Administrative and Territorial Organization of the State as a Tool of Ethnic Politics:The Example of the Republic of Croatia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12797/Politeja.17.2020.68.12Keywords:
Croatian administration, županjas, kotars, Croatian municipalities, minorities in Croatia, Croatian local governmentAbstract
The article focuses on the issue of Croatia’s ethnic policy towards minorities at the level of administrative and territorial organization. It attempts to answer the question whether and to what extent the ethnic and territorial conflict in the 1990s influenced the processes of transformation of the administrative and territorial organization of the state. The Croatian state, given as an example, at the time of declaring its independence in 1991 had to face the threat of territorial disintegration from the Serb minority living in its territory. The Italian minority was also suspected of such tendencies, but it soon turned out that these suspicions were groundless. The Serbian community could, however, threaten the unification of the state, which initially happened as a result of an armed conflict. After its end, fears did not diminish, especially in the face of the changes in territorial borders that took place until the end of the first decade of the 21st century. The threat could be reduced using one of the tools, which was the local government administration and the shape of its territorial units. The Author analyses this issue basing on the projects of Croatian experts dealing with the issues of administrative and territorial organization of the last three decades and at various stages of Croatian statehood, data on demographic changes and laws regulating the functioning of local and regional local governments as well as regulations concerning the position of national minorities in the state.
Downloads
PlumX Metrics of this article
References
Berber M., Grbić B., Pavkov S., “Promene udela stanovništva hrvatske i srpske nacionalne propadnosti u Republici Hrvatskoj po gradovima i opštinama na osnovu rezultata popisa iz 1991 i 2001 godine”, Stanovništvo, vol. 46, no. 2 (2008), https://doi.org/10.2298/STNV0802023B.
Google Scholar
Bujwid-Kurek E., Samorząd lokalny w decentralizującym się systemie politycznym Republiki Chorwacji. Zarys refleksji politologicznej, in J. Majchrowski, B. Stoczewska (eds.), Wartości polityczne, Kraków 2010.
Google Scholar
Duspara S., “Novela Zakona o lokalnoj i područnoj (regionalnoj) samoupravi iz 2005”, Hrvatska i komparativna javna uprava: časopis za teoriju i praksu javne uprave, vol. 6, no. 3 (2006), at <https://hrcak.srce.hr/index.php?show=clanak&id_clanak_jezik=200448>.
Google Scholar
Ingrao C., Emmert T.A. (eds.), Inicijativa Naučnika, Sarajevo 2010.
Google Scholar
Ivanišević S., “Teritorijalna osnova localne i regionalne samouprave uz posebni osvrt na položaj Grada Zagreb i njegovu samoupravu”, Hrvatska i komparativna javna uprava: časopis na teoriju i praha javne uprave, vol. 2, no. 4 (2000), at <https://hrcak.srce.hr/index.php?show=clanak&id_clanak_jezik=291387>.
Google Scholar
Juzbašić Ž., Srpsko pitanje i hrvatska politika. Svjedočanstva i dokumenti 1990-2000, Zagreb 2009.
Google Scholar
Kamiński R., “Organizacja terytorialna państwa a zdolność jednostek samorządowych do wykonywania zadań publicznych. Błędy, wnioski, niezbędne korekty, potrzebne zmiany”, Civitas Hominibus: rocznik filozoficzno-społeczny, vol. 9 (2014), at <http://bazhum.muzhp.pl/media//files/Civitas_Hominibus_rocznik_filozoficzno_spoleczny/Civitas_Hominibus_rocznik_filozoficzno_spoleczny-r2014-t9/Civitas_Hominibus_rocznik_filozoficzno_spoleczny-r2014-t9-s69-83/Civitas_Hominibus_rocznik_filozoficzno_spoleczny-r2014-t9-s69-83.pdf >.
Google Scholar
Koprić I., Teritorijalna organizacija Hrvatske: prema novom uređenju, at <https://www.academia.
Google Scholar
edu/14979833/Teritorijalna_organizacija_Hrvatske_prema_novom_ure%C4%91enju_2015_HAZU_>.
Google Scholar
Livada S., Etničko čiščenje. Ozakonjenji zločin stoljeća, Zagreb 2006.
Google Scholar
Mesić M., Bagić D., Minority Return to Croatia – Study of an Open Process, UNHCR, Zagreb 2011, at <https://www.academia.edu/4013702/Manjinski_povratak_u_Hrvatsku_Studija_otvorenog_procesa>.
Google Scholar
Mikucka-Wójtowicz D., “Prawo do reprezentacji politycznej dla członków mniejszości narodowych w Republice Chorwackiej w latach 1990-2004”, in D. Mikucka-Wójtowicz, R. Kopeć (eds.), Kwestie narodowościowe w świetle procesów integracyjnych w Europie, Kraków 2009.
Google Scholar
“Odluku o proglašenju zakona o izmjenama i dopunama zakona o lokalnoj i područnoj (regionalnoj) samoupravi”, art. 20, Narodne Novine, no. 129 (2005), at <https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2005_10_129_2385.html>.
Google Scholar
“Odluku o proglašenju zakona o izmjenama i dopunama zakona o lokalnoj i područnoj (regionalnoj) samoupravi”, Narodne Novine, no. 144 (2012), at <https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2012_12_144_3075.html>.
Google Scholar
Popis stanovništva, domaćinstava, stanova i poljoprivrednih farmstava 31 ožujak 1991. Stanovništvo prema Narodnosti po naseljima, Documentacija 881, 1992.
Google Scholar
“Povelja o pravima Srba i drugih nacionalnosti u Republici Hrvatskoj”, Narodne Novine, no. 31 (1991), at <https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/1991_06_31_876.html>. Republika Hrvatska. Republički zavod za statistiku, Zagreb 1992.
Google Scholar
Šimunović I., “Regionalni koncept razvitka Hrvatske. Kritički osvrt i mišljenja”, Društvena istraživanja: časopis za opća društvena pitanja, vol. 1, no. 1 (1992), at <https://hrcak.srce.hr/32578>.
Google Scholar
Stanovništvo prema Narodnosti po gradovima / općinama. Popis 2011, at <https://www.dzs.hr/hrv/censuses/census2011/results/htm/H01_01_04/H01_01_04_zup18.html>.
Google Scholar
Statistički Ljetopis Republike Hrvatske 2018, Državni zavod za statistiku Republike Hrvatske, Zagreb 2018, at <https://www.dzs.hr/Hrv_Eng/ljetopis/2018/sljh2018.pdf>.
Google Scholar
Suliborski A., “Metodyczne podstawy administracyjno-terytorialnej reorganizacji państwa w warunkach demokratycznych”, Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Geographica Socio-oeconomica”, vol. 1 (1999), pp. 31-32, at <http://bazekon.icm.edu.pl/bazekon/element/bwmeta1.element.ekon-element-000171510239>.
Google Scholar
“Ustav Republike Hrvatske”, Narodne Novine, no. 56 (1990), at <https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/1990_12_56_1092.html>.
Google Scholar
“Ustavni zakon o pravima nacionalnih manjina”, Narodne Novine, no. 155 (2002), at <https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/2002_12_155_2532.html>.
Google Scholar
“Zakon o izmjenama i dopunama Zakona o područjima županja, gradova i općina u Republici Hrvatskoj”, Narodne Novine, no. 68 (1998), at <https://narodne-novine.nn.hr/clanci/sluzbeni/1998_05_68_815.html>.
Google Scholar
Zakon o područjima posebne državne skrbi, no. 86/08, 57/11, at <http://www.zakon.hr/z/471/Zakon-o-podru%C4%8Djima-posebne-dr%C5%BEavne-skrbi>.
Google Scholar
Žuljić S., “Regionalno i teritorijalno ustrojstvo Hrvatske u razdoblju izmedu godina 1945-2000”, Economical pregled, vol. 52, no. 1-2 (2001), at <https://hrcak.srce.hr/28700>.
Google Scholar
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.