Split, Croatia's second largest city, has gained notoriety for numerous patriotic rallies and is increasingly perceived as the exile for war veterans and nationalist dinosaurs. The presence of Croatian nationalists in this luscious Dalmatian seaside city is becoming reminiscent of the various comebacks staged by the White Army from the Crimea peninsula during the 1917 to 1921 Russian Revolution.
They might be out, but they are not down. Observers say former ruling party Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and other assorted nationalists are well-organised, staging continuous pickets, rallies and roadblocks in support of fugitive Croatian Army General Ante Gotovina, ex-general Mirko Norac and others threatened with extradition to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in the Hague. The Committee to Defend the Dignity of the Fatherland War is most active across the Dalmatian coast -- but why in the city previously known as Red Split?
Red Split -- no more
Split gives the impression of a prosperous port, but has in many ways missed out on Croatia's economic recovery, with unemployment set at around 22 per cent. The gap between a small rich elite and the impoverished masses is growing ever wider. The city's mayor, Ivica Skaric -- from the "soft" nationalist HSLS party but with a hard-core reputation -- is running the municipal government in coalition with the HDZ.
Furthermore -- until management changes in June 2001 -- the Split-based Slobodna Dalmatia (SD) was the only major daily in the country still nostalgic of the Tudjman era and giving media support to the HDZ and war veterans. Individual writers of the column- and slander-driven SD regularly fuelled the flames of the right, for instance editor Josip Jovic published a fictitious interview with Mirko Norac on 14 February 2001, when the ex-general was still at large.
Split's right-wing potential was evident in the hero's welcome given to Goran Ivanisevic [Cf. "Ivanisevic Backs Croat Suspects," <http://www.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/07/12/croatia.goran/>] after his Wimbledon victory. Around two thousand turned out in his hometown waving Croatian flags and nationalist symbols. In February, a huge nationalist rally in defence of Norac attracted at least half that number.
However, nationalism in Split is not one-dimensional and is often directed against centralism and Zagreb. Most local inhabitants are in support of their own regional autonomy, a mood the nationalist wing aims to exploit. Fans of the city's football team Haiduk, in particular during and after games against archenemy Dinamo Zagreb, have a reputation for stirring up trouble. The latest riots between the two sides, this time allegedly started by the Dinamo fan base, occurred on 14 October.
Although Zagreb was previously portrayed as the cradle of power for Croatia's nationalists, it has now quickly adopted to the new times, even holding rallies in support of the centre-left government. So it came as no surprise that a rally in Zagreb called by rightist groups on 20 October only attracted about 20,000 people, primarily bussed in from Dalmatia and Hercegovina, significantly smaller than the February demo in Split. Nevertheless, the war veterans issued an ultimatum to Prime Minister Racan, demanding the annulment of the arrest warrant against Gotovina and an amnesty for Croatian fighters from war crime proceedings.
Gotovina -- not yet finished
Ex-general Gotovina, wanted by the ICTY, has been on the run for several months and is reportedly protected by about 30 well-trained professionals. Croatian police currently do not know his whereabouts; although there have been several sightings across the coast. They assume the arrest is unlikely to take place without bloodshed or even a popular uprising. Gotovina, who until 1991 fought for the French Foreign Legion, has said that he will not turn himself in alive. Gotovina was commander of the Split Military District in 1993 and consequently in charge for the 1995 artillery attacks on Knin and Benkovac as part of Operation Storm (Oluja), which re-conquered the Serbian mini state Krajina.
According to the Croatian Helsinki Committee, the final result of Operation Storm was the deaths of at least 410 Serb civilians, 150,000 to 200,000 Serb refugees and 22,000 systematically destroyed homes to prevent their return.
Croatia has been rocked by a series of arrests of indicted war criminals over the last three months. The latest indictments were issued against seven former military police officers in the town of Bjelovar on 15 November. For the first time, the public has been confronted with the ghastly details of the crimes committed by its own fighters in the "holy war for the fatherland." Before, the media and public figures had portrayed the war as entirely defensive and referred to war crimes and ethnic cleansing as exclusive to the Yugoslav army and Serb paramilitary forces.
Known war criminals are respected pillars of society and are prominent in the judiciary. They have the support of the most vociferous parts of society. "My theory is that the Committee to Defend the Dignity of the Fatherland War is primarily backed by individuals that have got most to hide," said Drago Pilsel, respected war-crimes specialist and former vice-president of the Croatian Helsinki Committee.
Former army general Mirko Norac, another rallying point for the far right, is on trial in the port town Rijeka following a deal with ICTY. Norac is accused of the execution of civilians in Gospic, a small town not far from Split, in 1991. His indictment in February led to a month of political unrest including the large rally in Split. In summer, road blocks and historic parades were organised in his defence.
Observers say that right-wing politicians -- including Miroslav Tudjman (son of the former president), Tudjman's former adviser Ivica Pasalic and others -- use the Gotovina and Norac cases to further their own political ambitions by undermining the stability of the current government. HDZ activists openly say their primary aim is early elections by stirring up civil disobedience, in particular in Dalmatia.
The government under Racan has not made a clean break with the past, in an effort not to upset the right, even if the silent majority may be in favour of legal action against criminals. The balancing act involves appeasement of the HDSL, the second largest party in Racan's government, until recently led by Drazen Budisa. He stepped down when his opposition to ICTY and Gotovina's arrest warrant almost caused the collapse of the coalition.
Colonialising Split
One of the major reasons for Split's ugly right-wing potential is its proximity to rural Herzegovina (the Croat-dominated part of the Bosnian Federation), home to some of the most ardent nationalists. Split-based organisers are able to rapidly mobilise thousands of nationalist supporters from the surrounding umland.
Under Franjo Tudjman -- who, in a secret pact with Yugoslav ruler Slobodan Milosevic, attempted to divide Bosnia and incorporate Hercegovina into Croatia -- Hercegovians enjoyed various privileges such as lucrative relocation offers and the right to vote. "Rural Hercegovians are gravitating to Split in need of education and social services," explains Victor Ivancic, editor of the political and satirical weekly Feral Tribune.
He lists their special status as the relatively banal reason for Split's transformation into the Casablanca for nationalists. "About 10,000 Croat families, of which many came from Hercegovina, were allocated apartments in Split that were seized from Yugoslav army personnel. They do not want to lose their old age residencies and are thus actively fighting for a return of the HDZ to power."
Split was the most significant military port in the old Yugoslavia. Mirroring events in the rest of the country, it was depopulated of its sizeable Serb minority in the early 1990s, when Croat authorities seized apartments of Yugoslav officers and made it increasingly difficult for the indigenous, civilian Serb population to remain. Although Split did not see any military activities in the 1991 to 1995 war, a hostile political climate led to the widespread exodus of Serbs, of whom many had century-long roots in Croatia.
"Split may look more beautiful than ever, but it has lost its edge. The previously alternative and bohemian city is no longer red," said Jasna, a Croatian Serb actress who was born in Split and whose family subsequently lost its apartment and relocated to Montenegro.
Of the 600,000 Serbs that lived in pre-war Croatia, about 35,000 remain. The purge of ethnic Serbs from Croatia has been largely unreported in Western media as it did not fit the stereotype of the Serbian perpetrator. The Croatian government does not encourage the return of Serbs wishing to take possession of their (former) properties. Croatian Serbs that live abroad have to apply for a visa that involves much red tape and can take months to obtain. It is also unclear whether Serb owners could actually sell their properties.
"My parents still own a house on Zadar, but I have been unable to go and inspect it, since the visa I applied for came only four months later, when I was already supposed to start a job abroad," said Snezhenka, a young designer who settled in Belgrade after she was forced to flee Croatia.
While the colonisation policies of the previous regime transformed Split into a centre for the extreme right, the current government prefers to turn a blind eye to its special status, in a bid not to shake up the political landscape and cause more conflict. Its hesitation, however, may lead to its potential downfall. No doubt, the eventual arrest of Gotovina will be the signal for further unrest.
As long as Split is dominated by "HDSL patriots" close to Tudjman's previous HDZ, it will provide a haven for the right. Mayor Skaric himself gave a speech at the mass demo in defence of Mirko Norac, he also lent his support to the previous right-wing editor Jovic of Slobodna Dalmacija when he faced dismissal in June 2001. The local HDSL branch also includes Ante Nakic, a prominent member who backs The Committee to Defend the Dignity of the Fatherland War.
Split's drift into right-wing extremism has been further compounded by the stance of the local Catholic Church, which wields great influence and has for decades been a bastion of nationalism. Current Archbishop Marin Barisic has publicly expressed support for Norac.
However, Split both as a university town and a major cultural centre, still produces many progressive thinkers. Anti-establishment paper Feral Tribune, Croatia's "Weekly for Anarchists, Protestants and Heretics," is based in Split and is selling more copies than ever before. Split has also developed a strong environmental movement and hosts experimental art and theatre festivals. An expression of its darker side is its reputation as the Balkans' junkie capital. This shows that, if anything, Split will become more polarised.
Chris Groner, 3 December 2001
Chris Groner is a journalist and PhD student specialising in the coverage of Central and Eastern European affairs. *****
***** Croat Court Acquits Ex-Policemen of War Crimes Nov. 22, 2002
- SPLIT, Croatia (Reuters) - A local Croatian court acquitted eight former military policemen on Friday on charges of killing and torturing Serb prisoners in 1992, ending the country's largest war crimes trial to date.
The trial, which started in June, was plagued by controversy, including harassment of witnesses and the premature release of the suspects, which enabled two of them to go underground.
It was to have been a landmark case for the credibility of Croatia's judiciary, which is trying to deal with lower-ranking war crimes cases ignored by the previous nationalist government. The U.N. tribunal in The Hague is dealing with senior suspects from the 1991-95 war.
A panel of judges at the county court of the Adriatic port city of Split ruled unanimously to acquit the eight former policemen, state news agency Hina reported.
They were indicted in March for allegedly killing and beating prisoners at the Lora military prison outside Split in 1992, at a time when Croatia was fighting a war of independence against its rebel Serb minority.
The local state prosecutor said he would appeal to the Supreme Court against the acquittal, which came at a time when Croatia is under pressure to cooperate with the Hague tribunal in handing over high-ranking war suspects.
Of the eight, one has been on the run since last year and was tried in absentia. The court released the remaining seven from custody in July and the Supreme Court ordered their re-arrest, but two had meanwhile gone into hiding.
The suspects had denied any wrongdoing at the trial.
Croatia has reopened a number of war crimes cases against its own troops and put several suspects on trial since a reformist coalition came to power in 2000. The most high-profile case, which includes General Mirko Norac, is still being tried.
<http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/reuters20021122_206.html> *****
***** Gregory Elich, "Screams And Cries: Prison Camp Lora and the Trial of the Lora 8," 2 December 2002, <http://www.swans.com/library/art8/elich006.html>.
...Prison camp Lora was situated in the former Yugoslav naval compound in Split. Once Yugoslav Federal forces were forced to withdraw during Croatia's violent war of secession in 1991, the Lora compound was seized by secessionist forces and the following year a prison camp was established on its grounds. In those days President Franjo Tudjman of Croatia and the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) manifested an extreme retrograde nationalism and saw no place in an independent Croatia for minorities or dissent. In towns and villages throughout Croatia, people were thrown out of their jobs, intimidated and driven from their homes. In the first two years of independence alone, over 10,000 homes were dynamited, primarily those belonging to Serbs but also homes belonging to Croat dissidents. In some cases, houses were blown up while the occupants were inside. The mayor of Split was an enthusiastic proponent of the concept of a "pure" state and Serbian residents were systematically threatened and tossed out of their homes. Likewise, Croatian residents who opposed the HDZ were imperiled in the same manner. And it wasn't only opponents of the HDZ who lived in fear. For ordinary apolitical Croats it was dangerous even to be seen near a Serb neighbor, which others might interpret as association. "Everyone else knew what was going on," remembers a former prisoner at Lora speaking of life in Split before his arrest. "They literally ran away from us in the street." Many unfortunates were incarcerated in Prison Camp Lora, while others fell victim to immediate violence. Over 550 cases of such violence were recorded in Split, although the true total is certainly far higher. The first murders were not long in coming. A Croatian couple, Djordje and Vesna Gasparevic, early victims in this campaign of purification, were threatened over the course of several months for their lack of support for the HDZ. Then one day in February 1992 soldiers burst into the Gasparevic apartment and abducted them; their bodies were later found atop a garbage dump in the nearby town of Zrnovnica. Another incident occurred in August 1992 when military police pushed their way into the home of another Croatian resident, Djordje Katic, and hauled him off to Lora where he was subjected to torture. Nenad Knezevic, of Serbian ethnicity, fared worse. Dragged from his home to the local jail, he was beaten so severely that his entrails were turned into pulp and he died later that same day. The wave of arrests and violence was soon followed by a series of bombings. Nightclubs, restaurants, cafes, houses and office buildings belonging to Serbs, Croat opposition and even mere business competitors were blown up over the course of a two-year period beginning in 1992. On April 27, 1994, special police force officers blocked roads leading to the Mississippi nightclub and then proceeded to demolish the interior. One of the nightclub's guards was taken to Special Forces headquarters where he was beaten and then later dumped from a moving car. The next month Croatian soldiers entered the Song Café and after ejecting the customers thoroughly demolished the premises. The Stefanel Restaurant suffered extensive damage when it was hit by an explosion in August 1992. Nearly one year later, on May 5, 1993, the Stefanel Restaurant was once again bombed, and on this occasion the force of the blast was so powerful that several nearby apartments were damaged. Stefanel's owner, Miro Bogdanovic, was targeted for having the temerity to belong to an opposition party called Dalmatian Action. In 1994 he and eight other party members were arrested, but managed to be acquitted, he says, "only thanks to the courage of Judge Dukic." Over the next three years Bogdanovic was routinely beaten and threatened by members of the Croatian Defense Forces (HOS), an extreme fascist paramilitary organization clad in black uniforms. Not once did local police take an interest in locating the culprits. In 1997 Bogdanovic was blackmailed and threatened by soldiers and he watched with dismay when the police arrived as they shook hands with his blackmailers. Later that evening, the soldiers returned once again and beat Bogdanovic up. Then a few days later his car was stolen. As a result of the beatings inflicted on him over the years, Bogdanovic is today disabled with severely damaged kidneys and dependent on dialysis. In 2000, Bogdanovic published an open letter to the mayor of Split, asking him to apologize to all the "victims of terrorism in 1991 and 1992." In his open letter Bogdanovic declared, "All those residents of Split who had any sort of Serb origin, or as 'pure' Croats were not supporting HDZ nationalism, became persons exposed to public scorn. Individuals were allowed to maltreat them, bomb their houses and property, liquidate them and never be held responsible for any of these acts." (1)... ***** -- Yoshie
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