Defence Minister Zukan Helez has once again “stirred things up” with Croatian Member of European Parliament (MEP) Zeljana Zovko.
It should be recalled that earlier, Helez, because of Zeljana Zovko’s statements in which she called for the establishment of a third entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), referred to her as “half-retarded,” and for the same reason called Max Primorac “Ustasha scum.” This scandal was somewhat forgotten over time, and Helez made sure it would not be completely erased from the public memory.
In an interview, he mentioned Zovko again. He said that so far her microphone has been turned off about ten times in the European Parliament because of the views she expressed. Also, according to him, Zovko allegedly did not receive enough votes at all to become an MEP, but entered the European Parliament only after three politicians from Croatia gave up their EP mandates.
Helez predicted that in the next elections she would again not receive enough votes to enter the European Parliament, and then spoke about her demands to form a third entity in BiH.
“Why doesn’t she create a third entity in Croatia? There used to be 500.000 Serbs there. They are no longer there; they left, someone drove them out, with the note that Bosniaks defended Croatia from Serbian aggression. But those people are not there. Let her create a Serbian entity in Croatia; no one is stopping her. Why is she meddling in BiH?” Helez said.
He also recalled her earlier “episode” when she supported the civic option in BiH. It didn’t bother her when Zeljko Komsic proposed it. Now that too is a minus for her with HDZ members. She wants to “wash herself clean,” so she spouts nonsense, Helez pointed out.
Those with a somewhat better memory will recall that Komsic, back in 2008, appointed Zovko as BiH’s ambassador to Spain, which Helez also reminded of in this conversation.
Helez mentioned that because of such rhetoric, the greatest damage could be suffered by the majority of Croats in BiH, namely those living in the Sarajevo, Zenica-Doboj, Tuzla, and Central Bosnia cantons, as well as in the Neretva valley, which is the area where, as Helez reminded, two-thirds of Croats in BiH live.
