ZAGREB, 29. JAN. 2016 – Mijo Crnoja, the minister for veteran affairs in the new Croatian government, has resigned six days after his appointment amid allegations of tax irregularities. He earlier proposed creating a Register of Traitors to show people who “worked against Croatia’s national interests”. The idea was dropped after a public outcry. Crnoja maintained that the many allegations made against him in the media are false. Media reports had accused Crnoja of reporting a false residence, of tax and health insurance fraud, of acts of physical violence and of violations of private property. From the started, he rejected the claims.He defended his case to Prime Minister Tihomir Oreskovic and to Vice Prime Minister Tomislav Karamarko, also president of Crnoja’s party, the Croatian Democratic Union, HDZ. HDZ chief Karamarko supported Crnoja’s case more clearly, calling him a victim of a media campaign. Crnoja caused immediate controversy with his idea to issue a register of traitors and aggressors against Croatia during the independence war of the 1990s. This drew protests, with the artistic collective SKROZ introducing an electronic satirical register of traitors, which more than 7,000 people signed, stating the reasons for considering themselves traitors. On taking office, Crnoja also brought a controversial Catholic bishop, Vlado Kosic, to bless his office and led a prayer for war veterans in the presence of Tomislav Mercep, a former police commander in the 1990s who was later tried for alleged war crimes against civilians. Crnoja’s real troubles began when the news portal Index said he had not registered his residence properly. His troubles mounted in the following days, with media reports alleging a history of physical violence, which he has since proven false, however. The media also reported a first-degree sentence against him, for violation of private property.
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