The Ministry of the Interior on Wednesday dismissed the latest accusations of violence against migrants after The Guardian, quoting the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), reported that Croatian police offices had sexually abused an Afghan woman after she crossed the border into Croatia.
The UK paper carried a DRC report on the incident which allegedly happened in Croatia’s territory close to the western Bosnia and Herzegovina town of Velika Kladusa on 15 February. The report says that Croatian police on two occasions sexually and physically abused an Afghan woman, threatening her with a knife.
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The Ministry of the Interior issued a statement saying that it was “absolutely appalled” by the allegations and the fact that a Croatian police officer was being accused of such conduct.
“By having saved the lives of hundreds of illegal migrants, taking them out of minefields, pits, saving them from drowning, carrying them for kilometres through snowstorms, Croatian police have demonstrated not only an organized and professional approach to the protection of Croatia’s state border and the EU’s external border but primarily self-sacrifice and humanity,” the ministry said.
It went on to say that it could not help but notice that The Guardian had developed a habit of depicting Croatian police, without any evidence, as a brutal and inhumane group prone to robbing and abusing illegal migrants.
It notes that a preliminary investigation has been carried out and that according to its findings, there were no police actions involving female illegal migrants on 15 February in the area of the Karlovac Police Department.
The ministry notes that the incident which The Guardian reports about does not contain even minimum information that would facilitate a fast and efficient investigation, especially not within 24 hours, which is the deadline for an answer given to the ministry by the article’s author.
The ministry says that regardless of media reports, it will thoroughly investigate the case, including in cooperation with the police force of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“We find it hard to believe that a nongovernmental organization would have information on the alleged incident and that the police force of Bosnia and Herzegovina would not,” the ministry said, noting that accusations such as the latest ones incite intolerance towards Croatian police, who consistently and in line with legal regulations, implement measures for the prevention of illegal entries into Croatia, putting maximum effort into protecting the EU’s external borders.
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