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REPRESSION OF THE YUGOSLAV COMMUNIST REGIME TOWARDS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN ISTRIA (1945 – 1947)
Stipan TROGRLIĆ
Sažetak
Croatian clergy in Istria hoped that harsh attitude of the communist regime would soften after the Agreement between the representatives of the »people’s government« and the Church,
which was signed on 16th July 1945 in Trieste. However, these hopes soon turned out to be in vain because repression towards clergy and the Church continued, since the efforts of the communist authorities to represent themselves as protectors of religious freedom actually was just a declarative action that was in opposition with the principles of the freedom of consciousness and denomination. Therefore, on the public celebrations of liberation of Istria representatives of Church often delivered speeches, while representatives of communist authorities openly participated
in the Catholic liturgy and on the pages of Glas Istre officially expressed Christmas Greetings to the all believers. On the other hand, at the local small festivities the same representatives of the government often openly spoke against the Church, pope and bishops – especially against Antonio Santini, who was bishop of Trieste and Koper, and Raffaele Radossi, who was bishop of Poreč and Pula. In such speeches communists called them »servants of war fascism« and »followers of the international imperialism«. Moreover, on the extant conspiracy lists, which had been created
as a preparation for the further prosecutions and liquidations, there were names of some clerics. To be put on such a list it was enough to openly support Christian moral and views. Namely, although clerics in Istria did not compare Christian views and morality with the
revolutionary ones, communist authorities did not like any expressions that were in opposition with their views about the core values of personal and social life. Consequently, while the period between the mid 1945 and the end of 1946 was a time of communists’ petty loosening towards the Catholic Church in Istria, with a considerable support to some of the »people’s« clerics (although there was a constant condemnation of the ecclesiastical
hierarchy), the entire 1947 was marked with direct oppression towards the Church and clergy. The result of such development were various prosecutions, mounted trials, and murders, which were the peek of this repression that ultimately ended as crime. Similarly, this repression, which was in concordance with the communists’ ideology and their political praxis, became even more rigid after the, so called, Paris Peace Treaty (signed on 10th February 1947)
according to which the major part of Istria finally became a part of Yugoslavia. Namely, now the communist authorities were satisfied with such territorial acquisition, and they did not need any more Church’s support in the aforementioned diplomatic struggle.
Ključne riječi
Istria; Catholic Church; People’s Liberation Movement in Istria; repression; Croatian clergy; Italian clergy; Antonio Santin; Raffaele Radossi
Hrčak ID:
63678
URI
Datum izdavanja:
16.6.2010.
Posjeta: 2.844 *