May 5, 2023 - Everyone knows about Agatha Christie's famous novel "Murder on the Orient Express." But did you know that the train which was the scene of the murder was passing right through Vinkovci, on the rails of Slavonia? That train really used to pass there and travel on to exotic places, and Mrs. Christie often traveled on it. And now, just a little slower but equally fun, we're presenting the Vinkovci Orient Express race.

And the second race of the Vinkovci trilogy, which began with the Orion race, was named after the Orient Express, writes Turističke Priče.

Races through the history of the oldest city in Europe

The route of the Orient Express race will explore the streets of Vinkovci on Saturday, May 6. It starts in the city center at 5 p.m., and the length is 10 kilometers.

Pick-up of the start packages is on the day of the race from 4 p.m. and includes the official race shirt, unique start number, finisher's medal, refreshments, and prizes for the first three places in the men's and women's competition. The entry fee is 20 euros, and the announcement of the winners and the awarding of prizes in both categories for the first three places is scheduled for 6.30 p.m., followed by a concert and a DJ performance.

The final treat – Valens Victorius

The Vinkovci race trilogy will end with the Valens Victorius, which will take place on June 18. Valens Victorius is a 4.5-kilometer-long obstacle race. Its name was inspired by the rich Roman history of Vinkovci, where not one but two emperors were born. It is a fun, half-adrenaline race that will decide the overall winner of the Vinkovci trilogy.

This unique and magnificent race in the heart of Slavonia, full of challenges and fun, will be part of the Roman Days, and like every year, in memory of the tragically killed Croatian veteran Nedjeljko Klarić.

At the end of the trilogy, the times of all three races will be added up for the total time for each competitor, and the fastest and most agile will be crowned. The announcement of the overall winners will take place after the completion of the Valens Victorius race on June 18, 2023, at Šokački Stan Vinkovci.

The organizer is the Half Marathon Association, in cooperation with the FCT Citizens' Sports Association. All info about the trilogy and the upcoming Orient Express race can be found here.

Come to Vinkovci, the pride of Slavonia, and take part in this unique race. A city rich with history, which still shapes it, awaits you with a handful of stories about famous characters who created history and lots of sports entertainment.

And don't worry - everyone will leave this Orient Express alive, healthy, and with precious memories of the oldest city in Europe.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated Travel section.

September 5, 2022 – Even though the summer is not yet completely gone, and many tourists are still spending their days at the beautiful beaches of the Adriatic Sea, September is a special month all around Croatia. In Vukovar, a replica of a Roman ship sails in on Tuesday the 6^th of September to tell stories of the Roman times.

With events popping up left and right, celebrating wine, movement, food, art, and a lot more, you will find something to do wherever you go. Among them, the coast of the Danube and Vukovar shine yet again to show that eastern Slavonia is, in fact, full of life 365 days a year.

Interreg: The ship's route and programme

As part of the international Interreg project Living Danube Limes, on Tuesday, September 6, 2022, a replica of a Roman ship from the 4^th century will sail into Vukovar. The ship started its journey on the Danube Limes on July 15, 2022, in Germany, and after having sailed through Austria, Slovakia and Hungary, it arrived in Croatia. The crew, made up of international volunteers, has sailed to Batina, Aljmaš, and Dalj in Croatia on the way to Vukovar, and after a two-day stay in Vukovar, the ship will continue its journey towards Ilok and further down the Danube to the Black Sea. The Croatian partner of the project is the Institute of Archaeology, which, together with the City Museum of Vukovar and the Vučedol Culture Museum, participated in the organisation of this event in Vukovar.

Vukovar Municipal Museum: The programme in Vukovar - the arrival of the ship on Tuesday, educational workshops, lectures, and a pub quiz on Wednesday

On this occasion, the Vukovar Municipal Museum prepared various content for all ages, from workshops for children and adults, and lectures on the topic of making a ship replica to a museum pub quiz. It should be pointed out that the replica of the ship will be available for viewing by all interested visitors on both days. They invite all citizens to join in and experience the atmosphere of the Roman era in the 21^st century.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated Lifestyle section.

August 2, 2022 – Maybe you have never heard of Mohovo, and maybe you know that they keep finding mammoth teeth there... There is really no in-between. A new, fourth mammoth tooth was found on Saturday, 30^th July. 

As SiB reports, ten years after he found the first mammoth tooth in his village, Goran Popović from Mohovo found another, fourth, mammoth tooth on Saturday.

He informed his friends and the public about the phenomenal discovery by posting on Facebook, stating that he was filled with happiness, emotions, and optimism.

"I had that instinct again, walked through our beautiful village, and then it happened – the fourth mammoth tooth. All of a sudden, a part of the hill collapsed and the tooth just popped out. Now I'm completely convinced that this is no longer a coincidence", he wrote and invited everyone to join in and help, because a lot of support is needed to start the systematic search of the location.

SiB spoke about this discovery with Goran, who, still under a strong impression, said that not a single find was the result of purposeful digging and searching, but that he found each tooth completely by accident.

Photos by Dolina Mamuta

“Last year, the Minister of Culture, Nina Obuljen Koržinek, visited the site of the discovery, the county and city authorities came, and we received promises from all of them that they would do everything in their power to start archaeological research. I know that the activities in the wider Vukovar area focus on Vučedol, but I believe that the finding of another tooth will motivate the authorities to pay attention to Mohovo as well. It would be an important step in the promotion of our small village and it would certainly make it more attractive not only in terms of archeology but also in terms of culture and tourism”, said Popović.

The relevant ministry and the Ilok City Museum were immediately informed about the discovery, as well as the City of Ilok, and the Vukovar-Srijem County. He emphasized that this place with only two hundred inhabitants obviously hides great secrets that experts need to investigate. It all started in the fall of 2012 when, while digging a septic tank in an orchard, he found the first fossil remains of a woolly mammoth, and a discovery was made four years later in another location. Goran states that short research, in addition to the woolly mammoth and the woolly rhinoceros, led to the discovery of fossil remains of a hyena, a wild horse, and a bison. Four years after the second discovery, there was a third one, when the fossil remains of a mammoth were found again near the village pond. Realizing the potential hidden in their village, several young residents of Mohovo founded the association Dolina Mamuta (Mammoth Valley). They organised workshops, installed a straw sculpture of a woolly mammoth, a woolly rhinoceros, and a hyena in the village centre, and launched the events "Advent in Mohovo" and "Mammothfest", the second edition of which is planned for this October.

Photo by Dolina Mamuta

“The creation of a sculpture made of solid material is nearing completion, for which we were provided funds through donations after the straw sculpture was destroyed in a fire.

For the second "Mammothfest", we plan to organize an exhibition about the findings so far and additionally motivate the authorities for systematic research” he stated.

For more, check out our lifestyle section.

14 March 2022 - Women’s football in Croatia has gone through many changes throughout its history - from being solely a man’s sport to becoming one of the most popular for women worldwide. However, in Croatia, women's football still hasn’t received the traction it has in other countries, and many clubs, especially in Eastern Slavonia, saw an inevitable end. Why has this been happening, and what are the solutions to bring back the lost talents in women’s football? A look into women’s football in Croatia.

Women’s football has had many ups and downs throughout history. From being dismissed as only a man’s sport to its “golden age,” the ban that stopped the sport's progress and, in the end, one of the most significant rises in popularity of any sport in history. The “golden age” occurred in England at the beginning of the 20th century when British men were deployed and sent to the frontline during WWI. According to a BBC Three article from 2016, by 1921, there were around 150 women’s teams in England. A Boxing Day match in 1920 drew in crowds of nearly 70,000. However, after the war ended, women were pushed back to their “places” - closed in the houses to be housewives. In 1921, the “ban” was established, declaring it to be “quite unsuitable for females and ought to be encouraged!”. This “rule” was not lifted until 1971, and unfortunately, the damage has already been done.  

If we compare Croatian women’s football history from that timeline, we could say it’s been a bit different. However, even though that sort of ban hasn’t occurred in the established Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes and later the so-called Kingdom of Yugoslavia, reservations about women in football were emphasized a lot. According to Grgic and his article “A Brief History of Women’s Football in Croatia/Yugoslavia in Between War Period,” football was generally open to both sexes. However, “experts” pointed out that women as sentient beings do not need to seriously follow men in sports because those who do it turn into masculine people. Throughout the article, Grgic also mentions multiple instances where football was solely considered for men, and women can only use it as a prop to “get into shape and take it easy because women are fragile.” This puts a lot of factors in perspective if we consider that communist countries (especially after WWII) like Yugoslavia set a significant emphasis on women's rights and their “rightful” part of the “revolution.” Still, even that couldn’t stop discrimination against women. But, once again, that didn’t stop women from playing football. For instance, ŽNK Dinamo-Maksimir is a Croatian women's football club based in Zagreb, and the club was founded as ŽNK Maksimir in 1937. The Yugoslav First Women's League was active between 1974 to 1991 and the fall of Yugoslavia. Zagreb, later called Maksimir, was the only Croatian club in the League, and the club with the most titles was Mašinac from Niš.

After the Homeland War, many Croatian women’s football clubs were founded, which led to the eventual establishment of the Croatian Women's First Football League formed in 1992, following the dissolution of the Yugoslav First Women's League, which is currently underway and features eight clubs.

However, in recent decades, women’s club popularity has not helped the sport's popularity in Croatia, especially in regions like Eastern Croatia. Yes, ŽNK Osijek is the most successful Croatian club in the country, but it didn’t help the inevitable shut down of multiple women’s football clubs, especially in Vukovar - Srijem county.

For instance, out of ten active women’s football clubs in the last two decades, only five of them stayed active with ŽNK Mikanovci, NK Dilj Vinkovci, and Graničar Županja mainly operating in Croatian Women’s Second League. The rest of them work only in younger categories. Displacement of the population, lack of children, and girls' disinterest in the sport made clubs shut down. Girls who wanted to play football had to go to other towns and clubs that were still active, and the best would go to ŽNK Osijek.

Also, most Croatian women’s football clubs pay miserable salaries to their players who are just too low for today’s living standards, whereas in lower league clubs' wages are just non-existent. However, in recent years there has been progress, namely in the infrastructure of the Leagues and clubs, possibilities of the clubs to pay to their players, and constant promotion of women’s football games. It made everything so much easier because of social media and an overall rise in the sport's popularity internationally.

Out of ten clubs, five of them shut down in recent years, and the rest of them are mainly operating in younger categories - Screenshot: Wikipedia
*ugašen (shutdown) *djeluje u mlađim kategorijama (operating only in younger categories)

After the ban was lifted in the UK, women’s football finally progressed. Leagues and football clubs were founded, and the first World Cup in 1991 in China was finally held. In recent times, FIFA World Cup in 2015 and 2019 reached new heights in popularity and brought unprecedented ratings, which could be compared to Olympic Games. Women’s football is now a rapidly growing sport that finally started getting an influx of money and popularity long ago.

Croatian FA recently joined the UEFA Playmakers program, which was created with Disney. The project's primary goal is to introduce football to girls aged 5 to 8 who never experienced playing sports. The program will take place in 2022 and 2023, and four editions will be organized. The first edition - in March 2022 - will follow the animated film Frozen 2. The training will take place on the fields and/or in the halls of women's football clubs so that girls can join the clubs and continue playing football after participating in the UEFA Playmakers program. This project will also include cities all over Croatia and help promote the sport to girls across the country.

In conclusion, after everything researched, we can say that the rise of women’s football in Croatia is inevitable. Of course, it will take a long time since nothing can be done in one day, but positive times are here. Croatian Women’s Football Leagues are slowly but surely developing talent. The Croatian National Team is playing in playoffs for multiple big tournaments, and I don’t doubt that they will one day qualify. The interest in the game is rising again - even though many clubs shut down, girls are once again willing to play football, and rightfully so, because it’s our game too - a women’s game.

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

January 26, 2022 - On January 15, Croatia celebrated 30-years of international recognition, marking yet another milestone for a country that has undergone drastic reform in only three short decades. To fully appreciate the significance of this anniversary, one must first understand where Croatia was and how it achieved its current standing as one of Europe’s safest nations. A look at Croatia's European integration. 

A Bit of Background

Before we can discuss recent events in Croatian economic and foreign policy, we should look back a little further. Prior to succession from communist Yugoslavia, Croatia existed in many forms over the last several centuries. Lying at the crossroads of central Europe, the Mediterranean, and the Balkans, Croatia has a history that is as long and rich as its coastline. While it is difficult to pinpoint an exact date for the origins of Croatian nationhood, the elevation of the Dutchy of Croatia to kingdom status in 925 is a sufficient starting point. The Kingdom of Croatia maintained its independence until 1102 when it entered a personal union with Hungary, marking the beginning of over 800 years of foreign rule. 

The subsequent eight centuries were turbulent, to say the least. Large portions of Croat inhabited territory changed hands as regional powers like the Ottoman and Venetian empires vied for dominance in southeastern Europe. This situation persisted until between the late 18^th and mid 19^th centuries with the fall of Venice and the subsequent establishment of the Austro-Hungarian compromise in 1867. Following the dissolution of Austria-Hungary post-WWI, Croatia was incorporated into the short-lived Kingdom of Yugoslavia. After a brief stint as a Nazi puppet state during WWII, Croatia was reincorporated into the land of the south Slavs, giving birth to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, a communist dictatorship that lasted for almost five decades. Independence was finally won after the Croatian War of Independence which ensued from 1991 to 1995. 

Recovery and Leading Up to EU Membership

Coming out of a brutal conflict, the impacts of war can still be felt today. Croatia had won its independence but at a significant cost. Thousands of lives were lost, and thousands more were displaced. In the years immediately following, a period of reconstruction began as damaged cities were rebuilt the state reconsolidated the institutions that had been damaged or destroyed during the war. Going into the 21^st century, Croatia entered a period of shaky but upgraded stability and modest economic growth. Ties with the European Union improved and an application for membership was lodged in 2003. 

The road to EU accession was long and at times tedious. The Union required Croatia to agree to judicial reforms as well as cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. These issues became somewhat contentious at the time, delaying the opening of accession talks. Fortunately, they were resolved to the satisfaction of both parties, allowing negotiations to begin in 2005, hailing the beginning of Croatia’s European future. The next eight years were spent opening and closing the 35 chapters of the accession acquis. There was a brief ten-month delay due to the Piran Bay border dispute with Slovenia. But the restraints were eventually lifted, paving the road for Croatia’s EU membership in 2013.

European Integration: Croatia Today

Since 2013, Croatia has worked consistently to implement reforms that have firmly established it as a bona fide EU member. The right to freedom of movement probably represents the most significant change to the average Croatian’s life. EU states have the right to impose restrictions on new members. So, European labour market access has been one of the more obvious signs of progress within the union. Additionally, Switzerland granted Croatians equal residency and labour privileges, putting Croatia on par with other EU citizens in all associated countries. 

Furthermore, Croatia has made huge advances towards Schengen and Eurozone membership. In December of last year, prime minister Plenković announced that he expects final decisions on both application procedures in 2022. These treaties represent progress not only to Croatia but to the EU as a whole, providing fresh advances to a stagnating Europe.  

As Croatia moves further along the road of development, the small country will continue to face challenges. Only in the last few years, Croatia has had to manage rapid population decline, a migrant crisis, unusually frequent natural disasters, and a global pandemic. These stressors represent just a few examples of the trials that will test Croatian resilience in the years to come. 

But for now, Croatia should be proud of its achievements. Croatia has carved a crescent-shaped niche for itself on the world stage, going from a vague war-torn corner of southeastern Europe into a country renowned for its natural beauty, sports icons, and rich history. Croatia serves as an example for other western Balkan nations, showing that despite a complicated history, a bright future remains possible. So, wherever you may be reading this, as you contemplate Croatia’s 30-year anniversary, be considerate of the past, mindful of the future, and appreciative of the present. 

For more on politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

November the 22nd, 2021 - The City of Dubrovnik, Croatia's southernmost city and longtime tourist Mecca, now relies very heavily on air traffic. It wasn't always so. Way back in 1912, the Kaiser Franz Josef I ship once connected Dubrovnik to a famous destination across the pond - fabulous New York.

As Morski/Ivo Batricevic writes, on the slipways of the Cantiere Navale Triestino shipyard in Monfalcone, the Kaiser Franz Josef I passenger ship was built in 1912 for the shipping company Unione Austriaca di Navigazione.

It had a 12567 GT, was 152 metres long, 18.9 metres wide, could accommodate 125 passengers in the first, 550 in the second and 1230 passengers in the third class. The main propulsion piston steam engine with a power of 12,800 hp produced by the Scottish D. Rowan & Co in Glasgow enabled it to sail at a speed of 17 knots. Until 1925, the vessel used garbun to drive the steam engine, and later diesel fuel, writes the chronicler Ivo Batricevic for local portal Dubrovacki dnevnik.

The Kaiser Franz Josef I ship was destined for voyages from the Italian town of Trieste to New York, calling in along the way to the ports of Dubrovnik or Split, Patras, Palermo and Algeria. It made his first commercial voyage on a tourist cruise departing from Trieste on May the 8th, 1912 with the following itinerary: Pula - Dubrovnik - Corfu - Malta - Tunisia - Ajaccio - Nice - Taormina - Katakolon - Kotor - Split - Zadar - Trieste. But as World War I broke out just a couple of years later, the ship found itself in Trieste where it was dismantled and almost undamaged, waiting patiently for the end of the devastating war to come.

After the First World War finally drew to a close, the Kaiser Franz Josef I ship changed its name to Presidente Wilson

The well-preserved liner ended up in Italian hands under the name General Diaz in the fleet of the shipping company Cosulich. In May 1919, for the same shipowner with the new name Presidente Wilson, it undertook the first overseas voyage from Genoa via Marseille all the way over to New York. However, the next voyage departed from Trieste via Messina and Naples, and then headed on to New York. Initially, it mainly transported soldiers on their way home, and later on, it undertook its very first commercial trips.

Presidente Wilson first sailed into the port of Gruz in Dubrovnik on the 27th of February 1921 while sailing a regular route from New York via Algeria, Naples and Patras. It sailed like this regularly until April the 9th, 1927, when it bypassed the Port of Dubrovnik and began to dock in the larger port of the City of Split, a little further north in Central Dalmatia. The Dubrovnik public of the time was indignant at the indifference of the city administration to this, as they had allowed Split to snatch such a prestigious deal from Gruz. Because, in addition to a lucrative deal with immigrants, most travellers would take the opportunity to tour Dubrovnik while the ship was docked, which brought great benefits to domestic traders and carriers.

The ship's passengers toured Dubrovnik and liked what they saw...

On the occasion of this vessel's arrival in November 1923, the local weekly "Narodna svijest" noted that "24 passengers and 400 bags of mail disembarked from the ship. Many travellers disembarked at the end, toured our city, and were enchanted by the romantic natural beauty of our region. Thus, Presidente Wilson, although employed in regular passenger sailing, became the initiator of the first organised tourist visits to Dubrovnik after the First World War. That's why the grief and anger over its departure in 1927 to Split was so great among Dubrovnik's residents.

However, the people of Split didn't enjoy this ship's visits for all that long either. As early as mid-1929, The ship interrupted its regular travels to join Lloyd Trieste's fleet in 1930, for which it sailed for the Far East under the name Gange. As early as 1936, it changed its owner and name again. The fleet of the Trieste shipping company Societa Adriatica di Navigazione had by then been refurbished and modernised, under the name Marco Polo.

The former Kaiser Franz Josef I returned to Dubrovnik on August the 18th, 1937 carrying 208 passengers and 229 crew members, then sailing for the last time to Croatia's southernmost city on July the 17th, 1939 with 130 passengers - never to return again. It was soon dispatched to the port of La Spezia. With the capitulation of Italy, the ship passed, much like everything else, directly into German hands. Due to the danger of Allied attacks from the sea, on May the 12th, 1944, the Germans mined and sank the ship in order to block the entrance to La Spezia. It remained lying on the seabed until 1949, when it was pulled back up to the surface and cut into scrap iron in La Spezia by the end of the following year.

For more on Croatian maritime history, check out our lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, 4 Aug, 2021 - President Zoran Milanović said on Wednesday that the fact that some of the army generals will not attend the Victory Day celebration in Knin is not a boycott, but that they received invitations too late.

Who has announced a boycott? Ljubo Ćesić Rojs has not. Josip Đakić is not a general, he is a bum, and a member of parliament, in other words he is nobody. Rojs will be there, Pavao Miljavac will be there and Ante Kotromanović will be there. Of course, not everyone can come every year, but most  people will be there," Milanović said during a visit to the southern town of Sinj.

He said he did not think there was any pressure on some of the generals by the Defence Ministry "because no one can exert pressure on those people," but noted that some of the generals and commanders were put in an awkward position because they received the invitation the day before the event, which was the ministry's responsibility.

During the visit, Milanović conferred high state medals on retired Brigadier Dušan Viro and posthumously on Franciscan Frane Bilokapić for their acts of humanity during the 1991-1995 Homeland War.

He said he did not consider the decoration of General Mladen Kruljac disputable even though he had been found guilty of corruption. "He is a war commander and is decorated what he did in the war. No one is perfect, but what he did in the war is without a doubt impeccable, and he is not the only one."

Judge Dobronić is my candidate for Supreme Court President

Answering questions from the press, Milanović confirmed that 61-year-old Judge Radovan Dobronić is his candidate for the position of Supreme Court President.

He has responded to the call for applications and "now we will see what will those who undermined, torpedoed and dishonoured my previous candidate do," Milanović said, describing Dobronić as smart, educated, honourable and incorruptible.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 4 Aug, 2021 - On the eve of Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day, War Veterans Day and the central commemoration in Knin, state delegations laid wreaths at Zagreb's central Mirogoj cemetery on Wednesday.

The government delegation was led by Veterans' Minister Tomo Medved and a delegation of the Croatian Parliament was led by Deputy Speaker Željko Reiner.

The delegations laid wreaths at the Wall of Pain monument, the Central Cross in the Alley of Fallen Croatian Homeland War Defenders, the grave of Croatia's first president Franjo Tudjman, and at the common grave of unidentified victims of the 1991-95 war.

Wreaths were also laid by a delegation of President Zoran Milanović, led by his advisor on defence and national security Dragan Lozančić, as well as a delegation of the City of Zagreb, led by deputy mayor Luka Korlaet.

Shortly after that, a delegation of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), led by member of the SDP presidency and MEP Predrag Fred Matic, laid flowers and lit candles at the Wall of Pain monument and the Central Cross in the Alley of Fallen Croatian Homeland War Defenders.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 27 July, 2021 - The 26th anniversary of Operation Storm will be organised in accordance with epidemiological measures and the central celebration will be held at the football stadium in Knin, while the ceremonial part will take place at the Knin Fortress, Veterans' Affairs Minister Tomo Medved said on Tuesday.

Based on guidance from the Croatian Public Health Institute on compliance with coronavirus restrictions, it has been assessed that the Knin stadium is the best place to organise a dignified commemoration of this important date in our recent history while respecting the epidemiological measures, Medved told a press conference after a meeting of Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and relevant cabinet ministers with representatives of the association of retired Croatian army generals.

Before the commemoration, senior state officials will lay wreaths in front of the monument to the casualties and the 1991-1995 Homeland War.

Asked whether he expected representatives of the Serb minority to attend, after Deputy Prime Minister Boris Milošević of the Independent Democratic Serbian Party (SDSS) attended last year's ceremony, Medved said that an agreement had not yet been reached as to which cabinet members would be attending.

Reporters were also interested in hearing whether anyone from the Croatian Defence Force (HOS), the paramilitary arm of the right-wing Croatian Party of Rights,  would attend, Medved said that the position of the Council for Facing the Past was clear and that all components of the Croatian army and police, as well as associations of Homeland War veterans and casualties, would be invited to attend that important anniversary.

Miljavac: The problem is that young people are being recruited with HOS insignia

The head of the association of retired army generals, Pavao Miljavac, said that the association supports the idea for the commemoration to be held at the stadium due to the COVID-19 situation.

As for HOS's participation in the war, Miljavac said that its members need to be honoured as they went to defend Croatia without any ideology.

"The problem to me is that young people, 19 or 20 year olds,  are again being recruited with HOS insignia," said Miljavac and quoted the late president Franjo Tuđman as saying: "Had we continued down that path, Croatia would hardly have been recognised."

During the meeting, the participants discussed disagreements over the Civilian Casualties of the Homeland War Act.

Miljavac underscored that the minister assured them that the law would be implemented in such a way that it will minimise any possible abuse of the law.

"Strict coordination will be conducted between the Interior Ministry and Croatian defenders. We have a list of who was where - almost 95%, so that it will be strictly implemented, and there shouldn't be any abuse," he said.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page

ZAGREB, 20 July, 2021 - Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman said on Tuesday he expected light to be shed on the fate of missing and killed Croats from Bugojno, central Bosnia and Herzegovina, where he laid wreaths and attended Mass in a church destroyed in the 1990s war.

"It's very important to shed light on the dark past so we can live together, so we can open a new chapter of coexistence. It's important to shed light on the past, on the fate of the missing, the killed. Their families are still alive," Grlić Radman said in Kandija.

Croats in Bugojno are commemorating the 28th anniversary of suffering during the war with the Bosniak Army of BiH. In the summer of 1993, about 16,000 were driven out and about 300 were killed, while 15 top military and political officials, who were captured, taken to concentration camps and then killed, are still being traced.

Tomorrow, the search for their bodies will continue with excavations at Rostova, where the remains of four missing Bugojno Croats were exhumed last year.

In Kandija, Grlić Radman laid a wreath for the Croat victims of the Homeland and other wars.

He said Bugojno was a test for all in BiH in "bringing back the spirit of unity, tolerance, multi-ethnicity."

The minister said it was sad that 16,000 Croats lived in Bugojno before the 1990s war and only 2,500 today.

"It's necessary to create the prerequisites for their return. The Croatian government and all its institutions will help with appropriate crossborder cooperation projects and through EU funds. I'm sure the Croats of Bugojno will be able to return home and that the Croatian identity will be cultivated and shown here again, while respecting all other faiths and nations as it used to be."

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.