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| The '''Rab concentration camp''' |
The '''Rab ]''' is a name used to desribe one of 24 Italian ran ] ]s in which captured ] from opposition Yugoslav forces were placed in during ]. It opened in July ] near the village of Kampor, on the ] island of ]. The camp was disbanded after the Italian government made an armistice with the Allies in September ]. | ||
| ==Prisoners== | |||
| It held about 15,000 prisoners <ref>''Kampor 1942-1943: | |||
| The main ] held here, were members of an organisation calling itself the ], groups of Communist ]s opposed to and in open warfare with the ], who were interned after been captured. The Yugoslav Partisans also went on to commit numerous brutal massacres and war crimes including ] and ] once given free reign in the following years, such as the ]<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.serendipity.li/hr/bleiburg_massacres.htm|publisher=Serendipity.li|title=The Bleiburg Massacre|date=] ]}}</ref> where 50,000 were killed, the ]<ref name="yugoslavwarcrime">{{cite news|url=http://www.annoticoreport.com/2007/02/foibe-massacres-raised-in-answer-to.html|publisher=The Annotico Report|title="Foibe" Massacres raised in Answer to Croatian President Mesic's Claims|date=] ]}}</ref> against ethnic Italians (innocent civilians) which lead to the ] commonly cited as a ] and ].<ref name="yugoslavwarcrime">{{cite news|url=http://www.annoticoreport.com/2007/02/foibe-massacres-raised-in-answer-to.html|publisher=The Annotico Report|title="Foibe" Massacres raised in Answer to Croatian President Mesic's Claims|date=] ]}}</ref> The Yugoslav Partisans also butchered thousands of Hungarians at the ].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hunsor.se/dosszie/fiftythousandhungarianmartyrs.pdf|publisher=Hunsor.se|title=Fifty Thousand Hungarian Martyrs: Report about the Hungarian Holocaust in Jugoslavia 1944-1992|date=] ]}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last =Wolff | first = Stefan | title =German Minorities in Europe: Ethnic Identity and Cultural Belonging| publisher = University of California Press | url =http://books.google.com/books?id=F3Ocn93_yfEC&pg=PA152&lpg=PA152&dq=partisans+Ba%C4%8Dka.&source=web&ots=Wruxg0rljF&sig=wf3-FiH2gyHwMAUkB-7fWuvkc3Q&hl=en | isbn = 1571817387}}</ref> | |||
| Hrvati, Slovenci i Zidovi u koncentracijskom logoru Kampor na otoku Rabu'' (Kampor 1942-1943: Croats, Slovenes, and Jews in the Kampor concentration camp on the island of Rab) | |||
| (Rijeka: Adamic, 1998) See http://www.croatia.org/crown/articles/6324/1/E-Croatian-Partisans--Italian-ethnic-cleansing-of-Istria.html </ref> housed in tents<ref>A photo of the camp: http://ww2panorama.org/images/96.jpg</ref>, with ] and ] in one area and ] in another. Approximately 1,400 prisoners died <ref>''Kampor 1942-1943: | |||
| Hrvati, Slovenci i Zidovi u koncentracijskom logoru Kampor na otoku Rabu'' (Kampor 1942-1943: Croats, Slovenes, and Jews in the Kampor concentration camp on the island of Rab) | |||
| (Rijeka: Adamic, 1998) See http://www.croatia.org/crown/articles/6324/1/E-Croatian-Partisans--Italian-ethnic-cleansing-of-Istria.html</ref> from ] and inhospitable winter and summer weather conditions. Another 800 prisoners from Rab died later when they were relocated to other Italian concentration camps such as ] and ]. Many prisoners who survived until September 1943 and were still strong enough to do so joined the ] and formed the ] <ref>http://emperors-clothes.com/croatia/rab.jpg</ref> which fought the ] ] occupying forces. | |||
| ==History of the prison== | |||
| In ], a memorial was built to ]'s plans <ref></ref> <ref></ref> - ironically by prisoners of a ] camp from the nearby island of ]. The site has also been given explanatory memorial notices in Croatian, Slovene, English and Italian to inform visitors of the camp's history <ref>http://www.flickr.com/photos/tomazk/2283010087/</ref>. | |||
| Newspaper, the ] has said that the camp held around 10,000 prisoners housed in tents<ref name="yugoslavreport">{{cite news|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2003/10/29/camp_ed3_.php|publisher=Thomas Fuller: IHT.com|title=Survivors of war camp lament Italy's amnesia, Pt 1.|date=] ]}}</ref><ref>A photo of the camp: http://ww2panorama.org/images/96.jpg</ref>, the same newspaper has said that ] and ] were in one area (the core of the Yugoslav Partisans) and ] were held in another, though the Italians treated the Jews better, providing them with ], ] and more food than the Partisans.<ref name="yugoslavreport">{{cite news|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2003/10/29/camp_ed3_.php|publisher=Thomas Fuller: IHT.com|title=Survivors of war camp lament Italy's amnesia, Pt 1.|date=] ]}}</ref> However this was not an ], like some of the Nazi camps, this was merely a ] camp to house enemey forces (recognised officially as part of the Allies) who had attacked Italians on the battlefield and been captured, as well as villages strongly accused of providing support for the Yugoslav Partisan army.<ref name="yugoslavreport">{{cite news|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2003/10/29/camp_ed3_.php|publisher=Thomas Fuller: IHT.com|title=Survivors of war camp lament Italy's amnesia, Pt 1.|date=] ]}}</ref> | |||
| By this time Italy as a whole was having problems and had shortages of food in areas it controlled, home and abroad people suffered from ],<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/stories/02/a6442102.shtml|publisher=BBC.co.uk|title=Christmas in Italy 1943|date=] ]}}</ref> especially in regards to bread shortages; it is alleged that 1,200 of those held in the camp died from ] as well as the weather conditions, though there is no information to corroborate the figure.<ref name="yugoslavreport">{{cite news|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2003/10/29/camp_ed3_.php|publisher=Thomas Fuller: IHT.com|title=Survivors of war camp lament Italy's amnesia, Pt 1.|date=] ]}}</ref> It is claimed that another 800 prisoners{{fact}}} from Rab died later when they were relocated to other Italian prisoner of war camps such as ] and ].{{fact}} Many prisoners who survived until September 1943 and were still strong enough to do so re-joined the ] and formed the ]; following the war the Yugoslav Partisans as a whole would go on to commit numerous attrocities, including ] against Italians in the Balkans with the ].<ref name="yugoslavwarcrime">{{cite news|url=http://www.annoticoreport.com/2007/02/foibe-massacres-raised-in-answer-to.html|publisher=The Annotico Report|title="Foibe" Massacres raised in Answer to Croatian President Mesic's Claims|date=] ]}}</ref><ref>http://emperors-clothes.com/croatia/rab.jpg</ref> | |||
| It has been said that "By the murderous standards of the second world war, Rab was only a footnote of evil" <ref name="IHT"></ref> and due to Italian "amnesia" <ref name="IHT"/> and their role on the Allied side in the last years of the ], not much is known about this camp outside the borders of the former ]. In ] the ] ] told Italian newspaper ] that the fascist government of ] "never killed anyone" and "Mussolini used to send people on vacation in internal exile" <ref name="IHT"/>. | |||
| ==Since the war== | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| In ], a memorial was built to ]'s plans<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.oris.hr/oris_br_27/tekst_02.htm|publisher=Oris.hr|title=Rab, Hrvastka / Croatia, 1953|date=] ]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.caratacus.co.uk/rab/|publisher=Caratacus.co.uk|title=Images of Rab|date=] ]}}</ref> - the memorial was ironically errected by prisoners of a ] concentration camp from the nearby island of ], which existed during the time of repressive communist reigme of ].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2003/10/29/camp_ed3_.php?page=2|publisher=Thomas Fuller: IHT.com|title=Survivors of war camp lament Italy's amnesia, Pt 2.|date=] ]}}</ref> | |||
| When historians compare the prisoner of war camp to others during the war, they have said that "By the murderous standards of the second world war, Rab was only a footnote of evil"<ref name="yugoslavreport">{{cite news|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2003/10/29/camp_ed3_.php|publisher=Thomas Fuller: IHT.com|title=Survivors of war camp lament Italy's amnesia, Pt 1.|date=] ]}}</ref> However, since being allowed into the ], some Balklan nationalists have used it to form an ] propaganda, however this is in the extreme minority of the population as much bigger events have happened in the ] since that time, such as the insertion and then fall-out of authoritarian ]s, causing lack of development and standards of human life which it is still trying to recover from compared to ] and ]. | |||
| ⚫ | ==References== | ||
| ⚫ | One of the prisoners in the camp was ], who went on to be ]'s ambassador at the ] and was ] (1978-80), and Elvira Kohn described her experiences at the prison in some detail.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.centropa.org/index.php?id=177&page=rdetails&rtype=bio&table=biografien|publisher=Centropa.org|title=Elvira Kohn|date=] ]}}</ref> | ||
| ⚫ | ==References== | ||
| <references/> | |||
| {{Reflist|2}} | |||
| == Further reading == | == Further reading == | ||
| * http://motlc.learningcenter.wiesenthal.org/pages/t063/t06330.html | * http://motlc.learningcenter.wiesenthal.org/pages/t063/t06330.html | ||
| * | |||
| * | * | ||
| * Milač, Metod M.: Resistance, imprisonment and forced labor : A Slovene student in World War II. ISBN 0-8204-5781-7 | * Milač, Metod M.: Resistance, imprisonment and forced labor : A Slovene student in World War II. ISBN 0-8204-5781-7 | ||
Revision as of 17:02, 10 April 2008
The Rab concentration camp is a name used to desribe one of 24 Italian ran internment prisons in which captured prisoners of war from opposition Yugoslav forces were placed in during World War II. It opened in July 1942 near the village of Kampor, on the Adriatic island of Rab. The camp was disbanded after the Italian government made an armistice with the Allies in September 1943.
Prisoners
The main prisoners of war held here, were members of an organisation calling itself the Yugoslav Partisans, groups of Communist military formations opposed to and in open warfare with the Axis forces, who were interned after been captured. The Yugoslav Partisans also went on to commit numerous brutal massacres and war crimes including mass murder and rape once given free reign in the following years, such as the Bleiburg massacre where 50,000 were killed, the Foibe massacres against ethnic Italians (innocent civilians) which lead to the Istrian exodus commonly cited as a holocaust and ethnic cleansing. The Yugoslav Partisans also butchered thousands of Hungarians at the 1944-1945 Killings in Bačka.
History of the prison
Newspaper, the International Herald Tribune has said that the camp held around 10,000 prisoners housed in tents, the same newspaper has said that Slovenians and Croats were in one area (the core of the Yugoslav Partisans) and Jews were held in another, though the Italians treated the Jews better, providing them with radio, newspapers and more food than the Partisans. However this was not an extermination camp, like some of the Nazi camps, this was merely a prisoner of war camp to house enemey forces (recognised officially as part of the Allies) who had attacked Italians on the battlefield and been captured, as well as villages strongly accused of providing support for the Yugoslav Partisan army.
By this time Italy as a whole was having problems and had shortages of food in areas it controlled, home and abroad people suffered from starvation, especially in regards to bread shortages; it is alleged that 1,200 of those held in the camp died from starvation as well as the weather conditions, though there is no information to corroborate the figure. It is claimed that another 800 prisoners} from Rab died later when they were relocated to other Italian prisoner of war camps such as Gonars and Padova. Many prisoners who survived until September 1943 and were still strong enough to do so re-joined the Yugoslav Partisans and formed the Rab battalion; following the war the Yugoslav Partisans as a whole would go on to commit numerous attrocities, including ethnic cleansing against Italians in the Balkans with the Foibe massacres.
Since the war
In 1953, a memorial was built to Edvard Ravnikar's plans - the memorial was ironically errected by prisoners of a communist concentration camp from the nearby island of Goli Otok, which existed during the time of repressive communist reigme of Josip Broz Tito.
When historians compare the prisoner of war camp to others during the war, they have said that "By the murderous standards of the second world war, Rab was only a footnote of evil" However, since being allowed into the European Union, some Balklan nationalists have used it to form an anti-Italian propaganda, however this is in the extreme minority of the population as much bigger events have happened in the Balkans since that time, such as the insertion and then fall-out of authoritarian Communist governments, causing lack of development and standards of human life which it is still trying to recover from compared to Western Europe and Southern Europe.
One of the prisoners in the camp was Anton Vratuša, who went on to be Yugoslavia's ambassador at the United Nations and was Prime Minister of Slovenia (1978-80), and Elvira Kohn described her experiences at the prison in some detail.
References
- "The Bleiburg Massacre". Serendipity.li. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ ""Foibe" Massacres raised in Answer to Croatian President Mesic's Claims". The Annotico Report. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - "Fifty Thousand Hungarian Martyrs: Report about the Hungarian Holocaust in Jugoslavia 1944-1992" (PDF). Hunsor.se. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - Wolff, Stefan. German Minorities in Europe: Ethnic Identity and Cultural Belonging. University of California Press. ISBN 1571817387.
- ^ "Survivors of war camp lament Italy's amnesia, Pt 1". Thomas Fuller: IHT.com. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - A photo of the camp: http://ww2panorama.org/images/96.jpg
- "Christmas in Italy 1943". BBC.co.uk. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - http://emperors-clothes.com/croatia/rab.jpg
- "Rab, Hrvastka / Croatia, 1953". Oris.hr. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - "Images of Rab". Caratacus.co.uk. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - "Survivors of war camp lament Italy's amnesia, Pt 2". Thomas Fuller: IHT.com. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - "Elvira Kohn". Centropa.org. 8 January 2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help)
Further reading
- http://motlc.learningcenter.wiesenthal.org/pages/t063/t06330.html
- Concentration camp memorial complex
- Milač, Metod M.: Resistance, imprisonment and forced labor : A Slovene student in World War II. ISBN 0-8204-5781-7
External links
- Oris, magazine for the architecture and culture A memorial plaque for the victims of fascism in Kampor on the island of Rab