Politics

ZAGREB, 9 October, 2021 - Croatian Police Director Nikola Milina said on Friday that three police officers, who were recognised as some of the persons in video recordings showing violent pushbacks against illegal migrants, were suspended, and further disciplinary steps would be taken. A task force, set up to deal with the allegations about the violence against migrants along the border between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, established that the three riot police officers could be seen in the video recordings released earlier this week. The behaviour of the suspended police officers has amounted to the violation of their duties, which undermines the…

ZAGREB, 9 October, 2021 - Zagreb Mayor Tomislav Tomašević on Friday refuted allegations of wrongdoings and conflict of interest in the Zagreb Holding multi-utility company, saying that the dismissed management board members should file a lawsuit if they know there had been illegal actions, because his conscience was clear. "There have been various allegations or accusations that we want to use Zagreb Holding for our own financial benefit. I completely dismiss such accusations and tell everyone to file a lawsuit if we have done anything illegal. We are ready to deal with that," Tomašević told reporters in front of the City…

ZAGREB, 8 Oct 2021 - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Friday, Parliament Day and the 30th anniversary of the decision on independence, that the Sabor had fulfilled all its key tasks. Regardless of all the criticism, I believe that in these 30 years the Sabor has fulfilled all its key tasks and that it has adopted all important and big decisions, Jandroković said at a ceremonial session of the parliament in memory of 8 October 1991, when the Sabor adopted the decision to sever all state-legal ties with the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY), which meant that Croatia had declared its…

ZAGREB, 8 Oct 2021 - The Labour, Family and Social Policy Ministry's state secretary, Marija Pletikosa, on Friday told a conference on homelessness in Split that Croatia had allocated almost HRK 20 billion in the period from 2021 to 2027 to combat poverty and social exclusion. "The National Plan to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion in Croatia for the period from 2021 to 2027 foresees and allocation of almost HRK 20 billion," Pletikosa said at the 15th national conference on homelessness. According to Pletikosa, that money will be disbursed to implement several measures and services that will be provided for the…

ZAGREB, 8 Oct 2021 - European Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson on Friday expressed satisfaction with her talks with Croatian Minister of the Interior Davor Božinović and his announcement of an investigation into reports of illegal expulsion of migrants as well as her dissatisfaction with Greece's reaction. The Croatian government has taken the reports very seriously and an investigation will be launched promptly, Johansson said, noting that Božinović was shocked and that she believed Croatia was acting as it should, with the clear position that border protection should always be in line with the rule of law and fundamental rights. The…

ZAGREB, 8 Oct 2021 - Interior Minister Davor Božinović said on Friday that police officers were involved in violence against migrants on the Bosnian border, which was reported by Croatian and European media earlier this week. "The police director, as soon as he saw the footage, sent an expert team which worked very intensively and as far as I know at the moment, they established that those were police officers," he told Croatian reporters in Luxembourg, where he is attending a meeting of EU interior ministers. Božinović said he assumed it was "some individual offence by several police officers," adding…

ZAGREB, 7 Oct 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Thursday he had talked with Interior Minister Davor Božinović about violent pushbacks of migrants from the Croatian border with Bosnia and Herzegovina and expected a report from all relevant services to see what had actually happened.  "Last night I immediately called Minister Božinović to ensure that the Ministry and police take all the necessary measures and investigate the matter so that we see what happened and take appropriate decisions, because Croatia, as a country governed by the rule of law, respects its own laws and international rules. We do not…

ZAGREB, 7 Oct 2021 - Health Minister Vili Beroš said at a government session on Thursday that the vaccination of medical staff against COVID-19 had been stepped up and that the current rate was 74%, with the highest increase in vaccination having been reported among nurses. "Compared to a week ago, the share of unvaccinated staff has dropped by 2.4% and most of the newly vaccinated are nurses and other medical staff, which is an increase of 2.8%," Beroš said. He commended medical institutions for the good organization of the introduction of COVID-19 certificates in the healthcare sector. So far 11,567 employees…

October 7, 2021 - Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez visited Croatia recently and met with Croatian PM Andrej Plenković to talk about deepening diplomatic relations in 2022. Nobody can deny the fact that foreign countries' ambassadors and diplomats are valuable in the day-to-day business of nurturing diplomatic relations with Croatia on various levels (political, cultural, economic, and more). But it's even more special when political representatives of other countries actually come to Croatia for an official visit. The latest such instance was the visit of Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez. His meeting with the Croatian PM Andrej Plenković was the big story in…

ZAGREB, 7 Oct 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Thursday commemorated the 30th anniversary of the shelling of the government building by laying a wreath at the memorial plaque on it and saying that those had been fateful moments for Croatia's freedom. "Today is 30 years since the shelling of the government building. At that time it was the headquarters of the first president of the republic, Franjo Tuđman. That afternoon, a Yugoslav Army MiG shelled the government building with the obvious goal to kill Croatia's leadership," the prime minister said. He added that together with Tuđman at that moment were…