Anto Kovačević (21 March 1952 – 14 November 2020) was a Croatian philosopher, publicist and politician. A native of

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

, Kovačević earned a Ph.D. degree from the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich hist ...

. He entered Croatian politics in early 1990s as one of the most prominent members of the

Croatian Christian Democratic Union The Croatian Christian Democratic Union ( or HKDU) is a minor right-wing Christian-democratic list of political parties in Croatia, political party in Croatia. It was founded in 1992 after the merger of Croatian Democratic Party (HDS) and the Cr ...

(HKDU). He was outspoken critic of Franjo Tuđman and his handling of

war in Bosnia and Herzegovina The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...

. As a member of

opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...

alliance that included the

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP), he entered the

Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament ( hr, Hrvatski sabor) or the Sabor is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Croatia. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the people and is vested with legislative power. The Sab ...

in 1995. As the rule of Franjo Tuđman neared its end, Kovačević, as well as his party, began to distance itself from Croatian political centre and shift to hardline

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...

right Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical ...

, embodied in their new partners Croatian Party of Rights (HSP). During the 2005 presidential election, Kovačević ran as HKDU candidate, finishing 8th with 0.86% of the vote. He died from

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

on 15 November 2020, at age 68.

References

External links

Parliament biography
1952 births Croat politicians from Bosnia and Herzegovina 2020 deaths Representatives in the modern Croatian Parliament Croatian Christian Democratic Union politicians Candidates for President of Croatia Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Croatia Croatian nationalists Burials at Mirogoj Cemetery {{Croatia-politician-stub