Tudjman "Temporarily" Replaced
AIM Zagreb, 27 November, 1999
The first job the Croats will have to do in the New Year 2000 will be going to the polls. Still hungover from the New Year's festivity, they will hasten to the polls and still gorged and drunk - as the ruling party hopes - circle the names of the candidates of the Croat Democratic Community (HDZ). If it had not been for that hope, who in their right mind would schedule elections during the holiday festivities, when the people are still sobering up after the celebration of the New Year which this time also marks the turn of millenniums.
Vlatko Pavletic has reached the decision about the date of parliamentary elections on Saturday, 27 November, just a day after the assembly passed (or rather outvoted because the opposition - with the exception of marginal satellite parties of HDZ - was against this solution) the constitutional law according to which the president of the Republic is temporarily prevented to discharge his duties. In this way he showed that he would unquestioningly carry out the orders of the party leadership which, it became quite clear, is the real deputy of indisposed Franjo Tudjman. Although he announced that concerning important decisions for the country he would listen to the opinion of the opposition, with the very first step Pavletic showed that in the background of the moves he would make would be the firm hand of the HDZ. Because on the eve of Pavletic's decision to schedule elections, the date was agreed by the session of the Presidency of the HDZ, so Pavletic was given only the possibility to act as the party spokesman. Something like that could have never happened to Tudjman. No party presidency could affect his decision because he decided on his own about everything that had any significance.
Before Pavletic last Friday, on 26 Novmeber, formally took over all constitutional duties of the sick president of the Republic, a long and hypocritical farce conceived by the ruling party took place about Tudjman's agony and his dance over the chasm of death that has been going on for almost one month. The Constitution of the Republic of Croatia, in its Article 97, prescribes that in case of death, resignation or permanent indisposition of the president of the Republic he shall temporarily be replaced by the chairman of the assembly. It is obvious that the Constitution does not foresee any possibility of the president being "temporarily prevented" from discharging his duties, but the leadership of HDZ for a long time stirred up hopes that Tudjman's illness was just temporary and that after hospital treatment he would quickly return to his duties. Many HDZ officials aroused this hope. For instance, Ljerka Mintas-Hodak, deputy prime minister and vice president of the HDZ, when Tudjman had already been in hospital for some time, kept declaring that the president would participate in the election campaign. Others had also spread news about quick recovery of the president and just a day before expiry of the deadline for scheduling elections which Tudjman had announced for 22 December before he had been completely overcome by illness, spokesman of the HDZ Ivica Ropus said that the president was fully conscious and that he would sign the decision on scheduling elections from his sick bed.
Although even from the curt reports of the group of physicians in charge of the president's medical treatment one could gather that anything of the kind was completely out of the question, only after 21 November which was the date by which Tudjman should have scheduled elections, it became clear that the president was not capable of even holding a pen in his hand. Rumours that Tudjman was in coma and that he was connected to instruments which maintained his vital functions were in this way indirectly confirmed. But the leadership of the HDZ did not wish to act pursuant the Constitution claiming that to proclaim that Tudjman was permanently prevented to discharge his duties would mean not only depriving the president of power while he was still alive and prejudicing the outcome of his illness, but that it would be directed against his dignity and reputation. This hypocritical farce invented by the HDZ served but for a single purpose: to outmanoeuvre the Constitution and seek for a solution which will bring the biggest benefit to the narrow party interests.
As usual the opposition did not see how the land lay immediately, so it got involved in the negotiations on "seeking a way out" of the threatening constitutional crisis and accepted talks about temporary indisposition of the president of the Republic. Instead of insisting on strict implementation of the Constitution and advocating inflexible legalism in complex pre-election circumstances, it accepted the game of the HDZ in seeking shortcuts by means of which the stalemate position caused by Tudjman's illness would be overcome. And, of course, also as usual, it was outwitted. The HDZ managed to pass in the parliament the constitutional law on Tudjman being "temporarily prevented" to doischarge his duties, blurring it with sublime talk on "protection of the reputation and dignity of the first Croatian president meritorious for the foundation of the Croatian state". It accused the opposition that it acted ominously wishing to deprive the still living Tudjman of power and to nominate his successor. The passed constitutional law in formulation of which the opposition unsuccessfully participated instead of rejecting even such a possibility and insiting on implementation of the valid Constitution and bringing the HDZ in a difficult situation, is an unprecedented phenomenon for a few reasons. First, in order to come into force every constitutional law must be signed by the president of the Republic which is more than a "catch", because how can a "temporarily indisposed " president sign a law on his own indisposition!
The fact that this law has come into force immediately after passing in the assembly is also a precedent, because laws come into force on the day they are published in the People's Journal, the official gazette of the Republic of Croatia. The law itself is quite illogical: temporary indisposition of the president is set to 60 days, and after expiry of this period it is possible to prolong it for an indefinite number of times for another 60 days. If it had not referred to Tudjman whose days regardless of the pathetic laments of the HDZ are indeed numbered, it could mean that a newly elected president, pursuant this law, if he for some reason slipped into coma on the very first day of his five-year term in office and if medical science managed to keep him alive, could remain president in coma until the end of the term.
Be what may, "at the moment" Tudjman is deprived of power and he will be replaced for the time being by the chairman of the assembly, Vlatko Pavletic. But why did the HDZ hurry up with the elections scheduling them for the extremely inconvenient time at the very beginning of next year? There are two reasons for that. The previous date for the elections, 22 december, was also set to make people vote in extraordinary circumstances created by Christmas and New Year celebration. It is the time when a large number of Croats come to Croatia from Abroad, people who live in comparative prosperity and who have not felt the full balefulness of HDZ policy in the economic and the social sphere, so they are more inclined towards the HDZ than to other parties. The second reason (to which one should add the reason why HDZ so stubbornly advocated "temporary" instead of "permanent" indisposition of the president of the Republic) is that the ruling party wishes to put the name of president Franjo Tudjman on top of its lists of candidates, relying on emotions of the people. That is why it is necessary to type the lists while Tudjman is still alive.
Although HDZ's manipulation of Tudjman's illness is more than obvious, the leadership of the party assisted by television and regime controlled media wishes to present things in a different light. They are accusing the opposition of shameful behavior and burying of the president although he is still alive, although the HDZ itself has done its best to install Pavletic in Tudjman's place as soon as possible in order to be able to continue manipulations in the pre-election days that lie ahead. The unusual date of the elections, 3 January, is justified by the HDZ even by respect of the opinion of the Catholic Church which had complained of scheduling elections between Christmas and New Year's Day, while for a while the HDZ had such intentions taking into consideration 28 December as the possible date for the elections. At the time somebody wittily said that in that case it would be best to schedule elections at the time of the Catholic midnight mass (on Christmas eve, at midnight on 24 December), and that the votes be counted in churches. In view of the new circumstances, it would not be surprising if the HDZ organised polling stations in its branch offices and if votes were counted in the studio of Croatian Television station.
DRAGO HEDL
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