On Monday morning, a meeting of the commission tasked with developing and implementing safety measures for schools following the tragedy at Precko primary school took place at the Ministry of Education. Minister Radovan Fuchs issued a statement after the meeting.

“Once again, I must express my deep shock and dismay and, of course, my condolences to the families. After this terrible act by a disturbed individual – let us be clear that it was the act of a mentally ill person and not an act of terrorism – there is no reason to fear that this could happen in another school.

However, today’s discussions centred on how additional security measures can be introduced in schools. One measure is the strict implementation of existing regulations, including the locking down of schools, a measure that has never been lifted. Another measure is to ensure that someone from the school staff is present at the entrance and that schools follow the protocols already in place for such situations,” Fuchs said.

“What will be done immediately is to change door locks so that doors can be opened from the inside but not from the outside unless authorised personnel grant access. Most schools in Zagreb already follow this system for access to the school building,” the minister explained.

New hirings

Following the replacement of the locks, Fuchs announced that the doors would also be replaced.

“We are also aware that additional staff will need to be hired in some schools, especially those that operate in two shifts. At the same time, we have agreed to change certain regulations and define a new role – not a doorman, but someone whose scope of work includes training in security measures and fire safety and covers a broader context,” he said.

“I believe that just implementing these measures immediately after this terrible event will give parents and children a sense of security. We will work very hard on this,” Fuchs added.

“In some areas, the sports fields are not fenced in because the local community believes they should be available to citizens. We will now look at this area again because we know that these facilities are often abused,” he said.

Experiences with security services far from ideal

He emphasised the importance of providing training and courses for all school staff on safety protocols.

“There has been a lot of discussion about security services. There are many pros and cons, and we have experiences that are far from ideal. If you look at the profiles of people who work for security services… If schools request security services, we will offer that option,” Fuchs said.

Danijela Dolenec, deputy mayor of Zagreb, also issued a statement and commented on the meeting with the security officers.

“As a founder, we can say that we have a large number of educational institutions that are all mobilised. All principals are currently attending a meeting to ensure that the start of classes on 7 January goes without problems,” Dolenec said.

“Schools that do not have enough technical staff will have additional technical staff recruited. There was agreement that a new post needs to be systematised,” she added.