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Jadranka Kosor (; born 1 July 1953) is a Croatian politician and former journalist who served as
Prime Minister of Croatia
, type = Head of Government
, member_of =
, reports_to = Croatian Parliament
, appointer = Croatian Parliament
, nominator = President of Croatia
, termlength = At the pleasure of the parliamentary majority. Parliamentary elections must be h ...
from 2009 to 2011, having taken office following the sudden resignation of her predecessor
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader (born 8 June 1953) is a former Croatian politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.
He is to date the second longest-serving prime minister since independence, holding the office for over five and a half yea ...
. Kosor was the
first and so far only woman to become Prime Minister of Croatia since
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
.
Kosor started working as a journalist, following her graduation from the
Zagreb Faculty of Law. During the
Croatian War of Independence
The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between Croat forces loyal to the Government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY)—and the Serb-controlled Yugosl ...
, she hosted a radio show dealing with
refugee
A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution. problems and disabled
war veteran
A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular job, occupation or Craft, field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military.
A military vete ...
s. She joined the
centre-right
Centre-right politics lean to the Right-wing politics, right of the Left–right politics, political spectrum, but are closer to the Centrism, centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure a ...
Croatian Democratic Union
The Croatian Democratic Union ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica, lit=Croatian Democratic Community, HDZ) is the major conservative, centre-right political party in Croatia. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Croa ...
(HDZ) in 1989 and quickly climbed up the party hierarchy. In 1995 she was elected party vice-president and was elected to serve in
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
for the first time. After the death of
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
and longtime HDZ leader
Franjo Tuđman
Franjo Tuđman (; 14 May 1922 – 10 December 1999), also written as Franjo Tudjman, was a Croatian politician and historian. Following the country's independence from Yugoslavia, he became the first president of Croatia and served as p ...
, Kosor supported
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader (born 8 June 1953) is a former Croatian politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.
He is to date the second longest-serving prime minister since independence, holding the office for over five and a half yea ...
's successful party leadership bid in 2000. Three years later, her party won the
parliamentary election
A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
and Kosor became the
Minister of Family, Veterans' Affairs and Inter-generational Solidarity in the
Sanader first and, later,
Sanader second cabinet, during which time she served as
deputy prime minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...
as well. In the
2005 presidential election she ran as a representative of the HDZ, but lost to incumbent President
Stjepan Mesić
Stjepan "Stipe" Mesić (; born 24 December 1934) is a Croatian lawyer and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2000 to 2010. Before serving two five-year terms as president, he was prime minister of SR Croatia (1990) after the fir ...
in the second round. After the abrupt resignation of Sanader, Kosor managed to form a functioning
parliamentary majority
A majority government is a government by one or more governing parties that hold an absolute majority of seats in a legislature. This is as opposed to a minority government, where the largest party in a legislature only has a plurality of seats. ...
and was approved to her new post as prime minister in July 2009, also becoming leader of her party. Kosor was the party's candidate for prime minister in the
2011 general election, but HDZ lost in a landslide over the
centre-left
Centre-left politics lean to the left on the left–right political spectrum but are closer to the centre than other left-wing politics. Those on the centre-left believe in working within the established systems to improve social justice. The c ...
Kukuriku coalition
The Restart Coalition ( hr, Restart koalicija) is a centre-left political alliance in Croatia. The coalition was formed in 2010 as the Kukuriku Coalition (''Kukuriku koalicija''). This somewhat facetious name meaning 'cock-a-doodle-doo', taken fr ...
, led by the
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
For ...
. Kosor handed power to the new Prime Minister,
Zoran Milanović
Zoran Milanović (; born 30 October 1966) is a Croatian politician serving as President of Croatia since 19 February 2020. Prior to assuming the presidency, he was prime minister from 2011 to 2016 and president of the Social Democratic Party f ...
, in December 2011.
As prime minister, Kosor failed to commit to structural reforms although she managed to prevent country's budgetary meltdown with two budget revisions and the introduction of new taxes as a response to the ongoing economic crisis. During her tenure, she strongly advocated a zero-tolerance policy to political corruption and organized crime. This uncompromising stance, along with the new
criminal code
A criminal code (or penal code) is a document that compiles all, or a significant amount of a particular jurisdiction's criminal law. Typically a criminal code will contain offences that are recognised in the jurisdiction, penalties that migh ...
passed before her term began, opened the door to unprecedented efforts to combat corruption. This resulted in numerous arrests of influential business-people and politicians from across the political spectrum, although most of them members of HDZ, which severely damaged the party's reputation. The discoveries made by prosecutors were far-reaching and criminal charges were even raised against former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader and Deputy Prime Minister
Damir Polančec, who would later be charged with lengthy prison sentences for criminal activity and abuse of power. In
foreign policy
A State (polity), state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterall ...
, Kosor and her
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
n counterpart
Borut Pahor
Borut Pahor (; born 2 November 1963) is a Slovenian politician who served as President of Slovenia from 2012 to 2022. He previously served as Prime Minister of Slovenia from November 2008 to February 2012.
A longtime member and former presid ...
were successful in solving the long-standing border dispute and she is credited with successfully finishing the negotiating process of the
Croatian accession to the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
. On 9 December 2011, she and President
Ivo Josipović
Ivo Josipović (; born 28 August 1957) is a Croatian academic, jurist, and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2010 to 2015.
Josipović entered politics as a member of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia (SKJ), and played a ke ...
signed the
EU Treaty of Accession in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. A
moderate conservative
Moderate conservatism is a moderate version of conservatism that is less demanding than classical conservatism and has several subtypes such as liberal conservatism.
The term is often used in countries where the political camp is divided into 'l ...
, Kosor ran for another term as party leader after losing the election, however, was defeated by the more
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
Tomislav Karamarko
Tomislav Karamarko (; born 25 May 1959) is a Croatian politician who served as First Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia from January to June 2016. He served in the Cabinet of Jadranka Kosor as Minister of the Interior from 2008 to 2011.
Career
K ...
. After months of criticizing his leadership and the new party platform, she was expelled from HDZ by the party's High Court for damaging the party's reputation.
In 2021, Kosor was awarded with the
Grand Order of Queen Jelena with Sash and Morning Star by President of Croatia
Zoran Milanović
Zoran Milanović (; born 30 October 1966) is a Croatian politician serving as President of Croatia since 19 February 2020. Prior to assuming the presidency, he was prime minister from 2011 to 2016 and president of the Social Democratic Party f ...
for "extraordinary contribution to the international position and reputation of the Republic of Croatia" and for "the development of relations between the Republic of Croatia and the Croatian people and other states and peoples."
Early life
Jadranka Kosor was born in
Lipik
Lipik is a town in western Slavonia, in the Požega-Slavonia County of northeastern Croatia. It is known for its spas, mineral water and Lipizzaner stables.
Settlements
The settlements included in the administrative area of Lipik include:
* ...
to Zorica Belan and Mirko Kosor. She finished primary education in
Pakrac
Pakrac is a town in western Slavonia, Croatia, population 4,842, total municipality population 8,460 (census 2011). Pakrac is located on the road and railroad connecting the regions of Posavina and Podravina.
Name
In Croatian the town is known a ...
.
Her parents divorced when she was two, and she spent her childhood living with her grandmother.
Her childhood friends describe her as a pretty, smart, and sociable girl that loved poetry and wrote songs. She contested on beauty pageant and was selected runner up for Miss Swimming Pool of Lipik.
She studied in
Zagreb
Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...
, where she graduated in law and began working as a journalist from 1972 as a correspondent for ''
Večernji list
''Večernji list'' (also known as ''Večernjak''; ) is a Croatian daily newspaper published in Zagreb.
History and profile
''Večernji list'' was started in Zagreb in 1959. Its ancestor ''Večernji vjesnik'' ("Evening Courier") appeared for the ...
'' and
Radio Zagreb
''Hrvatska radiotelevizija'' (abbr. HRT), or Croatian Radiotelevision, is Croatia's public broadcasting company. It operates several radio and television channels, over a domestic transmitter network as well as satellite. HRT is divided into thr ...
. In 1971, her book of poetry ''Koraci'' was published by the Pakrac branch of
Matica hrvatska
Matica hrvatska ( la, Matrix Croatica) is the oldest independent, non-profit and non-governmental Croatian national institution. It was founded on February 2, 1842 by the Croatian Count Janko Drašković and other prominent members of the Illyri ...
.
During the
Croatian War of Independence
The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between Croat forces loyal to the Government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY)—and the Serb-controlled Yugosl ...
, she worked as a radio-journalist and her show exploited war topics such as
refugee
A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution. problems and disabled
war veteran
A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular job, occupation or Craft, field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military.
A military vete ...
s.
[. Vlada.hr. Retrieved on 2013-03-16.] She also worked briefly as a correspondent for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
during this time.
Politics
![EPP Summit March 2011 (71)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/EPP_Summit_March_2011_%2871%29.jpg)
In 1995, Kosor became a representative in 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 Sabor ...
as a member of the
Croatian Democratic Union
The Croatian Democratic Union ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica, lit=Croatian Democratic Community, HDZ) is the major conservative, centre-right political party in Croatia. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Croa ...
(HDZ). She was also the vice-president of the Croatian Parliament. From 1999 to 2000, she was president of the HDZ's Women's Association Katarina Zrinski. She is credited with the number of female candidates from the HDZ in the
2000 elections
The following elections occurred in the year 2000.
Africa
* 2000 Ethiopian general election
* 2000 Ghanaian presidential election
* 1999–2000 Guinea-Bissau general election
* 2000–01 Ivorian parliamentary election
* 2000 Ivorian presiden ...
doubling.
Kosor was the vice-president of the HDZ party between 1995 and 1997, and from 2002 up to 2009 when she became the president of the party. In 2003, she became the minister in the Croatian department for Family, Veterans and
Inter-generational Solidarity in the
Croatian Government
The Government of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Hrvatske), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Republike Hrvatske), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government ( hr, hrvatska Vlada), is the main executive branch of government ...
of
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader (born 8 June 1953) is a former Croatian politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.
He is to date the second longest-serving prime minister since independence, holding the office for over five and a half yea ...
.
HDZ nominated her as their presidential candidate for the
presidential election of 2005.
In the first round, she overtook
Boris Mikšić
Boris Mikšić (born 11 October 1948 in Zagreb) is a Croatian businessman and politician.
Mikšić was born in Zagreb, then part of SFR Yugoslavia. He graduated from the University of Zagreb Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architect ...
by a few percent to reach the second place. She then faced off
Stipe Mesić Stipe may refer to: Biological terminology
* Stipe (botany)
* Stipe (mycology)
In mycology, a stipe () is the stem or stalk-like feature supporting the cap of a mushroom. Like all tissues of the mushroom other than the hymenium, the stipe is co ...
in the second round, but lost.
In July 2009, she was politically installed as the head of the
Croatian Democratic Union
The Croatian Democratic Union ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica, lit=Croatian Democratic Community, HDZ) is the major conservative, centre-right political party in Croatia. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Croa ...
following the resignation of Ivo Sanader.
Prime Minister
On 1 July 2009, Croatian Prime Minister
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader (born 8 June 1953) is a former Croatian politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.
He is to date the second longest-serving prime minister since independence, holding the office for over five and a half yea ...
suddenly and unexpectedly resigned, and suggested Kosor as the next prime minister. With the support of the
coalition partners
A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces.
Formation
According to ''A Gui ...
Kosor went to the President
Stjepan Mesić
Stjepan "Stipe" Mesić (; born 24 December 1934) is a Croatian lawyer and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2000 to 2010. Before serving two five-year terms as president, he was prime minister of SR Croatia (1990) after the fir ...
who invited her to form a government. This resulted in the formation of the
Kosor cabinet which contained most members of the previous Sanader administration. On July 6,
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
approved the proposed cabinet with 83 votes in favor out of 153 members and Kosor was confirmed as the first female Prime Minister of Croatia after independence - actually the third in the history of the republic after two female Prime Ministers of Socialist Republic of Croatia. The
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 Comed ...
was not pleased with this development calling Sanader a coward and Kosor his puppet saying that an early general election was necessary.
Domestic policy
![Cristina Fernandez con Jadranka Kosor](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Cristina_Fernandez_con_Jadranka_Kosor.jpg)
In the first month of her term Kosor, faced with a huge deficit and high unemployment, introduced an emergency budget aimed to reduce spending and the national debt. One of the most unpopular austerity measures taken along with the introduction of the budget was a new income tax called the "crisis tax" (). In addition, the
value-added tax
A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the end ...
rate was increased from 22% to 23%. Businesses criticized the tax hikes as well as the idea of tax code changes in the middle of the fiscal year as an unreasonable burden, while independent economists mostly noted how new taxes would cut consumer spending and further slow down the economy. The Opposition criticized the new measures heavily, calling the crisis tax ''
harač'', a historical Turkish loanword representing a tax implemented during the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
in the late Middle Ages. Indeed, the government's handling of finances was unpopular among the public resulting in the Prime Minister's dismal approval rating of 32% by the end of her first month.
In the last quarter of 2009, many public officials, as well as members of the boards of various government agencies, became suspected of participating in corrupt activities. An unprecedented number of officials were detained and arrested under these allegations which resulted in both praise and criticism of Kosor's government. The praise was mostly directed by those who believed that the government had finally taken a stronger stance against political corruption, while others criticized the fact that most suspects were, in fact, members of Kosor's own
Croatian Democratic Union
The Croatian Democratic Union ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica, lit=Croatian Democratic Community, HDZ) is the major conservative, centre-right political party in Croatia. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Croa ...
. The Opposition accused the government, especially the Prime Minister, for political responsibility claiming that it was impossible that Kosor didn't know what was happening around her when she was a Vice President of the government almost seven years before becoming Prime Minister. The accusations grew louder as more and more corruption affairs were tied with the former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader. On 30 October 2009
Damir Polančec, member of the HDZ Presidency, resigned as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy following allegations of corruption.
On 3 January 2010, Ivo Sanader announced he was returning to active politics saying it was a mistake he ever left. He accused Kosor and the members of the HDZ Presidency of failed leadership citing
Andrija Hebrang's poor result in the
first round of the presidential election held just a week earlier. Hebrang received, for HDZ as the largest party in the country, an embarrassing 12% of the votes claiming third place, the lowest result for an HDZ presidential candidate ever.
Ivo Josipović
Ivo Josipović (; born 28 August 1957) is a Croatian academic, jurist, and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2010 to 2015.
Josipović entered politics as a member of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia (SKJ), and played a ke ...
, the candidate of the largest opposition party, the
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
For ...
, won a landslide victory in the resulting runoff on 10 January. Most political pundits, as well as the majority of the public, believed the true reason of Sanader's surprise return was fear that he will eventually be tied with the numerous corruption scandals which have emerged since he left office. On 4 January, the day after Sanader's ''coup'' as it was called by the press, the HDZ Presidency decided to evict Sanader from the party. The Croatian public quickly rallied in support of Kosor against the hugely unpopular former prime minister, resulting in the highest support for any Prime Minister since polling began, topping at 77% by the end of February.
Throughout 2010, the economy topped corruption as the biggest concern of the government, and the enthusiasm for Kosor and her government soon wore off. Industry shed tens of thousands of jobs, and unemployment soared. Consumer spending reduced drastically compared to record 2007 levels, causing widespread problems in the trade as well as transport industries. The import/export balance did derive a benefit from a large decrease in imports and a more tempered decrease in exports. The continuing declining standard resulted in a quick fall in both the Prime Minister's as well as government's support. In June, Kosor proposed loosening the labor law and making it more business-friendly. This was greatly opposed by the unions who have organized a petition against the proposed changes demanding a referendum on the issue. The petition was signed by over 700,000 citizens, unprecedented in Croatia. Just as the
2010 Croatian labour law referendum
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...
was being prepared, the government decided to drop the proposed changes. The
Constitutional Court
A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ...
ultimately declared the referendum issue moot, but ordered the government not to subject any changes to the labor law in the following year. This was seen as a legal way to avoid the referendum which many speculated would be a referendum on the Government rather than on the labor law. The unions criticized the move calling it undemocratic, announcing protests.
In August 2011, at the official celebration of
Victory Day
Victory Day is a commonly used name for public holidays in various countries, where it commemorates a nation's triumph over a hostile force in a war or the liberation of a country from hostile occupation. In many cases, multiple countries may ob ...
, Kosor sent a public greeting to Croatian generals
Ante Gotovina
Ante Gotovina (born 12 October 1955) is a Croatian retired lieutenant general and former French senior corporal who served in the Croatian War for Independence. He is noted for his primary role in the 1995 Operation Storm. In 2001, the Intern ...
and
Mladen Markač
Mladen Markač (; born 8 May 1955) is a Croatian retired general. He was a Commander of Croatian Special Police during Operation Storm during the Croatian War of Independence (1991–1995), and afterwards held the rank of Colonel General. Later, ...
who were in April of the same year found guilty in a first instance verdict of war crimes and crimes against humanity by
ICTY
The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to try their perpetrators. The tribunal ...
. In 2012, they were both acquitted by the ICTY's Appeals Panel and released from custody. Kosor's statement was criticized by Serbian president
Boris Tadić
Boris Tadić ( sr-cyr, Борис Тадић, ; born 15 January 1958) is a Serbian politician who served as the president of Serbia from 2004 to 2012.
Born in Sarajevo, he graduated from the University of Belgrade with a degree in psychology ...
, leader of the
Independent Democratic Serb Party
The Independent Democratic Serb Party ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Самостална демократска српска странка, Samostalna demokratska srpska stranka, SDSS) is a social-democratic political party in Croatia representing the interes ...
(SDSS)
Milorad Pupovac
Milorad Pupovac (; born 5 November 1955) is a Croatian politician and linguist. He is a member of the Sabor, the former president of the Serb National Council, and the president of the Independent Democratic Serb Party. He was also an observer ...
, Deputy Prime Minister
Slobodan Uzelac
Slobodan Uzelac ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Узелац; born 9 August 1947) is a Croatian Serb politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia for Regional Development, Reconstruction and Return in the second cabinet of Prime Minist ...
(SDSS), as well as by leaders of the opposition
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
For ...
and
Croatian People's Party
Croatian may refer to:
*Croatia
*Croatian language
*Croatian people
*Croatians (demonym)
See also
*
*
* Croatan (disambiguation)
* Croatia (disambiguation)
* Croatoan (disambiguation)
* Hrvatski (disambiguation)
* Hrvatsko (disambiguation)
* Se ...
.
Amnesty International
Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
expressed concerns.
Foreign relations
Jadranka Kosor signed an agreement with
Borut Pahor
Borut Pahor (; born 2 November 1963) is a Slovenian politician who served as President of Slovenia from 2012 to 2022. He previously served as Prime Minister of Slovenia from November 2008 to February 2012.
A longtime member and former presid ...
, the prime minister of
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
, in November 2009, that ended
Slovenia's blockade of Croatia's EU accession and allowed
Croatian EU entry negotiations to proceed. On 9 December 2011, Prime Minister Kosor and President
Ivo Josipović
Ivo Josipović (; born 28 August 1957) is a Croatian academic, jurist, and politician who served as President of Croatia from 2010 to 2015.
Josipović entered politics as a member of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia (SKJ), and played a ke ...
signed EU Accession Treaty in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
.
Standing in opinion polls
Post-premiership
![Borut Pahor, Jadranka Kosor and Boris Tadić in 2010 11](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Borut_Pahor%2C_Jadranka_Kosor_and_Boris_Tadi%C4%87_in_2010_11.jpg)
Following HDZ's defeat at the
2011 parliamentary election, Kosor handed over power to newly elected prime minister, Social Democrat
Zoran Milanović
Zoran Milanović (; born 30 October 1966) is a Croatian politician serving as President of Croatia since 19 February 2020. Prior to assuming the presidency, he was prime minister from 2011 to 2016 and president of the Social Democratic Party f ...
. On 23 December 2011, Kosor was elected Deputy Speaker of 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 Sabor ...
and was also chairwoman of the HDZ's Deputy Club and
leader of the opposition
The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
.
Kosor contested
2012 HDZ leadership election and came in third out of five candidates. A
moderate conservative
Moderate conservatism is a moderate version of conservatism that is less demanding than classical conservatism and has several subtypes such as liberal conservatism.
The term is often used in countries where the political camp is divided into 'l ...
, Kosor continuously publicly criticized
Tomislav Karamarko
Tomislav Karamarko (; born 25 May 1959) is a Croatian politician who served as First Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia from January to June 2016. He served in the Cabinet of Jadranka Kosor as Minister of the Interior from 2008 to 2011.
Career
K ...
's leadership and the new, more conservative, party platform. In 2012, she testified at the trial in the Fimi Media corruption case against Ivo Sanader. On 12 June 2012, Kosor and
Vladimir Šeks
Vladimir Šeks (born 1 January 1943) is a Croatian lawyer and politician. He has been a representative in the Croatian Parliament since the nation's independence, and has held the posts of the Speaker of the Parliament, as well as Deputy Prime M ...
were removed from the positions of Deputy Speakers. In 2013, she was expelled from HDZ for "damaging the reputation of the party".
Kosor continued as an independent, considerably more liberal, politician and eventually formed a deputy club with two
Croatian Civic Party
Croatian Civic Party ( hr, Hrvatska građanska stranka or HGS) is a right-wing political party in Croatia. It was established in September 2009 by Željko Kerum, an entrepreneur and mayor of Split after he won the mayoral elections as an independ ...
MPs. Kosor voted in favour of presenting the issue of the
2013 referendum on banning same-sex marriage before the Constitutional Court, and against the proposed Constitutional change which represented a change from her previous position on homosexuality and same-sex marriage since she had been known for being against the expansion of LGBT rights. She also voted for the Life Partnership Act which gave same-sex couples in Croatia rights equal to heterosexual married couples. After receiving death threats in 2015, Kosor was granted police protection. After speculation that she might be the
SDP's candidate, Kosor eventually decided to participate in the
2015 parliamentary election as a candidate for the liberal
Successful Croatia coalition in the
5th electoral district. She wasn't elected to the parliament. She continued to criticize Tomislav Karamarko and
Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović
Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović (; born 29 April 1968) is a Croatian politician and diplomat who served as President of Croatia from 2015 to 2020. She was the first woman to be elected to the office since the first multi-party elections in 1990 and ...
as well as
Bridge of Independent Lists
The Bridge ( hr, Most), previously known as Bridge of Independent Lists ( hr, Most nezavisnih lista) until November 2020, is a political party in Croatia founded in 2012. The party is led by Božo Petrov, its founder and the former mayor of Metkov ...
party for their indecisiveness. In February 2016, she called on Prime Minister
Tihomir Orešković
Tihomir "Tim" Orešković (; born 1 January 1966) is a Croatian Canadian businessman who was Prime Minister of Croatia from January to October 2016.
Born in Zagreb, Orešković emigrated to Canada at a young age and spent most of his life there. ...
to remove
Zlatko Hasanbegović
Zlatko Hasanbegović (; born 14 June 1973) is a Croatian politician and historian who has served as a member of the Croatian Parliament since 2016. He served as Ministry of Culture and Media (Croatia), Minister of Culture in the cabinet of Tihomi ...
from the position of the Minister of Culture after photograph of him wearing a cap with an
Ustaše
The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian Fascism, fascist and ultranationalism, ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaš ...
badge was published. In August 2016, Kosor stated that yelling
Za dom spremni
''Za dom spremni!'' () was a salute used during World War II by the Croatian Ustaše movement. It was the Ustaše equivalent of the fascist or Nazi salute ''Sieg Heil''.
Usage during World War II
During World War II, the Ustaša, a moveme ...
was "an insult to war veterans and their friends who gave their lives for a democratic, independent, and free Croatia".
Kosor is very active on
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
where she writes on daily events and statements by politicians. She also maintains a personal blog - "Day After Yesterday - On Obverses and Reverses of Politics". In 2017, she published a book which included texts she wrote on her blog and columns written for the Slovenian leftist newspaper
Dnevnik in the period from 2015 to 2017 in which she commented on Croatian interior and foreign politics.
Personal life
Jadranka Kosor was married twice; between 1971 and 1981 to Hrvoje Markul, an editor of the HTV Entertainment Program, and between 1984 and 1993 to Ivo Škopljanac, the radio host. Her son
Lovro Škopljanac (b. 1984) works as a senior assistant at the Department of Comparative Literature at the
Zagreb Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.
She has published five books - two of poetry, two related to the Croatian War of Independence and one containing her comments on Croatian politics. Kosor received ''The Golden Pen Award of the Croatian Journalists' Association'', ''European Union's Humanitarian Award'', ''European Circle Award of the Croatian European House'' and ''
HRT's Lifetime Achievement Award "Ivan Šibl"''. She is an honorary member of the ''Association of Parents of Deceased Veterans'', Honorary Vice President of the ''Association of the Deafblind "Dodir"'', Honorary President of the ''Association of Homeland Defence War Veterans - HVIDRA'', Honorary President of the ''Association of Croatian Homeland Defence War Veterans Treated for PTSD of the Šibenik-Knin County - "Tvrđava Knin"'' and Honorary President of the ''International Committee of Humanists for the Protection of Children and Families from Abuse and Violence''.
References
External links
Jadranka Kosor's CV at the Croatian Government website
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Kosor, Jadranka
1953 births
Candidates for President of Croatia
Croatian Democratic Union politicians
Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb alumni
Female heads of government
Living people
People from Pakrac
Prime Ministers of Croatia
Representatives in the modern Croatian Parliament
Veterans' affairs ministers of Croatia
Women prime ministers
Women government ministers of Croatia
Lipik
21st-century Croatian women politicians
21st-century Croatian politicians