Brussels,

To the representatives of the European Union,

The European Union presents itself as a community founded upon the rule of law, the protection of minorities, and the universality of human rights. These principles are repeatedly affirmed as the moral core of the European project. Yet when it comes to transitional justice in Croatia — particularly regarding crimes committed against Serbian civilians in the 1990s — a troubling inconsistency remains.

Croatia joined the European Union in 2013 after formally meeting the accession criteria. Negotiation chapters were closed, progress reports approved, institutions praised. But justice cannot be reduced to closed chapters or technical benchmarks. It requires consistency, equal accountability, and a willingness to confront uncomfortable truths.

With the conclusion of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, the international community symbolically closed a chapter of history. However, institutional closure is not the same as moral completion. A number of cases involving crimes against Serbian civilians were marked by prolonged proceedings, contested verdicts, or the absence of meaningful criminal accountability.

In this context, one must ask: did the European Union apply sufficient pressure to ensure substantive justice, or was formal compliance deemed sufficient? Regional stability is a legitimate objective, but stability cannot replace accountability. When political expediency outweighs equal justice, the credibility of European values is weakened.

The Union’s authority rests on the universality of its principles. If the protection of fundamental rights depends on geopolitical convenience, those principles cease to be universal. Justice that adapts to political context risks becoming selective — and selective justice undermines trust.

This letter does not seek to reopen wounds nor to challenge the sovereignty of a Member State. It calls instead for coherence. Equal treatment of all victims before the law is not a political preference; it is the minimum condition for durable reconciliation.

The European Union has both the moral and political responsibility to ensure that all Member States pursue crimes without ambiguity — regardless of the identity of victims or perpetrators. Without such consistency, Europe risks becoming administratively efficient yet morally fragile.

Respectfully

Dinja

Open Letter to the institutions of the European Union