behind their homes, their families, everything they worked hard for. Many were fortunate enough to get to a displacement camp, but many were not so fortunate and their lives were quickly taken by the communists as they invaded the villages throughout Slovenia and killing whoever they wanted to. Many mothers had to watch as their husbands or children were executed right in front of them. These atrocities are things that we as humans would like to forget about, but we can’t. These terrible events happened and because of them they made us who we are. They shaped our lives, our character, and our values. We cannot forget. We must not forget.
Having traveled to Slovenia in 1995 to observe the 50th Anniversary of the end of World War II, I saw and heard first hand the sights and sounds of what war can do to a country. As we traveled to the different sites, the most memorable of all was visiting Kocevje and Teharje. These sites are now sacred grounds in remembrance of the 12,000 domobranci that were executed in May of 1945 by the Partizans. I guess you could say that this was Slovenia’s holocaust.
On May 26th, 1945 the Domobranci were suddenly commanded by the British military ordering the officers to have their men ready for travel the next day. At this time they were told that they were going to join their fellow anti-communist units which had fled to Italy. The following day they were loaded onto trucks which were to transport them to the train station. At the train station were partisan soldiers, the Domobranci were as good as dead. Escape was impossible. The soldiers were filled with both fear and anger. To their astonishment the train cars would not be going to Italy like promised, but instead back to Slovenia. Between May 27th and the 31st, with the war supposedly over, there was still to come an act of death and destruction worse than any thing seen during any point in the war at the hands of the communists.
In those first days of June, as these innocent victims approached the executable site already overflowing with dead corpses, two by two, arms bound with wire, with nothing more of value left, including their lives, a single shot was fired into their heads and they were rolled into the pits. To further ensure that the Domobranci and other anti-communist were exterminated, the partisans would throw in grenades as well as fire the submachine gun into the pit.
Sadly many people survived the initial fall into the pits, however they were either injured to the point that all they could do was pray. Other’s who were too weak to move eventually starved or died from blood loss. Nonetheless, despite all of the precautions made by the partisans, miraculously there were half a dozen who escaped at nightfall out of the pits. Three of these young domobranci were France Dejak, France Kozina and Milan Zajec. Covered by hanging rocks, fallen trees and the bodies of their dead comrades, they waited and escaped at times that they felt right for them. These men would be the witnesses to speak the truth of what happened on that horrific day.
Why were these 12,000 Slovenian domobranci executed by the Partizans. It is said that there were about 600, 00 soldiers and other refugees of various nationalities who converged on Austria. There was such a great burden on the British army in terms of food and accommodations, and Tito personally gave a verbal order to execute the Domobranci. He said, “Liquidate all members of the army which the British return.”
With war there are always so many questions. Why would God allow such things to happen? How can people be so cruel to one another? How much can one person endure? The answers we do not have, but we do have history and stories our families told to us. This is why we remember these events on Memorial Day, so that nothing like this will ever happen again. It must not!