CROLLO DELLE PRESENZE NEL TURISMO IN CROAZIA

Il giornale istriano "Glas Istre" ha riportato le cifre
relative alla crisi del turismo sulla costa istro-dalmata.
CI si aggira attorno al 25% di presenze in meno rispetto
allo scorso anno. La ragione principale di tale crisi viene
fatta risalire ai prezzi esageratamente alti rispetto
alla qualita' dell'offerta turistica.

+++ Kroatien beklagt Touristenschwund +++
PULA, 19.Juli 2002. Wie das istrische Blatt "Glas Istre" aus
Pula meldet, leidet die kroatische Küste in diesem Jahr
unter einem starken Rückgang der Touristenzahlen. In einigen
Küstenorten Kroatiens halten sich bis zu beinahe 25% weniger
Gäste auf als im Vorjahr. Für die kroatische Wirtschaft
bedeutet dies erhebliche Einbußen, da ein großer Teil des
kroatischen Sozialprodukts durch den Tourismus
erwirtschaftet wird. Seit der Unabhängigkeit Kroatiens hat
die Zahl der Touristen ohnehin nur Bruchteile dessen
erreicht, was in Zeiten des ehemaligen Jugoslawiens erreicht
werden konnte. Hauptgrund für das Fernbleiben der Touristen
ist das in Kroatien herrschende völlig überteuerte
Preisniveau.
STIMME KOSOVOS / AMSELFELD.COM

===*===

http://www.ansa.it/balcani/croazia/20020718165032285164.html

CROAZIA: SLOGAN MCDONDALD'S RICORDA SALUTO 'USTASCIA'
(ANSA) - ZAGABRIA, 18 LUG - Suscita polemiche in Croazia
uno slogan promozionale usato dai fast-food della McDonald's,
che ricorda molto da vicino il saluto che si scambiavano
durante la guerra gli 'Ustascia', i fascisti croati che
collaboravano con i nazisti. Lo scrive oggi il quotidiano
di Zagabria 'Jutarnji list' dopo la segnalazione di un
lettore. ''Per l'estate pronti!'' recita il motto della
McDonald's, che a tutti croati ricorda ''Per la patria
pronti!'' (''Za dom spremni!''), usato dal governo
filonazista di Ante Pavelic, al potere dal 1941 al '45.
Contattata dal giornale, Deana Knezevic, responsabile
della sezione pubblicita' di McDonald's ha dichiarato
che ''nella scelta della frase non c'era alcuna intenzione
politica''. ''La McDonald's - ha detto - non e'
una'azienda che usa normalmente frasi provocatorie e
con questa pubblicita' non era sua intenzione mandare
un messaggio ambiguo. Era solo un modo per dire che
eravamo pronti anche quest'estate - ha aggiunto - ad
accogliere i turisti. Nessuno si era lamentato finora''.
(ANSA). COR*VD 18/07/2002 16:50

===*===

ASSASSINI E TORTURATORI A PIEDE LIBERO

+++ KROATIEN: MÖRDER UND FOLTERER FREIGELASSEN
SPLIT. Sieben ehemalige kroatische Militärpolizisten, die der
Ermordung und Folterung der Serben in der Adria-Küstenstadt Split
1992-1995 beschuldigt sind, wurden heute nach einem
Gerichtsbeschluss freigelassen. Vorsitzender des Dalmatinischen
Menschenrechtskommittes Tonci Majic nannte diese Entscheidung
skandalös. Er sagte, daß man in Kroatien alles versucht, um die
Ankunft der Zeugen aus Serbien zu verhindern und die Zeugen in
Kroatien einzuschüchtern. Die eingeschüchterten kroatischen
Zeugen behaupten jetzt auf einmal, sie könnten sich an nichts
erinnern. Der Prozess soll am 19. September fortgesetzt werden.
TANJUG +++

http://www.ansa.it/balcani/croazia/20020722170132287738.html

CROAZIA: CRIMINI GUERRA,POLIZIOTTI RILASCIATI A PIEDE LIBERO
(ANSA) - ZAGABRIA, 22 LUG - Sette ex poliziotti militari
sospettati di aver commesso crimini di guerra e attualmente
sotto processo a Spalato, sono stati rilasciati oggi a
piede libero. Lo hanno riferito i media croati.
Il giudice Slavko Lozina, piu' volte criticato dai media
e dalle organizzazioni non governative per i diritti dell'uomo
per essere troppo condiscendente verso gli imputati, ha
deciso di rilasciare sette degli otto ex poliziotti.
Gli imputati sono sospettati di aver torturato crudelmente
nel 1991 i prigionieri nella prigione militare 'Lora' a
Spalato. Almeno due dei detenuti, tutti dell'esercito popolare
jugoslavo (Jna), sono morti.
La procura di Spalato ha richiesto un mese fa alla Corte
suprema il trasferimento del processo da Spalato proprio per
il comportamento del giudice Lozina durante il processo. La
richiesta della procura, respinta dalla Corte suprema, era
motivata da numerosi incidenti in aula, per gli applausi e
insulti degli amici e parenti degli otto accusati.
Il processo Lora e' ritenuto uno dei test principali per i
tribunali croati per dimostrare di essere capaci di
processare i presunti criminali di guerra di nazionalita'
croata. I portavoci del Tribunale penale internazionale (Tpi)
hanno piu' volte indicato che in caso di gravi irregolarita'
il processo potrebbe trasferirsi all'Aja. (ANSA). COR*VD
22/07/2002 17:01

===*===

ATTACCO DI SKINHEADS CONTRO IL GAY PRIDE A
ZAGABRIA: LE PIAZZE CROATE SONO INTERDETTE
AGLI OMOSESSUALI NELLA CATTOLICISSIMA CROAZIA

IWPR'S BALKAN CRISIS REPORT, No. 350, 12 July, 2002
www.iwpr.net

CROATIA: SKINHEAD VIOLENCE MARS FIRST
GAY MARCH

The mob fury that was unleashed on a
peaceful homosexual parade has
exposed Croatian society's intolerance
of minority groups

By Drago Hedl in Osijek

Croatia's first gay pride event ended
in tear gas and violence last month
after the marchers were attacked by
groups of screaming skinheads, some
giving Nazi salutes.

Police were forced to intervene, making
26 arrests, and ten of the
participants were taken to hospital
suffering from a variety of wounds.

The display of public intolerance -
which was broadcast around the world -
occurred in spite of Interior Minister
Simo Lucin's involvement in the
June 28 procession and his calls for
marchers to "love yourselves and
fight for your rights".

Not all parade-goers were impressed by
this show of solidarity on behalf
of the centre-left government. One
suggested that Lucin and other
officials only showed up when they
found out Juan Pablo Ordonez, head of
the UN human rights office in Croatia,
was going to make an appearance.
"They organised the police cordon to
protect themselves, not us," the
protester said.

Viktor Ivancic, editor of the Feral
Tribune, a left-wing newspaper based
in Split, says the resulting furore
exposed Croatia's self-image as a
caring nation as a sham. "What occurred
during this peaceful march of
homosexuals, who had dared to come out
of the closet after so many
decades, has dispelled the illusion of
a humane nation," he said.

The hostility was not totally
unexpected. In Croatia, same-sex
relationships are generally viewed as
an abnormality if not an outright
perversion, and equal rights are unheard
of. Discreet gatherings organised
in the bars and cafes of Zagreb and
other cities usually become the
targets of skinhead attacks.

Such assaults receive a lot of media
attention, as in one notorious case
when a French homosexual was beaten to
death in Zagreb city centre a few
years ago.

The parade-goers, however, could hardly
be accused of being flamboyant.
While the march was intended to draw
attention to their unequal position
in society, they dressed down so as not
to provoke passers-by.

This did not deter the thugs. After the
march ended, its organisers had to
take shelter in a women's centre and
did not leave until after dark, for
fear of being attacked by skinheads and
other drunks.

Marijo Kovac, who intended to lead the
march, was attacked by three
hooligans who stole his mobile phone.
"I'm sorry that we came to the
attention of the world in this way," he
said.

However, the fact that the event took
place at all is being seen as a
minor victory. "Regardless of
everything that happened, the first
Zagreb Gay Pride parade succeeded," said
Dorino Manzin, head of the Stepping Out
group and one of the event's organisers.
"We succeeded in telling Croatian
society that we exist, that we are part
of the population and that we will
struggle for our rights."

Furio Radin, head of parliament's human
rights committee, said the
marchers had set an example to the rest
of society. "Croatian homosexuals
today gave a lesson to the citizens of
Zagreb and showed they had the
strength of character to publicly
demonstrate for something that unfortunately
is still widely unaccepted.

"Many well-known gay Zagreb citizens
did not have the courage to take part
in the event."

However, many right-wing nationalist
parties condemned the parade. The
extremist Croatian Pure Party of Rights
released a statement describing
the march as "sick", insisting it posed
a danger to public morals and even
the constitution.

The hard line Movement for Life and
Family, which advocates measures to
promote larger families, was equally
dismissive, calling it "a public
presentation of sexual abnormality".

The right-wingers' moral cue usually
comes from the country's powerful
Catholic church, which takes a harsh
line on same-sex relationships. Glas
Koncil, the church's official mouthpiece,
recently described homosexuality
as a "severe perversion", saying it was
"incompatible with Catholic morality".

This intolerance, while widespread, is
causing growing concern within
other sections of society. Ivancic
warns that the gay community has become
the next logical target for hardliners
now that the Serbian minority - the
former "enemy within" - has to all
intents and purposes ceased to exist.

Drago Hedl is a regular IWPR contributor


(Note: IWPR is an anti-Yugoslav, Western-backed news agency which
always supported separatist movements in the Balkans in the last years.
It is funded, among others, by the Soros foundation. I.SLAVO)