ZAGREB, Dec 19 (Hina) - The seminar "Croatian Spring", which for the first time in three decades gathered numerous participants and protagonists of an eponymous Croatian national movement in the early 1970's, ended at the offices of
Zagreb's Skolska Knjiga publisher Wednesday. The two-day seminar included discussions and debates which, it was said, should encourage young scientists to explore this important period of the recent Croatian history. Thirty years is not a long enough time to make a thorough scientific analysis, historian Agneza Szabo said. According to her, the term "Croatian Spring" is unacceptable because it suggests a certain connection to "The Prague Spring", which is completely unfounded. That is why a consensus on an appropriate scientific term for that period should be reached, she added. Szabo's view that Croatian politicians in 1971 advocated a policy of "even accounts" towards Belgrade, and that the Croatian nation
ZAGREB, Dec 19 (Hina) - The seminar "Croatian Spring", which for the
first time in three decades gathered numerous participants and
protagonists of an eponymous Croatian national movement in the
early 1970's, ended at the offices of Zagreb's Skolska Knjiga
publisher Wednesday.
The two-day seminar included discussions and debates which, it was
said, should encourage young scientists to explore this important
period of the recent Croatian history.
Thirty years is not a long enough time to make a thorough scientific
analysis, historian Agneza Szabo said. According to her, the term
"Croatian Spring" is unacceptable because it suggests a certain
connection to "The Prague Spring", which is completely unfounded.
That is why a consensus on an appropriate scientific term for that
period should be reached, she added.
Szabo's view that Croatian politicians in 1971 advocated a policy
of "even accounts" towards Belgrade, and that the Croatian national
movement, even though important, was not aimed at the establishment
of an independent Croatian state, caused numerous reactions. Many
participants reminded that their standpoints, as well as those of a
great majority of their colleagues, had been entirely guided by the
idea of Croatia's independence. However, Szabo insisted that as a
historian she could evaluate and discuss the issue only on the basis
of documents.
Josip Sentija called on young historians to accept the challenge of
exploring this period, and warned them that without investigating
the extensive documentation collected at the time by the American
and Soviet consulates in Zagreb, they would not be able to put
together a complete picture about the events in 1971.
Ivan Zvonimir Cicak agreed with Ivan Biondic who said that the
Croatian historiography, from Viktor Novak to the present day, had
been burdened by double identification and that Croatia could not
be a European country without being a national state at the same
time. Thus, an important question is how to incorporate the
national concept into the process of Croatia's modernisation and
the concept of civil society, Cicak said.
In that regard, he said that some Croatian politicians educated in
Europe, such as Vesna Pusic, had a completely wrong concept of the
civil society. Europe is not giving up the idea of nationality, but
the idea is being redefined, which is why the question of how to
build modern Croatian national identity is important nowadays,
Cicak added.
According to an American university professor of Croat origin, Jure
Sutija, it is possible to build modern Croatian national identity
by never again looking back but by building a modern state on the
basis of consensus.
Apart from Skolska Knjiga, the seminar was organised by the
Croatian History Society, the Croatian Institute for History, the
Zagreb Faculty of Philosophy History Department, and the institute
of social sciences "Ivo Pilar".
(hina) np sb