The weekend saw the opening of a new synagogue for Croatia’s small Jewish community. The city can now boast two places of worship for Jews, something of a small miracle given the events of the Second World War which saw the Nazi aligned country attempt to follow the same policy as the German Reich. Most impressively, big name guests joined in the ceremony including Croatian President Stipe Mesic and Zagreb’s eclectic Mayor Milan Bandic.

This is all a far cry from the days of Mesic’s predecessor, Croatia’s first President Franjo Tudman who once said “I am very happy that my wife is neither Serbian nor Jewish” in relation to his credentials as a Croatian patriot. The plight of Croatia’s Jews for a long time been forgotten at the expense of the country’s Serb’s who also experienced genocide against them but were a more prominent case because of their higher number and vocal Serbian motherland across the Danube. In the 19th Century, Zagreb had a very Jewish feel to it as a city of merchants, a testament to this being the older sections of the town’s famous Mirogoj cemetery where one can see Hebrew script in all directions.

The 2001 Croatian census shows that Jews make up 0.01% of the population, the majority of whom are centred on Zagreb. It is estimated that prior to the outbreak of World War Two their were 23,000 Jews in Croatia, the majority of whom could trace themselves back to arrivals from Spain in the 15th Century and later from Hapsburg controlled lands in the 18th Century. Life for the religious community was never easy though, for example until 1859 Jews were not legally allowed to purchase property. Once full legal equality was achieved in 1873 the population grew rapidly, Osijek being another popular place to settle. The worst period for Croatia’s Jews came during the Second World War when they were interned alongside Serbs, Roma and others who did not support the Ustasa regime of Ante Pavelic. The overwhelming majority perished in camps like Jasenovac and Pag with a small number surviving by joining Tito’s Partisan forces.

The opening of a new synagogue, built on the site of one which had been destroyed by the Ustasa, offers a chance for both Croatia’s Jews and non-Jews to look forward. While only 500 people identified as being Jewish in the last census it is known that the number is in fact closer to 1,500 as many people are still Jewish in tradition but have been “Hrvaticised” due to the lack of community resources over the previous 60 years. Croatia is not always the most tolerant country towards ethnic and religious minorities but the participation of key government faces this weekend shows that a lot of positive ground has been covered since the days of Franjo Tudman.

Croatian Jewish Community
SEE Times article on synagogue
Croatia Press article on synagogue