ZAGREB, November 14, 2019 - Neither the presidency nor the political assembly of the European People's Party (EPP) will hold a meeting on the premises of the Croatian Parliament (Sabor), the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), a member of the EPP group said on Thursday confirming media reports that, after all, the Sabor will not be a venue for the EPP gathering in Zagreb.

The European People's Party is holding its Statutory Congress on 20 and 21 November in Zagreb.

Some of the technical meetings were initially planned to take place in the Parliament Hall (Sabornica), however, in the meantime the EPP decided to change the location for those technical meetings so as to avoid any damage to the group's reputation, according to the tabloid 24 sata.

The initial plan was that technical meetings on 19 November should take place in Sabornica, and the EPP was supposed to pay 74,488 kuna for the rent of the venue.

The decision of the Croatian Parliament's presidency to allow EPP meetings in the parliament and to collect some funds for that rental job infuriated the Opposition which then for weeks severely criticised the ruling Croatian Democratic Union.

The EPP Congress will be co-hosted by Prime Minister of Croatia and (HDZ) leader, Andrej Plenković, and EPP President Joseph Daul and EPP Secretary General Antonio Lopez -Isturiz, the EPP says on its website.

"The Congress in Zagreb will focus on effective policies to combat climate change, on empowering the younger generations and the Western Balkans."

The Congress will also elect the EPP Presidency, including the President, Vice-Presidents, Treasurer and Secretary General. 2,000 participants from more than 40 countries have been invited to participate in the Congress in Zagreb, the EPP says.

More HDZ news can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, November 11, 2019 - The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) finds it unacceptable that any of its members should use hate speech or threats, the ruling party said on its Facebook account on Sunday, calling on its MP Davor Ivo Stier to state in public whether he supports hate speech and threats and accusing him of perfidiously misusing the messages of the late pope John Paul II.

Responding to Stier's Facebook post, the HDZ said that no one in the party "questions freedom and secrecy of correspondence and freedom of speech, especially not when it comes to members of the party."

However, it is unacceptable for any member to continually use hate speech and threats in groups organised under the name and symbols of the HDZ, such as calls for someone "to be impaled on a stick" or "shot in the head", and to openly incite members to support other parties and candidates and call on members not to vote for HDZ candidates, the party said.

"That is not, nor will it be, the policy of the HDZ, and if Davor Stier shares and supports such outpourings of hatred and threats directed at party colleagues, let him say so in public. It is therefore perfidious and pathetic of Stier to misuse the messages of John Paul II. Does Davor Stier think that John Paul II would consider such calls for lynching messages of freedom, peace and love?" the HDZ said.

Following media reports that the party Presidency had decided to sanction party members who used hate speech or threats or criticised the party leadership on social media, Stier recalled that freedom and secrecy of correspondence were guaranteed and inviolable under the Constitution and quoted John Paul II as saying before the fall of Communism "Don't be afraid!"

More HDZ news can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, November 10, 2019 - Following media reports that the Presidency of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party has decided to sanction party members who use hate speech on social media, make threats or criticise the HDZ leadership, HDZ MP Davor Ivo Stier said that freedom and secrecy of correspondence are guaranteed and inviolable and called on his colleagues not to be afraid.

"After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Croatian people rejected Communism and reaffirmed their centuries-long desire for independence in the democratic elections of 1990, as written in the Constitution. That's why in the Croatian Parliament this week we defended the proposal that 30 May be observed as Statehood Day. After 30 May 1990, democratic and civic freedoms were also guaranteed by the Christmas Constitution. Article 36 of the Constitution says: 'Freedom and secrecy of correspondence and all other forms of communication shall be guaranteed and inviolable.' Also, Article 6 reads: 'The internal organisation of political parties shall be in accordance with the fundamental constitutional democratic principles,'" Stier wrote on his Facebook page.

He said that the state or party authorities no longer have the right to monitor correspondence between citizens or internal communication between party members. He added that stories being floated around that such monitoring will be introduced are damaging not only to the party but also to all citizens and to democracy in Croatia, because "democracy implies responsibility and freedom from political intimidation."

"That's why nowadays, when we remember the fall of the Berlin Wall, the words of Holy John Paul II, which preceded the fall of Communism, ring even louder. 'Don't be afraid!'" Stier concluded.

The Večernji List newspaper said on Sunday that the HDZ Presidency has decided to sanction all party members who use WhatsApp, Viber and Facebook groups to spread hatred, make threats or just criticise the policy of the HDZ leadership and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.

More HDZ news can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, November 9, 2019 - Former HDZ leader Tomislav Karamarko on Saturday posted a message on his Facebook wall indicating that he could run again for party president in elections to be held in the spring of 2020.

At the end of a lengthy post on the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the former HDZ leader says: "P.S. As far as I'm concerned, I continue destroying 'the antifascist defence wall'. See you at party elections!"

Judging by statements they have given so far, other possible rivals to HDZ leader Andrej Plenković at the party elections are MPs Miro Kovač and Davor Ivo Stier and Vukovar Mayor Ivan Penava.

Prime Minister and HDZ leader Andrej Plenković said on Saturday that any HDZ member could take part in party elections, thus commenting on a Facebook post by former HDZ leader Tomislav Karamarko indicating that he, too, could join in the race for the new party president.

"We have a different matter on the agenda now - presidential elections. Party elections will be held when the time comes," Plenković said in Varaždin after a session of the government's Council for Croats Abroad.

Asked by reporters about antifascism in Croatia, Plenković said that his position was evident from the parliamentary debate on the bill on holidays.

"There are some fundamental values on which modern and free Croatia was built... and those values are also contained in the HDZ's statute and platform. We support it," he said.

Asked what he expected of today's presentation of Social Democratic Party presidential candidate Zoran Milanović's platform, Plenković said briefly "I expect Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović to win."

More HDZ news can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, October 31, 2019 - Croatian Parliament Speaker and HDZ party secretary-general Gordan Jandroković said on Wednesday that the ruling coalition had agreed on five important issues, and that agreement had been reached with representatives of the HNS party on the budget as proposed by the government as well as that a government regulation on job complexity indices would be finalised by June 30.

The five issues are a budget revision for this year, a budget for 2020, a set of tax laws, the minimum wage and a law on holidays, said Jandroković.

"We have agreed on what the prime minister announced, 2+2+2 (percent increase) for next year, as well as that the issue of job complexity indices be resolved," said Jandroković.

"Unless the regulation on job complexity indices is adopted by June 30, we will opt for a 2% increase for those sectors that are estimated to be underpaid," Jandroković said, adding that this referred to police and the education sector.

He stressed that talks with unions were yet to be held.

"I believe that this is a good offer, that the unions will get the six percent they wanted," Jandroković said, adding that work was underway on the regulation on job complexity indices.

As an additional safeguard, we are offering the 2% after June 30, he said.

He said that the government proposed that foreign experts be involved in the analysis of job complexity indices so that a fair regulation on indices was defined and so that indices were regulated in the best possible way.

Jandroković said that domestic experts and all those who were interested should be involved in efforts regarding the analysis of job complexity indices as well.

The regulation on job complexity indices should be finalised by June 30, 2020, according to Jandroković.

"We have to approach the job seriously because the wage system for the government and public service sectors was not defined properly in the past 30 years," said Jandroković.

He stressed that the government had at no time contested the unions' right to strike.

He noted that the HDZ and HNS parties today reached an agreement on the adoption of both the budget revision for this year and the budget for 2020.

Ivan Vrdoljak, leader of the Croatian People's Party (HNS), said on Wednesday that aside from a 6% increase in the base pay in 2020 (based on a 2+2+2 model), job complexity indices in the education sector would go up by two percent as of June 30 if until that time a comprehensive solution to job complexity indices was not found and an analysis of wages was not completed.

"We did not insist on a regulation to that effect to be adopted tomorrow before a discussion on the budget, but that is our political agreement that will be made public and presented to unions because the dialogue will be restored," Vrdoljak said after meeting with the prime minister and leader of the HDZ party, Andrej Plenković.

"Aside from the base pay rise, we now have an increase in the indices of two percent," Vrdoljak said, adding that he would propose to members of the HNS leadership to accept the prime minister's proposal and attend the government session on Thursday.

Vrdoljak said that he believed the proposal would also refer to police officers.

He recalled that the HNS had been in charge of the education reform for the past two and a half years and that after the latest talks the prime minister offered a solution which he believed was a basis for continuing the dialogue with trade unions, carrying on with the education reform and putting an end to the ongoing teachers' strike.

"This is a message of trust to both teachers and parents. I still believe in the education reform and look forward to what lies ahead - what we promised to carry out two and a half years ago," Vrdoljak said ahead of a meeting of his party leadership.

Asked if unions would be satisfied, he said that he was the leader of the HNS party and a coalition partner and not a unionist.

"As far as I understand, the unions wanted a wage rise through indices of 6.11%," he said, adding that the final result in 2020 would be an increase in wages of 8.12%, which is how much wages would grow in absolute terms. He also said that work was underway on correcting the index and that a regulation to that effect would take into account the need to rectify injustices.

Asked if this was a victory for the HNS, he said that this was an agreement on the budget.

"This was an agreement on the budget, I would not call it that (victory). No one should feel blackmailed or underestimated," Vrdoljak said.

More politics news can be found in the dedicated section.

ZAGREB, October 30, 2019 - Croatian People's Party (HNS) leader Ivan Vrdoljak said at a news conference on Tuesday that the ministers from this party would not attend the government meeting on Thursday if the draft budget, which is expected to be on the agenda, did not include allocations for education-sector employees.

He told national radio that the HNS, a junior partner in the ruling coalition, "will not make a charade" of Croatian politics and budget adoption.

He went on to say that coalition governments "are a matter of social intelligence and compromise, and national interests in particular moments".

Vrdoljak said that he would not allow, and he believes that neither would the prime minister, such a scenario to happen in which a part of the government he has chosen is against the proposal he has put forward.

"We will definitely not sit at the government meeting and then vote against the draft budget," he said. "We are either a part of the government or we are not any more. There is no place for chagrin."

He said that the HNS was insisting on the resolution of the issue of higher salaries for education-sector employees through a change of their job complexity indices.

The ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) led by PM Andrej Plenković is proposing a rise of the base wage for public sector employees.

The HDZ has said that they are open to talks on all issues but that it would not be blackmailed.

Some media outlets see this as the end of the HDZ-HNS coalition.

On Tuesday, the Jutarnji List daily speculated that if the HNS voted against the draft budget for 2020, it would be thrown out of the government just as the Bridge party had been.

The daily quoted sources from the HDZ as saying that this time the party would not give in to blackmail.

The budget for next year is expected to be discussed on Thursday, even though the HNS has asked that the discussion be delayed until an agreement is reached on a wage increase for teachers, the deadline for the government to formulate the budget being November 15.

According to the daily, Finance Minister Zdravko Marić told his colleagues in the government on Monday that the budget for next year would be discussed on Thursday, however, a source in the HDZ leadership, even though he is in favour of such an option himself, has said that it is not 100% certain.

More politics news can be found in the dedicated section.

ZAGREB, October 29, 2019 - Inspector-General Andrija Mikulić of the ruling HDZ party has entered incorrect data in his declaration of assets by failing to declare as many as 687 square metres of his house on the island of Krk, the RTL broadcaster's Potraga programme has discovered.

Mikulić stated in his declaration of assets that his house and the land it was built on measured 180 square metres while an inspection of land books showed that the property in question measures 867 square metres.

When contacted by RTL for a clarification, Mikulić said that the mistake was not intentional and that he had launched a procedure to change the area declared as well as to enter other changes he was required to enter by the end of the year.

He said that when declaring the property's area, he thought that he had to declare exclusively the area and value of the housing unit.

However, RTL says that the 180 square metres stated as the area of the house was not the accurate area of the house in Malinska on Krk. According to land books, one unit covers 154 square metres while the other measures 47 square metres.

"It is completely clear that what has to be declared is the total area of the land plot on which a house is built and that what is stated is the value of the house and its yard, i.e. the entire area and the total value of the real estate. That is important because declarations of assets must be accurate," the head of the Conflict of Interest Commission, Nataša Novaković, said.

Mikulić was unavailable for comment on Tuesday while his party colleagues, Health Minister Milan Kujundžić and Regional Development and EU Funds Minister Marko Pavić, expressed understanding for him, saying that what he did was an unintentional mistake.

More news about conflict of interest issues can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, October 28, 2019 - The leader of the Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HDZ BH), Dragan Čović, has confirmed that his party will support Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović in her bid for a second term as President of Croatia.

Speaking in an interview with the Sarajevo-based daily Dnevni Avaz of Monday, Čović said that the HDZ BH would support Grabar-Kitarović in the presidential race. "The HDZ BH will join in the election campaign when it formally begins," he said.

Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina who have dual Bosnian and Croatian citizenship are entitled to vote in presidential and parliamentary elections in Croatia.

Čović said he hoped the forthcoming Croatian presidency of the European Union would help Bosnia and Herzegovina catch up with other countries in the region in their efforts to join the bloc.

"The Croatian presidency of the Union in the first half of next year gives Bosnia and Herzegovina a chance to catch up with Albania and North Macedonia because we have met all the conditions except forming a government," Čović said.

Čović said that in negotiations with the predominantly Bosniak Party of Democratic Action (SDA) he would continue to insist on amending electoral legislation, suggesting as the best solution the election model used by Belgium.

Čović said that his party supported the country's NATO membership bid, but added that one should not insist on it the way the SDA did because this was a process that would not be completed in 20 years' time if it continued at the present pace.

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

ZAGREB, October 24, 2019 - The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) on Wednesday dismissed claims about the "privatisation" of the national parliament's compound, and recalls that the parliament presidency's decision to lease its premises to the European People's Party (EPP) in November was made by a majority vote, including the support of the Social Democrat (SDP) representative.

The HDZ issued a press release on Wednesday evening after Vesna Pusić of the GLAS party and Gordan Maras of the SDP earlier in the day said that they found it unacceptable that the Sabor has leased its Grand Chamber to the EPP for its meetings in mid-November.

The HDZ recalls that the EPP is holding an election convention in Zagreb on 19-21 November, and that over 2000 participants from about 40 countries will arrive in Zagreb for that event.

The hosts of the EPP congress in Zagreb are Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, who is the leader of the HDZ , a member of the EPP, and the EPP president Jospeh Daul.

Also, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the European Commission President-elect Ursula von der Leyen and the European Council president Donald Tusk are expected to attend the congress.

A majority of the activities within the Congress are going to take place in Zagreb's Arena sports hall, the HDZ says.

Meetings of the EPP presidency and assembly will take place in the Croatian Parliament.

Organising its congresses in the recent years, the EPP have made sure that the gatherings of its Presidency and Assembly could take place in the chambers of national parliaments of the countries where congresses have been held, the HDZ notes.

For instance, this has been the case in Lithuania, Denmark, Finland and in the European Parliament in Brussels, Strasbourg and Luxembourg, the HDZ says.

It also recalls that the EPP contacted the Croatian Parliament's Presidency in April asking for a possibility of renting the Grand Chamber for its congress in November.

A majority of the presidency members, including Sinisa Hajdas Dončić of the SDP, supported the lease, and only Božo Petrov of the MOST party abstained from the vote, according to the HDZ press release.

Under that decision, a day's rent for the Grand Chamber, where plenary sessions of Parliament are held, costs 35,000 kuna, while other chambers may be rented out for between 6,500 and 15,000 kuna.

The EPP has rented the Grand Chamber and another hall that costs 7,500 kuna, so that the rental of the premises will cost it 42,500 kuna, without other services such as technical support and catering.

The EPP says on its website that: "Now that the EPP has once again emerged as the leading force following the European elections and has successfully secured the Presidency of the European Commission, we would like to warmly invite you to the EPP Statutory Congress in Zagreb."

More HDZ news can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, October 20, 2019 - Milijan Brkić, Deputy Parliament Speaker and vice-president of the ruling HDZ party, will not be charged with unlawfully monitoring four women's electronic communications, and neither will his brother Jozo, his close friend Blaž Curić, and former police computer expert Franjo Varga.

Even though prosecutorial authorities have still not formally decided on the case, the Jutarnji List daily of Sunday says that Brkić and the other three men in this case will almost certainly not be indicted because the investigation did not support the initial suspicion that the Brkić brothers, Curić and Varga had committed the offence in question.

After an investigation was launched into Varga on the suspicion that he made for former Dinamo football club executive Zdravko Mamić fake text messages between a former chief state prosecutor and judges from Osijek, as well as that he made similar correspondence for former Agrokor owner Ivica Todorić, police found out, while examining Varga's computer equipment, other interesting details, including information on four women's text messages and e-mail correspondence.

Based on the information as well as on what Varga said when presenting his defence, police launched an investigation and filed a criminal report with prosecutorial authorities in Osijek.

In mid-April the prosecution said that "four Croatian nationals" were under investigation for unlawfully intercepting electronic communications, incitement to such activities, and for computer abuse.

At the time, four women, aged 49, 30, 42 and 31, were mentioned as the victims. As soon as the media mentioned the fact that one of the four women was Milijan Brkić's former wife, she came forward and described the accusations as shameful fabrications.

The other person, whose electronic correspondence Varga allegedly monitored at Brkić's request, was the head of a municipality in the Dalmatian hinterland.

Jutarnji List's sources said that prosecutors in Osijek believe that in this case there are no elements of offences that are prosecuted ex officio but of possibly milder offences such as invasion of the secrecy of letters, which are prosecuted if the injured party requests so. Since no such motions have been filed in this case, no indictment can be expected, the daily says.

Minister of the Interior Davor Božinović today declined to comment on the Jutarnji List article, saying only that as a minister he is not familiar with and cannot speak about ongoing investigations.

More news about Milijan Brkić can be found in the Politics section.