Following a joint initiative by the non-governmental organizations Human Rights Action (HRA), Centre for Civic Education (CCE), and the Anti-Fascists of Cetinje, the City Assembly of the Old Royal Capital Cetinje has approved the naming of a street in the Pod Granicom neighborhood after Krsto Đurović – an officer who demonstrated that honour, conscience, and humanity can rise above all else.
“Krsto Đurović was a Rear Admiral of the Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA) and Commander of the Southern Naval Sector in Boka. He disagreed with the policies, plans, and actions of the JNA and political leadership regarding the ‘Dubrovnik Operation.’ He opposed the aggression against Croatia, as confirmed by multiple testimonies from those in his close circle. The wartime mayor of Dubrovnik, Petar Poljanić, during the trial of Slobodan Milošević in The Hague, stated a sentence that best describes the character of Krsto Đurović: ‘As long as I am the commander of Boka naval area, you can be sure that not a single shell will fall on Dubrovnik’,” this was highlighted, among other things, in the official explanation.
Đurović died on 5 October 1991, in a helicopter over Konavle (Popovići, Croatia). The circumstances of his death remain unclear. Numerous reports from the Dubrovnik-Herzegovina battlefield raise suspicions that the helicopter was fired upon by JNA forces.
By naming a street after Krsto Đurović, Cetinje is not only paying tribute to a hero of conscience but also sending a powerful message: that Montenegro remembers and honours those who dared to say NO to crimes, even when it may have, and likely did, cost them their lives.
HRA, CCE, and the Anti-Fascists of Cetinje emphasize that in a time when historical facts are being relativized and aggressors rehabilitated, such symbolic acts carry deep educational, moral, and societal value.
Human Rights Action (HRA)
Centre for Civic Education (CCE)
Anti-Fascists of Cetinje