Mocking justice and victims of war crime atrocities is what Ivan Vekic does the best throughout his political career. His political comeback is based on the extreme right wing policies expressed in a future party that plays alongside on the emotional card of those who stood up against the aggression.
Cannot do! I have said earlier on and I will reiterate my point, we shone in a true light. Our enemies saw our strength, we were armed and need it be our political enemies and those sitting in the Croatian parliament could see it again. These words were uttered by Vekic during Croatian National channel news proggramme when he commented the decision taken by Osijek Public Prosecutors Office to call in
this ex-minister for Internal Affairs from summer 1991 until spring 1992 for formal questioning.
In any democratic society his words would be taken seriously in the form of a threat especially when he talks about “strength of our force” that his political and parliamentary enemies would be able to witness. Someone in the police or Public Prosecutor-s office ought to be interested in Vekic-s words of menace.
Hidden behind “we”
In 2001 the police force from Osijek called Vekic in for an informative chat in their efforts to solve atrocities committed on Serb civilians. In his professional capacity as a lawyer Vekic defended himself as a citizen who was only defending constitutional values of the republic of Croatia. Then as a president of Slavonia-s committee for the protection of the dignity of Croatia-s uprising he called for citizens rebellion against the political leadership at all cost and by all means. Vekic sheltered himself and his ideas behind the collective pronoun “we” and refused to appear in front of local police force in Osijek for questioning.
Ivan Vekic is a clever, educated man, what is more he is an excellent speaker. Although this is not surprising bearing inn mind the company with whom he was creating Croatian Democratic Union and the country at the end of 80-s and at the beginning of the 90-s. He reiterated that at the time the country was founded all that was required was courage, not intelligence.
Vekic never evaded the question of war crime atrocities. He talked about them often always praising himself in their solving. He liked to think of himself as an intellectual among politicians. At the beginning of 90-s journalists would ask him why did he allow criminals to join the police and gain privileges. He would answer that this was imminent hence a few priests and nuns join as volunteers.
However, when a war criminal from Mercep-s unit, Miro Bajramovic gave an interview to Feral, stating that Vekic not only knew about atrocities but he also personally ordered a couple of executions, Vekic dismissed Bajramovic as a person with a criminal past with mental health problems. Croatian media has called Vekic as a potential Hague detainee and he said that he would gladly go there if asked.
In his interviews he was often asked about role of Tomislav Mecep and his unit whose activities are subject of a court inquiry. Vekic praised Mercep as a honest Croatian patriot stress being on honest. He never heard of his unit committing a single war crime. In his interview to Dalmacija on Sunday in 1994 he commented war atrocities on Pakrac Meadow by saying: “ What does it mean if someone was killed n Pakrac Meadow if this happened at the time when Serbs were shelling a Serb village 24/7 taken by Croats. Croats should not be responsible for this, We all know that a shell does not choose between a child, a woman, an old person or a civilian”. He goes on to state that Serbs had a practice of shelling their own folk for disobedience and asks if Croats should be held responsible for these acts.
Victim mocking.
The words uttered by so called intellectual Vekic these days would be heard with contempt but then they were the norm. It was normal that he comments arrest of the first line commander of Vukovar defence, Mile Dedakovic Jastreb with words: “ One has to allow the use of force and this happens and I should not see this as something of a public interest.”
In an interview given to “Nedjeljni Vjesnik” on February 2 1992, a journalist Mladen Plese asked then minister Vekic about all those houses trapped in mine fields according to ethnic division. Vekic admitted to their existence but quickly added that this was inevitable as these houses were on the first line of front. He pointed out that emotions run high and that controlled behaviour of the troops is difficult to get grip of. Furthermore, he reminded that Croatia was the country at war and that many things happen in the war.
Mocking justice and victims of war crime atrocities is what Ivan Vekic does the best throughout his political career. His political comeback is based on the extreme right wing policies expressed in a future party that plays alongside on the emotional card of those who stood up against the aggression. Throwing “blank shot “ menaces at the current political leadership in Zagreb is playing safe with the emotional highs of ex-warriors and it is behind their backs that Vekic likes to hide as he likes to manipulate with them with a single selfish aim – saving private Ivan.
Saša Kosanović
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