|
Yugoslavia Unrest in Croatia and Its Consequences in the 1970s
Political, economic, and cultural tensions in the late 1960s
sharply increased nationalist feeling in Croatia. In 1967
Croatian intellectuals, including Miroslav Krleza, the most
respected literary figure in Croatia, signed a statement denying
the validity of Serbo-Croatian as a historical language and
promoting Croatian as a distinct language. The ensuing polemics
escalated into a conflict over discrimination. Croatian
historians recalled exploitation of Croatia by the Serb-dominated
prewar government, and Croatian economists complained of
disproportionate levies on Croatia for the federal budget and
development fund. Party leaders in Zagreb won popularity by
defending the economic interests of the republic, and nationalist
leadership groups, including Matica Hrvatska, Croatia's
oldest cultural society, began calling for constitutional changes
to give the republic virtual independence. In November 1971,
university students went on strike and demonstrators marched
through the streets. Tito pressed Croatian party leaders to quiet
the nationalists, but the unrest continued. Finally, police and
soldiers arrested hundreds of student leaders. The authorities
disbanded Matica Hrvatska and purged "nationalists" and liberals
from all Croatian organizations and institutions.
The rise of nationalism halted the liberal movement in the
national party. Tito called for stricter adherence to democratic
centralism and proclaimed that the League of Communists would
remain the binding political force of Yugoslavia, and that the
league could not decentralize without endangering the country's
integrity. He also called for the party to reassume its leading
role and reestablish its control over the country's political and
economic life. Through 1972 Tito overcame unprecedented local
defiance to purge reformist party leaders in Serbia, Slovenia,
Macedonia, and Vojvodina. He replaced them in most instances with
antireform party veterans who had displayed less political talent
than their predecessors but were considered more politically
reliable. In 1974 the Party's Tenth Congress elected Tito party
president for life and proclaimed that Yugoslavian "self-managed
socialism" would remain under firm party control. The leadership
muzzled the press, arrested dissidents, pressured universities to
fire outspoken professors, and redoubled efforts to promote
Tito's cult of personality.
Data as of December 1990
|
