ZAGREB, Dec 6 (Hina) - The association for the promotion of the Croatian identity and prosperity, HIP, on Thursday organised a day-long round table, entitled "National Values - Visions and Achievements", on the occasion of the second
anniversary of the death of the first Croatian president Franjo Tudjman. In the past decade, Tudjman was the one who affected the realisation of important Croatian national interests most. He was supported by the Croatian people, and there was a consensus and a vision of Croatia's future, HIP president Miroslav Tudjman said. Academician Davorin Rudolf said the efforts made by Tudjman and the then state authorities to at any cost avoid war with the former federation's army (JNA) and Serbia were being ignored today. He reminded that in the early 1990's Tudjman presented a concept of a modern joint confederation, and added that Croatia was not ready for the war at the time, both p
ZAGREB, Dec 6 (Hina) - The association for the promotion of the
Croatian identity and prosperity, HIP, on Thursday organised a day-
long round table, entitled "National Values - Visions and
Achievements", on the occasion of the second anniversary of the
death of the first Croatian president Franjo Tudjman.
In the past decade, Tudjman was the one who affected the realisation
of important Croatian national interests most. He was supported by
the Croatian people, and there was a consensus and a vision of
Croatia's future, HIP president Miroslav Tudjman said.
Academician Davorin Rudolf said the efforts made by Tudjman and the
then state authorities to at any cost avoid war with the former
federation's army (JNA) and Serbia were being ignored today.
He reminded that in the early 1990's Tudjman presented a concept of
a modern joint confederation, and added that Croatia was not ready
for the war at the time, both psychologically and with regard to its
military force.
"Tudjman can be blamed for many things, including his interfering
in the composition of the national football team, but he did not
arrange the war with Milosevic." Thanks to Tudjman's defence
option, Croatia did not lose the war and was not defeated, he
added.
A Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) member and former premier, Zlatko
Matesa, holds the idea of reconciliation and his wish to
permanently secure Croatia's stability the most important
guideline of his policy. We are now hostages to the inability to
recognise the importance of that idea and reach a consensus on
important political issues, Matesa said.
A senior HIP member, Nenad Ivankovic, believes reconciliation had
yielded results during the war, but it failed to give permanent
results because part of the public did not honestly accept the idea
as the Homeland War and the creation of the Croatian state was not
part of their identity.
Speaking about untruths about the first Croatian president, HIP
member Andrija Hebrang said there were three main factories
producing lies aimed at vilifying Tudjman: international factors
which wanted to preserve Yugoslavia, those defeated by Tudjman in
the war, and politicians who could not outplay him in a democratic
struggle. Tudjman is being vilified with lies from his private life
and attempts are made to turn war veterans against him and accuse
him before the international public of wishing to divide Bosnia-
Herzegovina, and he only followed the policy of the international
community, Hebrang said.
Retired Admiral Davor Domazet said that Tudjman had realised before
most Croatian and Bosnian politicians that Croatia could not avoid
the war, because Serb politicians insisted on the idea of all Serbs
living in one state. Speaking about strategy in the Homeland War, he
said Tudjman had established such balance of forces which enabled
him to carry out a swift operation and free the occupied areas. He
believed in the desire of the Croat people to have their own state.
Reports by all participants in the round table will be compiled in a
publication, to be published in a month.
(hina) np sb