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CROATIA
The Republic of Croatia is a country in Europe
bordering the Mediterranean, Central Europe and the Balkans. Its capital is
Zagreb. In recent history, it was a republic of Yugoslavia.
History
The Croats are a largely Slavic people, who migrated from areas of what is
today Galicia (in Ukraine and Poland) and settled in present-day Croatia
during the 7th century. It became one of the most powerful kingdoms in the
region. In 1102 the Croatians ended a decade-long dynastic struggle by
agreeing to submit themselves to Hungarian authority. By the mid-1400s, the
Hungarian kingdom was gravely impacted by the Ottoman expansion while
Dalmatia became mostly Venetian. The Republic of Dubrovnik was independent.
The Battle of
Mohács in 1526 led the Croatian Parliament to invite the Habsburgs, under
Ferdinand I, to assume control over Croatia. Habsburg rule eventually did
prove to be successful in thwarting the Ottomans, and by the 18th century,
much of Croatia was free of Turkish control. Istria, Dalmatia and Dubrovnik
all eventually passed to the Austro-Hungarian Empire between 1797 and 1815.
Following World War I and the demise of Austria-Hungary, Croatia joined the
Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (which became Yugoslavia in 1929).
Yugoslavia was invaded during World War II and Croatia was made into a
fascist puppet-state named the Independent State of Croatia. After the
defeat of the Axis powers, Yugoslavia became a federal socialist state under
the strong hand of Josip Broz Tito.
Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took
four years of sporadic and often bitter fighting with the Serbs before the
end of the war in 1995. Peaceful reintegration of all rebel territories was
completed in 1998 under UN supervision.
Croatia applied for European Union membership in 2003 and the EU leaders
accepted it as an official candidate country in 2004. Accession talks will
begin in early 2005, with entry into the EU expected around 2007-2010.
Politics
Since the adoption of the 1990 Constitution, Croatia has been a
parliamentary democracy.
The President of the Republic (Predsjednik Republike) is head of state and
elected for a five-year term. In addition to being the commander in chief of
the armed forces, the president appoints the Prime minister with the consent
of the Parliament.
The Croatian Parliament (Hrvatski Sabor) is a unicameral legislative body of
up to 160 representatives, all elected by popular vote to serve four-year
terms. The plenary sessions of the Sabor take place from January 15 to July
15, and from September 15 to December 15.
The Croatian Government (Vlada) is headed by the Prime minister who has 2
deputy prime ministers and 14 ministers in charge of particular sectors of
activity. The executive branch is responsible for proposing legislation and
a budget, executing the laws, and guiding the foreign and internal policies
of the republic.
Croatia has a three-tiered judicial system, consisting of the Supreme Court,
county courts, and municipal courts. The Constitutional Court rules on
matters regarding the Constitution.
Counties
Croatia is divided into 20 counties and one city*:
Zagrebacka
Krapinsko-zagorska
Sisacko-moslavacka
Karlovacka
Varaždinska
Koprivnicko-križevacka
Bjelovarsko-bilogorska
Primorsko-goranska
Licko-senjska
Viroviticko-podravska
Požeško-slavonska
Brodsko-posavska
Zadarska
Osjecko-baranjska
Šibensko-kninska
Vukovarsko-srijemska
Splitsko-dalmatinska
Istarska
Dubrovacko-neretvanska
Medimurska
Grad Zagreb*
Geography
Croatia is situated between central, southern and eastern Europe, because it
has a rather peculiar shape that resembles a crescent or a horseshoe. This
accounts for its many neighbours: Slovenia, Hungary, Serbian part of Serbia
and Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegrin part of Serbia and
Montenegro, and Italy across the Adriatic.
Its terrain is diverse, containing:
plains, lakes and rolling hills in the continental north and northeast
(Central Croatia and Slavonia, part of the Pannonian plain);
densely wooded mountains in Lika and Gorski Kotar, part of the Dinaric Alps;
rocky coastlines on the Adriatic Sea (Istria, Northern Seacoast and Dalmatia).
Croatia has a mixture of climates. In the north and east it is continental,
Mediterranean along the coast and a semi-highland and highland climate in
the south-central region.
Economy
Croatia has an economy based mostly on various services and some, mostly
light industry. Tourism is a notable source of income. The Gross Domestic
Product per capita in purchasing power parity terms for 2002 was USD 9,800
or 42.7% of the EU average.
Croatian economy is post-communist. In the late 1980s, at the beginning of
the process of economic transition, its position was favourable, but it was
gravely impacted by de-industrialization and war damages.
Main problems include massive structural unemployment followed by an
insufficient amount of economic reforms, deterred by public resistance. Of
particular concern is the gravely backlogged judiciary system combined with
inefficient public administration, especially involving land ownership.
The country has since experienced faster economic growth and has been
preparing for membership in the European Union, its most important trading
partner.
Demographics
The population of Croatia has been stagnating over the last decade. The
natural growth rate is minute, as the demographic transition has been
completed half a century ago. Life expectancy and literacy rates are
reasonably high.
Croatia is inhabited mostly by Croats. Minority groups include Serbs,
Bosniaks, Hungarians and others. The predominate religion is Catholicism,
with some Orthodox and Sunni Muslim minorities.
The official and common language, Croatian, is a South Slavic language,
using the Roman script.
Culture
Croatian culture is based on thirteen century long history during which the
country has attained many monuments and cities, which gave birth to a fair
number of brilliant individuals. The country includes six World Heritage
sites and eight national parks. Three Nobel prize winners came from Croatia,
as did numerous important inventors and other notable people — notably, some
of the first fountain pens came from Croatia.
Interestingly enough, Croatia also has an place in the history of neckwear
as the origin of the necktie (cravat). The country has a long artistic,
literary and musical tradition.
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