ZAGREB, April 8, 2018 – About 40 members of the far-right Autochthonous Croatian Party of Rights (AHSP) and its armed wing, the Croatian Patriotic Forces Club, lined up in Zagreb’s main square Ban Jelačić Square on Sunday, swearing allegiance to the country and expressing support for US President Donald Trump.
Swearing the oath of allegiance before AHSP leader Dražen Keleminec, the party’s members committed to protecting Croatia’s social and national interests, the Catholic Church, the national coat of arms, flag and anthem, and the country’s monetary sovereignty.
They said they would put a stop to the emigration of young people, the internal aggression on Croatia, anti-Croatian organisations, the demonisation of Croatia, the Greater Serbia policy in Croatia, foreclosures and freezing of accounts, GMO food, communism, and the Istanbul Convention. They also vowed to take Croatia out of the European Union and cut income tax.
The swearing-in ceremony concluded with the Ustasha-era salute “For the homeland ready!”
Keleminec said that the AHSP supported the state-building policy of US President Donald Trump because he was defending the interests of his country. “The Republicans have always been for Croatia and the Democrats for Yugoslavia,” he said.
Keleminec called on the prime minister, the president of the republic, the minister of finance and Serb MP Milorad Pupovac, whom he described as the actual ruler of Croatia, to stop destroying the country. He expressed support for the Catholic Church, saying that Croatia was not a secular but a Catholic state.
The AHSP members marched to Ban Jelačić Square in military formation, carrying a picture of Ante Starčević, a 19th century politician known as the Father of the Nation, a Croatian flag without state symbols, a party flag and a crossed-out EU flag.
They were encountered by a group of 20 protesters from the Workers’ Front who were carrying a banner saying “Stop Ustashism!”, a Croatian flag and a Social Democratic Party flag.
The march was held under the watchful eye of police.
