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https://doi.org/10.20901/an.23.02
Županov’s Unwanted Children: Ideological Rapprochement between the Neoliberals and Christian Radical Right in Croatia
Stevo Đurašković
orcid.org/0000-0002-6760-8972
; Fakultet političkih znanosti, Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Sažetak
This paper examines the ideological rapprochement between prominent public neoliberals and a segment of radical-right Christian intellectuals in Croatia who have adopted neoliberal ideas. It posits that the ideological roots of the contemporary radical right are grounded in neoliberalism, as evidenced by shared ideas and policies opposing post-communist statism. Drawing on this theoretical framework, the study traces the emergence of this connection in Croatia during the mid-2010s, particularly through the Kulfest festival and the Free-Market Road Show organized by the Centre for the Renewal of Culture (COK ), which promoted a synthesis of Christian radical right values and neoliberalism. These events convened leading public neoliberals, including Davor Huić, Nenad Bakić, and Velimir Šonje, alongside Catholic fundamentalists such as Stjepa Bartulica, Luka Popov, and Vice Batarelo, united in their critique of the socio-political legacies of socialism and post-communist statism as impediments to establishing a free-market order in Croatia. Furthermore, the paper demonstrates that the development of this shared narrative was significantly influenced by Josip Županov’s egalitarian syndrome theory, particularly the concepts of state paternalism, redistributive ethics, and anti-entrepreneurial mentality. It details how these concepts transitioned from the social sciences into the ideological narratives of neoliberals in the 2000s and were subsequently appropriated in the 2010s by the Christian radical right associated with the COK.
Ključne riječi
Neoliberalism; Christian Radical Right; Egalitarian Syndrome; Stjepo Bartulica; Velimir Šonje
Hrčak ID:
345791
URI
Datum izdavanja:
25.3.2026.
Posjeta: 1.106 *