Croatian Conservatives Protest Against Anti-Violence Treaty

Over 10,000 protesters from all over Croatia, as well as from Bosnia and Herzegovina, gathered on Thursday evening in the centre of the coastal city of Split to protest against Zagreb's upcoming ratification Council of Europe's Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, widely known as the Istanbul Convention.

Protesters of all age groups, many displaying Catholic symbols, and including many Catholic priests and nuns, expressed their discontent with government's intention to ratify the Convention. Many signs and speeches made references to Croatia's 1990s war, citing it as a successful struggle for freedom.

Their slogans and placards focused on Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and his government, which they accused of rejecting more conservative voters' views as well as succumbing to pressures from Brussels.

Many protesters carried placards of Plenkovic's face that deliberately referenced the well-known 'Hope' poster from Barack Obama's 2008 US presidential election campaign. Instead of "Obama", the placards read "Obmana" ("Deception"), alleging that Plenkovic has betrayed voters.

Plenkovic and his government are accused of representing the views of their junior coalition partner, the centrist Croatian People's Party, HNS, as well as the opposition centre-left Social Democratic Party, SDP.

According to a debate in the parliament on Wednesday, MPs will ratify the Convention with an overwhelming majority, as all major parties will support it. The opposition centre-right Bridge of the Independent Lists, MOST will be somewhat divided, while a few HDZ MPs will vote against the Convention.

Protesters criticised the entire Croatian political establishment, the EU, political representatives of...