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The article presents results of a study of the structure of the civil society in Croatia, analyzed by means of the following indicators: the number of the organizations of the civil society; membership in these organizations; the range of these organizations; the composition of the civil society; & the resources of the civil society. In the 1990s in Croatia, the number of the civil society organizations increased greatly. They have relatively small memberships; also, in the 1990s, the active memberships shrank. Civil society organizations can be found primarily in big cities. Insufficient networking & a certain dose of political divisions of these organizations diminish their developmental potential. Foreign organizations & their financial support played a major part in profiling the structure of the civil society. The relatively modest human resources reduce the partnership position of these organizations. The structure of these organizations can be compared to other transitional countries. The war & the humanitarian crisis particularly affected the profiling of the structure of the civil society in Croatia. 2 Tables, 46 References. Adapted from the source document.

This article is a part of an extensive research project called the "CIVICUS index of Croatia's civic society." The sample included the contents from six dailies. The civic society is most often mentioned in the context of news & brief reports. The analyzed dailies cover the activities of the civic society mostly if they are linked to the events they organize. The organizations of the civic society are predominantly shown in positive light. Negative coverage is almost marginal. Charity events are covered by these dailies, but the coverage is more extensive if the events are linked with marketing. The role of the dailies in promoting the civic society's organizations as the key actors in the anticorruption campaign & in raising the awareness of family violence is particularly significant. The value foundation of the reported information may be a food for thought & inspire action. The civic society in Croatia has been trying to keep the state accountable & helping the public to gain a more revealing insight into the major issues & questions. Tables, Graphs, References. Adapted from the source document.

This article is a part of an extensive research project called the "CIVICUS index of Croatia's civic society." The sample included the contents from six dailies. The civic society is most often mentioned in the context of news & brief reports. The analyzed dailies cover the activities of the civic society mostly if they are linked to the events they organize. The organizations of the civic society are predominantly shown in positive light. Negative coverage is almost marginal. Charity events are covered by these dailies, but the coverage is more extensive if the events are linked with marketing. The role of the dailies in promoting the civic society's organizations as the key actors in the anticorruption campaign & in raising the awareness of family violence is particularly significant. The value foundation of the reported information may be a food for thought & inspire action. The civic society in Croatia has been trying to keep the state accountable & helping the public to gain a more revealing insight into the major issues & questions. Tables, Graphs, References. Adapted from the source document.

The author looks into the origin & the evolution of the notion of civil society & outlines the contemporary debates on its meaning & democratic potential, as well as its democratic deficits. The concept of civil society (originally devised by Aristotle & used for centuries in political philosophy), was revived in the 1980s, first in the East-European movements against the Stalinist state socialism, & later in the new social movements in the West & in social sciences in general. Today's understanding of this term is the result of the branching out of the classical term: while originally it denoted an association of citizens as a political community, Montesquieu & Hegel came up with the difference between the civil society & the state as a political community. Later, a series of modern authors, in line with Gramsci, additionally differentiated between the civil & the market societies. The case in point is Jurgen Habermas who defines civil society as a system of spontaneously generated non-state & nonprofit associations connected via the venues of public communication & whose goal is not to win the firsthand political power. Another understanding of civil society has resulted from a long cooperation of the UN & its specialized institutions with the nongovernmental organizations that came to the fore at the major thematic UN-sponsored conferences in the l990s. The author criticizes the idealized picture of civil society as a form of the organization & the democracy-promoting communication of citizens. A developed civil society is undoubtedly important for democracy, but this also requires the appropriate checking mechanisms. The potential deficits of the civil society are reform blockade, the risk of the loss of civilness in populist movements & the social asymmetry of civil activism. Finally, the author looks into a variety of proposals that see in the European civil society the means of the democratization of the European Union. 12 References. Adapted from the source document.

Ages ago, Plato understood justice as the purport & the essential purpose of the very existence of the state. Though Plato distinguishes between the political justice of the state & the personal justice of the individual soul, it was Aristotle who in his practical philosophy developed, apart from the general justice, an appropriate understanding of the special or particular justice & its significance for social progress. The first part of this paper deals with the different types of justice, & the second with civil society. In order to understand the contemporary theories of political justice & the roles of civil society in its realization, the author looks into the history of the European political thought & "civil society," since "civic" or "civil society" ("societas civilis"), was originally a political society. In modernity, Hegel began differentiating between the state as a political community & the "civil society" as a nonpolitical society; his intention was not to separate but to integrate them by means of the public scrutiny & the citizens' governance, Thus Hegel linked Locke's & Montesquieu's opposing definitions of the relationship between the civil society & the state. This is all the more important since Hegel's philosophy is often misinterpreted as the state totalitarianism since we overlook the dangers coming, especially today, both from the civil society reduced to economy & the absolute state, the dangers that Hegel, with his concept of customariness, detected & avoided. 11 References. Adapted from the source document.

Although it cannot be denied that nation-states & their sovereignties still exist as a significant form of identity of the civilian society within the world order, under the influence of new globalization processes -- political, ecological, cultural -- in the last decades of the 20th century, & the urgency of the need to solve new global problems (ecological, genetic, communication, market, multicultural), the issue of new identities has emerged. The world of "complex interdependences" has dramatic implications for sovereignty, autonomy, & responsibility of states & their ability to independently solve the key political problems they are faced with. The new issues brought about by the globalization processes can no longer be based solely on the principles of the white-Western-Christian-male-industrial civilization that has proved lethal in many social, cultural, & political aspects of life, particularly regarding the environment. That is why the initiatives for the recognition of new multicultural identities can be realized only within the global order in which Westerners no longer have a privileged position. Radicalizing these issues, environmentalists conclude that the global ecological policy can no longer be based on the old political boundaries of nation-states, that new political boundaries are needed, based on ecological principles. These boundaries should coincide with the boundaries of ecological systems if development is to be sustained. In order to achieve this, it is necessary to globally expand democracy in order to create new institutions that are going to institutionalize some new forms of political culture, based on the principles of the "green politics," which presupposes respect for all forms of life & avoids a hierarchy of life forms with humankind on the top. 25 References. Adapted from the source document.

The author analyzes the position of journalists at the time of elections. It turns out that they are subject to pressures by politicians, who try to use the media for their promotion. Electoral reporting is extremely & precisely regulated; it would be hard to find some other field of journalism with such clearly elaborated recommendations & rules. Nevertheless, journalists are exposed to various methods of manipulation & pressures. Legal provisions are necessary, but it is also vital to understand the laws of the journalistic profession & the media. Also important is advertising or hidden advertising. The author concludes that reporting about elections could be professionalized primarily by decreasing the influence of political parties on the media, strengthening the institutions of civil society, & permanently educating journalists. 15 References. Adapted from the source document.