The ruling in favor of Helena Crnojević speaks volumes about the position of women in Croatian society, as in this particular case, Helena was removed from the list of international referees by the Croatian Handball Referees Association because she decided to start a family. Helena was in the advanced stages of pregnancy at the time, and was removed from the list without any prior notice and despite the clear opposition of the European and World Handball Federations.
The BaBe Association held a press conference at which Bojana Guberac, on behalf of the association; Ines Bojić, attorney and legal advisor to the association, and Helena Crnojević spoke, regarding the verdict rendered in her favor by the Rijeka County Court on January 26, 2021, which finally determined that handball referee Helena Crnojević was discriminated against on the basis of gender, pregnancy and maternity by being removed from the international list of the Croatian Handball Referees Association, and for the same she was awarded compensation for non-pecuniary damage in the amount of 30,000.00 kn.
Helena contacted the BaBe association regarding her case in June 2016, which filed a complaint on her behalf with the Gender Equality Ombudsman, whereupon the Ombudsman determined that the specific case involved direct discrimination on the grounds of pregnancy and maternity, which is prohibited by the Gender Equality Act, and accordingly sent a recommendation and warning to the Association of Croatian Handball Referees and the Croatian Handball Federation, which, despite the warning, did not eliminate the discrimination. In the court proceedings against the Croatian Handball Referees Association, Helena Crnojević was represented by attorney Ines Bojić.
"In 2014, in my seventh month of pregnancy, my handball partner called me and said very upset that she had seen on our referees' association's website that we had been removed from the international referees' list. There was shock and disbelief, we couldn't believe they had done something like that while we were pregnant and we didn't know why?", Crnojević began about the discrimination she faced.
"I consciously and intentionally suppressed some feelings. I remember being in great shock, I remember being under tremendous stress, shaking, and having a painful stomach cramp. Getting a license to referee international competitions at the world level is a great honor that comes with years and years of training, matches, travel, sacrifices, and discipline – and when someone wipes all of that out in one day with one decision, it's like someone tearing down your entire world that you knew until then and stabbing you in the stomach at the same time. I remember being afraid for my baby that I was carrying in my belly, and I didn't want this stress that I was going through at that time to harm it in any way.", Crnojević told and warned, "And that's what they were counting on, what they were aiming for, they knew that as women in the most sensitive period of life, we wouldn't fight for our position at a time when we had to focus all our energy on bringing new life into the world.".
In late May 2015, after their applications to be reinstated on the international list were rejected, Crnojević and her partner in the court approached the Babe association, with the help of lawyer Ines Bojić and the Gender Equality Ombudsman. She warned the HRS and the HRS about the constitutional provisions, European regulations and Croatian laws regarding discrimination, and invited them to submit documentation denying such actions, and ultimately ordered Crnojević and her partner in the court to be reinstated on the international list of judges.
In 2017, after talking with a member of the UHRS board, Crnojević came to the conclusion that they were not aware of the consequences and meaning of their decision.
"It dawned on me then, if he doesn't know it, who is my generation, and how many others still don't know that a woman's position during pregnancy should not change and that she has the right to return to the same job she had before pregnancy after maternity leave. For me, the only logical decision was to file a lawsuit, and although I knew that it wouldn't help me personally, because court processes are too slow to help someone's career right now, I wanted this case, regardless of the outcome, to enter into court practice.", Crnojević explained her motivation.
After a three-year court process, she recounted her feelings in the following words and expressed hope that her case and verdict would make a positive change and protect pregnant women.
"I have to say that I felt the same painful cramp in my stomach every time I had to go to the hearing because I remembered all the events we went through in 2014 and 2015. And it wasn't always easy to listen to the reasons the other side gave to justify their wrong decisions.
As I mentioned before, this ruling means nothing to me personally and my career, but it should provide a foothold for all women who find themselves in a similar situation. I wanted to help all women who find themselves in a similar situation to be able to refer to this case and get some kind of legal foothold. So that they don't have to go through what I went through for four years, but with paper in hand I can say that this is not how it works.
Finally, I would just like to say to all women who want to continue playing sports, at the same level as before pregnancy, that they can now do so without fear that someone will take away their years of effort and work while they are pregnant or on maternity leave. They have the legal basis to continue in the same position they were in before pregnancy, and no one can dispute that right.
I hope that in the future, Croatian federations and associations will be proud of their wives and mothers and highlight them as excellent promoters on the international stage. Because they deserve it.", concluded Crnojević.
We congratulate Helena on the brave battle she fought and the justice we achieved together!
