{"id":13625,"date":"2021-05-05T17:52:06","date_gmt":"2021-05-05T15:52:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/terraforming.org\/?p=13625"},"modified":"2021-05-28T15:06:38","modified_gmt":"2021-05-28T13:06:38","slug":"memorial-center-topovske-supe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/memorial-center-topovske-supe\/","title":{"rendered":"Roma victims of Topovske \u0161upe must not be forgotten"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-vzirg1-0d41e19fb2998dd27e8440c28bbe3a7f\">\n.flex_column.av-vzirg1-0d41e19fb2998dd27e8440c28bbe3a7f{\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-vzirg1-0d41e19fb2998dd27e8440c28bbe3a7f av_one_full  avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_three_fourth  avia-builder-el-first  first flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  '     ><div  class='avia-slideshow av-koecn5lr-458473bea1f1a8e35190527d63a3837a avia-slideshow-featured_large av_slideshow avia-slide-slider  avia-builder-el-1  avia-builder-el-no-sibling  av-slideshow-ui av-control-default av-slideshow-manual av-loop-once av-loop-manual-endless av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-1' data-slideshow-options=\"{&quot;animation&quot;:&quot;slide&quot;,&quot;autoplay&quot;:false,&quot;loop_autoplay&quot;:&quot;once&quot;,&quot;interval&quot;:5,&quot;loop_manual&quot;:&quot;manual-endless&quot;,&quot;autoplay_stopper&quot;:false,&quot;noNavigation&quot;:false,&quot;bg_slider&quot;:false,&quot;keep_padding&quot;:false,&quot;hoverpause&quot;:false,&quot;show_slide_delay&quot;:0}\"  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 42%;'><li  class='avia-slideshow-slide av-koecn5lr-458473bea1f1a8e35190527d63a3837a__0  av-single-slide slide-1 slide-odd'><div data-rel='slideshow-1' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><div class='av-slideshow-caption av-koecn5lr-458473bea1f1a8e35190527d63a3837a__0 avia-caption'><div class=\"avia-inner-caption\"><div class='avia-caption-content '  itemprop=\"description\" ><p>Current state of Topovske \u0160upe site (Photo: Terraforming)<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><img decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" class=\"wp-image-13629 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-13629\"  src=\"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/IMG_5128-1500x630.jpg\" width=\"1500\" height=\"630\" title='Topovske \u0161upe' alt='Topovske \u0161upe'  itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"   \/><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-nrqm41-035b539cdb161705fe817da1fba43da3\">\n.flex_column.av-nrqm41-035b539cdb161705fe817da1fba43da3{\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-nrqm41-035b539cdb161705fe817da1fba43da3 av_three_fourth  avia-builder-el-2  el_after_av_one_full  el_before_av_one_fourth  first flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  column-top-margin'     ><section  class='av_textblock_section av-knyrrx98-86077d2204147b887b4d25ef9c9ecd2a '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><h1>Roma victims must not be forgotten<\/h1>\n<p>&#8220;By the end of the year the City of Belgrade will declare the Autokomanda area as public property, and the Memorial Center Topovske \u0160upe will be built there.&#8221; This <a href=\"http:\/\/www.beograd.rs\/lat\/beoinfo\/1782739-vesic-grad-preuzima-topovske-supe\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">statement from the Deputy Mayor of Belgrade, Mr. Goran Vesi\u0107<\/a>, published on 5th of May 2021 on the official website of the Belgrade City Authorities, has raised several doubts.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.novosti.rs\/beograd\/vesti\/993929\/intervju-goran-vesic-grad-preuzima-topovske-supe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">In his interview for Ve\u010dernje Novosti<\/a> Mr. Vesi\u0107 stated:<i> &#8220;When the Detailed Regulation Plan is completed and adopted (by the City Assembly) at the end of the year, and when the area is declared as public property, the City will, together with the Jewish community, immediately announce a public call for design and construction of the memorial. Not only Jewish, but also Serb hostages were held and killed here by the German occupier. The great injustice inflicted on the Serbs and Jews will be corrected.&#8221;<\/i><\/p>\n<h3>Concentration Camp for Jewish and Roma Men<\/h3>\n<p>In the fall of 1941, at the area of Autokomanda in Belgrade, the former Royal Yugoslav Army military barracks (known as Topovske \u0160upe &#8211; &#8220;Cannon Sheds&#8221;) were turn into a concentration camp for Jewish and Roma men who served as hostages for mass retribution shootings by Germans. About 5,000 Jews and about 1,500 Roma passed through the<a href=\"https:\/\/topovskesupe.rs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\"> concentration camp at Topovske \u0160upe<\/a>. All were shot at execution sites around Belgrade.<\/p>\n<h3>Authentic Sites in Belgrade<\/h3>\n<p>German concentration camps at Topovske \u0160upe and<a href=\"https:\/\/ester.rs\/en\/introduction\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\"> Judenlager\/Anhaltelager Semlin at Staro Sajmi\u0161te<\/a>, as well as the camp at Banjica, are some of the most important authentic Holocaust sites and sites of terror and suffering of Jews, Serbs, Roma, members of resistance, and other victims held and killed at various detention and killing sites in and around Belgrade during the Second World War. These places have yet to become places of remembrance and learning because regrettably they are still not today..<\/p>\n<h4>A Shopping Mall<\/h4>\n<p>The news that a memorial center will be built at the Topovske \u0160upe site is great, as I hope that it means that the issue of preserving this authentic site has definitely been resolved and that the plans for turning this area into a shopping mall are now abandoned or properly adjusted. It is not exactly clear what will happen with the shopping mall plans. It is also important to learn more precisely about what area\u00a0Mr. Vesi\u0107 was referring to and whether both of the remaining authentic buildings will be included.<\/p>\n<h3>Where are the Roma?<\/h3>\n<p>What immediately caught my eye in this statement was that there was<b> no mention of the Roma people at all<\/b>. On the other hand, it was stated that <i>&#8220;Serbs were also killed there&#8221;<\/i>, which is not accurate. Thousands of Serb victims were killed at Anhaltelager Semlin at Staro Sajmi\u0161te, at Banjica, and many other places around Belgrade but not at Topovske \u0160upe.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>It is impossible to even imagine a memorial center at Topovske \u0160upe which would exclude the Roma. Any such memorial must include the history of the prewar life of Belgrade Roma, their persecution during the German occupation, the important role of the collaborators, in particular Nedi\u0107&#8217;s Government and his police and the consequences of this persecution still present in the Roma community today.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3>Law about Memorial Center &#8220;Staro Sajmi\u0161te&#8221;<\/h3>\n<p>It is not clear how this plan fits with the Law on the Memorial Center &#8220;Staro Sajmi\u0161te&#8221;, which was adopted by the Serbian Parliament in February 2020. Namely, this law already includes the creation of a memorial center at &#8220;Topovske \u0160upe&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>Is this an announcement of the beginning of the realization of the aforementioned law or is it a completely new initiative, or maybe a start of a new cooperation between the City and the State authorities in the realization of this project?<\/p>\n<p>The law on the Memorial Center &#8220;Staro Sajmi\u0161te&#8221; stipulates that, in addition to focusing on the site at Staro Sajmi\u0161te, the Memorial Center <em>&#8220;will be established as a cultural institution with the aim of nurturing the memory of the victims of the Nazi concentration camp at Topovske \u0160upe&#8221;<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The law also stipulates that <em>\u201ca particular Program Board for the museum of the Jewish Transit Camp Belgrade &#8211; Topovske \u0160upe&#8221;<\/em> will be formed within the Memorial Center &#8220;Staro Sajmi\u0161te&#8221;. Article 12 of the same law explicitly defines that the territory of the Memorial Center &#8220;Staro Sajmi\u0161te&#8221; includes, in addition to the premises of the Former Belgrade Fair on the left bank of the Sava river (Staro Sajmi\u0161te),<em> &#8220;the premises of the Jewish Transit Camp Belgrade &#8211; Topovske \u0160upe&#8221;.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>Places of Oblivion must become Places of Remembrance and Learning<\/h3>\n<p>Regardless of these doubts, we welcome every move of the City and the State authorities that ensures the preservation of authentic Holocaust sites and all sites of suffering, and their transformation into spaces for remembrance and education.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>It is not easy but if this work will be conducted properly, which means professionally and with courage, the future Memorial Center &#8220;Staro Sajmi\u0161te&#8221;, which would include Topovske \u0160upe, could emerge to become one of the most important European centers for education and research about the Holocaust, Samudaripen and other shared and unique World War II experiences. Such a Memorial Center could become one of the most important centers for countering <a href=\"https:\/\/www.holocaustremembrance.com\/resources\/reports\/recognizing-countering-holocaust-distortion-recommendations\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">distortion<\/a>, manipulation and politicization of this history, both in the region and across Europe. Alternatives are rather gloomy.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-2mqcpy-1f43a2bdb80101e24f57d8a2b1ef136e\">\n#top .hr.hr-invisible.av-2mqcpy-1f43a2bdb80101e24f57d8a2b1ef136e{\nheight:50px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-2mqcpy-1f43a2bdb80101e24f57d8a2b1ef136e hr-invisible  avia-builder-el-4  el_after_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-last '><span class='hr-inner '><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><\/p><\/div><\/p>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-nngak1-51e408164d11edadd139bc7a11a88753\">\n.flex_column.av-nngak1-51e408164d11edadd139bc7a11a88753{\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-nngak1-51e408164d11edadd139bc7a11a88753 av_one_fourth  avia-builder-el-5  el_after_av_three_fourth  avia-builder-el-last  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  column-top-margin'     ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-kn8i6fq0-465cde235186f6fc1b78e5ae93f9357f\">\n.avia-image-container.av-kn8i6fq0-465cde235186f6fc1b78e5ae93f9357f img.avia_image{\nbox-shadow:none;\n}\n.avia-image-container.av-kn8i6fq0-465cde235186f6fc1b78e5ae93f9357f .av-image-caption-overlay-center{\ncolor:#ffffff;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='avia-image-container av-kn8i6fq0-465cde235186f6fc1b78e5ae93f9357f av-styling-circle avia-align-center  avia-builder-el-6  el_before_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-first '   itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><div class=\"avia-image-container-inner\"><div class=\"avia-image-overlay-wrap\"><img decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" class='wp-image-7213 avia-img-lazy-loading-not-7213 avia_image ' src=\"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-1030x1030.jpg\" alt='Misko Stanisic, Terraforming' title='Misko Stanisic, Terraforming'  height=\"1030\" width=\"1030\"  itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\" srcset=\"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-1030x1030.jpg 1030w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-80x80.jpg 80w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-36x36.jpg 36w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-180x180.jpg 180w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-1500x1500.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-705x705.jpg 705w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-120x120.jpg 120w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019-450x450.jpg 450w, https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/Misko-2019.jpg 2001w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1030px) 100vw, 1030px\" \/><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-kn8i6yqs-25d8716002757e89111325368af48e63 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Mi\u0161ko Stani\u0161i\u0107 <\/strong>| 05. May 2021.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-knyrtikh-933190643ecae569c684d19fbfd39723\">\n#top .hr.hr-invisible.av-knyrtikh-933190643ecae569c684d19fbfd39723{\nheight:200px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='hr av-knyrtikh-933190643ecae569c684d19fbfd39723 hr-invisible  avia-builder-el-8  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_textblock '><span class='hr-inner '><span class=\"hr-inner-style\"><\/span><\/span><\/div><br \/>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-knyrxf7f-6900c472fbe910e59fe4b74b7be30cc1 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><blockquote>\n<p>About 5,000 Jews and about 1,500 Roma passed through concentration camp at Topovske \u0160upe. All were shot at the execution sites around Belgrade.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/section><\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By the end of the year the City of Belgrade will declare the Autokomanda area as public property, and the Memorial Center Topovske \u0160upe will be built there. The statement from the Deputy Mayor of Belgrade, Mr. Goran Vesi\u0107, published on 5th of May 2021 on the official website of the Belgrade City Authorities, has raised several doubts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13629,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6],"tags":[180,101,2991,2964,10,99,2989,11,2990],"class_list":["post-13625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-savesajmiste","tag-belgrade","tag-memorial-center","tag-politics","tag-roma","tag-samudaripen","tag-staro-sajmiste","tag-holocaust","tag-topovske-supe"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/IMG_5128-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13625"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13625\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13656,"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13625\/revisions\/13656"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13629"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/terraforming.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}