Dobroslav Paraga
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Dobroslav Paraga (born December 9, 1960 in Zagreb, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia) is a Croatian right-wing politician.
In his early days Dobroslav Paraga used to advocate secession of Croatia from Yugoslavia and that led him to be persecuted by the Communist authorities. Paraga used that persecution as an argument against Yugoslavia and its low human rights standards. Because of that he became one of the best known dissidents.
When a multi-party system was established in Croatia, Paraga initially joined the Croatian Democratic Union of Franjo Tuđman. However, involvement with the party clearly indicated that there was variation in sentiment among its members. Paraga had felt that his CDU did not appear to be the radical party which he had expected, and so the party split. Paraga, and a delegation of CDU dissidents, reformed the Croatian Party of Rights (HSP).
While Tuđman saw the Croatian path of independence through negotiations with Slobodan Milošević, Paraga formed the growing chorus of those who preferred direct and resolute military action against Krajina Serbs and Yugoslav People's Army. Because of that, his party formed its own militia, the Croatian Defence Forces (Croatian: Hrvatske obrambene snage, HOS).Paraga himself advocated the creation of a Croatia that would include Bosnia and Herzegovina and certain sections of today's Serbia and Montenegro.
Paraga's growing popularity, together with his militia, began to look like a serious threat to the Croatian government. Reaction came in the form of arrests, indictments and all kinds of intimidation towards HSP and HOS members, even stretching to assassinations of HSP members in mysterious circumstances. This campaign gradually subsided, with HOS units formally joining the Croatian Army and the escalation of war in neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Paraga and the HSP had high hopes of becoming the major political factor before the 1992 presidential and parliamentary elections, but those hopes, despite of the HSP colourful rallies being well-attended, did not materialise. The HSP did enter the Croatian Parliament and Paraga came fourth among presidential candidates, but it was clear that the party was far from its target. Another blow came in the form of high treason charges against Paraga and his associate Anto Đapić, who were stripped of their parliamentary immunity.
Those charges were ultimately dropped, but the most serious blow for Paraga came when Đapić turned against him and took over the leadership of the the HSP at the 1993 party convention in Kutina. Paraga accused Đapić of being in cahoots with Tuđman and tried to retrieve party leadership in court.
This effort ultimately failed, leading to a second split involving Paraga and fellow party members. Paraga then founded a new party called Croatian Party of Rights 1861, claiming to be the true descendent of the 19th century party in Austria-Hungary.
