The Appointments Committee on Friday approved the composition of the working bodies of the new Croatian Parliament, but took the appointment of the chairman of the Committee on Human and National Minority Rights off the agenda, as the Domovinski pokret (DP) party rejected the possible appointment of Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS) MP Milorad Pupovac to the post.

“Our parliamentary group started consultations with the government partners last week. We have made our proposals for the committees in which we want our members, chairs and vice-chairs, and the only committee that is left is the Committee on Human and National Minority Rights. We have requested that the vote on this be postponed until we have reached a consensus within our group,” the chairman of the Ethnic Minorities Group, Vladimir Bilek, told the press after the meeting of the Nomination Committee.

Several people had been proposed for the post, but no consensus had yet been reached, Bilek said, rejecting media reports that the ruling Croatian Democratic Party (HDZ) had proposed Milorad Pupovac as chairman of the Committee on Human and National Minority Rights.

“That is not true. We agreed with the HDZ and the DP (Domovinski pokret) that, in accordance with parliamentary practise, this committee falls within the remit of the parliamentary group of ethnic minorities and that they will appoint the chairman. No pressure was exerted on us to appoint someone as chairman,” emphasised Bilek.

On Thursday evening, news spread in the media that the HDZ still wants to make Pupovac the chairman of the Committee on Human and National Minority Rights, which is firmly rejected by its junior partner, the DP.

Peternel: This was completely unacceptable and incompatible with the coalition agreement

The leader of the DP parliamentary group, Igor Peternel, said that this was completely unacceptable and incompatible with the coalition agreement, in which the DP made it a condition that the SDSS must not be part of the parliamentary majority or the government.

Asked if this meant that the HDZ could not vote in favour of Pupovac, Peternel said that “he can be elected, but then it is not the ruling majority”. “I firmly believe that the HDZ will not jeopardise the governing majority,” he added.

According to unofficial sources, the parliamentary group of ethnic minorities is considering the possibility of appointing Veljko Kajtazi, who represents the Roma and several other ethnic groups in the Croatian parliament, as chairman of the committee.

The Committee on Human and National Minority Rights falls under the ruling coalition’s quota and Pupovac said this week that the SDSS faction is no longer part of the ruling majority but has joined the opposition benches.

According to some sources, the HDZ was apparently inclined to support Pupovac to strike a balance because it had to exclude the SDSS from the governing majority at the request of the DP.