Lendić expelled from Pantovčak, HDZ: Milanović reintroduces speech crime

The Office of the President expelled an official from the Croatian Foreign and European Affairs Ministry from Pantovčak on Thursday. The HDZ slammed the move, calling it an unprecedented scandal, while the Office of the President emphasized that the official was not denied attendance as a civil servant, but as a politician.

Tomislav Lendić, the Head of the Directorate for Political Affairs at the Croatian Foreign and European Affairs Ministry, was scheduled to participate in a ceremony presenting the credentials of the apostolic nuncio to President Zoran Milanović at the Office of the President on Pantovčak today. However, upon arrival, officials from the Office of the President escorted him off the premises, explaining that the reason behind his expulsion is a recent interview in which Lendić characterized President Milanović as the main culprit for the delay in filling numerous ambassadorial and consular positions in Croatian diplomacy.

Commenting on the events, HDZ MP Danijela Blažanović said that Lendić, also a member of the HDZ, was expelled from Pantovčak because he dared to criticize a "political bully" and that by expelling Lendić from the event, President Milanović had reintroduced speech crime in the political arena: "We are witnessing a new episode of political bullying from Pantovčak. Today, Tomislav Lendić, an employee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was expelled from Pantovčak on the orders of a political bully because he dared to criticize President Milanović."

She stated that, according to media reports, Lendić came to the Office of the President of the Republic to attend the presentation of credentials to the new apostolic nuncio to the Republic of Croatia, Monsignor Leopold Girelli. However, when he arrived at Pantovčak, officials from the Office of the President informed him that he was not welcome there: "The Office of the President, according to the media, explained that Lendić, as a diplomat, was not allowed to speak in a politically charged manner. Referring to his interview for a television station in which he labeled President Milanović solely to blame for the lack of agreement on filling numerous positions of Croatian ambassadors and consuls. (…) Is this the president of all citizens or is the president of only that small portion of citizens who still vote for the remnants of the SDP. Or for their new thought leaders, their senior partners from the extreme left-wing party Mozemo?"

Source: HRT