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4: CASE STUDY 1: THE ITALIAN/SLOVENIAN BORDER
Figure 44: San
Gabriele/Erjavčeva ulica
crossing. Photo: Anna
McWilliams 2008.
Many smaller, portable items related to the border have been put on display
at the border museum in Nova Gorica. The majority of the items are
connected to the border crossings such as uniforms of the border guards,
technology used to check people as they crossed the border such as a ray
control device for luggage used until 2004. Most of these actually date from
after Slovenian independence suggesting that the border is not just
something that is connected with the Yugoslavian period. In fact the border
guard stations with Italy and Austria became an important stage in the war
for Slovenian independence. On the 25 th of June 1991 Slovenian guards
raised their own flag along the border and took control of the border
crossings starting what was to become the ten-day war that was to end with
Slovenia’s independence (Benson 2004:161). Many pictures of the new flag
being raised at border crossings, such as San Pietro/Šempeter as well as on
top of Mount Sabotino/Sabotin, at the Goriški Musej Archives demonstrates
the importance that is given to this event. Although drastic changes
occurred along the borders further north in 1989 the border here stayed the
same until 2004 when Slovenia joined the EU. The border control was,
however, much scaled down at this point as a photo of a volleyball game
over the border fence taken in 1995 demonstrates (Figure 45).
Figure 45: Volleyball game
played over the border fence at
the Transalpine Square in 1995.
Property of Goriški Muzej, Nova
Gorica, Slovenia.
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