ZAGREB, October 5, 2019 - Miroslav Škoro, one of the three candidates to whom polls give the greatest chances of winning the forthcoming presidential election, tells Hina in an interview that he is not gathering together right-wing parties and groups but citizens craving for change.

Speaking of his motives to run in the presidential race, he said that he is not anyone's project and that he wants to contribute to Croatia's development.

Responding to the interviewer's remark that he likes to portray himself as a man of the people and against the establishment, he said he was not "cultivated in party incubators". "I am a self-made man of the people and arguably I am part of the elite when it comes to contemporary pop music. On the other hand, I took up the duties I performed (of a consul to Hungary and a member of Parliament) because politicians asked me for help and not I them. When I saw that the system did not allow changes, I returned my mandate. I did not want to be a parasite living off taxpayers' money. I consider such practice shameful and that's why I want to the change the election system."

Asked if he was pushing for the restoration of a semi-presidential system, Škoro said: "Your statement that my proposal for constitutional changes would put too much power in the hands of one person is simply not true. Quite the contrary, in that way the President of the Republic would become a counter-balance to the head of the biggest party who largely decides on the composition of parliament and picks behind closed doors Constitutional Court judges, the Chief State Prosecutor, the director of the HRT (Croatian broadcasting corporation) and employees in motorway toll booths. In this country the division of powers exists only on paper, and the President, as a corrective, can guarantee the independence and stability of democratic institutions."

Asked how he planned to achieve unity in society if he surrounded himself with radical right-wing groups, Škoro said he was never "a man of division" and did not intend to become one. "If the MOST party and the Greens are a radical right, then your definition and my definition of radicalism and the right are not from the same book."

Asked if he believes in a civic society, given that his statements are dominated by national, patriotic and religious narratives, Škoro said: "Your question suggests that citizens must not be patriots and believers who love their nations, if I understood correctly. I don't see how that is mutually exclusive. We are all Croatian citizens and none of us must be discriminated against or privileged. Patriotism is a great driving force that leads us to a common goal which we as a nation must have, and let everyone express it in their own way. Religious freedoms are an important feature of a civic society and we must safeguard them."

Commenting on the formal announcement by the incumbent President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović this week that she would run for a second term in office, Škoro said that in her announcement Grabar-Kitarović said virtually nothing about the results of her work because there are none. "On the one hand, she says she could not have done more with the existing powers, while on the other she is opposed to expanding the President's constitutional powers. How will she do anything in the future if, based on the existing model, she has done nothing so far? She seeks a new term so she can continue her inaction, while I want substantial changes. And I am certain that the people will opt for changes because they see that with the existing elites we are failing."

Citing opinion polls, Škoro said that 64 percent of citizens agree with his assessment that the President of the Republic should have greater powers. "This confirms that the current President, as well as the rest of the political elite, is completely separated from the people, their desires and interests."

Asked if he thought he could threaten Grabar-Kitarović's bid given that her election campaign team expected Social Democrat candidate Zoran Milanović in the second round of vote, Škoro said that the ruling HDZ party had also been convinced that it would win six seats in the European Parliament but it did not. "It's the people who decide," he underscored.

Asked what his advantages were in comparison with Grabar-Kitarović and Milanovic, Škoro said: "I am not doing this because I have to, but because I want to. Unlike them, I have a lot of things to do outside politics. I have not entered politics for my own sake but to make my contribution in creating a better future for Croatia."

Asked if he expected to split up the HDZ electorate and if he could compete with their infrastructure and finance, Škoro said: "I speak to all Croatian citizens and voters. I respect their party affiliation, but to me as an independent candidate that is of secondary importance. I am gathering together a broad movement of people and parties of different persuasions so that we can finally make Croatia a functioning state to the benefit of all its citizens."

Asked if he expected considerable support from the Catholic Church and faithful, Škoro said that according to the latest census 93 percent of citizens identified as believers, and among them over 90 percent were Catholics. "So, of course I count on the support of believers because without it I would not stand a chance. I was raised by Jesuits, I sang about Christian values in my songs long ago and I advocate them in public. I am sure the faithful have already recognised that."

Asked about his position on the Nazi-allied Independent State of Croatia (NDH) and whether he thought that the Ustasha salute "For the homeland ready"! should be banned, Škoro said: "For me the NDH is history, and as for 'For the homeland ready!', this salute is displayed on the official insignia of the HOS as a legal military formation from the Homeland War which fought for democratic Croatia. My feeling is that the purpose of incriminating this salute, which did not much bother even the late (SDP leader) Ivica Račan, is to tarnish the HOS and hence the entire Croatian army and Homeland War. Something like that must not be allowed."

Responding to the interviewer's remark that he and his associates were "flirting" with the idea of banning the Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS), Škoro said that there was no conspiracy in this regard and reiterated his earlier statements that "if conditions were met for banning the SDSS or any other political party, as the President of the Republic I would address such a request to the Constitutional Court because only it can decide on a ban. Besides, I don't think it's good if a person who participates in government goes to a Chetnik celebration to get instructions, to a country which we cannot call a friend and which is not a member of the EU and NATO, and then use these instructions to destabilise our country. That's a matter of national security and the President must demonstrate determination in such cases."

Commenting on his statement that as President he would attend memorial ceremonies both at Bleiburg, Austria and Jasenovac, Škoro said that his heart was sad for all the victims. "In these cases too, the President must show that he is a factor of stability who connects people rather than separates them. I think that we need to clearly condemn every crime and duly commemorate every victim equally."

Asked if he was in favour of religious or civil education in school or both, Škoro said: "I think that the spiritual dimension of people is very important and that's why religious education should stay in schools, because they are not just educational institutions but they also take care of children's upbringing. But civil education is also needed so that children are well informed about the rights and duties of every citizen, the work of democratic institutions and the functioning of the democratic society."

Asked if as President he would advocate the right of same-sex couples to adopt children, Škoro said that he would support solutions in the best interests of children. "The priority here is not the rights of adults but the interests of children, and I think it is in the interest of every child to grow up in a family with a mother and father."

Asked if abortion should be banned, Škoro said: "Under the Constitutional Court ruling of 2017, that would be unconstitutional. Only the Croatian Parliament can legally regulate this matter. I am against abortion and as President of the Republic I will advocate the right of every person to live."

Asked if he would continue assembling right-wing parties and groups for the next parliamentary election if his presidential bid failed, Škoro said: "I am not assembling right-wing parties but all citizens craving for change that is needed in order for Croatia to move forward and free itself from the grip of corrupt elites that are alienated from the people. I am fully concentrated on the presidential election and on what will follow my arrival in Pantovčak (the President's Office)."

More news about Miroslav Škoro can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, October 3, 2019 - For the time being, incumbent President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović's bid for a second term in office is supported by the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party, whose candidate she was in the last presidential election, while members of the parliamentary opposition are very critical of the results of her five-year term.

After she addressed the public earlier in the day to announce her candidacy for another term as president, HDZ whip Branko Bačić said that his party fully supported her candidacy. "In her address I recognised the enthusiasm, desire, will and ability... to serve another term as president," Bačić said.

He stressed that during Grabar-Kitarović's term, and also owing to the work of the Andrej Plenković government, Croatia had never had a better international reputation and status in the EU and the rest of the world, and the Croatian Army had never been better, readier and more equipped, with visible progress of the military and security system.

"Speaking of presidential candidates, I would also say that she is a serious politician on the domestic scene. Voters will know how to distinguish between responsible politicians who lead the country in the right direction and with whom a majority of the Croatian people will identify and those who are irresponsible," Bačić concluded.

Social Democrat Gordan Maras said the main question one should ask oneself today was what the last five years would be remembered for.

"Did Croatia make certain progress; did it accomplish what the president expected and said at the beginning of her term? Let us remember the statement that Croatia will be the wealthiest country, that the president will move her office from Pantovčak, that she will cut her office's costs. None of that happened," said Maras.

He said citizens would remember Grabar-Kitarović for certain situations that were not crucial for the post of president, "for her travels, her socialising at various events, her last trip to the United States. In a situation when the country has the most corrupt government ever, when there are so many scandals, when society lacks the fundamental values that make people want to live in Croatia, citizens expect the president to take a position and say 'No more of that'."

He added that the incumbent president could not do it because she was running for a new term with the direct support of those who had made the situation in the country what it was - the HDZ.

"The presidential vote must be a referendum on whether citizens are happy with Croatia and with the way they live... and I believe they are not," said Maras, adding that his party's presidential candidate Zoran Milanović was the only alternative to the current policy.

Kazimir Varga of Zagreb mayor Milan Bandić's Labour and Solidarity Party said that the party would decide on whether it would nominate its own presidential candidate, call its members to vote according to their conscience or support some of the existing candidates after elections were called.

MOST leader Božo Petrov said he was confident that presidential candidate Miroslav Škoro would definitely make it to the second round and that he had a realistic chance of winning the elections.

"These elections are important because finally a president can be elected who does not come from the two parties that have proven over the last 20 years that they have nothing new to offer and do not protect citizens' interests," Petrov said.

Independent member of parliament Bojan Glavašević, who used to be a Social Democrat, described the president's address as "a pile of utter nonsense". "After five years she leaves behind only scorched earth. Of all the people who have said that they want to run for president, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović is definitely the worst," he said.

"She has no morals if after five years of very selective, opportunistic patriotism and divisions she has caused, she wants to run again for president. She is the worst, most unpopular president in the history of Croatia and I sincerely hope citizens will vote accordingly," Glavašević said.

Asked who the best candidate was, he said that he did not intend to join in any candidate's campaign but that there was no mystery regarding his choice.

"I support any candidacy that can make Croatia a better place, any progressive candidacy and anyone who stands a serious chance of moving Grabar-Kitarović from the post which she did not justify in any way. Zoran Milanović is definitely one such candidate," said Glavašević.

More news about presidential elections can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, October 2, 2019 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Wednesday that what separated President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović from the other presidential candidates was her engagement on Croatia's international positioning, the stability of institutions and the strengthening of the military.

Speaking to the press before Grabar-Kitarović announced her bid for re-election, Plenković said she would be backed, aside from his HDZ party, by a majority of the Croatian people because they knew what was useful for the country and what was less useful.

Asked what distinguished Grabar-Kitarović from the other candidates, he said "it's obvious." "Her achievements in the first term, the direction of the country we run, the fact that she engaged herself on Croatia's international positioning, that she saw to the stability of institutions, that in this term we strengthened the Croatian army, defence, which is in her remit."

Plenković said all HDZ members would participate in the presidential campaign. "If you are a member of the party, if you support the presidential candidate, you have the obligation to participate."

Speaking of an upcoming strike in elementary and high schools and Education Minister Blaženka Divjak's Facebook post that she is not happy with the talks between the government and school unions, the prime minister underlined the importance of a uniform government policy.

The unions know the government's offer, which relates to a part of this year, while talks about the future will be held later, he said. "When you have a dialogue, it's important that people meet halfway. There is good will on our side about all the issues that have been raised in our term and all will be resolved."

Asked if he could risk a strike in schools ahead of the presidential election, Plenković said the two were not related and that the Science and Education Ministry had accomplished good things.

"We consider education important; we appreciate the contribution of teachers and professors. Without education, there's no competitiveness in the future of Croatia and new generations. We must also take into account the message, which is continuous, that we can spend only what we can. We ask the unions for understanding. The offer was good."

As for Međimurje County prefect Matija Posavec's exit from the HNS, a junior partner in the ruling coalition, Plenković said that irrespective of who was in power locally, the government helped everyone in an organised and engaged fashion.

More news about presidential elections can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, October 1, 2019 - President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović will officially announce that she is running for a second term as president on Wednesday.

Zoltan Kabok, spokesman for the president's campaign team, on Tuesday invited the media to attend "the president's address and official announcement of her candidacy for a new term" at noon on Wednesday.

Media has been speculating and expecting Grabar-Kitarović to announce her candidacy for some time now.

Her campaign office told Hina that in her address Grabar-Kitarović will say why she is running for another term and that she will announce her election platform in the next few weeks.

No party officials or government representatives will attend the president's address tomorrow because she is still not officially the candidate of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) even though the HDZ has confirmed that she is their candidate.

According to the HDZ statute, the HDZ National Council decides on a party candidate in a presidential election at the recommendation of the party presidency.

The party leadership will be present when Grabar-Kitarović announces her election platform for another five-year term in office.

More news about presidential elections can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, September 30, 2019 - President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović will announce her candidacy for re-election "very, very soon," the head of her campaign headquarters, Ivan Anušić, said on Sunday, adding that the president was not stalling and that other candidates had started "perhaps a little too soon."

"There is no stalling, she is in office, unlike other candidates who embarked on their campaigns perhaps a little too soon," Anušić, a member of the presidency of the ruling HDZ party, told the public broadcaster.

He said other candidates "perhaps don't have other commitments and certain candidacies and candidates started getting into full swing already in the spring." "The president doesn't have the need for that because, when she announces her candidacy, she will spend most of the time to the candidacy and less to affairs of the state," he added.

Anušić said he did not think that Grabar-Kitarović's approval rating was dropping, rather that the number of presidential candidates was increasing, currently standing at 14.

He said political campaigns in Croatia were unfair and was hopeful that this would change, although he is convinced that the upcoming presidential race will be unfair. "In a way, websites... are not attacking only the president but those around her as well."

More news about presidential elections can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, September 29, 2019 - The president of the Democratic Alliance of National Renewal, Anto Đapić, on Saturday presented his candidacy for head of state, saying he wants to expand the president's powers and draw up a new constitution in which ethnic minorities would not have guaranteed seats in parliament and their rights would be exercised in the equality of all citizens.

Đapić believes the president should appoint the leadership of the intelligence community and ambassadors, approve military development plans, state policies and goals, and appoint the head of the public broadcaster nominated by parliament.

More news about presidential elections can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, September 28, 2019 - The Istrian Democratic Party (IDS) will support the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate and former prime minister Zoran Milanović in the forthcoming presidential election, the IDS Council decided by a majority of votes at a meeting on Friday evening.

IDS leader Boris Miletić said that Milanovic offered the strongest guarantees for the victory of the progressive Croatia in the presidential election.

"Voters will be choosing between a regressive and a progressive Croatia. With its support, the IDS wishes once again to make a strong contribution to Croatia truly becoming a normal, pro-European, open and modern country," Miletić said.

"Croatia's entry into the Schengen zone, which would eliminate the border within Istria, the removal of the barbed-wire fence on the border with Slovenia, and better road and rail connections with the whole of Europe are issues of vital importance to Istria, which the future President of the Republic can and should influence. Zoran Milanović has given convincing and credible guarantees that he will protect the interests of Istria and its civilisational, economic and cultural specificities," the IDS leader said.

He concluded by saying that the presidential election could mark "the beginning of the end of bigoted, retrograde nationalism and insane populism which has degraded the image of Croatia in the world and put our country at the bottom of Europe."

More news about presidential elections can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, September 22, 2019 - The Croatian People's Party (HNS), a junior partner in the ruling coalition, will launch an initiative together with constitutional and legal experts proposing that the President of the Republic should be elected by parliament in the future, and hence it will not support any of the candidates in the forthcoming presidential election, HNS leader Ivan Vrdoljak said on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting of the party's main committee, Vrdoljak said that the HNS would call on its membership and sympathisers to go to the polls and vote "according to their conscience, neither extremely left nor extremely right."

He said he was confident that the party's membership would be guided by liberal values and the fight for an open and tolerant society and would vote for candidates that would lead the country forward while excluding populists and extremists.

Vrdoljak said that the HNS leadership had concluded three weeks ago that none of the present presidential candidates would articulate liberal, tolerant and open policies. He said that the HNS gave priority to party and parliamentary elections, adding that it was against increasing presidential powers and that the election of the President of the Republic by parliament would be a mark of democratic progress.

The party's main committee also decided that it was necessary to further strengthen parliamentary democracy as one of the basic pillars of the Croatian political system, rather than strengthening the presidential system.

More HNS news can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, September 20, 2019 - The Youth Independent List said on Friday it would put forward a proposal to lower the voting age for local elections to 16, explaining that the change did not require an amendment of the Constitution and that such an option existed in some EU countries.

Addressing a news conference, MP Tomislav Panenić said that the Constitution did not set the age limit for local elections and that this was regulated by laws so his parliamentary group had decided to propose amending the Local Elections Act to enable young people under the age of 16 to participate in decision-making on local policies.

We expect other members of parliament to support our initiative, said Panenić.

MP Ante Pranić said they hoped it would be possible to apply the proposed change at local elections in 2021.

MP Marin Škibola said that young people should be more involved in politics and that they should be given room for direct action.

In Austria, Malta and Greece people under the age of 18 participate in all elections, while young people under 18 in Germany, Scotland and Estonia vote in local elections, Škibola said, adding that the election system in Croatia was so bad that radical changes should be considered.

More news about elections in Croatia can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, September 17, 2019 - Prime Minister and HDZ president Andrej Plenković said on Monday the party's leadership discussed full and strong support for President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović in her re-election campaign and maximum engagement by all party members in that, adding that they must act responsibly in the interest of the HDZ's victory in all upcoming elections.

Speaking to the press after a meeting of the HDZ Presidency and National Council, Plenković said they also talked about the direction in which they were running the government and the country. "At the session there was strong and clear support for the direction which has ensured political stability and the stronger European and international positioning of Croatia."

He said everyone at the meeting "understands that in every election campaign it's important to have a coherent party policy, which must be uniform."

"I expect everyone to refrain from any activity which is aimed at positioning in the intra-party campaign," he said, adding that such members were confusing the membership and the electorate, undermining the party's goals to have Grabar-Kitarović re-elected and its approval ratings.

Plenković said all party members must all be mature and responsible in the interest of the HDZ winning all upcoming elections.

Asked about his recent statement that Miro Kovač, who said he would run for party president, was irrelevant, Plenković explained that he said it "deliberately in order to stop confusing the public and the membership. Right now, the entire HDZ supports this government's direction. This direction means the HDZ's inclusive policy, notably towards minority members of parliament."

He said intra-party elections would be held within the deadline.

More HDZ news can be found in the Politics section.