I am truly grateful to Nikola Knez, Texas, USA-based award-winning film producer at Croatian Film Institute, for asking me during the second half of 2023 to speak to his cameras regarding  the significance of Croatia’s upcoming mega elections year, the diaspora’s long quest for inclusion in policy making, and to speak of my vision, which he describes as compelling, and path forward for the country I love. Having in mind many of Croatian descent living outside of Croatia whose knowledge of the Croatian language may not be adequate for the issues discussed in interview as well as for the wide world community the interview with me was conducted in the English language, although the questions come in both English subtitles and Croatian spoken.  

This is that interview published on Globezoom channel few days ago. I hope you will take a few positives out of it for your keepsake or assistance.

This mega election year, 2024, perhaps more than ever before in the history of modern independent Croatia, it is paramount for citizens of the Republic of Croatia living abroad to vote. The paramount value of the diaspora vote is here defined by the fact that many hundreds of thousands of Croatians, eligible voters, have left Croatia in search of better living standards and work opportunities but most have eyes fixed upon returning to Croatia or at lest keeping tight ties with it and extended family members in Croatia whose living standards and depth of democratic regime concern them, as well. This year there will be elections for the European Parliament, Elections for Croatian Parliament and Elections for President of Croatia. All important in carving out the living standards for future generations.

While access to polling booths in the Croatian diaspora can be described as violations and denial of the human right of the right to suffrage (equal voting right) on several levels it is hoped that this time around the diaspora part of the Eleventh Constituency will get the same deal as the Bosnia and Herzegovina part of the same constituency. I.e., that the precedence made by the Croatian Electoral Office during previous elections for Croatian citizens in Bosnia and Herzegovina in permitting polling stations in community settings such as schools and clubs, not just diplomatic-consular missions as the relevant law says, will also apply to the whole of that constituency, thus making access to voting fairly reasonable in both time and expense. The Electronic and postal voting is, sadly and incomprehensibly, still not even on the horizon for Croatia let alone before he lawmakers!

This request and pleas for Croatian voters living abroad to have equal voting rights is not far-fetched or unreasonable if because of nothing else then because of the fact that Croatian diaspora sends more money to Croatia each year than what the total revenue from its leading industry – tourism – is! Croatian diaspora has and is earning its right to equality in Croatia in both economic output and political participation outlook.

In February 2023 the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Croatia had published the December 2022 eligible voter numbers. These numbers show that there were 3,655,057 eligible voters residing in Croatia and 948,032 residing outside Croatia. As evidenced here there is a proportionally overwhelming number of eligible voters living outside of Croatia and this overwhelming number could bring changes for the better to an unsatisfied voter, it could at least weaken the confidence for power-guarantee those in power seem to display and, hence, encourage positive change.  

Participation in political life of a country, which includes voting during elections, to me is more a duty and responsibility for the well-being of our children and grandchildren than a choice we make when elections come. I hope that 2024 will see many many more Croatians in the diaspora voting in 2024 elections than during the past decade when access to polling booths was made even more difficult and unreasonable. This was done, I am certain, to deter and intimidate many from casting their vote. We must not continue giving into these tactics that belong to former communist Yugoslavia not to the independent Croatia we fought so hard to have. Ina Vukic