The first countrywide gathering of Brazilians of Croatian ancestry was staged at the Croatia Sacra Paulistana centre in São Paulo, gathering over a hundred people from the Brazilian federal states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Parana, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul
The first countrywide gathering of Brazil’s ethnic Croatians was staged on 23 and 24 November by São Paulo-based organisation Croatia Sacra Paulistana. The congress event aims to bring together people of Croatian ancestry resident in all the federal states of Brazil, the fifth largest country in the world.
There are some one hundred thousand people of Croatian ancestry here, immigrants and their descendants scattered across Brazil, South America’s largest country both by population and size. Many live several thousand kilometres from São Paulo, the “capital city” for Brazilians of Croatian extraction, which makes taking part in the activities of the Croatia Sacra Paulistana civic centre and the Friends of Dalmatia association no easy feat.
With the objective of bringing together all the people of Croatian heritage residing in other cities and federal states in Brazil, the fifth largest country in the world, this first nationwide congress event was staged on 23 and 24 November, broadening and deepening the scope of the Croatian culture week event that has been staged at the Croatia Sacra Paulistana civic centre since 2014 under the auspices of Croatia’s Central State Office for Croats Abroad. Over a hundred people from the federal states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Parana, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul took part in a weekend of activities and fascinating presentations at the Croatia Sacra Paulistana centre. Also taking part was Gordana Prelčec Sermek, a representative of our embassy in Brasilia.
The congress kicked off with a recital by Dubravka Sidonije Šuto of Drago Ivanišević’s poem Hrvatska (“Croatia”) in the Croatian original and a Portuguese translation, followed by a presentation of the history of these two associations, first the Croatia Sacra Paulistana by its current president Tomislav Correia-Deur, and then the Friends of Dalmatia association, presented by culture professional and writer Katija Gavranich Camargo. Both presenters told of the history and specific work of the centres they run with the objective of raising awareness of what they do and of bringing them closer together in the future, which is one of the core objectives of this culture event.
The event is the brainchild of professor Milan Puh, the following speaker, who spoke of the people of Croatian extraction in Brazil from a more generalised perspective, outlining the broad results of a research project that ran from 2015 to 2018 and that looked into the history of Croatian immigration into Brazil. The project produced four publications available in Croatian and Portuguese. This round of lectures closed with the announcement of a new project to create a network of men and women of Croatian extraction in Brazil, also spearheaded by Puh and backed by the State Office for Croats Abroad. This latest project would aim to map and strengthen the ethnic Croatian presence in the country and improve links among these people.
A short reception break was followed by more presentations, now targeted at the diplomatic relations between Croatia and Brazil, described from the current perspective by Gordana Prelčec Sermek, the minister plenipotentiary at our embassy in Brasilia, who focused on the political and business relations between the two countries. She was followed by Vanessa Matijaščić, an international relations researcher, who spoke of the historical perspective of bilateral relations between Croatia and Brazil. She also mentioned some of the chief points of contact, but also spoke of the challenges that existed and that contributed to the relatively great gap between the people of Croatian extraction in Brazil and the ancestral homeland.
On Sunday the congress featured speaker Miroslav Deur, the owner of a religious tourism agency. Deur was followed by another appearance by Gordana Prelčec Sarmek, who gave a brief presentation on changes in the Croatian Citizenship Act. The morning section was wrapped up by Dubravka Sidonija Šuto, who has been active for many years in bodies representing ethnic Croatians abroad, with a presentation of institutions that could be of interest to people looking to strengthen ties with the ancestral homeland, and perhaps even relocate to Croatia.
The lunch break featured ćevapčići (minced meat rolls) with vegetables and traditional deserts and closed with a performance by the Frana band and the Jadran folklore ensemble.
The second set of lectures was dedicated to culture topics, language and other identity issues. Tomislav Correia-Deur presented his view of what is significant to Croatians. Maja Kvaternik Fernandes Leite spoke of why the Croatian language is important to our identity and stability in both the homeland and abroad. The congress wrapped up with Ms Sidonija Šuto providing basic information on where Croatian can be learned and the prerequisites for candidates looking to start and continue their (language) education in Croatia.
The two-day event saw a great turnout and was lauded by those who travelled far to get a little bit closer to Croatia. The discussions, lectures and contacts have already spawned new ideas and opportunities. This includes an embroidery club for all those interested in Croatian embroidery techniques and in renewing this tradition among youth.
Text and photography: Milan Puh
Lead
The first countrywide gathering of Brazilians of Croatian ancestry was staged at the Croatia Sacra Paulistana centre in São Paulo, gathering over a hundred people from the Brazilian federal states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Parana, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul