In the last five years, 210 judges left their positions in the judicial system, which was four times more than in the 2011-2015 period, the Vecernji List daily reported on Friday.

The daily newspaper presents the data from an analysis made by the Justice Ministry, the Supreme Court and the State Judicial Council, showing that from 2016 to date, 210 judges have asked to be relieved of their duties.

The daily interprets this mass departure as the argument that counters the claims that being a judge is an excellent and lucrative job in Croatia.

The newspaper article also underscores that if the departure of judges continues at this pace, it should be an alarming situation.

Despite this large-scale departure, Croatia still tops the rankings in terms of the number of judges per capita in Europe.

Both Croatia and Slovenia have the highest proportion in Europe, with about 40 judges per 100,000 inhabitants. For instance, in Ireland this proportion is a mere three judges per 100,000 inhabitants, Denmark’s proportion is six per 100,000, France has 10, Italy 11 and Germany 24 judges per 100,000 inhabitants.