Crisis management in the Republic of Croatia

Abstract

In Croatia, the mission, set of goals and general issues of crisis management are still not complete, and to a sufficient extent, defined by appropriate legal solutions, regulations and strategic documents. Therefore, access to this vital area of safety issues is still divided into certain areas depending on the type of crisis or threat. The necessity of establishing a comprehensive and unified system to manage crises was recognized over fifteen years ago, and a series of discussions have been held on the issue, as well as the issue of developing the concept of a crisis management system. Despite these efforts, there have been no significant results. The issue was approached in 2004 by passing the Law on Protection and Rescue and the establishment of the State Protection and Rescue Administration (DUZS), and again in 2005 by passing a new Civil Protection Law. However, the civil protection system covers only a part of an integrated crisis management system at the national level, such as protection and rescue, disaster, and major accident management. The normative framework of the Republic of Croatia, even after Croatia entered the EU and adopted its acquis communautaire, is marked by the lack of comprehensive solutions regarding the definition of national crises and the establishment of a crisis management system.

Keywords

• crisis management
• normative framework
• civil protection system