Sanja Deanković
This time I’ve decided to write about the Croatian context in reference to the recent protests, primarily because it seems to me that the culture of taking to the streets, pointing out to injustice and an articulate seeking for change is awakening. I guess it was about time we wake up from the state of sleep and stop awaiting for someone else to do it for us.
Both previous and this year, Croatia has experienced the biggest escalation of protests so far in terms of the dynamics of their occurrence, massive attendance, diverse social groups that were either holding the protests or supporting them and their unified actions. The protests were triggered by various causes. Nevertheless, their nature can be subsumed under the same umbrella. On the one hand, it’s the neoliberal policy of the Croatian government, which is characterized by broad privatization of almost all industrial sectors and key natural resources (i.e. handing over public property into the hands of powerful businessmen), like in the rest of the world, all in the name of free market, which is supposed to offer citizens fair competition and a chance of achieving big success. Croatia has recorded the highest unemployment rate of 18.2% so far, while 141.000 jobs were lost only in the last two years. Around 400.000 people live at the edge of existence, deprived of basic human rights which is rather an alarming fact for the country with the population of little over 4.200.000.
As it’s usually the case, neoliberal policies were accompanied by the destruction of the welfare state, i.e. reduction of social rights of majority (right to work, education, health care, retirement) part of which were huge and painful cuts that once again hit the wallets of the poorest. In that sense, the previous year was marked with the protests of disenfranchised workers, farmers and students, the protests in support of preserving public space from privatization, general protests against government policies and – the latest one – those against the capitalist system. On the other hand, this year there were also veterans’ protests as well as violent riots against the Gay Pride, that took place in Split.
Protests for Workers’ Rights
The protests for workers’ rights that are gaining attendance and frequency started to attract more media attention with the case of Kamensko textile factory which had been ruined by privatization and the series of business wrongdoings that eventually led to its bankruptcy. Kamensko factory workers took to the streets in October 2010 (first with the hunger strike, and later on with demonstrations, marches, etc.) and the protests continued until December.
The Farmers’ Protests
The farmers, to whom the state did not pay up the subsidies for maintaining the level of agricultural production, thus leaving them at the mercy of large agricultural and food tycoons who offer them low prices for their agricultural produce, have repeatedly taken to the streets with the support of activists and workers, blocking roads and demanding their rights. The results were a tiny increase in cash-in prices of produce and the promises of higher subsidies, which are broken over and over.
The Student Protests
In the field of education, students have continued their long-term campaign for free education and against high tuition fees that are a direct consequence of neoliberal retreat of the state from financing high education and handing over the universities to the market, hence high tuition fees must be paid by the students. As a result of it, the state has virtually declared education is no longer public good, therefore the right to high education is given only to those who can afford it, which is just another one of many things that create a growing gap between rich and poor.
This year, Faculty of Philosophy students blocked the registrar and forced the administration to not charge students with tuition fees, but to demand that the government fulfil its promise about free education, instead. Furthermore, this year a new high education union that gathers almost all universities and colleges in the country has become active, opposing the new bill on universities, according to which education is further commercialized and subjected to the market. The activity was a success and a lot of pressure was created by the strike, while the chancellor and the dean threatened to suspend classes, so the bill was finally withdrawn.
The Right to Public Space
When it comes to the right to public space, the initiative to defend Varšavka Street, one of Zagreb’s main streets, played a big role in the past several years as well as last year. (Parts of Varšavka Street were given to a businessman who turned the public space into a private garage and a shopping centre.) The campaigns in defence of public space achieved success in including a large number of citizens, and shedding some light onto the importance of that subject while at the same time the issue of the struggle for public space was spread out to other cities. At the moment the struggle is being fought in Split for the preservation of Marjan1, in Dubrovnik for the preservation of Srđ2, and all over Croatia there’s an ongoing struggle against turning the public areas into golf courses.
The Protests of Disgruntled Citizens
This year’s biggest demonstrations took place from February to April when thousands of citizens marched through the streets of Zagreb in a total of 18 protests. The mass protests were held in other cities (Split, Rijeka, Osijek …). The protests expressed an overall dissatisfaction with the government policy, demands were made for shift in power, but in the course of time other ideas were articulated, too, like: anti-capitalist slogans, claims against privatization, the requests in favour of free and independent public media and public requests for direct democracy as the only viable democracy. The protests were attended by various social groups (workers, students, veterans, etc.) hence there was an ongoing struggle between right-wing and left-wing groups and citizens. The protests did not result in further unification of the citizens, however a big step forward was made in introducing the topics that had previously been absent from the mainstream. An overall dissatisfaction with the government policy was expressed – the government that does no good for either left or right. A huge leap forward occurred regarding civil disobedience (the protests did not have leaders, the citizens occupied the street of Zagreb, demonstrations were held in front of the state-owned TV, the protests were nonviolent, etc.).
Wall Street
The protest that were held in bigger cities in Croatia echoed those big protests against the capitalist system and in support of direct democracy (so called Wall Street protests) that swept the world. They resulted in an increased articulation in terms of recognition of problems of the capitalist system.
The national plenary session, i.e. the direct democratic decisive body was held for the first time at the protest in Zagreb, where all the citizens had equal rights to vote and participate in decision-making. The ideas regarding the need to protect social rights and public goods were articulated at the state level. More protests and another plenary gathering were announced, but it remains to be seen how things will develop in the future.
Protests of Veterans
It is important to mention this year’s protests of veterans that were joined by the citizens and mostly right-wing groups.
A broad analysis of the government policy would easily demonstrate that instead of improving citizens’ welfare, the government maintained its power by persisting on nationalistic politics of persuading the citizens that the alleged “croatness” and other accompanying items that go with it (religion, national tradition) were being preserved.
Veterans’ protests occurred after the non-final guilty verdict to generals Gotovina, Čermak and Marka
for organized criminal enterprise during police military “Operation Storm”. The demonstrations which were attended by thousands of veterans and joined by citizens took place in several cities. Evan though initially they were about expressing the protest against the ruling to the generals that was perceived as the condemnation of the entire Homeland war as a criminal one, and therefore the Croatian people as well, the core of the problem were the unresolved issues of war and lack of awareness amongst many citizens regarding the issues of war crimes. That is a deliberate, continuous government policy that systematically ignores such issues in order to survive on stirring nationalistic tensions. The protests were brimming, albeit to a lesser extent than before, with hate speech against Serbs, that seem to be the archenemies that one pulls like an ace up one’s sleeve in order to suppress the outbreak of big social unrest.
The matters of war and the disenfranchised veterans used by the authorities as a safe electorate is still not resolved, the war crimes are being covered up, while the current election campaign of the Croat Democratic Union (CDU) is once again based on resuscitation of the personality cult of Franjo Tuđman and the nationalistic rhetoric that reproduces the atmosphere of fear and hatred towards the Serbs, therefore it is possible that nationalistic tensions and similar protests will soon rise again. That is since we need the old/new enemy in order to draw the attention off the disastrous situation in the society whose foundation were built on exactly the same politics of the CDU with Franjo Tuđman at its helm. Let’s not forget that former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader (also from the ranks of the CDU), whose personality cult rose at the previous elections, is on trial at the Zagreb County Court for war profiteering and bribery.3
Gay Pride in Split
The government policy has neglected the question of other minorities, too, and this year it was particularly obvious at the protest of LGBTIQ community, at the Split Pride. Inadequate awareness-rising on the issues of sexual minorities, disregard of these minorities by the state and the lack of institutional mechanisms for protection, the position of the state as a neutral observer, instead of an active protector of human rights, have all resulted in violence that occurred at Split Pride when participants were attacked by several thousand demonstrators. The police forces totally failed, virtually allowing the lynching of those who took part at the parade.
Currently, the election campaign is under way in Croatia, with practically all political parties supporting the same programme (except that allegedly left-wing parties have a milder, nonetheless ignoring approach towards minorities) and its harmful social and economic policies concerning the ordinary citizens. Hence, one can expect further escalation of protests in the future while current stance remains rooted in the accession to the EU throwing dust into the eyes of the citizens. If things don’t get better once we’re in EU, some external or internal enemy will be discovered to take all the blame and distract us from the existing problems of a dreary everyday life in Croatia.
Nevertheless, until we accept that we – all of us, citizens – can achieve change and social justice only by building them together, regardless of our identity or other characteristics, they will never come true. Let us hope that the awakening of the culture of protest and mutual solidarity is a good start…
Sanja Deanković
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1 Marjan Forest Park is the largest public space in Split, which has been exposed to illegal building and construction and the problems of inadequate maintenance, for years.
2 Srđ is a hill situated above the city of Dubrovnik, which is a public area, too. The citizens protested against illegal construction of apartments on the pretext of building a golf course, under the slogan: “Srđ is ours”.
3 Former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader stands accused of war profiteering, i.e. receiving 3.6 million kuna in commission from Austrian Hypo Bank, which had given a loan to Croatia during the war. He is also accused of corruption charges in the amount of 10 million € for relinquishing management rights over INA oil company to Hungarian MOL.