President Milanović Meets with Croatian Radiotelevision War Correspondents Association Delegation

The President of the Republic Zoran Milanović received in his Office a delegation of the Croatian Radiotelevision Homeland War Correspondents Association, an alliance of journalists, cameramen, sound recordists, editors, drivers and all others who took part in reporting from the battlefields during the Homeland War. The meeting was attended by the President of the Croatian Radiotelevision Homeland War Correspondents Association Marinko Ćavar, Vice Presidents Davor Buconić and Zdravko Fuček and the Secretary of the Association Branko Pek.

Representatives of the War Correspondents Association informed President Milanović of their project “Pride of the Homeland,” which includes selecting, editing and permanently preserving audio-visual recordings of Croatian Radiotelevision from the Homeland War. The project also includes the digitization of recorded materials, but this objective has not been met in its entirety, the delegation said at the meeting. Although in 2017 the efforts of the group were endorsed by HRT management, its members said that no steps were taken in the meantime that would lead to the completion of the project.

Another topic that was brought up by the Association representatives at the meeting was the achievement of the ‘Homeland War participant’ status by its members. Namely, the 2017 Act on the Rights of Croatian Homeland War Veterans has made it possible for Homeland War correspondents to achieve the Homeland War participant status. The representatives emphasized that although the question of their status was previously within the competence of the Ministry of Culture, this matter was not addressed and the sought status – which would not result in any material benefits – has never been achieved. They expressed the hope that amendments to the Act in 2021 and the return of this matter within the competence of the Ministry of Croatian Veterans would once again open the possibility for Homeland War correspondents to achieve the Homeland War participant status.

The War Correspondents Association delegation invited President Milanović to be the patron of the group’s annual conference that will be held this year in November in Vukovar. Special Adviser to the President of the Republic for Homeland War Veterans Marijan Mareković was alongside President Milanović at the meeting.

PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Filip Glas