Croatia, the War, and the Future
Ina Vukic - Croatia: people, politics, history, economy, transitioning from communism to democracy
The place where you can get your: Colour Me Croatian
https://colourmecroatian.com
Welcome to my blog. Here I will bring to you a variety of topics covering the documented truth about that terrible war that Croatia had to endure during the period between 1991 and 1995 and about Croatian political history that shaped a wonderful nation of people.
Croatian people wanted independence for centuries, just as they had it until the twelfth century but fate was not on their side – others wanted their beautiful land. In late 1980′s the will to break free from Yugoslavia which suffocated freedom and self determination through harsh communist party rule finally bore the desired fruit.
In June 1991 Croatia declared its independence; soon after the aggressive war against Croatia broke out. The struggle of the Croatian people for self-determination was a just one. But I fear genuine justice has not been served as there have been, and there still exist, international covert and overt moves to equate victims with aggressors continue in attempts to change history. Truth often becomes obscured and lost and that is why I have chosen to write this blog, to concentrate on actual events and issues about Croatia – wishing it a bright and freedom-loving future.
It certainly was not easy to come out of the war that was fought on two fronts:
1. On the military front the world’s public has seen the indiscriminate bombardment of Croatian cities, towns and villages from land, sea and air; the destruction of civilian targets including homes, schools, hospitals, churches, factories and cultural monuments; the blockading and destruction of roads, bridges and ports; the blockading of power, water, food and medical supplies. What hasn’t been shown on our television sets is the forced clearing and evacuation of towns and villages, followed by looting, torture, rape and murder carried out by the Serbian forces, who were initially backed by the federal Yugoslav army that was largely constituted by Serb nationals; the transportation of multiple hundreds of innocent Croatian civilians from Croatia into concentration camps Serbia (Begejci, Stajicevo, Sremska Mitrovica… from October 1991, and later (1992) transferred into Serb-held camps in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Omarska, Keratern, Manjaca, Trnopolje).
2. The second front was the war of political propaganda centred on: misinformation about the rights of minorities in Croatia; portrayal of the Croatian people as Ustasha or Fascists; the representation of the Croatian defence forces as illegal paramilitary units; the representation of the Croatian and Slovenian republics as unreasonable secessionists who are unwilling to negotiate; a regurgitation of distorted facts about World War II.
Indeed Croatia had an absolute right to defend itself and this is often forgotten if not often denied it.
Ina has been a tireless volunteer on humanitarian aid and fundraising for victims of war in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially war orphans. From1991 to beginning of 1994 she contributed in lobbying for international recognition of Croatian independence and Croatia’s rights in defending its territory and people from military aggression by Serbian forces. For this dedicated voluntary work Ina was awarded two Medals of Honour by the first president of the Republic of Croatia in 1995 (Commemorative Medal of the Homeland War and Order of the Croatian Trefoil).Ina has also written hundreds articles for newspapers in Australia and Croatia on the plight of Croatian people for freedom and self-determination, developing democracy in former communist countries. She holds two graduate and one post-graduate university degrees, specialising in behaviour, clinical and political psychology and management.
Blessed Alojzije (Aloysius) Stepinac Feast Day February 10
“When they take everything from you, you’ll be left with two hands; put them together in prayer and then you’ll be the strongest.” Blessed Aloysius Stepinac (1898 – 1960)
“They could not, nor will they ever be able to kill our passion and our need to live in human dignity, in peace with ourselves and with the free nations of Europe. We have carved out that right at our first democratic elections. For this right and for our sacred land we are even ready to die” – Dr Franjo Tudjman (1922-1999) ( Addressing the Croatian nation at the moment of the start of Serbian aggression against Croatia, 16 October 1991)
Bob Dylan Charged With Insulting Behaviour And Incitement To Hatred Over Comments About Croatians
Bob Dylan Photo: Fred Tanneau/AFP
AFP Reports: Bob Dylan has been charged with insulting behaviour and incitement to hatred in France after a Croat group filed a complaint about an interview in Rolling Stone magazine, a judicial source says.
It follows a legal complaint lodged by a Croat association in France over a 2012 interview Dylan gave to Rolling Stone magazine.
The American singer was questioned and charged in mid-November after the group complained about the interview, in which he allegedly compared the relationship between Jews and Nazis to that of Serbs and Croats.
The Council of Croats in France (CRICCF) had filed the complaint a year ago over an analogy he made in the 2012 interview while discussing race relations in the United States.
Back in September 2012 I wrote a post on Bob Dylan’s atrocious, vilifying and hateful statement regarding Croats and Serbs and KKK and Americans in his Rolling Stone interview.
Reuters has just released this news item:
“The American singer Bob Dylan is being investigated in France after a Croatian community organisation alleged that comments he made to Rolling Stone magazine last year amounted to incitement to racial hatred, Paris prosecutors said on Monday.
In the interview, published in the magazine’s September 27, 2012 edition, the singer said racism was holding America back.
‘If you got a slave master or (Ku Klux) Klan in your blood, blacks can sense that,’ he was quoted as saying. ‘That stuff lingers to this day. Just like Jews can sense Nazi blood and the Serbs can sense Croatian blood.’
The formal investigation followed a legal complaint from the organisation, CRICCF (the Council of Croats) , which is based in France, alleging that the comments as carried in the French version of the magazine violated French racial hatred laws.
In France, racism complaints automatically trigger formal investigations, irrespective of the merits of the case.”
Great going Council of Croats in France – you have done what I hoped my article on this blog would spark: defend the Croatian truth and pride by pursuing anyone who tramples on them without regard to the truth or whom they vilify and insult. Bit by bit, with perseverance, Croatian truth will show, hateful propaganda will fall.
Whatever comes out of this, and I trust Dylan will be called upon to answer, one thing is for sure: Dylan and hopefully other celebrities who often appear reckless in commenting about a nation of people will think twice before doing it again and, if they have a tendency to spill out offensive and hateful or scandalous blurts then they will be advised to get their facts right first and then open their mouth!
Hopefully Dylan will be forced into a situation where he will be faced with what utter devastation, genocide, rape, torture, concentration camps…were committed by Serbs in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina during 1990’s, learn a bit about history before speaking in ways that so deeply offend today’s generation. Ina Vukic, Prof. (Zgb); B.A., M.A.Ps. (Syd)
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