Croatia: Speakeasy Lingers At Local Government Elections

photo: www.lokalniizori.com

According to the Croatian Electoral Office 46.96% of eligible voters in Croatia turned up to vote at the Local government elections Sunday 19 May. One may well conclude that, although not as high as the 54.32% turnout at December 2011 parliamentary elections, such a turnout is pretty solid, but not as solid as one would […]

Croatia: HDZ Purges – Another One Bites The Dust?

Whether one likes or dislikes Jadranka Kosor as a politician, as a former president of Croatian Democratic Union/HDZ and former Prime Minister of Croatia is beside the arguably moot point of the party’s recent and current self-cleansing frenzy. Yesterday (Thursday 18 April 2013) the final nail had been driven into Kosor’s HDZ membership coffin – […]

Croatia: “Return to Tudjmanism”, “Detudjmanisation” – Catch Phrases That Hide True Democratic Reform Incompetence?

Political incompetence

Profound disillusionment with all major political parties in Croatia has reached the point where people are looking for a third alternative away from HDZ-run or SDP-run government, which would pursue an orderly transformation to full democracy without romanticising or prostituting the history. The fact that there is not a single major Croatian party that currently […]

Croatia – Slovenia Memorandum of Understanding: EU Accession – Blackmail, Smoke and Mirrors Conundrum

Zoran Milanovic, Prime Minister of Croatia   Photo: www.hrt.hr

The ratification by 27 EU member states of Croatia’s EU Accession Treaty involves assessment by those member states as to whether they are satisfied with Croatia’s progress in ensuring compliance with the completion of the remaining implementation of the commitments taken during the accession negotiations, and as required by EU’s imposition of monitoring of Croatia […]

Croatia: A misguided Critique Of Parliamentary Opposition

Unlike in most “Western” parliaments, Croatian parliament has no officially elected position/role of Leader of the Opposition; in Croatia the title Leader of the Opposition is unofficially attached to the Leader of the political party holding most seats on opposition benches. Yet, much of the Croatian public and media act towards Tomislav Karamarko (President of […]

Croatia: Bonjour Tristesse

Ethnic cleansing of Croatians of Vukovar 1991  Photo: daily.tportal.hr

What tragic consequences await the people led by governments which, in their hunger to fit into international halls of applause, look away from their people to abide to what others who are beyond borders say, rather than looking in to put their own nation first, may perhaps prove to be nothing less than what Françoise […]

Croatia: Call for government advisors on diaspora may prove to be a dud

Vision of unity of diaspora and homeland

If you live outside Croatia and have had urges to want to contribute in an official capacity to the process of strengthening the ties between Croatia and the Croatian diaspora then this could very well be your chance and opportunity.  You have until 10th November 2012 to get “your act together” and go for it. […]

14 Serbian former Yugoslav Army soldiers convicted for war crimes against Croatian civilians

Croatia war cemetery

(Reuters) 26 June 2012 – “Serbia’s special war crimes court on Tuesday sentenced 14 former Yugoslav Army soldiers and paramilitaries to a total of 128 years in jail for the 1991 killings of 70 Croat civilians, some of whom were ordered to walk through a minefield. In a ruling Belgrade hopes will boost its chances […]

Tomislav Karamarko: loyalty to Croatia is paramount!

dr Franjo Tudjman addresses the United Nations General Assembly 22 May 1992

Sunday, June 17, Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) celebrated the 23rd anniversary of its foundation. I, too, remember the months that followed as branches of HDZ began springing up from June 1989 in many cities and towns outside Croatia where Croatian émigrés lived. It was a national movement, a peoples’ movement with the plight for Croatian […]

Croatian government: suffering from Alice in Wonderland syndrome

A portrait, Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic (left); First bDeputy Prime Minister Radomir Cacic (Right) and Mihael Zmajlovic, new Croatian minister for environment (Middle)

The plot around the resignation of Croatian minister for environment and nature resources Mirela Holy  has gathered diversity and steam that lead one to believe Croatia’s government is suffering from the Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AWS). When one suffers from AWS one’s perceptual reality is distorted; one doesn’t know what’s real and what’s not. Croatia’s […]