Official Name Republic of Croatia
Capital Zagreb
Area 56,540 square
kilometres 21,830 square miles
Major cities (Population)
Zagreb
706,770 (1991)
Split 189,388 (1991)
Rijeka 167,964 (1991)
Osijek
104,761 (1991)
Population Growth Human
Habitation Human Migration
Population 4,495,000 (1995 estimate)
Population
growth rate -0.1 per cent (1990-1995 average)
Political
Type of Government Parliamentary Democracy
Independence 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia)
Constitution Adopted 22 December
1990
Voting Rights Age 16, if employed; universal at age 18
Government
The Republic of Croatia’s bicameral assembly consists of the Sabor, a 138-member Chamber of Representatives, and the 68-member Chamber of Municipalities. The president is Franjo Tudjman, who was elected in 1990 and re-elected in 1992 to a five-year term. He is the head of state, and appoints the prime minister (currently Hrvoje Sariniş) as head of government. The new republican constitution was enacted in December 1990, and guarantees freedom of speech, assembly, press, and religion. Croatia’s voting age is 16 for those who are employed, otherwise it is 18.
Recent History
The Croatian Diet, or legislature, broke ties with Hungary and Austria at the end of World War I when the Habsburg Empire was dissolved. Croatia joined Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Slovenia to form the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. Relations between the Croats and Serbs were hostile, however, and in 1929 king Alexander I of Serbia, abolished the constitution and changed the name of the kingdom to Yugoslavia. Croats opposed the resulting dictatorship until the king was assassinated in 1934 by Croatian extremists belonging to the Ustaša (“Insurgence”) movement. In 1941, amid internal conflicts and World War II, the German and Italian forces invaded Yugoslavia, and the royal government was driven into exile. The Independent State of Croatia (which included Bosnia and Herzegovina) was declared in 1941, but remained essentially under the control of both Germany and Italy. The Croatian Ustaša regime assumed power and began a campaign of genocide against non-Croats—such as Serbs, Jews, and the Roma (Gypsies)—and Croats who resisted the Fascist government.
At the end of World War II, the region became part of the Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia, headed by wartime resistance leader Josip Broz Tito, a Communist and a Croat. To keep opposing groups together, Tito carefully controlled nationalist sentiments among all ethnic groups and promoted the concept of federalism. Attempts in Croatia to revive Croat nationalism and culture were suppressed.
When Tito died in 1980, his authority was transferred to a collective state presidency, which had a rotating chairmanship. That political body was not able to rule effectively, and ethnic and nationalist tensions resurfaced. In May 1991 Croats voted in a referendum for independence, which was boycotted by most Serbs. Croatia declared its independence in June, and war followed in July in Serbian Krajina in eastern Croatia. This resulted in the devastation of entire cities, the forced migration of thousands of people, and the loss of about one-third of Croatian territory to the Serbs. The international community recognized Croatia as an independent state, and with the help of United Nations (UN) mediators, a ceasefire was agreed, but in 1993 fighting broke out again, as a result of Croatia’s intention to regain possession of Knin and reunite the southern area of Dalmatia with the rest of the country. In 1995 Croatian forces launched a massive attack against the Serbs in Krajina and recovered much of the territory lost earlier. Meanwhile, Croatia was involved in the bitter war between Muslims, Serbs, and Croats over the partition of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In March 1996 Croatia, along with Bosnia and Herzegovina and Yugoslavia, agreed to hasten compliance with the Dayton peace accord, which had halted the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Croatia established formal diplomatic relations with Yugoslavia in September 1996. The two countries agreed to recognize Croatia’s international borders, to make it easier for refugees to cross the joint border, and to ensure legal protection to citizens of both countries.
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