The majority of representative clubs supported the ratification of the Istanbul Convention in a debate in the Croatian Parliament on Wednesday, emphasizing that it represents a civilizational step forward in the protection of human rights, but also warned about the politicization of the ratification of this convention in public.
On behalf of the SDP Representative Club, Arsen Bauk stated on Wednesday that his party would support the ratification of the Istanbul Convention, expressing hope that they would receive more than two-thirds of the votes in the Parliament.
Bauk, in the debate on the proposal of the Law on the Confirmation of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence, pointed out that no international document has attracted as much public attention, attributing the reasons to various forms of aggression.
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“Some aggressions are obvious. Tanks, planes, and soldiers are visible, and it is easier to defend against such aggressions because the line of defense is clearly visible,” he stated. Quoting a text by journalist Jasmin Klarić from Novi list during the debate, he warned that the organized attack on the freedom of individuals and society is taking on an increasingly clear form and that, as he said, it is now clear that it is a true clash of worlds and an open battle for the future, with the outcome still uncertain.
“It started with the attempt to introduce health education in schools, part of which would include sexual education. But it did not pass. The Church and Catholic associations raised their voices with the help of the then-opposition HDZ and opposed such alleged ideological poisoning of the youth,” Bauk said.
Bauk: Crusaders cannot stand freedom
He also reiterated that civic education was not accepted either and that, as he said, “an attack was made on homosexual individuals by collecting signatures for a referendum on marriage as a union of a man and a woman to prevent the adoption of the law on life partnerships.”
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“Crusaders cannot stand freedom. The same team, with clear help from the Church, which even interferes in internal party relations and hides pedophilia within its ranks, is leading the battle against the Istanbul Convention today, mainly using typical borrowed arguments from the global movement against the ratification of this Council of Europe convention.
“In fact, so-called arguments, because stories about boys who will have to be girls and similar are just convenient fuel for provoking moral panic among less informed citizens,” he stated. He believes that the goal of modern crusaders, no matter how much they talk about love, morality, and family – is enslavement, and what is happening in Croatia is aggression on a large scale.
Bauk believes that in the 21st century it should be normal for everyone to live as they wish, while “crusaders cannot stand such freedom.” He believes that now is the time for a more active democratic resistance, with the ratification of the Istanbul Convention being one step in that fight.
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Regarding the interpretative statement, Bauk believes that it is an unnecessary concession to those who oppose ratification. “It is a concession that should not have been made, and we will submit an amendment to remove it from the law,” he announced, adding that he will oppose all legal solutions that would go against the achieved rights of individuals, the rights of women to freedom of choice, the rights of national minorities, and all others and different.
Putica: The politicization of ratification also provokes a debate about the goals of organizations opposing it
On behalf of the HDZ Representative Club, Sanja Putica stated that the goal of the convention is to protect women from all forms of violence and domestic violence. She also believes that the alarming data on violence against women speaks to how necessary it is to adopt this convention.
Putica also assessed that the politicization of its ratification in public provokes a debate about the goals of organizations that provoke moral panic in the public space. She also reiterated that this convention does not contain gender ideology, and that the Republic of Croatia, by ratifying it, significantly determines itself in the fight against violence against women and domestic violence.
Milorad Pupovac (SDSS Club) stated that he supports the Istanbul Convention and the interpretative statement. “We vote because it is the obligation of the political alliance as well as the obligation of marriage to build a compromise because there are some goals that need to be achieved,” he emphasized.
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Boris Miletić (IDS, PGS, and RI Club) emphasized that they have always advocated for the protection of fundamental human rights and that the level of rights should not depend on political calculations.
He pointed out that by ratifying the convention, we are moving towards becoming a modern European state. “We must resist retrograde attitudes and the radical right that, by attacking this convention, wants to prevent Croatia from being among the developed countries of the European Union,” he said.
Representatives of the HSS, GLAS, HSU, and HNS clubs emphasized that their representatives will support the proposal of the Law on the Confirmation of the Convention and warned that false news, intolerance, and hatred were used in the public debate about its ratification.
Congratulating Prime Minister Andrej Plenković for having “brought Croatia into 2018 and opposed conservative organizations that oppose the Istanbul Convention,” Krešo Beljak (HSS) emphasized that his party will support the ratification and pointed out that HSS was the first party to stand up for women a hundred years ago and also provided the first Croatian female politician.
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Support for the ratification of the Istanbul Convention on behalf of the GLAS and HSU Representative Club was given by Anka Mrak-Taritaš. She believes that if this convention had been ratified three years ago, they would not be debating it now in a time of manipulating the feelings of women, children, a time of false news, and so on. She believes that society has now begun to question values that she thought would never happen. Mrak-Taritaš emphasized that the debate on the ratification of the Istanbul Convention is a debate about the future of all of us and what kind of Croatia we want in the future. “I do not want a Croatia modeled after Poland and Hungary, but a country that values diversity,” she stated.
She also warned that false news, intolerance, and hatred were used in the debate on the ratification of this convention on behalf of the HNS club, with Marija Puh stating that she does not want to live in such a country, but in a tolerant Croatia. She emphasized that she did not find gender ideology in the Convention but gender equality, which is the standard of the 21st century. She also believes that the monitoring body GREVIO will not take away part of Croatia’s sovereignty.
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Goran Dodig (HDS, HSLS, HDSSB Club) stated that he has been harassed in recent days with messages about what he must do. “From where does someone have the right to take away my right to think?” he asked, adding that his club is divided on the Istanbul Convention, meaning that representatives of HDSSB and HSLS will vote for ratification, while he and Branko Hrg from HDS will vote against.
Branimir Glavaš (HDSSB) emphasized that the Istanbul Convention is part of the HDZ’s electoral program and should be ratified, while he characterized the public debate about the convention as pure hysteria.
The only club that is against the ratification of the Istanbul Convention is the Independents for Croatia, whose Zlatko Hasanbegović emphasizes that media manipulation has imposed the view that you are either an unconditional advocate of the convention and thus an opponent of violence against women, or you are against ratification and thus an advocate of violence against women. He believes that the protection of women is just a fig leaf and that the main purpose of the convention is hidden, namely gender ideology. “The Independents for Croatia are unconditionally against the ratification and accession to the Istanbul Convention,” Hasanbegović said.
Goran Aleksić (SNAGA) congratulated Prime Minister Plenković and HDZ on fulfilling their electoral promise, but also called for the fulfillment of the promise regarding interest margins.
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Hrvoje Zekanović (Hrast) asked Plenković what his opinion is on the statement of the Croatian Bishops’ Conference, to which Plenković replied that he respects their position as well as the fears of part of the electorate, but that the Government has thoroughly studied the text, consulted, and examined the details and that there is no reason for concern.
Most’s Miro Bulj, in the debate, accused Plenković of having put the Convention to ratification without public debate and of having divided the Croatian people, to which Plenković responded that he should not speak lies. “Stop casually saying things that are not true. You are damaging the reputation of the Parliament and disrupting reasoned and responsible debates in this Parliament,” Plenković said.
Davor Bernardić (SDP) in one reply stated that the time has come in Croatia to “distance ourselves from the regressive forces in society that are trying to push us back to the Middle Ages, that are trying to divide people based on gender, sexual, religious, or national grounds and that we should collectively say no to them.”
After the club debates, there will be an individual debate for which about 30 representatives have registered.
Željko Reiner: Some will certainly vote differently
The Vice President of the Croatian Parliament, Željko Reiner, assessed on Wednesday that some HDZ representatives will certainly vote “against” in the vote on the ratification of the Istanbul Convention on Friday, asserting that this is a consequence of intra-party democracy, but probably also of external pressures.
“It is hard to say, I would not try to speculate on that. Some will be against, but I think that number will not be very large,” Reiner said while guesting on RTL Danas directly from the Croatian Parliament, expressing his view on how HDZ representatives will vote on the Istanbul Convention on Friday.
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When asked whether he thinks that the ‘defection’ of HDZ representatives from the party leadership and Government’s position is a consequence of external pressures, Reiner confirmed that pressures existed but refused to specify what kind of pressures they were.
“There have been pressures from various sides, so it certainly affects people. But there have also been pressures in some other situations, and likewise, not everyone voted the same. But we cannot and do not have to all think the same. There are people who, for certain reasons, think a little differently,” he asserted.
He emphasized that this is a consequence of intra-party democracy in the HDZ Government, adding that representatives will be able to vote according to their conscience.
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“Party bodies have made their positions and recommended representatives to vote accordingly. Some will probably vote differently,” Reiner assessed.
Responding to the question of whether Davor Ivo Stier will remain the political secretary of HDZ despite openly opposing ratification, Reiner asserted that everything continues as before and that “Stier’s position at this moment is the same as it was yesterday, the day before yesterday, or a month ago.”
