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Republic of Croatia
Republika Hrvatska
Motto: none
Historical (Latin): Antemurale Christianitatis
English: "'Fore-wall of Christianity"
Anthem: "Lijepa naša domovino"
"Our beautiful homeland"
Location of Croatia
Capital
and largest city
Zagreb
Official languagesCroatian1
GovernmentRepublic
• President
Stipe Mesić
Ivo Sanader
Independence
• From SFR Yugoslavia
June 25 1991
925
March 4 852
• Founded
1st half of 7th century
• Water (%)
0.01
Population
• July 2005 estimate
4,551,000 (115th)
• 2001 census
4,437,460
GDP (PPP)2005 estimate
• Total
$54.71 billion (73rd)
• Per capita
$12,325 (54th)
HDI (2003)0.841
very high (45th)
CurrencyKuna (kn)  (HRK)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)
UTC+2 (CEST)
Calling code385
ISO 3166 codeHR
Internet TLD.hr
1Locally also Italian in Istria county.
File:The Arena, Pula.JPG
The Arena (colosseum) in Pula, Istria

Croatia (Croatian: Hrvatska listenⓘ), officially the Republic of Croatia (Republika Hrvatska), is a country in Europe, at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, Central Europe and the Balkans. Its capital is Zagreb. In recent history, it was a republic in the SFR Yugoslavia, but it achieved independence in 1991. It is a candidate for membership in the European Union and NATO.

History

Main article: History of Croatia

A tribe of Croats came to the Roman provinces of Dalmatia and Pannonia in the 7th century and was ultimately assimilated into the larger native Illyro-Roman and recently arrived Slavic population which took the same name. Ruled by various Croatian rulers, these duchies were intermittently controlled by the Roman Empire at Constantinople and the Franks. Eventually Croatia became a kingdom in 925, and retained its independence until 1102 when—after decades of inner struggles—the country entered a dynastic union with Hungary. Croatian statehood was preserved through a number of institutions, notably the Sabor which served as an assembly of Croatian nobles, and the ban or viceroy. Furthermore, the Croatian nobles retained their lands and titles.

By the mid-1400s, the Hungarian kingdom was shaken by the Ottoman expansion as much of the mountainous country now known as Bosnia and Herzegovina fell to the Turks. At the same time, Dalmatia became mostly Venetian. Dubrovnik was a city-state that was, at first, Byzantine (Roman) and Venetian, but later, unlike other Dalmatian city-states, became independent as Republic of Dubrovnik, even though it was often under the suzerainty of neighboring powers.

The Battle of Mohács in 1526 led the Croatian Parliament to elect the Habsburgs to the throne of Croatia. Habsburg rule eventually thwarted Ottoman expansion, and by the 18th century, much of the Croatian territories that had previously been Ottoman passed to the Austrians. The odd crescent shape of the Croatian lands remained as a mark, more or less, of the frontier to the Ottoman advance into Europe. Further south, Istria, Dalmatia and Dubrovnik all eventually passed to the Habsburg Monarchy between 1797 and 1815.

Following World War I, Croatia joined the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs (comprising what is today Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia). Shortly thereafter, this joint state entered into a union with Serbia to form the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (which eventually became Yugoslavia in 1929). After Germany and its Axis allies invaded Yugoslavia in April 1941, the Nazis permitted the fascist organization Ustaše to found the Independent State of Croatia.

Along with Slovenia, Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia on June 25, 1991, which triggered the Croatian War of Independence. The Serb population living in border areas of Croatia revolted, supported by the Yugoslav army, and the ensuing months saw combat between various Croatian and Serbian armed forces. During this stage of the war, the independence of Croatia was recognized by the international community, while the Serbs proclaimed their own state, the "so-called" Republic of Serbian Krajina, and by early 1992, troops were entrenched. This stage of the war left hundreds of thousands as refugees on the Croatian side. The war ended in 1995, when the Croatian Army successfully launched two major offensives to retake the rebel areas by force, leading to a mass displacement of the hundreds of thousands local Serbs from those areas into Serbia and Serb controlled parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Republika Srpska). A peaceful reintegration of the remaining Serbian-controlled territory in the eastern part of the country was completed in 1998 under UN supervision. At the time of first modern Croatia's president Franjo Tuđman's death in December 1999, the country was in a parlous state. Later on, International Crime Tribunal for former Yugoslavia, which was founded by UN Organization, indicted several Croatian leaders including Franjo Tudjman. Quote:"During and after Operation Storm, at all times relevant to this Amended Indictment, Ante GOTOVINA, with others including Ivan CERMAK, Mladen MARKAC and President Franjo TUDMAN, participated in a joint criminal enterprise, the common purpose of which was the forcible and permanent removal of the Serb population from the Krajina region, including by the plunder, damage or outright destruction of the property of the Serb population, so as to discourage or prevent members of that population from returning to their homes and resuming habitation." [1] Its citizens suffered from government-backed attacks on their civil and political rights. The governing party, conservative and nationalist HDZ, was then corrupt and the economy was in difficulties, with around 20% of Croatians unemployed.

Presidential and parliamentary elections at the beginning of 2000 ushered in politicians from who pledged commitment to political and economic reforms and Croatia's integration into the European mainstream. Left-centre government was led by SDP until November 2003, when reformed HDZ formed minority government. President Stjepan Mesić, coming from centrist/liberal party HNS, was elected two times, in 2000 and 2005. The constitution has been changed to shift power away from the president to the parliament. Croatia has joined the World Trade Organization and opened up its economy. It has achieved economic growth and inflation is under control. It joined NATO's Partnership for Peace program and became an official candidate for membership in that alliance. By early 2003 it had made sufficient progress to apply for European Union membership, becoming the second EU candidate country from former Yugoslavia, after Slovenia. Croatia is currently in the process of joining the EU. Accession negotiations were opened on October 3 2005, and country is expected to become an EU member state in 2009 or 2010.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Croatia
Map of Croatia

Croatia is situated between central, southern, and eastern Europe. It has a rather peculiar shape that resembles a crescent or a horseshoe which helps account for its many neighbours: Slovenia, Hungary, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Italy across the Adriatic. Its mainland territory is split in two non-contiguous parts by the short coastline of Bosnia and Herzegovina around Neum.

Its terrain is diverse, containing:

The country is famous for its many beautiful national parks.

Croatia has a mixture of climates. In the north and east it is continental, Mediterranean along the coast and a semi-highland and highland climate in the south-central region.

National Geographic Magazine named it in 2005 as the most beautiful country in the world.

Politics

Template:Morepolitics

File:Zagreb skyline 1.jpg
Zagreb skyline

Since the adoption of the 1990 Constitution, Croatia has been a democratic republic. Between 1990 and 2000 it had a semi-presidential system, and since 2000 it has a parliamentary system.

The President of the Republic (Predsjednik) is the head of state, directly elected to a five-year term and limited by the Constitution to a maximum of two terms. In addition to being the commander in chief of the armed forces, the president has the procedural duty of appointing the Prime minister with the consent of the Parliament, and has some influence on foreign policy.

The Croatian Parliament (Sabor) is a unicameral legislative body of not less than 100 and not more than 160 representatives, all elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. The plenary sessions of the Sabor take place from January 15 to July 15, and from September 15 to December 15. Template:Croatia membership The Croatian Government (Vlada) is headed by the Prime minister who has 2 deputy prime ministers and 14 ministers in charge of particular sectors of activity. The executive branch is responsible for proposing legislation and a budget, executing the laws, and guiding the foreign and internal policies of the republic.

Croatia has a three-tiered judicial system, consisting of the Supreme Court, county courts, and municipal courts. The Constitutional Court rules on matters regarding the Constitution.

See also: Foreign relations of Croatia and Accession of Croatia to the European Union

Administrative divisions

The Plitvice Lakes, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
File:Old City, Dubrovnik.JPG
Rooftops in Dubrovnik's Old City, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Main article: Counties of Croatia

Croatia is divided into 20 counties (Croatian: županija) and the city district of the capital, Zagreb*:

  1. Zagreb county (Zagrebačka županija)
  2. Krapina-Zagorje county (Krapinsko-zagorska županija)
  3. Sisak-Moslavina county (Sisačko-moslavačka županija)
  4. Karlovac county (Karlovačka županija)
  5. Varaždin county (Varaždinska županija)
  6. Koprivnica-Križevci county (Koprivničko-križevačka županija)
  7. Bjelovar-Bilogora county (Bjelovarsko-bilogorska županija)
  8. Primorje-Gorski Kotar county (Primorsko-goranska županija)
  9. Lika-Senj county (Ličko-senjska županija)
  10. Virovitica-Podravina county (Virovitičko-podravska županija)
  11. Požega-Slavonia county (Požeško-slavonska županija)
  12. Brod-Posavina county (Brodsko-posavska županija)
  13. Zadar county (Zadarska županija)
  14. Osijek-Baranja county (Osječko-baranjska županija)
  15. Šibenik-Knin county (Šibensko-kninska županija)
  16. Vukovar-Srijem county (Vukovarsko-srijemska županija)
  17. Split-Dalmatia county (Splitsko-dalmatinska županija)
  18. Istria county (Istarska županija)
  19. Dubrovnik-Neretva county (Dubrovačko-neretvanska županija)
  20. Međimurje county (Međimurska županija)
  21. Zagreb (Grad Zagreb)*
See also: List of cities in Croatia

Economy

Main article: Economy of Croatia

Croatia has an economy based mostly on various services and some, mostly light, industry. Tourism is a notable source of income during the summer. The estimated Gross Domestic Product per capita in purchasing power parity terms for 2005 was USD 12,158 or 45.2% of the EU average for the same year.

The Croatian economy is post-communist. In the late 1980s, at the beginning of the process of economic transition, its position was favourable, but it was gravely impacted by de-industrialization and war damages as well as having problems from losing the markets of Yugoslavia and the SEV.

Main problems include high unemployment followed by an insufficient amount of economic reforms, including overpriced kuna. Of particular concern is the gravely backlogged judiciary system combined with inefficient public administration, especially involving land ownership.

The country has since experienced faster economic growth and has been preparing for membership in the European Union, its most important trading partner.

In February 2005, Croatia implemented the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU and is advancing further towards full EU membership. The country expects some major economic impulses and high growth rates in the following next years (currently Croatia suffers most from its high export deficit and considerable debt). Some big trading companies have already taken advantage of the liberalization of the Croatian market. Croatia is expecting a boom in investments, especially greenfield investments.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Croatia
Split, the largest and most important city in Dalmatia

The population of Croatia has been stagnating over the last decade. The 1991–1995 war in Croatia had previously displaced large parts of the population and increased emigration. Some Croats who fled the country during the war are returning. The natural growth rate is minute or negative (less than ± 1%), as the demographic transition has been completed half a century ago. Average life expectancy is approximately 75 years, and the literacy rate is 98.5%.

Croatia is inhabited mostly by Croats (89.9%). There are around twenty minorities, Serbs being the largest one (4.5%) and others having less than 0.5% each. The predominant religion is Catholicism (87.8%), with some Orthodox (4.4%) and Sunni Muslim (1.3%) minorities. The official and common language, Croatian, is a South Slavic language, using the Latin alphabet. Less than 5% of the population cites other languages as their mother tongues.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Croatia

Croatian culture is based on a thirteen-century-long history during which the country has attained many monuments and cities, which gave birth to a good number of brilliant individuals. The country includes six World Heritage sites and eight national parks. Two Nobel prize winners came from Croatia, as did numerous important inventors and other notable people — notably, some of the first fountain pens came from Croatia.

Croatia also has a place in the history of clothing as the origin of the necktie (cravat). The country has a long artistic, literary and musical tradition. Of particular interest is also the diverse cuisine.

References

  1. ^ Carla Del Ponte, ICTY The Prosecutor v. Ante Gotovina: Amended Indictment, 19 February 2004, accessed 15 September 2006
  • Agičić et al. (2000): Povijest i zemljopis Hrvatske (History and Geography of Croatia), priručnik za hrvatske manjinske škole (handbook for Croatian minority schools), Biblioteka Geographica Croatica, 292 p., Zagreb, ISBN 953-6235-40-4 (croatian)

See also

Template:Slavic States

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