Tanja Radmilo’s latest column in From Croatia with Madness.
If you are from Slavonia, you can be pretty certain that you are doomed. No job, no hope, no tourism, no money, no perspective. But, then again, it is the same if you are from Dalmatia, Lika or any other Croatian county and come from honest working-class family. You have a choice to go to Adriatic regions for a couple of months and make some money during the summer season, but that does not last long if you have a family and two small children. If you do not want to elbow your way up in one of the many political parties in Croatia, you can leave the country and try to earn some money abroad. So, you can leave Croatia and try to make it somewhere else. That is what Tomislav Salopek did. However, instead of Germany, he chose Egypt.
Tomislav wanted to work. But in Croatia it is not enough. It is much more important to have a political party membership card or have a close relation or godfather in a political party. Tomislav did not have either. Therefore, Tomislav was not eligible for work in Croatia.
Croatian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vesna Pusić said that it was a time for Croatia to gather together and to fight against evil and the terrorism threat, and to provide support to the family of Tomislav Salopek. Why didn’t Croatia provide support for all its young people by providing equal opportunities for all? Discrimination is defined as the practice of unfairly treating a person or group of people differently from other people or groups of people. All Tomislavs of Croatia are discriminated against when it comes to the labour market.
The chosen ones go to Egypt to enjoy the pyramids, Nile cruises, riding on camels… They can afford it, they have safe jobs in the public sector. Tomislav only wanted a better life for his family. Do not get mad at me for writing his name too many times, I want to do it since the Croatian Prime Minister did not use Tomislav’s name once during his short press conference. The Prime Minister was talking for two minutes about how somebody has to break the silence, he doesn’t know if the gruesome facts about the execution are true, how we are in contact with agencies of some friendly countries, how such horrible things happen in unforeseen circumstances and that somebody has to say it. The worst appearance of any politician we have ever seen. Not once did he actually utter the name of Tomislav Salopek. I just want to Tomislav myself out now.
