Zlatko Hasanbegović

Zlatko Hasanbegović
Minister of Culture
Assumed office
22 January 2016
President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović
Prime Minister Tihomir Orešković
Preceded by Berislav Šipuš
Personal details
Born (1973-06-14) 14 June 1973
Zagreb, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia
(now Croatia)
Nationality Croatian
Political party Croatian Liberation Movement (1996)[1][2]
Croatian Pure Party of Rights (1996-1997)[3]
Croatian Democratic Union (2015-)[4]
Alma mater University of Zagreb
Profession Historian
Religion Islam[5][6]

Zlatko Hasanbegović (born 14 June 1973) is a Croatian historian who serves as the 10th Minister of Culture in the Cabinet of Tihomir Orešković since 22 January 2016

Early life and education

Zlatko Hasanbegović was born on 14 June 1973 in Zagreb to Zumreta Hasanbegović (née Prohić) from Gračanica and Ibrahim Hasanbegović from Bosanska Gradiška. His mother's side of the family moved from Gračanica (modern day Bosnia and Herzegovina) to the Croatian capital of Zagreb in 1941. His grandfather Sabrija Prohić was a rich industrialist with properties across the former Kingdom of Yugoslavia. During World War II, the Prohić family helped hide a Jewish girl from Gračanica in their house in Zagreb. After the war, they were accused for smuggling of foreign currency and arrested by the Communists. Sabrija Prohić tried to escape to Argentina, but was caught and later killed as a "class enemy", while their entire property was confiscated.[7][8]

Hasanbegović finished elementary and high school in Zagreb, after which he enrolled in Zagreb Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences where he graduated in history. He gained his doctorate on the same Faculty in 2009 in the field of history under supervisory of Ivo Goldstein.[9]

Career

Hasanbegović is working as a research associate on the Institute of Social Sciences Ivo Pilar. He is the editor of Pilar journal, member of executive committee of the Majlis of Zagreb's Muslim community,[10][11][12] President of the Supervisory Board of the Honorary Bleiburg Platoon, an organisation which is the main organizer of the commemoration for Bleiburg repatriations, and associate of various initiatives for the determination of victims of communist terror. The subject of his interest is the relation of modern Croatian national ideology, in particular the Party of Rights and its present-day offshoots, Islam in Croatia and Islam in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 19th and 20th centuries. Hasanbegović researched the Muslim component of Croatian bourgeois culture until 1945 and the political and religious-ethnic relations in Bosnia and Herzegovina since the 1878 Austro-Hungarian rule until the communist takeover in the 1940s.[13][14]

He entered politics in his youth when he was a member of the Croatian Pure Party of Rights. In 2015 he joined the Croatian Democratic Union.[4] On 8 May 2015[15] during the „Otvoreno“ show on Croatian Radiotelevision Hasanbegović stated that anti-fascism is not in the foundations of the Croatian Constitution; "Croatian War of Independence is the only war in the 20th century out which Croats came out as true winners and the only basis on which Croatia should be built. Ghosts and goblins of the past will cause a permanent rift and endless debate. Anti-fascism is not the foundation of Croatia, but a platitude that has no basis in the constitutional text, not being mentioned anywhere."[16] Deputy Parliament Speaker and professor of constitutional law Robert Podolnjak from the governing Bridge of Independent Lists party, among many others, stated that anti-fascism is indeed foundation of the Croatian Constitution.[17] Hasanbegović said that his remarks about anti-fascism were related to the Yugoslav totalitarian legacy and Titoism:[18] "All who abuse the notion of anti-fascism, which can be fluid, as is well-known to historians, know that various meanings can be attributed to that notion. Stalin, Tito, Pol Pot and also U.S. General Patton were anti-fascists. Everyone knows that those were different persons. We are not talking about abstract anti-fascism but about the particular Yugoslav Communist totalitarian legacy."[19]

Culture Minister

On 22 January 2016, Hasanbegović was appointed as Minister of Culture by Prime Minister Tihomir Orešković. A part of the cultural workers expressed their dissatisfaction mainly due to his comments about anti-fascism and his lack of experience in management of culture. Civic initiative Platform 112, which brings together 70[20] NGOs, held a protest in front of the Parliament on the day of election of new Government urging MP's to vote against Cabinet of Tihomir Orešković because of Hasanbegović.[21] The Croatian Journalists' Association issued a statement in which they strongly opposed the nomination of Hasanbegovic as Minister of Culture.[22] The Israel-based Simon Wiesenthal Center urged Croatian Government to dismiss Hasanbegović, saying he took a disdainful attitude towards Croatian resistance to fascism during World War Two.[23] Croatian Helsinki Committee (HHO) and the Initiative EU 1481 for encouraging public awareness of the totalitarian communist regime, which is part of the Department of Political Science of Matica hrvatska, dismissed accusations against Hasanbegović as unfounded.[24][25][26] Hasanbegović stated that the protests against him were not supported by any facts but based on a selective use of his different statements.

As one of his first moves as minister, Hasanbegović announced that there is no need for the continuation of government funding of any non-profit media.[27] The International and European Federations of Journalists joined their affiliates in Croatia, the Croatian Journalists' Association (HND) and the Trade Union of Croatian Journalists (Sinoh) in condemning this decision, as well as the Hasanbegović's dissolution of the Expert Committee for non-profit media before the end of its mandate.[28]

HOP controversy

In 1996, Hasanbegović wrote at least two articles in the magazine "The Independent State of Croatia" which propagated the work and the political ideas of WWII fascist dictator Ante Pavelić and systematically denied the crimes committed by the Nazi puppet state, so-called Independent State of Croatia. Hasenbegović unambiguously glorified the Ustaša movement and advocated the establishment of the Greater Croatia.[29] The then editor-in-chief of the ‘Independent State of Croatia’ monthly was Srećko Pčeničnik, the son-in-law of Ante Pavelić and the President of the Croatian Liberation Movement (HOP), a pro-Ustaša party founded by Pavelić.[30]

Hasanbegović denied that he was ever a member of the Croatian Liberation Movement,[18][19] but in one of the photographs featured in NDH monthly he was described as a "young HOP member".[30] In addition, on the website of Youth wing of the Croatian Pure Party of Rights, it is written that Hasanbegović joined the party from Croatian Liberation Movement.

Ustaša cap

Around the same time, Hasanbegović posed for a photo in Split wearing an Ustaša cap.[31] The photograph's resurfacing in 2016 caused major backlash, despite Hasanbegović denied his wearing an Ustaša cap, claiming the photo was taken in 1993 and that it was manipulated.[32] Afterwards he admitted to be in the photo, but claimed to have merely worn a black cap that was a part of the uniform of Croatian Defence Forces, Croatian Party of Rights' paramilitary (1991-1992).[33] CDF rank and file never wore such caps as part of their uniforms,[34] but some extremist members did own and sport Ustaša caps.[35]

Publications

References

  1. ↑ "Mladež HČSP-a - Hrvatska starčevićanska mladež". Hcsp.hr. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  2. ↑ "Ministar je o ustašama pisao da su heroji i lagao o članstvu u Pavelićevom pokretu –". Telegram.hr. 2016-02-10. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  3. ↑ "Povijest Mladeži HČSP-a". hcsp.hr. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Predsjednik Karamarko na sjednici Gradskog odbora HDZ-a Grada Zagreba". hdz.hr. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  5. ↑ Ante Srzić (2016-02-15). "'Čudno je da Srbi i Židovi kidišu na Hasanbegovića' - tportal.hr". M.tportal.hr. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  6. ↑ Nermin Botonjić. "Islamska zajednica u Hrvatskoj – Priopćenje za javnost". Islamska-zajednica.hr. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  7. ↑ Mamić, Tomislav (29 Jan 2016). "'HASANBEGOVIĆ NEĆE SMIJENITI FRLJIĆA, ALI IDE U REVIZIJU UGOVORA S NEVLADINIM UDRUGAMA' Na što su novac trošili H-alter, Muf, Mladi antifašisti...?". Jutarnji list. Retrieved 2 Feb 2016.
  8. ↑ "Hasanbegović: Komunisti su nam uzeli 19 kuća, duhan, alkohol i devize, a djeda Sabriju su ubili’". Jutarnji.hr. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  9. ↑ "“TIM’S TEAM”: Biografije novih ministara". Nacional.Hr. 2014-06-20. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  10. ↑ "Islamska zajednica u Hrvatskoj – Konstituiran izvršni odbor medžlisa Islamske zajednice Zagreb za period 2010-2014./1432-1436. h. g". Islamska-zajednica.hr. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  11. ↑ Alem. "Islamska zajednica u Hrvatskoj – Članovi IOM-a". Islamska-zajednica.hr. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  12. ↑ "Bilten" (PDF). Nkc-sisak.hr. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  13. ↑ "ZLATKO HASANBEGOVIĆ Biografija novog ministra kulture". Dnevnik.hr. 2016-01-21. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  14. ↑ "Hasanbegović ide u reviziju ugovora s nevladinim udrugama". Jutarnji.hr. 2016-01-29. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  15. ↑ "TKO JE KONTROVERZNI MINISTAR KULTURE? 'Hasanbegović je relevantan znanstvenik, a ne nekakav luđak kakvim ga se nastoji prikazati u javnosti'". Jutarnji.hr. 2016-01-23. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  16. ↑ "Novi ministar kulture kontroverzan je čovjek, a ovo je 8 njegovih izjava –". Telegram.hr. 2016-01-21. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  17. ↑ "Antifašizam jest temelj Ustava, a registar izdajnika je neprihatljiv. Oni će to to morati objasniti javnosti". vecernji.hr. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  18. 1 2 "Hasanbegović: Ako na internetu piše da sam ubio Kennedyja, ne znači da je to istina". vecernji.hr. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  19. 1 2 "Culture Minister nominee says is exposed to "ideological lynching"". about.hr. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  20. ↑ "Platforma 112 - za Hrvatsku vladavine prava". Facebook.com. Retrieved 2016-03-06.
  21. ↑ "Pred Saborom prosvjed protiv Hasanbegovića i Crnoje". hrt.hr. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  22. ↑ "HND, Platform 112 against nomination of Hasanbegovic as culture minister". About Croatia. Retrieved 2016-02-14.
  23. ↑ "Anti-Nazi centre urges dismissal of Croatia's culture minister". Reuters UK. Retrieved 2016-02-14.
  24. ↑ "Some associations against, some for ministers of culture, war veterans". about.hr. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  25. ↑ "HHO dismisses accusations against new culture minister". about.hr. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  26. ↑ "Corps of Internet Journalists backs culture minister's decision". about.hr. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  27. ↑ "Minister says no need for nonprofit media commission". about.hr. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  28. ↑ "Croatia: governmental attacks on Media Freedom | European Federation of Journalists". europeanjournalists.org. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  29. ↑ Verseck, Keno. "Kroatiens Nationalismus: Die Angst vor dem nächsten Ungarn", Der Spiegel, 3.5.2016.
  30. 1 2 Hrvoje Šimićević, Novosti, Hasanbegovic: Ustashas are heroes, martyrs and shaheeds, 13.2.2016.
  31. ↑ Hockenos, Paul: "Croatia’s Far Right Weaponizes the Past", Foreign Policy, May 6, 2016
  32. ↑ "Oporba složno: 'Ako je fotografija na kojoj Hasanbegović nosi ustašku kapu autentična, on mora otići' ", vijesti.hr, 10.02.2016
  33. ↑ "Hasanbegović: Riječ je o montaži, ovo poprima obilježja ludila; Đikić: Nema sumnje u autentičnost", Slobodna Dalmacija, 10. 02. 2016.
  34. ↑ Butorac, Davor: "RATNI ZAPOVJEDNIK HOS-a 'Mi smo nosili šahovnicu, a ne ‘U’; POVJESNIČAR 'HOS-ovci nikad nisu imali takve kape, već su nosili beretke'", Jutarnji list, 11.02.2016.
  35. ↑ Bajto, Nikola. "HOS-ova kapa", Novosti, February 13th, 2016.
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