The support which members of the Serb ethnic minority give the parliamentary majority and the government is no small gesture considering the relations between Croatia and Serbia throughout the 20th century, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said on Sunday at a Serb National Council reception for Orthodox Christmas.
Through this support Serb representatives are genuine political and social stakeholders who take part in the regulation of all issues regarding minority rights, he said.
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Christmas “is an opportunity to strengthen faith in peace, solidarity and tolerance as well as unity in the resolution of issues that are important to all our fellow citizens,” Plenkovic said. “Faith in a better tomorrow unites our citizens regardless of ethnicity or religion, and Christmastime is another opportunity for strengthening cooperation and respect.”
Understanding and tolerance are the foundations of Croatian society and the government’s activity, Plenkovic said, adding that he was especially pleased that for the third year in a row the government had the support and confidence of all ethnic minority MPs, including Serbs, who “are directly participating in the adoption of public policies.”
“That’s no small thing because we all know well that the history of Croatian-Serbian relations in the 20th century was fraught and not simple,” The Prime Minister said, adding that those relations are directly affected by the quality of Zagreb-Belgrade relations.
“Just as the lasting reconciliation between France and Germany didn’t happen overnight, it will take more time for the still fresh wounds in the relations between Croatia and Serbia to heal,” he said.
Plenkovic said the issue of persons who have gone missing in the 1990s war was especially painful and a burden to those relations. “Failure to resolve this issue is markedly slowing down the reconciliation process because it keeps us in the past and prevents us from turning to building a future.”
He said returns of those chased away from their homes during the war was another issue which should be completed in all directions.
“There’s also the issue of truth, as without truth there is no is dealing with the past, without truth, there’s no reconciliation, there’s no building of a common future,” he said.
Minorities should support the parliamentary majority and be a part of it because it is the only way they can help the government better regulate the legal, material, financial and institutional issues related to minority rights, he said.
“That’s the path we will continue on and it’s the path which can give Serbs in Croatia a good status, the exercise of their rights and their place in our society, which we should build together,” Plenkovic said.
