Not remaining silent

In the past days, in the abandoned mine pit of Saint Barbara in the Laško district, near the city of Celje, a concealed mass grave dating back to Communist rule (1945-1991) was brought to light. The Government Commission of the Republic of Slovenia for the disclosure of sites concealed under totalitarian rule, which made this discovery, estimated the presence of hundreds if not thousands of corpses. They were brought to light after took seven months of research and the removal of four hundred cubic meters of material placed at the entrance of the underground passage. The dead bodies were in a state of semi-mummification since they had been covered with quicklime upon their death. Researches found that many had been buried alive. Death was caused by blows inflicted with pickaxe, spade or with other blunt weapons. The victims had been tied at their hands with wire. According to official reports two mine pits are 45 and 35 meters deep which the Commission reckons are stacked with human remains. In Slovenia, some 600 sites have been registered as mass graves dating back to the Communist regime period. Following this discovery, the Commission for Justice and Peace of Slovenia’s Bishops’ Conference released a statement. A brief excerpt follows.Restore the dignity. “Ideology can never justify a massacre – so wrote in the message Mgr. Anton Stres, Coadjutor Bishop of Maribor and President of the Commission for Justice and Peace of the Slovenian Bishops’ Conference (Ces) – the culprits behind these despicable acts of violence against humanity and our people must be found, be they individuals or groups, politicians or ideologists. We must bublicly condemn the totalitarian Communist Regime of that period so as to restore the good name of those who had fight for the freedom of Slovenian people in a honest and sincere way, but have been used, during the war and in the years that followed, as “human shields” for the totalitarian regime’s politicians, ideologists and criminals”.A clear condemnation. “Grief, shock and deep indignation are understandable reactions for those people who are waiting for giving a respectable burial to the victims of these mass massacres. Nevertheless, as a political community, we can do more,” added the President of the Commission for Justice and Peace of the Ces according to whom “the highest national institutions should express a clear and unequivocal condemnation, both at moral and political level, of these massacres as well as of the individuals or groups who had perpetrated them.” For Mgr Stres, “it is necessary to face the most neglected events of the totalitarian regime in Slovenia if we want to become and to be a civilised and ethical society. Time has come in which all the citizens, at a personal and national level, should clearly state the fundamental moral principles on the inviolability of every human life and on the dignity of every individual which were cruelly infringed during and after the revolution”.Too much cynicism. As for the murders perpetrated during and after the war, “among us there is still excessive moral cynicism, elusiveness, indifference and sometimes even contempt – punishable by law but not punished – or assent,” said the bishop. There is still too much fear. This is due to the fact that schools and educational institutions, those who are creating public opinion and the highest national institutions – who are called to preserve the validity of fundamental ethical principles and of human rights in our political community – have not taken necessary measures against these criminal acts, hiding them for decades in a systematic way.” The common grave of Celje “is a clear attempt to hide these crimes for evermore.” Therefore, Mgr Stres praised the “Slovenian governmental Commission that over the past few years has committed itself to shedding light on these past covered-up criminal actions. He also praised the fact that there is a growing indignation among public opinion at this unacceptable violence”.