No less than 21 members of the 151-seat Croatian parliament were absent from the parliament's February session for no valid reason, HINA news agency reported on Monday (March 5).

The worst offender was Domagoj Hajduković (SDP), who was not present for five days during parliament’s ten-day session, and will be fined with 750 kuna (100 euros). Two other members of parliament – Marko Vucetic (Independent) and Drazen Barisic (HDZ) had two days of unjustified absence, and will be fined 300 kuna each.

Eighteen other members of parliament were absent for one day. The rule to fine absentees who do not submit valid reasons for their absence was introduced in July 2017. In the period since, December 2017 was the month with a record high number of absentees (27 MPs), followed by July (26 MPs).

Deputies are allowed to be absent in case of illness – which requires a doctor’s recommendation – death in the family, court appearances, or attending social events. They are also allowed to skip parliament sessions if these clash with municipal, city or county council meetings.

In the last seven months since the introduction of the measure, members of parliament have been fined a total of 31,500 kuna (4,200 euros).