Politics

ZAGREB, 9 June 2022 - Representatives of the Social Democratic Party, Social Democrats, and the Green-Left Bloc on Thursday talked with the ruling HDZ's whip, and Arsen Bauk of the SDP is confident that both referendum changes and the right to abortion will end up in the Constitution "one way or another." Speaking after a meeting between HDZ representatives and left MPs on constitutional changes, Bauk said the changes pertaining to referenda would pass, while talks would continue on the other topics. He said that if their demand that a woman's right to choose to be raised to a constitutional level…

ZAGREB, 9 June 2022 - A government-sponsored model of family pensions, which will take effect on 1 January, brings three crucial changes: an increase in the factor for family pensions, eligibility to use a family pension alongside one's own pension, and a 3% increase in the lowest pension allowances. "We are sending a clear message that in the circumstances of overlapping energy and food crises and inflation pressure, the government's key priority is to provide social security to all citizens, notably senior citizens," Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said while presenting the new, combined model on Thursday. Draft amendments to pension insurance legislation put an…

ZAGREB, 9 June 2022 - The Croatian Public Relations Association (HUOJ) has named Glina Deputy Mayor Branka Bakšić Mitić as the communicator of the year, while the public discourse of the country's leaders, President Zoran Milanović and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, has earned them the title of anti-communicators of the year. Bakšić Mitić warned of the too slow process of post-earthquake reconstruction in the region of Banovina, expressing her gratitude for the award and saying she was happy that HUOJ had recognized her simple communication strategy - to tell the truth always and without fear. "It is a great responsibility to be the voice of all my fellow…

June the 9th, 2022 - Croatian MEP Biljana Borzan has made the claim that the Croatian Government is actually lobbying against the reduction of harmful pesticides in the Belgian capital of Brussels, adding that she has been shocked by it. As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the Croatian Government, more precisely the Ministry of Agriculture, is allegedly directly lobbying in Brussels for the European Union (EU) to abandon the binding goals of reducing the use of chemical pesticides in food production. This is part of a letter sent on March the 16th, 2022, to the European Council, which, among others, is apparently…

June the 9th, 2022 - Economy Minister Davor Filipovic was a recent guest on the 'A sada Vlada/and Now for the Government' radio show, where he discussed the situation with ongoing inflation and plans to try to mitigate the pressure on both people and the economy. As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, new measures have come into force over the last few days, which should work to further stabilise the spiralling growth of fuel prices. Still, the question arises as to what can be expected in the weeks ahead, which Davor Filipovic touched on: “We can know what will happen in the next…

ZAGREB, 8 June 2022 - Croatia may not be rich in resources, but it has an extremely rich heritage that needs to be restored and put to use according to New European Bauhaus (NEB) criteria, Culture and Media Minister Nina Obuljen Koržinek said on Wednesday, opening of the NEB National Platform Council. At the meeting, which brought together representatives of numerous ministries, institutions, organisations and associations, the minister said that Croatia faces a demanding transformation of the entire legislative and physical planning and management system, which is something the NEB initiative is one of the most competent to discuss. "We are faced with…

ZAGREB, 8 June 2022 - Disgruntled judicial staff, mostly civil servants and clerks who are dissatisfied with their status and entitlements, continued their protest on Wednesday outside court buildings and state attorney's offices across Croatia. The union of state and local government employees, which launched the protest on Tuesday, said today that they expected Justice and Public Administration Minister Ivan Malenica to receive its delegation for talks after he stated on Tuesday that he planned a meeting with the unionists. Malenica also said that he empathized with judicial staff who protested across Croatia over low salaries and announced the adoption…

ZAGREB, 8 June 2022 - A few Opposition parliamentary clubs on Wednesday demanded that the draft bill on road traffic safety should be withdrawn from procedure due to the provision envisaging that family doctors should have a decisive say in whether a driver is able to drive or not. The proposal that it should be general practitioners with an insight into the health state of their patients and the drugs they take, who should inform the police of those data which should be used for a decision to revoke somebody's driving licence, has been met with criticism from both doctors' and patients'…

ZAGREB, 8 June 2022 - The decision making by a qualified majority vote, instead of the unanimous endorsement, should be introduced in some segments of the European Union's foreign affairs, a majority of European Parliament members agreed on Tuesday when they also called for more invesments in Ukraine's defence. A majority of MEPs expressed support to the plans to introduce qualified majority voting for certain foreign policy areas, as already provided for in the Treaties in order to increase the effectiveness of EU foreign policy. The rule of unanimous consent should be abandoned. This is what citizens who participated in the Conference on…

June the 8th, 2022 - While there have been thousands of Ukrainian refugees enter Croatia since the Russian invasion of their country back in February this year, there are plenty of Ukrainians in Croatia who have been living and working seasonal jobs here since before the outbreak of war. Their status in the country, while different to that of refugees, is set to be clarified and fully protected. As Morski writes, in accordance with the European Union (EU) directive, about 12,500 Ukrainian citizens have so far applied for and received temporary protection status in the Republic of Croatia. However, some Ukrainians,…