Politics

ZAGREB, May 20, 2020 - Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) secretary-general Gordan Jandrokovic said on Tuesday that a grand coalition with the Social Democratic Party (SDP) "is not an option that interests us" and that the SDP did not have a man who was a match for HDZ leader and Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic. "We believe we will achieve a relative victory and find partners to form the government and avoid connecting with the SDP," the speaker of the parliament which dissolved on Monday said about the upcoming election. Speaking on the public broadcaster, Jandrokovic said he expected President Zoran Milanovic to…

ZAGREB, May 19, 2020 - On this day 29 years ago, Croatia, which was at the time one of federal republics in the Socialist Yugoslav Federation, held a referendum on its independence in which the lion's share of voters supported plans for the country's independence and sovereignty. The outcome of the 19 May 1991 referendum paved the way for the parliamentary decisions on severing ties with the communist Yugoslav Federation and on gaining the country's independence and sovereignty. Several weeks after the referendum, that is, on 25 June 1991, the Sabor adopted the constitutional decision on the sovereignty and independence of…

ZAGREB, May 19, 2020 - The Slovenian government has decided that Croatians are free to cross the border into Slovenia without having to undergo mandatory quarantine as the two neighbours have similar epidemiological situations. The STA news agency reported on Tuesday that "Croatia became the first country Slovenia put on a list of countries whose nationals may enter without limitations." Last week Slovenia declared the end of the COVID-19 epidemic and announced the reopening of borders for the European Union and the European Economic Area citizens. Slovenian Economy Minister Zdravko Pocivalsek and Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto on Monday discussed the plans…

ZAGREB, May 19, 2020 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and US State Secretary Mike Pompeo on Monday held a telephone conversation on the struggle against the COVID-19 pandemic and on the Croatia-USA bilateral cooperation, the Croatian government stated on Monday evening. During the talks, initiated by the US State Secretary, the two interlocutors exchanged the opinions and latest data on the developments surrounding the coronavirus pandemic. They agreed that a priority should be given to the development of a COVID-19 vaccine and medicines. Plenkovic extended condolences to Pompeo on a high number of victims of this disease in the USA, and expressed hope…

May 19, 2020 - An update to TCN's mailshot to Croatia's 319 tourists boards, and am I allowed to publish the results transparently?  My recent article What Happens When 319 Croatian Tourist Boards Get a Free Offer in a Pandemic? was an experiment in how effective a new strategy would be in making Croatia a better place. Big Data versus the Mighty State of Uhljebistan.  Results were encouraging, and then Index.hr published THIS. And suddenly my little experiment became a national discussion.  I wanted to give you a little update, for while we can all laugh (a tragic laugh) at the…

ZAGREB, May 18, 2020 - Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic said after the parliament's dissolution that its greatest achievement was the adoption of Lex Agrokor and political stability while he refuted that this was the worst parliament ever although he can understand the poor perception due to the street talk by some MPs. "I consider that the most important achievement of this parliament was the adoption of the Law on Emergency Administration, dubbed Lex Agrokor which saved tens of thousands of jobs, the food and agricultural industries and it was very important for the parliament to react at that time," Jandrokovic told a press conference presenting…

ZAGREB, May 18, 2020 - The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) presidency donated on Monday HRK 1.1 million to the "Together for Zagreb" emergency relief campaign launched after a 5.5-strong earthquake struck Zagreb and its surroundings on March 22. "The presidency of the Croatian Democratic Union, at the suggestion of the party's president, Andrej Plenkovic, decided to donate HRK 1.1 million to the 'Together for Zagreb' campaign for the repair of damage caused by the earthquake in the City of Zagreb and its surroundings. The donation was made today," the HDZ said. They reiterated that all members of the government and Parliament…

ZAGREB, May 18, 2020 - Croatia's parliament on Monday appointed Zlata Hrvoj Sipek as the new Attorney-General with 80 lawmakers voting for her appointment while 40 were against. Hrvoj-Sipek has until now served as Deputy Attorney-General. The government nominated her after interviewing six candidates who had applied for the job. The position became vacant in February when Attorney-General Drazen Jelenic resigned following revelations of his membership of a Masonic lodge. Hrvoj-Sipek has been employed in the country's prosecutorial authority (DORH) since 2000. Before its expected dissolution, the 9th parliament appointed Ivana Jakir-Bajo, who to date served as assistant finance minister, as the central bank's new…

ZAGREB, May 18, 2020 - Croatian Parliament on Monday revised the state budget for this year with 79 votes for and 41 against after all the amendments submitted by the opposition had been rejected. The revised budget decreased revenue by HRK 23.2 billion to HRK 122 billion while overall expenditure will remain at HRK 147.3 billion. The decreased revenue in the state budget is due to measures taken in the fight against the coronavirus with the deferment or absolute exemption of taxation and contributions as well as decreased economic activity. The government has estimated that GDP this year will fall by 9.4%. The 2020…

ZAGREB, May 18, 2020 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic did not enter parliament via the main entrance on Monday to attend a meeting of his HDZ's bench but did leave through it, booed by those who spent the night outside to protest against parliament dissolving without passing a law on Zagreb's post-earthquake reconstruction. As he was leaving, Plenkovic was briefly stopped by Tomislav Tomasevic, leader of the We Can! platform, who asked him why Construction Minister Predrag Stromar had said that the bill would be ready in two weeks, yet two months had passed since the earthquake, and what the problem was. Plenkovic said he gave a statement on…