ZAGREB, 18 Dec, 2021 - The Croat minority in Serbia faces many challenges but it has been making significant achievements and perseveres in protecting its unity, Croat National Council (HNV) head Jasna Vojnić said in Subotica, in the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, on Friday. 

The HNV on Friday marked the day of the establishment of the first HNV, a holiday of the Croat minority in Serbia.

"The house where Count (Josip) Jelačić was born has been bought and is being renovated, offices have been secured to house the association of Croats in Belgrade, construction work on Croatian House has begun, the first crèche has been opened..." Vojnić said, speaking of the results of the current HNV.

Another, invisible achievement is the preserved unity among Croats in Serbia and their representatives becoming credible partners to the state institutions in Croatia, she added.

The event in Subotica was also attended by the deputy head of the Serb National Council (SNV), Croatian member of parliament Dragana Jeckov, who said that the Croat and Serb minorities shared many problems.

"When Croats in Serbia are attacked, Serbs in Croatia feel it very much and, I am sure, vice versa," she said.

"To all those who are not willing to give a helping hand to promote relations - stop and let us minorities live normally," she said.

The envoy of the Croatian prime minister, Milan Bošnjak, commended the ethnic Croat community's achievements and positive steps made by the Serbian authorities, but also warned of situations that make life for the Croat minority more difficult and harm bilateral relations.

In that context he mentioned the decision by the Subotica town government to declare the Bunjevci Ikavian dialect "an official non-Croatian language" and the fact that the issue of representation of Croats in the Serbian parliament had not been resolved yet.

"We look forward to the moment when a Croat will be elected to the Serbian parliament in a separate constituency," Bošnjak said.

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ZAGREB, 17 Oct, 2021 - Serbian Culture and Information Minister Maja Gojković and Croatian National Council (HNV) leader Jasna Vojnić on Friday launched work on the interior renovation of the birth house of Count Josip Jelačić, the Ban (governor) of Croatia (1801-1859) in Petrovaradin.

The renovation work, worth €100,000, will be financed by the Serbian government with the support of the government of the northern province of Vojvodina and its capital city Novi Sad, of which Petrovaradin is now part.

After the historical building is fully renovated, it will serve as a memorial to the best known governor of Croatia, the seat of several organisations and a meeting point for local ethnic Croats.

The ceremony of launching renovation work was held on one of the four holidays of the ethnic Croat community - the day of Count Jelačić's birth.

HNV head Vojnić said that the event should serve as an example of how all other outstanding issues related to the Croat community in Serbia should be dealt with, citing in that context guaranteed seats for the Croat community in the Serbian parliament, proportional employment in state institutions, sufficient funding for the work of local councils, a positive image in the media and the protection of cultural goods of the Croat community.

Gojković said the renovation of Count Jelačić's birth house was a true symbol of "our wish to contribute to the preservation of the tradition, customs and culture of the Croat ethnic minority in our country."

"By doing so we are demonstrating our commitment to building better relations and understanding between the Serbian and Croat peoples," she said, among other things.

The event was also attended by an envoy of Croatia's Central State Office for Croats Abroad, Dario Magdić.

"I hope and believe that today's event is a continuation of positive developments that started a year ago, when this building was purchased by Serbia and handed over to the HNV... It shows that we should work and build together, to the benefit of our autochthonous communities and societies," he said.

Those attending the ceremony were also greeted by Vojvodina Prime Minister Igor Mirović.

The birth house of Count Jelačić is located in the centre of Petrovaradin.

Built in 1745, the house was renovated in 2001 on the occasion of the 200th birth anniversary of Count Jelačić.

The Serbian government purchased the part of the building that was handed over to the Croat community for €600,000.

Petrovaradin is an ancient garrison town and was an important point of military resistance to Ottoman forces during the time of the Habsburg Empire in the 17th century, when it was settled by Croats.

In the early 19th century, Croats accounted for more than 90% of the town's population, but today they account for only 10%.

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ZAGREB, 3 Oct, 2021 - Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman and his Montenegrin counterpart Đorđe Radulović laid wreaths in the Montenegrin coastal town of Morinj on Sunday to commemorate several thousand Croatian nationals, mostly residents of Dubrovnik and nearby communities, who had been held as prisoners of war there 30 years ago.

"We are here today, for the first time in thirty years, to commemorate the sad day when the so-called centre for the reception of prisoners of war was opened here and became a place of torture for innocent people and civilians. The presence of the Montenegrin Minister of Foreign Affairs, Đorđe Radulović, confirms our desire to commemorate that event together by laying wreathes and lighting candles. Some of the people have been convicted for that, mostly guards, but to this day we do not know who gave orders, and they, too, should be prosecuted," Grlić Radman said.

He said that a swimming pool in Kotor was named after Zoran Džimi Gopčević, one of the guard commanders. "We protested against that. The fact that Minister Radulović is here today confirms and proves that that was a rash decision by the local authorities in Kotor which the central government probably could not influence."

"This today is the actual admission that war crimes were committed here. Today we pay tribute to all victims together. This is a big day because the representatives of the states of Croatia and Montenegro have come here together for the first time," Grlić Radman told Hina.

He said he wanted to do a similar thing in Serbia where many Croats had been imprisoned, tortured and killed during Croatia's 1991-1995 Homeland War.

"I spoke with Minister Radulović about installing a memorial plaque here in Morinj. This commemoration was organised by the Croatian National Council (HNV), who are loyal citizens of Montenegro and who cherish their Croatian tradition, culture and language with the support of the Croatian government," Grlić Radman said.

Radulović said that his presence in Morinj showed "the spirit of a new Montenegro, of those who did not take part in the war, but who respect the victims of all wars in the region. That's the spirit of the new Montenegro, which seeks reconciliation of our fathers for the sake of the future of our children. The spirit of a Montenegro that does not dream about its past but about its European future. The spirit of Montenegro living in peace with everyone. Today patriotism is shown by respecting those who think like you, but even more by respecting those who think differently and by respecting your neighbours and friends. Morinj is a reminder that we should never forget that."

 HNV president Zvonimir Deković said: "Today it is a great encouragement to mark this anniversary in the presence of two ministers of foreign affairs and all those who send the message that a true example of heroism is to know how to protect another from yourself." He called for a minute of silence to honour the prisoners of war from Dubrovnik who had died in the Morinj camp and others who had died in the last 30 years.

The Morinj camp operated from 3 October 1991 until 18 August 1992 as a detention centre for POWs from Croatia. A total of 292 people from the Dubrovnik region were held there and 169 of them were subjected to inhumane treatment. It was only in 2013 that the first court judgment was delivered, sentencing four defendants to a total of 12 years in prison for torturing and violating the physical integrity and personal dignity of the prisoners.

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