"The first task is to stop the leaking of information from prosecutorial bodies to the criminal milieu and this will now certainly be done. The information leaks to the criminal milieu will definitely be stopped," he told reporters when asked to comment on reports that the police anti-corruption office (PNUSKOK) had found 50 kilos of secret police files in an apartment of criminals.
Asked to comment on an initiative by the Centre for Peace Studies to amend the law to step up the civilian controlof secret services and the police and to stipulate that phone records can be obtained only with a court order, Josipovic said modern control measures were very sensitive in terms of human rights but one could not do without them and they must be applied.
"The current scant provision in the Police Law, when it comes to phone records, should be amended. I'm for judicial and civilian control that would bring trust in the use of such measures. Information leaks from prosecutional bodies to the mob must not be allowed," said the president.
Asked to comment on central bank governor Boris Vujcic's criticism of the government's economic policy, Josipovic said Croatia was in a crisis and that working on changes should be more active, but noted that work was under way on big investments and that the opening of a new prospect was in sight.
"We must realise that overcoming the crisis isn't a matter of one move or month. It's a long process in which the government plays the leading role."
The president said the Investment Stimulation Act was very well-prepared and that he would soon head a group of Croatian business people on a visit to Qatar.
Asked if Germany's milder positions on Croatia's European Union accession were the work of Croatia's diplomats, Josipovic said the main criterion would be the European Commission's report next spring and that the most recent report was the most favourable one so far.
There is no doubt that Croatia will meet the ten requirements and join the EU on 1 July 2013, he said, adding that all European ambassadors had recently visited him and no one seriously doubted Croatia's membership.
Asked if the media were right in saying that his informal political influence was important in the appointment of Goran Radman as the new director general of the public broadcaster HRT, the president said this was "nonsense." He added that Radman was very good for the position and would do an excellent job.
Josipovic would not comment on the fact that parliament would have to invite new applications for the human rights ombudsman because the ruling SDP deemed that none of the eight candidates meets the requirements. He said the main criterion should be credibility as the ombudsman dealt with human rights violations and injustices towards citizens.
"On the one hand, he must be firm in establishing those breaches and on the other, have the authority to make sure that relevant state bodies right the injustices and irregularities that have been noted."