Minister Says President Would Set Precedent by Pardoning Mustač, Perković
ZAGREB, 16 April 2022 - Justice Minister Ivan Malenica said on Saturday that President Zoran Milanović would set a precedent if he pardoned Josip Perković and Zdravko Mustač because, since taking office, he had not responded to the 274 pardon applications sent him by the ministry.
Speaking to Hina, Malenica said that in a little over two years the ministry had sent 274 pardon applications to the President's Office, enclosing reports prepared by the ministry based on the Pardons Act.
Until now, the president has not exercised his constitutional power to pardon someone and if this happens now, it would be a precedent in Milanović's term, he added.
Malenica said that during his presidential campaign, Milanović said the pardon institute was a relict of the past which he would not use. "If this has happened now, it's up to President Milanović to explain his political decision to pardon someone."
Malenica went on to say that in taking over the sentences against Mustač and Perković, Croatian courts had acted in line with the law "because the proceedings were upheld at all levels of the judicial authority and the decisions are final."
"This is the very early stage of serving a prison sentence for the gravest crimes," he added.
Perković and Mustač, former Yugoslav and Croatian intelligence officials, were sentenced by a German court in August 2016 to life for assisting in the murder of Croatian dissident Stjepan Đureković in Germany in July 1983. On Tuesday, their attorney Anto Nobilo announced pardon motions.
Explaining the procedure, Malenica said the motion was submitted to the Justice Ministry, which requested from the prison and the relevant judge all relevant information for writing a report on the motion.
According to the media, Nobilo's motion is to be signed by retired generals Ante Gotovina, Ivan Čermak, Ljubo Ćesić Rojs, Pavao Miljavac, Davor Domazet Lošo, and Marinko Krešić, who has said he is considering withdrawing his signature, which general Krešimir Ćosić has already done.
The media have reported that the generals feel that Perković and Mustač deserve to be pardoned because of their contribution to the creation of the Croatian state and its defence.
Germany requested their extradition from Croatia as Croatia was entering the EU, which took place in July 2013, whereby Croatia assumed the obligation to execute the European Arrest Warrant.
After the warrant for them was issued, the Croatian parliament passed a law on judicial cooperation in criminal matters with EU member states, under which the EAW would not apply to crimes committed prior to 7 August 2002. This prevented the extradition of Perković, so the law was dubbed Lex Perković.
Despite that, Croatian courts extradited Perković and Mustač to Germany. Due to Lex Perković, as the then prime minister, Milanović suffered major political damage.
Under the Pardons Act, the president pardons persons convicted by Croatian courts or serving sentences in Croatia. The presidential pardon is not conditioned by the length of the sentence served.
For more, check out our politics section.
Everyone in Their Heart Wants Peace, Zagreb Archbishop Says in Easter Message
ZAGREB, 16 April 2022 - The Archbishop of Zagreb, Cardinal Josip Bozanić, on Saturday wished a happy Easter to all believers and people of good will, saying that all people in the depth of their hearts want peace.
"We feel this desire especially in these times, strongly marked by the war suffering and victims in Ukraine. We are witness to the spread of suffering in order to create, bring and support unrest and fear," he said.
"In this frightening war noise, everyone is saying that they advocate peace and want to establish peace. But how?" the cardinal said, calling for prayer.
"While we sympathise with the victims of the war, in which the Ukrainian people and Ukrainian citizens are forced to defend their lives and the lives of their dear ones, freedom and the democratic right to self-determination, we are praying for all who can and want to really help in establishing a just peace," Bozanić said in his message, among other things.
For more, check out our lifestyle section.
Croatia Marking World Hemophilia Day on 17 April
ZAGREB, 16 April 2022 - World Hemophilia Day, observed on 17 April, is taking place under the theme "Access for All: Partnership. Policy. Progress" this year and in Croatia it will be marked by the Croatian Hemophiliacs Society.
World Hemophilia Day has been observed since 1989 to raise awareness of this condition and other bleeding disorders.
Thereby the World Federation of Hemophilia wants to encourage every country to include inherited bleeding disorders in national strategies and to raise awareness of this condition so as to bring about sustainable and equitable access to care and treatment, Croatian Hemophiliacs Society president Marko Marinić has said.
The Croatian Hemophiliacs Society is a voluntary NGO founded in Zagreb 30 years ago. It has more than 400 members - patients and their families as well as physicians, medical staff and experts in various fields who are trying to improve the quality of life of hemophiliacs.
For more, check out our lifestyle section.
Croatia Women's Tennis Team Qualifies for Billie Jean King Cup
April 16, 2022 - Petra Martić brought Croatia a key second point against Serbia at the Billie Jean King Cup qualifying tournament in Antalya, Turkey on Saturday.
In a dramatic and long match against Aleksandra Krunić, the 116th player in the WTA ranking, Martić won 4-6, 7-5, 6-4, which gave Croatia its second singles victory, enough for the play-offs of this competition, which will be to be held in November this year, and for a spot in the 2023 World Group.
In the first match, 16-year-old Croatian tennis player and the world's best junior Petra Marčinko defeated Lola Radivojević 6-1, 2-6, 6-0, who is the 62nd junior in the world.
Martić was facing defeat against Krunić who led 6-4, 5-3. The Serbian tennis player served for the match at 5-4, but Martić ended up winning the second set 7-5.
Krunić opened the third set with 2-0, but Martić quickly returned to equalize and at 5-4 made a key break for Croatia's victory.
Earlier, Hungary and Slovenia, the winners of the groups in Antalya, advanced to the playoffs. Croatia and Serbia were the second-placed teams in both groups and additionally played for another place leading to the playoffs. In the end, Iva Majoli's team was more successful.
Given that the duel was resolved after both singles matches, the doubles match was not played.
Billie Jean King Cup, Playoffs:
Croatia - Serbia 2-0
Petra Marčinko (Cro) - Lola Radivojević (Serb) 6-1, 2-6, 6-0
Petra Martić (Cro) - Aleksandra Krunić (Serb) 4-6, 7-5, 6-4
Source: HTS
To follow the latest sports news in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
ABA League Faces Undefined Relegation Scenario Between League 1 and 2
April 16, 2022 - KK Split and Skopje will surely be in the top tier next season, while Borac and Zlatibor may now need to wait for new regulations in the ABA League.
It's not every day that teams don't know what the rule will be for relegation at the end of a season but it's probably only once in a lifetime that they don't even know which regulation will apply by the end of the season.
It looked well on paper that the last team in ABA League 1 will drop out (KK Krka from Novo Mesto), winner of the ABA League 2 finals will move up (Skopje and Zlatibor will face each other at 17:00 tonight). The loser of that game would face the second team from the bottom of League 1 (like last season KK Split again) to see who wins two games first and plays League 1 next season.
However, a basis for making sure that the competition stays international is that no more than 5 teams from Serbia should play in League 1. Those 5 teams are currently 1st placed Red Star, 2nd Partizan, 6th FMP, and 9th Mega from Belgrade. KK Borac from Čačak is currently in position 12, thought to be safe, and is now facing a possible relegation due to Zlatibor from Čajetina in Serbia being one of the two finalists in League 2.
Today's game between Zlatibor and Skopje may now open several undefined scenarios.
- If Zlatibor wins the final they may either end up taking Borac's place directly or may need to play them for relegation. KK Split would be saved from relegation as would Skopje who would take Krka's place.
- If Skopje wins the final and moves up directly taking Krka's place it could get really fascinating. KK Split may then have to play against Zlatibor knowing that Split cannot drop out. The only reason for the game would be in order to establish if Zlatibor -should they beat Split- would then have to play against Borac which they would not need to if they lost against Split.
Seems like just another day in the Balkans. Let's hope that at least for the future such regulation will be clearly defined without any loopholes.
To follow the latest sports news in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
Large Croatian Easter Eggs Set Up in Argentinian City of Mendoza
ZAGREB, 16 April 2022 - Local artists have placed large Easter eggs, which are 2.5 metres high and 1.6 metre wide, in the centre of the Argentinian city of Mendoza, following the Croatian tradition of putting on display big Easter eggs in town squares, the Argentinian news agency Telam reported on Saturday.
Nora Vicario, the head of the city department for culture in this western Argentinian city, was quoted as saying that they had learnt about this beautiful custom from the local Croat community.
Representatives of the Croat community are included in the jury that will declare the best three Easter eggs staged in the centre of Mendoza for Easter holidays.
For more, check out our lifestyle section.
Croatia's Coronavirus Update: 644 New Cases, Five Deaths
ZAGREB, 16 April 2022 - In the last 24 hours, 644 coronavirus cases and five related deaths have been registered in Croatia, the national COVID-19 crisis management team said on Saturday.
There are 5,231 active cases, including 478 hospitalised patients, 25 of whom are on ventilators, while 3,162 persons are self-isolating.
To date, Croatia has registered 1,113,135 coronavirus cases, the death toll is 15,725, and 59.46% of the total population, i.e. 70.73% of adults, have been vaccinated against COVID.
Ombudsman Comments on Outrageous Incidents Targeting the Disabled in 2021
ZAGREB, 16 April 2022 - Ombudsman for Persons with Disabilities Anka Slonjšak has warned that in 2021 there was a rising number of incidents in which children with disabilities were exposed to discriminatory speech and that some of those cases that outraged the public, criminal proceedings were launched.
"We have warned about the cases of hate and prejudicial speech," Slonjšak said in her annual report.
In one of those cases, a child with autistic spectrum disorder was told to leave a patisserie in the town of Samobor with the explanation that "such children belong to the woods". In another case, a mother and her daughter with Down Syndrome had to leave a cafe in Zadar as they "are damaging the reputation of the cafe."
Some incidents of this kind have been the reason to press charges against bullies whose behaviour outraged the public.
The Office of Ombudsman for Persons with Disabilities monitors and promotes the rights of over 612,000 persons with disabilities, including 30,000 students with developmental disorders.
In 2021, a number of complaints lodged with the Office increased by a fifth compared to 2020.
Most complaints referred to the conduct of social welfare (502), while 329 referred to difficulties in employment and on the labour market, and 280 concerned access and mobility.
COVID takes lives of 2,500 disabled persons
During the COVID pandemic almost 110,000 of them caught coronavirus, according to the statistics kept until 9 March 2022, and approximately 2,500 died from the infection, while in Croatia so far about this infection has taken over 16,000 lives.
The pandemic has led to the degradation of the rights of disabled citizens, the Ombudsman warns.
Croatian Presidents Issues Easter Greeting Message
ZAGREB, 16 April 2022 - President Zoran Milanović stated on Saturday in his Easter message that "in these difficult times when there is a serious threat to peace, Easter must remind us that good, solidarity and love for our neighbour is the most important not just religious, but also universal secular principle."
Wishing a blessed and holy Easter, the president says that this greatest Christian holiday "has always given people faith in the victory of light and good, as well as a new beginning."
"This year we are celebrating Easter with wounds that have yet to be healed as a result of the earthquakes and the pandemic in our Homeland, but also exposed to challenges and threats to peace, threats we believed were in the past."
"Confronted once again with war losses and the suffering of people in Europe, our common home, all of us in Croatia are quite aware of the meaning and the value of peace among people and nations," says the Croatian head of state.
He also underscores that "for the faithful, Easter is a time to contemplate one’s personal choices and reflect on one’s actions."
"Let us accept the principles of good and love as a path towards strengthening mutual solidarity and understanding in the hope that all people will celebrate Easter, the greatest Christian feast, in peace and joy, surrounded by family and friends," says Milanović who at the end of his message wished a happy and blessed Easter to all who are celebrating this holiday in Croatia and abroad, "and to all our fellow Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina."
For more, check out our politics section.
Parliament Speaker Extends Easter Greetings
ZAGREB, 16 April 2022 - Sabor Speaker Gordan Jandroković says in his Easter message that this Christian holiday encourages the promotion of peace, forgiveness and charity, and he calls for thinking of all who are suffering and who have lost the hope and joy of their life in these fast-changing times marked by the Ukraine war.
Wishing a happy Easter to the Croatians in the country and abroad, the parliament speaker said on Saturday that Easter is a holiday of families and reflects the importance of the family blessing and care for children and the youth who have passed through the very demanding last two years marked by the pandemic and earthquakes.
"This greatest Christian holiday urges us to strengthen togetherness, mutual respect and respect for diversities as well as to strengthen solidarity to ensure that every human being can have a dignified life," says the Parliament Speaker, among other things.
