Asked by the press in Rijeka on Tuesday to elaborate, she said she was receiving "very subtle threats" by telephone in which an unidentified person "asks in a sweet voice about my children and my husband". She added the pressure had been greatest when she left the ruling coalition last year.
Skare-Ozbolt said she was concerned about Prime Minister Ivo Sanader's intolerance of stated facts, blaming him for Croatia's global ranking in terms of economic freedoms.
She said the government had not carried out any reforms, that it was insufficiently fighting corruption, and that domestic and foreign investors were complaining about the complicated procedure of public procurement.
She said investment in Serbia was twice as high as in Croatia, that taxes there were lower and the growth rate was six per cent. She said such figures were alarming and that Croatia could lose the position of regional leader.
Skare-Ozbolt said she was attacked when she went public with such information, claiming that yesterday's physical assault on the DC commissioner for Pozega-Slavonia County, Bozidar Lujanac, was part of the attacks against her and her party.
She said Lujanac first reported "serious threats against his life and property" in 2005, on two occasions, and demanded that state bodies investigate and punish the perpetrators.
Skare-Ozbolt said it was worrying that the authorities were not condemning the attacks, adding that "it is the same whether they are silent because of a political partner in reserve or because violence against political rivals suits them".