Protecting human rights: a complex story of the democratisation of the Croatian police

This paper explores the evolution of the protection of human rights in light of democratisation of the Croatian police. The story of democratisation of the Croatian police and their protection of human rights is particularly complex because of the war and its consequences. Using the grounded theory approach, the paper builds an argument that, because of the Croatian police are a part of the society at large, the way in which the police have dealt with human rights has been heavily dependent upon the larger social, political, and economic conditions, created both by domestic and international actors. The paper traces the police adherence to the protection of human rights across three distinct time periods.