The Union of Pensioners of Croatia (SUH) said on Thursday that 33,540 pensioners have signed its petition for higher pensions and that it will present it to the next government in the hope that it will show more social sensitivity towards pensioners than the last one.

The president of SUH, Jasna Petrovic, said that pensioners are “the poorest and most unhappy in this country” and that they expect a new government to be formed soon that will not continue to ignore the demands stated in the petition.

She said the petition was launched because the Ministry of Labour, Pension System, Family and Social Policy has avoided convening the National Council for Pensioners and the Elderly since November 2023 to set a deadline and models for a 13th government.

The petition was also prompted by the call for the abolition of penalties in the fulfilment of old-age pension requirements, she said, adding that one of the objectives was also to encourage political parties to pay full attention to the most vulnerable part of the population during the recent parliamentary election campaign.

SUH representatives met with political party leaders ahead of the 17 April election to find out whether their election manifestos would include measures to improve pensioners’ living standards.

The election campaign has shown that many parties have the situation of older people in mind, Petrovic said, adding that the number of signatures collected for the petition shows that “pensioners feel humiliated and want change now”.