74 Years Ago in Sarajevo: Better War Than Pact, Better Grave Than Slave

On this day 74 years ago in Sarajevo, mass demonstrations were held against Yugoslavia's accession to the Tripartite Pact, and thousands of citizens chanted the slogans „Better war than pact“, „Better grave than slave“, writes the Bosnian news agency Patria.

Demonstrations also took place in Belgrade, and the reason for the demonstrations was the signing of the protocol on Yugoslavia's accession to the Tripartite Pact on March 25, which Yugoslavia had conditionally supported during the Second World War. The government of Prince Pavle Karađorđević, Dr. Radenko Stanković, Dr. Ivo Perović, and the Cvetković-Maček government, which signed the pact, was overthrown.

Thus, just two days later, Yugoslavia withdrew from the pact, which delayed the German attack on the USSR. Patriotic songs were sung and slogans against Hitler and Mussolini were chanted.

The date is considered one of the most important in 20th-century Yugoslav history and is celebrated as the beginning of resistance to fascism in the Second World War.