Serbian Cyrillic alphabet

A new law to boost use of Cyrillic in Serbia is part of a trend under the ruling Progressives promoting the markers of Serbian national identity.

Serbian Ombudsman Sasa Jankovic has written to his Croatian counterpart Lora Vidovic propmpted by the decision of Vukovar in Croatia to ban bilingual signs.

The city authorities' decision concerns the use of Serbian Cyrillic - the alphabet of the town's Serb minority.

The Council of Europe (CoE) has expressed regret over the decision by Vukovar City Council to change the city's statute and ban the use of bilingual signs.

These signs are written in both Croatian Latin and Serbian Cyrillic scripts and placed on public institutions, squares and streets.

The Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs late on Monday sent the strongest protest to Croatia over the decision of the town of Vukovar to change its statute.

Five people were arrested after war veterans tore down bilingual signs in Croatian Latin and Serbian Cyrillic script in the latest unrest over the language issue in the wartime flashpoint town.

ZAGREB - Croatia will not hold a referendum on the official use of the Serbian Cyrillic alphabet after the country's constitutional court ruled the proposed referendum question as unconstitutional.

The Constitutional Court made the ruling on Monday after the parliament requested that the constitutionality of the announced referendum be assessed.

The authorities confirmed that a petition for a referendum to end official use of Serbian Cyrillic script in parts of Croatia has over 526,000 signatures – enough to trigger a vote.

The head of a group campaigning against the official introduction of Serbian Cyrillic script in Vukovar was convicted of ordering the destruction of bilingual signs in the wartime flashpoint town.

Croatian war veterans, who want a referendum to limit minority rights and end official use of Serbian Cyrillic script in parts of Croatia, accuse the government of ignoring their initiative.

BRUSSELS/ZAGREB - Croatia's Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic said on Friday that the Croatian parliament (Sabor) should make a decision on the initiative to call a referendum on the use of the Serbian Cyrillic script in this country.