On Monday, 3 August, the central commemoration of Victory Day and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and Croatian Veterans Day was held in Zaton at the memorial site. In memory of the fallen defenders and civilian victims of the Homeland War, wreaths were laid and candles lit. The tribute was paid on behalf of the City of Dubrovnik by Ante Vojvodić, head of the Department for Budget, Finance and Revenue, and Ivan Bajić, head of the Internal Audit Service. Also paying their respects was Emilija Puljizević, president of the Zaton Local Committee.
A delegation from the City of Dubrovnik gathered together with the faithful of St Stephen's Parish to pay tribute to the victims who lost their lives on 3 August 1995 as a result of the shelling of Zaton, carried out by Serbian and Montenegrin aggressors. Among the dead were Fran Goić (24), a member of the 163rd Brigade of the Croatian Army (HV), and civilian victims Danijela Spajić (25) and Orsat Domaćin (17). In the same attack, Romana Tomić, Lukša Pavličević and Nikša Matić were seriously injured.
In Čakovec, ahead of these holidays, a commemoration was held at the monument to fallen and missing defenders in Zrinski Park in memory of Croatian defenders. The event was attended by delegations from Međimurje County, the cities of Čakovec and Mursko Središće, the Ministry of Veterans' Affairs, the Ministry of the Interior, the Međimurje Police Directorate, and associations formed by veterans of the Homeland War.
Međimurje County marks Victory Day and Homeland Thanksgiving Day, as well as Croatian Veterans' Day, on the date when the military-police operation Storm began in 1995, which signalled the end of the war and liberated a large part of occupied Croatian territory. Željko Jurinić, a member of the 7th Brigade of the Special Police Unit (PUMA) and a participant in that operation, recalled the contribution of people from Međimurje in the historic moments of 1995, as well as their contribution on all other battlefields where the freedom of the country was forged.
