SETTING STAGE FOR VIOLENCE

It is clear that the protest rally in front of the American Embassy wasn't organized because of Blaskic, but in order to hide the people who issued orders to commit crimes behind the throng of frustrated Herzegovinian demonstrators. The organizers of the rally, war veterans, claim that the expression of fascist ideas at "an otherwise completely non-political rally" was their own initiative - A completely opposite message was deliberately sent to The Hague Court. If judge Claude Jorda even had some doubts about Blaskic's actual guilt, the later events might have only strengthened his belief that he was right. What else, if not a criminal, can Blaskic be if he comes from a society which so openly, even defiantly, bows to gilt idols of a criminal ideology?

by Marinko CULIC

Feral Tribune, Split, Croatia, March 11, 2000

It is quite clear that this Government is neither the best, nor the ablest one, but it is also sure that not even the worst goernment has ever been asked to resign after only a couple of months, as is now demanded from Mesic and Racan. To tell the truth, this request, shouted out more in a form of an angry curse, rather than articulated speech, came from the fringe of the society, since the demonstrators who allegedly came to defend Blaskic now belong to a minority of the Croatian political population.

But, this minority sufficiently resembles the former majority enough to show that the controversial verdict to Blaskic threatens to discredit the pro-western policy of the new Government, and even bring about its collapse, much more than the huge inherited debts or the depressing social situation. Therefore, it is not a coincidence that Racan still hasn't taken the role of a union leader, but he did put on an attire of Blaskic's defender as soon as it became clear what was going on under the windows of the American Embassy. This makes the statement by William Montgomery that he doesn't understand why the demonstrators came to the American Embassy even more autistic. If necessary, he will put signs showing the way to The Hague Court offices in Zagreb since that is apparently the right place for demonstrators to vent their anger.

If there really is the need for any signs, than one should be reserved for the Americans, to show them a way t oa school where they can learn a quick lesson about the fascinating opus of their failures in taming of the small autocratic and xenophobic countries. To tell the truth, such failures were the rarest precisely in Croatia, since the nourishing of Tudjman's regime was more or less successfully avoided thanks to the relatively skillful combination of a carrot and a stick. The western countries (more Europe than the US, which always flirted, and in some cases - the family Susak [former Minister of Defense] - even had very cordial relations, with HDZ) were the only opposition to Tudman's autocracy for a long time. In any case, much stronger and more efficient than the nominal Croatian opposition.

HIDING IN THE MASS

After the elections, these countries seem to have forgotten to change the signs, and, with a lot of euphoric greetings for the new Government, we have the first indication that the West could become the only opposition to Mesic and Racan too. Of course, one verdict by The Hague Court, no matter how disputable it is, is not enough to identify this as a permanent trend. Along with this, Montgomery was right when he said that a part of the responsibility for the verdict should be left to the Court. If the claims that the Tribunal deliberately "moved" the road in Ahmici outside the village only to reduce its strategic importance, and made the crime even worse, than this is a proof that it did a bad job, and it is completely irrelevant whether someone considers it a deliberate or accidental mistake.

But, what can this country say in its own defense, since it made its courts a global disgrace of the judicial profession, constantly refusing to accept the fact that only our own good judges could have saved us from the Anglo-Saxon judicial system which a priori relativizes guilt for mass murders, and sometimes even caricatures it (redemption of crimes by reporting on someone else's). Along with this, unanimous zeal with which Croatia defends Blaskic clearly shows that neither the leading politicians (Tomac, Budisa), nor the political public, have made a simple logical judgment.

That judgment is that the Croatian crime in Ahmici, and not only there, was undoubtedly done, and if their claim that Blaskic is more innocent than the verdict says is right, than someone else is more guilty. And that someone certainly won't turn himself in. On the contrary, he will use the confusion created by the most responsible people in the country to hide in the mass, which can do little good with its shouting, but can spoil a lot. Rising right arms in a fascist salute in front of the American Embassy is not news in the Croatian political gymnastics. But the news is that it was the first pro-fascist meeting that wasn't officially organized by the declared fascist parties or groups, although they took part in it, which means that it had a certain dose of spontaneity.

PROJECT OF THE FATHER OF THE NATION

However, the envisaged aim was thoroughly planned; to hide personal responsibility for spreading of the national madness in the crowd. It is clear that the rally in front of the American Embassy wasn't organized because of Blaskic, but to hide the people who issued orders to commit crimes behind the loud throng of frustrated Herzegovinian demonstrators. The organizers of the meeting, war veterans, claim that the expression of fascist ideas at "an otherwise completely non-political rally" was their own initiative. But, a completely opposite message was sent to The Hague Court. It judge Claude Jorda had any doubts about Blaskic's guilt - he stated his youth as the only, but emotionally compelling extenuating circumstance - the later events could have only strengthened his belief that he was right. What else could Blaskic be if not a criminal, if he comes from a society that so openly bows to the gilt idols of a criminal ideology? In this way the self-defensive action of the designers of Croatian crimes in Bosnia-Hercegovina made its aim known. That aim is: to put the blame not only on the sacrificed Blaskic, but on the whole Croatian people, which was "scientifically" described, according to Tudjman's recipe, as an objectively genocidal nation (the world is full of "evil forces", therefore the Croats must have given their contribution). The intention of the "father of the nation" was to hide his own genocidal character behind the alleged genocidal character of his fellow countrymen and recommend himself to the world as a tamer of that chauvinistic "mob". By asking from the Upper Chamber of ther Croatian Parliament to start a debate about Blaskic, Tudjman's heirs in HDZ marked themselves as diligent followers of this great deceit, and therefore as the directors of the fascistoid one-act play that took place at Zrinjevac.

The intention was obviously to present the rally as a simulation of the first scenes of the "civil war" that Seks has been mentioning lately. This could force the ruling coalition to form a kind of communist-fascist coalition. But, the refusal by Katica Ivanisevic to fulfill order from Pasalic and Seks proves that the process of decomposition of HDZ has blunted the well-known subversive cutting-edge with which this party stabbed everything around themselves. Racan's decision to make known the secret HDZ documents about Ahmici contributed to this.

OPENING OF THE ARCHIVE

This decision only tentatively speaks about his superiority and power of a statesman. Instead of a debate in the Upper Chamber of the Parliament, we have some got some sort of an expert team provided by both of the old and new authorities, which debates the Blaskic case behind the closed door, without explaining to the public why this team can talk about this subject so harmoniously despite all their conflicts. This opens certain issues about the most spectacular recent events; first of all, why Racan's didn't announce that he would present the secret documents on Blaskic several days before the end of the trial, since this could have influenced the verdict. Because of this, Blaskic shouldn't have any illusions that Racan's intervention was motivated by a strong wish to help him.

The Prime Minister obviously wants to help himself and get rid of the problem inherited by the previous Government so that he may deal with the rest of the horrible inheritance. But, if Blaskic has any reason to be satisfied with the recent developments, it doesn't mean that what happened is in good national interest. The issue is whether Racan opened the HDZ archive only to get the unpleasant episode with Blaskic off his back, and has ho further intentions to mess with The Hague files, in order to avoid new fascist incidents under the Government windows.

Since there are no signs proving the opposite, the new Government will only patch up a hole in the road. But, it won't do what needs to be done at some point: to finally tell the truth about Croatian crimes during the war 1991-1995 and that those crimes were not accidental or sporadic.

GROTESQUE HAND-KISS

If they miss or avoid doing that, Racan and Mesic will most probably buy themselves some peace and be spared new fascist marches on Zagreb. But, in a long-term perspective this will be only a Chamberlainean kissing of the Croatian fascists' hands, more grotesque since the Croatian fascism is one of the most primitive and "non-modern" European fascisms today. It never showed any interest in changing at least its form and getting closer to the Italian, French or Austrian post-fascism.

This makes it very tiring, and the fact that the national aims have been achieved means that it has no future. Blaskic's verdict, however, might activate another branch of the Croatian fascism. According to professor Ivan Padjen, the danger lurks from another corner of the ring, since a "million of lumpen-proletarians" on the back of Racan's Government might lead not into "flirting with fascism, which HDZ did, but directly into it".

Therefore, Croatia, as well as the International Tribunal in The Hague, has been facing the possible restoration of one criminal ideology. Each should try in its own way to prevent this. In that case, Croatia will have to open the old issue of denazification. But The Hague Tribunal and its political sponsors should ask themselves whether it is reasonable to punish some participators of the war in ex Yugoslavia more severely than some Nazi criminals.

Translated by Feral Tribune