New Veterans Affairs Minister candidate clears the second to last hurdle.
Prime Minister Tihomir Orešković appeared today at the session of the Parliamentary Committee on War Veterans and introduced his candidate for the new Veterans Affairs Minister. He said he was proud that Tomislav Medved would be part of his team, reports Index.hr on March 17, 2016.
Miro Bulj (MOST) said to the candidate that the essential issue was the decentralization of human resources in the field, especially when it comes to veterans' centres and health care. Also important is the Memorial Documentation Centre to promote the truth about the Homeland War, said Bulj.
Nenad Stazić (SDP) said that Medved fought bravely and honourably for Croatia, which is based on the rule of law. “And then you deliberately violated the laws of the country for which you fought honourably. Demonstrations at St. Mark's Square in which you participated were not reported to the police, and protesters attacked the Croatian police. You were trying to overthrow the legally elected government of the country for which you fought”, said Stazić.
Željko Jovanović (SDP) asked Medved to end "the protest tent saga in front of the Veterans Ministry”. "These protests are still led by HVO members who seek equal rights with Croatian veterans. These unwarranted demands would cost three billion kuna. How do you plan to solve it?" asked Jovanović.
Željko Dilber (HDZ) said he would support the "honourable candidate”. “Protest is a democratic way of expression of opinion. If there was more dialogue with the previous minister, protests would not have happened”, said Dilber. "I agree there are demands which have nothing to do with reality, but these are people whom you must meet with”, said Dilber.
Medved then addressed the Committee. "We will start by drafting a new law on the rights of veterans and their families, taking into account all the suggestions and the experience from previous years", said Medved. He added that every day eight veterans die, which is 3,000 a year, with an average age of less than 51 years.
Talking about the budget for the Veterans Ministry this year he said: “There is no reduction in comparison with the budget execution for 2015. With the proposed budget, the Ministry can start operating, we do not need additional funds for a whole series of measures”, said Medved.
At the end of the session, Medved received the unanimous support of the Committee to become the Minister of Veterans Affairs. He still needs to be confirmed by the whole Parliament.
