Published: 18 October 2010
Former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, who abruptly quit politics more than a year ago, surprisingly asked parliament to give him back his seat last Thursday (14 October), triggering a wave of criticism.
Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor, who also succeeded Sanader in his post as leader of the centre-right HDZ (Croatian Democratic Union) party, said his attempt to return to politics was a move to topple the government and create chaos at a decisive moment for the country's EU accession, the Croatian agency HINA reported.
Sanader unexpectedly resigned in July 2009 in the middle of his second term. He offered no explanation for his departure. Kosor expelled Sanader from HDZ.
Before returning to Croatia on 3 October Sanader was an associate lecturer at the Harriman Institute at Columbia University in New York.
Sanader won his parliamentary seat in 2007 elections, but it was held by a member of the ruling party while he served as prime minister.
Experts believe that Sanader has two reasons to return to politics: either, indeed, to seek to topple Jadranka Kosor's government, or to win temporary immunity from prosecution for crimes for which he is under investigation, dating back to his time as prime minister.
Sanader was questioned earlier this week about the circumstances under which Hungarian company MOL gained a controlling stake in Croatian oil company INA.
Some of the former prime minister's closest aides have been detained and accused of corruption. Local media speculate that the arrests may be a signal that charges against Sanader are imminent.
After Sanader's resignation, Kosor launched a crackdown on corruption that won praise from the European Union, which Croatia hopes to join soon.
Next Wednesday, MIP will consider Sanader's request in order to establish whether it is in line with the law.
After that, the commission should inform the parliament about its decision, which is to be endorsed at the parliament's plenary session.
Positions
Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor shrugged off the news of her former political ally potentially returning to politics, claiming she saw it coming.
"As far as the activation of his mandate is concerned, this is something I have absolutely predicted," she said, citing his previous attempt to return to Croatian politics in January.
His motives "are definitely aimed at toppling the government and the ruling coalition and [...] the destruction of the HDZ," she said, warning that those who wished to slow or stop Croatia's accession to the EU would not be allowed to stop domestic reforms towards achieving that goal.
Health Minister and ruling HDZ Party Deputy President Darko Milinovic echoed the prime minister's claim to have expected Sanader's return, but said that this would not "undermine the ruling coalition".
However, seizing on the new scenario, opposition Social Democratic Party (SDP) member Nenad Stazic described Croatia as being "obviously in for an early election," blaming internal conflicts in the Croatian executive partly provoked by Sanader himself for "paralysing the country".
"The fact that the whip of the ruling party admits to having lied in parliament about a thing as important as the resignation of a prime minister pushes the situation to absurdity," Stazic added.
Minister of the Interior Tomislav Karamarko admitted that, hypothetically, "mandates can be terminated" rendering MPs liable to criminal charges following an investigation, but declined to say whether Sanader himself was currently a suspect.
Background
Former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader said he was resigning and quitting politics last July, admitting that his surprise decision had something to do with his country's EU negotiations.
A champion of Croatia's European Union entry drive, Sanader suffered a blow when the European Commission called off accession talks for the third time in 2009 after a failure to resolve a border row with EU member Slovenia.
Slovenia, another country of the former Yugoslavia, has created problems for Croatia's accession by linking it to an unsolved border dispute with Croatia. In a recent referendum, 51.5% of Slovenes supported a deal to resolve the border dispute, removing this major obstacle to Croatia's EU accession.
Croatia hopes to conclude its accession negotiations this year.
Former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader said he was resigning and quitting politics last July, admitting that his surprise decision had something to do with his country's EU negotiations.
A champion of Croatia's European Union entry drive, Sanader suffered a blow when the European Commission called off accession talks for the third time in 2009 after a failure to resolve a border row with EU member Slovenia.
Slovenia, another country of the former Yugoslavia, has created problems for Croatia's accession by linking it to an unsolved border dispute with Croatia. In a recent referendum, 51.5% of Slovenes supported a deal to resolve the border dispute, removing this major obstacle to Croatia's EU accession.
Croatia hopes to conclude its accession negotiations this year.
euractiv
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