Heritage of Liminality: Remnants of the Military in the Istrian City of Pula in the Aftermath of Yugoslav Socialism

In: Colloquia humanistica, Heft 10

Abstract

This article is devoted to the meanings of the liminality that shaped the (self-) perception of the Croatian city of Pula and came as a result of the long-term presence of the military (and heavy industry) in the city. The study discusses the modalities of cohabitation of the Yugoslav People's Army and the citizens of Pula, who lived together, interacted, and shaped each other during the period of Yugoslav socialism, and highlights the consequences of this mutual shaping in the aftermath of the Yugoslav socialist project. In the ongoing process of Pula's contentious urban transformation, in which several military and industrial facilities, complexes, and areas still wait for their new functions and new owners, the city's military nature and liminality have been identified as a problem by authorities and policy makers: they see the material and immaterial traces of the presence of the military in the city as an "unwanted heritage". In opposition to the view that Pula's military (and industrial) heritage is a problem to be overcome/eliminated, the article argues for a more inclusive approach that would acknowledge the fact that this heritage is perceived by citizens as closely related to their city's multicultural and working-class tradition, and that would recognize its potential to produce meanings, values, histories, and memories.