Croatia's first five years of postcommunist rule (1990–95) were marked by trends that may be viewed as both promising and inauspicious. Thus, for many Croatian citizens and leaders it was an exhilarating period filled with achievements: jettisoning a one-party communist regime, holding competitive elections, obtaining statehood and international recognition, embarking on a transformation of the economy. For many others, however, the same years were characterized by dashed hopes, societal deterioration, and repressive regime policies as Croatia experienced a tumultuous secession from the former Yugoslav socialist federation (including warfare, severe economic disruption, interethnic polarization, and territorial fragmentation).

On balance, postcommunist Croatia has exhibited important aspects of both incipient democratization and residual authoritarianism. Croatia represents a classic example of how self-determination and state formation by an ethnic group seeking freedom may generate new communal violence, socioeconomic dislocation, and illiberal tendencies that can seriously jeopardize the democratic prospects of the newly “liberated” state.