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1 1 (January 6, 2004)

handle is hein.crs/crsaijq0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Order Code RS21703 January 6, 2004 Croatia: 2003 Elections and New Government Julie Kim Specialist in International Relations Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division Summary In parliamentary elections held on November 23, 2003, the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), a right-wing party of the late former wartime President Franjo Tudjman, won a plurality of the vote. The HDZ had dominated Croatia's political scene from 1990 until its defeat in the 2000 elections. Ivo Sanader, who succeeded Tudjman as HDZ party leader and refashioned the party along more moderate, less nationalistic lines, became Prime Minister of a minority government in December 2003. The Sanader government will likely face significant domestic challenges as well as close international scrutiny over its performance in a number of issue areas. This report analyzes the elections and key issues facing the new government. It will not be updated. For additional information, see also CRS Report RL32136, Future of the Balkans and U.S. Policy Concerns. Introduction The November 2003 elections were Croatia's fourth parliamentary contest since the country became independent in 1991. In the last vote of January 2000, a coalition of center-left parties soundly defeated the incumbent Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) government, weeks after the death of Franjo Tudjman, the longstanding leader of the HDZ and President of the country. To supporters, Tudjman represented the father of Croatian independence. To critics, however, Tudjman closely resembled nationalist Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic and demonstrated similar territorial designs on neighboring Bosnia. In 1995, Croatia launched two military operations, Flash and Storm, to regain control over the Krajina, Croat territory held by rebel Serbs after 1991. The attacks drove out much of the local Serb population from Croatia and tipped the balance of forces in Bosnia against Milosevic and the Bosnian Serbs. Tudjman was a signatory to and guarantor of the 1995 Dayton peace agreement that ended the war in Bosnia. However, he and other HDZ leaders came under frequent international criticism for nationalist policies, authoritarian leadership, and overt support for ethnic Croat separatists in Bosnia. Domestically, the HDZ's popularity eventually declined as the economy deteriorated and as HDZ officials became tainted by corruption scandals. The 2000 parliamentary and presidential votes brought in a new set Congressional Research Service + The Library of Congress CRS Report for Congress Received through the CRS Web

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