Suzana Krcmar, the president of the Croatian Romani Union “Kali Sara”, confirmed on Tuesday that the Roma minority MP Veljko Kajtazi was violent towards her, that there are witnesses and that the court proceedings are progressing, while Kajtazi denied the allegations and announced a counter-suit.

“There was violence and there were witnesses. My colleagues and I were at the police station yesterday and gave statements. Today we were at the public prosecutor’s office. That’s all I can say,” Krcmar told Nova TV, adding that she has not spoken to Kajtazi since the incident and does not want to.

Women often deny violence

Krcmar also addressed the initial denial of the incident after it became public. “When something like this happens, women often deny it. Usually for one reason – they think of others, not themselves. That’s exactly what I did by thinking about the Roma community and the Kali Sara organisation,” she said. When asked if she was afraid, she replied that she was not.

Krcmar said the Roma community supports her and rejects violence against women, adding that Kali Sara has a project for Roma women’s education and community empowerment.

“As an association, we are very active and carry out our plans and programmes in cooperation with our donors, such as the Office for Human and Minority Rights, the Office for National Minorities and, of course, the government. We are their strategic partners. All our projects and programmes follow the rules.”

Kajtazi says he will file a lawsuit for defamation

In response to Kajtazi’s claim that she could end up in jail, she said, “Every abuser will deny what they have done.”

Following the allegations of physical violence, Kajtazi was expelled from Kali Sara. However, he denies the allegations.

“The important thing is that there was no physical altercation… there is also no criminal charge because there is no evidence, no concrete arguments,” Kajtazi told the press today.

“Once the situation calms down, I will certainly file a lawsuit for defamation,” he added.