Suchergebnisse

The author provides a short review of the most important events in Croatian history during the 20th century. He begins by emphasizing the importance of the burning of the Hungarian flag in Zagreb during the visit of emporer Franz Joseph in 1895. Other turning points of Croatian history in the 20th century were: declaration of the Rijeka resolution, which was the basis of the Croato-Serbian Coalition; the end of long term relations with the Habsburg monarchy, and the entry into a unified state with Serbia; the experience of Serbian domination in that state; the events of the Second World War; and the renewal of Yugoslavia under a communist dictatorship. The author has decided to publish this review as a model for a further historical study of this period. (SOI : CSP: S. 453)

The author deals with one of the most pressing problems of the 20th century - the problem of migrations. The essay is divided into four parts. In the first, the author presents empirical findings; in the second, he deals with the causes of the intra- and inter-national migrations; the third part is an outline of feasible perspectives, while the fourth offers possible options as countermeasures. The 20th century is characterized by the shift of the regional focal points of migrations. In the first half of the century, the inter-national migrations of refugees largely took place in Europe. However, in the second half of the century, the hub of the migrations shifted from the northern to the southern hemisphere. One of the major causes of migrations are wars and the accompanying violence. Other important causes are economic hardships, population boom, ecological disasters and the erosion of traditional values. Judging by the characteristics of the major causes of migrations, it is very unlikely that the situation at the turn of the millennium is going to change significantly. The only thing international organizations and states can do is to alleviate this problem by creating long-term strategies that might strike at the roots of the migration issue. (SOI : PM: S. 59)

The author gives an outline of constitutional and legal provisions regulating the rights of ethnic minorities in the Republic of Croatia as well as the site-based policy of the protection of minority rights. The major areas in which the Government of the Republic of Croatia has been supporting the activities of the minority groups' organisations are: publishing, cultural societies, libraries, minority curricula, preservation of the minority cultura heritage and research projects. Between 1992 and 1997, the Government of the Republic of Croatia earmarked 22 million DEM for the minorities' activities. The author concludes that the ethnic minorities in Croatia, despite the political and economic hardships, have enjoyed a high degree of minority rights and freedoms. (SOI : PM: S. 64)

The debtors' crisis at the end of the 20 century is a hard reality facing the transitional countries. (And not only them.) However, to borrow or not to borrow, is a false dilemma. In the situation when in most transitional countries the local accumulation is insufficient for financing the economic development and completing the transitional process, the only alternative is borrowing. This is particularly unavoidable when the influx of foreign capital via direct investments is meagre. This is also true for the Republic of Croatia, in which the level of direct investments is, for the time being, very modest. That is why borrowing, particularly from foreign countries, calls for a high degree of caution, a well-thought out approach to borrowing, and the rational use of the loans. (SOI : S. 204)

Plessner's study "The Belated Nation" is very topical for Croatian readers since it (via comparing the constitution of the French and the German national community) shows how different types of polities within which national communities are formed (the state and the Reich) are central for the constitution of national awareness. German history proves how international community, primarily of Europe, immediately upon its constitution as a system of national states, forced the "belated" nations to give up on the concept of empire and constitute themselves as national states. Plessner's book is also topical in the post-communist regimes because it superbly proves the significance of both the process of modernisation and bourgeoisie as the social class in building national states. (SOI : PM: S. 20)

Following the disintegration of the socialist system in Europe and the end of the bloc-based relations, American politics has changed the course of its operation. In present-day circumstances, Southeastern Europe is becoming increasingly prominent in American foreign-policy projections, particularly during Clinton's administration. Clinton has defined a clear-cut policy towards Europe's southeast due to its vicinity to certain neuralgic points of American engagement (Near East, the Caspian region, the Gulf, eastern Mediterranean). In this way American politics has proved its leading global role. At the time of scarcity of foreign-policy events, Clinton's team has thus been served on a platter a major foreign-policy arena, in which its engagement - which has all the symptoms of a long-lasting one - has not proved too costly. (SOI : PM: S. 20)