Mirko Puk

Mirko Puk (born June 24, 1884 in Valpovo near Osijek , † probably 1945 ) was Minister of Justice and Minister for Religious Affairs in the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) from 1942 . He came as part of the takeover of the Ustasha -Regimes to power.

Mirko Puk came from the Croatian town of Glina south of Zagreb . He was married to an unconverted Jewess . In order to avoid her deportation to Auschwitz , she was made an honorary Aryan .

Anti-religious tendencies showed Puks behavior towards the Yugoslav national church. This was founded in 1923/24 by previous Catholic priests and had around 6000 followers at the beginning of the 1930s. In 1942 Puk announced its ban in Croatia, pointing out that this would split the Croatian Church. Puk also attracted attention through anti-Serbian statements. He gave the motto that Croatia had no place for a Serbian Orthodox Church . Their followers should be forced to convert to Catholicism. Later the establishment of the Croatian Orthodox Church was pushed.

From 1942 Puk held the office of Minister for Justice and Religion.

Mirko Puk signed the Legislative Order No. CDXXIX-2101-Z-1941 issued by Ante Pavelić on November 25, 1942 . This legalized the detention of unpopular people in labor camps and thus the establishment of concentration camps on the territory of the Independent State of Croatia, such as Jasenovac . Puk wanted an ethnically pure Croatia, a goal that would be achieved in 10 years.

After the war, Puk's fate is not clear. Some sources say that he stayed in Croatia, others point to an exile in Spain or France. He is believed to have died in 1945 by suicide .

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personal data
SURNAME	Puk, Mirko
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Minister of Justice and Minister of Religious Affairs in the Independent State of Croatia
DATE OF BIRTH	June 24, 1884
PLACE OF BIRTH	Valpovo near Osijek
DATE OF DEATH	uncertain: 1945