Vladimir Barović (7 November 1939 – 29 September 1991) was a Montenegrin rear admiral in the

Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska a ...

(JNA) who committed suicide after refusing an order to shell Croatian cities.

Early life and education

Barović was born in

Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city of Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is also the ''de facto'' capital of this entity. I ...

on 7 November 1939 to a Montenegrin father, a JNA general and first war commander of

Priština Pristina, ; sr, / (, ) is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. The city's municipal boundaries in Pristina District form the largest urban center in Kosovo. After Tirana, Pristina has the second largest population of ethnic Albanians an ...

, and a Slovene mother. Shortly after his father was appointed to the position of war commander of Priština, he was dismissed because he opposed terror against

Kosovo Albanians The Albanians of Kosovo ( sq, Shqiptarët e Kosovës, ), also commonly called Kosovo Albanians, Kosovar/Kosovan Albanians or Kosovars/Kosovans, constitute the largest ethnic group in Kosovo. Kosovo Albanians belong to the ethnic Albanian sub-gr ...

. Therefore, Barović's comrades wrote: "The old rule: From the good roots – each leaf is good."

Military career

Barović become commander of the Military-Maritime sector of

Pula Pula (; also known as Pola, it, Pola , hu, Pòla, Venetian language, Venetian; ''Pola''; Istriot language, Istriot: ''Puola'', Slovene language, Slovene: ''Pulj'') is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, and the List of cities and town ...

after he was dismissed from the position of the commander of the Military-Maritime sector

Bay of Kotor The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known as the Boka, is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated around the bay. It is also the southernmost part of the hi ...

. As commander of the Pula garrison, he took part in negotiations on the withdrawal of JNA from Pula in early 1990s. He is remembered for his statement: "Any destruction won't be conducted here while I'm in command, and if I am still forced to order the destruction of Pula and Istria, then I will no longer be here." The day after the dismissal from the position of the commander of the Military-Maritime sector of Pula, Barović was appointed deputy commander of the military district of

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enterta ...

, with the headquarters on the island of Vis. Barović took the position from the Admiral Mile Kandić. On 29 September 1991 Barović got an order from the JNA headquarters in

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

to start bombing towns in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

. He was against the aggression of both the JNA and Montenegrin reservists against Croatia. According to him, it was in complete contrast to the Montenegrin and military honor. He refused to enforce the order. That same evening, in the base ambulance building, Barović committed suicide. He left a suicide note in which he wrote, among other things, that he decided to

die with dignity Dignified death, death with dignity, dying with dignity or dignity in dying is an ethical concept that refers to the end-of-life process avoiding suffering and maintaining control and autonomy. In general, it is usually treated as an extension of t ...

"because I do not want to wage war against the brotherly Croatian people", and that he did not want to "take part in the aggression of the JNA against Croats, which is for me an act contrary to the Montenegrin honor – because Montenegrins cannot fight and destroy the nation that did not do anything wrong." Barović was buried in

Herceg Novi Herceg Novi ( cyrl, Херцег Нови, ) is a coastal town in Montenegro located at the Western entrance to the Bay of Kotor and at the foot of Mount Orjen. It is the administrative center of the Herceg Novi Municipality with around 33,000 in ...

. On 13 July 2016 Montenegrin president

Filip Vujanović Filip Vujanović (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Филип Вујановић, ; born 1 September 1954) is a Montenegrin politician who served as the President of Montenegro from 2003 to 2018. Early life and career Born and raised in Belgrade, Vujanov ...

posthumously decorated Barović with the Order for Bravery, which is awarded for "exceptional bravery and self-sacrifice expressed in extremely dangerous events in the saving of human lives and of material goods".

Ranks

* Potporučnik (

Second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

) (1960) *

Ship-of-the-line captain Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The rank is equal to the army rank of colonel and air force rank of group captain. Equivalent ranks worldwide include ...

(1982) *

Rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

(1990)Nazor, Ante (2010), JNA command (January 1990 - May 1992), Zagreb: Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Croatia, the Croatian Memorial Documentation Center of the Croatian War of Independence. -p.245-286

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barovic, Vladimir 1939 births 1991 deaths People from Banja Luka Suicides by firearm in Croatia League of Communists of Montenegro politicians 20th-century Montenegrin people Montenegrin communists Montenegrin people of Slovenian descent Bosnia and Herzegovina people of Montenegrin descent Bosnia and Herzegovina people of Slovenian descent

Early life and education

Military career

Ranks

See also

References