Siniša Glavašević
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Siniša Glavašević (born November 4, 1960—November 1991) was a Croatian reporter who perished in the Battle of Vukovar.
A native of Vukovar, Glavašević finished primary schooling there and entered the university at Sarajevo. During the Croatian War of Independence, he was the chief editor of the Vukovar radio.
During the Battle of Vukovar, Glavašević was regularly reporting from the besieged city. He is particularly remembered for a series of stories he had read to the listeners, that talked about basic human values.
On October 16th, 1991, Glavašević said on Croatian Radio:
Vukovar submits to Croatia, Europe and the world - either the Croatian authorities will do everything to obtain a permanent cease-fire, or they will send the necessary and efficient assistance, of the military kind, or they will evacuate the entire civilian population of this area. There is another option, and that is the complete and final destruction of the city and a massacre of the population, as well as two hundred and fifty heavily wounded. However, that option isn't on anyone's mind here. The heroes of this city are necessary for some time yet, as living witnesses of this war. Thank you Zagreb. Don't cut this part...
On November 18, 1991, Siniša Glavašević sent in his last report, which ended with:
The picture of Vukovar at the 22nd hour of the 87th day [of the siege] will remain forever in the memory of the witnesses of this time. There are infinite spooky sights, and you can smell the burning. We walk over bodies, building material, glass, detritus and the gruesome silence. ... We hope that the torments of Vukovar are over.
Glavašević disappeared after the fall of Vukovar. It was later found that he was killed by the Serbian paramilitary forces along with hundreds of others in the Vukovar massacre. In 1997, his body was exhumed from a mass grave in the nearby farm of Ovčara.
In 1992, Matica hrvatska printed "Stories from Vukovar" (Croatian: Priče iz Vukovara), a collection of stories from Siniša Glavašević.
