Ivica Račan

Ivica Račan

Ivica Račan [ ˈiʋitsa ˈratʃan ] (born February 24, 1944 in Ebersbach , Saxony , † April 29, 2007 in Zagreb ) was a Croatian politician ( SDP ) and Prime Minister of Croatia from 2000 to 2003 .

Life

Račan's heavily pregnant mother was imprisoned in a labor camp in Ebersbach / Germany during the Second World War . A German brought her to her home because she needed a worker. With that she saved her life. After Ivica was born in Ebersbach, his mother moved to live with her sister in Dresden , where they were buried by the Allied bombing. Račan's parents returned to Yugoslavia with him after the war. After many moves and changes of location within Croatia, they found a home in Slavonski Brod . In 1968 Račan finished his law studies in Zagreb and found work at the Institute for Society there.

Political career

Membership in the communist party

Račan joined the Croatian Communist League in 1961 . After the suppression of the Croatian Spring , a movement for more freedom and greater political and economic independence for the Croatian republic within the SFRY , numerous political offices were filled in order to install a leadership loyal to Tito in Croatia. Račan was able to benefit from this reorganization. In the 1970s he worked in the Croatian Ministry of Culture. In 1982 he became head of the Political Faculty at the University of Zagreb, board member of the SHA and member of the Central Committee of the Communist Union of Yugoslavia. In December 1989 he was elected the last President of the SHA.

First free elections

On December 10, 1989, the Union of Communists of Croatia (SKH) decided to hold elections in April / May 1990 at all political levels. The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) won these elections clearly. With 35 percent of the votes cast, the SHA took only 72 seats in what was still “communist Croatia”. Račan gave up power and changed his political program to appeal to the population. The SHA was now based on social democratic principles. The party was renamed Stranka demokratskih promjena (SDP) and later Socijaldemokratska Partija Hrvatske . In the 1993 elections, the SDP achieved a very poor result and just barely made it into parliament. The reason for this was the growing nationalism in Croatia at that time, which reached its climax with the breakup of Yugoslavia and the resulting civil war. Most Croatians saw in the first free elections of the Republic of Croatia their chance to break away from socialist Yugoslavia and to build an independent state.

Coalition 2000-2003

In August 1998, Ivica Račan and Dražen Budiša formed an alliance between their parties, with the help of which they won a clear majority in the parliamentary elections in 2000.

After the elections, Račan became Prime Minister of Croatia with the help of the HSLS , the Croatian Center Bloc or HSS , LS, HNS , IDS . In return, all of these parties could have ministers in Račan's cabinet . Račan was seen by many critics as a reformer who broke with the country's authoritarian and nationalist past. Despite all the reforms, his term of office was viewed by many Croatians as a time of stagnation - the first coalition in Croatian history made too many compromises necessary. The phrase “Odlučno možda” (German: “decided perhaps”) stood for his way of doing politics, which also had to do with his political past under communism, that he was never allowed to make decisions alone and always had to ask.

This led to a conflict with Budiša, who was right-wing conservative about the ICTY charges against Croatian generals. Soon the IDS did not see any common preferences either, which is why it was the first party to leave the coalition.

On July 5, 2002, Račan resigned when the coalition partner HSLS blocked the ratification of the significant treaty on the Slovenian-Croatian nuclear power plant in Krško . Several MPs split off from the HSLS. The newly formed splinter group left the parliamentary group and formed a new party - Libra . Libra “disempowered” Račan by making it difficult for him to form a government he wanted to change slightly and to keep it stable until the next elections.

Račan's greatest merit for Croatia can be found in foreign policy. He successfully brought the country out of the political isolation of the Tuđman era and paved the way for membership in the European Union . During his tenure as Prime Minister, the Croatian constitution was changed. Croatia switched from the semi-presidential system of government to parliamentary democracy . This gave the Sabor (Parliament) and the Prime Minister more rights. Since Croatia was accused of corruption under Račan, which was seen as an obstacle on the way to EU membership, he introduced the government's “Open House”. This should create transparency and make the work of the government accessible to both the Croatians and the EU Commission . In contrast to the media-shy earlier governments, Račan consciously sought contact with the media in order to mitigate the coalition's crises domestically and the EU's warnings in terms of foreign policy.

Croatia's economic situation also improved during his tenure as prime minister. The opening to the west brought a new inflow of capital, which gave post-war Croatia an economic boom. The GDP increased by around five percent compared to previous years. The government undertook many reforms in the state and government sectors and began large construction projects such as the Zagreb - Split motorway , which had long been desired because of its importance for tourism.

Račan's concern was also to overcome the remaining rift between Croatia and its former enemies.

In the opposition 2003-2006

His center-left coalition lost the parliamentary majority in the November 2003 elections. Račan accepted the defeat and resigned as prime minister on December 23, 2003. His successor was Ivo Sanader (HDZ).

With Ivica Račan, the SDP remained the most successful opposition party in Croatia after 15 years at the top in the polls. In 2006, Račan announced his retirement from politics.

Sickness and death

On January 31, 2007, Račan announced that he wanted to withdraw from the public due to health problems. The vice-president of the SDP, Željka Antunović, took over the leadership of the party. Račan, who was a passionate tennis player, felt a pain in his shoulder while playing. The reason for this was a tumor. This formed metastases that spread in the urinary tract and in the brain. A declaration of resignation was issued on April 11; Račan gave up the party leadership and declared (translation):

“Colleagues, friends, comrades!
In the face of my serious illness, I continue the struggle to survive, but it is time to thank you for your cooperation and support throughout my political ministry. We built this party together, and I am proud of the Croatian Social Democratic Party that we created. I am proud of the virtues of morality, work, respect and tolerance that we have indelibly inserted into the political life of our beautiful homeland. I've done as much as I knew and could. With this letter, I am resigning from my position as party chairman and you must go on without me. Find new strength in the electoral convention, and I am sure that it is there in the SDP. "

On the morning of April 12, 2007, his condition was described as critical because of complications in removing the tumor in his right shoulder. On the same day, Radio 101 falsely reported Račan's death, allegedly from unofficial party-internal sources, which the SDP denied. As a result, it was announced that Račan was in very poor condition and no longer able to communicate. Račan were being given opiate drugs at the time .

On April 29, 2007 at 3:05 am Ivica Račan died in the Rebro Polyclinic (Zagreb). The forensic diagnosis was a heart attack. He was buried on May 2nd in the Zagreb cemetery. According to his last wish, only twelve closest friends and relatives attended the funeral. A memorial event was organized by the SDP, in which the Croatian leadership took part.

During the three-month illness, the Croatian media regularly informed the population about his health. Račan himself no longer appeared in public after his condition was announced. The press questions were answered by the SDP press officer. This media interest, previously unknown in Croatia, can be compared to the death of the first president and state founder Franjo Tuđman .

swell

1. ↑ http://www.makfax.com.mk/look/novina/article.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=2&NrArticle=62099&NrIssue=314&NrSection=20
2. ↑ http://www.sdp.hr/naslovnica/vijesti/ostavka_predsjednika_sdp_a_ivice_racana
3. ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original dated December 26, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
4. ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original from September 12, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  

Web links

• Jovan Dragišić (Index.hr), biography of Ivica Račan (Croatian)
• Račan's biography from the SDP (Croatian)
• A review of his work by Dr. Ivan Grdešić (Croatian)