Content note: Wartime Yugoslav Army leaflet that calls the opposing side 'resurrected fascism' and 'Ustashism' and 'mercenaries', shown as printed. This object is shown as it was published. Why
Yugoslav People's Army leaflet 'Građanima Dubrovnika i Dubrovačke župe' (Dubrovnik, 1991)
Leaflet addressed 'To the citizens of Dubrovnik and the Dubrovnik hinterland'. It says the issuers were 'forced' to deal decisively with 'resurrected fascism and Ustashism', says they wish to protect innocent lives, property and cultural monuments, and ends with four imperatives: help restore peace, resist the Ustashas and 'mercenaries', cooperate with the JNA 'in the common struggle', and 'Save Dubrovnik!'. The tells are the equation of the opposing side with a 1941 to 1945 regime, and the framing of the operation as protection of the city's own heritage.
Propaganda techniques used in this leaflet
- Date
- 1991
- Period
- Cold War
- Made by
- Command of an operational group of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), Dubrovnik area
Full record
Region, Country, Medium, Issuer type, Regime, Leader, Audience, Purpose, Themes, Event, Source, Rights
- Region
- Eastern Europe and Eurasia
- Country
- Yugoslavia
- Medium
- Leaflet
- Issuer type
- Military
- Regime
- Sfry Federal Government
- Leader
- Veljko Kadijevic
- Audience
- Enemy civilians
- Purpose
- Persuade or win support
- Themes
- War and the military, Race and ethnicity
- Event
- Croatian War of Independence
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- Wikimedia Commons (photograph by Bracodbk), retrieved October 12, 2026
- Rights
- CC BY-SA 3.0 (photograph, Bracodbk, via Commons); leaflet is an anonymous 1991 Yugoslav Army handbill
Photograph: Bracodbk, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (File:Letak2.JPG). Leaflet: Yugoslav People's Army operational group command, 1991.
Text on the object
Original (Serbian) · read from the image, not independently checked
GRAĐANIMA DUBROVNIKA I DUBROVAČKE ŽUPE Prinuđeni smo da se odlučno obračunamo sa povampirenim fašizmom i ustaštvom. Želimo da sačuvamo živote nedužnih građana, vaše imovine i oštećenja kulturno istorijskih objekata. Pomozite da se mir što pre povrati u lepi Dubrovnik i njegovu okolinu! Pružite otpor ustašama i plaćenicima! Sarađujte sa JNA u zajedničkoj borbi! Sačuvajte Dubrovnik! Komanda operativne grupe
TO THE CITIZENS OF DUBROVNIK AND THE DUBROVNIK HINTERLAND We have been forced to deal decisively with resurrected fascism and Ustashism. We wish to preserve the lives of innocent citizens, your property and damage to cultural-historical objects. Help bring peace back as soon as possible to beautiful Dubrovnik and its surroundings! Resist the Ustashas and mercenaries! Cooperate with the JNA in the common struggle! Save Dubrovnik! Command of the operational group (Literal translation by Claude, not verified by a fluent reader; 'povampirenim' literally 'vampirised', rendered 'resurrected'.)
Read from a 500 px photograph; line-end hyphenation removed. Wording transcribed as printed.
