Kako su braniteljske mirovine postale – neugodnost za HDZ

The Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) has acknowledged that legislative proposals from the political party "Možemo!" have caused considerable discomfort. These proposals aim to increase pensions for Croatian veterans based on their work experience. This admission came from President of the Croatian Parliament, Gordan Jandroković, who recently rejected including two revised versions of such proposals into the agenda. His move was intended to delay the debate until later this year, aligning with the goals of "Možemo!" which had previously sought to avoid discussing these issues earlier in the fall. Political provocations have become a recurring theme in parliamentary proceedings. The HDZ's response to the entry of the parliamentary faction "Možemo!" onto the political terrain they consider their own has been characterized as merely postponing an inevitable confrontation. In the parliament, discussions on the initiative of "Možemo!" aimed at improving the living standards of part of the veteran population will inevitably take place. There is no business-like way to prevent this. What Jandroković managed to achieve through his maneuver was to push back the discussion from September, which seems to have been the intention of "Možemo!", to November instead. This marks the first episode of "Možemo!"'s campaign designed to portray the HDZ as an unreliable protector of Croatian veterans, a group upon whom the government continuously relies. The initial phase of this campaign concluded on June 19th when a vote took place, resulting in the approval of both a proposal for amendments to the Law on Rights of Military Personnel, Police Officers, and Authorized Officials and a proposal for amendment to the Law on Croatian Veterans of the Homeland War and members of their families. Both were approved by 31 representatives. Previously, HDZ members had claimed that "Možemo!" encouraged dangerous divisions among the ranks of war veterans, a concern that Prime Minister Andrej Plenković has taken seriously. However, based on the nervousness displayed by HDZ deputies during the debate, the left-wing parties concluded that they possessed material for political struggle that would be detrimental to stop using. As a result, "Možemo!" announced shortly after that date that it would soon submit slightly modified versions of its two legal initiatives, which would ensure a tangible rise in pensions for approximately 70,000 Croatian veterans. This action led to the submission of the proposals on July 13th or 14th. While there is a notable similarity between these new proposals and those that did not pass, they are not entirely identical. For instance, the category of disability pensions, recognized under the Law on Pension Insurance, is now explicitly included among those that would see an increase. "Možemo!" emphasizes that compared to the rejected proposals, "errors pointed out by the ruling majority have been corrected," and they anticipated that Jandroković would include the revised proposals in the agenda. Instead, he removed them on the last day of the session before the summer recess, without violating the Rules of Procedure, which allow him 30 days to place a proposed item on the agenda. Jandroković has promised to reintroduce the proposals at the beginning of the next session. For "Možemo!", this was a signal that Jandroković was delaying the discussion of proposals that the HDZ found undesirable. Since they are not yet on the agenda, the 60-day period following which 30 representatives can request a debate on a proposed item does not apply. Representatives from "Možemo!" expressed disappointment over Jandroković’s maneuver, stating that they could have gathered enough signatures for a debate as early as September if the issue had been brought forward. They did not accuse him directly, but the president of the Croatian Parliament further confirmed how much he wanted to at least slightly shift the confrontation between HDZ and the left wing within the context of veteran pensions. Jandroković suggested seeking opinions from the relevant Constitutional Committee, noting that although the current proposal is not the one that was already debated, it is clear that the HDZ majority in the Constitutional Committee might have reservations.