Osim toga, dobivši potvrdu da će se prema zarobljenicima pravilno postupati,
Britanci nisu samu provedbu dovodili u pitanje. Prema tome, vrlo je vjerojatno da je
britanskom vojniku bilo nezamislivo da se likvidacije mogu provoditi bez valjanoga
sudskog postupka. Iako je moralna odgovornost značajna, u usporedbi
s “operativnom i administrativnom nužnosti” ona nije imala većeg utjecaja.
Pitanje odgovornosti dugo je izbjegavano, dostupni dokumenti su selektivni,
pa prema tome i najopširnije studije (kojih nema mnogo) na ovu temu nude
tek djelomičnu sliku. U istom tonu predstavlja se i “Cowgillov izvještaj”, koji
nastoji eventualnu odgovornost spustiti na što nižu zapovjednu razinu, no gotovo
je nemoguće zamisliti da u donošenju ovako važnih odluka nisu sudjelovale
najviše vojne i diplomatske osobe.
SUMMARY
THE HANDING OVER OF PRISONERS FROM BLEIBURG FIELD AND
ITS SURROUNDINGS IN MAY 1945
In this article the author focuses on events that took place immediately
following the end of the Second World War. With the end of military operations
came the demarcation of new spheres of influence between the victors
and the vanquished. Political agreements, the situation in the field, and
the decrees of international human rights organizations in large part decided
future conditions. The majority of the members of the armed forces of the
Independent State of Croatia found themselves in the middle of the fray, along
with those civilians who had fled ahead of the Partisans into the Allied zone
in Carinthia. Thus, Bleiburg was the meeting point of British, Partisan, and
Croatian armies. After two days of negotiations, the content of which is still
unknown today, the decision to turn the armies of the Independent State of
Croatia over to the Partisans was made. The vast majority of the army did not
escape encirclement by units of the Yugoslav armies and was forced surrender
their weapons and hold out “white flags.” According to promises made, the
prisoners were supposed to be treated according to international law concerning
the treatment of prisoners of war, but later events were to reveal how far
from these norms the treatment accorded to the Croatian forces was, and to
what extent the Western Allies were implicated in this whole issue.
Key words: Second World War, 1945, Bleiburg, Prisoners of War,
Extradition, Surrender of Prisoners, Forced Repatriation
Prenosimo: Časopis za suvremenu povijest
Izvorni znanstveni članak. Autorica:
MARTINA GRAHEK RAVANČIĆ
Hrvatski institut za povijest, Zagreb, Republika Hrvatska
Post je objavljen 19.05.2008. u 07:00 sati.