Croatia: Stop Violating History Of Homeland War

October 21, 2013 by inavukic 47 Comments

Ivo Josipovic (L) and Timislav Nikolic (R)

Last week Croatia’s president Ivo Josipovic visited Serbia and held official talks for the first time with Serbian counterpart Tomislav Nikolic after controversial statements by the extreme Serb nationalist Nikolic on the wars and massacres in the 1990s in ex Yugoslavia since he became Serbia’s president in May 2012. Nikolic, that is, stated that Vukovar in eastern Croatia was a “Serbian city” and questioned the genocide of 8,000 Muslims in Srebrenica by Serbian-Bosnians led by Ratko Mladic and RadovanKaradzic.

Vukovar was at the centre of the Croatian independence war in 1991-1995; it was ethnically cleansed of non-Serbs, it’s multitudes of Croatian women were raped and men and women tortured – kept in concentration camps; it was occupied by Serb forces from November 1991. Much the same horrid reality awaited 1/3 of Croatian territory; the 1995 Operation storm liberated Serb-occupied Krajina. Those are the facts of history that Croatia found itself in when 94% of its voters voted to secede from communist Yugoslavia and build democracy in 1991 and Serbia and much of the Croatian Serb minority did not want that.

Well Josipovic’s visit to Serbia last week appeared a mirror image of cold relations and the unpleasantness of it cut chills into the bones of Croatian people, especially war veterans and truth respecting people when Serbia’s Nikolic voiced that it bothers him that “Croatian school textbooks qualify Serbs as occupiers and Chetniks…”.

It would seem that Nikolic continues with his politically foul tricks in denying the truth of Serb brutality in the aggression against Croatia (and Bosnia and Herzegovina for that matter). It proves that Nikolic is on a mission to eradicate the history as it happened, to wipe out from history the fact that Belgrade based Yugoslav Peoples’ Army did in fact mobilise itself for aggression and occupation to strengthen the fighting power of Croatian-Serb rebel forces.

And Croatia’s Josipovic stood by while Nikolic said this instead of replying something like: well, it is the truth – Serbs did occupy Croatian territory and Serb forces did revive the WWII Chetnik movement and its units did call themselves Chetniks. Vojislav Seselj, current at the ICTY on war crimes charges, named Tomislav Nikolic a Chetnik Duke – and I haven’t seen or read anywhere that Nikolic rejected the title.

While Croatia’s president Josipovic declined to confirm or deny that the ICJ lawsuit for genocide against Serbia will be withdrawn, he did comment that matters of such nature couldn’t be discussed while there are still hundreds of Croatian civilians and soldiers missing from the Homeland War.

Nikolic said that it is not good that Croatia will not withdraw its lawsuit because “in Serbia, and probably in Croatia too, when two neighbours get into fight over the border, then they stop talking to each other.”
“You can never say that good friends are those who go to court. In these three weeks of the trial we will spit dirt at each other and show the worst possible things about each other,” said Nikolic.

Well, I find it impossible for the two neighbours to be friends by burying the horrible truth and by denying the victims the right to justice and compensation. Croatia must not withdraw its lawsuit against Serbia and I do hold that Croatian government does not have a full mandate to play with victims’ rights to justice and make decisions on whether to withdraw the lawsuit or not – such decisions must be made with the benefit of e.g. victim impact statements and victims’ rights representation.

And now, Croatia’s education minister Zeljko Jovanovic says that he has written a letter to Nikolic and enclosed copies of Croatia’s school textbooks so that Nikolic could see for himself, “read them and convince himself that it is not true what he is saying”.

First of all I would say: why bother!? Nothing will turn Nikolic away from justifying the unjustifiable; nothing will convince Nikolic that history must be truthfully recorded.

And the more frightening issue for Croatia is: if the textbooks don’t say that Serbs were the aggressors in the war, what are they saying? Or, is it that Jovanovic is clearing a path to organising new textbook editions, which would erase the truth about Croatia’s Homeland War and why and how it started and continued?

I would not put such manipulation of history past the former communists.

Minister Jovanovic said yesterday: “Besides, a completely new generation of textbooks is in front of us, in which everything will be in accordance with historical facts and without any politicisation. Equally, we expect that from Serbian history textbooks”. So, why tell Nikolic he was not saying the truth when he said Croatian textbooks charactersis Serbs as occupiers and Chetniks, if that is a historical fact? Serbs who organised and implemented the aggression and occupation of Croatia characterised themselves as such, proclaimed themselves as such – Croatians didn’t do it! And that is a fact.

I just wish the Croatian government would fight harder for the truth rather than try and placate Serbia’s ranting president who could obviously not give a hoot as to justice for victims.

Why desecrate and violate the history of the Homeland War by giving weight to the pathetic and abominable words that come out of the mouth of the one who represents the aggressor, the torturer, the rapist …?

It would be more conducive to eventual friendship and reconciliation for Croatian government representatives to firmly represent Croatia’s people/victims and truth rather than treating Serbia’s president with proverbial kid gloves, which approach, by the way, only breeds more intolerance, creates more confusion, and prolongs agony in the path to justice for victims. Ina Vukic, Prof. (Zgb); B.A., M.A.Ps.(ZGB)

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Chetniks, Croatia, Croatia-Serbia relations, Croatian Homeland War, Croatian war of independence, former Yugoslavia, Ivo Josipovic, reconciliation, Serb aggression, Serb occupation, Serbia, Srebrenica, Tomislav Nikolic, Vukovar, Zeljko Jovanovic

Croatia: Prime Minister’s wife’s conflict of interests and sex education in schools

February 12, 2013 by inavukic 17 Comments

Timothy Tate and Judith Reisman Photo: Boris Kovacev/Cropix

Croatian association “Parents’ Voice For Children” (GROZD) has, according to Dnevno.hr news portal, 11 February, sent Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic an open letter in which it seeks the convening of an extraordinary Government meeting. GROZD seeks the exclusion of Professor Aleksandar Stulhofer from the government’s advisory committee on sex education in schools program and an investigation into the matter of seeing whether Prof. Stulhofer is associated with exposing children to pornography and the spreading of pedophilia in the Republic of Croatia.

“Remove from duties the Minister for Science, Education and Sport, Mr Jovanovic, and prevent him from working in any similar position within the government of the Republic of Croatia because, due to many omissions in his work unscientific program that rests upon gender ideology and follows the directions of the World Congress of Sexologists which, among other things, promotes pedophilia, has been introduced in all schools in Croatia”, the open letter says.

According to Dnevno.hr portal, GROZD also seeks the annulment of Minister Jovanovic’s decision that makes the health education program mandatory for all school students. It also states that Stulhofer, besides being a scholar and an associate of the Kinsey Institute in U.S.A., has been collaborating for many years with persons who are declared pedophiles. GROZD emphasises that Stulhofer was against the raising of the legal age from 14 to 16 for sexual intercourse with adults in Croatia.

GROZD offered a warning, once again, that Stulhofer has introduced topics into sex education curriculum that give space for the promotion of pedophilia and endangerment of children who are entrusted to the education system of Croatia.

“We take the liberty to ask you to withdraw your wife, dr. Music Milanovic, from the government’s advisory committee on the development of the curriculum because it is a fact that she is one of five members of that committee, possibly giving a false credibility to Prof. Stulhofer and to the non-scientific and ideological foundations of the school program”, concludes GROZD in its letter to Prime Minister Milanovic.

Whether Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic’s wife’s role in the government’s advisory committee on school curriculum for health (sex) education constitutes a serious conflict of interest in action is a matter that I cannot go into because I do not possess any factual information as to the workings of this committee and into any safety or precautionary procedures that may be in place to avoid detrimental effects conflict of interest may have on the sex education program introduced as mandatory component of school education in Croatia. However, when considering conflict of interest one must not only look at the actual situation of conflict of interests but also the “perceived” conflict of interest must also be eliminated. Judging from the Parents’ association GROZD letter to the Prime Minister there is no doubt that perceived conflict of interest exists in the minds of the stakeholders and the public when it comes to the mandatory sex education in schools curriculum. This, in any fair and true democracy must be avoided and it would seem to me that Zoran Milanovic’s wife should resign her position on the committee as a matter of decency towards the public’s perception and fears; as a matter of furthering democracy in Croatia.

The fact that the sex education in Croatian schools was introduced without adequate (or any) public/parent consultation is a tragedy for the relatively young democracy. It has brought serious rifts between the Church and the state,
it has seen the harshest (without reasonable foundation) of disciplining of journalist Karolina Vidovic Kristo, it has seen barrages of offensive remarks against dr. Judith Reisman, but it has also brought home the realisation that Croatia has a long way to go in its path of building democracy into all facets of public life.

British investigative journalist and filmmaker summarises the issues of and around the mandatory sex education program in Croatian schools in the video clip below:

Disciplining of journalist Karolina Vidovic Kristo for simply offering to the public information associated with sex education in school is, as Timothy Tate says: “…indicative of a mentality which is not democratic, which is not comfortable with difficult facts brought out into the public arena. You can’t stop free speech if you want to be a democracy. It would be unthinkable in Britain for the Prime Minister of Britain to stand up in parliament, as your Prime Minister stood up in parliament, and essentially trash the reputation of a journalist for bringing to light of something that should be brought to light ”.

Indeed! But then the wife of the British, the Australian … Prime Minister would not sit on the government’s advisory committee for the development of school education curricula. It is a long established fact that school education curricula are the responsibility of governments but are also a fertile ground for the promotion or furtherance of political orientations and views. It is on that note that school education curricula must be independent of any political parties and that any real or perceived conflict of interest be removed from them. Otherwise, the way things seem in Croatia at this moment, democracy has a long way to travel before its roots are planted in all avenues of daily, ordinary lives of citizens. And, finally, as the plot around public outcries against or for the imposed mandatory school sex education program in Croatia thickens with the revelation that Prime Minister’s wife sat on the government’s advisory committee for the program, one wonders how much and whether the pro-government’s public noises were in fact trying to cover up the possible government-linked conflict of interest involved in the final cut of the program. It’s a matter of “watch this space”, but one cannot but applaud dr Judith Reisman for her announcement of defamation lawsuits against the media outlets and individuals in Croatia who had set out to shred her reputation. Dr Reisman may yet be a heroine that will demonstrate to the Croatian public that freedom of speech in a democracy is a sanctity regulated by the rule of defamation law. Ina Vukic, Prof (Zgb); B.A., M.A.Ps. (Syd)

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Aleksandar Stulhofer, conflict of interest, Croatia, freedom of speech, GROZD, Judith Reisman, Karolina Vidovic-Kristo, Sanja Music Milanovic, sex education, Timothy Tate, Zeljko Jovanovic

Croatia: Sex Education Causes Calamitous Rift In Society

January 14, 2013 by inavukic 28 Comments

Education Minister Zeljko Jovanovic and Archbishop Josip Bozanic Photo: Cropix

Education Minister Zeljko Jovanovic and Cardinal Josip Bozanic
Photo: Cropix

Croatian government and the Croatian Catholic Church have been at serious loggerheads, to say the least, since the government announced late last year its new school health education plan, which includes sex education in all its “modern-day” imagery, facets, spectrum. Suffice to say, the government would not budge from its plan to implement the program to school children that has caused enormous discomforts, distress, fury, and downright (futile) rejection from much of the community. To put fuel on this sorry “state of the nation”, a TV program (Picture of Croatia/Slika Hrvatske), produced by TV journalist Karolina Vidovic-Kristo, went under “the knife” as soon as it broadcasted the episode that examined possible correlation between the results of studies with pedophiles and school sex education (issues raised in association with the Kinsey Syndrome documentary). One would have thought that the media has the duty to offer the public information on all facets in and around a socially important issue such as sex education in schools – but, the powers that be think differently; they’ve made up their minds and nothing will stop them – or will it?

A two-way street of barrages of insults, cynicism, sarcasm … between the Church and the Government opened, just before Christmas Day, with saddening tides for celebrations of the birth of Jesus Christ. I say saddening because the 2011 census showed that there are 86.28% (of total population) Catholics in Croatia. I would have expected the Government to announce its seemingly controversial school sex education curriculum at some other time in the year, not so close to one of the most celebrated religious days in the year for so many of its constituents. As in any country, sex education in schools is a sensitive issue and usually carefully vetted, discussed or tested through parents’ associations etc. Whether a parent has the right to decide how sex education will be delivered in the school their child attends is a moot question that touches upon morality and social responsibility. The governments, on the other hand, have the responsibility to deliver education and, hence, dialogues are essential between all concerning parties, including the Church.

Productive dialogue has not been achieved between the Church and the Government on this issue of sex education. It’s almost like the two are asserting their points of view forcefully and the umpire (the parent/the people) is confused, but at times using distasteful means to bring their own issues to the front. E.g., hundreds of people turned up January 12 in front of Zagreb’s Cathedral to witness, to protest or to participate in the so-called “kiss your neighbour” rally: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) rights groups kissing in public, thus demonstrating their disapproval of the Church’s views on homosexuality and its place in school sex education, and the “war of words” that had been raging between the Church and the Government. The LGBT groups have announced a new rally under the banner: “Rally for secularism”! Well – one doesn’t need to look far to see where from those winds might be blowing (given that ex-Communists are in Government)! But, the critical thing here is that they don’t seem to be behaving any differently (more tolerantly) from that which they’re saying needs change, and are rallying against! The truth is that schools in Croatia are secularised, they’re public, the government is secular/separated from church, etc. so what does “Rally for secularism” mean? To deny people’s personal right to choose to believe, to belong to a church…?

The schools reopen after the winter recess on Monday 14 January and if one is to go by several media reports many parents are boycotting (not sending their children to school) sex education lessons and the Minister for Education, Zeljko Jovanovic, has threatened that their children will be marked as “AWOL” (absent without leave)! You accumulate several of those in a year and you’re in big trouble with your school grades!

In light of all of the above, and more, on the issue of belief, good and bad, I thought it most soothing to translate dr. Slobodan Lang’s article and post it here. Ina Vukic, Prof. (Zgb); B.A., M.A.Ps. (Syd)

Christmas Education in Croatia

By dr. Slobodan Lang

(Translated into English by: Ina Vukic)

Christmas day is a day of joy and hope, goodness is in achieving Jesus, Croatia is entering into the European Union, faith, family, human rights, education, health … During recent days Croatia was filled with debates on all subjects. We would, therefore, rightfully expect that we had welcomed the birth of baby Jesus with joy and that we had shown him that we welcome him among the people and in the country that has accepted the responsibility of goodness.

It wasn’t like that, regardless of whom we’re talking about, about priests, politicians, media, organisations. Most had placed an accent on him/herself and increased the polarisation and division among people. It’s not important at all what badness was uttered or written by whom about somebody else. What’s important is that almost nobody talked about the good.

This Christmas we all saw and were warned that Croatia lives more in the civilisation of bad than good. Most Croatian people are good people, and they know how to be good in their families, in organisations, in church, in Unions … but we do not know how to be good people in togetherness for creating Croatia.

The most valuable messages were sent, on 9th January, by President Ivo Josipovic and Archbishop Zelimir Puljic: « that, in relation to health education, good will, patience, responsibility and a sincere readiness for talks – the foundation for communication in areas of political and civil life».

Incongruous debates about health education for school children suggest that education about the good is needed for all adults in Croatia.

Croatia will either create a society of good or it will cease to exist. This goes for the whole of the Western civilisation, Europe, and perhaps (I’m relatively uninformed) for the whole world.

Pope John Paul II called upon us to create the theology of work, we want to be more, than to have more. He especially warned the Communist societies not to fall for false and dangerous dreams of the society based on consumerism, which devastates the future.

Is Christmas in today’s West and Croatia a celebration of Jesus’ birth or a celebration of a consumer society?

My family, Catholic and Jewish, filled with joy, has celebrated the Orthodox Christmas. On that day a new member of our family was born. Due to the risky pregnancy his mother spent four moths in bed. The hospital doctors and nurses provided help and cared for her all that time, her priest visited her regularly and prayed with her and an another mother in the hospital room, grandmother came regularly and helped, the whole family was enmeshed in good, even I myself was useful for some things (I brought Rosary Beads from Medjugorje). The mother is the first employer in our lives and she carries the responsibility of the love needed for us to be born and to start our lives in the community. Breastfeeding is the first work. From the very beginning children should, with their work in their family, do good for everyone, and in school the pupils need to do the cleaning by themselves, how many days has there been without aggression – needs to be written on the blackboard – have lessons started on time … Work begins much before employment, and we work for love, friendship, help, much before and much more than we do for money. Does this testimony belong to health and sex education?

Let’s conduct a research, do belief, attending Mass and prayer encourage blood donations, helping the neighbour, humanitarian work, help with employment, care for the elderly, comforting the depressed, material support, empathy. Would we not, in this way, get a better picture about goodness than by the level of education, by nationality, age or gender.

People are social and moral beings. When we face danger we also react as members of groups, first – immediately, instinctively and emotionally, and then – with deliberation and rationality. Belief helps us to realise our deliberation and prudence as quickly as possible. Fast reaction can sometimes be useful, but it leads to conflicts and disintegration. A slower reaction leads to deliberation, connects the community, strengthens Altruism and conquers negative emotions. God does not exist in order to give us our safety or to support us in our conflict with anyone. As believers, we are obligated to send messages and do deeds of goodness. Religion must not serve for the justification of conflicts and hatred – when that happens it is no longer the belief in God.

People who are not believers must aspire to lead a life of goodness, and to be able to publicly express and show that they morally accept the common good. Today’s world needs a new Universal declaration on human duty. Regardless of whether we are believers or not, we all should accept the duty of generosity, magnanimity, goodness and positive ethics, and reject the inherited biases, rapaciousness, selfishness, aggression, quarrels …

The short public debate on sex education has demonstrated that today’s Croatia has no vision as to what it wants us to build in togetherness.

A certain Croatian “meeting at the top” was held in the Cathedral. Cardinal Bozanic has in his sermon expressed dissatisfaction with the new program for schools. The President and the Prime Minister of Croatia were listening to him. If they were believers they would know to go to the Sacristy after the Mass and organise a meeting to discuss the matter. As politicians they could have thought about these matters and formally invited church representatives to a meeting. Regretfully, human weakness and separation, instead of clarification and linking with one another, prevailed. After that, the lack in their communication turned into the plunging out of members of the now conflicting sides, including agitating followers into conflicts between one another. The climax was “the war of kisses” in front of the Cathedral on 12th January. In my youth we had a slogan “Make love, not war”. Reagan reacted: “It seems that this generation doesn’t know how to do either.” In the defence of and in creating Croatia we showed that we know how to do both.

The Prime Minister, Mr Milanovic, requested a ceasefire. The debate on health education in schools clearly demonstrated to him that the whole of Croatia urgently and essentially needs a joint vision of goodness.

God’s announcement of Jesus Christ as one of the people represents the ultimate trust of God in people and the people’s responsibility towards God. There is no Universal man after the fort of Babylon; all live their short lives within defined nations and time. Jesus Christ was born 2000 years ago, among Jews in Israel, which already had its faith and Shrine, but it was under the Roman authorities. Jews were preparing an aggressive revolt against Rome. Jesus was aware that this would not give Jews their freedom but, rather, a military defeat, unjust judgment and peril. That’s why, with actions from man to man, he showed that it is possible to do good, he gathered them and educated them, and finally at the mount he called upon people to jointly build the world of good, through non-aggression and humanity. As not enough Jews accepted him, but continued to prepare for an aggressive revolt against Rome, he decided to warn them of what is to come for them, using himself as example. He exposed himself to an unjust judgment, torture and death. Soon, he appeared again before his followers and awakened in them the power of faith. The remaining Jews raised, in 66 C.E., the revolt that brought the greatest catastrophe in Jewish life, before the Holocaust. Today, the Jews consider this revolt as a terrible mistake. Regretfully, since Jews do not believe in Christ, they have not to this day understood that he called for abandonment of the world of wars and aggression, and showed that every man can do good, and that a nation can only realise its freedom in the company of good. On the other hand, Christians had not for a long time given meaning to the fact that Jesus dedicated his human life to helping and teaching every man and the whole community. In this way they separated Calvary from time before and after.

John Paul II apologised for the historical mistakes of the church and Benedict XVI dedicated special attention to ties with the Rabbi. I personally believe that Jesus’ lesson is good, an invitation, equally to believers and non-believers, to join with each other and build a civilization of good, and the Croatia of good. Jesus himself lived by doing good and not by persecuting evil, which he either rejected (the Devil) or banished from the place of responsibility.

Turning back to health, human rights, school, church and politics. People live significantly longer in the European Union (which we are joining) than in Croatia. The most terrible thing is that people here could live longer if a national health program was developed. This is possible only through a national goal. Croatia is aging and the population is getting smaller. It’s possible to change both, but only through a national goal.

The whole of Europe has lived very long in following the civilization of evil, dividing people into valuable and invaluable people, till the final Nazi introduction of even non-people. After WWII Nazis were defeated and there were proclamation of human rights, humanitarian principles, righteous among nations. A further 20 years was needed for the West to free itself from racism and colonialism, and then a further 20 years for the communist totalitarianism to fall.

Advocating for the equality of all is, in today’s world, a precondition and the duty of all people who want to build Europe and who believe in Jesus Christ. The majority, the minorities and the individuals are equal. That has been implemented with the Jews, racially, gender-wise, religiously, and nationally. Equality for the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) group is being implemented in 21st Century Europe and U.S.A. Among them, throughout history, were the greats like Alexander the Great, Aristotle, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo. How large is their contribution to all of us, in philosophy, in the arts, in politics … LGBT will realise their rights in Europe and in Croatia.

Let’s conclude with Jesus. He began to exist – he was conceived and killed – crucified, on the same day, 25th March. Christmas, 25th December, the day of his birth was chosen because it is nine months after conception. Both, faith and humanity obligate to full truth and do not permit the behaviour and the approach based on divisions between knowledge and ignorance. Let’s embrace responsibility, work and good – we need Easter.

____________________________

Dr Slobodan Lang Photo: Pixsell

About dr. Slobodan Lang. Born to Jewish family 8 October 1945 in Zagreb, Croatia. Physician, author, writer, politician and former personal adviser to the first Croatian President dr. Franjo Tudjman. His paternal grandfather Ignjat was the president of the Jewish community in Vinkovci (Croatia) and his grandmother Terezija was a housewife. In 1941 Catholic priest Hijacint Bošković, distinguished Dubrovnik and Croatian Dominican, was engaged in an extraordinary attempt to rescue the Langs from Nazi persecution. Bošković traveled from Dubrovnik to Vinkovci with a special permit that allowed him to relocate the Langs to Dubrovnik. Langs grandfather refused to leave, saying that he “was the president of Jews in peace and he will stay one in the war”. Both of his grandparents were killed in the concentration camp during the Holocaust. He graduated at the University of Zagreb School of Medicine and is a specialist in social medicine. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slobodan_Lang)