Municipal Assembly adopts initiative: Heroine Joka Baletić to receive a memorial in Nikšić
The Municipal Assembly of Nikšić adopted late last night an initiative by the European Alliance to erect a memorial to Montenegrin heroine Joka Baletić.
The initiative to erect a memorial to Joka Baletić, submitted by the European Alliance, was supported by 32 councillors, while four voted against.
With 20 votes in favor and 16 against, the Assembly also adopted an initiative by the coalition „For the Future of Nikšić“ to establish a culture of remembrance for the victims of ideological executions committed during and immediately after World War II, with special reference to the execution site Kotor Jama.
AN ACT OF HISTORICAL JUSTICE
The initiative to erect a memorial to Joka Baletić in Nikšić was justified by the need to institutionally recognize her contribution to the anti-fascist struggle.
During the session, the proposers emphasized that the monument would represent an act of historical justice and a confirmation of the values of contemporary Montenegrin society.
- The initiative is grounded in the need to valorize, in an institutional, dignified, and permanently visible way, the contribution that this prominent participant in the National Liberation Struggle made in the fight against the occupiers and domestic traitors, and to further affirm the anti-fascist legacy for which Nikšić is recognized in the modern history of Montenegro - said, among others, European Alliance councillor Ivan Radojičić.
Councillors stressed the importance of preserving the anti-fascist heritage and strengthening the culture of remembrance of the victims of the National Liberation Struggle.
During the debate, particular emphasis was placed on the role of women in the struggle, noting that more than 2,500 women from Montenegro participated in the fighting.
The conclusions foresee that the competent municipal authorities will carry out procedures for selecting the location, conceptual design, and funding of the monument.
„MY WISH IS KNOWN TO MY COMRADES, YOU WILL HEAR IT WHEN THEY CARRY IT OUT“
Joka Baletić was born in 1924 in Broćanac, near Nikšić, where she completed primary school. As a young woman, forced by circumstances, she took up arms and joined the National Liberation Movement.
During the war, she served as a nurse in the 4th Strike Battalion of the Nikšić National Liberation Movement. On May 9, 1942, in fierce fighting between the partisans and Italian forces and their local collaborators, she was captured together with commissar Ljubo Čupić in the area of Kablena Glavica. After days of torture and unsuccessful attempts to extract any information about her comrades and their plans, the occupiers sentenced her to death. She was only 17 years old.
Before the sentence was carried out, Joka defiantly raised her bound hands, with clenched fists, cheering for freedom and refused to allow the executioner to place the noose around her neck. She did it herself.
When asked about her last wish, she replied: „My wish is known to my comrades. You will hear it when they carry it out“.