Serbs and Pensioners Save Žužul (Zuzul)

Last night was very eventful in Sabor. The MSes were debating the removal of foreign minister Miomir Žužul (Miomir Zuzul). However, despite all the firebrand rhetoric, the outcome was very certain from the beginning – SDSS and HSU have announced that they would abstain from the vote and thus deprive the opposition of necessary majority. When time for actual vote came, nobody was for the removal for one very simple reason – no opposition MS was in Sabor. They had left in protest after failing to secure roll call vote instead old-fashioned Communist-style raising of hands. The latter was traditional HDZ method of keeping their own MSes in line. Some of them, like powerful East Slavonia boss Branimir Glavaš (Branimir Glavas), have announced that they would abstain instead of helping their party comrade.

However, this wasn't the end of the story. Opposition leaders are now crying foul over alleged irregularity of the vote. When they left the building, the number of remaining MSes – 75 – was two men short of required 77 for the vote to be valid. However, this didn't prevent Sabor speaker Vladimir Šeks (Vladimir Seks) from announcing that 79 MSes in building and vote being valid.

Unlike their colleagues in Ukraine, Croatian opposition parties can't expect support of USA and EU in their crusade for fair and transparent vote. Miomir Žužul (Miomir Zuzul) might be one of the most despised politicians in Croatia today, but that amounts for little when compared with his popularity among diplomats and bureaucrats in Brussels and Washington.