Yesterday, the European Commission issued a report on Croatia's progress in the so-called Progress Report While praising the achievements, the Report also lists a number of remaining shortcomings. First, it points out that "administrative structures for the management and supervision" of the billions of euros that will flow into it each year from the European budget have yet to be "fully established". In second place are the unfulfilled requirements related to the chapter on Judiciary and Fundamental Rights. The independence and effectiveness of the judiciary and the fight against corruption and organised crime, especially at high levels of government, need to be proven by court rulings. In third place, the EC places plans for the restructuring of shipyards in line with the acquis communautaire. Social transfers are too high and poorly targeted, and state aid is distributed to chronic losers. Budgetary discipline is too weak, public spending is inefficient. The lack of public administration transformation is also a concern for the EC. Administrative procedures are complicated, the administration is politicised, and human resources are poorly managed. There is also no necessary coordination between local, regional and central administrative levels.
Regarding gender equality and equal opportunities, the European Commission states that some progress has been made in general, but with a lot of "buts" and "howevers". The Office of the Gender Equality Ombudsman is in the process of being strengthened, and the legislative framework for combating domestic violence has been improved. However, it is also stated that the number of women killed by their partners has increased and that victims of violence do not have enough information about their rights. The position of women on the labour market has not changed significantly. Although the share of women among the unemployed has slightly decreased and job titles have been aligned with the Gender Equality Act, female unemployment is still high, as is the wage gap. Women still mostly work on fixed-term contracts, the conditions for women's employment are still not encouraging, and women are still underrepresented in economic and political decision-making. However, the Commission welcomes the steps taken to equalize the retirement age for men and women. Surprisingly, the report states that progress has been made in introducing a gender perspective into the creation of public policies (it's a pity that this part is not supported by some examples, we believe that many people would be interested in which public policies the government has started to introduce a gender perspective, op.a.). At the same time, the Commission states that significant progress has been achieved in the implementation of the National Policy for the Implementation of Gender Equality 2006-2010.
The Commission states that the implementation of the Anti-Discrimination Law has begun, but it criticizes the poor awareness of citizens about the law, the fact that few complaints reach the courts, and the Office of the Ombudsman is under-equipped to enforce the Law. The European Commission confirms that steps have been taken to implement the methods, and some court proceedings have been initiated; however, there are still no concrete convictions for hate crimes based on race, gender or sexual orientation. According to the report, LGBT people continue to face threats and attacks; with minimal reactions from the authorities.
Article by Tatjana Broz taken from the internet portal Libela
