Serbs of Croatia

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Serbs of Croatia
Total population
Serbs living in Croatia: 201 631 [1]
Regions with significant populations
Languages
Serbian
Religion
Serbian Orthodox Christian[2]

Serbs of Croatia are the largest national minority in the Republic of Croatia. The majority of the Serbs trace their roots in territory of present day Croatia for over 400 years. Most of them came as refugees fleeing the invading Ottoman (Turkish) Army. [3] There are approximately 201,631 Serbs in the country, according to the 2001 Croatian population census. For various political reasons, primarily the mass-flight during Operation Storm,[4] only a fraction of Croatian Serbs still actually live in Croatia.

Population

The number of Serbs in Croatia was much larger in 1991, when they numbered at 581,663[5] constituting around 12,2% of the total population of the country. The largest precisely recorded number of Serbs by census was in 1971 when there were 626,789 Serbs in SR Croatia (over 14% of the total at the).[6] The loss of the heavily Serb populated Eastern Srijem region, the incorporation of Istria and Dalmatia, and the non-inclusion of Croat dominated regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina into the People's Republic of Croatia (as had been done in the Banovina of Croatia), are examples of territorial changes that either increased or reduced the relative percentage of the Serb population of Croatia.[citation needed]

Changes during the 1990's

The Serbian population living in Croatia in the 1981

Most of the Serbs from Bilogora and northwestern Slavonia fled those areas as they fell under Croatian military control.[citation needed] In the later stages of the war, most of the Serbs of western Slavonia, Banija, Kordun, eastern Lika and northern Dalmatian Zagora fled those areas also came under Croatian military control.[citation needed] The largest decrease in the number of Serbs in Croatia occurred during the Croatian War of Independence also known as, the Yugoslav wars.[citation needed] Prewar census of 1991 was the last Serbian consensus held in Croatia. Around 580,000 citizens declared themselves as Serbs.[citation needed] At that time Serbs represented 12.2% on the Croatian population.[citation needed] After the war, the Serbian population reduced radically to 4.5%.[citation needed] Today the majority of the population continues to live in exile in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Montenegro, where, as of 2005, there were still 200,000 refugees.[7]

Prominent individuals

Many famed ethnic Serbs were born in what is today's Croatia, including:

Language

The Croatian Serbs generally speak the form of the local Slavic language as other non-Serbs in the vicinity.[citation needed] On principle, it is common to use a neo-shtokavian dialect of the Serbian language with ijekavian pronunciation, while those in eastern Slavonia and Baranja mostly use Ekavian pronunciation (as in the Republic of Serbia), also the local norm for non-Serbs, evident through the Croatian names for towns such as Beli Manastir.[citation needed] Likewise, a number of ethnic Serbs are happy to consider their natural language as Croatian. For references, see the following dialect maps: [1] [2] Serb children receive their education in standard Serbian language and Serbian Cyrillic script in eastern Slavonia, as defined by the Erdut Agreement.[9]

Religion

The Serbs of Croatia are Serbian Orthodox. There are many Orthodox monasteries across Croatia, built since the 12th century. Most notable are the Krka Monastery, Krupa Monastery, Dragović Monastery, Lepavina Monastery and Gomirje Monastery. Many Orthodox churches were demolished during recent war, while some were rebuilt by the Croatian government with money partially donated by the Serbian diaspora.[10]

Structure of the Serbian Ortadox Church in Croatia

There is one Metropolitanate that is divided in four dioceses:

History


Early Middle Ages

Toponyms and early appearances

According to Serbian linguists the first mention of Serbs is a toponym - the ancient stronghold of Srb on the river Una as early as the 9th century, citing the resemblance of the terms "Serb", and "Srb". Croatian linguists reject this, citing the noun "Srb" derived from the old Croatian verb "serbati" and denoting the spring of the river Una.[3]According to the Royal Frankish Annals of the Frankish historian Einhard, Prince Ljudevit of Pannonia (continental Croatia) fled to the Serbs in 822, tricked the Serbian ruler by killing him and taking the rule of the Serbs for himself. At this time, Serbs controlled the greater part of Dalmatia[citation needed] (referring to the ex Roman province).

According to De Administrando Imperio written by Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitos, the following lands in the south of the Roman province of Dalmatia were settled by the Serbs:

Of these areas, Pagania/Narenta bordered on the Kingdom of Croatia, and it was inhabited by what are described as unbaptized Serbs. The other regions which did not directly border Croatia, although the description of the high country is unclear in the document, were Christian. Most of Pagania/Narenta and small southern parts of Zahumlje and Travunia and Konavli are today part of Croatia, and the rest is mostly part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Raška is located in Serbia, and Duklja for the most part in Montenegro.

Late Middle Ages

During the Hungarian civil war in August 1292, the titular King of Hungary, Charles Martel of Anjou nominated Vladislav, (son of Dragutin Nemanjić, Ban of Slavonia, which was then controlled by forces loyal to Andrew III of Hungary, and Andrew refused to cede Slavonia to Vladislav. Slavonia eventually came under the control of the Babonići nobles.[11] There are three major Serbian Orthodox monasteries in northern Dalmatia from that period: Krupa monastery, which was financed by King Stephen Uroš II Milutin in 1317. It was finished only with the financial assistance of Emperor Stefan Uroš IV Dušan in 1346. Krka monastery was built in 1346 by Jelena, sister of Stefan Dušan and wife of Ban Mladen Šubić of the Šubić noble family. The third, Dragović monastery, was also built in the 14th century, and was later moved stone by stone during the construction of the artificial Peruča lake by the Yugoslav federal government. Serbian Despots have gained numerous vestiges in the Slavonia region throughout the 15th century, where they held the title of baron of the Kingdom of Hungary, because this territory is part of the Croatian land of the Crown of Saint Stephen. After the Ottoman Turks expelled the entity with the conquest of Smederevo in 1459, the titular Serbs rulers continued to claim the Baronial title and territory on Hungarian soil until 1530.[citation needed].

Early Modern Period

Main article: Military Frontier

During the period of the Habsburg-Ottoman wars there have been constant population migrations in the territory of modern-day Croatia. Ottoman invasion instigated a partial change in the ethnic aspect of Vojna Krajina. Large numbers of Croats abandoned their homes and moved northward seeking safety, some even going out of Croatia altogether into Austria (see Burgenland Croats).[12] The Ottomans, on the other hand were settling, first orthodox Vlachs, and then Serbs in the area. During the following centuries, the Vlachs were assimilated by the Serbs but evidence of their existence is the 1630 document, the Statuta Wallachorum. The Habsburgs created the Military Frontier out of territory of the Croatian Crown as a defense against the Turks, and greatly expanded it further upon reconquering large territories the Ottomans conquered from Croatia. The Frontier (i.e. the "Vojna Krajina") was mostly inhabited by Serbs and Vlachs the Turks had settled there. In 1578 the area was populated largely by Orthodox Serbs and Vlachs.[citation needed] The Serbs were fleeing the Ottoman side of the border due to Turkish persecution, and became frontiersmen for the Habsburgs in exchange for land and liberty. In addition, this was the only requirement for their permanent stay in the region. These inhabitants were required to serve a certain amount of years in the Habsburg army, after which they would be granted land, becoming free peasants. Serbs were thus regarded as some kind of military class. The tradition lasted up to the breakup of SFR Yugoslavia, where Serbs were disproportionately represented in the Croatian and Yugoslav military and law enforcement (60 % of the army officer corps [4]).
The area of the Military Frontier was reunited with the Kingdom of Croatia and Slavonia in the year 1881 after Bosnia and Herzegovina had been occupied by Austro-Hungary.[13] Until the unification with Croatia, the Military Frontier Vice-Ban was always of Serb nationality. During the last two decades of the 19th century Croatian Ban (Viceroy) Khuen Hedervary (a Hungarian), relied on Serb parties in the Croatian parliament to maintain a governing majority. Because of this the Serbs came to occupy a disproportionate share of civil service posts in Croatia, causing resentment on the part of the majority Croatian population. Similar to that after Croatia has received education autonomy in second half of 19 century serbian cyrillic has become second language which is learned in schools from second grade. 15-20 percent of school books has spoken about Serbia related things and it has been written on cyrillic. This situation has created strong protest and demand for parliament vote by Croatian nationalistic parties but parliament majority has defeated this resolution in 1909 [14] The Military Frontier was a separate political unit created from the territory of the Kingdom of Croatia for the protection of Habsburg lands against constant Ottoman raids and attacks. At the beginning of the 1880s it was returned to civilian Croatia. Serbian and Vlachs frontiersmen defended the Habsburg provinces from the Turks. In the territory that was part of the Military Frontier, the Serbs constituted an ethnic majority; this remained so until the Croatian War of Independence. Serbs constituted a majority in the following counties: Donji Lapac (91.79%), Gračac (72.33%), Korenica (73.48%), Udbina (73.13%), Slunj (53.19%), Vojnić (72.18%), Dvor (87.49%), Glina (65.19%), Kostajnica (64.16%), Topusko (85.41%), Pakrac (50.96%). A high percentage of the Serbs also lived in the following counties: Gospić (47.54%), Otočac (48.65%), Ogulin (47.54%), Petrinja (49.06%), Grubišno polje (46.87%), Daruvar (32.36%), Slatina (40.79%), Ilok (43.12%), Vukovar (36.19%). [15]

World War II

Main articles: Yugoslav Front of World War II and Independent State of Croatia

World War II was a dark time for Serbs in Croatia. The Axis powers occupied Yugoslavia, partially partitioning it and creating the Independent State of Croatia, with the Ustaše movement installed at its head. The Ustaše enacted racial laws aimed primarily against the Serbs. Catholic monks and priests, including Archbishop Sarić of Sarajevo (who was nicknamed the "Hangman of Serbs"),[16] supported forcible conversions and were largely silent about the killings. The regime set about a policy of "racial purification" against Serbs, Jews and Gypsies. It was declared that by the Ustaše authorities that one-third of the Serbian population would be deported, one-third converted to Roman Catholicism, and one third killed. Ustaše bands actively terrorized the countryside. In addition, the regime organized extermination camps, the most notorious of which is the Jasenovac concentration camp, where Serbs, Jews, Gypsies, and anti-fascist Croats were massacred in large numbers. Between 330,000[17] and 500,000[18] of Serbs in the Independent State of Croatia were killed by the Ustaše during the war.

Yugoslav wars

Main articles: Yugoslav wars, Croatian War of Independence, and Serbs of Croatia Timeline
Republika Srpska Krajina

After the war

See also: International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia

In the 2007 local national council elections, there were 274,968 eligible Croatian voters of Serb ethnicity for the County national councils. Only 23,325 voted or 8.48%. For the civic national councils there were 131,717 registered Serb voters, 8,413 or 6.39% voted. In the municipal Serb national councils with 76,697 eligible voters, 11,161 or 14.55% voted.[citation needed] In 2004/2005, the government of Serbia had about 140,000 refugees of unsolved status from Croatia registered on its territory. About 13,000 house repair demands were pending with the Croatian authorities.[19] The war ended with a military success of the Croatian government in 1995 and subsequent peaceful reintegration of the remaining renegade territory in eastern Slavonia in 1998. The exodus of the Krajina Serbs in 1995 was prompted by the advance of the Croatian troops, but was mostly self-organized rather than forced.[4][20] All Serbs were officially called upon to stay in Croatia shortly before the operation,[21] and invited to return after the hostilities were concluded, with varying but increasing degrees of guarantees from the Croatian government. Everyone that participated in the rebellion but committed no crimes was pardoned by the government in 1997.[citation needed] Two thirds of the Serbs remain in exile. The other third either returned or had remained in Zagreb and other parts of Croatia not directly influenced by the war. Most Croat refugees returned to the territories formerly held by the Serbs. Many moved to homes abandoned by Serbs during Operation Storm, ostensibly because their homes were destroyed by the Serbs.[20] At the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia at The Hague, Milan Babić was indicted, pleaded guilty and was convicted for "persecutions on political, racial and religious grounds, a crime against humanity".[citation needed] Milan Babić stated during his trial that "during the events, and in particular at the beginning of his political career, he was strongly influenced and misled by Serbian propaganda".[22]

Social and Judicial Problems in modern Croatia

Tension between Serbs and Croatians were violently high in 1990s. The violence has reduced since 2000 and has remained low to this day, however, significant problems remain. The participation of the largest Serbian party SDSS in the Croatian Government of Ivo Sanader has eased tensions to an extent, but the refugee situation is still politically sensitive. The main issue is high-level official and social discrimination against the Serbs.

At the height levels of the government, new laws are continuously being introduced in order to combat this discrimination, thus, demonstrating an effort on the part of government. For example, lengthy and in some cases unfair proceedings, particularly in lower level courts, remain a major problem for Serbian returnees pursuing their rights in court. In addition, Serbs continue to be discriminated against in access to employment and in realizing other economic and social rights. Also some cases of violence and harassment against Croatian Serbs continue to be reported.[23]

The property laws allegedly favor Bosnian Croatians refugees who took residence in houses that were left unoccupied and unguarded by Serbs after Operation Storm. Amnesty International report from 2005 considers that one of the greatest obstacles to the return of thousands of Croatian Serbs has been the failure of the Croatian authorities to provide adequate housing solutions to Croatian Serbs who were stripped of their occupancy rights, including where possible by reinstating occupancy rights to those who had been affected by their discriminatory termination[24]

About occupancy right it is important to notice European Court of Human Rights decision against Croatian Serb Kristine Blečić which is stripped of occupancy rights after leaving house in 1991 in Zadar. [25]

In 2005 and 2006, the presidents Mesić of Croatia and Tadić of Serbia exchanged official visits and met with the respective national minorities of their respective countries.

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External links

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References

  1. ^ census 2001
  2. ^ Orthodox Religion
  3. ^ FACTBOX - Brief history of Croatia's rebel Serb Krajina region | World | Reuters
  4. ^ a b FACTBOX - Brief history of Croatia's rebel Serb Krajina region | World | Reuters
  5. ^ Population of Croatia 1931-2001
  6. ^ Yugoslavia Census
  7. ^ http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engeur640022005
  8. ^ Soccerphile :: Croatia | Rangers Dado Prso
  9. ^ The Erdut Agreement
  10. ^ http://stmichael-soc.org/background.htm
  11. ^ Stranica Društva Hrvatskih Srednjoškolskih Profesora
  12. ^ The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Edition 1986 Reference: EB, Edition 1986, Macropedia, Vol 29, page 1061 Entry: Yugoslavia, Croatia, History
  13. ^ The New Encyclopedia Britannica, Edition 1986 Reference: EB, Edition 1986, Macropedia, Vol. 29, page 1061 Entry: Yugoslavia, Croatia, History
  14. ^ Yugoslavia and Its Historians. Understanding the Balkan Wars of the 1990s
  15. ^ [Projekat Rastko] Slavenko Terzic - The Right to self-determination and the Serbian Question
  16. ^ Manfred and Anne Lehmann Foundation
  17. ^ Jasenovac
  18. ^ http://www1.yadvashem.org/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%205930.pdf
  19. ^ Daily Survey
  20. ^ a b Croatia
  21. ^ http://www.hrt.hr/arhiv/oluja/950804/I040895141858.html
  22. ^ http://www.un.org/icty/babic/trialc/judgement/index.htm Sentencing judgement for Milan Babić
  23. ^ AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL Public Statement
  24. ^ AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL Public Statement
  25. ^ NEGATIVNA PRESUDA EVROPSKOG SUDA U SLUČAJU KRISTINE BLEČIĆ IZ ZADRA

Other sources

  • Development of Astronomy among Serbs II, Publications of the Astronomical Observatory of Belgrade,, Belgrade: M. S. Dimitrijević, 2002.
  • Vladimir Ćorović. Illustrated History of Serbs, Books 1 - 6. Belgrade: Politika and Narodna Knjiga, 2005
  • Nicholas J. Miller. Between Nation and State: Serbian Politics in Croatia before the First World War, Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1997.
  • OSCE Report on Croatian treatment of Serbs [5]
Other Notes
  • ^ In an interview on Fokus (30 September 2005), Croat academic Petar Simunovic explained that the name of Srb originates from an old Croatian verb serbati, srebati meaning "to sip", from which the noun "srb" has been derived. Thus "srb" denotes the spring of river Una, where the village lies. Compare this with the villages of Srbani (near Pula), and Srbinjak, both in Istria, which clearly have nothing to do with the Serbian name. The Istarski razvod from 13th century mentions the name of srbar, meaning a water spring.
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