As Telegram/Vedran Vrabec writes, the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB) has filed two lawsuits seeking a total of 100,000 kuna in damages from the well-known blogger and founder of the Total Croatia News portal, Paul Bradbury. The reason for the first lawsuit, worth 50 thousand kuna, are the statements of Bradbury published in a text published by the Index.hr portal.

The British national, who has lived in Croatia since 2003 and runs an English-language portal where he often writes critically about the work of the CNTB, called the organisation into question last summer because of their strikingly poor communication with foreign tourists.

Bradbury then said that the CNTB didn't bother to deny the misinformation about the situation in Croatia that appeared in the foreign media, more precisely an Irish publication which claimed that Irish citizens couldn't enter Croatia. To be more specific, he was irritated by the fact that there was no reaction to the erroneous claims that citizens of not only Ireland but also Belgium couldn't enter Croatia.

"One of the tasks of the CNTB should be to follow the European media and then correct any misinformation, because in addition to the Irish, misinformation was also published in the Belgian media that their citizens cannot enter Croatia," Bradbury told Index.

On the same occasion, Paul Bradbury criticised the CNTB for their lack of promotion of Croatian tourism in the markets of Switzerland, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. He stated that one of the biggest Croatian competitors, Greece, promotes its tourist destinations across all foreign media, while Croatia has limited advertising to just seven countries.

"I don't know why they don't target the Swiss, who are well-to-do guests and we're a destination they can drive to, or why the campaign isn't being conducted in neighbouring countries like Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially now that we won't get any Americans," Bradbury wondered.

He was also sued for the use of the word uhljeb

Bradbury's remarks obviously hit a sensitive nerve with the Croatian National Tourist Board, which is why the organisation soon filed a lawsuit against him. In the text of the lawsuit that Bradbury published on TCN, it can be seen that the CNTB states that Bradbury presented untruths and slanderous claims against the organisation. The CNTB defends their stance by claiming that they have taken all necessary measures to achieve the best possible tourist results, and that they have promoted Croatian tourism in fourteen, not just seven foreign countries.

However, that lawsuit isn't the only procedure initiated by the CNTB against Paul Bradbury. The lawyer Vanja Juric described the second lawsuit to Telegram. "It's a cover photo he posted on Facebook. He placed the slogan ''Croatia full of life'' but replaced the last word so that it read ''Croatia full of uhljebs''. The CNTB felt called out here, although there's no mention of that organisation anywhere whatsoever. Despite that, they initiated another procedure against him, in which they're also asking for 50 thousand kuna,'' the lawyer explained.

''The CNTB didn't request a correction''

Talking about the lawsuit filed by the CNTB against Bradbury for his statements transmitted by Index.hr, Vanja Juric said that it's possible to refute it on several grounds. First and foremost, the lawyer points out that the CNTB didn't ask for any correction to those allegations that they considered to be incorrect. "They didn't turn to Index at all, nor did they sue Index, nor did they send a request for any corrections or anything like that. Instead, very soon after the interview was published, they just filed a lawsuit against Paul Bradbury.

Usually when someone wants to deny something, or explain an inaccuracy to the public, the first means they resort to is a request to correct the information. This means that you are requesting for the published material to be corrected, after which a link to that request is published in the original article. If this had been done in this case, it would've been seen that that the CTNB had corrected and explained what Paul Bradbury had claimed in his article,'' said the lawyer, going on to further explain:

"In my opinion, only one thing can be concluded from the CNTB's decision to file a lawsuit immediately: they want to punish him for what he normally does, and that is commenting on Croatian tourism and the role of the CNTB. I think that they simply want to punish and intimidate him, and that they actually want to send out a message: don't do it anymore, because every time you say something, we're going to sue you,'' believes Vanja Juric.

''They said they were postponing their campaigns''

Juric also noted that the lawsuit shows that the CNTB has misinterpreted the concept of defamation. "I don't see at all what part of it they're disputing, given that in their statement on March the 30th, they themselves said that they were postponing all campaigns. There's nothing defamatory in Paul Bradbury's statements, considering that the things he said came from the CNTB's own statement,'' Juric said.

The lawyer also pointed out that last summer, a large amount of inaccurate information about the possibilities of foreign tourists entering Croatia was circulating in the media, as were other poorly or incorrectly written pieces of information which were, back then, very important for tourists who wanted to visit the country. In addition, she noted that it was Bradbury and his associates who started a group on Viber in which they denied all of this misinformation and helped foreigners to cope with the organisation of their visits and stays in Croatia.

Can the CNTB suffer so-called mental pain?

Furthermore, the lawyer explained that there is no evidence that Paul Bradbury's statements caused damage to the CNTB. "Mental pain is proven by the testimony of the person who was harmed, as well as the statements of possible witnesses who saw how much that person was suffering. We argue that the CNTB, as a state organisation and a legal rather than a natural person, cannot suffer the kind of mental pain that they're claiming to suffer.

They may suffer some damage that would be done to their reputation, however, even for that - there's no evidence. The CNTB didn't bring a thing to the table that would indicate that they'd suffered damage in terms of their reputation or good name,'' stated Vanja Juric.

''The kings of accidental tourism''

Paul Bradbury has been publicly criticising the work of the CNTB for many years. His comments often attract the attention of the public, and many experts consider them well-founded and relevant. A few years ago, his statement quickly spread on social networks that in the event of the abolition of the CNTB Ministry of Tourism, no fewer tourists would come to Croatia than already come each year.

Bradbury often warned of the lack of content necessary for luxury tourism in Croatia, and was particularly harsh about the projects launched by the CNTB to promote Croatian tourist destinations. He once thoroughly analysed the now defunct Croatia 365 project, concluding that millions of kuna had been spent to achieve shockingly poor results. He has since called the people in charge of promoting Croatian tourism the "Kings of accidental tourism".

April the 12th, 2021 - Igor Skoko has come out against the Croatian National Tourist Board's lawsuits against journalist Paul Bradbury, demanding that they be withdrawn, as Dalmatinski portal writes.

''We're shocked by the bizarre news of the Croatian Tourist Board's lawsuits launched against Paul Bradbury, a journalist and the owner of the Total Croatia News portal. This represents a classic way of intimidating and stifling freedom of speech, in order to silence any criticism of the dysfunctional system of the Croatian National Tourist Board, which spends a lot of the taxpayers' money. We demand the immediate withdrawal of these lawsuits and the removal of director Kristjan Stanicic,'' said County Councillor Igor Skoko, adding that it is inadmissible for the Croatian National Tourist Board to spend the taxpayers' money and time silencing well-founded criticism, while the entire tourism sector has fear for the upcoming season, and companies that have somehow managed to survive the crisis are barely keeping their business alive.

''The Croatian National Tourist Board should see a partner in Paul Bradbury. He's a man who has undoubtedly indebted Croatian tourism with his actions, and instead they're trying to intimidate and destroy him. This is just another proof of the justification of our request for the introduction of voluntary membership in the Croatian National Tourist Boad,'' Igor Skoko believes.

As he explained, if the taxpayers were given the opportunity to choose who to finance, many would certainly prefer to invest their money in tourism promotion in the knowledge and work of experts like Bradbury, rather than in any of the 300 or so directors of the country's tourist boards.

''The Centre will always vehemently oppose any form of intimidation and attacks on journalists, activists and citizens. We consider any attempt to restrict freedom of speech, and we witness them almost every day in Croatia, it's unacceptable, and this week we will send legal changes to the procedure that would prevent such lawsuits from occurring at all,'' announced Skoko.

Freedom of speech, he said, is the cornerstone of any democratic society and the first line of defense of all other freedoms.

''In addition to believing that an open public debate on any topic has no alternative, history teaches us that persecuting and silencing dissidents makes the whole society intellectually, but also economically poorer. Only an open exchange of ideas, but also criticism, is the guarantor of intellectual and economic progress,'' concluded Igor Skoko.

April 11, 2021 - The Croatian National Tourist Board has sued Total Croatia News CEO Paul Bradbury twice, seeking a total of 100,000 kuna in damages. The full lawsuit and reply by Bradbury's lawyer, Vanja Juric. 

Lawsuit:

Date 12.06.2020. An article entitled "Fiasco: We’re boasting that we’re a coronavirus free zone, and foreign tourists have no idea about it" was published on the INDEX.HR web portal, in which the defendant presented incorrect and untrue information that violated the rights and interests of the plaintiff.

In the article in question, in relation to the plaintiff, the defendant maliciously and perfidiously presents inaccurate and untrue allegations, all with the evident aim of manipulating the Croatian public space in order to create and then unfoundedly maintain a negative perception.

These are the following untrue and defamatory allegations of the defendant:

"One of the tasks of the CNTB should be to follow the European media and then correct misinformation, because in addition to the Irish, misinformation was also published in the Belgian media that their citizens cannot enter Croatia."

"So, Croatia is promoted only on the German, Austrian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, Polish and Slovenian markets. Why didn't they target the Swiss market and that of neighbouring countries as well? I don't know why they aren’t targeting the Swiss, who are well-to-do guests and we are a car destination for them, or why the campaign isn’t being carried out in neighbouring countries such as Serbia and BiH, especially now that we will not get Americans. So, while Croatia is advertised in only 7 countries, Greece is sending a message to all foreign media that absolutely all tourists are welcome here.’’

2. The essence of the previously cited allegations of the defendant is reduced to presenting untruths and slander about the activities of the plaintiff in connection with the preparation of the tourist season in conditions determined by the consequences of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus. On top of that, the defendant offers an exclusively one-sided presentation of the situation without having previously officially checked any of the above with the plaintiff itself as the umbrella national tourist organisation in the Republic of Croatia.

Therefore, contrary to all the allegations of the defendant from this article, the plaintiff, in extremely unfavourable conditions, defined by the coronavirus crisis took all of the necessary measures to achieve the prerequisites for achieving the best possible tourist results in the summer and autumn months of 2020. Of course, and contrary to the defendant's untrue allegations, the plaintiff's activity is absolutely dedicated to presenting the Republic of Croatia as a tourist destination that is a safe destination in the pandemic situation around the world. In that sense, and contrary to Luženik's allegations from the article in question, the plaintiff intensively promotes the Republic of Croatia on a global scale as a safe tourist destination, and such activity is not focused only on a number of European countries, as incorrectly stated by the defendant in the article. Namely, the plaintiff spends all the time on marketing campaigns and promotional announcements in 14 markets, not just 7 and this is incorrectly stated by the defendant in the article in question.

It is obvious that the defendant interprets the obligation to respect epidemiological measures by all social and economic entities in the Republic of Croatia, including the plaintiff, perfidiously, maliciously, but also extremely unprofessionally, since the defendant himself presents himself to the public as a tourism expert. The defendant interprets it as poor and unprofessional treatment in connection with the organisation of activities related to the preparation of this year's tourist season.

In doing so, the defendant, obviously maliciously, neglects the fact that from the beginning of the pandemic, the plaintiff continuously and promptly informs the general public about the conditions of travel and stay in the Republic of Croatia, all in accordance with the applicable rules and recommendations of the National Staff, as well as through direct communication with its network of representative offices.

Finally, in accordance with the valid strategic documents, the plaintiff continuously monitors the media in key broadcasting markets, and communication with the same media takes place "ad hoc" whenever the plaintiff receives certain notifications about erroneous publications and needs for corrections, so the defendant's allegations are incorrect and utterly untrue.

Following the above, it is obvious that the defendant, by publishing the previously cited untrue and defamatory allegations, grossly and severely violated the plaintiff's character in terms of Article 19 of the Civil Obligations Act, which is reflected in the violation of reputation (something along the lines of slander/defamation).

Precisely for this reason, and due to the violation (slander or defamation), the plaintiff in this civil proceeding demands from the defendant adequate monetary satisfaction in the amount of 50,000.00 KN.

EVIDENCE: - as before;

The main reason why the plaintiff is raising this lawsuit and claim is the protection of its rights and interests due to untrue and incomplete reporting to the Croatian public by the defendant, which then ultimately imposes the need to correct previously emphasised information that is incorrectly published and misinterpreted in this article by the defendant.

The plaintiff points out that in the case of a public apology made by the defendant, done so in a manner that fully corresponds to the manner of publishing the disputed statements, i.e. in the same or equivalent place, it is ready to accept without the further continuation of this litigation.

I. The defendant is ordered to pay the plaintiff the amount of HRK 50,000.00 together with the corresponding statutory default interest rate from 04.08.2020 as the date of filing the lawsuit until payment at the rate of the average interest rate on loans granted for a period longer than one year to non-financial companies calculated for the reference period preceding the current half-year, increased by three percentage points, within 15 days under threat of enforcement.

II. The defendant is ordered to reimburse the plaintiff for the incurred litigation costs together with the corresponding statutory default interest running from the date of the first instance judgment until payment at the rate of the average interest rate on loans granted for more than one year to nonfinancial companies calculated for the previous reference period, increased by three percentage points, within 15 days under threat of enforcement.

Reply by Bradbury's lawyer, Vanja Juric:

I. The Defendant authorised the lawyer Vanja Jurić from Zagreb, (Ulica grada Mainza 13) to represent him in this case, so the proposal is to deliver all documents [related to this case] to the address of the law office.

II. The defendant disputes the merits of the lawsuit entirely, as well as the [monetary] amount of the lawsuit, for the following reasons:

1. The defendant did not submit a request for the correction of the information to the publisher of the portal www.index.hr.

1.1. The defendant considers it undisputed that the information that is the subject of this lawsuit was published in the media - on the portal www.index.hr. Although the lawsuit was filed against the declarant - the defendant, and not against the publisher who published the disputed article/interview, the plaintiff, before filing a lawsuit in this case, should have sent a request to the publisher of the portal www.index.hr for a correction of that information.

1.2. The Law on Media stipulates that a person who has previously addressed the publisher with a request for the correction of information or a request for an apology, when a correction is not possible, has the right to file a lawsuit for non-pecuniary damage. Likewise, the same Law establishes a request for the correction of information as the primary way of compensating for any damage caused by publishing information in the media, while a lawsuit for non-pecuniary damage is only an ancillary means for violations that are particularly severe and cannot be "corrected" by the publication of any corrections or apologies.

1.3. In accordance with the identical principles established by the Law on Media, and the Law on Obligations, Art. 1099 and 1100 determine the ways of repairing non-pecuniary damage. The Law (abbreviated Croatian: ZOO) determines that non-pecuniary damage is primarily repaired "by the publishing of a judgment or correction, by withdrawing the statement by which the violation was committed or by some other means that can achieve the purpose achieved by fair monetary compensation." The payment of fair monetary compensation is also prescribed by this Law only as a secondary way of repairing non-material damage, and only when "the severity of the injury and the circumstances of the case justify it".

1.5. Because the plaintiff did not make the slightest effort to correct the allegedly inaccurate information or for the defendant or Index as the publisher to compensate them for the alleged damage in any of the ways provided by the Law as a primary means, the plaintiff was not authorised to file this claim for non-pecuniary damage. The plaintiff, by not filing a request for the correction of the information or the withdrawal of the statement, showed that no actual damage was caused to them.

2. Context

2.1. The disputed statements of the defendants were made in the midst of the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, at the beginning of June, when the tourist season would already be underway in Croatia under normal circumstances. From March to June 2020 (and later), precisely because of the pandemic, Croatia experienced a steep decline in tourist arrivals and overnight stays, like most other countries, which posed a major problem for tourism workers, hoteliers, small renters, and ultimately for the budget of the Republic of Croatia, which has suffered and continues to suffer great losses.

2.2. The defendant is the author and publisher of the portal www.total-croatia-news.com, on which he publishes various [types of] content, with special emphasis placed on topics relating to tourism. The defendant is being treated in Croatia as one of the tourism experts, which is why, in this particular case, he was contacted by a journalist from the www.index.hr portal. In the aforementioned period, namely, all Croatian media reported on the situation regarding tourism, the activities of the Ministry of Tourism and the Croatian Tourist Board, all with the aim of initiating a public debate on these issues, and finding solutions to problems encountered by Croatian tourism.

2.3. During the same period, a number of inaccurate and chaotic pieces of information about the conditions of arrival in Croatia, the conditions for crossing the country's borders and other important circumstances that tourists should have known were spread in Croatia, as well as in the countries from which tourists come. This was, after all, commented on by numerous tourism and communication experts.

EVIDENCE:

- Article "Minister of Tourism revealed three scenarios for this year's season: It is possible to drop overnight stays by 90 percent", Glas Istre, April 2, 2020.
- Article "Disaster on the horizon: Steep decline in tourist overnight stays - 94.8 percent fewer tourists came in May than last year", www.net.hr, from 10.06.2020.
- Article "Croatian tourism is on its knees: The situation is uncertain, and the announcements do not promise yet: We are opening a hotel, but we have no reservations", www.net.hr, from 01.06.2020.
- Article “We're being stripped naked to the end! A country of missed opportunities with 314 tourist boards ", from April 10, 2020.

2.4. In addition to the above, on March 30, 2020, the plaintiff himself announced in his newsletter that "all marketing and PR activities in the [emitting/foreign] markets have been postponed."

EVIDENCE:

- A printout of the plaintiff's newsletter, dated 31 March 2020.

3. The disputed information is factually substantiated

3.1. The controversial article deals with the problematisation of the actions of the Ministry of Tourism and the Croatian Tourist Board, in the circumstances of the pandemic and the difficult challenges in which tourism found itself. The article, as well as the statements of the defendants (and other interlocutors) talks about the decline in the number of overnight stays and tourist arrivals, presents statistics to the public and compares the campaigns of other competing countries, in relation to Croatia's promotion in foreign markets and its shortcomings.

3.2. Although not covered by the lawsuit, the defendant in a statement for the portal www.index.hr, very clearly explained the basis of his objections, in relation to the actions of the competent ministry and the prosecutor, stating that Croatia announced it would ''open its borders for 10 countries, this is an automatic message to everyone else that they are not welcome ", as the Irish Times wrote about the fact that their citizens could not come to Croatia, which is not true, but the Croatian Government created this confusion", that same Irish Times [publication], after his intervention, changed that article, etc. Ultimately, the defendant presents his [value] judgments about the duties of the plaintiff and the Ministry of Tourism and expresses an opinion on what was wrong in their conduct and what should be improved.

3.3. The lawsuit includes two disputable - allegedly defamatory - pieces of information, although it is completely unclear from the lawsuit what the inaccuracy or defamatory nature of the defendant's statements consists of. The defendant considers that the plaintiff does not distinguish between the concepts of value judgments and factual claims and that they do not understand the meaning of the concept of defamation.

3.4. The first piece of information from the defendant states that one of the CNTB's tasks is to follow the European media and correct misinformation, since the Irish and Belgian media published information that their citizens could not come to Croatia, which was not true.

3.4.1. It is completely unclear to the defendant which part of the quoted information the plaintiff disputes. Does the plaintiff dispute the conclusion that the CNTB's job is to follow the European media? Or that misinformation was published in the Irish and Belgian media? In both cases, since this is factually substantiated information, there can be no question of defamation or any other type of damage to the plaintiff's reputation.

3.5. The second piece of information from the defendant refers to the enumeration of the markets in which Croatia, in the disputed period, advertised. After that, the defendant expressed the opinion that the prosecutor and the ministry should have "targeted" other countries, such as Switzerland, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which are our neighbours and, due to their proximity, the most likely guests. At the end of that statement, the defendant draws a parallel with the campaign and communication of Greece, which is, in terms of tourism, our competitor country.

3.5.1. Here, too, it is unclear what the plaintiff considers defamation, since the plaintiff themselves issued a press release on June 1, 2020, stating that they were “conducting a large promotional campaign in seven European markets, in Slovenia, Austria, Germany, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland.''

EVIDENCE:

- The statement of the plaintiff dated 01.06.2020.

3.5.2. As for the second part of the disputed statement - does the plaintiff challenge the right of the defendant to bring a court to/on where Croatia should still advertise? Is it problematic to mention Switzerland as a country from which guests come to Croatia? It is also unclear which part of the defendant's opinion is disputable, stating that the campaign must be aimed at both Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and why the mention of Greece as an example of good communication with tourists is disputable. The defendant, even with the best of intentions, does not understand why any of the cited allegations are being deemed to be incorrect, and especially defamatory.

EVIDENCE:

- An insight into the submitted documentation
- Hearing the defendant
- The examination of witness Krešimir Macan
- The examination of witness Zoran Pejović

3.6. All statements of the defendant that are disputable in this procedure were confirmed by another interlocutor of the Index portal, also an expert on tourism issues - Mr. Zoran Pejović. He stated that Croatia "does not work nearly enough on the promotion, in fact it does nothing", that it seems to him that the promotion is done "only for internal needs" and that he came to such insights "through contacts with travel agencies from the EU / ... / they hear very little about Croatia or hear nothing compared to [what they hear about] Portugal and Greece, which have strong campaigns. The promotion of Croatia in the world is going very, very poorly and that must be done much more strongly. "

EVIDENCE:

- An insight into the disputed article

4. The disputed information is not objectively suitable for the causing of damage

In accordance with the Law and the positions of the Croatian courts, in order for the court to award the plaintiff monetary (or other sort of) compensation, the information that is the subject of the dispute must be objectively suitable to cause damage. For all the reasons stated in the previous points of this statement, especially considering that these are factually based value judgments about the public action(s) taken by public authorities, the information that the plaintiff marked as disputable is not objectively suitable to cause damage, and especially not damage that would justify the verdict of fair monetary compensation.

5. Public interest

5.1. Tourism is one of the economic branches from which a significant number of Croatian citizens live. In addition, Croatia's revenues from tourism reach as much as 25% of GDP, so there can be no doubt that the success of tourism and tourism as such is a matter of significant public interest.

5.2. Also, the plaintiff is a public authority, whose activities are financed with taxpayers' money and which is responsible for the affairs and functioning of the tourist activities in Croatia. Therefore, any member of the public or the media has the right and duty to comment, criticise and problematise their public actions and all circumstances related to the performance of tasks delegated to them.

6. Assumptions of liability for damage

6.1. In proceedings of this type, the plaintiff is obliged to prove the cumulative existence of all presumptions of liability for damages, namely: the harm-doer, the harmful action, the damage, the link between the above and the illegality of the defendant in the proceedings.

The plaintiff did not, nor will he be able to prove these assumptions, since:

- The information in question is not objectively capable of causing damage to the plaintiff;
- The defendant is not a harm-doer, but the harm-doer, if there is one at all, is the portal that requested and published the plaintiff's statements;
- Actions - the statements of the defendant do not represent a harmful/damage-causing action, given that it is information that is factually based and/or represents the value judgments of the defendant on a topic of public interest;
- The damage did not occur, which is especially evident from the fact that the plaintiff did not do anything in relation to the statements of the defendant to request a denial by which the disputed information would be publicly refused and citizens would be properly informed;
- There is no link between the harmful action (which it is not) and the alleged damage, given that in the disputed, period many media [publications/portals] and members of the Croatian public publicly discussed the problems regarding tourism and the insufficient activities of the prosecutors;
- The defendant's conduct is not unlawful.

6.2. Given that the facts of this case are quite clear, the defendant at this stage will not go into more detail to clarify each of these items and refer to specific decisions of Croatian courts and the European Court of Human Rights, relating to freedom of expression and responsibility for opinion. However, the defendant draws the court's attention to the plaintiff's allegations that the defendant acted unlawfully, as such a possible finding of the court would be contrary to all existing standards of freedom of expression, especially when such expression relates to the work and activities of the public authorities. Making established judgments about the work of public authorities is not and cannot be illegal.

7. An attempt to retaliate against the defendant

7.1. The defendant considers that this lawsuit was not filed for damages that the plaintiff claims was caused to them, but for an attempt to retaliate against the defendant who continuously, due to the nature of his work, problematises the work of the Ministry of Tourism and the plaintiff.

7.2. The defendant finds it indicative that the plaintiff:

- Did not file a request for correction of the information, the removal of the disputed article or the withdrawal of the plaintiff's statement, to which they were legally entitled;
- Did not file a lawsuit against the portal www.index.hr, although it was that portal that published statements that the plaintiff considers harmful;
- Did not file a lawsuit against another interlocutor of the Index portal, whose statements were also published in the disputed article, nor against other media and/or experts who publicly criticised the actions of the plaintiff.

7.3. The plaintiff, although they had a number of legal remedies at their disposal, did not take any measures/steps to correct/repair the alleged damage, but instead filed a lawsuit directly and personally against the defendant, for damages in the amount of as much as HRK 50,000.00. For this reason, the defendant considers that this proceeding was not initiated in order [for the plaintiff] to protect their reputation - given that the information itself was not objectively suitable to harm the plaintiff - but to compel the defendant, by bringing his existential and financial stability into question, to stop speaking publicly about the plaintiff. Given the provisions of the Civil Obligations Act, the defendant considers that the claim for fair monetary compensation in this case is incompatible with the legal purpose of awarding such compensation and that the claim, on this basis, should be rejected.

* * * * *

Following the above, it is proposed to the titled/stated court to reject the plaintiff's claim in its entirety, and to oblige the plaintiff to reimburse the defendant for the litigation costs caused.

The Index article in question is still online - you can read it here.

March the 24th, 2021 - The Croatian Tourist Board budget has been stretched due to the issues caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic which has taken the entire world into its iron grip. As a result, cash is tighter than usual, but support will still be given to some in the form of promotion.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, at a session of the Tourist Board of the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) held on Monday, a decision was adopted on the announcement of a call for expressions of interest for the implementation of marketing cooperation with the organisers of TOP events and top Croatian athletes throughout 2021.

This is a particular sort of programme that includes marketing collaborations related to important sporting, entertainment and other such events with great media visibility that are in the function of raising the attractiveness and recognisability of the overall outrist offer boasted by the Republic of Croatia, but also includes collaborations with top Croatian athletes to promote Croatia as an attractive tourist destination to viewers across Europe and the world.

Back during pandemic-dominated 2020, this call didn't get the green light because of the uncertain and entirely unpredecented situation in which we found ourselves, which was sponsored by a significant budget cut for this project when compared to the time before the pandemic struck. Back in record 2019, the budget stood at 9 million kuna, and this year  the current plan is to spend 5 million kuna at the absolute most.

"We're approaching the Easter holidays, which in previous years would mean the beginning of more intensive tourist trips in and to Croatia. This year, due to the current situation, we don't really expect the greater realisation of tourist traffic, but in compliance with the prescribed measures and protocols, we expect tourist activities with an emphasis on the domestic market, as well as markets such as Germany, Slovenia, Italy or the Czech Republic, to go ahead,'' explained Kristjan Stanicic when discussing the Croatian Tourist Board budget and how things stand with the country's main markets.

Minister of Tourism and Sport Nikolina Brnjac pointed out that testing and vaccination against the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, remain among the key elements of tourist season preparation for this summer, revealing that the Safe stay in Croatia project has so far involved almost 10,000 tourism stakeholders across the country.

For current information on coronavirus specific to Croatia, including travel info, border rules, testing centres and much more, bookmark this page.

March 17, 2021 - Slovenian media has noticed that the Safe Stay in Croatia campaign is not available in the Slovenian language, although Slovenians are the second largest market for Croatia. 

According to the Slovenian daily zurnal24.si, the Safe Stay in Croatia page can be translated into nine foreign languages on the campaign's main website, but there is no Slovenian among them. Thus, they have sent an inquiry to the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB) Head Office to explain this to Slovenian readers, reports Jutarnji List.

Screenshot

A similar inquiry was submitted by Jutarnji List, after which the Croatian National Tourist Board clarified that the Safe Stay in Croatia page will be translated into Slovenian by the end of March and that they have decided to carry out activities that do not involve the classic lease of advertising space.

"Regarding the accompanying promotional campaign, the Croatian National Tourist Board carries out PR and marketing activities, i.e., advertising activities within the Safe Stay in Croatia campaign, in the markets of Germany, Austria, Italy, Poland, Great Britain, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, France, and the Netherlands.

On the other hand, in the Slovenian market, due to its proximity and excellent knowledge of the Croatian tourist offer from Slovenian partners and the guests themselves, activities are carried out through other communication channels.

In other words, the Croatian National Tourist Board Representation in Slovenia organizes training and presentations of the Safe Stay in Croatia project, intended for travel agents, partners, carriers, and today begins a two-day b2b workshop where all segments of the project will be explained in detail.

PR activities are continuously carried out through Slovenian media to inform the general public, and information about the project is also placed through newsletters," explained the CNTB.

By the way, according to the CNTB data for 2020, the importance of Slovenian tourists is best evidenced by the fact that last year they realized as much as 15% of the total number of overnight stays in Croatia, ahead of German tourists who achieved 23%.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

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March 10, 2021 – The results of the Croatian National Tourist Board's Brand Tracking survey for 2020 represent key obstacles related to foreign travel, showing tourists more afraid of border regimes than coronavirus infections.

As Jutarnji list reports, Croatia may have strengthened its national tourism brand in the last five years. However, the Brand Tracking survey of the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB) for 2020 suggests that children's diseases still plague us and that we should seriously consider a campaign to promote Croatia on world markets.

Namely, in the context of the coronavirus pandemic, the research showed that the key obstacle related to foreign travel is "fear of various formal protection measures that could be established before or during the trip." In contrast, passengers' fear of infection at the holiday destination comes only later.

'Safe stay in Croatia' not enough?

This is a bit in contrast to the main messages coming from the Ministry of Tourism and Sports and the Croatian National Tourist Board, which continuously point out that the most important message for tourists this year is the message of safety, to which Croatia's primary campaign in the preseason is adjusted.

This refers to, of course, the project "Safe stay in Croatia," which should give certificates suggesting to tourists that the facility in which they stay is hygienic and safe. Regarding that, unofficial messages have been coming from the tourism sector for some time, noting that this will not be enough to organize a successful season. As the research now shows, it is necessary to work more actively on removing barriers to travel.

The CNTB explains that the fear of infection has less impact on travel intention because tourists generally believe that their behavior can prevent or reduce the possibility of infection. At the same time, nobody can influence the various epidemiological measures that counties introduce.

"Even though the fear of infection does not affect tourists' intentions as much as possible travel restrictions, some potential tourists, especially the elderly, have expressed this fear. We believe that it is crucial to promote Croatia as a safe environment where it is possible to spend a quality holiday," said the CNTB director Kristjan Staničić.

Competing destinations Italy and Spain perceived more accessible than Croatia

The research also confirmed that Croatia had not moved away from the perception of a "sun and sea destination." However, it has been noted that Croatia has made progress in city break vacations, as well as nature-related vacations.

Nevertheless, tourists from geographically closer and more easily accessible markets (accessible by car) still gravitate to Croatia the most. In areas other than our traditional destinations, "there is room for progress in recognizing and promoting key distinctive values," despite the generous strategic marketing plan we funded through the 2014-2020 period.

Besides, it turned out that Croatia still needs to do a lot to understand better the advantages of the Croatian tourist offer concerning the competition and that it is still insufficiently perceived as a destination for quality accommodation. It is also interesting how Spain and Italy, as Croatia's competing destinations, are perceived as more easily accessible compared to Croatia.

On the other hand, it was noticed that Croatia's image, concerning the competition, is based on "value for money." Over the years, Croatia has managed to position itself as a destination for young people, a segment where only Spain is better perceived than us.

"Young people traveling through Croatia combine different experiences and motives – city tourism, entertainment, festivals, gastronomy, sun, sea, visits to natural attractions. Some young tourists are attracted to party and festival destinations such as Novalja, Hvar, or Split, with a desirable offer," Staničić points out.

The CNTB's official page still has old figures on the infection rate

Asked by Jutarnji list journalists to explain why Croatia still has a problem of moving away from the perception of "sun and sea "destination, Staničić answered that it is dominant Croatia's tourist product and that its role will continue to be extremely important.

"The sun and the sea ensure our recognition with potential tourists. However, intensive work will continue on the establishment of other tourist products," explains Staničić.

Although the "Safe stay in Croatia "website should provide tourists with the latest information on the epidemiological situation, on Tuesday, it had the old report on the 14-day case rate, which was last updated on March 1.

As Jutarnji list unofficially finds out, the Croatian Institute for Public Health caused the lack of new data because they did not submit the table with the numbers on time.

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March the 10th, 2021 - Croatian tourism representatives from the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ) are on the hunt for tour operators as the Berlin ITB takes place online amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the popular and highly respected tourism fair, ITB Berlin, which will be held online as a result of the pandemic will bring together world experts from the industry and try to find answers to the "new normal" along with the representatives of hotel companies, travel agencies and others as another unfortunately very uncertain tourist season approaches.

The fair, which will go on until March the 12th, will be attended by a Croatian delegation led by the director of the Croatian National Tourist Board, Kristjan Stanicic, and the director of the CNTB Representation in Germany Romeo Draghicchi. Croatian tourism representatives are seeking answers to pressing questions as the virus continues to throw spanners in the works of leisure travel.

They announced yesterday that they plan to meet with representatives of the most important agencies in the German capital, including tour operators and other partners in the German market.

"Among the agreed meetings is the one with the representatives of the second largest European and German tour operator, DER Touristik, which in 2019 had traffic to Croatia of about 60,000 passengers, and there will also be talks held with the representatives of FTI, the third largest European and German tour operator, which in 2019 had traffic to Croatia of about 70,000 passengers,¨ the Croatian tourism representatives explained from HTZ.

The focus of the presentation of the Croatian tourist offer at the ITB fair will be eleven different Croatian tourist products: active holidays, camping, nautical tourism, cultural tourism, eno-gastronomy, health and wellness, business tourism and more, and the project and accompanying promotional campaign will be highlighted with the now already fairly well known ¨Safe stay in Croatia¨ campaign, as the epidemiological situation across the globe will continue to dominate bookings throughout 2021.

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February 27, 2021 – Croatian National Tourist Board director Kristjan Staničić stated in a recent interview for Glas Istre that we must continue to be very disciplined with measures, and by the beginning of the tourist season, we should vaccinate as many people as possible.

After months of Europe in lockdown and uncertainty that lasted throughout the winter, the start of mass vaccination has restored some optimism that the pandemic will soon be defeated. With optimism, thinking about the little things that enrich life like travel and vacations came back too.

The beginning of February brought the first significant wave of reservations for tourist accommodation in Istria, mostly guests from the German market. In the region where most of the revenue comes from this activity, all news about plans and announcements for next summer are eagerly awaited.

Glas Istre's journalists talked to the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB) director Kristjan Staničić about this topic and the expectations for the upcoming season. Announcing a series of promotional activities of the CNTB in the essential markets, Staničić confirms that this recently reawakened optimism for a solid tourist season is definitely not without grounds.

"We are in constant and direct contact with the markets through our representative offices and partners. According to the information we have, interest in travel exists, and with the intensification of vaccination throughout Europe, it is growing even more. The result is certain accommodation reservations for the upcoming season, which have also intensified recently. However, these figures are, of course, much lower than in previous, so to speak, 'normal' years.

Given the current situation, it is to be expected that the tourist season will begin in late May or early June. This means that, given the situation and the epidemic that prevails in all European countries, we have moved a little towards the summer months. But one should be optimistic, and two messages should be sent to the public.

The first is that we must continue to be very disciplined in implementing all measures because this is effective and results in a decline in the number of infected people. This means that it is mainly up to us what kind of picture we will have and how we will enter the season.

The second message is related to the importance of vaccination against COVID-19 and the tendency to vaccinate as many people as possible by the beginning of the tourist season because then it will mean that the pandemic will come within some reasonable framework that allows us to start tourist traffic," said Staničić.

What can individual tourist regions expect from the upcoming season, and how will they be promoted?

When we look at the regions, it is certain that Istria and Kvarner, but also the northern tourist regions, have a particular advantage because they are closer to key markets such as neighboring Italy, Slovenia, Hungary, but also a slightly wider environment of Austria, Germany, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. But, of course, we also carry out activities in other markets. It is extremely important for us how we will rehabilitate our southern regions, primarily the Split or Dubrovnik area, which is dependent on air traffic.

Therefore, we are active in, for example, the market of Great Britain, Scandinavia, but also other markets. However, our great advantage over the competition is the proximity of the main markets, i.e., the fact that we are primarily a car destination and 83 percent of tourists come to Croatia by car. In that sense, we will conduct the most important marketing campaigns that will start, depending on the situation, sometime in the spring.

What needs to be emphasized is that we will primarily run marketing campaigns in 11 markets and that each campaign will be tailored to each country's specifics.

When we talk about promotion in a pandemic, many classic channels have fallen into the background. How does tourism promotion actually work in the conditions of the "new normal"?

Of course, the coronavirus has accelerated certain processes, primarily in the direction of digitalization. Last year and the year before, we started promoting it more intensively through digital communication channels, which proved to be very effective. We have been present in the digital space all along. From the last tourist season until today, we have implemented several marketing campaigns on digital communication channels and social networks.

I will only mention the last one, which we started earlier this year. The campaign's name was "Croatia full of new beginnings," and over 30 million people have seen it in the past month and a half. We have many impressions, and more than two million people even went a step further and were interested in specific reservations. So digital communication channels are certainly one of the most important tools we use in this period in the promotion and so it will be in the future.

As for tourism fairs which are also an important form of promotion in certain markets, the most important of them have also been held this year or will be held online like the London and Berlin fairs. We are, of course, present at them with specific presentations and use the opportunity to meet domestic and foreign stakeholders in tourism through virtual platforms.

On this occasion, I would also like to commend our Brand and Production Department within the CNTB, which designed a unique platform and went in the direction of enabling b2b workshops and virtual meetings that we organize in cooperation with our offices, which proved to be very good.

How do you choose the tourist market segments that you are targeting with promotional actions, especially before this season?

The CNTB always plans its promotional activities based on very relevant indicators, analyzes, and market trends. Given the coronavirus pandemic circumstances, we have focused on promoting those products in this segment and, in that sense, the most sought after. Staying outdoors, staying in separate facilities, and even nautical tourism were segments that were very pronounced last year.

Likewise, we have focused on specific products that are attractive to certain niche markets and tourist groups. Digital nomads, for example, are just one such group, but we have such an approach in other campaigns as well, and it has proven to be correct given the effectiveness of the campaigns themselves.

At the end of last year, we also measured our strength of the tourist brand and received the information that in the previous period, despite the coronavirus, we have grown in its recognizability. Two elements came to the fore, namely our natural beauty and attractiveness, and security and proximity to the market, which last year proved to be one of the key elements that made Croatia the number one destination in the Mediterranean.

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February 25, 2021 - Stay Safe in Croatia is the new national safety label by the Ministry of Tourism and the Croatian National Tourist Board.

HRTurizam reports that the application of safety and health protocols and the vaccination of tourism workers will certainly be an important element of Croatia's perception as a safe destination.

To this end, the Ministry of Tourism and the Croatian National Tourist Board presented the national safety label - Safe Stay in Croatia. In addition to the already well-known World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) label Safe Travels, a national label named 'Safe Stay in Croatia' was created.

Through the Safe Stay in Croatia project, business and customer treatment protocols have been designed in tourism and tourism-related activities. The Safe Stay in Croatia label is awarded free of charge to stakeholders from the Croatian tourism sector and others who are part of the travel chain, such as carriers, airports, stations, nautical ports, and marinas, who log in to the system and fill out an admission form of current health and safety recommendations of the Croatian Institute of Public Health.

Screenshot

The Safe Stay in Croatia label enables guests to identify destinations, accommodation providers, transport, tourist attractions, and the like who have adopted national and world standards of health and hygiene protection. The prominent Stay Safe in Croatia label provides information to all visitors that the tourist facility of their interest operates according to the current recommendations of the World Travel and Tourism Council and the Croatian Institute of Public Health.

"During the preparations for this tourist year, in which, unfortunately, we are still followed by a pandemic, we have put the safety and health of our fellow citizens and guests in the first place. It is a project in which the Ministry of Tourism and Sport was supported by leading tourist and professional associations in the Council for the Recovery and Development of Tourism, to realize the 2021 tourist year, and improve the tourist offer. With the prescribed protocols, we have covered more than 200,000 caterers and service providers in tourism," said Nikolina Brnjac, adding that it is important to ensure that the national label is available to all stakeholders in the tourism and travel chain, which has been achieved.

The Croatian National Tourist Board is in charge of the promotional campaign.

"We will carry out campaign activities during March and April in the markets of Germany, Austria, Italy, Poland, Great Britain, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, France, and the Netherlands. In addition to the promotional part, which refers to the positioning of Croatia as a well-prepared and safe tourist destination, this campaign has an educational character because we want to introduce our guests to protocol and epidemiological measures implemented at all levels of tourism to ensure a safe and comfortable stay in our country," said Kristijan Staničić, adding that advertising activities, including through video, will be carried out on online channels and social networks with #SafeStayInCroatia and the most read online portals in these markets.

The Safe Stay in Croatia promotional campaign will be implemented instead of the PPS campaign before advertising the main calling brand campaign, in March and April, in the markets of Germany, Austria, Italy, Poland, the UK, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, France, and the Netherlands. 

Advertising will be carried out through online channels through social networks with #SafeStayInCroatia (Facebook and Youtube) and the most read online portals in markets such as web.de, t-online.de, oe24.at, krone.at, corriere .it, onet.pl, Daily Mail, The Sun, Novinky.cz, 24.hu, Lefigaro.fr, aktuality.sk, etc., according to the CNTB.

A promotional video of 3 minutes and a shorter version of 30 seconds was created for advertising purposes. Shorter videos will be made covering security protocols by certain categories (accommodation structure, catering, transport, nautical, attractions, etc.).

"Users will have the opportunity to leave their impressions through the form on the website, which is important feedback that we will be able to use for further upgrades," said Brnjac and invited all interested stakeholders in the tourism sector and related activities to join Safe stay in Croatia campaign, download the security labels for free and thus contribute to the perception of Croatia as a safe destination.

It is imperative that everyone in tourism clearly displays the Safe Stay in Croatia label on their facilities. Also, for Croatia to present itself as a safe destination, it is important that the labels, like all other accompanying video and photo materials, are communicated through social channels with the market and guests.

The video materials present safety protocols that respect the guidelines of the Croatian Institute of Public Health and the World Council for Travel and Tourism, refer to all categories in tourism - accommodation; nautical; catering; tourist attractions; tourist guides, agencies, and information centers; traffic; attractions; sports and recreation.

Find out more about the national safety label - Safe Stay in Croatia on the official website www.safestayincroatia.hr. It is important to point out that the web platform has been translated into eight foreign languages ​​and the Croatian language.

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February 11, 2021 - This year, the Croatian National Tourist Board is launching a series of 30 virtual presentations and workshops titled Croatian Virtual Get2Gether, which will be held in the 16 most important markets.

The first in a series of presentations, which will be held via the online platform due to current market circumstances and prescribed epidemiological measures in the country and the world, was held in the Polish market in cooperation with Dubrovnik-Neretva County, Korčula, and the municipality Župa Dubrovačka, reports HTZ.

"Along with the main goal, which includes the promotion of Croatian tourism and the overall Croatian tourist offer, we want to gather the most important foreign partners and agents in one place in the markets and convey the current security situation in the country and Croatia's readiness for the upcoming tourist season," said the director Croatian National Tourist Board Kristjan Staničić.

Most of the Croatian Virtual Get2Gether workshops and presentations are planned for the first half of the year. In addition to the promotion of destinations and tourist products, they will also discuss epidemiological measures, the safety of Croatian destinations, and protocols during future tourist trips.

In Poland, in addition to today's presentation, an additional seven presentations and workshops are planned for June, within which Split-Dalmatia and Šibenik-Knin counties, Kvarner, Zadar, and Lika-Senj counties, the city of Zagreb, and Krapina-Zagorje County, the Slavonia Cluster, and the County of Istria will be presented, and a business workshop is planned for Polish and Croatian entities.

"Through virtual workshops and presentations to Polish tour operators and travel agents, we want to present Croatian regions, and the first in a row is the Dubrovnik region. All 50 available online places were filled in record time, which is proof that this activity has been well received by the Polish tourism industry. We hope and believe that Poles will come to Croatia in large numbers this year to show that they are true friends and lovers of our country," said Agnieszka Puszczewicz, Director of the Croatian National Tourist Board in Poland.

Croatian Virtual Get2Gether workshops, in addition to the already mentioned Polish market, are also planned for the markets of Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Italy, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, the Netherlands, France, Great Britain, Belgium, Sweden, Russia, China, and the USA.

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