Liberation80: Members and Activities of Ostro KVH Visible All Over Slovakia

Ruzomberok, April 27 (TASR) - The Ostro Military History Club (KVH) from Ruzomberok (Zilina region) focuses mainly on the activities of the First Czechoslovak Army during the Slovak National Uprising (SNP) in the Liptov area, its vice-chair Andrej Kovac has told TASR, adding that its members also participate in acts of memory. According to Kovac, KVH currently has 18 members, and they are dedicated to the activities of several armies - in addition to the First Czechoslovak Army in Slovakia, this concerns the Red Army, the Romanian Army, the First Czechoslovak Army Corps in the Soviet Union and the German Army. Kovac said that members of Ostro KVH, wearing Romanian army uniforms, participate in acts of memory in towns and villages all over Slovakia. "We took part in re-enactments of liberation battles in the towns of Brezno and Detva (both Banska Bystrica region), and most recently we were in Vinosady (Bratislava region)," he said. Last year they organised a Bicycle Tour in the Footsteps of SNP and the unveiling of a cenotaph dedicated to partisan Dimitri Venerovsky on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the SNP. In the past, they've organised re-enactments of battles in Ludrova, Liptovska Luzna and Liptovsky Hradok (all Zilina region). Ostro KVH was founded in 2010 as an NGO uniting fans of military history, mainly from Ruzomberok and the surrounding area. "Shortly afterwards, our club became a full-fledged member of the Confederation of Slovak Military History Clubs," said Kovac. "Ostro Hill, located south of Ruzomberok, was an important guard post on the right tip of the main insurgent defence line during the Uprising," explained Kovac. By seizing the hill, German troops would have gained an advantage, and the defensive line of the insurgent units would have fallen apart. Therefore, German troops carried out fourteen attacks on Ostro between September and October 1944. ko/df