Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic held a press conference in Zagreb on Monday to comment on an incident that broke out in Kistanje, inland from the coastal city of Sibenik, at 1pm on Sunday between a group of local juveniles and Serb Orthodox seminary students. He said that the Croatian Democratic Union's (HDZ) motivational campaign ahead of the European Parliament election is showing its first results which are being gauged by a "blood count".
"Children were attacked by another group of children, yet on national television HTV they were referred to as 'Janjevci' (ethnic Croat settlers from Kosovo). 'Janjevci attack seminarians', that is the language that HTV is using! Not Croatian juveniles, but 'Janjevci'! And then we are shocked when incidents of this nature occur," Milanovic said.
Two days prior to that, he continued, a candidate from the HDZ slate for the European Parliament, a Europhobe who lectured us on what Croatia should look like and who should be treated as a guest in Croatia, in full view of the Croatian public and the TV newsreader, accused MP Vojislav Stanimirovic of being a Chetnik and of having personally sent people to Ovcara, and there has been no reaction whatsoever.
"This has become normal in Croatia and no one seems to be bothered anymore! Even a day later even no one batted an eye-lid", the PM said.
You invite a person who has committed something three times worse than that football profiteer, and you allow them to speak and no one bothers to cut them off despite the fact that they are virtually committing a criminal offence for which they will not be held responsible, yet a day later you mull over interpretations of statements by the prime minister whether there was a civil war or not, Milanovic continued.
"I can only speak openly, and if every reporter on television wants to refer to that as thrashing the media, let it be so, but I will not stop talking as I have no other weapon", he said.
Instead of dealing with the scandalous outbursts which you have allowed, experts are called into the studio to explain the Finnish war and these experts from who knows where spend time to explain how many people were killed, communication experts are bothered with comparisons with Churchill, Milanovic told the press.
"I will not allow the motivational training of the HDZ, who are now cowardly and perfidiously keeping quiet, to turn this into a smear campaign and accuse my colleagues in parliament of being Chetniks. They are Croatian citizens and they were that during the war in Vukovar. At least 250,000 Croatian citizens rebelled against Croatia and we brought them back into the legal order of Croatia and they respect our constitution", Milanovic said, adding that they need not think alike politically but that he would not allow hatred and fear to be spread.
"We know who is behind all this, he who is now cowardly silent", the prime minister said.
"I do not call editors on HTV, my people sometimes speak to them and give up because there is no point. We are seeking the truth, for the truth to be published and that is my only weapon, a social weapon in the fight for what we wish to achieve," he went on.
Serious things are happening in Croatia, he said, adding that "we are once again witnessing right-wing parties, in their incompetence for anything else, articulating and spreading pure, distilled hatred toward our guests and toward those who are not citizens".
"I openly say, I do not care how it will be portrayed, and in that I will be just like the conservative Churchill, who did not think about whether he would get the next election or not but whether he would get the job done", PM Milanovic said.
"I have a responsibility to the electorate and my party and I cannot leave these people in the lurch and I cannot compromise their expectations with my behaviour", he said.
Just like you criticise us, I will do the same but very openly, he told reporters, questioning had anyone considered the damage done to politicians when cut off in mid-sentence.
