As Morski writes, after the recent scandal from the Slavonski Samac border crossing, where two Croatian customs officers asked for a bribe from a foreign tourist, another scandal related to bribes this time involving other Croatian officials managed to remain outside the Croatian media space – until now that is. The location is Dubrovnik, the month is July, and two British sailor bloggers used a hidden camera to film Croatian officials charging them non-existent fees.
The British informed the Croatian Ministry of Tourism, which confirmed that the officials in question had indeed deceived them.
Carefree sailing along the Croatian coast for a pair of British sailors turned into a first-class scandal, which was documented and published on their YouTube channel and on a website that brings together sailors. It all happened back in July this year when the British couple went to the authorities located in Dubrovnik to announced their departure from Croatian waters, with the aim of continuing their journey down south to nearby Montenegro.
It seems innocent enough, but when they got to speak to the Croatian officials, they fined them the equivalent of 100 pounds because they allegedly failed to pay the additional sojourn tax. The police didn’t explain to them exactly what the fee in question was, but the British sailors had to pay it. And in cash.
The sailors state that after this odd incident they contacted the Croatian Ministry of Tourism regarding the disputed payment, and they were told in an official response that there is no such sojourn tax or legal article that obliges boaters to pay such fees. In other words, the Croatian officials based in Dubrovnik robbed them. The British tourists naturally demanded a refund.
”I have to admit that this event left a bitter taste in my mouth. While we were sailing towards Montenegro, we agreed that we’d never return to Croatia again,” the unsurprisingly indignant British woman said in her video.
The video’s description reads: ”It was a shock to be threatened with arrest and have our passports taken away when trying to check out of Croatia. We have had problems before with Croatian officials but we really didn’t expect this level of illegal activity” which is damning for Croatian nautical tourism, which is otherwise very popular. The comments below are also from people who are now reconsidering paying the Croatian coast a visit.
Watch the video in full below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v=ur8F5QQNoN0
The Ministry of Tourism was then asked to provide a comment on this case, as their services had indeed responded to the British tourists in question that the tax they had to pay to the officials did not even exist. Attempts have also been made to find out whether the individuals working for the police in question were properly punished for extortion, but no response has been received yet.
An initial report stated that the officers involved were customs officers, but that was swiftly corrected by Croatian customs, who stated that they have nothing to do with foreign nationals and their notifications about leaving Croatia, and that this was a matter involving the police, not them.
It is also important to note that Croatian customs officers operate under the Ministry of Finance, and not under the Interior Ministry (MUP), like the police do.
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