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Zoran Pusić (* 1944)

• Zoran Pusić

• born in Zagreb in 1944

• one of the founders of the Antifascist League in Croatia, an organization that fights against fascism, racism, and xenophobia

• during the 1980s, he was one of the key activists in Croatia who fought for human rights and received the „Freedom“ award from the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights for his work

• he was a member of the Croatian Parliament and also served as the president of the Croatian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights

• a passionate advocate of regional cooperation in Southeast Europe, he advocated for dialogue and reconciliation between countries that were in conflict during the 1990s.

Zoran Pusić was born on November 14, 1944 in Zagreb. He is a mathematician and physicist by profession and has been a professor at several universities in Croatia. He established the Civic Committee for Human Rights in 1992 and led it for the next 25-26 years. Throughout his career, he actively opposed war and its consequences, and fought against human rights violations. He was also active as a member of the Antifascist League of the Republic of Croatia in the last seven to eight years.

The story describes the interesting history of the Zoran‘s family from both human and political perspectives. His maternal family, the Angjelinovics, were originally from a small town in Hvar, Sućurje. Before World War I, the oldest brother was very active in opposing Austro-Hungary and was one of the founders of the Croatian Party of Rights in the area. He advocated for an independent Croatia, separate from Austria. During World War I, he spent most of his time in prison. His grandfather was a writer who was also committed to the cause of an independent Croatia. He was recruited during World War I but contracted trachoma to avoid going to the front. After the war, they tried to ensure that Dalmatia, where they were from, did not fall under Italy‘s control, which was specified in the agreement that brought Italy into World War I. This was something that Croatia, a part of Austria-Hungary that was on the losing side, could not achieve alone. They saw the only chance for Dalmatia not to fall under Italy was to unify the Yugoslav nations, and they were heavily involved in that movement. On the other hand, the Zoran‘s grandfather on his father‘s side was a high-ranking Austrian officer who served as the chief of staff for Field Marshal Borojevic on the Italian front. These were two completely opposing tendencies that existed in Croatia in the early 20th century and continued to the present day. Between the two wars, the author‘s grandfather built the house where the author lives today, and they were known as supporters of Yugoslavia.

In contrast, his father secretly joined the SKOJ when he was young and was friends with Ivo Lola Ribar. He spoke German as well as Croatian, which he learned at home. When World War II began, the author‘s maternal grandfather, Danko Angjelinović, who was a writer and poet, wrote a poem against the Nazis in support of Poland. When the Germans and the Ustaše arrived in 1941, the author‘s grandfather and uncle had to flee, and they eventually did. He refused to leave his 19-year-old uncle alone because, like his brother, he had a place on the English submarine that transported the government of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia from Boka Kotorska. The Italians later captured him, and he spent the war in an Italian prison before ending up in Egypt after Italy‘s surrender. His uncle ended up in the Partisans and survived the war. Because the author‘s father was the son of a highly positioned Austrian officer, he stayed in Croatia.

Zoran recalls their first political engagement as organizing peaceful demonstrations against the Vietnam War while still in college. He wrote a poem against the war and organized the demonstrations together with their friend. The demonstrations were peaceful, and he made an effort to show that protesting could be done without violence. However, he witnessed violent behavior during a later demonstration organized by the city, where young people were breaking windows at the American embassy. He was not in favor of the nationalistic sentiment that emerged in the 1970s, but he supported the liberalization movement and the pursuit of freedom of speech. He did not participate in politics much after completing their military service in 1971.

The Youth Union in Zagreb decided to make a revolutionary move and covered the whole city with revolutionary slogans, such as „We want a red university“ and „Workers to the university.“ One night, Zoran, a young assistant professor than, dissatisfied with the slogans, added his own message: „Down with Franjo Josip!“ to the official slogan „Death to fascism, freedom to the people.“ Years later, he learned that the Youth Union‘s use of approved slogans caused a controversy, as the City Organization believed it was a critique of Tito. Zoran‘s intention, however, was to encourage youth to write critical slogans instead of approved ones.

In the 1980s, as conflicts in Kosovo intensified and dangerous nationalism grew increasingly apparent, Zoran actively engaged in defense against the nationalism that, in his words, took the worst and led to a conflict that no one thought would be as bloody as it was. The newly elected authorities in all countries, including Croatia, chose radical nationalism that is dangerous and tramples on the foundations of anti-fascists while taking dangerous elements of Nazism and fascism, spreading hatred towards neighbors, whether based on nationality or religion. Additionally, anything related to the People‘s Liberation Struggle and the National Liberation War was changed in any form. Furthermore, everything related to the People‘s Liberation Struggle and the National Liberation War was changed in any form. Fear was instilled towards others, and from that fear, driven by nationalism, hatred arose that led to wars.

Zoran, motivated by this dangerous rise of nationalism, became politically active, from advocating for the restoration of the name „Victims of Fascism Square“ to founding non-governmental organizations with the aim of preserving the anti-fascist legacy and history, specifically, the lessons for the future.

In the 1990s, Zoran actively participated in civic initiatives aimed at defending and protecting human rights, which began to be violated in various ways at the beginning of the war. Later on, he founded Documenta, an association that began monitoring war crimes trials, with the goal of preserving human rights as much as possible.

Zoran is also responsible for launching the Igman Initiative. There was no tradition of establishing civil society organizations, whether anti-war or for the protection of human rights, and so the initiative was launched based on the example of Scandinavian countries. The plan was to encompass the countries of the former Yugoslavia and generally the South Balkans, but political influence prevented it from developing as planned. Some politicians supported the initiative and actively participated in it, but with the return of the HDZ to power, it was reduced and almost stopped. The Igman Initiative was active, organizing summer schools with numerous politicians as guests, receiving awards, and for a moment, it seemed that society was developing positively. However, both entry into the European Union and the change of the ruling party slowed down progress, as pressure for EU accession dwindled, and one of the conditions was precisely the work in the areas that the Igman Initiative was dealing with.

Zoran believes that there is not enough interest in promoting and discussing the legacy of the People‘s Liberation Struggle (NOB) and the culture of memory surrounding it, as political leaders and even historians tend to sweep important aspects under the rug in favor of more favorable versions of events. Not talking about it can lead to new nationalist ideas, which is currently a danger in societies. Every country has individuals leaning towards extreme right-wing views, and the goal should be to keep them at 10% of society and prevent them from gaining power. Auschwitz was not the first step in the Holocaust, but the last, and we need to prevent the first steps from happening again.

Zoran believes that it is not possible to aggressively pass on the past and the importance of historical events to young generations, and that schools are not enough to teach this. Only positive social examples can create a healthy future and healthy future generations, but this is a challenging task because many adults have not yet developed awareness. It is a challenge for society to nurture a culture of memory and lead by example to show that it is possible to do the right thing.