ZAGREB, July 2, 2020 - The Electoral Commission (DIP) said on Thursday that the restriction on voting for people infected with the coronavirus was imposed under the law and served the legitimate purpose of protecting public health from an infectious disease. 

"The restriction is appropriate to achieving this goal, and the Electoral Commission's opinion is that it is also necessary," DIP said in a response to GONG, a non-governmental election monitoring organisation that questioned its decision that voters infected with the novel COVID-19 coronavirus would not be allowed to vote in the July 5 parliamentary election.

"Any other, more lenient measure to achieve this goal would put the citizens' health at risk. In this case, we do not think that one can speak of a lower or higher level of damage to the citizens," the Electoral Commission said.

GONG had asked DIP to explain how its decision complied with fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution and the Convention on Human Rights.

"Fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution and the Convention may be restricted, but under strict conditions, as follows: a restriction must be explicit and clearly defined by law; it must serve a legitimate purpose; it must be appropriate and necessary for achieving such purpose; and there must not be any other more lenient measures in place, with a lower level of damage to the citizens, to achieve this purpose," GONG said.

Citing the law on protecting public health from infectious diseases, DIP said that voters diagnosed with COVID-19 would not be able to vote because they were ordered to self-isolate, which means that they are not allowed to come into contact with other persons, including members of polling committees.  It said that face masks and protective gloves could not provide sufficient protection for members of polling committees. 

ZAGREB, July 2 (Hina) - The Croatian and Polish ministries of culture signed a cooperation programme for 2020-2023 in Krakow on Wednesday, the Croatian ministry said in a statement.

The programme promotes cultural exchanges and cooperation between artists and cultural and artistic institutions and organisations as well as forms of direct cooperation between cultural institutions of mutual interest, the statement said.

It also promotes direct cooperation between galleries, museums, and other professional institutions in the field of museology, cooperation in performing arts, cultural heritage, literature and publishing, and the existing high-level cooperation between the two countries' audiovisual communities.

The signing ceremony was accompanied by the presentation of the book "Croatia - History, Culture, Ideas" by Professor Maciej Czerwinski of the Jagiellonian University.

As part of the cooperation between the two countries, an exhibition of works by Croatian painter and graphic designer Boris Bucan will open at the International Cultural Centre in Krakow on July 2.

ZAGREB, July 2, 2020 - The world’s tourism sector could lose at least $1.2 trillion, or 1.5% of the global GDP, due to a standstill of nearly four months caused by the coronavirus pandemic, UNCTAD says in its latest report, and Croatia is among the countries whose GDP might suffer the most from tourism losses.

In the report, published on 1 July, the UN body on trade and development addresses the economic fallout of the global COVID-19 pandemic, estimating losses in three scenarios, depending on the duration of the break-in international tourism - of four, eight and 12 months.

The loss could rise to $2.2 trillion or 2.8% of the world’s GDP if the break-in international tourism lasts for eight months, while in the most pessimistic scenario, a 12-month break, it could reach $3.3 trillion or 4.2% of global GDP, UNCTAD estimates.

"Tourism is a backbone of many countries’ economies and a lifeline for millions of people around the world, having more than tripled in value from $490 billion to $1.6 trillion in the last 20 years," the report says, citing UNWTO data. "But COVID-19 has brought it to a halt, causing severe economic consequences globally," it adds.

Even as tourism slowly restarts in an increasing number of countries, it remains at a standstill in many nations. “For many countries, like the small island developing states, a collapse in tourism means a collapse in their development prospects," said UNCTAD's director of international trade, Pamela Coke-Hamilton.

Jamaica, Thailand and Croatia top three of 15 most affected countries

Analysing the impact of tourism losses on the industry's share in the national GDP, UNCTAD estimates that Jamaica and Thailand might lose 11% and 9% of GDP respectively.

According to UNCTAD's moderate estimates, Croatia could lose 8% of GDP, while Portugal could lose 6% and the Dominican Republic 5%.

The 15 most affected countries also include Kenya, Morocco, Greece, Mauritius, Senegal, Ireland, Egypt, South Africa, Malaysia and Spain.

UNCTAD warned that the tourism sector would also come under pressure in many rich countries, citing popular European and North American destinations, including France, Italy and the United States.

Impact on jobs and wages

UNCTAD estimates show that in the worst-affected countries, such as Thailand, Jamaica and Croatia, employment for unskilled workers could decrease at double-digit rates even in the most moderate scenario.

In the case of wages for skilled workers, the steepest drops could be seen in Thailand (-12%), Jamaica (-11%) and Croatia (-9%), in the optimistic case, doubling or tripling in the worst scenario.

The effects could be particularly negative for women, who are expected to be disproportionately affected by layoffs in tourism due to COVID-19, according to the report.

Women are more likely than men to be entrepreneurs in tourism and make up about 54% of the workers in the accommodation and food services sectors. And because many women in the sector work informally in low-skilled jobs, they are less likely to have unemployment benefits or other safety nets.

Governments urged to protect workers and support tourism recovery

"Coronavirus-induced losses in tourism have a knock-on effect on other economic sectors that supply the goods and services travellers seek while on vacation, such as food, beverages and entertainment," the report says.

UNCTAD called for strengthened social protection in the affected nations to prevent the worst economic hardship for people and communities that depend on tourism.

It urged governments to protect workers. "Where some enterprises are unlikely to recover, wage subsidies should be designed to help workers move to new industries," the report says.

"Governments should also assist tourism enterprises facing the risk of bankruptcy, such as hotels and airlines. One approach for financial relief is low-interest loans or grants," UNCTAD said.

The Zagreb earthquake which struck back in March this year caused a huge amount of disruption in the Croatian capital and the tram lines were far from immune to it. Thankfully, as of today, all of ZET's trams will be running as normal once again, operating along Zagreb's most famous street (Ilica) and passing Ban Jelacic Square, which wasn't possible for several months.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 2nd of July, 2020, all of ZET's tram lines will run according to the valid summer timetable as of today, the 2nd of July, 2020.

After the expert services performed detailed inspections and eliminated the dangers that threatened the lines after the earthquake, and the ZET teams checked the correctness of the tram tracks and the accompanying voltage network, the city's trams will begin running along Jurisiceva, Ilica, Praska and past Ban Jelacic Square again today, ZET reported.

''As of today, all of the tram lines that operated on the altered routes are returning to their usual routes,'' ZET's statement reads.

ZET reports that line 13 (Kvaternikov trg - Zitnjak) is returning to operations, while at the same time the extraordinary bus lines 608 (Trg zrtava fasizma - Vlaska - Kvaternikov trg) and 611 (Glavni kolodvor - Praska) will end.

The final works on the regular maintenance of the tram tracks in the central square are still in progress, but they will no longer affect the use of the tram lines in those areas, which was the case since the earthquake struck earlier this year.

"On this occasion, we once again call on passengers to abide by the Decision of the National Civil Protection Headquarters on the obligation to wear a medical mask or face mask when using public transport, and ZET will, as before, disinfect the vehicles three times a day and ventilate them to reduce the possibility of spreading the coronavirus infection,'' they state from ZET.

For more on public transport in Zagreb and beyond, follow our travel page.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 1st of July, 2020, Reuters (and TCN) writes that more than 30,000 tickets have been sold for the Prague-Rijeka train, and the line will run until September. They also note that the direct train line was cancelled two years ago because it wasn't profitable.

Reuters recently published an article about the arrival of thousands of Czechs who arrived to the Adriatic coast by train following a 15-hour ride.

Thousands of Czechs have bought train tickets to Croatia, Reuters writes in an article about the Czechs' arrival in Croatia, who, as this publication writes, arrived in Rijeka the ''old way''.

On Tuesday, the first Czechs headed to their holiday destination that has long been a favourite for that country. From July the 11th, 2020, the train will run every day and carry up to 560 passengers at a time who will be able to buy tickets in a sleeping or sitting car. The starting ticket price is just 24.95 euros.

"I've come this way by car several times... And this is a very comfortable option for me and even sort of an adventure. I like to think of it as a new way to see the sea," Jan Vrana told Reuters about travelling on the Prague-Rijeka line with his wife and son, N1 reports.

The Czechs also gravitated towards Croatia during the Cold War, when Croatia was part of Yugoslavia, according to Reuters. Reuters also writes that the Adriatic coast has traditionally been a favourite destination for Czech tourists who have been coming here since the early 20th century.

To briefly recall, the very first tourist train of the Czech company RegioJet arrived in Rijeka just after 10:00 yesterday. According to the company running the brand new Prague-Rijeka line, there were over 500 passengers on the train.

An official announcement on the arrival of Czech tourists was issued by the Croatian Tourist Board, and senior officials were present to receive the first train on the Prague-Rijeka line.

''The first train of the Czech carrier RegioJet, which will run from July to the end of August on the route Prague-Brno-Bratislava-Ljubljana-Rijeka, successfully arrived at the railway station in Rijeka together with more than 500 Czech, Slovak and Slovenian tourists who were part of of this premiere trip. The train was welcomed by a Croatian delegation led by CNTB Director Kristjan Stanicic, Tourism Minister Gari Cappelli, Rijeka Mayor Vojko Obersnel, CNTB Representation Director in Prague Dubravko Miholic and Rijeka Tourist Board Director Petar Skarp,'' the statement said.

"We're proud to be able to cooperate with RegioJet, which has recognised the importance of connecting the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and also Slovenia with Croatia, which enjoys the status of one of the most popular foreign tourist destinations for these markets. This railway route will significantly contribute to tourist flows between our countries, and this has been confirmed by the data on the sale of more than 30,000 tickets in the first ten days of it being on sale. At the moment, the Czech Republic is in an excellent third place in foreign markets from which we realise the largest tourist traffic, while Slovakia is in eighth place,'' said CNTB Director Kristjan Stanicic, adding that the announcement of this event was even published in The New York Times, which additionally drew more attention to Croatia.

For more on the Prague-Rijeka train and travel to Croatia in the coronavirus era, follow our travel page.

July 2, 2020 - The semifinal round of the Croatian Water Polo Championships kicked off on Wednesday in Dubrovnik and Zagreb. Jug met Solaris, while Mladost met Jadran. 

Dubrovnik's Jug AO and Zagreb's Mladost achieved victories in the first matches of the semifinals of the Croatian Championship on Wednesday, July 1, 2020.

The famous Dubrovnik side topped Solaris Sibenik 17-6 at the Gruz swimming pool, while Mladost was better than Jadran Split 13-12 at the Mladost outdoor swimming pool along the Sava.

Interestingly, Solaris took a 2-0 lead, but Jug equalized to 2-2 by the end of the first quarter, and then won the second and third quarters 10-2. The Dubrovnik side was convincing in the last period with 5-2, for the final score of 17-6.

Jug AO was led to victory by Obradovic, who scored six goals, and Fatovic, who scored three goals. Solaris, on the other hand, had six players who scored one goal each. The second match of this semifinal meeting will be played on Friday, July 3, in Sibenik.

In the second semifinal match on Wednesday, Jadran met Mladost in Zagreb. 

Mladost led 4-0 lead, and at the beginning of the last quarter, they were up by five goals (10-5). However, a rocky ending gave the Zagreb club a narrow victory. Jadran managed a score of 7-3 in the last quarter, threatening Mladost's secure celebration.

Mladost was led to victory by Cuk, who scored four goals, while Harkov scored three goals, and Milos and Bukic scored two goals each. Setka was the best for Jadran with four goals, and Krapic followed with three goals to be the most efficient among the visiting team.

The second semifinal match is on Saturday in Split.

Recall, two victories are needed in the semifinal round to secure a spot in the final. Thus, a third semifinal game is theoretically possible.

Source: HRT

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Bruno Lipej writes on the 1st of July, 2020, after two weeks, the director of the Croatian Institute of Public Health, Krunoslav Capak, has come out of self-isolation.

''I did my fifteen days of self-isolation. My contact that made us all need self-isolation amounted to fifteen days. Yesterday was my last day of self-isolation. I tested myself as soon as I found out I was in contact with a positive person and I was negative. I was tested again yesterday and I'm still negative. I had no symptoms and I worked all the time. None of that group of about twenty of us, including people working for the media, fell ill. We, the health professionals, have been tested and no one is positive,'' Capak said in conversation with Dnevnik Nova TV.

When asked if Croatia opened the borders with Bosnia and Herzegovina because of the elections which are due to take place this Sunday, he answered that he is in charge only of the epidemiological aspects.

"What I can say epidemiologically is that the increase in the number of cases in the last ten days have been imported from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Kosovo. The case in Djakovo is related to Kosovo. When we saw that this was the situation, we proposed epidemiologically that somewhat stricter measures be introduced at the borders, and one of the measures is self-isolation, which was introduced,'' explained Krunoslav Capak.

"It happened that this decision, which was changed today, was made in March, and then it was stated that it was valid until June the 30th. These measures were left when we changed them a few days ago, it was left valid until June the 30th, so we'll see. This coincided with the decisions of the European Commission, which is opening its borders to countries that are ''third countries''. So, not towards the countries of the European Union, but towards third countries,'' he added.

He believes that the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina is calming down, even though they have a lot of patients, but that it takes time.

"We think we've targeted who we need to test well, and that is if we suspect them, if they have respiratory symptoms or a fever or have had risky contact with a lot of other contacts, and then we resolve the epidemiological situation that way,'' he said in regard to Croatia's protocols for coronavirus testing.

What awaits us in the autumn?

"If the virus doesn't change or disappear in the meantime, in the autumn, when it gets cold and we all spend more time indoors, where the concentration of the virus is higher, it will certainly be easier to transmit the coronavirus infection. In addition, it will coincide with the season of other respiratory infections, including the flu. Then, we'll have a much more difficult situation on our hands than we have now. There will be a much higher number of infected people and it will be much harder because they'll interpolate with other respiratory infections, too,'' Krunoslav Capak warned.

"As far as vaccinations are concerned, we're taking measures to try to get the vaccine earlier this year than we were before, but we're a small country and a small client, so it's difficult to break in among the first places when delivering flu vaccines, but we're working intensively on it and hope that we will succeed,'' he added.

For more on coronavirus in Croatia, follow our dedicated section.

As Novac/Filip Pavic writes on the 30th of June, 2020, Mate Rimac, Croatian entrepreneur and the owner of the well known Rimac Automobili discussed investments and Croatia's apparent obsession with EU funds at a recent virtual forum.

''We’re all looking at this European bag of money and trying to grab a bit of it, and that’s a problem. I think we expect too much from EU funds and that we invest too much time and effort in withdrawing that money, instead of turning to building our own businesses and seeking private investment,'' said Mate Rimac at the first virtual "European Forum on artificial intelligence'' which was held on Tuesday.

The forum, organised by the Croatian Artificial Intelligence Association, Cro AI, on the last day of Croatia's EU presidency, in cooperation with partners KI Bundesverband from Germany and France HUB IA from France, addressed the recovery of the European economy with the use of innovative technologies, with a particular emphasis on artificial intelligence.

In addition to Mate Rimac, European technology company owners Cyril Kabbara, the co-founder of the French company Shark Robotics, Frenchman Benjamin Benharrosh, the co-founder of the Delair drone company from California and Anthony Whelan, the digital technology consultant of the European Commission, participated.

The introductory speeches, expressing full support for the initiative and the hope that the EU will become a leader in trends in artificial intelligence, were given by Croatian President Zoran Milanovic and Margrethe Vestager, Vice President of the European Commission.

In the discussion, which was mostly about European regulations in regard to new technologies and artificial intelligence, as well as the possibility of financing such businesses from EU funds, Anthony Whelan, one of the main advisers to the EC's president, Ursula von der Leyen, said that European innovators are available and have programs like Digital Europe that provided 2.3 billion euros for AI, and Horizon 2020 which provided 2.7 billion euros for new technologies. Now, there is a new Next Generation programme worth 750 billion euros, which aims to develop a green and digital economy.

Mate Rimac withdrew several million...

When asked how much he withdrew from such funds and programmes, Mate Rimac answered that in more than ten years of doing business, he received about 4.5 million euros, some were state incentives, some were European funds, but that this is nothing compared to 17 million euros in taxes he paid and the 100 million euros he invested in research and development. By the way, Mate Rimac has made 150 million euros in investments in his business in the last year from the car companies Porsche, Hyundai and Kia.

Benjamin Benharrosh, of Delair, a company that makes and develops drone management software, acknowledged that he hasn't received any funding from the funds so far, nor has Cyril Kabbara, whose robot company Shark Robotics became famous for last year's firefighting at the Notre Dame Cathedral.

As far as European artificial intelligence regulations are concerned, all of the panelists agreed that these regulations are too slow and don't follow the pace at which new technological trends are emerging. Whelan acknowledged the excessive bureaucracy, but stressed that the EU legal framework is stable and predictable.

Mate Rimac countered that China's regulation of artificial intelligence is much better than Europe's, and they're currently technology leaders. As for the potential of artificial intelligence in economic recovery, Rimac was clear - we need a regulatory framework for research and the testing of autonomous vehicles.

''For the last three years, Rimac Automobili has had an artificial intelligence department that primarily serves us to research autonomous driving. Clearly, once autonomous driving becomes the rule, and we’re close, cars won’t need a steering wheel, brakes, or exact window specifications. The situation today is such that, given that the regulations stipulate that the car must have all these components, we can't make or test an autonomous car that doesn't meet these conditions,'' explained Mate Rimac.

He reiterated the old proposal that a European country (perhaps Croatia) could create a national regulatory framework for research and the testing of autonomous vehicles. This, he says, would make it a global "playground" for such technology and as such attract companies and talent.

For more, follow our business page.