ZAGREB, March 31 (Hina) - The Committee on Internal Affairs and National Security of parliament's House of Representatives on Friday unanimously harmonised standpoints regarding changes to Croatia's Law on Internal Affairs. The
Committee agreed to motion changes to the said Law and a new bill to be forwarded to parliamentary procedure for urgent consideration at the next session, Committee chairwoman Djurdja Adlesic told reporters in Zagreb. The need to discuss changes to the Law on Internal Affairs surfaced when the Constitutional Court towards the end of February revoked several of the Law's provisions, including Article 18, by which the competent minister could seek measures to depart from the principle of inviolability of letters and other means of communication towards individuals and legal entities, when security of the state called for it. Adlesic said the revoked provision infringed upon
ZAGREB, March 31 (Hina) - The Committee on Internal Affairs and
National Security of parliament's House of Representatives on
Friday unanimously harmonised standpoints regarding changes to
Croatia's Law on Internal Affairs.
The Committee agreed to motion changes to the said Law and a new bill
to be forwarded to parliamentary procedure for urgent
consideration at the next session, Committee chairwoman Djurdja
Adlesic told reporters in Zagreb.
The need to discuss changes to the Law on Internal Affairs surfaced
when the Constitutional Court towards the end of February revoked
several of the Law's provisions, including Article 18, by which the
competent minister could seek measures to depart from the principle
of inviolability of letters and other means of communication
towards individuals and legal entities, when security of the state
called for it.
Adlesic said the revoked provision infringed upon human rights,
while the Law did not provide a complete definition of national
security and the reasons to wiretap citizens. "This was why we
witnessed various forms of abuse," she stated.
At today's session, representatives of the Croatian Democratic
Union pointed out there had been no abuse.
According to Adlesic, the motioned changes very clearly state what
falls under national security, why human rights may be infringed
upon, and list by name measures which may be taken and relative
deadlines.
The president of the republic, the premier, and the chairman of the
Committee on Internal Affairs and National Security must be
notified about the measures, namely the persons they are inflicted
upon, within 72 hours.
"I honestly hope we have arrived at a civilised law, which may be
even better than some European laws," Adlesic asserted, adding she
was told at today's session that the measures referring to the
revoked Article 18 were not applied in the period between the
provision's revocation and the recent bill of changes.
It has finally been very clearly defined that services will not deal
with anyone's private life, people with different political
opinions and intra-party faction struggles, but with criminal
acts, Adlesic concluded.
(hina) ha mm