Overview of Human Rights in Croatia

The Republic of Croatia is a constitutional parliamentary democracy. While the human rights record of Croatia has improved in recent years, there are still a few problem areas. Trafficking in persons, violence and discrimination against Serbs and Roma (Gypsies), and harassment of religious minorities, present Croatia's societal challenges.

In June 2004, Croatia was officially granted European Union (EU) candidate status on the condition that it improve its record on minority rights, judicial reform, refugee return opportunities, and internal corruption. EU officials predict if these areas can be improved, then Croatia should become a member in 2010.  However in 2006, Croatia's accession process was faced with a significant obstacle when the European Commission published a report in which it expressed concern about Croatia's movement towards EU membership. Specifically, the European Commission criticized Croatia for failing to reducing ethnic intolerance.   To date, Croatia has continued to push for EU accession.  To that end, the inclusion of a Serbian as vice prime minister in the new government (as of 2008) was viewed as a positive development.

Human Development Index (HDI) Rank:

44th out of 177

Note: Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite index that measures the level of well-being of nations in the world. It uses factors such as poverty, literacy, life-expectancy, education, gross domestic product, and purchasing power parity to assess the average achievements in each nation. It has been used in the United Nation’s Human Development Report since 1993.