| Abstract | Nakon kraja diktature kralja Aleksandra i odličnog rezultata Hrvatske seljačke stranke na izborima 5. svibnja 1935. godine, dolazi do, uvjetno rečeno, liberalizacije političkog i društvenog života. Pod vodstvom HSS-a u Hrvatskoj dolazi do stvaranja narodnog pokreta; obnavljaju se stare i osnivaju nove organizacije, poput Seljačke sloge, Gospodarske sloge, Hrvatske seljačke i građanske zaštite te Hrvatskog radničkog saveza. U kotaru Valpovo ove se promjene događaju istovremeno i s jednakim entuzijazmom kao i u ostatku Hrvatske. Ključna osoba u uspjesima HSS-a u Valpovštini bio je osječki odvjetnik dr. Stjepan Hefer, narodni zastupnik za kotar Valpovo, izabran na izborima 1935. i 1938. godine. Bio je blizak stranačkom vodstvu u Zagrebu a posebno se istaknuo prilikom organiziranja pomoći nastradalima u velikom nevremenu koje je pogodilo Valpovštinu 16. srpnja 1940. godine. Zahvaljujući njegovom neumornom radu na terenu i velikim organizacijskim sposobnostima HSS je imala ogranke u svim selima kotara Valpovo. Ogranci Seljačke sloge u kotaru Valpovo bili su zaduženi za kulturno prosvjećivanje seljaka, putem poticanja seljačke književnosti i predstava, osnivanjem pjevačkih zborova, obilježavanjem seljačkih blagdana, smotrama seljačkih umjetnosti te organiziranjem sudova dobrih i poštenih ljudi. Aktivnostima i zalaganjem za „hrvatsku stvar“ posebno se istaknuo ogranak Seljačke sloge iz Bistrinaca, pod vodstvom seljaka Damjana Jelkića. Ogranak Gospodarske sloge u Valpovu bio se istaknuo prilikom osnivanja lovačkog društva te veterinarske ambulante, kao i u akcijama za podizanje cijena stoci te snižavanjem sajmovnih taksi. Posebno je plemenita bila akcija za smještaj gladne djece iz Hercegovine na područje kotara Valpovo. Djelovanje Hrvatske seljačke zaštite na području Valpova, o kojem nemamo puno podataka, bilo je organizirano prvenstveno radi obrane od nasilja žandara i sprječavanja izbornih prevara. Hrvatski radnički savez, kao sindikalna organizacija HSS-a, bio je prisutan u radničkom naselju Belišću, gdje je do 1939. godine u potpunosti pobijedio sindikat kojeg je kontrolirala država. Organizacija i djelovanje Hrvatske seljačke stranke pozitivno su utjecali na poboljšanje životnih uvjeta većinski seljačkog, hrvatskog stanovništva te unaprjeđivanje političkog, društvenog i kulturnog života na području kotara Valpovo u razdoblju između 1935. i 1941. godine. |
| Abstract (english) | After the end of the dictatorship of King Alexander and the excellent result of the Croatian Peasant Party in the elections of May 5, 1935, there has been, conditionally speaking, the liberalization of political and social life. Under the leadership of the CPP, a people movement was created in Croatia; old organizations had been established once again and new ones were being established, such as Peasant Unity, Economic Unity, Croatian Peasant and Civil Protection, and Croatian Workers' Union. In the Valpovo district, these changes were happening at the same time and with the same enthusiasm as in the rest of Croatia. The key person in the success of the CPP in the Valpovo region was the Osijek lawyer Dr. Stjepan Hefer, MP for the Valpovo district, elected in the 1935 and 1938 elections. He was close to the party leadership in Zagreb and has especially distinguished himself in organizing assistance to the victims of the great storm that hit the Valpovo region on July 16, 1940. Thanks to his tireless work in the villages and great organizational skills, the CPP had branches in all the villages of the Valpovo district. Branches of the Peasant Unity in Valpovo district were in charge of cultural enlightenment of peasants, by encouraging peasant literature and plays, founding peasant choirs, celebrating peasant holidays, festivals of peasant arts and organizing courts of good and honest people. The activities and advocacy for the "Croatian cause" especially distinguished the branch of the Peasant Unity from village Bistrinci, led by the peasant Damjan Jelkić. The branch of Economic Unity in Valpovo stood out during the establishment of a hunting association and a veterinary clinic, as well as in actions to raise livestock prices and lower fair fees. The action to accommodate hungry children from Herzegovina in the area of Valpovo district was especially noble. The activities of the Croatian Peasant Protection in the area of Valpovo, about which we do not have much information, were organized primarily for the purpose of defending against gendarme violence and preventing election fraud. The Croatian Workers' Union, as a trade union organization of the CPP, was present in the workers' settlement of Belišće, where by 1939 it had completely defeated the state-controlled trade union. The organization and activities of the Croatian Peasant Party had a positive effect on improving the living conditions of the majority peasant, Croatian population and improving political, social and cultural life in the Valpovo district in the period between 1935 and 1941. |
