"Since it is obvious that the next parliamentary elections will be held before the referendum on Croatia's accession to the European Union, and regarding the agreement reached by the government and trade union federations in November 2010 to hold a referendum on making conditions for calling referenda based on civic initiatives less strict, which originally was to be held simultaneously with the referendum on EU accession, HUS believes that in light of the new circumstances, the 'referendum on referenda' should be held before the parliamentary elections," HUS leader Ozren Matijasevic said in a letter to Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor on Monday.

Matijasevic said the union was making this proposal because it was concerned that the referendum on referenda requested by civic initiatives would not be held at all because "so far politicians have frequently shown the tendency to forget their promises once their election results are confirmed."

HUS believes that the referendum on referenda based on civic initiatives should be held in October and that it is a moral obligation of the government towards citizens who last summer supported a trade union initiative for the protection of workers' rights as defined by collective agreements.