decommunisation – Croatia, the War, and the Future

Croatia: Still Trapped In Communist 1945 Despite 1990’s Victorious War of Independence

April 29, 2023 by inavukic 14 Comments

Croatian patriot wearing “For Home Ready” (Za Dom Spremni) jacket. Photo: Pixsell

One thing about Croatia that is crystal clear is that former communists and those carrying their flag to this day cannot forgive the Croatian people for fighting for and defending their absolute right for self-determination and freedom from communist Yugoslavia. That fact was evident in 1945 and decades that followed, with communist purges and mass murders of Croatian patriots and that fact is evident today, with laws passed during communist Yugoslavia still remaining in force, many without changes that reflect the values of the 1990’s Homeland War, which established the independent Croatia during 1990’s.

Walk into the Croatian Parliament today, observe and listen. You will end up thinking that the terrible war of aggression against Croatia did not happen. That the War did not obligate the independent Croatia and its people with the task of distancing from communist Yugoslavia and the totalitarian regime to the full extent so that Croatia could prosper as a true democracy.

It’s quite tragic, really.

32 years after breaking away from communist Yugoslavia there are a lot of people in Croatia who are very patriotic, but there are also a lot of other people caught in the situation where they force upon this independent nation communist values. The latter, tragically for Croatia, have occupied most of the positions of power who disregard, even punish the values of the patriots. Something like what used to happen during the times when Croatia was a part of communist Yugoslavia. The latter will hide behind the so-called European values of which they obviously know little, or simply ignore and breach them hoping nobody is looking from the outside.

It’s impossible to escape the sense of widespread melancholy and disappointment that pervade across Croatia. It is also impossible to escape the sense of a dying nation where rivers of young are emigrating, where those remaining either live in hope that things will get better or seem content should the status quo remain because they, themselves are OK if they do not rock the boat or complain.

I’m finding the experience as surreal as the independent from communist Yugoslavia country that truly isn’t.

No package of “de-communisation” laws has been passed in the past thirty years since seceding from former Yugoslavia at great human life cost by the Croatian parliament. On the contrary, the left-leaning parliamentarians would like to make us believe that nostalgia for communist Yugoslavia defines the nation and that those wanting to uphold and nurture the values of the war of independence are in the minority. Banning of all totalitarian regimes’ symbols has not occurred. Indeed, the former communists and lovers of Yugoslavia, those that deserted the fight for independence and defence of Croatia against brutal Serb and Yugoslav Army aggression in 1990’s, appear bolder in their communist propaganda than ever. They continue behaving as if they and not the real victors – Croatian patriots – won the war of independence and created the independent state in whose parliament they now sit.

This political turmoil that is increasingly taking hold on the streets in Croatia can perhaps be best portrayed through a day of the sitting of Croatian parliament.

Instead of drawing up a new law that reflects the needs and obligations of independent Croatia the Croatian Parliament 21^st April 2023, in a rushed procedure, voted to amend the Law on Offences Against Public Order and Peace, which foresees a drastic increase in fines for the offences, up to the cruel and oppressive four thousand euros. The law thus amended was the law that was enacted in 1977, in communist Yugoslavia, that is biased and discriminatory against patriotic Croatian behaviour, that has not been adapted fully to reflect the values of Croatia’s independence or the values declared by the European Parliament and Commission regarding condemnation of all totalitarian regimes, including the communist one.

This law before the Croatian parliament last Friday as far as I can see has no definitions of the offences it seeks to punish severely and so, just like it happened during communist Yugoslavia any policeman, anybody that has the authority to arrest, take away the freedom of the individual, can decide what is and what is not an offence under the said law! This has also been complained against by some right-wing opposition members of parliament.

While the law itself does not define the offences, which fact in itself is of totalitarian rather than democratic nature, it’s infringements would come from applying offences of this category under other laws in Croatia. And so, given that the patriotic salute “Za Dom Spremni” (For Home Ready) has been banned by other legislation as hate speech or disturbing the peace, while the communist red star and slogans have not, the Croatian media has created the atmosphere where the Croatian patriotic slogans are the ones that will attract the largest fines under this new legislative amendment, perhaps even imprisonment.

One must conclude that communist sympathisers have on purpose excluded symbols from communist Yugoslavia as offences against public peace and simply kept those that relate to Croatian patriotism. The amendments to the law proposed by the current government and communist or left-leaning politicians are a brutal slap in the face to patriots and those who sacrificed their lives for Croatian independence.

It is yet to be seen whether such brutality will be tolerated or whether the newly enacted penalties under this law will be tolerated. They divide a nation even deeper than what it already is, evidently in the odious environment where many in power appear to subscribe to the destructive social and political currents where “the kettle calls the pot black” – every day!

The video of the 21 April 2023 sitting of the Croatian Parliament may be accessed via the following link:

Hot discussions, recriminations, insults … hurled from all sides of the House. The reason: unfinished and rushed requirement to vote on this day on Amendments to the Law on Offences Against Public Order and Peace. Such hurling of insults and dissatisfaction are not unusual or concerning in parliaments or congresses around the world, but they painfully stand out as such, heavily laced with depravity, in a country like Croatia that is supposed to be anti-communist and pro independence from any totalitarian communist regime.

Amidst the heated discussions and hurling of personal insults in the Croatian Parliament on Friday 21 April 2023, the Speaker of the Parliament, Gordan Jandrokovic had the gall to say:

” …So, I think that discussing this topic in this way is not useful because the citizens are watching us. If you really care about the history being revalued in an adequate way to condemn really all totalitarian regimes, the Ustasha regime as well as communist Yugoslavia. We can do it in a different way, not like this…” (at 3hr 57 min of the video at link above).

Hence, confirming that the amendments he and his HDZ government are pushing through parliament have nothing to do with Croatia that was created as independent among the 1990’s War of Independence. It aims to maintain 1945 status when the communist regime overthrew the Ustasha! Utterly unacceptable and disgusting in today’s world where there are no Ustashas apart from the manufactured ones existing in the communist propaganda mindset, and certainly, as the communists were rejected by the very victory of the bloody War of Independence.

Nino Raspudic said: „This is a very dangerous thing, an introduction to future totalitarianism and repression…if we are talking here about European values then it is clear that we must condemn all totalitarian regimes from the past (WWII) … Croatia had from 1945 had the rule of those who came by force … let’s be consistent in the condemnation of all totalitarian regimes…”

Zeljko Sacic said: “…this proposal for this Act is deeply, deeply in breach of the Constitution, is unlawful, it breaches the principles of rule of law, jeopardises our citizens legal safety. Why? Because in its Article 5 it states that anyone who in a public place displays or reproduces songs, compositions, texts, wears or displays symbols, pictures, drawings, disturbs public peace may be penalised with a fine from 700 to 4000 euro plus 30 days imprisonment… the thing is that this Act is extremely undefined, it is contradictory to the principles of law that tell us that there is no infringement if it is not defined by law (that seeks topenaliseoffences) … we need to first define what are those symbols, what are those pictures … like civilised European countries have…and then we can debate what exactly we can penalise… this way we are only undermining citizen’s legal safety …this way we are handing over to the police and the state attorney the penal procedure … do not agree to that.”

Ruzica Vukovac said: “ …the threat of draconic penalties to those who in their own way express patriotism, are, and nobody can dispute it, a relic from the past, relic of a society from which this nation has exited with a bloody fight against the aggressor. The people have exited from communism and one mindedness, but our leaders evidently have not. How could they when that war had nothing to do with them and they did not feel it on their skin. Our leaders today are from the shadows, they watched the outcome of the war and planned this what we have today. Occupied all positions of power and then, in a peaceful way, slowly destroy the national marrow of a nation of people. From today I will be coming to St Marks Square, to my workplace, with anxiety because it will not surprise me if someone’s move results in the erasure of the first white square on the coat of arms on the roof of St Mark’s church.”

Sandra Bencic said: “ …with this Act regardless of the raised fines the proper framework is not provided regarding the promotion of national socialism, Nazism and Ustasha …in this discussion in parliament we see that we still have political parties that hold that this is normal… advocating for and promotion fascism, national socialism and Ustasha as well as Chetniks we need to stop here and now … ask the government to amend the criminal acts law …to sanction the promotion of Ustasha ideology …”

Marko Milanovic Litre said: “…regretfully, we have not heard from Sndra Bencic a condemnation of the communist regime and the burden from the past we have from Yugoslavia which is today still felt by many families … we are not even going to hear about this from Bencinc because she promotes those ideas that were forced against Croats, but that is not important to her, only one side of the story…Colleague Bencic you should be ashamed for attacking here a general of the victorious army and you colleagues from HDZ think that is funny, you have not stood up to protest…you congratulate Bencic, I’m pleased to see that you have shown which values you promote…”

Marija Selak Raspudic said: “ In keeping with accentuation of European values I think that those among us who stand, the ones who would like to see Milka Planinc returned and whose PR professionals consider the murder of priests as good old times are truly the last people who could lecture anyone about the European values and the condemnation of totalitarian regimes’ deeds … our party MOST has condemned all totalitarian regimes.”

Clearly, independent from communist Yugoslavia Croatia is not independent. The Communist versus Ustasha battles continue as they did during World War Two as if Ustashas did not cease to exist as independence fighting force in 1945! As if 1990’s War of Independence did not occur in the 1990’s, with enormous costs to Croatia. Ideological battles – communist Yugoslavia versus independent and democratic Croatia – pervade the Croatian Parliament 32 years post secession from communist Yugoslavia! The Amendments to the Law of Offences Against Public Order and Peace were passed in parliamentary voting regardless of the protests from the opposition. What a tragedy for Croatian nation! Ina Vukic

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Communist Yugoslavia, Communists, Croatia, Croatian Parliament, Croatian war of independence, decommunisation, Law Against Offences Public Order ndPeace, political crisis, Political turmoil, totalitarian regimes, transitioning from communism, Ustasha

Croatia: Patriotic Talk Is Cheap Without Active Decommunisation

August 12, 2022 by inavukic 4 Comments

In the history of every nation, including the Croatian one, there are events and happenings, be they tragic, be they joyful and victorious, which are deeply and indelibly engraved in the common national memory and which deeply define the sense of belonging and pride and the nation of people and their common purpose, national identity, and self-awareness. One of such events for the Croatian nation took place in August 1995. Operation Storm happened with unity and determination akin to a mighty force of love for freedom, lasted from the 4^th to the 7^th of August 1995 and was the final military move to free Croatia from the brutal and genocidal Great Serbian aggressors!

Many of the 550,000 Croats forcefully exiled by the aggressors from the 1991 beginning of the Croatian Homeland War, ethnically cleansed from their ancestral homes could finally start returning to their homes, even if these were violently and wantonly destroyed. For the Great Serbian occupiers and aggressors, it is a sad event, from which, it seems, they have unfortunately not learned any lessons. That’s why during Croatia’s celebrations of these victorious events in the defence of Croatia from brutal aggression Croatian Serbs associated with the aggression against Croatia, even those that are regretfully in coalition with the government choose not to attend celebrations but rather continue fabricating victim stories and alleging war crimes against Croats where there were none. The International criminal tribunal in the Hague had ruled that Serbs committed genocide in several parts of Croatia during their aggression against Croatia and nothing of the sort can be said, or claimed, for Croatian national strategy and policy, while Serbian policy and strategy was destruction and murder of Croats, much like what we are seeing these days is happening in Ukraine with the Russian aggressor. Faced with Serb aggression Croats were forced to defend their lives and preserve themselves.

With all this in mind one simply finds it an atrocity committed against Croatian people to have a government that chooses to embrace a coalition with Serb minority parliamentary group of representatives who were and are with those rebel Serbs that committed mass murders, rapes, torture and wanton destruction of Croats and their homes. If one were to be in a governing coalition with any Serbs in Croatia it would be with those Croatian Serbs that fought alongside with Croats to defend Croatia from Serb aggression not with those who deny the aggression and constantly work on equating the victim with the aggressor.

This government coalition with the Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS) in Croatia, headed by the deplorable Greater Serbia proponent Milorad Pupovac, is a travesty of natural justice and a continuation of torturing the Croatian people who defended Croatia. It certainly provides the Serb aggressor with permission to continue its anti-Croat propaganda and denial of its brutal aggression of 1990’s. It does absolutely nothing for any reconciliation in my opinion, but rather keeps the fire of bitterness and fear flickering along. Hence, I was pleasantly surprised to hear, I believe for the first time in his mandate, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic with determined resolve calling a spade a spade when it comes to Serb aggression in his speech at the official celebrations in Knin on 5^th August, of Croatian victory. While previously he largely circumvented articulating in public the pressing issue for the Croatian people this time he clearly and unequivocally called Serbia and Serbs aggressors against Croatia and Croats! Given his persistent coalition with Serbs whose immediate family members were active in the brutal aggression against Croatia in 1990’s though, one must take this speech as an attempt to score political points rather than a genuine siding with the perils and sufferings of Croatian war veterans and other as a result of the Serb aggression.

Croatia’s Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic in town of Knin 5 August 2022 Photo: Pixsell

“Croats were not in charge of their own destiny for almost 900 years but lived in their territory under various foreign rulers and alien regimes until, at a time of tectonic changes in Europe, owing to the vision of President Tuđman and the courage of Croatian defenders and the unity of the entire Croatian people, we won the right to freedom and the right to our own state,” Plenkovic said in Knin, at the central event marking Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day and War Veterans Day and the 27th anniversary of Operation Storm.

Of course, most of Croatians including myself would not use the word “won” as Prime Minster Plenkovic did, we would use the actual word that reflects the truth and that word is “defended” as in “we defended (amidst Serb aggression) our right to freedom and the right to our own state and won the war in which our enemy tried mercilessly to take that right away from us”!

Croatia will not tolerate questioning the character of the Homeland War as a just and legitimate war and it will not allow indictments against its war heroes, he said.

“There have been attempts lately again to malign Croatia with false and futile accusations about the expulsion of Croatian Serbs in 1995 even though it is well known that the leadership of rebel Serbs had forced them, in collaboration with Belgrade, to leave Croatia, as confirmed and proven with documents at the Hague war crimes tribunal by indicted Serb who repented their actions,” Plenkovic said.

He said Serbian indictments against Croatian pilots and Serbia’s expanding its jurisdiction to other countries were unacceptable.

The more so as it comes from a country which launched aggression against Croatia and is still not showing true readiness to acknowledge its responsibility “for the criminal enterprise of the Milosevic regime,” said Plenkovic.

Croatia’s President Zoran Milanovic at Victory, Operation Storm, War Veterans, and Homeland Thanksgiving Day Ceremony in Knin, 5^th August said that Croatia had a difficult journey and did not get anything for free.

Croatia’s President Zoran Milanovic in town of Knin 5 August 2022 Photo: Pixsell

“I have wondered many times why we come here to this same place every year, and every year we always have something same, but also something new to say. What is it that is so powerful and how long will it draw us and guide us – is it a human aspiration and the fear of being forgotten, the dread of vanity that awaits us all when we are forgotten? Is it the messages that need to be sent persistently from this spot, sometimes seemingly in vain? But they are not in vain,” the President of the Republic of Croatia and Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces Zoran Milanovic said and continued:

“In the multitude of proverbs that people came up with, including those thought up by lawyers, those of the lawyers stick out for their emptiness and lack of content, particularly the following: ‘One who proves too much proves nothing, one who proves nothing keeps silent, one who keeps silent is defending himself with silence, and one who is defending himself with silence ends up getting hurt’,” said the President of the Republic, adding that this does not presume guilt because Croatia has nothing to be ashamed of. “Croatia had a difficult journey and did not get anything for free, but at a high price, with high interest. We were aware that in the end this country was important only to us, that we were the only ones to really care about it and that everyone else was just an observer, which of course does not mean they were enemies”.

Speaking of the status of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina and negotiations that took place in the last 30 years, President Milanovic repeated that it is necessary to constantly reiterate that Croatia is a guarantor and signatory of the Dayton Agreement. “But that is not enough. The people who gave their lives and health for Croatia expected more – they expected our country to also be an instrument to achieve our goals and just aspirations and to use it whenever necessary. Now it is necessary,” President Milanovic underscored.

“The Croatian people in Bosnia and Herzegovina are not only disenfranchised, they are insulted, and the people who led this country are also insulted, while Croatia is portrayed as the originator of a joint criminal enterprise. This is being done by the same people who received the highest decorations from Croatia for cooperation during the war. That was forgotten. Croatia must oppose that,” he said, adding that Croatia is not a passive observer, but an active member of the international community that did not join the EU and NATO to be a beneficiary of European funds, but “to use the instruments available to us for our own interest, including to defy those who want to devalue us.”

Talk is cheap when appropriate actions do not follow in support of what one says. As to Croatian Prime Minister and President’s cheap talk or lip service regarding Operation Storm and Homeland War Victory in general is concerned, the talk will cease to appear cheap once both the Prime Minister and the President shake off completely from their ingrained identity and mindset their loyalty to communist Yugoslavia ideals, once the government’s institutions fund Croatian truth contents in arts and sciences, movies and documentaries (instead of funding pro-communist era ones), once the laws of the country prohibit communist insignia and symbols, once they define the modern Croatia with the victory in the Homeland War and discard once and for all the ludicrous and false idea that communists gave Croatia liberty and independence in May 1945. Nothing could be further from the truth as the communists forced Croatia to stay in Yugoslavia, not be independent, be undermined and oppressed by its Serb leaders and the same is permitted to this day! Cease the government coalition with Croatian Serbs and other pro-communist Yugoslavia ethnic minorities who entered the parliament on account of a couple of hundred votes from ethnic minority communities. Change the laws so that ethnic minorities in Croatia receive the benefits and rights on an equal footing away from having a seat in parliament for there are Serbs in Croatia who are also considered minority but sided in Homeland War with Croats; same goes for the Roma or Italian minorities in Croatia, etc. Decommunise Croatia and patriotic talk will cease to be cheap. Ina Vukic

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: 27th Anniversary of Operation Storm, Andrej PLenkovic, Croaian War Veterans' Day, Croatia, Croatian Homeland Thanksiving Day, Croatian Homeland War, decommunisation, Knin, Oluja Day, Operation Storm Day, Serb aggression, Victory Day, Zoran Milanovic

Croatia 2030: No Success Without Ruthless Decommunisation Reforms

February 21, 2021 by inavukic 6 Comments

Pretending to reinvent “sliced bread” all over again would be among the characteristics of a political environment where working on national goals is set aside throughout decades for personal gains of politicians while the country descends into economic chaos, political swamp and living standards depletion for the masses.

Current minority government in Croatia has during the past weeks been boasting of its Croatia 2030 National Development Strategy (NDS) as being the first in history of modern Croatia that for its success uses or depends on participatory and bottom-up approach to finally get Croatia where it should be: prosperous and democratic. The implementation of such plan is heavily dependent on EU funds and given that the widespread corruption at all levels (local and national), particularly public administration and judiciary, in Croatia has not been systematically dealt with one does fret for the success of such a plan that involves participation of the heavily corrupt network.

One thing is certain: without significant and “cut-throat” reforms in Croatia, without decommunising Croatia, no amount of EU or other international funds injected into Croatia will help towards the achievement of this NDS. While this NDS could be seen as an opportunity for a new start the foundations upon which the Plan is hitting the ground running are rotten. Too much corruption and nepotism everywhere.

What a shame the government keeps ignoring the fact that, although in skeleton form, Croatia’s national development strategic plan was actually devised during the Homeland War, announced in Dr Franjo Tudjman’s speech at the inauguration of the Croatian Parliament on 30 May 1990, when he said: “…At the end of this inaugural address, allow me to endeavour and put forward, in the briefest of points, some of the most urgent and immediate tasks that stand before the new democratic government of Croatia…” (pdf link)

Released late January 2021 by the government for parliamentary discussions, under the banner “Croatia 2030”, the 2030 National Development Strategy should steer the development of Croatia until 2030. While broad vision documents were produced by past governments in Croatia, this is the first time that the Government has decided to employ a comprehensive and evidence-based process using a participatory and bottom-up approach. Not unlike the crumbled Communist Yugoslavia used to do in its Five or Ten-Year Plans by the way. Glossy plans through which the communist elites of Yugoslavia got richer and ordinary people poorer and hungrier. Because no changes were made to stamp out corruption and political persecution of those not towing the communist line. Similar environment exists in Croatia today, hence mass exodus of young people during the past decade and thriving corruption is “king”.

The principal role of the World Bank in the process of the preparation of the 2030 NDS has been to provide analytical support. World Bank policy notes aimed to help the authorities recognise the most binding development gaps, define the reform and investment priorities for the country based on the vision and strategic objectives that were set by the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds, and identify actions needed to bring the country closer to its 2030 targets.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said in Croatian Parliament on January 27: “We welcome all Members of Parliament to participate in the debate and hope to reach a consensus on this document today,” reiterating that ten years from now he saw Croatia as a competitive, innovative and safe country of recognisable identity and culture, with preserved resources, good living standards and equal opportunities for all.

The Prime Minister listed the goals to be achieved by 2030. Among them are raising GDP per capita to 75 percent of the EU average, and the share of exports of goods and services from 52 to 70 percent of GDP, significant acceleration of the work of the judiciary, reaching the OECD average, raising the coverage of children in kindergartens above 97 percent and employment to 75 percent, reducing the share of people at risk of poverty, extending the expected number of years of healthy living by six to eight years.

There certainly was no consensus reached in parliament on that day as the MPs in government showered the plan with accolades like ambitious but real and the opposition MPs described it as unambitious, insufficiently clear, coming too late and offering no vision.

Opposition MP Hrvoje Zekanovic (Hrvatski Suverenisti/Croatian Sovereignists), said for the Plan document that it is at the level of High School graduation work and maintains all the woes and misery of Croatian politics, hoping that it will not in the future.

Opposition MP Miroslav Skoro (Domovinski Pokret/Homeland Movement) said that the economy is not in focus in this Plan, because the country is run by people from diplomacy who have never worked in the real sector and do not really know how the economy works. We must create conditions for growth and development, said Skoro, adding that the strategy must give hope for a better future, a vision and help in its realisation.

On Friday 5^th February, the Croatian Parliament finally voted on the National Development Strategy of Croatia until 2030. 77 deputies voted for the Croatian National Strategy, 59 were against, 2 abstained. Not a landscape that inspires faith and optimism that this NDS will actually achieve its goals. One must wonder whether that is because the Strategy itself does not enter into the essential pre-requisites for any strategy to succeed? For Croatia that would be decommunisation of public administration aiming at fierce and intense stamping out of corruption and nepotism.

National Development Strategies worldwide exist to set a clear long-term vision for the country providing a strategic guidance to all development policies and lower-ranking strategic planning documents. Additionally, the analytical underpinning prepared for the NDS and the extensive consultation process to prepare the NDS for Croatia chiefly by a team of consultants under the World Bank umbrella has cost Croatian taxpayers 32 million kunas or 4.2 million euro!

In its introductory part of its National Development Strategy 2030 Croatian government mentions absolutely nothing of the strategy or plan laid out at the start of secession from communist Yugoslavia and during the Homeland War that actually made possible today’s Croatia. This may well mean that the government aims to further degrade the foundation upon which today’s democracy was won in rivers of blood, amidst Serb aggression, devastation and despair for freedom from communism. Here is what the introduction to the NDS says (PDF):

“In an increasingly globalised world, marked by challenges like the fourth industrial revolution and green transitions, but also numerous threats, such as climate changes, pandemics, geopolitical disturbances or migrations, planning for the future today is perhaps more important than ever before. In this regard, timely recognition of trends, their own strengths and weaknesses are key to turning challenges and new opportunities into development opportunities, but also to strengthen society’s resilience and its greater readiness to deal with the unpredictable circumstances.

To adapt to all these challenges and to exploit all its potentials, to be able to coordinate the efforts of all public policies, Croatia should already today have a clear vision of its future development and define the goals it wants to achieve by 2030. In addition, as a member of the European Union, Croatia has generous European funds at its disposal, which will be an important lever in achieving those goals. This requires a clear framework and quality multi-year planning, so that the benefits of EU membership can be better exploited…”

Croatia suffers from a number of constraints for its development as set out in the NDS framework and these are:

Corruption in many different sectors of economy. Corruption comes in many forms, including the theft of public funds by politicians and government employees, and the theft and misuse of overseas aid, nepotism within the employment sector. Bribery is also a persistent threat and tends to involve the issuing of government contracts. In former communist Yugoslavia, bribery was the norm, and Croatia had inherited this, had not even seriously attempted to stamp it out and this seriously weakens the operation of strategies towards betterment of the nation.
Population is a considerable constraint on economic growth and Croatia’s declining population either due to mass exodus/emigration, relatively low birth rate and inefficiently stimulating climate for the return of Croats living in the diaspora means Croatia is in serious trouble achieving its planned goals or strategies unless significant reforms are undertaken in this field.
Absence of a developed, independent and corruption-fee legal and judiciary system in Croatia has been an eyesore for many over the decades, yet nothing much changes and justice for ordinary citizens depends on the political agenda of courts and judges, even many practicing lawyers.

Given the past and the existing practices in Croatia which at high levels of authority still celebrate the failed communist Yugoslavia laws and public administration immorality there is a real danger that funds coughed up by the EU for this NDS will significantly dissipate into corrupt practices (pockets) and the NDS will, therefore, not be worth the paper it’s written on. I may be proven wrong; however, my assessment and sentiment are shared by many, including parliamentary votes regarding the NDS. To ensure success of such an NDS a political force is needed that would preserve the values of Croatian national identity away from communist past. Positive identity generates pride and pride generates positive energy capable of achieving just about anything put in front of it. Ina Vukic