SAO Western Slavonia
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The Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Western Slavonia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srpska autonomna oblast Zapadna Slavonija, Српска аутономна област Западна Славонија) was a Serbian self-proclaimed autonomous region (oblast) within
Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...
. It was formed on 12 August 1991 and was subsequently included into
Republic of Serbian Krajina The Republic of Serbian Krajina or Serb Republic of Krajina ( sh, Република Српска Крајина, italics=no / or РСК / ''RSK'', ), known as the Serbian Krajina ( / ) or simply Krajina, was a self-proclaimed Serb proto-state, ...
. It was eliminated and reintegrated into Croatia in May 1995, during
Operation Flash Operation Flash ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=/, Operacija Bljesak, Операција Бљесак) was a brief Croatian Army (HV) offensive conducted against the forces of the self-declared proto-state Republic of Serbian Krajina (RSK) from 1&nda ...
.


History

Shortly after the proclamation of the SAO Western Slavonia, rebel Serb forces, assisted by the Serb-led
Yugoslav National 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) and Serb paramilitary forces (from Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina), took
Okučani Okučani is a village and municipal centre in western Slavonia, Croatia. It is located 19 km southeast of Novska and 17 km west of Nova Gradiška.Daruvar Daruvar ( cz, Daruvar, german: Daruwar, hu, Daruvár, sr, Дарувар, la, Aquae Balissae) is a spa town and municipality in Slavonia, northeastern Croatia with a population of 8,567. The area including the surrounding villages (Dar. Vino ...
, threatening to sever
Slavonia Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baranja ...
from Croatia proper. At this time, the area under Serbian control was relatively large, although the majority of the region was hilly and forested with poor infrastructure. During the next months, there was fierce battle for
Pakrac Pakrac is a town in western Slavonia, Croatia, population 4,842, total municipality population 8,460 (census 2011). Pakrac is located on the road and railroad connecting the regions of Posavina and Podravina. Name In Croatian the town is known a ...
as paramilitaries ethnically cleansed Croats from newly captured Western Slavonic districts. Most of the region was patrolled by poorly equipped Serbian militias drawn from the local Serb villages, and with JNA resources widely distributed at a precarious time, they were not in position to effectively dissect Croatia. On October 31, 1991, Croatian forces launched
Operation Otkos 10 Operation Swath-10 ( hr, Operacija Otkos-10) was a military offensive undertaken by the Croatian Army (''Hrvatska vojska'', or HV) against the SAO Western Slavonia Territorial Defense Forces on Bilogora Mountain in western Slavonia. Occurring f ...
securing the
Bilogora Bilogora (Bilo-gora, or ''Bilogorje'', ''Bilo-gorje'') is a low mountainous range in Central Croatia. It consists of a series of hills and small plains some 80 kilometres in length stretching in the direction northwest-southeast, along the southwest ...
hills. Following this success, the Croat
Operation Orkan 91 Operation Hurricane-91 ( hr, Operacija Orkan-91) was a military offensive undertaken by the Croatian Army (''Hrvatska vojska'' – HV) against the Yugoslav People's Army (''Jugoslovenska Narodna Armija'' – JNA) and SAO Western Slavonia Terri ...
, on December 12, pushed back the Serb/Yugoslav forces into a small pocket only a fraction of the initial territory controlled. In the operation,
Daruvar Daruvar ( cz, Daruvar, german: Daruwar, hu, Daruvár, sr, Дарувар, la, Aquae Balissae) is a spa town and municipality in Slavonia, northeastern Croatia with a population of 8,567. The area including the surrounding villages (Dar. Vino ...
was taken. During their retreat, Serbian paramilitaries committed the
Voćin massacre The Voćin massacre was the killing of 43 civilians in Voćin, Croatia, by the Serbian White Eagles paramilitary unit on 13 December 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence. The massacre was carried out after the unit was ordered to ...
. On January 2, 1992, the UN brokered a ceasefire in Sarajevo, it is possible that this stopped the Croatian forces from eliminating the rebel Serb presence in Western Slavonia. On February 18, 1993, Croatian and local Serb leaders signed the Daruvar Agreement. The Agreement was kept secret and was working towards normalising life for the locals on the battlefield line. However, the rebel Serb authorities from Knin learned of the deal and arrested the rebel Serb leaders responsible for it. War in Croatia 1991-95, Part II
The Serb enclave of Western Slavonia was eliminated and the area reintegrated into Croatia in two days in May 1995, during
Operation Flash Operation Flash ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=/, Operacija Bljesak, Операција Бљесак) was a brief Croatian Army (HV) offensive conducted against the forces of the self-declared proto-state Republic of Serbian Krajina (RSK) from 1&nda ...
. In retaliation for this thorough defeat,
Milan Martić Milan Martić ( sr-cyr, Милан Мартић; born 18 November 1954) is a Croatian Serb politician and war criminal who served as the president of the unrecognized Republic of Serbian Krajina between 1994 and 1995, during the Croatian War of In ...
launched rockets at Zagreb.


Administrative divisions

The territory of Western Slavonia under protection by the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
included four municipalities:
Okučani Okučani is a village and municipal centre in western Slavonia, Croatia. It is located 19 km southeast of Novska and 17 km west of Nova Gradiška.Pakrac Pakrac is a town in western Slavonia, Croatia, population 4,842, total municipality population 8,460 (census 2011). Pakrac is located on the road and railroad connecting the regions of Posavina and Podravina. Name In Croatian the town is known a ...
,
Daruvar Daruvar ( cz, Daruvar, german: Daruwar, hu, Daruvár, sr, Дарувар, la, Aquae Balissae) is a spa town and municipality in Slavonia, northeastern Croatia with a population of 8,567. The area including the surrounding villages (Dar. Vino ...
and
Grubišno Polje Grubišno Polje (Czech: ''Hrubečné Pole'') is a town in Bjelovar-Bilogora County, Croatia. Demographics In the 1991 census, the settlement had equal numbers of Serbs and Croatians, but during the Croatian War of Independence the Croatian Serbs ...
. The
Army of the Republic of Serbian Krajina The Serbian Army of Krajina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srpska vojska Krajine, SVK, Српска војска Крајине, СВК) was the armed forces of the Republic of Serbian Krajina (RSK). Also known as the Army of the Republic of Serbian Krajina or ...
had controlled the municipalities of Okučani and Pakrac.


Population

The population of municipalities of Western Slavonia according to the population census in 1991 (note that these did not correspond SAO Slavonia which mostly included Serb settlements of the municipalities, not one of them wholly): *
Pakrac Pakrac is a town in western Slavonia, Croatia, population 4,842, total municipality population 8,460 (census 2011). Pakrac is located on the road and railroad connecting the regions of Posavina and Podravina. Name In Croatian the town is known a ...
= 7,818
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
(47.76%), 5,619
Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, G ...
(34.33%), 2,930 others (17.91%) *
Daruvar Daruvar ( cz, Daruvar, german: Daruwar, hu, Daruvár, sr, Дарувар, la, Aquae Balissae) is a spa town and municipality in Slavonia, northeastern Croatia with a population of 8,567. The area including the surrounding villages (Dar. Vino ...
= relative Serb majority *
Grubišno Polje Grubišno Polje (Czech: ''Hrubečné Pole'') is a town in Bjelovar-Bilogora County, Croatia. Demographics In the 1991 census, the settlement had equal numbers of Serbs and Croatians, but during the Croatian War of Independence the Croatian Serbs ...
= relative Croat majority


See also

*
Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between Croat forces loyal to the Government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY)—and the Serb-controlled Yugosl ...
*
Breakup of Yugoslavia The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of political upheavals and conflicts during the early 1990s. After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...
*
Republic of Serbian Krajina The Republic of Serbian Krajina or Serb Republic of Krajina ( sh, Република Српска Крајина, italics=no / or РСК / ''RSK'', ), known as the Serbian Krajina ( / ) or simply Krajina, was a self-proclaimed Serb proto-state, ...
*
Serbian Autonomous Oblasts From August 1990 to November 1991, during the breakup of Yugoslavia, several Serb Autonomous Regions, or Districts ( sr, Српска аутономна област (САО) / ) were proclaimed in the Yugoslav republics of SR Croatia and SR Bosnia ...
*
SAO Kninska Krajina The Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Krajina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Srpska autonomna oblast Krajina, Српска аутономна област Крајина) or SAO Krajina () was a self-proclaimed Serbian autonomous region (oblast) wit ...
* SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia *
Socialist Republic of Croatia The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), or SR Croatia, was a constituent republic and federated state of the Social ...


References


External links


Map of the Republic of Serbian Krajina
- map shows territory of Western Slavonia controlled by Serb forces (green) and territory of Western Slavonia under UN protection (orange). {{coord missing, Croatia States and territories disestablished in 1991 States and territories established in 1990 Republic of Serbian Krajina History of Slavonia Separatism in Croatia Serbian nationalism in Croatia 1991 establishments in Europe 1991 disestablishments in Europe