January 31, 2023 - The problem of SLAPP lawsuits is an extremely important topic because they represent the latest form of abuse and attacks on journalists, according to the president of the Croatian Journalists' Association (CJA), Hrvoje Zovko. 

Something that Paul Bradbury has experienced himself, anyway.

As Index writes, speaking on the panel on the legal foundations and challenges in regulating SLAPP - strategic lawsuits against public participation, Zovko pointed out that CJA has been collecting data on the total number of lawsuits against media and journalists for damage to reputation and honour for years.

They are asking for almost HRK 77.5 million from journalists

According to the latest survey results from March last year, at least 951 lawsuits for damage to reputation and honour against the media and journalists were active in Croatia, from which the prosecutors claimed almost HRK 77.5 million.

"This is a very important topic for us and concerns all our members because SLAPP lawsuits are a new form of abuse and attacks on journalists," said Zovko.

The president of the European Federation of Journalists and the Union of Croatian Journalists, Maja Sever, emphasized that the fight against SLAPP lawsuits requires the joint action of professional journalistic organizations, legal experts, and judges.

"This is a joint fight. Unfortunately, the consequences of SLAPP lawsuits on any individual journalist are dire. "Most of our colleagues say that every attack, online harassment (abuse) is nothing compared to the fear of targeted SLAPP lawsuits," said Sever.

Lawyers specializing in media law and freedom of expression and members of the European Commission's expert group for SLAPP lawsuits, Vanja Jurić and Vesna Alaburić, emphasized the extreme importance of education for lawyers and journalists but also judges in the fight against SLAPP lawsuits.

They also assessed that a prerequisite for the successful application of European practices is an excellent knowledge of court practice, even to determine the groundlessness of SLAPP lawsuits, but they also called for caution in defining them.

"The goal of SLAPP lawsuits is not to win a dispute."

Alaburić pointed out that the goal of SLAPP lawsuits is usually not to win the dispute but to discourage journalists or the activities of civil society organizations that raise some sensitive topics.

Constitutional Court Judge Goran Selanec and Professor Dunja Duić took part in the discussion, as well as numerous journalists, including Drago Hedl and Ivan Pandžić, who offered their views on SLAPP lawsuits.

The panel is part of the project "Informed citizens monitor the prevention of future violations of human rights and the work of the Croatian Representative's Office before the European Court of Human Rights," supported through the Fund for Active Citizenship with money from Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway within the framework of EEA grants.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated News section.

January 19. 2023 -  SLAPP lawsuits in Croatia (Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation) are a well-established tool to dissuade criticism. Having just emerged from a 2.5-year SLAPP experience, here are some thoughts and observations.

It all starts with the blue letter. 

The postman knocks, requiring a signature. There is rarely good news inside the official blue envelopes. 

"It is from the Municipal Court in Zagreb," said my wife. 

I wonder what they want, I thought to myself. I haven't done anything wrong, to the best of my knowledge. Nevertheless, my heart started beating a little heavier. I had no dead relatives in Croatia to inherit property from, so in all probability, there was bad news inside.

A lawsuit from the Croatian National Tourist Board seeking 50,000 kuna in compensation for defamation. Now my heart really started to beat. Plus costs. And interest. For an article that I did not write, on a portal that I do not own, which quoted me. 

My mouth went dry. 

Two weeks later, it was Groundhog Day. ANOTHER blue letter, another lawsuit, and another 50,000 kuna demanded, this time for a meme I posted on my private Facebook page, where I changed the official tourism slogan from Croatia, Full of Life to Croatia, Full of Uhljebs. 

 (The lawsuits made the national news)

1. Self-Doubt

What the hell to do? I was panicking. I didn't have that kind of money spare, and what did this mean for my future writing? I was comfortable that I had done nothing wrong, but how to prove that in the Croatian legal jungle and where to turn for help? Perhaps I should stop writing anything critical and just concentrate on saying how beautiful Croatia was. 

In my panic, I failed to analyse the message being sent, turning this into a major situation instead:

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. 

With a little more detachment, the message was clear. Publicly apologise and lose credibility among your readership, be silent in the future, and all this goes away. Otherwise, the lawsuits will take their course. I had 15 days to respond.  

2. Costs include 8% interest

As I was weighing up my limited options, the route to a public apology looked the most likely, especially when I learned that there would be 8% annual interest fee, I believe, from the moment the lawsuit was issued, until the verdict. I had heard that these cases could go on for years. It had somehow taken 2 months for the issuance of the lawsuit from the court to be delivered to my home. Some 8% divided by 6 of 100,000 kuna. The clock was ticking. Should I just apologise and move on?

The only person I could think to ask for advice was a smart young lawyer called Vanja Juric, regarded as the best in the region for media law, and a very successful defender of Croatia's biggest and most controversial news portal, Index.hr. Index owner Matija Babic, a personal friend, had kindly made Vanja's advice available to me a couple of years earlier when the Mayor of Jelsa, Niksa Peronja, announced in a public meeting that he was suing me over my reporting of a questionable tender - you can read more in Mayor Niksa Peronja: If Carpe Diem Really is Coming to Jelsa and Zecevo, Then...

Here is Mayor Peronja publicly announcing the lawsuit against me. He never actually followed though, and 4 years later, I await the lawsuit he promised. 

But the announcement of the lawsuit shook me up, and Vanja gave me some great advice. And so I knew that she would be the person to turn to with the case of the Croatian National Tourist Board. The first thing she told me was to relax, there was no way I would lose. 

And from that moment, I started to relax, and I decided that I would document the whole experience in a mini-blog on TCN called Diary of a Croatian Lawsuit. 

3. Delays

And yet, despite Vanja's considerable reassurance and calming influence, that 8% would not leave me, especially when I learned that the first hearing of the first case would not be until the following April, and the second one in May, 8 and 9 months respectively after the lawsuits were issued. Around 6,000 kuna in interest, and we had not even started!

And then when I went to my first hearing, only to have the prosecution lawyer present an additional motion one minute before the hearing started, which necessitated an adjournment of 3 months (1,000 kuna more), and then their lawyer double booked not once, but twice, necessitating a delay in the other case from May to November (2,000 kuna), I began to have my doubts. It was almost 18 months from the lawsuit to the first hearing that actually took place. 

Delay, delay, delay. Perhaps it was all accidental (this was the Kingdom of Accidental Tourism after all), but it felt a little more coordinated. After all, the lawyer who had double-booked twice was from a firm with 50 lawyers. This was hardly a complicated case, and yet no other lawyer was able to take his place. 

On not one, but two occasions, their lawyer submitted last-minute motions to my lawyer literally one minute before the hearing started on each occasion. The apologetic excuse was that he had had health issues. There was no mention of the other 49 lawyers in his office who could have helped out. Perhaps these were all genuine reasons, but I slowly began to form the opinion that all this seemed to be a deliberate tactic. This feeling was solidified for the hearing where I was supposed to give evidence on the meme, Croatia, Full of Uhljebs, as was Director of the Croatian National Tourist Board, Kristjan Stanicic. 

The hearing was announced in July 2021, to take place on Thursday, January 20, 2022, so 6 months to prepare. Although I speak Croatian quite well, Vanja advised that I hire a court interpreter, which I did. Six days before the hearing, late on a Friday evening after office hours, Vanja received an email stating that Director Stanicic could not attend the hearing the following Thursday as he had to go on urgent business to a tourism fair in Madrid, attaching the director's flight details (Tuesday to Friday). The Madrid fair had been announced 6 months before, about the same time as this hearing, but for some reason, this trip had been put in the calendar at the last minute. I cancelled the interpreter, and Vanja advised me to attend the hearing, but not to give evidence in his absence. 

And so the following Tuesday came, with the director presumably off to Madrid. And Wednesday. The hearing was scheduled for midday on Thursday. At around 09:00, Vanja received an email to say that, in fact, the director was not in Madrid after all and would be attending court and giving evidence. He had presumably known this on Tuesday when he was supposed to fly, but for some reason waited until the last minute to tell us. Trying to find an available court translator with less than three hours notice was an almost impossible task. Almost. 

If I had been a cynic, I would have questioned the additional motives behind some of these delays and double bookings, as hearings which were scheduled before elections managed to get delayed until after elections, thereby avoiding any negative publicity. But obviously, I am not a cynic... 

4. Filming 

One of the most interesting aspects of the whole process was learning that I had the right to apply to photograph and film proceedings if I applied to the court more than 48 hours in advance. The chance to put the absurdity of what I was subjected to on YouTube was very appealing. It would have greatly added to showcasing my story. I applied as advised and was stunned at the speed of the reply, an email just one hour later. My request was denied, as filming was only applicable to cases deemed to be in the public interest, which mine was not (despite being all over television and the national media when the story broke). A second email to Vanja at the same time gave another reason why I would not be filming any time soon - the case suddenly got delayed 6 months (lawyer double-booking) - another 2,000 kuna in interest.  

5. Intimidation

I can only imagine going through this process without the expertise and calming support of Vanja. Once she told me to relax, I knew I was going to be ok. But without her, this would be a terrifying ordeal, as I am sure it is for the many others who are subjected to SLAPP lawsuits here and elsewhere. Indeed the support of certain sections of the media (big shout out to Index, Telegram, Morski, RTL and N1) was a huge boost, as was MP Marijana Puljak calling for the dismissal of Director Stanicic, the withdrawal of the lawsuit, and the introduction of anti-SLAPP legislation (see video below).

We are shocked by the bizarre news about the lawsuits of the Croatian National Tourist Board against Paul Bradbury, journalist and owner of the Total Croatia News portal. It is a classic way of intimidating and stifling freedom of speech, in order to silence criticism of the dysfunctional system of the Croatian Tourist Board, which spends a lot of taxpayers' money. We demand the immediate withdrawal of the lawsuits and the removal of director Kristjan Staničić.

The CNTB should see a partner in Paul Bradbury. He is a man who has undoubtedly indebted Croatian tourism with his actions, and instead they are 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 CNTB. If taxpayers were given the opportunity to choose who to finance, many would certainly prefer to invest money in tourism promotion in the knowledge and work of experts like Bradbury, rather than in any of the 300 or so directors of tourist boards.

The Center Party will always vehemently oppose any form of intimidation and attacks on journalists, activists and citizens. Any attempt to restrict freedom of speech, and we witness them in Croatia almost every day, we consider unacceptable, so we will send to the procedure legal changes that would prevent such lawsuits from occurring at all.

Freedom of speech 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 throughout

it makes society intellectually but also economically poorer. Only an open exchange of ideas, but also criticism, is the guarantor of intellectual and economic progress.

I was grateful for all the support and fully aware that many others facing SLAPP lawsuits do not have such exposure. I felt the whole process to be quite intimidating. As I stated in a previous article, I get the impression that the CNTB lawyer is a pretty cool guy that I would enjoy having a drink with (he was always very friendly outside court, making a point to shake my hand each time), but his questioning and tactics in the courtroom were very intimidating. I spent an hour on the witness stand being cross-examined about the meme on topics such as how many Facebook fans did I have, what was I doing before I moved to Croatia in 2002, how many employees did I have, and did I speak French. 

My favourite moment in the second hearing was seeing a HUGE file with so many papers inside that a whole forest must have been sacrificed. On the front of the file, two words - Paul Bradbury.

If that file was full of documents about me, just how big was my legal bill going to be on top of the interest and claim? Intimidating. Or at least it would have been without Vanja. An intern who watched proceedings asked me after if I also thought that a lot of the pieces of paper in the folder were blank. 

As I could see that this was an intimidating process, I decided to document my case from start to finish. Knowing that the cases would take years to resolve, I started a mini-blog called Diary of a Croatian Lawsuit on TCN. Apart from being extraordinary free PR for me (thanks, CNTB!), keeping the case in the public arena could only help my cause, especially if I detailed all the absurdities. But I also wanted to show others going through the same process that they were not alone. And that it was possible to win. 

But had I had to face that alone... And then there was the option to publicly apologise and it all goes away...  

When talking about intimidation, I thought back to the Mayor of Jelsa, Niksa Peronja, who publicly announced he was suing me, but never did as mentioned above. Just the threat of a lawsuit - it does focus the mind on writing about less controversial topics in the future.  There is not much net reward for writing a great article and then having to pay thousands in court for the privilege. There is a reason why these lawsuits are called Strategic Lawsuits against Public Prosecution. 

6. Doors close and the stigma

I am currently in the search for a new identity. For the last two years, I have been known as the 'guy getting sued by CNTB.' That's it. My epitaph on my tombstone. I have lost count of the number of people I have met who have only heard about me for that one reason. It is something that I guess will be with me forever. it is not something I would have chosen to be remembered by, but I have tried to turn that into a positive and approach this reality with humour. 

What has been a quite extraordinary lesson, however, has been how people and institutions in Croatia reacted to being sued by a state institution. It was the same with the threatened lawsuit from Peronja and the national tourist board. Certain people unfriended me on Facebook, looked the other way when I walked down the street, and generally distanced themselves from me. To be seen to be with me (and this was especially true in Jelsa 5 years ago) meant that there were in the enemy camp. Why risk a cafe concession of an extra two tables as a cafe owner by being friends with the pariah?

The reaction of the Croatian media was very instructive, and it was then that I could see clearly who were the most independent media (named above) and those who were not. Not only was my case not covered, but in one famous example, I was completely erased from history on a big media report from the opening of a conference I co-oganised, as well as being told I would not be allowed to speak at the opening of my own conference, as I would be sharing the platform with the Deputy Minister of Tourism. 

Paid contracts dried up. Sorry, Paul, we hope you understand, but you are being sued by CNTB...

The lawsuits became the big elephant in the room, particularly in topics where I was very active (digital nomads being a prime example) where the national tourist board was starting to get involved (and with a budget to spend). Sorry Paul, the national tourist board are funding this so... 

It was a lesson, and one I am glad I had, for it forced me to diversify, which I have done. And now I am in a much better space. So thanks to all for that. 

7. Winning is not the aim

As time went on, I began to realise that finding me guilty and actually winning the case was not the main aim of these lawsuits. It was intimidation and an invitation to silence. Zoran Pejovic, a respected tourism expert and defence witness in my case, who had also been quoted in the article that got me sued, reflected on his day in court as a witness in the case on LinkedIn (you can read Zoran's full post here):

Ever since I learned of the case against Paul I have reduced my Croatian media appearances. Several times I was asked to comment on some of the ongoing challenges of Croatian tourism and I politely declined. It only today dawned on me that I chose the path of lesser exposure to stay out of the limelight and avoid similar litigations, regardless of how pointless and ultimately unsuccessful they tend to be.

Perhaps they never aimed for victory in court.

The verdict in the first case was set for January 13, 2023. After the fabulous testimony in the hearing last November of both Zoran and Kresimir Macan, as well as Vanja's magic, there was no way in a normal country that I could lose. There simply was no case. Recognition of that fact came (again at the last minute - delay, delay, delay) when Vanja receive a request to withdraw the first case, giving us 8 days to agree. Just enough time to inform the court the day before the verdict. If they withdrew, they would not lose, I suppose was the logic. Their justifications for withdrawing the lawsuit were quite special, an explanation of which I may save for another time. 

What started 2.5 years ago as a demand for a public apology or 50,000 kuna plus costs ended with a polite request to forget about the whole thing. If I accepted, the case went away and my costs would be paid. If I refused, the court would deliver its verdict, an expected victory for me, and another PR own goal for the Kingdom of Accidental Tourism. I decided to try and put an end to the whole farce by suggesting that if they dropped both lawsuits and paid my costs, then I would agree. If they only wanted to drop one, then I would refuse. Their counter-offer was quite special (but let's leave that for another time), and we agreed that they would withdraw both.   

8. Accountability 

And so here we are, 2.5 years later. A public institution sues someone using public money, demanding either a public apology or compensation of 100,000 kuna plus costs. Two and a half years later, having wasted an enormous amount of time, energy and public money, they withdraw the cases and are required to pay all the costs - with public money, of course. 

And accountability? 

Absolutely zero, and nothing to stop this happening again to someone else, someone who might be a little more intimidated than I was (post-Vanja reassurance).  

9. Legacy 

And the legacy? 

I will be known as the guy who got sued by the Croatian National Tourist Board, and apart from that?

Plus ca change. 

At least by highlighting my case on TCN (and soon on my YouTube channel with a very detailed look at it), we have raised a little awareness of the realities of SLAPP lawsuits in Croatia. I have been very encouraged by the number of European lawyers who have been following my case on LinkedIn, and their messages of support have been very welcome.

10. Remarkable individuals are building a better Croatia

 And where to end but with my fabulous laywer. 

Over the years, I have met several people who are passionate about their niche, and whose determination and dedication have brought positive change. Marko Rakar is one of my all-time heroes, and his efforts to hold the government accountable and to improve the system are truly admirable. One of his biggest achievements was effecting the removal of 800,000 fake names from the electoral register - this in a country of 4.2 million people at the time. 

In the media space, you may love him or hate him, but Matija Babic, the owner of Index.hr has made a considerable contribution over the last 20 years with his portal's reporting and exposing of corruption. 

And Vanja, as a bastion of protection of free media speech, is right up there in her own niche. As Vice President of GONG, she was also appointed expert group member of a European task force on SLAPP lawsuits. And only last week, she held the first GONG workshop on SLAPP lawsuits. I feel honoured that my case is one that is highlighted.

Vanja is also using the case in her education of the next generation of lawyers. Perhaps this will be the best legacy of all for Croatia, Full of Uhljebs...

You can follow the whole story, including the publication of both lawsuits in English, in Diary of a Croatian Lawsuit.

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ZAGREB, 13 July 2022 - The Croatian Journalists' Association (HND) on Wednesday warned about new threats to free journalism, highlighting politicians' inappropriate communication with the media and the disappearance of released articles from the media.

Speaking at a press conference, HND president Hrvoje Zovko mentioned President Zoran Milanović's recent inappropriate statement about the Hanza Media company.

He also mentioned the "disappearance" of articles on MP Sandra Benčić's warning about a possible conflict of interest in private deals between the Security and Intelligence Agency (SOA) and the PPD gas supplier.

We are not investigators, but articles should not disappear from any media in Croatia, Zovko said. "We can't say where the threats are coming from and from which sources of power, but it is the job of the president and the prime minister, who have authority over the SOA, to deal with that."

Maja Sever, president of the European Federation of Journalists and the Croatian Journalists' Trade Union, said political pressure was continuing.

Articles have disappeared from several media, she said. "The PPD says it's not them. Who else is involved? The POA (Counter-intelligence Agency), the SOA, and some other organization?"

Sever said the union was working on strengthening of the legal protection of journalists, their jobs, and livelihoods, and that journalists' organizations were willing to help.

We must reinforce institutional protection, she said, adding that she would state Croatia's examples in talks with the European Commission on European media legislation.

Zovko welcomed Supreme Court president Radovan Dobronić's opening a debate on lawsuits against journalists, including those filed by judges.

For more, check out our politics section.

ZAGREB, 13 April 2022 - Croatian Journalists Association (HND) president Hrvoje Zovko warned on Wednesday that terror with SLAPP lawsuits against reporters and media in Croatia continued as one of the forms of intimidation and financial ruin, and that the HND would organise a protest if nothing changed.

"We recently presented the latest data on the number of lawsuits against journalists and media in the total amount of HRK 77.4 million, which is an infamous European record. The situation is not changing and apart from politicians, both the ruling ones and those in the opposition, judges, too, have been participating in the abuse of reporters and media through lawsuits," Zovko told a news conference.

He said the HND expected a serious response by the relevant authorities to the "judicial terror", and was prepared to again stage a major protest if nothing changed.

"The few ones who in this country are doing their job are being ruined financially", Zovko said.

He said that Osijek County Court president Zvonko Vrban, who once said that he would not sue former football manager Zdravko Mamić over his statements about him, was one of the people who had filed the most lawsuits against media outlets.

Vrban has filed five lawsuits against the Telegram.hr news portal, seeking HRK 150,000 in damages in each case. He has sued the portal for five investigative reports by journalist Drago Hedl, as well as the portal's editor-in-chief, Jelena Valentić, for another HRK 150,000, and he has also sued Hedl. The trial will be held in Zagreb and the HND will follow it closely, Zovko said.

The second negative example is that of former Social Democrat MP Romana Nikolić who sued the media for having reported that she had been convicted of making a death threat, which under the legal regulation on rehabilitation, should not be mentioned.

Zovko believes the regulation should be repealed because the public should have the right to know about the past actions of anyone wishing to hold a public office.

Nikolić sued the 24 sata daily, seeking HRK 75,000 in damages and she won 15,000. She also won a case against the Hanza media publishing company in the amount of HRK 40,000 and against reporter Gordan Gazdek, in the amount of HRK 10,000. Nikolić also sued the Glas Slavonije daily which reached a settlement with her, and a case in which she sued Telegram.hr is underway.

For more, check out our dedicated politics and lifestyle sections.

ZAGREB, 4 Oct 2021 - The Croatian Journalists Association (HND) on Monday described as scandalous businessman Josip Stojanović Jolly's lawsuit against the news portals Telegram.hr, Šibenik In, Šibenik News, and Šibenski Portal, in which he seeks HRK 6.2 million in damages from them for causing damage to his reputation.

"This is an unprecedented financial attack on the media in Croatia and it seems to be an introduction into a new series of lawsuits against media outlets, aimed at intimidating and destroying them," HND president Hrvoje Zovko told a news conference.

He noted that the claim for damages ensued after an article that was based on a non-final court verdict against the businessman, published by Telegram.hr and carried by the Šibenik-based news portals. Stojanović sued Telegram.hr, seeking HRK 2.3 million in damages, and the three news portals from Šibenik, seeking another 3.9 million in damages.

HND calls on Stojanović to drop his "crazy and scandalous claim"

Zovko said that the HND had notified the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) about the case, calling on Stojanović to drop "this crazy and scandalous claim."

He said that the case was a kind of introduction into a debate about strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP) against reporters and media, to be held at an EFJ conference to take place in Zagreb at the end of the week.

Minister should react

Zovko recalled that the Ministry of Culture and Media recently set up a task force to provide expert advice in shaping a policy against SLAPP suits and that the last case was a sort of test of the competent institutions' determination to combat SLAPP suits.

He called on Minister Nina Obuljen Koržinek to comment on the latest case, stressing that claims for damages against media outlets and reporters had become a competition to see who would sue reporters more and who would seek higher damages, with the initial amounts being ten, twenty, thirty and a hundred thousand kuna and the latest case amounting to more than six million.

Telegram.hr editor Jelena Valentić said that the article in question, in which the non-final ruling against Stojanović was carried and which was made in line with professional rules, was followed by the businessman's lawsuit in which he sued the portal for causing damage to his reputation and for loss of profit, estimated at some two million kuna.

Valentić said that this was just one in a number of claims for damages against Telegram.hr, noting that it put huge pressure on journalists.

"This is intimidation, aimed at preventing us from doing our job," she said, an assessment supported by Šibenski Portal editor Ksenija Bilan, who recalled numerous cases when local power players tried to exert influence on local media outlets.

(€1 = HRK 7.488172)

For more on politics, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 23 Sept 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Thursday that he will not accept the theory of media freedom being stifled in Croatia, referring to a comment by Social Democratic Party (SDP) MP Mirela Ahmetović's assessment that banning someone from writing is unprecedented pressure on the media.

"It's not normal and it isn't possible to accuse the government because of a ruling by one judge on a temporary measure in one case. The government, the HDZ (Croatian Democratic Union), none of us has anything to do with the judge's decision on that temporary measure... I reject such insinuations, even about influence on the State Attorney's Office, let alone such an influence on the courts, that there is some intention to stifle media freedom," Plenković said after meeting with the generals, commanders, and officers from the Flash military-police operation.

After the nonprofit portal H-alter in the past few weeks ran a series of articles by reporter Jelena Jindra problematizing the work of a Zagreb center for the protection of children and its head Gordana Buljan Flander, Zagreb Municipal Court judge Andrija Krivak issued an injunction ordering H-alter to stop publishing articles about Buljan Flander.

Plenković said that Minister of Culture and Media Nina Obuljen Koržinek had given a brilliant statement about the court's decision and that he supports her in that.

The government advocates full media freedom, there are legal means to counter the temporary injunction, he said.

"I won't even go into the essence nor the decision, let alone accepts theories that media freedom is being stifled in Croatia. That is out of the question. That is not true," he added.

Asked whether the court's decision was stifling media freedom, Plenković said the Zagreb Municipal Court needs to be asked that.

"What has that got to do with us? It is a temporary injunction issued by a court. It is not a political decision by anyone here," he said and added that Minister Obuljen Koržinek said everything that had to be said about that.

Asked whether this could mean that anyone could seek the courts to ban someone from writing about them, he said that he doesn't think that is the case nor practice.

"I believe that media freedom in Croatia is such that everyone breathes freely," he said.

For more about politics in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 26 July 2021 - The European Commission last week issued a report on the rule of law in Croatia expressing concern over a large number of the so-called SLAPP lawsuits against reporters and the media and voicing suspicion in the political independence of the media regulator: the Electronic Media Agency.

"Croatia is updating its media legislation to transpose the Audiovisual Media Services Directive, with the revision of the Electronic Media Act to be adopted still in 2021. Concerns about the political independence of the Agency for Electronic Media persist," the Commission said in the report.

Apart from concern regarding the independence of that the Electronic Media Agency which, among other things, is expected to deal with hate speech, the report says that lawsuits against journalists and media outlets also gives rise to concern,

"A legal framework for the protection of journalists is in place, but they continue to face threats. In particular, the high number of strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) targeting journalists continues to be a serious concern. Access to information is ensured by law, but delays in the processing of requests from journalists persist."

Zovko: Allegations from report expected

The president of the Croatian Journalists' Association (HND), Hrvoje Zovko, commented on the allegations from the European Commission's report regarding media pluralism and freedom in Croatia, describing them as expected.

"Unfortunately, several categories regarding media freedoms in Croatia have been criticized, including numerous verbal attacks by politicians against journalists and the media. We already have a culture of suing journalists and the media. SLAPPs are a new model of attacks against journalists, aimed at intimidating them and the media and imposing censorship, even destroying them," Zovko said.

He recalled that according to an HND survey, there were 924 active lawsuits against journalists in Croatia in April, adding that the HND had been warning about this problem for years and stressing that this was the reason why Croatia was recognized as a problematic country.

He welcomed the initiative by the Ministry of Culture and Media to set up an expert working group to curb SLAPPs, adding, however, that its results were yet to be seen.

"The HND has been lobbying for quite some time for the decriminalization of slander and defamation. This could be the beginning of curbing violence against journalists and the media through lawsuits," Zovko said.

Ministry of Culture and Media: Expert working group set up

In its comment to Hina on the part of the report concerning attacks on journalists and SLAPP lawsuits, the Ministry of Culture and Media said that similar concerns are raised in many countries and that the Ministry of the Interior responds to every complaint.

The Ministry has set up an expert working group after the European Commission adopted an action plan for European democracy, with the protection of journalists against SLAPP lawsuits as one of its main goals.

The working group includes representatives of the media sector, judiciary, lawyers, and the academic community. It has already begun work and one of its first steps is launching training for judges, lawyers, and journalists in cooperation with the Justice Academy.

After the first meeting of the working group, Minister Obuljen Koržinek stressed the importance of ensuring uniform case law and training of journalists and judges.

The Ministry said that media legislation and other laws based on which such lawsuits are brought will be improved and that co-regulation and self-regulation mechanisms would be established within the professions.

The national recovery and resilience plan will finance a system of public disclosure of information on media financing and the development of a network of fact-checkers to further contribute to transparency and trust in the media, the Ministry said.

Asked to comment on the claim by the European Commission that there are still doubts about the political independence of the Electronic Media Agency and the Electronic Media Council, the Ministry cited European models for the appointment of such bodies.

The Electronic Media Council is appointed by the Croatian parliament based on a proposal by the government following a public call. The appointment model is similar to the prevailing model in Europe. The appointment of Council members by parliament, instead of by the government, was introduced in 2009, with public consultations involving all relevant stakeholders, the Ministry said.

The Electronic Media Agency declined to comment, saying that the European Commission's claim was not corroborated. It said that the process of appointment of members of the Electronic Media Council was the same as in all EU member states, given that they are appointed by parliament, government, a president, or a sovereign.

For more, follow our dedicated politics section.

May 9, 2021 - As the SLAPP lawsuit intimidation tactics against journalists continue in Croatia, I invite Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic to back the proposed anti-SLAPP bill from Centar MP Marijana Puljak. 

It has been an intense few weeks. 

In addition to the launch of our new national tourism portal, Total Croatia, and the ongoing Digital Nomads-in-Residence Program in Dubrovnik, the aftermath of my decision to make public the two lawsuits from the Croatian National Tourist Board against me continues to feature large in my daily life.

I have been genuinely stunned at the public reaction and support (95% in an Index poll in which about 20,000 people voted), as well as the significant media interest from Croatia's independent media. I am also very grateful for the opportunity to discuss my case on national television (you can see my appearance on Good Morning Croatia - Dobro Jutro Hrvatska below).

I decided to go public with news of the lawsuit after reading an article on RTL about the culture of intimidating journalists through the issuing of SLAPP lawsuits by my lawyer, Vanja Juric (you can read a translation of that article here).  I had no idea that the practice was so widespread. Why would I, if very few people talk about such things in public. 

Apart my surprise at the massive public support, the other thing that stayed with me from breaking the news was how shocked people were that the national tourist board would sue me for 100,000 kuna.

Apart from being shocked in the sense of being intimidated (at least initially until Legendica Vanja filled me with reassurance), I was not that shocked at the issuing of the lawsuit. I took it as a HUGE compliment, of course, that one fat blogger in a cafe can bother them so much with the truth, but these tactics of intimidation are not actually that new to me - or, I am guessing, any other independent journalist in this country.

And while we all bear these daily harassments silently, I am wondering if perhaps the time is right to try and initiate a public discussion on this very topic.

I feel emboldened to do so in support of Centar MP, Marijana Puljak, who kindly raised my case in Parliament, calling for the quashing of the lawsuit and the removal of Kristjan Stanicic as Director of CNTB. You can see Marijana's speech above (and a translation under the video in this article). 

But this is certainly not the first time I have been subjected to this kind of intimidation as an independent journalist. And, just as I called for - and received - the Prime Minister's attention to my case last time, so too in this case. My impressions of the premiership of Andrej Plenkovic fluctuate a LOT, but I will remain eternally grateful to him calling me over for a chat on the main square in Jelsa at a time where I had been made to feel like a pariah by sections of the local community. 

I know of one other foreigner after me who wrote an open letter to Prime Minister Plenkovic, of course, and I congratulate both Jan de Jong the PM for working together to make the Croatian digital nomad permit a reality in a very short space of time. 

But back in August 2018, foreigners writing open letters to Prime Ministers was unheard of. I decided to do so because I thought the intimidation I was made to feel in my adopted hometown needed to be countered by someone of influence outside the town. And with the Prime Minister coming the following week for 'Dan Opcine Jelsa' (Jelsa's Municipal Day), I decided to try something out of the box which you can read about this TCN article - How to Fix Croatia: Open Letter to Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic.

That summer of 2018 taught me more about the realities of Croatia than any other. 

Jelsa has been incredibly good to me, providing me with a home, lovely family, and a fantastic lifestyle for more than 13 years. It was a town (and an island) I loved writing about. And my Total Hvar blog was - for the most part - incredibly positive about Hvar, putting many destinations on the international map for the first time.

And then it all changed. 

It remains the story I am most proud of in my ten years of writing for the Total Project, in terms of facts and research. I don't think I have ever published a story which had as many documents or verified facts. I first published in March, 2018.

Goodbye Jelsa Bench, Hello Carpe Diem? Mayor Niksa Peronja Gives Prime Concession to Hvar Party Partner.

The story caused quite a stir, but the plot thickened, as certain people (always anonymous - nobody wanted to be publicly quoted) sent me more links and documents, which I also published in July:

Hvar Party Tourism Spreading to Jelsa? How to Grab Island Zecevo When Nobody is Watching.

This caused an immediate reaction from the Mayor of Jelsa, more I suspect due to the anonymous letters posted around Vrboska. He announced a public meeting in Vrboska to explain to people there the truth behind the future of Zecevo. 

The night before the meeting, there was a town council meeting in Jelsa, after which I was informed by three sources that the Mayor had decided to sue me for defamation. A figure of 200,000 kuna was apparently mentioned. 

A huge sum, and certainly not one I could afford to pay at the time. But I decided to attend - and film - the public meeting the following day. I was extremely curious not only what the Mayor would say, but also what the reaction of the local audience would be to such an emotive issue. 

And that is how - as YouTube has recorded for posterity - Mayor Niksa Peronja announced to the world that he was suing me (see video below). 

What happened after that was a real education. People I had known for years unfriended me on Facebook. Others looked the other way while I walked down the street. Suddenly there were lots of seats next to me at the cafe. As unpleasant as that was, the really fascinating place to be was my inbox. So many people thanking me, but asking for my understanding that they could not be seen to do so publicly. Others sending me other examples of alleged corruption, with documents, asking me to publish them. When I suggested that we publish under joint name, they disappeared. It was fine for me to fight the fight on their behalf, but there was no way they would greet me in the street or stand with me.  

And so I wrote to the Prime Minister. If he would show me some support, that could potentially make my life less unpleasant. 

He sat down at the next cafe with the local HDZ crew for a chat and photo op, as the Prime Minister does at this event every year. And every year, I always rise from the next cafe and take a photo for a story. Only this year was different. 

The Prime Minister motioned for me to come over to his table. I did, and he rose to greet me. 

"Hi. Call me Andrej. You are the blogger, right? The one who wrote an open letter with four ways to fix this country?"

Indeed I was. We had a pleasant chat for a couple of minutes with ended with a very reassuring promise from the Croatian Prime Minister, which was the title of my next article, some 15 minutes later, and which he has (so far) kept:

Prime Minister Tells Total Croatia News: I Won't Sue You, Don't Worry.

And he never has. And for that brief intervention in my life, I will always be grateful to the man who told me to call him Andrej, even if I have strong differences of opinion on some other issues. 

And the funny thing is that Mayor Peronja never sued me either, despite his public promise. Make of that what you will. 

And so, Andrej, for that is how you told me to address you, you have shown decency on the topic of defending the independent media with my case in Jelsa three years ago.

Will you also commit to supporting Marijana Puljak's initiative to introduce anti-SLAPP legislation into the Croatian Parliament?