Thousands of Croats demand Tito Square be renamed
11/02/2008
ZAGREB, Croatia -- An estimated 2,000 people gathered in Zagreb on Saturday (February 9th) to demand that the central Marshall Tito Square be renamed. The demonstrators chanted slogans branding the former Yugoslav leader a killer and called for the name of the square to be changed back to Theatre Square, as it was called before World War II. At the same time, about 200 supporters of Tito held a counterdemonstration.
In a radio statement, President Stipe Mesic criticised the initiative to change the name of the square. "The problem is not with Tito. The problem is with some circles that are nostalgic for the times of the pro-Nazi Croatian regime," he said. (Vecernji List - 11/02/08; AFP, DPA, HRT - 09/02/08)