After the opening of the Conference for heads of associations of persons with disabilities the President of the Republic Zoran Milanovi\u0107 commented on his decision to return the military ranks and decorations to Branimir Glava\u0161. Reminding that the Decision is available to the public, President Milanovi\u0107 explained how he made the decision because Branimir Glava\u0161 had asked that his decorations be returned to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In replying to a reporter\u2019s question, President Milanovi\u0107 commented on the criticism addressed to him by Milorad Pupovac on account of his decision to return the decorations. \u201cThere are people who feel safe when they have money. That\u2019s less important to me, I feel safe when I know a law exists. I invite Pupovac to deal with the \u0160o\u0161ko\u010danin issue, because I see that he\u2019s getting out of control on social media. That\u2019s truly impolite and pretentious behaviour, not to say deceitful. When the Cyrillic signs that placed were on Croatian institutions in Vukovar in accordance with the Constitutional law and the Statute of the City of Vukovar were being smashed, I had to be a Serb, not him. And now very impolitely, as no Croatian leader \u2013 Serbian leader as he likes to call himself in Croatia\u2013 he wouldn\u2019t dare in Belgrade, he is imputing this to me in a language that is actually meaningless, but first of all deceitful and insincere. He\u2019s the one who was in a coalition with this same Glava\u0161 until a year ago. Glava\u0161 supported Plenkovi\u0107\u2019s government. Why didn\u2019t the brave heart say something then?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Subsequently, President Milanovi\u0107 explained how the decision was made. \u201cGlava\u0161 requested it. Why did he request it? Because for five years now he\u2019s been formally a non-convicted person, just like I am. What could I have done? I met him once in my life. In 2009 in Palmoti\u0107 Street, we spoke for half a minute. I would also like to know where the missing persons are, those who were thrown into the Drava River. There were innocent people there, but there were also those who should have been tried. The father of my later friend was also there. A Serb from Osijek with whom I associated in Zagreb, whose father and mother were Serbian, who came to study in Zagreb, and not Belgrade. When I asked why he came to Zagreb, he said \u2013 well, I have no one in Serbia, it means nothing to me, I couldn\u2019t stay in Osijek. Therefore, I\u2019ve got a whole series of questions on this issue. But I\u2019m not a judge, I\u2019m the President of the Croatian state and in this sense I have to be the same to everyone. Had he not asked me, I wouldn\u2019t have gotten involved. Therefore, a request was made. Totally reasonable. What will happen when and if he\u2019ll be convicted again, I won\u2019t have any choice in the matter, I\u2019ll have to continue what Josipovi\u0107 started. I think it\u2019s very clear to him. In 2010 Josipovi\u0107 took away Branimir Glava\u0161\u2019s decorations when Glava\u0161\u2019s conviction became final. It no longer is. Why not? Ask the Constitutional Court\u201d, President Milanovi\u0107 stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The President of the Republic further explained that a legal basis exists for the decision on taking away decorations in the Law on Decorations, unlike removing military ranks, for which the legal basis is questionable. \u201cI\u2019d never dare go as far as to take away decorations on the basis of a frivolous judgement. But Josipovi\u0107 had the final judgement. He read the law, that was his stance and he did it with some right. Glava\u0161 protested. He said that he didn\u2019t recognize that right. Why? Because President Tu\u0111man awarded the decorations to him. Did Josipovi\u0107 violate the law? No he didn\u2019t. I\u2019ve spoken to him a number of times about this entire process in order to see what to do. It\u2019s a very delicate decision\u201d, President Milanovi\u0107 added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The President of the Republic repeated that he\u2019s not interested in what Pupovac is writing because \u201cit\u2019s well known who I am, what I stand for, what I\u2019ve been committed to, where were Pupovac and others like him hiding ten years ago, when I was fighting for the, evidently fictive, rights of the Serbian people for whom probably only I cared about\u201d. \u201cBranimir Glava\u0161 is a Croatian citizen, he turned to me, he didn\u2019t automatically get this decision, it\u2019s not an automatic decision, and I had no choice in the matter. That\u2019s called security in the scope of the law. Someone likes money, someone likes the law. What\u2019s not clear? Whoever will address me like Pupovac, I\u2019ll reply to more rudely\u201d, President Milanovi\u0107 said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reporters asked him to comment on his earlier remarks when Branimir Glava\u0161 supported him in his election campaign, and told him that his voters are disappointed. \u201cHow do you know that the voters are disappointed? That\u2019s a million people, who are my voters? I claim that\u2019s not true and that 99 percent of my voters, practically always, understand what I mean. And those who are praising me and think there\u2019s nothing controversial, I tell them: there\u2019s a lot of controversy in this matter. But my decision isn\u2019t controversial\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The President said he\u2019s not at odds with himself, namely with his earlier statement. \u201cTherefore, what I said still stands. When I said he\u2019s not a companion, I actually don\u2019t know him. But I have to treat him as every other Croatian citizen with fundamental rights. It\u2018s interesting that every Serbian friend of mine from Zagreb understands this, yet some leftist loudmouth from \u0160ibenik or Makarska, you know who I mean, doesn\u2019t understand\u201d, the President answered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asked how he will act if Glava\u0161 will be convicted again, President Milanovi\u0107 replied: \u201cIf he will be convicted again, when the judgement becomes final I don\u2019t have to completely deprive him of those decorations, according to the law I don\u2019t have to. But since Josipovi\u0107 has already done it once, when he initiated the situation, when he took away the decorations that were bestowed upon him by Tu\u0111man, I\u2019m trying to be objective. He took them from him, I\u2019m giving them back to him based on the fact that Glava\u0161 hasn\u2019t been convicted for five years. Why hasn\u2019t this been resolved in five years? Well, it\u2019s not a question for me, it\u2019s a question for the HDZ, which is threatening not to vote for Zlata \u0110ur\u0111evi\u0107 and defeat her in the Parliament, just do it. He\u2019ll be in the courts for another thirty years\u201d, President Milanovi\u0107 said, and concluded: \u201cWhy didn\u2019t Mrs. Kitarovi\u0107 react to this? Fear, just fear, man\u2019s constant companion. I\u2019m afraid too, but in one moment you have to decide\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After the opening of the Conference for heads of associations of persons with disabilities the President of the Republic Zoran Milanovi\u0107 commented on his decision to return the military ranks and decorations to Branimir Glava\u0161. Reminding that the Decision is available to the public, President Milanovi\u0107 explained how he made the decision because Branimir Glava\u0161 had asked that his decorations be returned to him.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":10170,"template":"","news-cat":[12],"class_list":["post-10174","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-cat-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n