About 1,500 demonstrators protesting in Zagreb on Thursday against the government's austerity policy and cancellation of the basic collective agreement for public services headed toward the government building in the early afternoon.
Prior to that, more than 5,000 rallied in the capital's central square, where the president of the MHS union federation, which organised the protest, Vilim Ribic, said today's protest was just the beginning and that they would prepare for a strike.
He said those employed in public services had given up HRK 7 billion kuna (approx. 950 million euros) in the last three years and that further sacrifices made no sense as not one job had been created with that money.
Ribic said the government's austerity policy would only slow down recovery and leave the country in a long crisis, with only the rich benefitting in the end.
He said Croatia's public spending was the lowest in Europe, despite media claims to the contrary.
Ribic and his union colleagues said the ruling Social Democratic Party had completely betrayed the principles of social democracy.
The MHS leaders accused of betrayal the unions who signed the amendments to the basic collective agreement for public services.
The protest was passing peacefully.
