HDZ should erect a monument to Debeljak at the entrance to the Split shipyard

One of the definitions of journalism states that it is ‘the search for the most credible version of the truth’. The saying that ‘the truth is deep water’ conveys the same idea, albeit in a slightly different way. In this time of increasing superficiality, not only in the media but even more so in science and politics, it is essential to constantly remind ourselves that any proposal for resolving a situation must be based on the best possible foundation. And this brings us to the truth or ‘truths’ from which we start.

One example where the most credible, complete version of the truth is not sought involves events related to Brodosplit, the arrival and departure of the ship ‘Moby Drea’, from which it was planned to remove asbestos panels, and the relationship between politics and the public towards the owner of the Split shipyard, the company DIV Tomislav Debeljak. Frustrated Split councilors unanimously concluded that Debeljak should have his concession for the shipyard area revoked.

Nest of Wasps

In addition to the non-payment of concession fees, there are other arguments against entrepreneur Debeljak. From unpaid wages to remaining workers to unpaid utilities. Therefore, Debeljak should have his concession revoked, but if the most credible version of the truth were taken into account, the Split City Council, with the support of the HDZ government from Zagreb, should also decide to erect a monument to this entrepreneur at the entrance to the shipyard. Well, considering the kind of monuments that compliant sculptors manage to create for figures (see those dedicated to Tuđman), Debeljak might be satisfied with just a plaque.

Why a monument or a plaque?

Well, to understand the full truth about Debeljak’s role in the Split shipyard, one must consider events from a decade ago. For years, the Split shipyard accumulated losses. Taxpayers were charged for bailouts after each business year. However, the government did not dare to draw the line and send a bankruptcy administrator to the shipyard. Everyone was afraid of nearly 4,000 ‘fired-up’ workers. There was a belief that anyone who tried would end up with a broken head.

Then a savior appeared. Tomislav Debeljak. He dared, figuratively speaking, to shake the nest of wasps with his bare hands. No matter how much both the authorities and the new owner spoke about the recovery of shipbuilding in Split, a tacit agreement was created that the new concessionaire should actually euthanize shipbuilding. And Debeljak, when all is said and done, whether by his own will or by a twist of circumstances, does just that. Just as Danko Končar did in Brodotrogir.

Tomislav Debeljak has done the job that politicians in Split and Zagreb have not dared to do. He dismantled the last seriously dangerous mine of worker dissatisfaction in Dalmatia. And for that, he deserves thanks from politics.

Nothing is as it seems

This is just one example of how the perspective on an event or process changes when it is not concluded at first glance. When one dives below the surface of ‘deep water’.

Usually, nothing is as it seems. There are countless examples. For instance, the news that the American company Jabil will employ 1,500 people in Osijek was received with euphoria. With a little digging into the local labor market situation, the truth becomes more complex. There are not that many unemployed people with the necessary skills in Slavonia. This will lead to poaching employees from existing, mostly domestic entrepreneurs. They will try to defend themselves by raising wages at the expense of investments in development. At the same time, the shutdown of paper production in Belišće will create an offer of two hundred trained industrial workers. So, this shutdown is not just bad news.

Or examples outside of industry. It is taken as truth that everyone who saves in banks at low interest rates instead of investing in funds or gold is narrow-minded, irrational, and financially illiterate. While the ‘small detail’ that savings are guaranteed by the state, and that no one guarantees investments in funds or gold, is not taken into account. When it comes to investing in gold, the superficial truth boils down to the rise in its price. Until one considers how much commission sellers demand when buying back gold bars.

Furthermore, from raw data, it is concluded that companies in Croatia are poorly seeking investment loans from local banks. Until it is taken into account that more than half of large companies are foreign-owned, so capital is raised in banks in the countries where the corporation is headquartered.

One could list endlessly. There is almost no ‘truth’ that is presented, from social networks to quasi-analyses and scientific papers, that does not need to be colored differently with just a little more serious diving. And when measures and solutions are devised based on superficial truths, inevitable failures will occur – which will be evident in a year or two.