Citizens outraged over plans to house illegal migrants in the Plitvice Lakes Municipality

Citizens from Lika-Senj County staged a protest on Sunday against a planned reception center for illegal migrants and asylum seekers in the Plitvice Lakes Municipality. Locals called out the Croatian Government and European bureaucrats in Brussels for their wanton disregard of how this will affect life in Lika.

A rally was held in the village of Korenica on Sunday, at which local residents protested against plans to build a migrant reception center in the nearby village of Željava in the Plitvice Lakes Municipality. The protesters say the center will destroy local tourism, but add that in the past ten years that illegals have been allowed to roam freely around the municipality, safety has also become a concern. Željava Municipal Head Hrvoje Matejčić: "These people who have been investing into tourism want some benefit from that. And what's happening now is these same people are now in fear and have doubts. That is why we're calling on local institutions here in Lika to find a different location, not Željava, which has become a tourist destination with fifty to one hundred thousand visitors annually."

Igor Rogić from Bihać in neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina joined the protest having already seen what impact illegal migrants and so-called asylum seekers have had on and Bihać: "In reality the migrant centers haven't brought anything good to the city of Bihać. Having worked there for seven years now, I know how negatively it can affect the environment and the Plitvice Lakes."

Finally, Antonela Jurić from Korenica slammed the authorities in Zagreb for making decisions with no idea of how it will affect those who live in Lika: "There are still people living here in Lika. Don't think that this is just empty space here, and that you can bring something like this here. You can't, and we won't let you take Lika from us."

Source: HRT