Milanović Meets Representatives of Croat Expatriate Community in New York
ZAGREB, 23 Sept 2021 - During his stay in New York, where he is attending the 76th session of the UN General Assembly, Croatian President Zoran Milanović has met with representatives of the Croat expatriate business and scientific communities in New York, his office said on Thursday.
Representatives of the Croat community in New York informed Milanović of their activities in establishing connections between Croat expatriates in New York and strengthening their ties with Croatia.
They also presented proposals on how to improve that cooperation and offered their help in promoting Croatia in New York and elsewhere in the United States, expressing satisfaction with the meeting with Milanović and the respect shown them by Croatian state institutions.
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Lawyer Vanja Juric: Court Ban on Writing about Someone Has Never Been Seen Before
September the 23rd, 2021 - Croatian lawyer Vanja Juric has spoken out about the court ban issued to a certain media portal on writing about certain institutions and people, adding that something like that has never been seen before in this country.
As Index writes, after the court made a scandalous decision that the H-alter portal and journalist Jelena Jindra are no longer allowed to publish texts and write about the Child Protection Polyclinic and its head Gordana Buljan Flander, the reactions have been coming in fast.
Minister of Culture: How is that possible?
"How is it possible to make a decision to forbid someone to write about something in advance. Any dispute regarding articles in the media can be resolved by a denial, or a request for correction, but in this way, it stops journalists from even writing about something ...", said Minister Obuljen Korzinek.
Lawyer Vanja Juric: It's one of the most severe attacks on media freedoms we've seen.
“Without any exaggeration, this is one of the most severe attacks on media freedoms in general. The court banned any media outlet, which dealt with a topic of very serious social importance, from any future reporting on the work of that public institution and the head of that institution. The ban is formulated completely generally, so, legally and factually, it refers to all topics that in any way relate to the professional activities carried out by public authorities.
The court didn't request any statement from the media or from the journalist who wrote those articles, explaining that such a statement isn't necessary for the making of that decision. Such a decision has not been recorded in the practice of Croatian courts before, it's contrary to all standards of the European Court of Human Rights and, in general, to the fundamental principles of a democratic society. It opens the door to all state and public bodies, politicians, officials and all other persons to try to stop journalistic reporting in the same way, given that it is now clear that it is quite possible that such attempts will be approved by the court,'' lawyer Vanja Juric said in conversation with Index.
''The judiciary wants to silence the media'' this was the Croatian Journalists' Association's reaction.
"By use of the ''Insurance Decision'' issued by the Municipal Civil Court in Zagreb of the 21st of September 2021, which imposes a temporary measure banning the Association of Independent Media Culture, the publisher of the H-alter portal, from publishing articles about the Child and Youth Protection Clinic of the City of Zagreb and its director Gordana Buljan Flander, the Croatian judiciary has resorted to unprecedented censorship in advance,'' they claim.
"After H-alter published a series of articles by journalist Jelena Jindra over the past few weeks entitled The system for the protection of, or the abuse of children?, in which it problematises the work of Gordana Buljan Flander, ie the Polyclinic she heads, Judge Andrija Krivak signed a scandalous decision meaning that this medium is forbidden to write about a particular person.
The court assessed the journalistic research of colleague Jindra allegedly without trying to obtain anything from the editor or journalist and the publisher's representative. Instead of discussing any doubts in a regular trial, the judge decided to further ban H-alter from investigating the actions of a public institution and its director. Such a precedent could be absolutely disastrous for media freedom in Croatia.
After years of witnessing SLAP lawsuits against journalists, this time the judiciary went a step further and decided to silence the media portal entirely. It should be noted that the director of this institution and her associates, according to the testimony of colleagues, have repeatedly missed the opportunity to present to the public their view of the controversial doctrine of ''child alienation''.
The Croatian Journalists' Association and the Croatian Journalists' Union both believe that this is an extremely dangerous attempt at censorship and the inadmissible silence of the media.
They have both therefore called on all Croatian media, all journalists and editors, to resist this form of pressure and, in solidarity with their colleague Jindra and the non-profit portal H-alter, broadcast the her series researching the institition and thus show that we cannot be silenced. The above was fully supported by Maja Sever, President of the Croatian Journalists' Union and Hrvoje Zovko, President of the Croatian Journalists' Association.
Lawyer Vesna Alaburic: This is biggest restriction on media freedom in Croatia
"The decision prohibiting the publisher of the H-Alter portal from publishing any information about Gordana Buljan Flander and the polyclinic she manages is an unprecedented restriction on media freedom in our country, it's also the biggest. As far as I know, never in the history of the Croatian judicial system has a media outlet been banned from publishing any articles about an individual or an institution.
From the multitude of possible objections to this unprecedented ban, I'll single out a few.
First, an absolute, non-selective ban on publishing any information about a legal entity, regardless of its truthfulness and public interest, constitutes the abolition of media freedoms. Therefore, this prohibition is contrary to the fundamental legal principles of the protection of freedom of expression and can in no way be justified by the need to protect a personality.
The ban regarding the publisher of the H-Alter portal is not an obstacle for publishing articles by our excellent journalist Jelena Jindra about Dr. Buljan Flander and the polyclinic in other media or communication platforms. That is why this ban cannot serve the purpose that Dr. Buljan Flander expected and for which the court determined it. On the contrary, this ban will focus the attention of the entire Croatian public on H-Alter and the texts of Jelena Jindra and all information about Dr. Buljan Flander that the court considered disputable will receive huge publicity.
"All court conclusions are to the detriment of the author and publisher"
Furthermore, the court concluded that it didn't require the statement of the publisher, editor-in-chief or the author of the disputed texts. The judge analysed the texts and assessed whether the journalist acted in good faith, whether she performed her journalistic work professionally and in accordance with the rules of the profession, whether she made some controversial claims intentionally, whether she faithfully transmitted the statements of others and the like. All court conclusions are to the detriment of the author and publisher. Such conduct of the court constitutes a grave violation of the right to a fair trial, in particular the right of each party to the proceedings to comment on the opposing party's motions, present its arguments and propose evidence.
''I'm particularly concerned about the part of the decision in which the court argues that a fair balance should be struck between the conflicting rights to the protection of the right to personality and the right to freedom of expression. The court showed a complete lack of understanding of the legal standards for the protection of the freedom of expression. Even Dr. Buljan Flander herself stated in the ban proposal that it is "justified to expect media interest" in these topics.
The court, however, did not take public interest into account, nor did it even consider the almost unlimited right of the public to be informed of information and opinions on topics of public interest. If any of this information is incorrect, the sanction will be appropriate compensation for damages to the injured parties. And that is the limit of freedom of expression set by a democratic society in order to protect the rights of others,'' commented lawyer Vesna Alaburic.
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Minister Warns Against Manipulation of Facts at Union Protest
ZAGREB, 23 Sept 2021 - Health Minister Vili Beroš said on Thursday that a union protest of nurses is a legitimate and democratic way of expressing one's position and demanding rights but he noted that there is no room for manipulation of facts.
The introduction of new anti-epidemic measures for employees in medical and social care institutions at the beginning of October has elicited debates in a part of the public, prompting some of the unions representing health sector employees to stage a public protest, said the minister.
"The protest to be held today by the Nurses Union... is a legitimate and democratic way to express one's positions and demands regarding certain outstanding issues and I support it as such," Beroš said in a statement when asked by the media to comment on the protest to be held in downtown Zagreb.
He added that what he did not have understanding for was the purposeful manipulation of facts regarding the announced introduction of new epidemiological rules in medical institutions, notably those that treat patients, who are the most vulnerable group in terms of possible infection with coronavirus and its consequences.
"As Health Minister, it is my obligation to take all necessary measures to prevent the infection from entering and spreading in the health sector, notably hospitals," he said.
COVID-19 certificates will be required for employees in the health and social care systems as of 1 October.
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Net Loss of Tourism, Catering Sector in 2020 HRK 3.4 Billion
ZAGREB, 23 Sept 2021 - The tourism and catering sector in Croatia grew in the period from 2004 to 2020 in almost all aspects, from income to the number of employees, but 2020 saw a decline due to the coronavirus pandemic, with businesses reporting a total net loss of HRK 3.4 billion.
These are data from an analysis done by the Financial Agency (FINA), which also includes statistics about the number of businesses and employees, total income and expenditure, profits and losses, exports, etc.
The number of businesses providing accommodation and preparing and serving food was the highest in 2020, slightly more than 13,000, and that number had grown since 2004 when there were around 3,000 such businesses.
The number of employees in the sector grew from around 36,000 in 2004 to more than 65,000 in 2020.
The total income of the tourism and catering sector was the highest in 2014, amounting to HRK 19.1 billion, 9.1 billion more than in 2004.
In 2020, marked by the coronavirus pandemic, the sector income was HRK 17.6 billion.
The expenditure was higher than total income in each of the years covered by the survey. In 2004, the expenditure totaled HRK 10.2 billion, in 2009 around 13.8 billion, in 2014 19.3 billion, and in 2020 21.3 billion.
This resulted in losses in each of the surveyed years, ranging from HRK 298.3 million in 2004 to HRK 3.4 billion in 2020, which was mostly due to the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on travel and related sectors.
In terms of the number of employees, income, investments, new employment, and other indicators, the analysis shows that in the said period the first three in the top ten companies were Valamar Riviera from Poreč, Maistra from Rovinj, and Plava Laguna/Istraturist from Poreč/Umag.
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How Croatian Businessman Allegedly Kicked Turkey Out of €150m Project
September the 23rd, 2021 - A scandal involving a Croatian businessman and Turkey has caused international scandal and seen powerful politicians from both countries apparently discuss it.
As RTL/Silvana Mendjusic writes, the construction of the first geothermal power plant in Ciglena near Bjelovar in a project worth more than 300 million kuna, and it was started together, and the Turkish investor, the majority owner, cut the ribbon in the company of Minister Tomislav Coric. Production at Geoen began, and huge sums of money and generous support began to flow into an account.
Over a period of twelve years, they were supposed to earn more than a billion, and then it all got complicated. The minority owner, Croatian businessman and entrepreneur Dragan Jurilj, allegedly set out to get the Turks kicked out of the story and has so far succeeded. While he claims that everything is being carried out according to the law, the Turks claim that their investment was stolen from them. They're threatening arbitration, warning that in the end everything will be paid for by Croatian citizens, and they have even called on Erdogan for help.
On the sidelines of the summit in Antalya, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and Turkish President Erdogan talked about illegal migration, Bosnia and Herzegovina, economic cooperation, but also one concrete and currently very ''hot'' case involving this Croatian businessman.
"We've been informed that our President Erdogan mentioned the case to the Croatian Prime Minister," said lawyer Ozlem Canbeldek Akin.
According to the legal representative of the Turkish company BLT, who claims that their Croatian partner stole a project worth more than a billion kuna from, the stakes are high, and they're equally nervous on both sides.
"How they did not have a fair trial!? All of these processes are legitimate and every investor in the Republic of Croatia is obliged to respect final court decisions, whether they're satisfied with the outcome or not. I'm not satisfied with all these verdicts," said Dragan Jurilj.
The dispute, which has now risen to quite a high political level, is one taking place much lower down, a few thousand metres below the surface in fact, deep in the geothermal treasures of Croatia in which these former partners are arguing over the ownership of the Velika geothermal power plant near Bjelovar. The Turks claim: "We've invested about 300 million kuna in this, that's roughly 55 to 60 million euros. We have invested a lot, and now we've been left with nothing."
At the beginning of this saga, which is all to do with the ownership ratio within Geoen - the project holder was 80 percent for the Turkish company, and 20 percent for the Croatian businessman and their partner, Dragan Jurilj.
"I gave the company 157 million in appraised assets - four wells, permits, a power purchase agreement, concessions... I didn't indebt the company, I gave the company 157 million. They were supposed to give 300 million to give and not borrow based on my assets. They they just took out loans and indebted the company,'' said Jurilj.
''Why didn't you take out a loan yourself?'' Jurilj is asked.
- Well, OK.
''You had no references at the time...''
- That's right. I didn’t have any references at the time, but for references you get a commission or some smaller percentage, you don’t get 80 percent.
''Okay, did you agree to it?''
- I didn't agree to anything. They were supposed to convert that loan after the completion of the project, they were one hundred percent indebted to the company, and they were supposed to convert it into capital reserves. They didn't do that.
Two years ago, the geothermal power plant was inaugurated. According to the agreement, the financing is on the side of BLT. And we've met those requirements. BLT has provided the capital and a loan," he said.
Along with Muharem Balat, the owner of the Turkish company, Minister Coric openly praised the project. He will now be asked to rule on the administrative proceedings.
"Our investment was stolen from our shareholders, we want compensation from those shareholders. But if we fail in that, then we'll have to go to the European Court of Human Rights and we'll seek arbitration and compensation which will then end up being the burden of Croatian taxpayers which we wouldn't have wanted… "
The foundation of any such move, he says, will be the thesis that they didn't have the right to a fair trial in Croatia.
"There's no arbitration, so Croatia can't be responsible for inter-member relations, the Republic of Croatia can only be responsible if it harms the project, if the project stops functioning for any reason ...", said Dragan Jurilj.
When operating, the geothermal power plant produces electricity for about 29,000 households in total. The power plant is a privileged producer of energy, as it produces electricity from renewable sources, it is then sold on at a discounted price. This directly regards about one billion and 200 million kuna of revenue annually, if not more.
Last year’s amount alone is enough to understand why these ex-partners are fighting so hard for ownership, as back in 2020, they produced 76.2 gigawatt hours of electricity and 120 million kuna without VAT was paid. The market value of energy was 21 million kuna and the amount of aid paid out was 99 million kuna. This generous relationship between the market and the preferential price is the greatest thing this plant can boast of.
It all started last year, say the more than disgruntled Turkish partners. Jurilj then sent an envelope to Turkey marked as an invitation to the Assembly of the Society. But it wasn't an invitation to the Assembly, but some unimportant documentation. Invitations to the assembly don't need to be notarised. If you register an envelope in the post office as an invitation to the Assembly - it is classed as an invitation. So, he registered it and at the session of the Assembly in our absence he changed the management. According to our agreement, our members must be on the board. They kicked us out of that session.
How the deception of the Turks began, according to them...
"I sent an invitation to the Assembly based on the Companies Act, I haven't engaged in anything illegal. I've invited them to the Assembly several times. If they don't respond the first and the second time, I have the right to legitimately make decisions," Jurilj added.
That's illegitimate, claimed the Turks. They then filed a complaint and the measure was temporarily suspended in the Commercial Court. Jurilj was then asked not to send the invitation to Turkey but instead to their Zagreb branch. Unfortunately, another invitation to Turkey was sent, this time it really was an invitation for the Assembly, but when the Turks received it, because it takes some time for the shipment to reach Turkey, they claim that the Assembly had already been held.
"I did everything according to the law, if something was late, then that's not my fault, and they ignored my invitation to the Assembly for a couple of years," claims Jurilj.
They say they asked you to send it to the office in Zagreb.
"It's not written in the law, it says it's sent to the address of the centre. I sent them that invitation."
Doesn’t it feel like you wanted them not to come?
"I did everything according to the law."
Jurilj and his new partner Goran Pavlovic convened a new assembly, they called upon Turkish board members, and then Jurilj demanded that the Commercial Court in Zagreb, due to non-fulfillment of the partnership agreement, register the deletion of the Turkish company BLT from the project.
"Unfortunately, at the Assembly held without our presence, they made a decision that BLT must pay additional performance to Geoen," the lawyer added.
BLT reacted by submitting to the Commercial Court the measure according to which the exclusion of BLT could not be carried out. Unfortunately, at the Assembly held without our presence, they made a decision that BLT must pay additional payments to Geoen.
The Turks claim that in one year, Dragan Jurilj withdrew more than 80 million kuna...
The Turks have had the most objections to the court register. The response we received from the Commercial Court was: "Oh, we checked the court register and you aren't co-owners, plus there is no more Geoen and we have to suspend the proceedings."
They are directly accusing Jurilj of ''extracting'' more than 80 million kuna from the company since the summer of 2020.
"That isn't true, and secondly, BLT has expressed disloyal behavior, disrespect and made threats of lawsuits against banks, and threats to institutions that have succumbed to its influence ...", the Croatian businessman said, and the Turkish investors are now filing criminal charges for fictitious debentures.
"They managed to extract eight million euros paid by HROTE (Croatian energy market operator)," the lawyer added.
"At the same time, the bank isn't allowing me to dissolve the company's account, although I'm the director, the authorised person and the sole owner.'' said Jurilj.
What has HROTE got to do with it all?
What's going on now? The power plant is still working. In the first eight months, the power plant produced electricity worth 25 million on the market. There have been incentives worth 49 million. But those 75 million HROTE - the market operator with which the energy purchase agreement was signed - are no longer being given to anyone.
HROTE proposed to the court the establishment of a court deposit in which they would pay the funds. The court refused to establish a deposit, HROTE appealed and the appeal proceedings are ongoing. Dragan Jurilj, on the other hand, accuses HROTE of paying 25 million kuna to Geoen into a foreign account.
"I went to the bank on behalf of Geoen, and the order wasn't accepted. They came to HROTE to transfer my money abroad, HROTE isn't even the director of the company, it was reported to the institutions which deal with this, and that Turkish bank has been as well,'' said Jurilj.
HROTE replied that their actions were supported by appropriate court decisions and that Jurilj's allegation was unfounded.
If HROTE doesn't pay you, do you not have a contract stating how you'll perform your obligations to the workers?
“According to the workers we're dealing with, we have issues with the difficulty of paying the tax debt according to the budget because it is a debt from 2020 while BLT ran the project and while they were taking money from the project,” claims Dragan Jurilj.
DORH (State's Attorney Office of the Republic of Croatia) has been informed of the situation
We informed the DORH in a timely manner about the legal situation regarding Geoen, as well as about our actions. Given the many ongoing court proceedings, we don't wish to go further into commenting on the statements made by the opposing parties.
"They're ignoring the opinions of the law. They haven't yet transferred the energy purchase agreement and are putting the entire plant into question, and then it will only continue to harm BLT and me as a creditor member, and the state budget."
The chronology of court decisions shows that the Commercial Court in Zagreb and the court register acted faster in favour of Croatian businessman Dragan Jurilj, and slowly when decisions had to be made, they leaned more in favour of BLT.
"We were first deleted from the court register, we lost our stakes, and while we were fighting for those stakes, Geoen was attached to GS, and the economic entity was transferred to another Eco Consult entity."
They pointed out that they haven't so far been allowed to prove their claims in court.
"We have nothing to lose, I'm being honest, I know these are serious accusations being made against the judges. I wouldn't want to go that far, but when I look at the case, there are things I can't understand, some things can't be legally explained." the Turks claim.
"BLT constantly keeps going to all these institutions and claiming to have been damaged, that they're going sue the state, but they can't sue the state. They do have the right to demand compensation for those shares and they'll have them paid. Nobody is trying to run away from that fact," assured Jurilj.
In this dispute, both parties filed several criminal charges, the State Attorney's Office was informed in the meantime. Jurilj, on the other hand, is exploring a new geothermal field - Slatina dva, which is twice as strong as the power plant near Bjelovar, and there is a much bigger investment to be had in Slatina.
The Ministry of Economy failed to respond to our request. Although the representatives of the Turkish side claim: None of Jurilj's companies still has a legal basis for the exploitation of geothermal waters. They explained that the rights from the license can be transferred to another economic entity only if the Government, at the proposal of the Ministry, gives explicit prior written consent. However, Minister Tomislav Coric is not making any sort of move as far as this is concerned - yet.
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Croatian Cup Round of 32 Recap: No Upsets, Rijeka with Biggest Victory into Last 16
September 23, 2021 - The Croatian Cup round of 32 came to a close on Wednesday, September 22, and the last 16 Croatian clubs in the competition are known. The round of 16 will be played on October 27.
The SuperSport Croatian Football Cup round of 32 came to an end on Wednesday, September 22, 2021, reports HNS.
Rijeka was the most convincing in their victory, winning 7:0 against Pitomača thanks to goals by Bušnja (4′), Vučkić (36′, 54′), Vuk (49′), Abass (71′, 90′), and Obregon (88′-11m).
The defending champion Dinamo defeated Orient 1919 away 4:1, with goals by Čop, Leovac, Jurić, and Menalo.
Perhaps the most exciting match happened in Senj, where Gorica was losing to Nehaj at halftime and turned the match around in the second half for the final 7:3. Lovrić, Pršir, Mitrović, Svast (own goal), and Dieye scored the 7 goals for Gorica's return.
Lokomotiva was nearly shocked by Dugopolje but ultimately won only after eight series of penalties.
Thanks to an early penalty kick, Hajduk was shocked by Primorac Biograd, who scored for the lead in the 12th minute. Fortunately, Krovinovic equalized in the 42nd minute, and Ljubicic scored the winning goal in the 60th minute.
Osijek had no issue in Beletinec and was better than Bednja thanks to 3 goals by Čeberk, Bočkaj and Daku.
The round of 16 will be played on October 27, and a clash between the first division teams, Šibenik and Slaven Belupo, is a highlight of the next round.
Croatian Cup round of 32 results:
Pitomača - Rijeka 0:7
Orijent 1919 - Dinamo 1:4
Dugopolje - Lokomotiva 8:9 (1:1)
Bednja - Osijek 0:3
Primorac Biograd - Hajduk 1:2
Vuteks Sloga - Istra 1961 0:3
Karlovac 1919 - Slaven Belupo 0:2
Mladost Ždralovi - Inter Zaprešić 3:1
Nehaj - Gorica 3:7
Međimurje - Šibenik 0:1
Rudar Labin - Split 2:0
Belišće - Jaska Vinogradar 4:0
Bjelovar - Rudeš 1:5
Sesvete - Varaždin 2:3
BSK - Cibalia 1:0
Zagreb - Oriolik 0:1
Croatian Cup round of 16 pairs:
Oriolik - Rijeka
BSK - Dinamo
Varaždin - Lokomotiva
Rudeš - Osijek
Belišće - Hajduk
Rudar Labin - Istra 1961
Šibenik - Slaven Belupo
Gorica - Mladost Ždralovi
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Calling All Young Split Developers: DUMP Launches Free Web Programming Courses
September 23, 2021 - Young Split developers will have the chance to learn about web programming for free, thanks to the DUMP association.
DUMP Association of Young Developers will soon organize an educational cycle of 5 free lectures entitled "School of Web Programming Basics" at FESB, starting on October 2 at 17:00.
The association is known for educating the local community and has been active for more than a decade. They have held over 20 cycles of lectures on topics like programming, hardware, design, marketing, and multimedia. Their most famous cycle is "School of Programming Basics," which has had 10 editions so far. Also, every year in mid-May, they organize the largest student IT conference in the Croatian language, DUMP Days.
This time, DUMP is preparing a cycle dedicated to front-end programming in which participants will master the process of creating a website. Prior knowledge is not required because it starts from the very basics of programming logic and basic concepts such as variables, inputs, and branching. Through the first two lectures, you will get acquainted with JavaScript and the background of creating the page itself, and the remaining 3 lectures will introduce you to the world of styling and animating a website using HTML and CSS.
Lectures are free, but you need to sign up on the Google Form. Registrations are possible until October 1 at 23:59 or until the maximum number of participants registers. The first lecture is already on Saturday, October 2, starting at 5:00 p.m. Lectures continue every Saturday at the same time and will be held at the FESB in Hall A100. Accompanying workshops are held on Sundays.
Of course, after some lectures, the participants will have prize assignments, and the 3 most successful ones will also receive valuable prizes! More details about the event are available at www.dump.hr.
Author: Lucia Vukorepa, Photos Josip Svalina
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Austrian Company PicoPack to Begin Knin-based Packaging Production
September the 23rd, 2021 - Knin has faced economic issues for a long time now, with many people leaving for either Zagreb, seasonal work on the coast or heading abroad. The Austrian company PicoPack could be set to turn things around for this inland Dalmatian town as it sets up local production.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Suzana Varosanec writes, an new opportunity is opening up Knin, known for its role during the Homeland War, to do better economically and become a European brand for polypropylene jumbo bags. These bags are applied in a wide variety of sectors, including the agriculture, petrochemical and food processing industries. These are highly sought-after products that are otherwise imported into Croatia, but with this move, the Croatian packaging industry will soon get its first representative in the segment of the production of industrial packaging for bulk products.
The Austrian company PicoPack had the best conditions offered to them in Knin
The Austrian company PicoPack Group, a manufacturer and distributor of industrial packaging, is finalising an agreement regarding its new project, which they have decided to implement right here in Croatia. In order to supply their numerous customers from Europe and the Russian Federation and to invest in production capacity of about 18,000 square metres, the investor chose Knin. The inland Dalmatian town was chosen above all other options.
The holder of the project is the newly established company Velebit ambalaza, in which the Austrian company PicoPack will hold a 51 percent share and the entrepreneur Goran Jerkovic will hold one of 49 percent. Austrian entrepreneur and leader of PicoPack, Manfred Pribyl, confirmed that good offers from other countries, such as Bulgaria, were also considered for the project, but the best conditions and in that sense support for the project, after Jerkovic's engagement, were received from Knin. The new Knin factory could be one of the largest in all of Europe, Pribyl says, adding that the company is expanding its production globally under the influence of the coronavirus pandemic, in response to increased transport costs and longer delivery times.
Production in India, organised sixteen years ago, is now being redirected solely to the African, Australian and American markets, but the model of how they work will be replicated at the Croatian Knin factory. In addition to the workers at the plant, they will additionally have a larger number of them in education within their small educational institution, so they will always have enough workers. Pribyl stated that he will motivate them with net salaries of up to 1,000 euros, but also with the distribution of about 20 percent of profits to workers every six months, which is an unprecedented positive example in recent entrepreneurial practice.
Since back in 2007, nine entrepreneurs have been operating in the Preparandija zone, but Knin is completing the reconstruction of two significant facilities, one of which is the former Kninjanka facility. According to the head of the Knin Administrative Department for EU Programmes and Economy, Josko Nedoklan, the project is worth around 33.34 million kuna, is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund, and the works on the facility should be completed by April 2022.
For more, check our our dedicated business section.
Croatian Eurozone Accession: Changes to Begin as Early as Next Summer
September the 23rd, 2021 - Croatian Eurozone accession might still seem like a far away event on the domestic political stage, but it is edging ever closer and things are set to start being quite significantly different as of next summer.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, preparations for Croatian Eurozone accession have already started, and one of the measures is to ensure that prices don't increase significantly, which is something most people fear when asked what their worries surrounding the process of phasing out the Croatian kuna is.
Tihomir Mavricek pointed out that this will be among the very first things that will be tackled, and that the fixed exchange rate will be determined just before the decision of the EU Council on the introduction of the euro as Croatia's official currency.
"It will be around 7.53, but it will finally be determined in May or June next year and will become valid from January the 1st, 2023. Until December the 31st, 2022, the commercial exchange rate will be valid, it'll be as we have it now," he explained for HRT.
"There's no need to be afraid of price increases"
Many people are afraid of price increases as a result of Croatian Eurozone accession, but Mavricek has assured that the practice of countries that have already adopted the euro has shown that the replacement of the national currency has had very little effect on price growth, ie inflation.
"The countries that first adopted the euro had a small so-called harmonised growth of the consumer price index, which ranged between 0.09 and 0.28 percentage points. Countries that later adopted the euro had one which stood at around 0.3 - so we don't expect any significant impact on prices, maybe of some 0.37 percentage points, with the biggest impact coming from services and a slightly smaller number of commonly used products, such as pastries and newspapers,'' said Mavricek.
After the introduction of the euro in neighbouring Slovenia, prices in transport, restaurants and hairdressing/beauty salons increased, while in Slovakia the prices of food and construction works increased.
"Research has shown that these increases mostly regard products that don't affect people with lower incomes when compared to those with higher incomes, such as sectors like accommodation services, restaurants, and sports services - these are usually services used by people with higher incomes," explained Mavricek.
For more on Croatian Eurozone accession, check out our dedicated politics section.
8000 Croatian Enumerators Active as of Monday as Part of 2021 Census
September the 23rd, 2021 - The Croatian census of 2021 is well and truly underway. With the possibility to fill in the census online through e-Citizens (e-Gradjani) due to expire on the 26th of this month, 8000 Croatian enumerators are set to take to the field for everyone else as of Monday.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, as of Monday at 15:00, more than a quarter of the population of the City of Zagreb had successully self-registered on the 2021 census online. That is equal to (on the aforementioned date) 208,148 (25.72 percent of the capital's population, which is twice as many self-registered residents as in most Croatian counties. However, this was also expected given that the capital also has a larger share of younger, more educated and IT-literate population.
The demographically devastated counties of Vukovar-Srijem (8.92 percent), Lika-Senj (9.09 percent), Brod-Posavina (9.43 percent) and Virovitica-Podravina (9.61 percent) have the least self-registered inhabitants so far. After Zagreb, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County leads in those who have completed their self-census, in which more than a fifth of the population was registered through the e-Citizens system, 57,514 (20.46 percent), followed by Zagreb County, with 17.41% percent and then Istria County, with 15.23 percent of the local population having completed the process online.
Croatia's second largest county, Split-Dalmatia, with 447 thousand inhabitants, hasn't yet bumped up its numbers in terms of the census, because only 13.76 percent of the population self-registered in one week. However, it is better than Dubrovnik-Neretva, where 13.23 percent of the population had completed the process online. In Zadar, a mere 11.40 percent of local citizens enumerated themselves, and in Sibenik-Knin, just 11.93 percent of inhabitants did the same.
The share of enumerated residents in coastal counties is worthy of special emphasis, considering the fact that in these counties, people showed the least interest in responding to the public call and as such Croatian enumerators are still being sought, so it would be good to enumerate more people online in these counties.
In the largest Slavonian county, Osijek-Baranja, with 269.5 thousand inhabitants, 13.21 percent of residents had successfully registered themselves by Monday, which is the highest of all of the Slavonian counties.
More than 8000 Croatian enumerators are set to take to the field
Residents can, as previously stated, enumerate themselves until September the 26th, and they can also enumerate their elderly parents and/or grandparents who live in another household. This is followed by the second phase of the census from September the 27th to October the 17th, when almost 8,000 Croatian enumerators have to go out into the field to enumerate people who failed to enumerate themselves, as well as to perform controls and correct mistakes made during self-enumeration.
The census will be able to be conducted until October the 29th at the latest if needed.
A fine of 2,000 to 5,000 kuna can be imposed on people who refuse to provide their data for the census and those who provide inaccurate and incomplete data during the census. More than 1000 controllers supervise the work of Croatian enumerators, and they control the accuracy and coverage of all of the collected data.
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