Croatia: Situation and treatment of persons of mixed ethnicity, people in mixed marriages and ethnic Croatians from other areas of former Yugoslavia; availability of state protection

1. Situation and Treatment of Persons of Mixed Ethnicity and People in Mixed Marriages

Information on the situation and treatment of persons of mixed ethnicity was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

Sources indicate that some ethnic tensions remain in Croatia since the armed conflicts (UN 3 Sept. 2010) of the 1990s (Lecturer 21 Nov. 2012; Matejcic 2009). In particular, ethnic Croats and ethnic Serbs fought against each other from 1991 to 1995 (Lecturer 21 Nov. 2012) as Croatia sought to establish its independence from Yugoslavia (MRG 2003, 4).

In correspondence sent to the Research Directorate, a lecturer in politics at the University of Sheffield in the UK who is a specialist on the former Yugoslavia as well as on reconciliation and ethnic conflict and who makes fieldtrips to the region, stated that mixed marriages in Croatia "are still very rare" (21 Nov. 2012). In a telephone interview with the Research Directorate, a representative of the Center for Peace Studies (CMS), who specializes in peace building, public policy and inter-ethnic relations, indicated that Croats in mixed marriages with individuals from Eastern Europe and elsewhere are generally seen negatively in Croatian society, although she added that mixed marriages between Croats and individuals from Western Europe may be seen positively (15 Nov. 2012). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. The CMS is a Zagreb-based NGO, which promotes social change and non-violence through education, research and activism (HRHN n.d.).

A 2009 report on Croatia by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination indicates that returnees, including ethnic Croats who lived in areas under Serbian control during the conflicts, and people in mixed marriages can face discrimination in employment and obstacles in recovering agricultural land (12 Mar. 2009, para. 29). According to the CMS representative, there are cases of mistreatment and discrimination towards people in mixed marriages and of mixed ethnicity, although it tends to be "hidden" (CMS 15 Nov. 2012). She explained that tensions may be increased by certain events; as an example she noted that something like a football game could have a polarising effect and create strains in the community (ibid). The representative added that while there isn't any violence "in the street," there have been cases of violence, including fights and deaths, which principally happen in areas where people know each other, but did not provide examples (ibid.). According to the representative, police will not generally treat these incidents as being ethnically based, but will rather present them as being due to some other factors, or will underreport such incidents (ibid.). She explained that in her view, this was because of efforts to meet EU requirements to reduce ethnic conflict prior to Croatia's accession (ibid.). Corroboration of the above information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

1.1. Segregated Schools

According to an article on the website of the Nansen Dialogue Centre Osijek (NDC Osijeck), a Croatian NGO which works to build "an "inclusive and functional multi-ethnic community" (NDC Osijek n.d), minority students in multicultural areas generally access their right to being educated in their own language by being schooled separately from the majority (ibid, 12 Nov. 2010). The website of the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports of Croatia indicates that members of national minorities have a constitutionally guaranteed right to be educated in their own language and script, which may be obtained through different models and frameworks, including classes in the language and script of the national minority, bilingual classes, or through special classes, such as summer school or winter classes, as well as special programs to integrate Roma schoolchildren into the school system (n.d.).

The NDC Osijeck article states that in practice students belonging to different groups may be divided into separate "shifts" or use different parts of the same building, including separate entrances and actively avoid each other (12 Nov. 2010). The NDC Osijeck article notes:

In such a system no one is satisfied because such education does not create a sane foundation for the normal development of a community, city and region. Dividedness negatively affects the children from the two largest ethnic groups (Croats and Serbs), and has a further negative effect on the children from mixed marriages, children of other nationalities, their parents and the future of the community as a whole. (ibid.)

The article adds:

Unfortunately, the reality is that these groups are forced to choose one of these two sides and thus deny their own group or unique identity. This situation just encourages social exclusion and social segregation. (ibid,)

1.2. Mixed Marriages Between Ethnic Croats and Serbs and Mixed Croat and Serb Ethnicity

The representative of the CMS stated that ethnic Croats in mixed marriages with ethnic Serbs or individuals of mixed Croat and Serb ethnicity were seen in a particularly negative light as a consequence of the conflict of the 1990s (15 Nov. 2012). In a March 2006 interview with the Norwegian Refugee Council's Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, the Head of Mission of the Croatian office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe stated that "Serbs and Croats do not want mixed marriages, they frequent separate Croat and Serb cafes, restaurants and clubs" (IDMC 1 Sept. 2009, 64).

However, the representative of CMS noted that as there aren't any physical differences between ethnic Serbs and ethnic Croats, individuals in such marriages or such mixed ethnicity are not generally identifiable if seen on the street, unlike individuals who have more visible differences such as darker skin (CMS 15 Nov. 2012). On the other hand, she noted that in villages and smaller cities, where people are more familiar with each other, those in mixed marriages or of mixed ethnicity are recognized more easily (ibid.). According to the representative, smaller communities also tend to be more "old-fashioned" (ibid.). In addition, she stated that although Croatia is supposed to be secular, the Catholic Church plays a large role in the country and is more influential in smaller communities (ibid.). According to her, the Catholic Church tends to play a "dividing role" between Catholic ethnic Croats and other groups (ibid.). Corroboration of this information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

A 2009 article produced as part of the Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence and published by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network examines the impact of the conflicts of the 1990s on mixed marriages in two formerly ethnically diverse towns in Bosnia and Croatia which were severely affected by the violence (Matejcic 2009). The author states that in Vukovar, the Croatian town examined in the article, located near the Serbian border, and where there used to be "a high degree of inter-ethnic mingling," mixed marriages are now rare (ibid). A December 2011 article by the Paris-based newspaper Le Monde similarly indicates that mixed marriages, which were common in Vukovar before the conflicts, have become a rare occurrence (28 Dec. 2011.) Nonetheless, a November 2011 Reuters article, which also describes the town as having been "ethnically mixed" before the conflicts, quotes a resident as stating that interethnic marriages were happening again (18 Nov. 2011).

According to a journal article examining mixed identity during violent conflict, 34 percent of all marriages in Vukovar were interethnic in the 1990s, prior to the war (Hartley Mar. 2010, 230). The article prepared for the Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence also indicates that mixed marriages between Croats and Serbs constituted 5 percent of marriages in the town in 1998, 1.5 percent in 2003 and 8 percent in 2008 (Matejcic 2009).

According to the article prepared for the Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence, mixed marriages are "stigmatised as a symbol of a discredited way of life" (ibid.). The article cites a representative of the European House, a Vukovar-based NGO working on reconciliation between ethnic groups, as stating that individuals entering into interethnic marriages in Vukovar and similar cities should be considered "heroes" since they have resisted the pressure put on them by "collective identity" (ibid.). The article also gives the example of a Croat man married to a Serb woman who reports that "others seem to have a problem with them," with the man noting that his wife might be charged double for a cup a coffee in a Croat café (ibid.).

Sources also note that schools in Vukovar are segregated between Serbs and Croats (NDC Osijek 8 Nov. 2012; Hartley Mar. 2010, 231; Matejcic 2009). A representative of NDC Osijek stated in correspondence sent to the Research Directorate that children from mixed marriages are in a "disadvantageous" situation as the children and their parents need to "'choose [a] side'" within the city's segregated school system (8 Nov. 2012). As of November 2010, NDC Osijek was working with the community in Vukovar towards implementing a new model of desegregated school in the city (ibid. 12 Nov. 2010). Information on the progress of this plan could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

2. Ethnic Croats from other Areas of the Former Yugoslavia

Sources indicate that ethnic Croats have access to simplified procedures to acquire citizenship that are not accessible to people of other ethnic origins (Council of Europe 25 Sept. 2012, para. 11; UN 12 Mar. 2009, para. 26).

However, according to the representative of the CMS, for economic and social reasons, ethnic Croats who originated from Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina are treated differently by the majority (CMS 15 Nov. 2012). She explained that these individuals are poorer, having arrived in Croatia with limited resources (ibid). She further stated that they settled in former Serb areas and tend to live in their own "ghettos," finding it difficult to obtain employment even if there were no other applicants (ibid.). In some cases, ethnic Serbs have returned and reclaimed their homes (ibid.). According to the CMS specialist, ethnic Croats from Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina also have their own identifiable way of speaking (ibid.). She stated that they are subject to prejudice and to stereotyping and may be seen as "not really Croats" (ibid.). She added that they may face discrimination in employment, schooling and in hospitals (ibid.). Corroboration of the above information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

The lecturer likewise explained that a large number of ethnic Croats came from Bosnia-Herzegovina during the 1992-1995 war and that "[s]ome domestic Croats (i.e., those born in Croatia) resent the presence in Croatia of Bosnian Croats. They regard the latter as uneducated, culturally inferior and as a burden on Croatia's economy and resources" (21 Nov. 2012). The lecturer added that while visiting the town of Knin in Western Croatia in April 2012, local people "often" told her that, "in Knin today, relations are actually better between Croats and Serbs than they are between domestic Croats and the Bosnian Croats" (21 Nov. 2012).

However, the representative of CMS also added that ethnic Croats from other parts of the former Yugoslavia, notably northern Serbia, have better integrated due to their higher economic level and better access to resources (ibid.). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

The representative of the CMS stated that she was not aware of specific state protection offered to people of mixed ethnicity or in mixed marriage (15 Nov. 2012). For information on state protection for minorities in Croatia, see Response to Information Request HRV103774.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Center for Peace Studies (CMS). 15 November 2012. Telephone interview with a representative who specializes in peace-builing public policy and inter-ethnic relations.

Council of Europe. 25 September 2012. European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI). ECRI Report on Croatia (Fourth Monitoring Cycle). (CRI(2012)45) [Accessed 14 Jan. 2013]

Croatia. N.d. Ministry of Science, Education and Sports. "Education in the Language And Script Of National Minorities." [Accessed 29 Jan. 2013]

Hartley, Ralph. March 2010. "Sleeping with the Enemy; an Essay on Mixed Identity in the Context of Violent Conflict." Social IdentitiesSocial Identities. Vol. 16, No. 2.

Human Rights House Network (HRHN). N.d. "CMS - Center for Peace Studies." [Accessed 20 Nov. 2012]

Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC). 1 September 2009. Croatia: Housing Rights and Employment still Preventing Durable Solutions: A Profile of the Internal Displacement Situation. [Accessed 6 June 2012]

Lecturer, University of Sheffield, United Kingdom. 21 November 2012. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate.

Matejcic, Barbara. 2009. "Cruel Wars Cast Shadow Over Mixed Marriages." Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN). [Accessed 7 June 2012]

Minority Rights Group International (MRG). 2003. Minorities in Croatia. [Accessed 6 June 2012]

Le Monde [Paris]. 28 décembre 2011. Benoît Vitkine. "Vingt ans après, l'impossible réconciliation des Serbes et des Croates de Vukovar." [Accessed 14 Jan. 2013]

Nansen Dialogue Centre Osijek (NDC Osijeck). 8 Novembre 2012. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate by a representative.

_____. 12 November 2012. "The New School." [Accessed 29 Jan. 2013]

_____. N.d. "About NDC Osijek." [Accessed 29 Jan. 2013]

Reuters. 18 November 2011. Zoran Radosavljevic and Igor Ilic. "Croats Join Silent March to Mark Vukovar Massacre." [Accessed 7 June 2012]

United Nations (UN). 3 September 2010. UN Development Programme (UNDP). "Croatia: UNDP Promotes Ethnic Reconciliation." [Accessed 17 Jan. 2013]

______. 12 March 2009. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Consideration of Reports, Comments and Information Submitted by States Parties under Article 9 of the Convention: Sixth, Seventh and Eight Periodic Reports of Croatia. (CERD/C/SR.1920) [Accessed 17 Jan. 2013]

Additional Sources Consulted

Publication: Sustainability of Minority Return in Croatia.

Oral Sources: A representative of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Croatia did not provide information within the time constraints of this Response. A representative of the Center for Peace, Legal Advice and Psychosocial Assistance - Vukovar and a professor of sociology at the University of Zadar, Croatia did not have information for this Response. Attempts made to contact the following were unsuccessful: Representatives of the European branch of Minority Rights Group International, the Croatian Helsinki Committee, the Centre for Peace, Non-violence and Human Rights in Osijek, the European Center for Peace and Development, European House Vukovar, and the Center for Direct Protection of Human Rights, Zagreb as well as, a political scientist focused on inter-ethnic relations in South-eastern Europe, a journalist who writes on social issues in Croatia, two professors at the University of Toronto, a researcher at the Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies, a professor at the University of Zadar, and a professor at the University of Zagreb.

Internet sites, including: ARC International; Association Mi; The Balkan Chronicle; Balkan Investigative Reporting Network; CFOR (Force for Change); Centre for South-East European Studies; Croatia - Ministry of Justice; ecoi.net; European House Vukovar; European Centre for Minority Issues; European Forum for Democracy and Solidarity; Factiva; Minorities at Risk; Minorities Rights Group International; NATLEX; News Balkan; Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe; Radio Free Europe/Radio Free Liberty; Regional Centre for Minorities; Transitions Online; United Kingdom Home Office; United Nations - Refworld.