ZAGREB, Sept 20 (Hina) - Acting on the government's proposal and after long consultations within party benches, the Croatian parliament on Thursday withdrew from urgent procedure a bill on the rights of Croatian Homeland War soldiers
and their families and resumed today's session with a debate on draft changes to the Law on the Protection of Military and Civilian War Invalids. The bill on the rights of Croatian soldiers was withdrawn because the government today forwarded to the parliament a new bill on the rights of Croatian soldiers and their families, which is to be discussed in the first reading as early as next week. The government's decision was welcomed by the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) bench, whose whip Vladimir Seks requested that the debate on the draft changes to the Law on the Protection of Military and Civilian War Invalids be postponed too, and that the two bills be discussed tog
ZAGREB, Sept 20 (Hina) - Acting on the government's proposal and
after long consultations within party benches, the Croatian
parliament on Thursday withdrew from urgent procedure a bill on the
rights of Croatian Homeland War soldiers and their families and
resumed today's session with a debate on draft changes to the Law on
the Protection of Military and Civilian War Invalids.
The bill on the rights of Croatian soldiers was withdrawn because
the government today forwarded to the parliament a new bill on the
rights of Croatian soldiers and their families, which is to be
discussed in the first reading as early as next week.
The government's decision was welcomed by the Croatian Democratic
Union (HDZ) bench, whose whip Vladimir Seks requested that the
debate on the draft changes to the Law on the Protection of Military
and Civilian War Invalids be postponed too, and that the two bills
be discussed together.
Labour and Welfare Minister Davorko Vidovic disagreed, assessing
the bills were not that connected as to be discussed together.
Commenting on the draft changes to the Law on the protection of war
invalids, Vidovic said they were aimed at bringing disability
allowances to a realistic level and adjusting them to the country's
economic potential.
The draft envisages reducing the base for the calculation of
disability allowances for military and civilian invalids from the
current 160 to 100% of the average salary in Croatia.
The state cares for 35,481 war invalids, for whom 587 million kuna
(USD 72.64 million) of budgetary funds have been set aside this
year, Vidovic said.
If the proposed changes are adopted, disability allowances would be
reduced by 14% in real term value, Vidovic said.
The highest disability allowance, with the bonus for orthopaedic
aid and at-home care, would amount to 8,700 kuna (USD1,076) instead
of the current 10,000 kuna (USD1,237). Disabled persons with the
lowest degree of disability would receive 1,960 (USD243) instead of
the current 2,940 kuna (USD364) per month, Vidovic said.
The session resumed with individual party bench debates on the
draft.
(hina) rml