Croatia

Demographics

Estimated Total Population:

4.067 million

World Bank, 2019

Estimated SGM Population:

N/A

N/A

Estimated Total SGM Adult Population:

N/A

N/A

Estimated % of SGM Adults (18+):

N/A

N/A

Compared to its neighboring country Serbia, Croatia has more acceptance and tolerance for sexual and gender minorities. After the end of its dictatorship and the breakup of Yugoslavia, Croatia gained a more European identity and adopted some Western European attitudes towards sexual and gender minorities, which is why the LGBTQIA+ community has some legal protections (Swimelar, 2019). However, 52% of the population is non-accepting towards SGMs, and there is a generally negative outlook on this community due to Croatia’s largely Catholic population (Skoggvist, 2013). This non-acceptance is especially prevalent within an SGM’s own family (Swimelar, 2019).

Croatia's Laws and Policies from ILGA World Report (2019)

RECOGNITION
Marriage for Same-Sex Couples
No
Civil Unions
Yes
Joint Adoption
No
Second Parent Adoption
No
PROTECTION
Employment Nondiscrimination Laws
Yes
Broad Protections
Yes
Criminalization of Violence
Yes
Ban of Conversion Therapy
No
CRIMINALIZATION
Consensual Same-Sex Acts are Legal?
Yes
Gender
Does not Apply
Max Penalty (Yrs in Prison)
Does Not Apply

Selected Published Studies, Reports, and Other Documents

Kahlina, K. (2015, March). Local histories, European LGBT designs: Sexual citizenship, nationalism, and “Europeanisation” in post-Yugoslav Croatia and Serbia. InWomen's Studies International Forum(Vol. 49, pp. 73-83). Pergamon.  https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277539514001204?casa_token=kJ2k9uqTgIwAAAAA:ZaxJkaykA18b2cLY2s5z11zel8VI239BdFIorey4VP5SdONAlE93XELloal9e9Fw5RNnj0zriw

Marušić, A., & Bilić, B. (2016). Nowhere at home: Homelessness, non-heterosexuality, and LGBT activism in Croatia. InIntersectionality and LGBT Activist Politics(pp. 129-154). Palgrave Macmillan, London. http://www.academia.edu/download/54749797/Intersectionality-and-LGBT-Activist-Politics_BILIC___KAJINIC_Eds.pdf#page=144

Swimelar, S. (2019). Nationalism and Europeanization in LGBT Rights and Politics: A Comparative Study of Croatia and Serbia.East European Politics and Societies,33(3), 603-630. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0888325418805135?casa_token=yF4mFJitbfkAAAAA:wxF0ccLfbYr6aEhfsnYxm8lfiE1loWI9zXcZE-PijGVgmq2wHMd9yt2GxqK_g__cfqemWaaPvmMHHQ

Skogqvist, B. (2013).Pride and Prejudice A comparative case study on party response to LGBT-rights in Serbia and Croatia(Master's thesis). http://hdl.handle.net/2077/34078

Vasilev, G. (2016). LGBT recognition in EU accession states: How identification with Europe enhances the transformative power of discourse.Review of International Studies, 42(4), 748.doi:10.1017/S0260210515000522