Mirko J. ONEŠČUK 

MIROSLAV MIRKO ONEŠČUK*, son of JAKOV, born on February 16, 1923, in Gorica near Grude. He was a student at the Gymnasium in Mostar, where he lived with his family. He attended the first composition of the Hum partisan cell, established in September 1941 by the order of Dr. Safet Mujić, which also included Enver Ćemalović, Ismet Dilberović, Andrija Krešić, Stjepan Pavlović, Rotim Antoš, Predrag Škrobić, Harno Taslaman, Mustafa Temim Turko, and Ante Zelenika. He was a member of SKOJ (League of Communist Youth of Yugoslavia) since 1940 and KPJ (Communist Party of Yugoslavia) since 1941. As a student, he was arrested before the war with a group that included Professor Džemal Šarić. On that occasion, Mirko was beaten in prison, but as he was underage, he managed to be released. He was involved in illegal SKOJ activities. In March 1942, he joined the Battalion as a squad commissar and was killed in Ravno near Gacko in May 1943 during the 5th enemy offensive.

Mirko’s name was recorded on the memorial plaque at the Mostar Gymnasium after the war. The plaque was removed during the wartime events of 1992-1995.

Brother of Sofija “Sofka” Onešćuk, who died in 1944. A street in Mostar is called after the Onešćuk family.

The account of Mirko’s death is recorded as follows:

“After a two-day rest and reconnaissance of the terrain, our three battalions carried out a sudden attack on Chetnik positions at Orlovac, Mramor, Treštenik, and Ledenik during the night of May 16/17, causing them significant losses. Swift charges, almost simultaneously on a wide front with bombs, machine gun fire, and rifle fire, instilled panic among the Chetniks, who fled towards Gacko and Avtovac. We broke through to the Jasenik-Lipnik line. The Chetniks received reinforcements, and our battalions withdrew to their initial positions. Our Battalion held its ground at Ledenik and Kula. To our left was the 4th battalion, and to our right was the 2nd battalion. In that attack, Mirko Onešćuk, the commissar of the 1st platoon, a student from Mostar, was killed. His entire family worked for the National Liberation War (NOP), and he was an exemplar of modesty and bravery, both in youth actions in the city and in the battles of the Battalion. He loved to tell his comrades about the future after liberation, in socialism, painting a picture of a rich life with great workplaces and people with the most beautiful moral qualities. His comrades used to tell him, ‘Oh, Mirko, it will be a long time before that era of yours arrives, as long as the Neretva flows.’”

Another fighter recalled Mirko’s death: “The battle at Rat-Kamen quickly turned into a flame that burned fast. The Chetniks held their ground on the ridge and fiercely resisted. Dawn came, but the enemy did not retreat. Our fighters lay on the snow in front of enemy barrels. The first one wounded is Velimir Ilić. It was difficult to reach him, but the wounded must be extracted. Crawling, Sergeant Stevan Vukoje approached him, took him by the hand, and dragged him through the snow. Stevan was also wounded, but he didn’t abandon Velimir. None of us suspected that this brave fighter would succumb to the mortal wound. Assistant platoon commissar Mirko Onešćuk was also mortally wounded. Their wounds were bandaged. We bid them farewell amidst the fiercest battle, not knowing that we would never see each other again.”

*The surname on the memorial plaque should be corrected to Onešćuk.