Croatian sporting clubs with fascist links promised millions in public money

Governments in Victoria, South Australia and ACT have pledged grants worth $2 million-plus to clubs that display fascist symbols and commemorate anniversaries linked to the Ustasha.

Governments in Victoria, South Australia and the ACT have in the past year pledged grants to Croatian clubs that display pictures of Ustasha dictator Ante Pavelic on their walls and celebrate the anniversary of the creation of the puppet state.

The regime is estimated to have killed half a million people, including Serbs, Jews and Romani people, and is widely regarded as having committed genocide.

An investigation by this masthead published last month detailed how some key Croatian institutions in Victoria and NSW commemorate the regime, prompting condemnation from the Croatian ambassador to Australia, Betty Pavelich, and leading Jewish groups. It also sparked strong interest from the Balkans and the investigation has since been translated and reproduced or referenced on at least 10 news sites in Croatia, Serbia and Bosnia.

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Croatian sporting clubs with fascist links promised millions in public money (SMH)
State governments have pledged grants worth more than $2 million to Croatian clubs that openly display fascist symbols and commemorate anniversaries linked to the Nazi-backed Ustasha regime of WWII.

Photo: South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas pledging $1.5 million to the Adelaide Croatian Sports Centre in May (Facebook)