President Ivo Josipovic said on Thursday that former prime minister Ivo Sanader's departure from the country at the time when a request was filed to strip him of his parliamentary immunity was "a defeat of the system" and an omission on the part of the police.
"A high-ranking official suspected of corruption should never be allowed to leave the country like this. This absolutely raises the issue of responsibility," Josipovic said at a press conference in his office.
When asked what kind of message was being sent with Sanader's departure, Josipovic said this case could not end as just another newspaper article. "We know who is responsible for not allowing suspects to escape -- first and foremost the police. Anyway, this must not go unpunished," Josipovic said after presenting medals on the occasion of International Anti-Corruption Day.
The medals were presented to former member of Parliament Ruza Tomasic, Jutarnji List journalist Dusan Miljus and former manager of the Zagrebacke Ceste road company Igor Radjenovic for risking their lives by exposing corruption and organised crime through their work.
When asked if he meant that Interior Minister Tomislav Karamarko should resign, the President said: "If necessary, there should be resignations, but not just his."
Josipovic said he did not want to go into assessments as to whether Sanader was guilty or not, but insisted that the government should ensure the normal functioning of the system. He added that Sanader should not have been allowed to leave the country because his possible arrest had made the headlines for months.
"This case is exemplary in that it will be seen whether the system of responsibility in Croatia is functioning or not," the President said. "Corruption must be fought first and foremost by those who have the duty to fight it. Here I have in mind the State Attorney's Office and the security services, but also the government and me and everyone else who holds public office."
Josipovic said that fighting corruption was "not just repression and capturing those steeped in corruption, but also changing the climate and ways of thinking."
"Unfortunately, Croatia is a highly corrupt country, as all indicators show. It has been a way of life here for long. I personally support zero tolerance for corruption and that's something we all should strive towards," Josipovic said.
