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| December 29 at 8pm ET. ON THE RUN premieres on the Independent Film Channel as part of the Mezzo-Sopranos Festival Michael Imperioli and John Ventimiglia will introduce the film on IFC. ------------------------------------ http://www.arcofilms.com distributed by CROWN - www.croatianworld.net - CroWorldNet@aol.com Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. |
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| Dragi Nenad: You are to be congratulated for all of your efforts. I am wondering if any of your other readers have heard about a Croatian artist, at least he writes in Croatian, and signs his works "Waldeffpetar" or very close to that spelling. There is one work I have seen entitled "vrt sa stazane sto se racveja." Puno hvala.......a.pavlich (ankica2@aol.com) distributed by CROWN - www.croatianworld.net - CroWorldNet@aol.com Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. |
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| DEMOKRATSKI SAVEZ HRVATA U VOJVODINI Press sluzba Subotica: Hrvatski jezik u sluzbenoj uporabi Subotica: Hrvatski vrtici od jeseni 2002. Novi Sad: Hrvatski jezik u Vojvodini u sluzbenoj uporabi - inicijativa Subotica, 20. prosinca 2001. Na inicijativu Demokratskog saveza Hrvata u Vojvodini Skupstina opcine Subotica je na svojemu zasjedanju 20. prosinca 2001. godine donijela dvije odluke, koje su izuzetno vazne za Hrvate: - ponovo je uveden hrvatski jezik u sluzbenu uporabu u opcini Subotica. Jos 1993. godine takodjer na inicjativu DSHV Skustina je uvela hrvatski jezik i madjarski pravopis u sluzbenu uporabu u opcini, protiv cega je Miloseviceva Socijalisticka partija Srbije podnije tuzbu Ustavnom sudu Republike Srbije. Taj sud je iz politickih razloga odgadjao presudu sve dok je Milosevic bio na vlasti. Potvrdjujucu presudu nisu htjeli donijeti, jer bi time Hrvatima omogucili nesto, za sto oni ne bi nista dobili. Negativna presuda ne bi bila popularna za rezim. 24. sijecnja 2001. godine sud, ciji su suci bili imenovani jos od milosevicevog rezima, donijo je odluku kojom se proglasava nistavnom odluka Skupstine opcine Subotica, jer "nije u skladu sa Zakonom o sluzbenoj upotrebi jezika". Hrbvatima se, doduse dopusta javno govoriti hrvatski (nece nam se jezici iscupati!), ali na hrvatskom komunicirati s drzavom - to ipak ne ide! Tako ustavni sud RS. Sada je to ispravljeno i Hrvati u Subotici mogu dobiti sve opcinske dokumente komunicirati s opcinom i na hrvatskom jeziku; - od jeseni 2002. godine hrvatska djeca ce u Subotici, po zelji roditelja, moci biti u skupinama u kojima ce se govoriti hrvatski jezik. Ova odluka se odnosi na vrtice u vlasnistvu opcine. Ovim zapocinje proces, ciji slijedeci korak ce biti i osnivanje razreda i skola na hrvatskom jeziku i po posebnim programima, koji ce uzeti u obzir jezik i knjizevnost, povijest, kulturu, glazbu... kako vojvodjanskih Hrvata, tako i opceg hrvatstva. Ovaj je korak bio tempiran upravo za ove dane, jer ce od 1. sijecnja 2002. godine osnovne skole biti u nadleznosti opcina, a srednje u nadleznosti AP Vojvodine. Novi Sad, prosinac 2001. Na inicijativu Demokratskog saveza Hrvata u Vojvodini iznova je pokrenuta inicijativa da se hrvatski jezik uvede u sluzbenu uporabu u AP Vojvodini. Ovakva inicijativa je, naime, vec jednom bila pokrenuta u sijecnju 2001. godine, ali u Skupstini AP Vojvodine 24. svibnja 2001. nije dobila dovoljno glasova: za ovaj prijedlog glasalo je 56 poslanika, a trebalo je najmanje 61. Sada je opca klima povoljnija i ocekuje se da ce u sijecnju ili veljaci i ova inicijativa biti na dnevnom redu i da ce biti prihvacena. Usvajanje ove inicijative omogucilo bi osnivanje osnovnih i srednjih skola na hrvatskom jeziku u cijeloj Vojvodini, osnivanje sredstava informiranja od strane APV, kako to postoji za sve priznate jezike, tj. narode, mogucnost uporabe hrvatskog jezika u svim strukturama pokrajinske administracije (dokumenti, nazivi gradova i sela, maticni dokumenti, sudovi...). Bela Tonkovic distributed by CROWN - www.croatianworld.net - CroWorldNet@aol.com Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. |
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| Zajednicar, Pittsburgh (SAD), 21. studenoga 2001., "Putujuci Lijepom Nasom" ... Putujuci kroz mala mjesta Like covjek dobiva bolan osjecaj da je cijeli svijet izumro, jedino je priroda poput mlade nevjeste pokazala svu svoju raskos i ljepotu. Zapusteni vocnjaci krcati su plodovima, ono malo obradjenih njiva izgledaju kao biseri. Uglavnom nepokosene livade, na nekim mjestima su rastom nadmasivale covjeka. Kao u nekom ruznom snu, hodala sam tim napustenim selima, nadajuci se da cu nekoga sresti, nesto vidjeti ili se barem probuditi iz tog mucnog sna, ali nista osim pustosi. U mom rodnom mjestu ostalo je samo nekoliko staraca i svaki put kad im pisem ili ih vidim, sve ih je manje. Obisla sam svaku kucu, svakog starca ili staricu. Odnijela im skromne ali korsne poklone. Plakali smo, smijali se i spominjali ne tako davna vremena, kad je moje rodno mjesto cvalo od zivota. Kako je tuzno gledati tu napustenu zemlju, tu niciju zemlju, za kojom se toliko prolilo suza, znoja i krvi, kroz stoljeca. Groblje je jedino mjesto gdje je nas Lovincana svakim danom sve vise i vise. (...) ... Ne znam od cega ljudi zive, ali svi imaju visi standard od mene. Svi kukaju. Oni koji imaju vise kukaju vise, a oni sto imaju manje, kukaju manje. Gotovo se svi slazu da se u Hrvatskoj nista ne isplati. Ne isplati se uzgajati janjce, pilice, praviti sireve. Na farmi od nekoliko stotina ovaca, vuna se pali, jer se ne isplati prati, a iz Novog Zelanda dojde cista. Tehnicka roba i odjeca je skuplja, hotelske usluge jeftinije, a pogotovo u privatnom smjestaju. Voznja autobusima, a pogotovo vlakom je vrlo jeftina. Nitko ne ide bez mobitela, a ja sam im izgledala kao bijela vrana bez mobitela, jos i k tome i sat mi se pokvario, tako da sam zapravo bila za zaljenje a ne "svijetli" primjer kapitalliste. Svi s kojima sam razgovarala krive nekog drugog za udes i uporno mi tvrde da mi njih ne razumijemo. Vjerojatno je to istina da mi nemamo pravu sliku o Hrvatskoj, ali tu sliku je vrlo tesko dobiti. U Hrvatskoj ima svega. Neke stvari su skupe, neke pristupacne, a neke cak i jeftine, recimo alkohol i cigarete, jer vecina ljudi pusi. Najskuplji i najtrazeniji predmet za mene, bio je smijesak, koji se tesko dobiva, a u javnim uredima gotovo ne postoji. -- Josipa Klostranec-Licanka clanica odsjeka 975 HBZ [Toronto] ---------------- mozda koji "kapitalist' iz "dijaspore" ... zagrize. jucer sam citao zivotnu pripovijest jedne druge Licanke iz Lovinca. iz sr hrvatske je u kanadu iselila 1955. godine s petero djece. suprug je otisao vec 1945. godine. danas imaju dvadesetak unucadi i 23 praunucadi -- u Kanadi. proslijedjeno: Rudolf Arapovic distributed by CROWN - www.croatianworld.net - CroWorldNet@aol.com Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. |
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| Uspjesnu Vam 2002. godinu zele suradnici i urednistvo casopisa za novu poeziju, Konture.com. Odvojite trenutak za poeziju i ostale sadrzaje iz upravo objavljenog treceg broja Kontura. www.konture.com konture@konture.com U novom broju konture, (nezavisna i neinstitucionalna web publikacija za suvremenu poeziju) citajte stihove Vlade Franjevica. Magazin konture je utemeljen na privatnoj inicijativi. Casopis kojeg ureduje stalni urednik / Zagreb / i gosti urednici iz zemlje i inozemstva izlazi tromjesecno prvi je projekt takve vrste u Hrvatskoj. Likovno-kulturni radnik i autor Vlado Franjevic iz Liechtensteina je od nedugo clan savjeta ovog magazina. Vlado Franjevic <Vlado_Franjevic.htm>, jedini na domaci-inozemni autor u ovome broju, autor je posve osobena poetskog izraza. Poezijom narativnog tipa autor bilje i nizove dojmova, svojevrsni kovitlac zbivanja, pokretnost - tovi e nemogucnost zaustavljanja ni kada bismo htjeli (nijemac koji je stajao u repu za brod iza nas / ugurao nas je s na im autom u ogromni brod.). Mjestimice, Franjeviceve poetske slike otkriju Franjevica slikara (jezera, vodenslapovi, obale Rajne, zlatna sela ...), no povrh toga putnika duhom nevezana za odreden prostor ( ponekad mislim ovdje / to je mo da ipak / svugdje.). Strukturiranje recenica i upotreba jezika s blagim odmakom od "uobicajenoga", a zapravo s odmakom od domicilnoga jezika, dodatno osvje avaju citanja. U rubrici "Iz hrvatske poezije" citajte takodje o slijedecim autorima: Veoma zanimljiva pjesnikinja i nova suradnica Kontura, Irina Ban <Irina_Ban.htm>, do sada nije objavljivala svoje pjesme. Ni po knji evnoj periodici, iako je veoma zainteresirana za sud citateljstva o svojim stihovima. Pjesme ove autorice odi u posebnim dojmom, svojevrsnim "parunovskim" enstvom gotovo stopljenim s prirodom (zemljom, plodno cu) koje, ipak, nekamo izmice. Objekt udnje nije zatajen, no nije ni pokazan: u onom je prostoru u kojem ga citatelj sam "izgraduje" ... Kako ovaj uvodnik nije namijenjen analiziranju poetika odabranih autora, nego najavi citanja zanimljive poezije, dalja citanja rado cemo podijeliti i usporediti s Va ima u na em. Sladan Lipovec <Sladjan_Lipovec.htm> pjesnik je bez jo uvijek vlastite knjige pjesama, no stihove je objavljivao u periodici, sudjelovao u poetskim natjecajima, a knjigu stihova najavljuje. Lipovceva poezija, na posve razlicit nacin od poezije Irine Ban, takoder pjeva o plodnosti, gotovo zemljano opipljivoj. Pjesnikova je uloga u vlastitim stihovima dvojaka: onoga tko stvara, kreira, ali i procjenjuje (vrednuje) kako autorsku poziciju, tako i sadr aj koji stvara. Primjerom je pjesma Jesen je popodne <Sladjan_Lipovec.htm> u kojoj se pjesnik svjesno distancira od tradicije pjevanja o jeseni (Cesaric) i ulogom aktivnog sudionika "ispiljuje stihove o jeseni". Pjesmu navodimo i kao toliko rijedak primjer, u tzv. postmodernoj poeziji, pjesme koja od citatelja zahtijeva do ivljavanje kompleksom cula: miris benzina, okus cigarete, osjecaj hladnoce, slu anje vjetra i piljenja drva. Hocemo li i ubuduce citati vi e nove, sinestezijski bogate poezije?! Tomislav Ribic <Tomislav_Ribic.htm>, vje tim i sigurnim autorskim rukopisom, pi e/slika/hvata bajkovitu radnju. Za razliku od tzv. postmoderne karaktristicne fantazmagorije u poeziji (razlomljene, li ene konvencionalnih znacenja i poimanja), Ribiceva je bogata pjesma-bajka vje to izgradena prepoznatljivom formom (pocetka, razrade i kraja). Motivi nemirgradova, vila, ena-riba, vodenih po tara samo u veoma sigurnim autorskim rukama mogu postici snagu dojma kakvu posjeduje Ribiceva poezija. Blanka Supan <Blanka_Supan.htm> pjesnikinja je bogatstva motiva, tovi e, njihova istodobnog pro imanja. Autorici vje to uspijeva, a ritmom toka/neprestanog mijenjanja, u pjesmu utkati poruke klasicne mudrosti, slike svakodnevne neuroticne vrtnje, motiv duboke zabrinutosti humanista nad svijetom ... a pocesto se zaigra i samim gradivnim tkivom pjesme - rijecju. U pjesmi Osveta <Blanka_Supan.htm> autorica cini jak odmak od dotada njeg joj zaigranog pisanja, i otvara polja autorskog istra ivanja kompleksa odnosa: ena/samosvjesnost/okolina/konflikt ... Tvrtko Vukovic <Tvrtko_Vukovic.htm> pjesmama kojima se predstavlja u ovom broju Kontura, a kojima najavljuje svoju drugu knjigu poezije, najavljuje cini se, i pjesnika od koga je ocekivati zgusnutu, te ku, vanserijsku poeziju. Vukovic nam ne olak ava citanja. Ne opterecuje se servirati nam ifrarnik u d ep lovacke/ umarske/navijacke odjece kada smo mu se vec odlucili pridru iti na putovanju u nepoznato. A kada smo mu se vec pridru ili, obecanje posve individualne pustolovine svakoga od sudionika, te ko da ce nas odvratiti od daljeg puta/citanja, iako odmah uocavamo da put nije ni uobicajen ni lak. Prepuna iznenadenja, zasicena posve novom simbolikom prizora, gusta i slojevita ... Vukoviceva poezija naci ce poklonike medu zaljubljenicima poetskih rijetkosti. proslijedjeno; Vlado Franjevic distributed by CROWN - www.croatianworld.net - CroWorldNet@aol.com Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. |
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| Nenad: The present edition of Harvard International Review (Fall 2001) runs my piece on NATO expansion and the SEE states. It argues for Croatia's membership, BiH's neutrality aka Costa Rica, and Yugoslavia's semi-neutrality. Merry Christmas VMR Harvard International Review Fall 2001, Pages 26-30. Perspectives: Vitomir Miles Raguz Balkans in NATO: Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Yugoslavia The next round of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) expansion is due in Fall 2002 at the Prague Summit of the NATO members' heads of state. Not surprisingly, the debate over candidates is already in full swing. However, almost all of the debate has focused on the so-called Vilnius Nine-Albania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia-named after the Lithuanian capital where their leaders met last year to begin lobbying their cases. Three European states-Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), and Yugoslavia-were not invited to Vilnius. At the time, they had not met the internal stability requirements to participate. Consequently, they are generally overlooked in the present discussions. Since then, however, all three have voted into office new Western-leaning governments, some for the first time, and thus they deserve a closer look either as candidates for NATO membership or as countries where NATO can play an enhanced stabilizing role. Croatia was recently included in the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program, the antechamber for eventual NATO candidacy. This is a significant boost for the region's basic security. The advancement of Western security policy in the region should not stop there, however. Croatia should move on to the next stage, not only because it deserves to, but also for the benefit of regional security. Only two European states now remain without a formal relationship to NATO: BiH and Yugoslavia. BiH presents both a challenge and an opportunity to NATO. With more than 20,000 NATO troops in the country, the Western alliance should seriously consider how it can use those troops and its substantial influence to permanently stabilize BiH, thereby obtaining a long-desired exit for itself. Given the recent political developments in Belgrade, a similar opportunity for advancing Western interests may lie in Yugoslavia as well, for the first time in a decade. Croatia Croatia's recent inclusion in the PfP program is long overdue. Since we often speak of NATO membership as a reward, the delay here is curious, as perhaps no new state deserves this honor more than Croatia. Since the breakup of the Warsaw Pact, Croatia has done more to benefit Western interests than any other new democracy. The smooth transformation of Zagreb politics from one-party monolith to multi-party government was indeed a welcome harbinger for democratization in the region, but Croatia's positive role in the region predates the January 2000 elections. To begin, Croatia saved BiH. In the summer of 1995 its military operations, named Operation Storm, ended a carnage Europe had not seen since World War II-a humanitarian catastrophe for which the West could not muster an appropriate response. The Western capitals often unfairly take credit for this turnaround; in fact, the peace in BiH came only once the Croatian Army (HV) had established a new balance of power in the region by its summer operations. Everything that followed, from the first exercise of NATO air power to the Dayton-Paris peace agreement, was a filling-in of a diplomatic puzzle. "All along, the United States and its allies have been looking for a force-other than themselves-that could check Serbian and Bosnian Serb adventurism and produce a military balance on which realistic settlement could be built. Maybe such a force is now emerging: Croatia," wrote The Washington Post three days before Operation Storm commenced. At the end of the operation the Post added, "The Croatians argue they are not the problem but the solution; they claim to have created a new regional 'balance' on which 'proper' peace talks with the Serbs can begin. This line has been enthusiastically adopted by the American government, which is under pressure to show that the quiet political support it extended to Croatia had a legitimate purpose of promoting a negotiation in Bosnia." Richard Holbrooke, the main US diplomatic broker in Dayton, makes a rather unflattering reference to the HV in his peace negotiations diary as "junkyard dogs," typical to his style, but he adds that Zagreb had Washington's unsaid support in its endeavors in BiH out of desperation, as the only alternative to the risk-averse West. One military analyst at the time noted that the turnaround in Bosnia was 80 percent the doing of the HV, 15 percent of the Bosnian Croat militia (the HVO), and 5 percent of the Bosnian Muslim militia (the ABiH). Interestingly, Britain's leading commentator, Martin Wollacott, later concluded in The Washington Times that the Croatian military victories in 1995 changed the fortunes for BiH, while the Western diplomatic initiative that followed only protected the Serbs. Controversies Croatia's positive role that year has been overshadowed by the often confusing and unpopular policies of its past government, led by Franjo Tudjman. However, the recent political changes in Zagreb allow for a reconsideration of Croatia's role without having to refer to its previous leaders' style of governing and understanding of democracy. Croatia's positive role has also been overshadowed by two recent decisions in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY): Blaskic and Kordic, in which Croatia was found to have been involved as an aggressor in BiH in 1993. These decisions, however, are unlikely to stand the test of time, and should be reversed. The ICTY judges disregarded the case law on this issue, which required "command and control" of a country's forces in foreign territory. The decision also included a spurious argument that, while Croatia's own forces were neither present nor involved in fighting in central Bosnia, its forces stationed further south in Herzegovina-forces that were securing the isolated Croatian cities of Dubrovnik and Split-relieved the Bosnian Croat militia from fighting the Bosnian Serb militia, thus allowing these forces to engage the Bosnian Muslim militia in central Bosnia. In fact, the ICTY does not even have the mandate to decide on the question of international conflict, which is the domain of the International Court of Justice. The decisions in the two cases say more about ICTY than about the conflict in BiH. The ICTY appears to be more focused on creating new international criminal law, often far different from present international and any domestic law, rather than on dispensing justice and promoting truth and reconciliation in BiH. This type of convoluted but policy-driven common wisdom about Croatia is not new. For instance, the view that Croats joined the Axis en masse in World War II, while the Serbs were the sole members of the Allied Partisan movement in the former Yugoslavia, was promoted for five decades. The objective was to discredit and discourage Croat self-determination, which threatened the stability of the favored communist regime of Tito and its unitary Yugoslavia. However, a reconstructed history of World War II shows that the Croats, and not the Serbs, initiated and provided the top leaders and disproportionate number of soldiers to the anti-fascist movement. The politicized description of Croatia's role in BiH in 1993 will not endure as long. It should take historians much less time to deconstruct the present fallacy than it took them to disprove the one from World War II. In addition, the International Court of Justice may play a role should Zagreb seek a ruling there. Similarly, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in BiH-which is about to emerge-will bring forth new evidence removed from emotions and the logic of war. The truth is that Croatia was indeed involved in BiH, though not out of altruism or expansion. Like most states that act across borders, it was pursuing its own security interests. For Croatia this meant limiting the costly refugee outflow from BiH, and, most importantly, protecting its sliver-like Dalmatian coast. Zagreb's control of the coast ran on average less than 10 miles inland, stretching 250 miles from Dubrovnik to Zadar. These and other key population and economic centers were undefendable other than from neighboring Herzegovina. Zagreb thus supported and financed the Croat-majority entity in BiH, called Herceg-Bosna, as an indispensable buffer zone. At the outset this zone was the only form of resistance to Belgrade's gains in BiH. Many point out correctly that if there had been no Herceg-Bosna in 1992, there would be no BiH today. Zagreb allocated about 10 percent of its military budgetfor the needs of Herceg-Bosna. Moreover, it allowed its ports, airports, and roads to be used for the benefit of the ABiH. Zagreb even served as a broker, with the blessings of Washington, in the arming of Sarajevo by the regime in Tehran. No less important, Croatia minimized the migration effects on the stability of Europe by keeping one quarter of all BiH refugees in Croatia, while at the same time housing an equal number of its own displaced persons. It spent in excess of US$1 billion dollars for the care of refugees alone. Only Germany and perhaps Sweden spent more. Four years later, during the Kosovo crisis, Croatia opened its airspace to the NATO alliance no questions asked. It could have demanded a substantial consideration, given its strategic importance for overflights and the hundreds of millions of dollars in lost tourism and shipping revenues due to the air raids. One London investment bank estimated the loss at US$1.5 billion, a sum equal to seven percent of the country's GDP. The Western alliance spent hefty amounts to stabilize the other countries in the region for hard-currency losses due to NATO intervention. However, Croatia came cost-free. Croatia is BiH's principal security partner. Two-thirds of BiH's border is with Croatia. It is the primary transit country for international forces and supplies to this landlocked country, and Croatia's many ports and roads along the Adriatic are BiH's lifelines to the outside world. Bringing NATO to its borders will enhance BiH's attractiveness to investors and stabilize its trade routes. This is true for both of BiH's entities, the Federation and the Republika Srpska. The latter's capital, Banja Luka, is only a two-hour drive from Zagreb, a substantial European trade and communication center that BiH still lacks. From this perspective, the long-term security of BiH and the region would be best served if NATO leaders took the next logical step and included Croatia among the next round of new members. Bosnia and Herzegovina While Croatia is now on the road to membership, BiH remains handicapped even for PfP association, primarily because it has more than one army: the Serb army and the Muslim-Croat army. The latter is segregated below the battalion level. For NATO to accept a country with multiple armies would be a precedent that it is not ready to accept. Recently NATO has encouraged the three sides in BiH to form a unified army. The Serb side is not ready to accept this solution, seeing it as a fundamental revision of the Dayton peace agreement. The recent political rebellion of the Croat community and the withdrawal of the Croat component from the Muslim-Croat army, only adds to the complexity of the BiH problem. The Croat walkout, which was prompted by election-law changes rather than military matters, points to the problems caused by back-door revisions of Dayton that are intended to centralize the state. The Western powers now favor such a policy in general, although it has proven to be destabilizing in the short term. Moreover, the history of BiH tells us that centralization also fails in the long term. Contrary to popular wisdom, decentralization is a much more viable and stabilizing policy for BiH, a position that was argued convincingly by BiH's former defense minister, Miroslav Prce, in the Winter 2001 issue of the Fletcher Forum of World Affairs. Just as Croats turned away from Sarajevo because of new election laws, the Serbs would also just as quickly turn away from state institutions if any attempt to centralize the BiH armed forces materialized. The Bosnian Serb opposition to this model compels us to look for other solutions. Alternative Solutions The formation of three territorial guards with common command authority, combined with the demobilization of heavy weapons, may eventually become acceptable for all three sides. With this solution, a NATO umbrella and sub-regional non-aggression treaties between BiH and its two neighbors, Yugoslavia and Croatia, may be necessary to maintain stability. This should be the first phase of a substantial decrease in military spending in the Balkans. Other solutions are also on the table, including proposals to demobilize BiH altogether; to restructure the country's security needs along the Costa Rican model; or to reduce the two existing armies into two small professional armies. The last option is either a unified army, which is unacceptable to the Serbs, or two armies, which is unacceptable to NATO and the Croats. Many also point out that complete demilitarization is more likely in BiH than a unified army. Complete demilitarization would certainly be most beneficial to BiH taxpayers. They are already overburdened with post-war reconstruction costs, and the experience of the recent war certainly calls into question whether spending for arms has any purpose at all. More importantly, ordinary BiH citizens, unlike the governing elites, dismiss outright the thought of a unified army. They argue that if it came to war with either Yugoslavia and Croatia, local Serbs and Croats would abandon ship either to fight alongside one of the two, or sit idly by until their own homesteads became endangered. As pointed out in 1999 by Jacques Klein, the UN special envoy for BiH to the Council of Europe, too many BiH citizens still have a problem identifying or associating with BiH. This reality is simply not conducive to crafting ambitious national-defense programs. As an alternative to a unified or divided army, BiH may be able to adopt the example set by Costa Rica. The Costa Rica model would require complete demobilization, a NATO umbrella, and non-aggression agreements with neighbors. It would be coupled with an expanded police force, border police, and state disaster-relief corps. This solution has worked for Costa Rica for 50 years, and it may offer the best prospects for BiH. NATO would be wise to consider how it can use its enormous resources and moral force to move BiH to follow Costa Rica's direction. It is difficult to see how BiH can pursue any other model, given the extraordinary amount of resources it currently wastes on military spending. BiH now spends 40 percent of its budget for defense, compared to Europe's average of around two percent. Clearly, there is no room to maneuver here, nor will the opportunities for international subsidies continue for much longer. BiH's future lies in a neutrality similar to that of Costa Rica. Moreover, future NATO membership is only theoretical, since the Serb side has the constitutional right of veto on this issue, and it has not expressed interests beyond the PfP association. But NATO can provide BiH with a future, thus enhancing the region's stability by being realistic rather than chimerical. The latter policy will force NATO to remain stationed and active in BiH for decades. The former will stabilize BiH using its own economic resources, free of arms that could be used to ignite passions, and create an early exit opportunity for NATO. Yugoslavia After facing the might of NATO over Kosovo, it seems improbable that Yugoslavia would want to join the Western alliance at all. The new leader of Yugoslavia, Vojislav Kostunica, has never addressed this issue directly. However, his public discourse on the subject of NATO intervention suggests that he would want to sue NATO for damages and war crimes before considering a partnership. Belgrade's traditional affiliation with Russia is also a crucial factor. In short, Yugoslavia may prefer neutrality. This is consistent with recent remarks from Kostunica's cabinet. His aides suggested that PfP association would be acceptable, but membership would be out of question. However, a group of Yugoslav army officers, led by wartime general Momcilo Perisic, have called not only for Yugoslavia's membership in the PfP, but also for early NATO membership. This may be a window of opportunity for the West, if it is willing to offer carrots and exercise patience. However, as Perisic is considered a war criminal in both BiH and Croatia, a more credible partner in Belgrade will be needed. One of the carrots that would be welcomed concerns the upgrade of the ICTY. Belgrade is not very happy with the ICTY's work so far, but neither is anyone else in the region. This regional discontent may make it easier for the Western powers to reform the ICTY to the pre-1995 standards of international law . Belgrade will look for other incentives as well, in particular regarding reconstruction assistance. Further, it will seek to gain advantages for the Serbs in Kosovo, to continue special relations with the Serb entity in BiH, and an early EU candidacy, which is something that Belgrade would treasure much more than NATO membership. On the military side, the Belgrade elite will most likely prefer to keep an open-door policy to Moscow for historical and religious reasons. The Tito-style strategy of "equi-distance" was very profitable for the former Yugoslavia, and the new Yugoslavia is likely to play the same game. But Serbia's "quasi-neutrality" (that is, its de facto economic alliance with Brussels coupled with military cooperation with Moscow) need not raise suspicions in the region, especially if Romania and Bulgaria are granted early membership. Vilnius 6+2+4 With the expansion of the European Union and NATO to Eastern Europe as far as the Baltics and the Black Sea, the new Balkan states no longer play the strategic role for the Western powers that the former Yugoslavia enjoyed during the Cold War. Back then, the former Yugoslavia was a territorial and political dividing line between the East and the West, an ideological splinter in the Warsaw Pact, and a staging ground for covert operations. This is no longer the case. Some argue that the new Yugoslavia will still remain a strategic point of interest for the West, given its close relationship to Moscow. Surely Yugoslavia can be grouped with the "Russia-sensitive" sub-group of the Vilnius Nine, along with the Baltics, Romania, and Bulgaria. But the new Yugoslavia's importance declines as its neighbors to the east, Romania and Bulgaria, become members. Croatia belongs in a sub-group with Slovenia. By admitting either country, NATO gains an ideological surrogate whose military preparedness is top-notch, even if their strategic importance is minimal. NATO experts say that relative preparedness of both countries matches that of Spain when it joined in 1982. Croatia also comes with important advantages over Slovenia. Expanding NATO membership to Croatia aids the stability of the fragile Balkans. At the minimum, it secures supply lines to BiH. NATO also gets a winning combat-experienced army into its ranks. Policy-makers will probably not overlook the popular support for NATO membership that runs at 70 percent in Croatia, compared to 50 percent in Slovenia. Croatia has done the yeoman's task for the West for at least a decade. It should get the recognition that it is due. Finally, BiH can probably be grouped with Albania, Macedonia, and Slovakia. All will require costly programs to rationalize or upgrade their armed forces to Western standards; all should be pursued with equal vigor. Even if these countries are of little global strategic value, they are important because without NATO leadership they may fall prey to regressive political and economic forces that are inherently destabilizing. The situation in BiH offers a historic opportunity to transform the present international administration into a viable state, allowing the Allies to draw down and redirect the huge resources they have invested into BiH over the years. Vitomir Miles Raguz was Ambassador of BiH to the E.U. and NATO from 1998-2000. distributed by CROWN (Croatian World Net) - CroworldNet@aol.com Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. |
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| VICTORIA Annual Christmas Day Croatian Disco @ the METRO niteclub This years annual Croatian Christmas day disco Disco hosted by the HOP mladez will be held at the Metro Niteclub - Bourke Street Melbourne. Prepurchase your tickets from the Croatian Dom Whitehall Street Footscray (03) 9689 5866 - Featuring Major Minor Live in the main room; also featuring DJ (Rave Party) on Level 3 and Magla on Level 2. Croatian Dom Geelong New Years Eve Zabava New years eve Clebration. 31st Dec 2001. 101-111 Separation Street Nth Geelong Entertainment - "Export" Croatian Community Centre Keysborough New Years Eve Celebration 31st December 2001- 798 Springvale Rd Keysborough. Featuring Popular Croatian Band "Zagreb" Boxing Day Zabava "Stjepan Dan" 26th December 798 Springvale Road Keysborough Entertainment provided by Popular Croatian Band "ZAGREB" Australian Croatian Association - Hrvatski Dom New Years Eve Zabava Celebrate New Years eve at the DOM. 72 Whitehall Street Footscray. 31st December 2001- Featuring Magla Melbourne Knights Soccer Club Events CAROLS BY CANDLE-LIGHT - Sunday 23 December 2001 Hosted & Entertainment by - Popular Croatian Artist - Drazen Zanko NEW YEARS EVE - DINNER DANCE Music by " OLUJA " Tickets $25 & $20 for Concession. Bookings 9312 3584 RETURN TO SUNDAY SOCCER IN 2002 13 Parramatta Power Sun 6 Jan 2002 6.00 pm Knights Stadium 14 Newcastle United Sun 13 Jan 2002 6.00 pm Knights Stadium 16 Olympic Sharks Sun 27 Jan 2002 6.00 pm Knights Stadium Sunshine Catholic Centre Zabave Stjepan Dan Zabava - Wednesday 26th Dec at 7.30pm TIGROVI + Drazen Zanko Live $25 entry New Years Eve Zabava - 31st Dec 2001 - Mirko Orsulic Band Croatian Community Centre Geelong - New Years Eve Zabava New Years Eve celebration Monday 31st December - CCC, Cox Road, Geelong 7.30pm TIGROVI Live St Albans Saints Soccer Club Events HNK Ljubuski Tour HNK Ljubuski from Hercegovina will tour Australia in January 16th or 17th of January at the Saints home ground Churchill Reserve and the Th ird game will be against The North Geelong Warriors on the 19th of January in Geelong Croatian Church Services Christmas Eve Midnight Mass in Clifton Hill, Sunshine & Springvale including other Croatian Churches around Australia. Mass to be held as per normal Sunday Services for Christmas Day, Boxing Day "Stjepan Dan" and New Years day Confession timetable Sunshine - Wed 19th Dec from 10am-12pm and 5-8pm Springvale - Thu 20th Dec from 10am-12pm and 5-8pm Clifton Hill - Fri 21st Dec from 10am-12pm and 5-8pm Fawkner - Sat 22nd Dec from 9-11am NEW SOUTH WALES Croatian Club Punchbowl NSW - New Years Eve Celebrate New Years Eve at either the Zabava upstairs with Matko Jelavic or Disco Downstairs Featuring Major Minor Live December 31st 2001 - 921 Punchbowl Road (cnr Canterbury Road) Punchbowl. Christmas Day Disco - 25th December 2001 - Special Guest DJ GC, Impakt & Babic ... going to all hours Croatian Club - King Tomislav Christmas Day Croatian Disco - Featuring a Croatian DJ New Years Eve Zabava - 31st Dec 2001 - Cold Platter & Wine - Featuring "Zrinjevcani" $30 Entry 223 Edensor Road Edensor Park WESTERN AUSTRALIA Croatian House - Hrvatski Dom Gwelup - New Years Eve Celebrate New Years Eve - 31st Dec 2001 - Featuring "Nostalgija" entry $25, $20 concession 2 Wishart Street Gwelup Croatian Community Centre Fremantle - New Years Eve Corner Sterling Highway & Alfred Road North Fremantle New Years Eve celebration Dec 31st 2001 - Featuring "Plima" Christmas Eve Bar Open from 8pm for a get together before Midnight Mass QUEENSLAND Croatian Community Centre Brisbane - New Years Eve New Years Eve celebration. 31st December 2001 - Featuring Band "Trio" entry $15 Adult, $10 Concession Including a "Bogata Tombola" - 164 Dunn Road Rocklea QLD Croatian Sports Centre - Gold Coast - New Years Eve Zabava New Years Eve Celebration. 31st Dec 2001 - Featuring "Stari Becari" . 7:30 pm - entry $20 entry, $15 Concession Lot 5, Nerrang-Broadbeach Road Carrara, Gold Coast QLD SOUTH AUSTRALIA Croatian Club Adelaide - New Years Eve New Years Eve. 31st Dec 2001. Featuring "Albatros", entry $20, $15 concession 68a Second Street Brompton SA TASMANIA Croatian Club Glenorchy Tasmania - Zabava Saturday 22nd Dec at 7.30pm Entertainment provided by TIGROVI 1 Eady Street Glenorchy For full details visit www.cronet.com.au .... The Australian Croatian Community On line If you have an event to add to the Cronet Diary , please email the details to webmaster@cronet.com.au Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. distributed by CROWN (Croatian World Net) - CroworldNet@aol.com |
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| 1. For more information, call 314-727-0198 and leave your phone no. if necessary, or contact us by email at ARTMEYER@peoplepc.com 2. Melissa Pintar Obenauf, obenaufm@alink.com Toll Free @ 877-906-8314 www.croatiagifts.com 1. There's Still Time to Order from "Heart of Croatia Gifts and Receive Your Purchases in Time for Christmas! You are invited to visit www.croatiagifts.com and browse our many categories of Croatian gifts. We are certain that you will be pleasantly surprised by the large number of high quality, unique items that we offer. Most of our products are available only at "Heart of Croatia" Gifts! Give a gift from "Heart of Croatia" and help to insure that Croatian traditions are continued and the rich Croatian legacy is passed along! It's Christmas Shopping at its most Croatian now at "Heart of Croatia" Gifts! Visit www.croatiagifts.com to select unique products that celebrate Croatian traditions and customs. Make certain to see our special Christmas category where you will find traditional "licitarska srce" (honeybaked hearts), Croatian Santas, hand-painted Christmas ornaments by "Mara," Christmas cards by Marijana, and Christmas prints by world-renowned naïve artist, Ivan Generalic! Wait 'til you see our adorable "Sretan Bozic!" ("Merry Christmas!") snowbears, our hand-painted "Tiha Noc" ("Silent Night") eggs, and our newest addition to our Croatian village collection, our "Bozic (Christmas) Shop." You may want to consider a wooden tamburitza ornament for your tree or our newly-released and acclaimed video, "Christmas in Croatia" for your holiday entertainment! Melissa Pintar Obenauf, obenaufm@alink.com Toll Free @ 877-906-8314 www.croatiagifts.com ************************************************************ 2. TO: FRIENDS OF CROATIA FROM: NASJA BOSKOVIC MEYER, LODGE 50 CROATIAN BOOKS FOR CHRISTMAS PRESENTS The Christmas season is here, and many of us wonder what we will give for presents to our friends and relatives. We want to give a gift that is enriching and attractive. We may walk the malls for hours and hours, looking for the "right" gift. Here is an idea that will save your precious time, a gift that will last for years, and will be greatly appreciated. CROATIA THE COUNTRY AND THE LANGUAGE HRVATSKA ZEMLJA I JEZIK By Nasja Bo_kovi_ Meyer and Jasna Meyer, Ph.D. A DYNAMIC NEW WAY TO LEARN ABOUT THE COUNTRY AND LANGUAGE OF CROATIA. PUBLISHED IN TWO VOLUMES, IN HARD-COVER AND SOFT-COVER, COPYRIGHT 2001. Vol. I: for anyone who wants to learn more about the rich history and culture of Croatia and its language, Hrvatski Jezik. Intro to Basic Grammar, Familiar Scenes in Zagreb, Poems and Proverbs, Everyday Expressions, Brief History of Croatia, Exercises in Speaking and Writing Croatian, English/Croatian and Croatian/English Mini- Dictionary, Jokes and Short Conversations, Practical Suggestions for Visitors and Tourists to Croatia, 283 Pages with Pictures and Illustrations Vol. II: for persons who want to learn more, and in greater depth, about Croatian language and culture, for visitors to Croatia, for those with friends and family connections in Croatia. Continuation of the Study of Grammar, Poems, Proverbs and Songs. Visits to Karlovac, Plitvice Lakes, Split, Trogir, _ibenik, Zadar, Dalmatian Islands, Dubrovnik, Me_ugorje. The Game of "Alka" at Sinj, Everyday Expressions, Exercises in Speaking and Writing Croatian, Recipes for Holiday Baking, Jokes and Short Conversations, Mini-Dictionary, 301 Pages with Pictures and Illustrations Audio tapes are available to complement both volumes. The tapes help with pronunciation and reinforce progress in learning both the language and the culture. To order, send your Name, Address, Phone No. and a check to ACM Publishing, 605 Langton, St. Louis, Mo. 63105-2416. Shipping and handling costs are included for delivery in the U.S. Vol. I: Soft-Cover, $37.50, Hard-Cover, $47.50,Vol. I Audio Tape,$11.50. Vol. II: Soft-Cover, $37.50, Hard-Cover, $47.50, Vol. II Audio Tape,$11.50 For more information, call 314-727-0198 and leave your phone no. if necessary, or contact us by email at ARTMEYER@peoplepc.com Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. distributed by CROWN (Croatian World Net) - CroworldNet@aol.com |
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| Hi Nenad: Merry Christmas. I'm looking to hire a person as an asst Account executive or Account Executive for our direct marketing company that specializes in mailing lists and database marketing. the person needs 2-3 years work experience(would consider a recent graduate), likes to communicate with clients, and has a background in marketing. Our office is located in the Fort Lee NJ area and the hours 9-5. Please have them fax resumes to Debbie Rizzo at 201-816-1610 or email to Debbier@svnp.com . If you could post that, I'd appreciate it. Once again have a Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year and I'll see you at the next meeting. Michael Michael A. Young President Vision Marketing Inc. 429 Sylvan Avenue Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 201-816-1560 Ph 201-816-1610 F Michaely@Visionmarketing.com Notice: This e-mail and the attachments are confidential information.If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail and the attachments is strictly prohibited and violators will be held to the fullest possible extent of any applicable laws governing electronic Privacy. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail, and permanently delete this e-mail and any attachments. distributed by CROWN (Croatian World Net) - CroworldNet@aol.com |
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