Zagreb, April 4, 2000 (IKA) — In the April 9 issue of the Catholic weekly newspaper Glas Koncila, there is an extensive interview with the prime minister of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, Ivica Račan. The new Croatian prime minister, who in 1989 was elected as the president of the Communist Party of the Republic of Croatia in the former Yugoslavia, which he transformed into the Social Democratic Party in 1990, rejected the suggestion that the victory of his coalition in the parliamentary elections signified Croatia’s return to communism or socialism. Prime Minister Račan is convinced that the new Government will succeed but needs time. Nevertheless, he is dissatisfied with the tempo at which change is occurring. Speaking about church-state relations, the social democratic prime minister said that the Government wants to contribute to greater understanding and cooperation with the religious communities, “particularly with the Catholic Church, due to its significance in Croatia.”
The Government will honor the contracts that the Republic of Croatia has with the Holy See but Račan states that changes are possible, particularly concerning the contract on economic relations. Referring to his recent meeting with Archbishop Josip Bozanić of Zagreb, the president of the Croatian Conference of Bishops, the Croatian prime minister announced the government funding of the Church could be implemented in the future in a manner that would not be dependent on the Annual Government Budget which is the subject “of political battles and the evaluation of each budgetary item.” Therefore, Račan supports “a more stable financial relationship between the church and state, which would not be subject to annual political examination.” In this connection, he mentioned that he favors models in which citizens would be given the opportunity to decide whom to give a portion of their taxes at the end of the year. According to the existing contracts between the Holy See and the Republic of Croatia, the useful work of the Church is recognized by the state in the fields of education and culture, and a certain amount of money is allocated from the budget to the Church for this purpose.
The prime minister of the Government views the role of the Catholic Church in contemporary Croatian society as one in which “each does its own work: the Church does its own and the state does its own.” He noted that he has frequently reiterated his acknowledgement of the historical and current significance of the Catholic Church in Croatia and among the Croats, and his awareness that “what the Church can do, politics cannot do.” Therefore, he hopes “the Church is aware of what it cannot do, and what politics can and must do.” Prime Minister Račan pointed out that it is of exceptional importance for the Church to continue to make its contribution along these lines, “to judge morally but not arbitrate politics,” to be “an integrative moral force among our citizens to the extent that it tolerates and stimulates the various political viewpoints of these citizens, because it respects democratic pluralism.” Račan expressed his sincere belief that the role of the Catholic Church, “as proclaimed by the Church leadership, is good for the Church, good for the country, and best for the citizens of this country and their ability to demonstrate their merits and membership in the democratic world.”