Ćetko Macanović was a fighter of the Fifth Proletarian Brigade, since its foundation, on June 12, 1942, and two days after its formation, he turned 17. During the war, he was wounded three times.
"The fighters of this brigade were decorated with exceptional courage and incredible fighting spirit. The Fifth Montenegrin Brigade gave birth to great heroes, but also made huge sacrifices. There are many examples of heroism and great sacrifices, but the Fifth Montenegrin Brigade did not give up the fight," said Macanović, who bearer of the "Partisan Memorial 1941".
On the occasion of commemorating the 75th anniversary of the formation of the Fifth Proletarian Montenegrin Strike Brigade, which was formed in Muratovica, in Piva, the Association of Fighters of the National Liberation War (UBNOR) and anti-fascists Nikšić, in cooperation with the National Library "Njegoš" and the Department of History at the Faculty of Philosophy, organized a forum last night in Nikšić dedicated to the famous brigade.
Đorđe Stanović from Ulcinj was also a fighter of the Fifth Brigade. During the war, he was a radio operator. He evoked memories of the war years and recalled a partisan woman who was wounded and "saw the wounds" with the song.
"When they took her away, we remembered that none of us asked her her name. Then I said that I knew her name - heroine. That was her name," said Stanović, who has passed the ninth decade.
Prof. Dr. Nada Tomović spoke about the combat path of the Fifth Brigade, whose first commander was Sava Kovačević.
"Forty-six of its fighters were declared national heroes of Yugoslavia. She was awarded the Order of National Liberation and the Order of Brotherhood and Unity, and on the occasion of the fifteenth anniversary of the Battle of Sutjeska, in June 46, she was awarded the Order of National Hero," said Tomović.
She recalled that in 1942 and 1943 alone, more than a third of the soldiers who joined the unit on the day of its formation were killed, and that dozens of managers were sent from its ranks to newly formed units throughout Yugoslavia, because, as said, the Fifth Brigade was one of the schools for creating personnel for the People's Liberation Army.
According to Adnan Prekić, MSc, the Proletarian Fifth is a symbol of a time and space. That unit, which was often called "Sava's brigade" because of its commander, Sava Kovačević, had all the characteristics of elite armed formations and was the school of new political elites who would take over the management of Montenegro after the Second World War.
"Just as it was a symbol of resistance, courage and sacrifice during the war, this brigade has become a kind of symbol of the new, socialist time," said Prekić.
According to him, the Fifth Proletarian Brigade has burdened us too much and is too important for the Montenegrin area for them to think that we can distance ourselves from it, because even today we need symbols of loyalty, anti-fascism and the fight against tyranny.
Dr. Dragutin Papović referred to the contribution of Montenegro in the fight against fascism and recalled that the 32.000th of July Uprising, in which an estimated XNUMX insurgents participated, was the first mass and nationwide uprising in enslaved Europe.
Although the population of Montenegro was only two percent of the Yugoslav population, at the beginning of May there were 43.676 fighters in the NOVJ units, which was 12 percent of the Montenegrin population, while the Yugoslav average was five percent.
Speaking about Montenegro's contribution to the anti-fascist struggle, Papović said that eight of the 23 members of the NOVJ Supreme Staff were from Montenegro, and that at the end of the war, 36 percent of the generals during the Second World War were Montenegrins.
"Out of 1.057 national heroes from Yugoslavia, 244 of them are from Montenegro. During the Second World War, Montenegro had about 37.000 dead, or about 10 percent of the population. War damage amounted to about 43,8 billion dinars. Montenegro made a great contribution to the anti-fascist struggle , but she also paid a great price for that struggle," said Papović and added that it is the duty of all generations to preserve the most humane values of that struggle - anti-fascism, a free and emancipated Montenegro.
Slobodan Bato Mirjačić, president of UBNOR and an anti-fascist, who was also the host of the evening, said that the Fifth Proletarian Montenegrin Strike Brigade is "the pride of Nikšić proletarians and the city, regardless of the great losses".
The UBNOR delegation from Nikšić and Plužine laid flowers in Muratovica on the memorial dedicated to its formation.
Bonus video:
