SKEJO AND HOS MEMBERS ACQUITTED OVER USTASHA SALUTE, JUDGE RULES THAT EXCEPTIONS EXIST

SPLIT, JULY 13 /SRNA/ - The Misdemeanour Court in Split acquitted former HOS wartime commander Marko Skejo and 12 HOS members over chants of "Za dom spremni" /For the Homeland Ready/ in Knin four years ago, after the judge ruled that exceptions exist even though the Ustasha salute is prohibited.

In the acquittal ruling, the judge stated that the slogan is banned in public spaces, but that exceptions do exist, Croatian media reported. The judge referred to a document issued by the Council for Dealing with the Consequences of the Rule of Non-Democratic Regimes, which recommended exceptions to the general ban on totalitarian symbols. The ruling stated that there is no dispute that the slogan "Za dom spremni" /For the Homeland Ready/, as the official motto of the Ustasha movement and the totalitarian regime of the Independent State of Croatia /NDH/, is contrary to the Croatian Constitution. However, it was also used during the so-called Homeland War as an integral part of the official emblem of HOS, whose members "fought against aggression." The decision also relies on a ruling by the High Misdemeanour Court from March 2025, which upheld an acquittal for Skejo in an almost identical case. At the time, the court found that Skejo, as HOS's wartime commander, had shouted the salute after delivering a speech in honour of fallen soldiers, which could be considered an exception.