Original scientific paper
ORIGINATION OF THE TWO CROAT POLITICAL PARTIES IN BOSNIA AND HERCEGOVINA (1919-1920)
Zlatko Matijević
; Institute of Contemporary History, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Finding themselves in a new state, the (Catholic) Croats of Bosnia and Hercegovina were forced to create new political parties in order to protect and promote their national, religious, and economic interests. The political leadership first advocated creation of one party which would garner all Croats. This party would be supported by the political establishment in Croatia. This »Zagreb orientation« advocated connecting all Croat political forces before seeking cooperation with political organizations of Serbs and Slovenes. The »Ljubljana orientation« planned the creation of the Yugoslav People's Party (JPS) which would cover the entire territory of the state. it was very important in this conception that Croats become politically linked with Slovenes. It was for this particular purpose that the Croatian People's Parry (HPS) was to be established for Bosnia and Hercegovina separately.
Even though the program of these two groups was almost identical, the bickering between them became so strong that the leadership of Bosnian and Hercegovinian Franciscans felt the need to intervene in order to form a common political front. But instead of reconciliation, the Croat Peasant Party (HTS) (Travnik) was created alongside with the HPS. This division was reflected on Catholic priests, both regular and monastic, since the leaders of the two groupings were Franciscan friars (Markulić and Buntić).
HPS and HTS reached their political climax in elections for the Constitutional Parliament in 1920. The advance of the Croatian Republican Peasant Party into Bosnia and Hercegovina siphoned off a great number of their constituents, thus leaving them on the margins of the political life.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
209827
URI
Publication date:
10.1.1993.
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