Colin: I am not sure if the weather could have more perfectly matched the mood and subject matter of the impact of the “Homeland War” on the City of Vukovar. We were cold and wet and trying our best not to get sick. We had to stop to buy vitamins and warmer clothes in our best attempt to ward off any further sickness. And, while all of this was going on, we were being told about the 1991 siege of the city where 40,000 inhabitants held off the Serbian dominated Yugoslav army and its associated Serb militias for better than 3-months. We met the doctor who ran the hospital during the siege, Dr. Vesna Bosanac. She is a Croatian National Hero and a living treasure, who explained what she and her staff did to help the population during this time of crisis from the underground bunkers below the destroyed hospital.
After the siege ended, the entire population of the town was forcibly relocated or killed. Some were sent to prison camps in Serbia, while some were allowed to return to Croatian controlled territory. Others, however, were taken to places like Ovcara where they were shot and dumped into mass graves. Many of these graves were not discovered until after the Dayton Accords were signed in 1998 and Vukovar returned to Croatian control.
War not only has an impact on the physical health of populations, but also psychological repercussions. Refugees not only have the trauma of being subjected to the war, but also have the long-term impact of being displaced from familiar surroundings and from ones livelihood. Vukovar is a living example of the resilience of a community that is able to recover from such atrocities.
After the siege ended, the entire population of the town was forcibly relocated or killed. Some were sent to prison camps in Serbia, while some were allowed to return to Croatian controlled territory. Others, however, were taken to places like Ovcara where they were shot and dumped into mass graves. Many of these graves were not discovered until after the Dayton Accords were signed in 1998 and Vukovar returned to Croatian control.
War not only has an impact on the physical health of populations, but also psychological repercussions. Refugees not only have the trauma of being subjected to the war, but also have the long-term impact of being displaced from familiar surroundings and from ones livelihood. Vukovar is a living example of the resilience of a community that is able to recover from such atrocities.
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