MPs from the right-wing opposition parties in the Croatian parliament criticised the proposed election of constitutional judges as a farce on Thursday, while left-wing opposition MPs argued that a compromise was necessary.

“This proposal is a big farce. The constitutional judges will be chosen by an agreement between the HDZ (Croatian Democratic Union) and the SDP (Social Democratic Party),” said Croatian Sovereignists MP Marijan Pavlicek.

“This institution serves to provide cushy jobs to worn-out politicians like former minister Drazen Bosnjakovic. It is an institution that is indirectly controlled by the ruling majority, whether left or right,” he emphasised.

Grbin: We cannot be satisfied with all 10 names

Most party MP Ivica Ledenko said that his party is in favour of a different model in which judges cannot be re-elected. He argued that the Constitutional Court no longer acts as a protector of fundamental freedoms, as it should.

“Part of the opposition yesterday hypocritically tried to save face by calling for a postponement of the vote of no confidence in the government. They wanted to avoid appearing to co-operate with the HDZ in one vote while rejecting it in another,” he said.

SDP MP Pedja Grbin reminded the parliament that the judges of the Constitutional Court are elected by a two-thirds majority of all MPs, which requires a dialogue with the ruling parties, even if some may call it a deal or a lazy compromise.

“We cannot be satisfied with all 10 names, not even our colleagues from the HDZ. But even if we dismiss the government tomorrow, a two-thirds majority is still required for the election of constitutional judges, regardless of which party the MPs belong to,” he said.

Bencic: We will not go below the minimum standard

Sandra Bencic from the Mozemo party emphasised that the election of constitutional judges was one of the most important tasks of parliament and that the worst-case scenario would be if the current judges simply extended their own term of office.

“The election of judges means that we also have to choose people whose views and values we may not share, because the Constitutional Court should reflect the spectrum of values in Croatia. But we have made it clear that we woll not go below the minimum standard, that the elected judges must be respected both in their profession and in public,” she said.

However, she added that Mozemo cannot support Ante Galic, one of the five candidates proposed by the ruling parties, due to his correspondence with corruption suspect Josipa Pleslic (formerly Rimac).

Marijana Puljak from the Centre party also argued that Galic does not belong in the Constitutional Court, as the judges should be independent.

“A similar selection procedure exists in other countries. It is always a matter of discussions, agreements and compromises. This is the result of negotiations between the largest opposition party and the HDZ, in which we were not particularly involved,” she said.

Oreskovic: Galic and Bosnjakovic are unacceptable candidates

HDZ MP Krunoslav Katicic noted that the public call for candidates had attracted “an unexpectedly large number of candidates”,” most of whom met the requirements for constitutional judges.

“The candidates come from different backgrounds and ideologies, including former politicians. We have a representation of everything that reflects the Croatian people,” he said.

Dalija Oreskovic (DOSIP party) named both Ante Galic and former Justice Minister Drazen Bosnjakovic as unacceptable candidates.

“Integrity and independence cannot be attributed to someone who was a member of the HDZ for a long time, served as a minister twice and supported the HDZ in all its corruption scandals in the last term when the opposition launched various initiatives,” Oreskovic said.