(22 Jan 2012) SHOTLIST
1. Wide of Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic walking into a polling station in Zagreb accompanied by his wife
2. Various of Milanovic having his ID card checked inside polling station
3. Mid of people voting, Milanovic in background
4. Milanovic filling out ballot, walking to ballot box and voting
5. SOUNDBITE: (Croatian) Zoran Milanovic, Croatian Prime Minister:
"We are joining the European Union. We will take part in decision making. We are not a big (country), but we are not insignificant either. We must be self-conscious; it is the self-consciousness we are talking about all the time, self-respect instead of arrogance, self-consciousness."
6. Milanovic walking away with wife
7. Croatian President Ivo Josipovic walking into polling station accompanied by his wife, hands over his ID card to be checked
8. Josipovic filling out ballot behind screen
9. Josipovic casting vote, shaking hands with election officials and walking away
10. SOUNDBITE: (English) Ivo Josipovic, Croatian President:
"It is a big moment in our history, very important moment in our history. We are changing our attitude and joining the most successful countries in European."
11. Wide of Josipovic talking to journalists
12. SOUNDBITE: (English) Ivo Josipovic, Croatian President:
"I expect we are going to say 'yes' for EU membership and then continue our development."
13. Josipovic walks away
STORYLINE
Croatians voted on Sunday in a nationwide referendum on whether to join the European Union - a test of how much the debt-stricken 27-nation bloc has lost its appeal among potential new members.
Several pre-vote surveys suggest that between 56 and 60 percent of those who take part in the vote will answer "yes" to the question: "Do you support the membership of the Republic of Croatia in the European Union?"
Those who support the EU say their Balkan country's troubled economy - burdened by recession, a 48 (b) billion euro (61-billion US dollars) foreign debt and a 17 percent unemployment rate - will revive due to access to wider European markets and job opportunities that the membership should bring.
"It's a very important moment in our history. We are changing our attitude and joining the most successful countries in European," Croatia's President Ivo Josipovic said after casting his ballot, adding that he expects a "Yes" vote in the referendum.
After casting his ballot, Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic told reporters: "We are joining the European Union. We will take part in decision making."
Opponents say Croatia has nothing to gain by entering the bloc, which is fighting off the bankruptcy of some of its members. They say that Croatia will only lose its sovereignty and the national identity it fought for in a civil war for independence from Yugoslavia in the 1990s.
Croatia signed an EU accession treaty last year and is on track to become a member in July 2013, if Croat voters say yes and all of the bloc's states later ratify the deal.
The Balkan nation started negotiating its EU entry six years ago, but since then the popularity of the bloc has faded, as Croats realise that EU membership would not automatically lead to prosperity.
In a sign of deep divisions in Croatia over the membership, police clashed Saturday in downtown Zagreb with a group of nationalist protesters who attempted to take down an EU flag.
Croatian officials, who have launched a pro-EU campaign ahead of the referendum, warned that a "no" vote would deprive the country of the much-needed accession funds, and that even the payment of pensions for retirees and war veterans could be in jeopardy.
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