September 14, 2019 - Camp Mamula - the fascist concentration camp on the island of Lastavica was disbanded 76 years ago. Traditionally, September 14 is marked to commemorate the suffering of our ascendants.
The Association of National Liberation War Veterans of 1941-1945 for Boka and the Luštica Local Community are organizing today a gathering in the fortress Mamula on Lastavica Island to commemorate the inmates who darkened and lost their lives in this casemate from 1942 to September 14, 1943, when the last detained and tortured patriots came out of Mamula.
Veterans 'associations, delegations from other cities, victims' families will this year lay flowers and evoke memories of the time of the suffering of Bokelians and patriots from other parts of ex-Yugoslavia, who paid the price of their fight against fascism on Mamula by famine, hardships, and their lives.
Beside Bokelians, representatives of the Trebinje Municipality have joined the descendants and worshipers of the victims of our anti-fascists from Budva, Kotor, Tivat, and Herceg Novi, as there were a large number of detainees from Eastern Herzegovina in the camp. The organizers of the commemoration also sent a call to 'veterans' organizations from the cities of South Dalmatia this year, because the victims of Mamula were also from that area in large numbers, but no organization responded to the invitation.
Representatives of OHM Mamula, which leased the island for 49 years to transform the former concentration camp, with the full support of the Government of Montenegro, into a luxury tourist complex, will also lay flowers.
Former Mamula prisoners, Ivo Markovic from Budva and Nada Lucic Seferovic from Morinj, as well as guests from Sopot near Belgrade, joined the commemorative rally today.
The Mamula Fortress is in the process of being transformed into a 33-room high-class hotel and spa resort. The complex will house a 96-square-foot memorial gallery, four catering establishments, and a water sports club. Access to the island and the fort will be free on completion of the works; OHM Mamula representatives have repeatedly said.
Veterans' organizations, families of Mamula victims, anti-fascists and guests have today been granted a two-hour stay on the island for the commemorative rally.
The event is attended by representatives of the War Veterans Association 1941-1945. , the Municipalities of Herceg Novi, Veterans' Organizations of Cities in the Region, Consul of the Republic of Serbia in Herceg Novi, Zoran Dojčinović, representatives of the Municipality of Trebinje and Sopot near Belgrade, as well as several non-governmental organizations, including the Center for Civic Education.
Today, the famous Novi Sad journalist and director Aleksandar Reljic is also present in Mamula. He deals with the topic of anti-fascism in his documentary films. Reljic is in a commemoration for the second time to film "Mamula All-Inclusive," a project that was presented and highly rated at the Sarajevo Film Festival this year.
