
Croatia Govt Lashed Over 'Disgraceful Neo-fascist Woodstock'
Marko Perkovic, known by his stage name Thompson, drew nearly half a million fans to the show Saturday despite having been banned from performing in several countries because of his sympathies for Croatia's World War II fascist Ustasha regime.
The Ustasha persecuted and killed hundreds of thousands of Serbs, Jews, Roma and anti-fascist Croatians during the war, and sent others to concentration camps.
The folk-rock icon became popular for his nationalist songs in the 1990s during the country's war of independence as Yugoslavia broke up.
During Saturday's concert at the Zagreb hippodrome Thompson sang one of his most famous songs that starts with the illegal Ustasha salute -- "Za Dom, Spremni" ("For the Homeland, Ready") -- and the crowd responded.
The salute was also used by the far-right paramilitary unit HOS during the 1990s war, and the singer argued earlier the song referred to that war.
Many fans at the show were dressed in black T-shirts emblazoned with the slogan and dozens sang pro-Ustasha songs in central Zagreb on the eve of the event.
Conservative Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic attended the rehearsal and had a photo taken with the singer, while parliamentary speaker Gordan Jandrokovic was at the event.
The massive use of the Ustasha symbols and slogan at the concert was slammed by left-wing opposition, NGOs and the EU nation's ombudswoman.
But Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic said he "cannot understand those who try to portray half a million people as extremists or radicals".
The main opposition Social Democrats said "we witnessed a global disgrace in which extremist messages received state logistics and direct support from the top of the government."
And a columnist in the Jutarnji list daily lashed Plenkovic's visit on the eve of the concert as "coming to worship... a neo-fascist Woodstock".
The Youth Initiative for Human Rights NGO called the event "the largest fascist rally held in Europe since World War II" and said it represented a "direct attack on the fundamental values of the European Union."
Ombudswoman Tena Simonovic Einwalter warned about condoning a large crowd using the Ustasha salute "as if it were something acceptable and legal.
"A sufficiently clear message was not sent that all expressions of hatred and glorification of the darkest periods of the past are unacceptable and illegal."
In recent years, more people have been pushing for Croatia to stop demonising and embrace its pro-Nazi past, presenting the Ustasha as the nation's founding fathers, with critics accusing the authorities of failing to sanction the use of their emblems. Some fans gave the banned Ustasha salute during and before the concert AFP Controversial: Croatia's nationalist singer Marko Perkovic Thompson AFP
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


DW
an hour ago
- DW
South Korea's ex-President Yoon detained again – DW – 07/10/2025
Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is back in a solitary cell after a court approved a new arrest warrant. He is facing an investigation over his declaration of martial law last year. South Korea's disgraced ex-President Yoon Suk-yeol returned to prison on Thursday as prosecutors investigate accusations of insurrection after he declared martial law last December. He is being held in a solitary cell at the Seoul Detention Center, where he spent 52 days earlier in the year before his release four months ago on technical grounds. The Seoul Central District Court said it approved a second warrant because of concerns Yoon could seek to destroy evidence. Yoon triggered months of political turmoil in South Korea after declaring martial law in early December, and then sending armed soldiers to parliament in attempt to stop lawmakers from voting down his decree. He has also faced accusations that he authorized drone flights to the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, to help justify his declaration, as well as of falsifying official documents relating to it. Yoon, 64, has said his decision to declare martial law was necessary to "root out" pro-North Korean and "anti-state" forces. But the Constitutional Court, which confirmed Yoon's impeachment on April 4, said his acts were a "betrayal of people's trust" and "denial of the principles of democracy." In January, he was detained in a dawn raid after weeks of resisting arrest, becoming the country's first sitting president to be taken into custody, but was released on procedural grounds in March. His present detention comes after he on Wednesday attended a warrant hearing that lasted about seven hours during which he rejected all charges. At the hearing, Yoon's legal team described the detention request by prosecutors as unreasonable and claimed that the ex-leader "no longer holds any authority" after his impeachment. Yoon faces criminal charges of insurrection over his martial law decree, which could carry a sentence of life in prison or death. Although South Korea still has capital punishment on the books, it has had a de facto moratorium on executions since 1998. At the same time, several dozen people are still technically on death row.


Int'l Business Times
an hour ago
- Int'l Business Times
Russian Strikes On Kyiv Kill At Least Two
Russian drone and missile strikes on Ukraine's capital Kyiv killed at least two people, Ukrainian authorities said Thursday, with around a dozen wounded. The major attack on Ukraine was the second by Moscow in as many days, and came as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was set to meet his US counterpart Marco Rubio in Malaysia. AFP journalists in Kyiv heard loud blasts echoing over the city throughout the night and saw flashes from the air defence system lighting up the sky. "The enemy's massive night attack on Kyiv region lasted for almost 10 hours," Mykola Kalashnyk, the Kyiv region's military administration chief, wrote on Telegram. "The enemy used strike drones and missiles against peaceful settlements." Tymur Tkachenko, head of the capital's military administration, said two people were killed in the Russian attack. He earlier said 13 people were wounded. Dozens of residents of the capital took shelter overnight in a central metro station, an AFP reporter said, sleeping on mats, calming pets and waiting out the attack on camping furniture. The Kyiv city military administration had warned of a "threat of enemy use of ballistic weapons", and Ukraine's air force said "a group of missiles" had approached Kyiv from the east. Ukraine's air alert warning was lifted later Thursday morning. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said falling debris sparked fires at buildings in the capital districts of Solomyansky and Shevchenkivsky. In another district, Darnytsky, falling drone debris caused fires at garages and a gas station. Three people were also wounded in Russian strikes in southern Kherson, according to the region's military administration. The latest Russian assault comes a day after Moscow pummelled Ukraine with its largest missile and drone attack in more than three years of war, killing at least one civilian. Russia's record barrage points to a trend of escalating attacks that have piled pressure on Ukraine's thinly stretched air defences and exhausted the civilian population. Two rounds of direct talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations this year have increased prisoner exchanges but made no progress on securing a ceasefire, proposed by the United States and Ukraine. Washington's top diplomat, Rubio, will meet his Russian counterpart in Kuala Lumpur on the sidelines of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting, a senior State Department official said. Their meeting follows Donald Trump's recent expletive-filled comments about Vladimir Putin -- reflecting the US president's growing frustration with the Russian leader over the grinding war. Trump accused Putin of talking "bullshit" about Ukraine, adding that the United States would send Kyiv more weapons to defend itself. Rubio and Lavrov last met in person in February in Saudi Arabia, following a rapprochement between Trump and Putin. The two diplomats have also spoken multiple times by phone. Also on Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will join a call with leaders from around 30 countries in the "coalition of the willing" on Ukraine. Britain and France are spearheading talks among the coalition on how to support a possible ceasefire in Ukraine, including potentially deploying peacekeeping forces. The office of UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said this week that the call would cover "stepping up support for Ukraine and further increasing pressure on Russia".


Int'l Business Times
2 hours ago
- Int'l Business Times
'Hippo Birthday': Thailand's Moo Deng Marks One Year Old
Thailand's pygmy hippo Moo Deng marked her first birthday on Thursday, leaving behind the animal infancy which boosted her to worldwide internet fame for her cute antics. Crowds have been invited to a four-day festival at Khao Kheow Open Zoo where Moo Deng -- meaning "Bouncy Pork" in Thai -- frolicked to stardom and amassed five million social media fans. The first day of the extravaganza falls on a Thai public holiday and the agenda includes a lecture on "Moo Deng's cheekiness" while a skincare beautician has paid $3,000 to sponsor her fruit-festooned cake. Her handlers are also scheduled to auction off her belongings -- but it is unclear what possessions Moo Deng has accumulated in her short life at the Chonburi province zoo a two-hour drive from Bangkok. There were hopes her stardom would spotlight the plight of the endangered pygmy hippo, native to West Africa with only around 2,500 left alive according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. But social media and search engine metrics suggest Moo Deng's popularity peaked around late September last year before dramatically declining. "Moo Deng went viral very quickly when she was born," said Joshua Paul Dale, an academic who teaches courses on the phenomenon of "cuteness" at Japan's Chuo University. "Maybe part of our appreciation of cuteness is knowing that it's something that doesn't last very long," he told AFP. Moo Deng's blubbery rose-blushed face launched a thousand memes and a plethora of merchandise including piggy banks, party shirts and popsicles -- prompting her owners to trademark her likeness. The pint-sized pachyderm quadrupled ticket sales for the zoo where her small and sparse enclosure was once broadcasted by a 24/7 livestream. Moo Deng is part of a pantheon of captive animals who have enjoyed flash-in-the-pan popularity for their cuteness online, including Australia's Pesto the penguin and China's Hua Hua the panda. Pygmy hippos have a lifespan of between 30 and 50 years. While academic Dale predicts she may lose the limelight to longevity, he says Moo Deng could enjoy enduring appeal as fans recall "how unbearably cute she was when she was very, very small and just born". "That can kind of continue on and affect our relationship with cute things, even when they grow up," he said.