ZAGREB, Jan 29(Hina) - The parliamentary majority on Thursday supported the government-sponsored bill on reinstating three-year maternity leave for mothers of twins, or three or more children, while the opposition said the bill was
conservative and incomplete.
ZAGREB, Jan 29(Hina) - The parliamentary majority on Thursday supported
the government-sponsored bill on reinstating three-year maternity
leave for mothers of twins, or three or more children, while the
opposition said the bill was conservative and incomplete.#L#
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) will not support the bill because it
is not well defined and is based on the Croatian Democratic Union's
demagogy and conservative ideology according to which the man works
and the woman raises children, Davorko Vidovic said.
He criticised the government for failing to offer a concept of social
and family policy, stressing that reinstating three-year maternity
leave would draw women further away from the community of working
people and bring them in an unfavourable position on the market. In
his opinion, it would be better to cancel limitations on the amount of
maternity allowances in the first six months of maternity leave.
MPs of the Libra party and the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) are also
sceptic about the bill and its contribution to the improvement of the
demographic picture. Ljubica Lalic of the HSS asked the government to
draw up a population growth strategy, inquiring how the government
planned to protect young women seeking employment from
discrimination.
Karmela Caparin of the HDZ club of deputies dismissed statements by
the opposition that her party offered conservative solutions. She said
that the proposed bill was one from a series of measures which the HDZ
planned to take in order to improve the alarming demographic picture
in Croatia. "Research shows that women want to have more children,"
she said.
The bill was supported by the Croatian Social Liberal Party (HSLS),
the Croatian Party of Rights (HSP) and the Istrian Democratic Assembly
(IDS). Damir Kajin of the IDS said the introduction of this measure
would not cost almost anything, while Slaven Letica of the HSP said
the bill was in line with the party's policy advocating the
traditional Croatian family.
(Hina) it sb