Listen to Ljerka Cairn’s testimony to find out how she perceived the enactment of these measures, and what impact they had on her family. Also, read her short biography.
Ljerka Cairn, maiden name Goranić, was born in Kutina to a Jewish family. Her father's surname was Freiberger, but he Croatized it to Goranić, which had been one of the means of integration of the Jewish population since the time of Austro-Hungarian Empire, and which continued in the inter-war period. Her father was a veterinarian, employed by the state, and was often relocated to different towns in Croatia, and the family moved together with him. Ljerka finished primary school and a part of gymnasium in Kutina, and then moved to Zagreb. She married Dragutin Mikac, a Roman-Catholic, and converted to Catholicism. Although she was nominally protected by her mixed marriage and conversion to Catholicism, she did not feel safe. Although she was in employment, she often changed lodgings, and in some periods went into hiding. In May 1942, she rented a room from Bauer family, and they become close friends. She lived with them, protected from the arrest and deportation to a camp, until the end of war. In 1948, she moved to Israel. In 951, she moved to London where she re-married and lived until her death in 2005.