Representatives of an unofficial initiative called "Citizens of Rijeka" on Tuesday announced a plan to hold protest rallies against the destruction of the public health system and disregard for women's health in Zagreb, Osijek, Sisak, Sibenik and Rijeka on 12 May.

Tihana Naglic said that they wanted to underline demands for an accessible, safe and legal pregnancy termination, presented in Zagreb last week by civil society groups. The demands were prompted by the case of Mirela Cavajda, she said, adding that Cavajda had been unlawfully denied health care and the right to terminate her pregnancy based on medical indications that the fetus suffered from a grave condition.

The initiative demands that the health insurance agency compensate Cavajda in case she terminates her pregnancy abroad and that responsibility be determined for omissions in providing her with adequate care.

It also demands urgent adoption of guidelines for a safe pregnancy termination as well as making public data on the capacity of health institutions that provide health care in the field of reproductive health and services of pregnancy termination.

The initiative considers it unacceptable that women are denied information and support of the healthcare system and demands that hospital staff and commissions respect the law and access to pregnancy termination for all women.

Another representative of the initiative, Lorena Zec, said they were fed up with political games at the expense of women’s health.

She added that so far more than HRK 220,000 (€29,300) had been raised to help Cavajda cover the cost of pregnancy termination in Slovenia and psychological help, as well as other women in need of help.

Asked who was organizing the protests in the other cities, Zec said that they were being organized by local initiatives, calling on citizens to organize them on their own if there were no such groups in their communities.

The initiative “Citizens of Rijeka” was launched several years ago to promote women’s rights.