ZAGREB, January 15, 2019 - The Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Davor Bernardić said on Tuesday that Defence Minister Damir Krstičević should promptly resign due to "the lies and delusions disseminated in the public about the failed acquisition of fighter jets".

Bernardić thinks that an email that leaked in the media about U.S. embassy having warned the Croatian Defence Ministry in December 2017 that Israel had not obtained approval for the transfer of technology to the third party shows the minister's responsibility for the failed deal. "Resignation due to lies and delusions disseminated by Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and Krstičević should be done for moral reasons," said Bernardić.

It is true that morality and responsibility cannot go together in the same sentence with the HDZ (Croatian Democratic Union). However, we expect common sense to prevail and the prime minister to take a responsible move, said the leader of the strongest opposition party

In the event that Krstičević does not offer his resignation, the SDP is going to launch the parliamentary procedure for his dismissal, and Bernardić hopes that the opposition parties will join his party in this effort.

He accused the government of trying to reduce the damage and the disgrace in this scandal in a ridiculous way.

The SDP chief referred to the government's decision on Monday to annul its previous tender for the delivery of multipurpose combat aircraft and to define a new model for the procurement of fighter jets for the Armed Forces.

SDP parliamentarian Franko Vidović said that nine months before he already raised the question why the government had opted for acquiring 12 used fighter jets instead of buying 6 new ones.

Leaders of the GLAS party also called for the responsibility of Defence Minister Damir Krstičević over a failed procurement of fighter jets from Israel. GLAS MP Nada Turina Đurić commented on the failed procurement of F-16 Barak fighter jets from Israel, calling for the responsibility of Defence Minister Damir Krstičević, but also claiming that the entire government is responsible.

More news on the defence minister can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, January 13, 2019 - The Croatian government should withdraw its reservations on the Istanbul Convention's articles regulating civil lawsuits, remedies and compensation for victims so that the document does not remain a dead letter, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) Women's Forum said on Saturday.

Speaking at a press conference, they said they were asking a key question: Is there political will that the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, which Croatia ratified, should not remain a dead letter?

Forum president Maja Sporiš said perpetrators were not the only ones responsible for the violence because the state was responsible too. She said the government opted to put a reservation on the Convention's articles 29 and 30 which regulated civil lawsuits, remedies and compensation for victims.

Sporiš recalled that Article 30 states that "adequate state compensation shall be awarded to those who have sustained serious bodily injury or impairment of health, to the extent that the damage is not covered by other sources such as the perpetrator, insurance or State‐funded health and social provisions. This does not preclude Parties from claiming regress for compensation awarded from the perpetrator, as long as due regard is paid to the victim’s safety."

Sporiš recalled that victims were entitled to compensation also under Croatia's 2013 law on monetary compensation for victims of crimes. She said the only data available showed that 44,000 kuna was paid by the end of 2015, without specifying to whom. She wondered if victims were even aware of such options.

Danijela Vukoša, president of the Forum's Zadar branch, said statistics showed that one in five perpetrators was punished and only 7% were sent to prison.

Between 2010 and 2017, 156 women were killed in Croatia, including 114 by husbands, partners, former husbands or partners, or close persons. Eighteen women were killed in 2018 alone, Vukoša said, adding that femicide accounts for 25-30% of all murders in the country and that 47% of perpetrators have a history of violence.

SDP Presidency member Ivana Posavac Krivec said funding for safe houses was insufficient and that victims were at the mercy of local governments, which set aside between 0.01 and 0.16% of their budgets for safe houses. She said it was also necessary to open more safe houses, describing the situation as alarming, and accused counties of being unable to withdraw European funds.

More news on the Istanbul Convention implementation in Croatia can be found in our Politics section.

ZAGREB, January 6, 2019 - Social Democratic Party (SDP) president Davor Bernardić on Sunday extended Christmas greetings to Orthodox believers in Croatia, but criticised those in power for "having their picture taken" while Serbs in remote parts of the country live without electricity, alone, hungry and poor, which is "unacceptable" in the 21st century.

Speaking to reporters at the Serb National Council's reception for Orthodox Christmas, Bernardić said some political parties and individuals were trying to divide people also on ethnic grounds. "That's unacceptable in the 21st century. The SDP has always been a party breaking down prejudices in our society and barriers between people, whether they are Croats or Serbs, men or women, gay or straight, Muslim, Catholic or Orthodox."

"That's why today it's important to send the strong message that in remote parts of Croatia, those mostly populated by Serbs, there are still areas without electricity, there are elderly people who are hungry, poor, alone... while those in power are having their picture taken here. That's unacceptable in the 21st century," said Bernardić.

Reporters asked him to comment on a document which the US administration sent Croatia warning it that the US would not service F-16 fighter jets if Croatia bought them from Israel. He said this was "a big international disgrace for Croatia" and that someone would have to be held accountable, whether Prime Minister Andrej Plenković or Defence Minister Damir Krstičević. He said it was unacceptable that there were so many scandals and that nothing was being done about it.

As for MPs who left their own parties to join the party of Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandić, Bernardić said it represented a deception of citizens who were increasingly losing confidence in state institutions and emigrating. "The most just thing to do in this situation would be to go to the polls."

He recalled that one of Bandić's MPs recently said that "the first requirement for joining (Bandić's party) is to support Andrej Plenković," adding that this showed "how Bandić is using dirty dealings to secure the majority for Plenković." Bernardić said this was unacceptable and should be looked into by the prosecution authorities.

More news on the status of Serbs in Croatia can be found in our Politics section.

ZAGREB, December 30, 2018 - Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Davor Bernardić criticised on Saturday the government's treatment of workers in the shipbuilding industry.

"The announcement of bankruptcy proceedings in the 3. Maj shipyard is the worst possible New Year's message from the government," Bernardić said at a meeting with SDP members in Novska.

The Financial Agency (FINA) has filed a request with the Rijeka Commercial Court to launch bankruptcy proceedings in the Rijeka-based shipyard, which is part of the Uljanik shipbuilding group, after its account was blocked for 120 days due to unsettled claims amounting to slightly more than 72 million kuna.

Union representatives at 3. Maj have said that bankruptcy is not an acceptable option and that a sustainable solution should be sought for the shipyard instead. They also believe that 3. Maj is not responsible for its current situation and that its current situation is due to 3. Maj having lent more than 523 million kuna to the Pula-based Uljanik, the other shipyard in the Uljanik shipbuilding group.

Bernardić said the government had been avoiding dealing with the Uljanik situation for a year and that he believed this was so because it was in somebody's interest.

"Maybe someone has their eye on the land (shipyard premises) in Pula. It is clear to everyone that the bankruptcy of 3. Maj will pave the way for the bankruptcy and liquidation of Uljanik itself," Bernardić said.

More news on the situation in Uljanik can be found in our Business section.

ZAGREB, December 27, 2018 - The Social Democratic Party (SDP) on Thursday downplayed a survey showing that the Živi Zid party had displaced the SDP as the strongest opposition party in Croatia, claiming that some other surveys painted a completely different picture.

A monthly survey, conducted by Ipsos agency from December 1 to 20 among 982 adult citizens, shows that Živi Zid has overtaken the SDP by 0.1 percentage point.

The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) remains the strongest party with the support of 28.9 percent of respondents, Živi Zid is on 14.9 percent and the SDP on 14.8 percent. The margin of error is +/- 3.3 percent for the sample and +/- 3.6 percent for the party ratings, Ipsos said.

The results of a survey depend on its methodology, the chairman of the party's main committee, Erik Fabijanić, told Hina, adding that a survey conducted by a Slovenian agency showed completely different results. According to that survey, the SDP is trailing seven percentage points behind the HDZ and is twice as strong as Živi Zid, he said.

"Živi Zid's popularity shouldn't be belittled, but this is not the real situation," he said, adding that the party should work more on its approval rating.

The party secretary-general Nikša Vukas described the Ipsos survey as "yet another hoax" by Prime Minister Andrej Plenković. "Plenković's factory of lies continues operating," he wrote on his Facebook page.

Vukas also attacked Ipsos Puls agency, saying that apart from tracking party approval ratings this agency also conducted various surveys for the government and public companies.

"This is obviously a conflict of interest. The latest fake survey released by this agency says that Živi Zid has overtaken the SDP, which was Plenković's and this agency's aim. It was their deal to bring the SDP down," Vukas said.

In addition to prominent party members who have left the party recently, such as eight MPs, two less known officials, both members of the main committee, have also resigned the party's membership in the past week: a Zadar city councillor and a member of the leadership of the SDP's Šibenik-Knin County branch.

More news on the disarray in SDP can be found in our Politics section.

ZAGREB, December 22, 2018 - The MOST party said on Friday that by "stalling and abandoning plans for INA's buyout, the Plenković cabinet is making it possible for Hungarian oil and gas group MOL to blackmail Croatia into the announced closing of the Sisak refinery."

Asking Prime Minister Andrej Plenković what his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban had blackmailed him with, MOST wonders in a statement what "Croatia will get if Plenković has allowed Hungarians to close the refinery in Sisak and let them enter Petrokemija's management. They will soon start exporting INA's gas to themselves and who knows what else is in the offing? Isn't the price of Hungary's merciful blackmailer involvement in the LNG terminal, whereby Plenković is showing his commitment to the EU by seeking a future office in the Commission, too high?"

MOST further says that Prime Minister Plenković has personally appointed the Croatian members of the management of the INA oil company (jointly owned by Croatia and MOL) but that they are not representing INA's interests.

In the shareholders agreement on INA, MOL has undertaken to be a strategic partner but it has taken over INA's market and turned the company into an oil retailer, MOST says, claiming that Hungary is protecting its interests in a sovereign way while the Croatian government is incapable of organising a tender to buy back MOL's stake in INA.

SDP president Davor Bernardić visited Sisak to meet with Predrag Sekulić, unionist and spokesman for Sisak refinery workers, for talks on the current situation in the refinery following a decision by the INA oil company to stop refining oil in Sisak.

INA, which is owned jointly by Croatia and the Hungarian oil and gas group MOL, announced on Wednesday that it would concentrate its refining business in Rijeka, while the Sisak refinery would be converted into an industrial centre focusing on other activities.

"Had Plenković stuck to his pre-election promise of two years ago and restored Croatian ownership of INA, the Sisak refinery would not be facing closure. This government has not done anything in that regard and will be remembered for making the workers of Uljanik, 3. Maj and the Sisak refinery jobless," Bernardić said.

The SDP leader also wondered if the closure of the Sisak refinery and possible dropping of an indictment proposal against MOL executive Zsolt Hernadi had been agreed at recent talks between Plenković and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in exchange for Hungary's withdrawal of an arbitration lawsuit against Croatia in the INA case.

More news on the INA-MOL case can be found in our Business section.

ZAGREB, December 22, 2018 - Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Davor Bernardić has said that accusations by Mate Radeljić, who was relieved of his duties as President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović's domestic policy advisor, again give rise to suspicion about the abuse of the intelligence system by the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ).

In a statement issued on Friday, in which he described the circumstances of his dismissal, Radeljić said that he was threatened by the Security and Intelligence Agency (SOA) and that the president told him he did not fit her plans as he was an obstacle in her relations with the prime minister.

Radeljić said that he was informed of the decision on his dismissal by Davor Franić, the chief of staff of SOA head Daniel Markić, and that Franić said he had to let him know that SOA "will protect the president in every way from my possible negative activity after leaving the president's office and that he was ready, if so instructed, to run into me with a car."

"Radeljić's accusation is serious and gives rise to serious suspicion that the HDZ has abused the intelligence system. If the President really used SOA to settle scores with Radeljić, then she must leave because she has violated the Constitution. If she did it in agreement with Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, in exchange for getting the HDZ's support in presidential elections, then Plenković, too, has to leave. The ruling structures are evidently prepared to do anything to stay in power," Bernardić told reporters during a visit to Sisak.

"I can only call on the Office of the Chief State Prosecutor (DORH) to respond promptly and interview all those involved, primarily the president and the prime minister. It never happened before in our 27-year-long history that the intelligence community, which is controlled by the prime minister, is faced with such serious accusations of death threats. That's why this should be investigated," Bernardić said.

He said that he expected DORH to act as its failure to respond in earlier scandals was the reason why people were losing trust in state institutions.

Bernardić said that Social Democrat Ranko Ostojić, who chairs the parliamentary committee on home affairs and security, would give a statement on the matter during the day and request an extraordinary session of the committee.

More news on the Mate Radeljić scandal can be found in our Politics section.

ZAGREB, December 16, 2018 – Croatian SDP (Social Democratic Party) leader Davor Bernardić, speaking at this year's last meeting of the party's main committee on Saturday, said that the purpose of the SDP's existence was to reduce social inequalities and combat injustice and discrimination.

He said that the situation in the SDP was not as gloomy as being portrayed by the media, after several lawmakers left this largest opposition party.

"Never in its history has parliament reflected the will of the citizens less than today. As many as 28 MPs have changed their political ideas and their party colours, completely negating the will of the citizens who elected them. Traitors and defectors from all parties, including those from the SDP, tried to fool the citizens with their inept spins, while only proving that they never cared about the SDP and social democracy. Those servants of the ruling HDZ showed their true colours and now it's quite clear why those same people tried to topple me and the SDP. Despite the attempts being made through the media to create an impression of gloom and doom, new people are joining us every day," Bernardić said.

He said that people were emigrating from Croatia not only because of low wages, but also because they cannot stand injustices and have no trust in the state institutions. "People have no trust in the institutions that are supposed to protect them against violence and crime, and are disillusioned. Thugs are walking the streets freely, acquitted by courts, while the country is sinking in scandals and the State Attorney is doing nothing."

"Love for Croatia is shown not by waving flags and denying truth and reality, but by showing our readiness to get out of the comfort zone, rise against injustice, fight for what we believe in and change the laws so that they protect personal freedoms, the rights of minorities and women, the rights of others and those who are different. We should believe in what we do, because as long as we believe in ourselves, people will not lose confidence in us and will not lose the faith that Croatia can be different. It's all up to us," the SDP leader concluded.

The main committee adopted the party's financial plan for 2019 and discussed preparations for next year's European Parliament election, policies for higher wages and pensions and health policy.

The meeting was not attended by deputy leaders Zlatko Komadina and Rajko Ostojić and most of the members of the SDP presidency.

More news on the dismal state of affairs in SDP can be found in our Politics section.

ZAGREB, December 10, 2018 - Social Democratic Party president Davor Bernardić and MOST leader Božo Petrov agreed on Monday that parliament should have discussed the Global Compact on Migration, but while Bernardić strongly pushed for it, Petrov said it represented a threat to Croatia's security, and Miro Kovač of the ruling HDZ told them they failed to launch a discussion on the document and that they were manipulating and misleading the public.

Bernardić said that when the agenda included topics on which the HDZ could not ideologically agree within its ranks, those topics were pushed aside. He said parliament could still discuss "such an important global agreement." He said that by avoiding a debate, some were bringing unrest into the public sphere, scaring citizens with migrants and trying to score political points. He said migrants did not wish to stay in Croatia.

Bernardić said the Global Compact was not a typical agreement. "It is not signed and it is not ratified, but is a catalogue of measures referring to legal migration and UN member states can choose whether to incorporate them and which are the most acceptable to them."

He said discussing the Global Compact did not suit the HDZ-led ruling majority "because they don't want to confront the radically conservative citizens who voted for them and who see the agreement differently than the government."

Petrov said the Global Compact was a threat to the security of Croatia and its citizens. "Since 2015, our neighbouring countries dealt with the migrant problem together with Croatia, yet today they refuse to go to Marrakesh. Why, if everything about this agreement is all right?"

He said the US, which was Croatia's partner on its journey to independence, did not want to be part of the Global Compact. "Who will we ask for help when all neighbouring countries don't want to be part of that pact? Juncker, whose idea is that not all EU member states are equal?" Petrov wondered why the Global Compact was not discussed at a parliamentary plenary session.

Kovač said Bernardić and Petrov could have submitted an interpellation or asked that a discussion on the Global Compact be put on parliament's agenda. He added that a discussion on the document was organised by the Foreign Affairs Committee at his initiative, and accused Petrov and Bernardić of manipulation and disinformation.

For more news on Croatia’s migrant policies, follow our Politics section.

ZAGREB, November 25, 2018 - Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Davor Bernardić commented on Saturday on the Crobarometar survey by the IPSOS agency, published on Friday, which shows a drop in voter support for the party to 14.6%, telling reporters that they should not worry about the SDP because it would achieve a European elections success.

Bernardić made the statement while attending a convention of the SDP Women's Forum and after he and Women's Forum representatives released black balloons into the sky to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, November 25.

When asked by reporters if the black balloons also signified the SDP's rating, he said: "I cannot comment on the party's rating at a moment when we are marking the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Do not worry about the SDP, the SDP works and will have good results in elections for the European Parliament."

"Two surveys were published yesterday and they show diametrically opposed results, which is a bit weird. European elections will be the best test. As for the drop in party ratings, we definitely could have done without MPs crossing the floor to join the parliamentary majority, without those who support the 'For the homeland ready' Ustasha salute, and without frequent attempts at intraparty coups, but rest assured, we will put things in order," he said.

Asked if he was considering stepping down since voter support for his party had dropped to below 15% and the Živi Zid party enjoyed voter support that was only 1% below the SDP's rating, Bernardić said that the party was "entirely focused on elections for the European Parliament and on wage and pension growth in Croatia."

Asked if he expected the party membership to again launch a procedure to replace him, he said, "We mustn't let anything take us by surprise."

According to the latest Crobarometar survey, the HDZ enjoys the support of 29.3% of voters, the SDP enjoys 14.6% support, the Živi Zid 13.5% support, and the MOST party is supported by 6% of the electorate.

SDP Presidency member Ivo Jelušić, Social Democrat member of the European Parliament Biljana Borzan, SDP MP Sabina Glasovac, and former SDP official Željka Antunović, who attended the convention, were also asked to comment on the latest party ratings, and they all expressed concern.

"The party president is referring to a survey which shows that we enjoy 19% voter support but I believe that the SDP can't be satisfied with either 15% or 19%. The SDP wants to assume responsibility to lead the country and those percentages are far from enabling us to move towards a better, more just and socially more sensitive society. If we want to settle for the opposition, that's fine, but I don't think that should be the reason for political activism and that a good part of Croatia, 71% of people, think the country is moving in the wrong direction. We owe them a solution and an alternative, and that requires support much stronger than just 15% or 19%," said Glasovac.

For more on the turmoil in SDP, click here.