"Police have acted and are acting in accordance with the law, they do not receive any orders and while I am minister and during the term of this government they will certainly not receive political orders," Božinović told the press on Monday, insisting on the political independence of the police.
He made this statement while commenting on the case when the police launched an investigation against a 72-year-old man who wrote on Facebook that Prime Minister Andrej Plenković "should be welcomed with rotten eggs" upon arriving in Zadar.
Božinović also said that in Croatia there were more than 50 reports per day concerning public order and peace, stressing that police officers were independent in that regard and that they decided whether to launch a criminal investigation, while the court was in charge of making a final decision.
Asked whether police should have acted in this case, he said that "a procedure is launched when police asses that there is enough indication and evidence to go before the court".
"Let the police do their job based on the law and based on the experience of police officers," he said, reiterating that a competent court would make a decision on all elements of the report.
"This is a law-based state. Nothing will happen to anyone in this country if there is no valid evidence for it," Božinović said. He also explained that those people had not been arrested but brought in for criminal investigation, which is a standard procedure of all police departments.
He said citizens had nothing to be afraid of in Croatia, who was according to all statistics one of the safest if not the safest country in the EU.
The interior minister underscored that neither Prime Minister Andrej Plenković nor other political stakeholders were in any way involved in police conduct.
Asked whether politicians could be criticised, he answered: "Absolutely!".
The Zadar City Police Department reported earlier today that they had conducted an investigation into two men, aged 71 and 49, for posting insulting and scornful comments below an article on a local news portal announcing a visit by Prime Minister Andrej Plenković to that coastal city. After the investigation, both men were taken to the Zadar Municipal Court on 21 January. In a press release, the police department dismissed allegations that the prime minister had been involved in police conduct.
Text: Hina