Diplomacy and Commerce No.8

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

September 2018 | ISSUE No. 08 | FREE COPY

9772466380002

HARMONIZATION WILL TAKE MONTHS

ALEKSANDAR CRNKOVIĆ Attorney-at-Law and Expert in GDPR matters

WE PREPARED A NUMBER OF SURPRISES FOR THE NEW ADVENT

MARTINA BIENEFELD

Director of Zagreb Tourist Board

A GOOD JOURNALIST ALWAYS HAS SOMETHING TO SAY

07 INDEPENDENCE DAY OF THE SEP

REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA

BIGGER INVESTMENTS IN CROATIAN ARMED FORCES AND IN OUR DEFENCE DAMIR KRSTIČEVIĆ

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence

EVERY CHILD MATTERS VALENTINA OTMAČIĆ Head of UNICEF office in Croatia

GORAN MILIĆ

Journalist, Editor in Cheif

ITS BETTER, BUT NOT ENOUGH DAVOR MAJETIĆ

Managing Director of the Croatian Employers' Association

USA

H.E. W. ROBERT KOHORST U.S. Ambassador to Croatia

CHARTER A YACHT More than 250 yachts in 8 worldwide sailing destinations: BVI, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Thailand & Turkey

Navigare Yachting. Experience together

INVEST IN A YACHT

Get return on investment up to 100 000 Eur per year* Return on investment depends on the price of the yacht

Navigare Yachting d.o.o.

Ulica Damira Tomljanovica 11, 10020 Zagreb, Croatia Contact us: Email: booking@navigare-yachting.com Telephone: +385 1 2331 661 www.navigare-yachting.com

ED I TO RIAL

CO N T E N T S

Fukuyama 2.0 Dear readers, Perhaps we all know about Francis Fukuyama's theory about "the end of history" which in the late 1980s competed for the title of "supreme truth" together with Samuel Huntington's "clash of civilisations". Then-young and aspiring Rand liberal, Fukuyama predicted that, with the imminent collapse of the Soviet Union, the last ideological alternative to liberalism will be eliminated, just like fascism once was. It was brilliantly timed, just before Gorbachev's autodestruction of the USSR, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Czechoslovakian Velvet Revolution.

It was, thus, triumphant. But it was, as The New Yorker points out, a bit eurocentric. It did not predict the Tienanmen events or recent illiberal movements. If we talk about the free market or consumerism, there are Russia, Iran, China, Turkey. Liberal, right? But, many of the political features are not. They want to show and find their own way. Some 30 years later, Fukuyama wrote another book to explain his postponement of "the end of history". The history will not end because of the growing interest of different groups to express their identity that they feel is underrepresented in the current liberalist climate - Vladimir Putin, Osama bin Laden, Xi Jinping, Black Lives Matter, #MeToo, gay marriage, ISIS, Brexit, resurgent European nationalisms, anti-immigration political movements, campus identity politics, and the election of Donald Trump – they are all manifestations of it. Groups feel supressed and want their voices to be heard. But saying that many of them are a threat to liberalism is like saying that kids expressing their identity threatens family unity. It does not! Some of them are violent, yet some are on the path to a less unjust world, which starts with disatisfaction.

The end of history is definitely not near!

06

EVERY CHILD MATTERS VALENTINA OTMAČIĆ

Head of UNICEF office in Croatia

12

ITS BETTER, BUT NOT ENOUGH DAVOR MAJETIĆ

Managing Director of the Croatian Employers' Association

14

TOURISM AND ECONOMIC GROWTH BOOST SALES JEAN-PIERRE MESIĆ

General Manager of Renault Nissan Adriatic

ROBERT ČOBAN Director

16

HARMONIZATION WILL TAKE MONTHS ALEKSANDAR CRNKOVIĆ www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr BOBAN SPASOJEVIĆ Executive editor

boban@diplomacyandcommerce.hr

NIKICA MILOŠ Editor-in-chief

nikica@diplomacyandcommerce.hr

TANJA BANKOVIĆ Editorial manager

office@diplomacyandcommerce.hr

ILIJA PETROVIĆ INDIGOCHILD Art director

indigochild.ilija@gmail.com

ZORAN CVIJIĆ Advertising manager

marketing@ diplomacyandcommerce.hr

JOVANA MARKOVIĆ Advertising manager

Photos GETTY IMAGES TOMISLAV SMOLJANOVIĆ

NATAŠA NEŠIĆ Advertising manager

Translation SNEŽANA BJELOTOMIĆ

DRAGANA RADOVIĆ Advertising manager RUŽA RISTANOVIĆ Magazine director VANJA KOVAČEV PR&Event support Nord Communications

SVEN DARRER Advertising manager 091 766 5479 091 377 4358

Attorney-at-Law and Expert in GDPR matters

18

WITH PATIENTS EVERY STEP OF THE WAY VIKTORIJA ZADRO HUML

General Manager Shire for Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina

24

WE PREPARED A NUMBER OF SURPRISES FOR THE NEW CHRISTMAS MARKET MARTINA BIENEFELD

Director of Zagreb Tourist Board

26

LOST IN TRANSLATION: LANGUAGE AND POWER JAGODA POROPAT DARRER

Business Communications Professional

27

UNIQUENESS IS A KEY TO SUCCESS DANIJEL KOLETIĆ CEO of Apriori World

34

A GOOD JOURNALIST ALWAYS HAS SOMETHING TO SAY GORAN MILIĆ

Journalist, Editor in Cheif

39

DINOSAURS' FOOTPRINTS, TITO'S CADILLAC AND ŠERBEDŽIJA'S COMMUNE Robert Čoban reportage

sven@diplomacyandcommerce.hr

Predstavnik za RH

vanja.communications @gmail.com

ROBERT ČOBAN Director

”Color Media Communications” LTD, 21132 Petrovaradin, Štrosmajerova 3 TIN 107871532 • Matriculation number 20887303 · Phone: +381 21 4897 100 • Fax: +381 21 4897 126 Office: Ilica 49 , 10000 Zagreb • 091 2886677 CIP - Katalogizacija u publikaciji Biblioteke Matice Srpske, Novi Sad 33 Diplomacy & Commerce Novi Sad: Color Media Communications, 2016 - , -33cm Mesečno.

ISSN 2466-3808 = Diplomacy & Commerce COBISS.SR-ID 303269895

3

J U P IT E R DE S CE N DIN G

The French President Tries to Regain Control After a Dismal Summer But a feeble opposition fails to capitalise on his weakness

IT WAS la rentrée in France this week, when pupils return to school after the long summer holidays to begin a new academic year. The country’s president, Emmanuel Macron, will be hoping it marks a fresh start for him too. On September 4th he was forced into a government reshuffle after unexpectedly losing his environment minister. With his poll ratings touching new lows after a troubled summer, Mr Macron badly needs to regain political momentum if he is to keep his plans to transform France on track.

A popular former television presenter and green activist, Nicolas Hulot, resigned abruptly in the middle of a radio interview last week, saying that although France was doing “more than most”, he deplored the “small steps” being taken to protect the planet. Mr Hulot, an outspoken campaigner who had in the past always refused to serve in government, was replaced by a career Green politician and loyal convert to Macronism, François de Rugy, who had been speaker of the National Assembly.

The loss of Mr Hulot was the last thing Mr Macron needed. Questions about his judgment

4

WITH HIS POLL RATINGS TOUCHING NEW LOWS AFTER A TROUBLED SUMMER, MR MACRON BADLY NEEDS TO REGAIN POLITICAL MOMENTUM IF HE IS TO KEEP HIS PLANS TO TRANSFORM FRANCE ON TRACK were raised in July, after his former bodyguard and trusted aide, Alexandre Benalla, was identified on video dressed as a policeman and beating up a protester. Mr Benalla was fired, but only after the video emerged in public. The murky affair seems to have wiped out any credit the president earned for his victory against the unions at the SNCF rail network earlier this summer. Mr Macron’s poll numbers have dropped to 31%, according to Ifop. Another poll said that only 20% of Socialist voters, Mr Macron’s one-time party, approve of him. Slower economic growth has not helped. Nor has the president’s regal haughtiness, which has earned him the nickname “Jupiter”.

For now, Mr Macron seems undeterred. After some hesitation, his government is pressing ahead with a complex move to tax income at source, which it is feared will be hit by technical problems when it comes into place in January next year and dismay those not used to seeing income tax deducted directly from their pay slips. (At present, income tax is paid in arrears, generally in instalments.) Reforms to the benefit system, hospitals and pensions are all due shortly, and will push up against vested interests. To set against the disruption these will bring, the president will be hoping that a delayed cut to employee social charges, which comes into effect next month, will help lift the mood and boost consumer spending.

Perhaps the strangest aspect of Mr Macron’s domestic difficulties, though, is how little the political opposition seems to be able to make of them. La République en Marche, the party he invented and which holds a robust majority in parliament, has sucked in most of France’s moderates on the left and the right. The Socialists and Republicans, as a result, are rump parties struggling to find an attractive leader or a sense of purpose. Some polls suggest that the Socialist Party, historically one of the great institutions of French political life, could end up failing to pass the 5% threshold at elections to the European Parliament next May, and so with no seats at all.

For their part, the Republicans have found themselves drifting towards the right under an unconvincing new leader, Laurent Wauquiez.

Their moderates are either in government (the prime minister, Edouard Philippe, and the finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, are both ex-Republicans) or running big regions (such as Valérie Pécresse in the Paris area). Equally striking, the political extremes—Marine Le Pen’s National Rally and Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s Unsubmissive France—seem stuck on the protesting fringe. They are set for a fight. Mr Mélenchon has promised to turn the European election into a “referendum” on the president.

Ms Le Pen usually does well in mid-term elections. Yet a recent poll (see chart) suggested that, were European elections held today, Mr Macron’s party would come out on top. The president is down in Paris, but not out yet.

From The Economist, published under licence.

The original article, in English, can be found on www.economist.com

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

5

Photo: Marin Ilej, UNICEF

INTERVI EW

Every Child Matters Even though Croatia is successful in the implementation of certain children’s rights, surveys, including those conducted by UNICEF, show that good averages often hide that there are children who are deprived of many rights and we, as a society, have to take special care of them VALENTINA OTMAČIĆ

Head of UNICEF office in Croatia

UNICEF opened its Crisis Situations Office in 1991, and thus became the first international organization in Croatia that started its operations even before the official recognition of the country. 17 years ago, priority was to provide medicines, clothes, supplies for the youngest children, school supplies and psycho-social support.

When direct danger had passed, UNICEF focused on Mine Risk Education, Baby Friendly Hospitals, children’s rights education, support to foster care, support to parents in the first years of children’s lives, and many other initiatives.

6

Among the most effective initiatives were also the campaigns Ending Violence Against Children, Every Child Needs A Family and The First Three Years are Most Important! Initiatives and campaigns were initiated with the goal

the idea to gather all people of good will interested in building a society where each child can achieve their full potential.

The purpose of activities of Government of the Republic of Croatia and UNICEF is to increase the qual-

OUR PROGRAMS ARE FOCUSED ON WELLBEING AND PROTECTION OF EVERY CHILD, WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON THE CHILDREN WHO ARE MARGINALIZED FOR ANY REASON WHATSOEVER to make the society put children’s needs first.

Today, UNICEF is focused on the creation of partnership for children with the corporate sector, NGOs, state institutions, celebrities, experts and volunteers, with

ity of life of the most vulnerable categories of children in Croatia, stated Valentina Otmačić, Head of UNICEF office in Croatia.

Priorities of UNICEF office in Croatia today are to provide support to most jeopardized groups

of children, Baby Friendly Hospitals, preschool education, early intervention, care for prematurely born babies and support to breastfeeding.

Also, UNICEF‘s focus was placed on helping children in crisis situations, child protection from violence, child’s right to grow up in a family, justice for children, Child Friendly Cities initiative, children’s rights in the media and the corporate sector.

With the support from Croatian citizens and companies, UNICEF provides help for children in countries affected by the most difficult humanitarian crises, and we can boast with the fact that citizens are extremely conscious and always ready to help the youngest, in Croatia and beyond.

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

New challenges for children’s safety have appeared with the 21st century, and UNICEF is very active in improving digital literacy of children which, as Mrs Otmačić said, will be in focus of this organization for a long time. The same apply to climate changes.

Also, UNICEF encourages numerous studies about the living condition of children, what are the key problems in exercising children’s rights and where more needs to be done to improve the situation. Mrs Otmačić, who has a rich career in the field of education on human rights and work with children, youth and adults behind her, talked with us about these topics.

children who are deprived of numerous rights, and we as a society must take special care of them.

For example, there are children with disabilities who, just like all other children, have the right to attend kindergarten. Children from poor families and children living in rural areas also don’t have the chance to attend preschool programs. In many places there is no kindergarten yet, or there is a kindergarten but it is not available

What are the key issues in exercising children’s rights in Croatia today?

to the children due to its price or because parents are not employed.

We also focus on children growing up in institutions, which is proven to damage their development. Our programs are focused on wellbeing and protection of every child, with special emphasis on the children who are marginalized for any reason whatsoever.

EACH ACTIVITY WE CONDUCTED, WHICH WOULD CHANGE THE LIFE OF EVEN ONE CHILD FOR THE BETTER, IS A MOMENT OF IMMEASURABLE SATISFACTION

Which one of these problems is a priority in your new five-year program?

our focus is placed on the Every Child Needs A Family campaign.

This is a campaign that aims to increase the number of foster families, which will allow the children not to grow up in institutions.

Family is important for development of every child, and if that child cannot grow up in a biological family, then it is important to have a sufficient number of quality foster families that would provide support, stability and warmth of home to a child.

— UNICEF is conducting programs in Croatia aimed at providing a long-term support for protection

How much have the challenges that societies, including their

youngest members, are facing, changed in the 21st century? How much space do climate changes and cybersecurity take in your portfolio?

— Major changes have a very strong influence on the children as well, and it is up to us adults to make sure that this influence is positive. We can use new technologies for the benefit of children, so, for example, we use them to enable children with complex communication issues to communicate with their environment with the help of special devices and programmes.

Until now, these children were often “trapped” in their body, so this is a big step forward in their lives, and in our lives as well. When it comes to digital world, we try, through development of media literacy of the parents, educators, children and youth, to provide an opportunity for development of skills that will help them to cope better in it. Through Media literacy days which we initiated last year in cooperation with the Agency for Electronic Media, we provided materials for work for kindergarten teachers and teachers, we published the first picture book about media literacy for the youngest children and a brochure for the parents. Children got the opportunity to visit media companies and learn how topics are chosen and

Photo: Marina Knezevic Barisic, UNICEF

— In certain aspects of children’s rights, Croatia is very successful: we have low mortality rate in children under five years of age, extremely low rates of stunting due to inappropriate nutrition in the first years of life, percentage of children enrollment in elementary schools is almost 100%. On the other hand, surveys, including those conducted by UNICEF, show that good averages often hide inequalities, and that in Croatia, like in most countries, there are

and exercising the rights of all children, especially most vulnerable categories. Making the public sensitive to certain topics – like the need and right of every child to live in a family, or the need to provide appropriate support to children who are victims, witnesses, but also to children perpetrators of criminal offences, making the justice system tailored to children – these are some of the most important aspects of our work. Currently,

7

how media content is created. We are happy about the fact that more than 6500 thousands children and young people took part in the first Days of Media Literacy. Media literacy is certainly a topic that will be in our focus for a long time.

Climate changes also have a significant effect on children, and it is of crucial importance that we adults care are about what kind of a planet we will leave to them.

Globally, unfortunately, UNICEF frequently deals in consequences of climate changes. Big droughts, floods and strong storms devastate homes, schools and kindergartens. In situations like these, children are the most vulnerable category. This is why UNICEF is always among the first responders in the field for the youngest and their families. Thanks to good organization, we can react very quickly and provide humanitarian aid within 48 hours. Medicine, water purification tablets, rehydration salts are merely a part of what UNICEF packages contain. In crisis situations, it is important to provide a place where children can feel safe, play and learn. That’s what “School-in-aBox” and “Kindergarten-in-a-Box” allow. These are packages that contain toys, educational materials, games and school supplies for the children. We used them in Croatia as well when the region was struck by catastrophic floods, and later on, during the refugee crisis. In that period, UNICEF provided a place where they could play care-free and forget about what surrounds them at least for a short while.

You’ve led the UNICEF team since 2014. Which campaigns you are especially proud of?

— Each activity we conducted, which would change the life of even one child for the better,

is a moment of immeasurable satisfaction. Each child that progresses, develops and gets opportunities for a better life, each decision in favour of the children, is a source of our pride. I would like to point out that I am especially proud of the wide circle of UNICEF supporters, people who participate in campaigns for children through donations or by volunteering. They really did deserve the name they have – Childhood Guardians – because they care for the most vulnerable children together with UNICEF. There are also many experts, companies and the media who join us and whom I also see as part of a wider team working for the children and their wellbeing.

Is there empathy in the Croatian society, among companies and individuals, for those who are vulnerable? How much support do you get?

regularly conduct our programs for boys and girls, as well as fast reaction in crisis situations like floods and refugee crisis, when we were in the field with the youngest and their families from the first day they came to Croatia.

Are you satisfied with cooperation with the Government? You recently started the establishment of the first human milk bank together. What will this change?

— The Government of the Republic of Croatia and UNICEF plan and conduct programs for children as partners. In implementation of our programs we cooperate closely with the Ministry of Demographics, Family, Youth and Social Policy, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, as well as with other relevant bodies.

When it comes to the first

I AM CERTAIN THAT THROUGH JOINT AND COORDINATED ACTION, WE CAN ENSURE THAT EVERY CHILD IN CROATIA HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND KINDERGARTEN, AT LEAST FROM THE FOURTH YEAR OF THEIR LIFE — Experience tells us that citizens are extremely aware and always ready to help the youngest, in Croatia and beyond. Croatian citizens were ready to help the families and children in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen, and to refugees from Myanmar. Implementation of our activities would not be possible without the support from citizens and companies that placed the focus of their CSR activities precisely on children. We especially value the support from our Childhood Guardians, sponsors who support our work with regular monthly donations and allow us to

human milk bank in Croatia, Ministry of Health recognized the establishment of human milk bank as one of the key investments in the wellbeing of the youngest children, and has included its establishment in its 2018-2020 Strategic Plan, and the plan is for the human milk bank to be established by the end of this year. In Croatia, annually, 2000 children in average are born premature, and 400 of them need intensive medical care.

Mother’s milk is crucial for their survival and development. Human milk is both food and medicine for the preemies, and children who

feed on mother’s milk are exposed to several times smaller risk from severe infections and development of long-term complications and their stay at the hospital is shorter.

This is what we will provide for the youngest children in cooperation with the Ministry of Health and with the support from the citizens.

Over the past year, Republic of Croatia initiated major investments in construction and reconstruction of kindergartens in Croatia. How much will that help improve inequality in the approach to education at an early age?

— Access to quality early upbringing and education is crucial for every child’s development. Today, in 146 municipalities in Croatia, little girls and boys don’t have a chance to go to kindergarten. Even where kindergartens exist, they are not available to every child.

Will the child get the chance to go to kindergartens, that depends on whether their parents are employed, which part of Croatia it is growing up and whether the city or municipality they live in is rich or poor. Regional differences are significant, and European Union’s goal is to ensure that, by 2020, at least 95% of children attend kindergarten. When the children don’t have the opportunity to go to kindergarten, we deprive them of their right to develop their abilities, talents and skills in a modern manner. Here we need to pay special attention to vulnerable groups of children, like children from families with weaker socio-economic status, who are most often deprived of this right. I am certain that through joint and coordinated action, we can ensure that every child in Croatia has the opportunity to attend kindergarten, at least from the fourth year of their life.

WE ARE EXTREMELY PROUD OF THE MUSEUM OF REALITY Under the organization of UNICEF, the Museum of Illusions in Zagreb transforms into a Museum of Reality every year, thus bringing the reality of the most jeopardized children closer to us. How often do you reach for new technologies to shed light on the problems or make children’s lives more beautiful?

— Museum of Reality is a project we are extremely proud of. Over the past three years, thousands of people visited the Museum of Reality. With virtual reality, experience rooms, holograms, optical illusions and installations, they experienced an interac-

8

tive journey that brought often devastating realities of children in Croatia and the world closer to them.

New technologies help us in projects like these, but also in the implementation of the program, because very often, with the help of innovations and new technologies, we ensure that the help we provide is more effective, more comprehensive and more available. For example, at the moment UNICEF is testing the delivery of vaccines to rural, hard-to-reach areas with the help of drones.

This type of delivery will be more favourable and simpler, and we will be able to deliver life-saving vaccines to a greater number of children.

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

9

NATIONAL DAYS

ARRI VALS & D EPA R T UR E S

in September & October

SEPTEMBER

EMILIJA GEORGIEVA

28

New Ambassador of Switzerland

Ms Emilija Georgieva is a Swiss career diplomat since 2000. Her former postings include Vienna (UN/OSCE Delegation), Berne (Asia Division in the Political Directorate), Washington, DC (Head of Press and Public Affairs / Counsellor for Political Affairs) and Singapore (Deputy Head of Mission).

As of September 2018, she is the Ambassador of Switzerland in the Republic of Croatia.

Ms Georgieva graduated with a Master’s Degree in History and Public Law from the University of Zurich, Switzerland. Before joining the diplomatic service, she worked as a research and teaching assistant for security policy at the ETH Zurich.

Ms Georgieva is fluent in German, English, French, Spanish and Bulgarian.

She is married with three children.

CZECHIA St. Wenceslas Day

30

BOTSWANA

Independence Day

OCTOBER

01

CHINA National Day

01

CYPRUS Independence Day

MARIN POLJAK

01

President of Ledo d.d. Management Board

This is a manager with almost twenty years of management experience in multinational FMCG companies. Marin Poljak is coming from Philip Morris International, from the position of Transformation Director for Key European Markets, and before that he was the Marketing and Commercial Strategy Director at Philip Morris International Alpe Adria. In the period from 2013 to 2016, he was Commercial Director and member of Philip Morris Zagreb Management Board, prior to which he

NIGERIA

was the EEMA Region Marketing Director. Before Philip Morris, he was employed at British American Tobacco, where he was the Marketing Manager for the markets of Croatia and Bosnia Herzegovina, after which he was Premium Brands Brand Manager in Ukraine and Moldova, and Group Brand Manager and HoReCa Channel Manager in Turkey. He graduated from the Faculty of Economy of the University of Zagreb, and completed a number of additional international professional trainings.

National Day

02

GUINEA

National Day

02

INDIA ahatma Gandhi’s M Birthday

03

GERMANY German Unity Day

03

SOUTH KOREA

MARCELLO MOTTADELLI Director of HNK’s Opera

At the session of the Theatre Council of the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, Marcello Mottadelli was appointed to the position of current Director of the Opera, Nikša Bareza.

Marcello Mottadelli presented himself to Zagreb’s audience in May this year, when he conducted at the premiere of Puccini’s Turandot opera at the

Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb.

Marcello Mottadelli graduated in organ and composition at the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory of Music in Milan in 1999, and he immediately began his professional career as the Chief Conductor of the Bern Symphony Orchestra and the local Stadtheater, where he conducted numerous opera performances.

aecheonjeol, ancient G Korea founded in 2333 BC

12

SPAIN National Day

23

HUNGARY National Day

25 DARIO ŠALIĆ Jamnica Management Board President

Dario Šalić is a manager with years of experience in beverages industry who gained a rich professional experience in various managing positions in large international and regional companies.

UN

Subscribe NOW!

Main Holiday: UN Day

26

AUSTRIA National Day

only

399KN per year!

29

TURKISH

National Day (Republic Day)

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

10

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

PO LI TI C S

Generation “Why”

Text: ŽELIMIR MARAŠ

Where do we go, where do we go now (sweet child o’ mine)?

Baby-boomers obbeyed ther bosses. Generation X openly rebelled, like Nirvana. Generation Y simply ignores authorities they don't respect. They don't want you to teach them and preach to them, they want you to love them and appreciate them. They are a great business opportunity.

Funny thing is that I belong to the Generation X but, since my country was „frozen“ from the end of 1991 to the beginning of 2001, I have lost some 10 years in the fog and therefore I feel like a Generation Y member. And we all got „rebooted“ as teenagers when we had to be grown-ups. We had, in former Yugoslavia, especially in UN-sanctioned Serbia, lots of this „Peter Pan syndrome“ in us, but as someone cleverly noticed, we were pioneers in this field.

Now everybody in the world has a prolongued teenage and youth, not having any plans to grow mature, or, God forbid, old. And the people who came after us, were appropriately called „Generation Y“. Partly because Y comes after X, partly because there is a nice word game included: Generation „Why“. A generation that questions everything. Sometimes they called them „Generation I“ (for putting themselves in front of everything), iGeneration (like iPod) or eGeneration (don't need to mention why „e“), or the Millennials, since they became grown-ups in the year

2000. The first of their generation anyway, since the first generation of the Millennials is said to be the one born in 1980, 1981 or 1982. The Generation X still rules the world, together with the Baby-boomers, but wait, here come the Y's. And after them, the Generation Z. Well, they are still mysterious since the oldest ones among them are 17 (the Generation Z starts at the year 2000). But, forget the Z's. This is the story of the „Why's“.

tions are disruptive and disrupted.

Like every other Narcissus, they are rather depressed and alone. Lots of them don't go out at all. They think that the hard work is not the way, since every Kardashian can be a star, so why not me? Why wait?

Unfortunately, they lack empathy, and they are rather egocentic, don't stand criticism and they are ready to leave if they face critics, instead of changing themselves.

They think, well, like I think most of the time: well, if they don't like me hear, so why bother? If I am not good for this job, there must be a job quite suitable for me, around the corner. It makes them both good and bad employees and bosses. They are just different. Always ready to move to another place, the Millennials are expected to change from 10 to 14 jobs until they are 38.

Wow! I bet your dad changed two positions at most. But here come the depressing narcissi flowers.

The sort attention span and the lack of incentive can lead to the fact that many of them still live with their parents, not being financially independent. Sometimes they think that climbing slowly up the ladders of success in career is too slow and futile.

And they are somehow right: lots of countries in the West have

THEY WANT TO WORK AND THEY ARE AMBITIOUS, BUT HIGHLY FLEXIBLE. WORKING FROM HOME? GREAT. WORKING FROM A THAILAND RESORT? EVEN BETTER. FLEXIBLE HOURS, WORKING WEEKENDS, FREE WEDNESDAYS? OK DEPRESSED NARCISSUS AS AN ARCHETYPE

The members of Generation Y are narcissistic more than any other generation before. Maybe Mr Bean invented „selfie“, but the Generation Y made the crucial evolution of it. They are splashed with information. They communicate with short messages, in asynchronous mode, avoiding phone calls. They don't watch the regular media, rather choosing what they want to hear. And guess what?

We got the whole generation of people who only want to hear the like-minded. The attention span has dramatically shortened, and the emotional and friendly rela-

faced the very slow growth for the last 10 years. Many experts talks about the „secular stagnation“, the type of society with, say, 1% GDP growth, which means that the next generation will not live twice better than their parents. We will always live like this. Forever. So, why should we bother about too much education, culture? I want it all and I want it now. So, it is not bad thing after all. The Generation Y is perfect „dough“ for „baking“ startups. And truly, they are always prone to find a new niche in the ever-changing world of today's economy. They are prone to resign quickly and start their own jobs.

If Generation X was keen to make

e-Economy and dot.com bubble, the Millennials are taking it to whole another level. They remember things quicker but they they tend to forget them more quickly.

A paradox? They have difficulties in concentration since from their childhood they were exposed to multiple sources of information.

And yet, it made them good in multitasking. They want to work and they are ambitious, but highly flexible. Working from home?

Great. Working from a Thailand resort? Even better. Flexible hours, working weekends, free Wednesdays? OK. Anything goes, and nothing is classical now. But they know, since terrorism and secular stagnation proved it, that waiting leads to nothing. Life is short, and take it all now. React now, it will not be better „just by itself“.

The Generation Y is known for disbelief in many things. If for X's a tattoo was a rebellion, now not having a tattoo could be a rebellion – a tattoo is now mainstream. They are notoriously bad in retaining not only jobs but relationships. They dislike systemic parties and vote for extreme solutions, even mockery.

Trump, Sanders, Brexit, Cinque Stelle. You name it. Ljubiša Preletačević – Beli. It is an ironic generation. And that makes the world falsely optimistic and deeply depressed. They can walk away from everything: ideas, jobs, friends, loved ones. The Generation X was the last generation when women wanted to get married and men tried to escape it saying „well I am young and crazy“. Now everyone is crazy and forever young. But suferficial too, inactive. Active holidays like skiing lost their appeal. The Millennials like lazy sun holidays. Baby-boomers obbeyed ther bosses. Generation X openly rebelled, like Nirvana. Generation Y members simply ignore authorities they don't respect. They don't want you to teach them and preach to them, they want you to love them and appreciate them.

In Serbia, Generations X and Y somehow merged. And they say we should be somehow afraid of the „silent“ and introvert Generation Z. But one thing is certain. The world will never be the same as Generation Y rises to the sky.

11

INTERVI EW

Its Better, But Not Enough

Although the government cannot be criticized for not changing things for the better, the overload of the economy, latently weakening the results of the labour market and structural problems in the education, health and pension system, slow us down and make us less attractive than the new EU member states

DAVOR MAJETIĆ

Managing Director of the Croatian Employers' Association

The greatest difference in work and competitiveness between Croatian and foreign entrepreneurs lies in the environment or in the country. "We offer government proposals for amending the law and introducing incentives that would strengthen our competitiveness, become more attractive in attracting investment and preventing the departure of youngsters," says Davor Majetic, chief executive of the Croatian Employers' Association.

How do your members rate the business environment in the Republic of Croatia? What are the conditions for increasing the volume of business?

— The Croatian Employers' Association (HUP) has developed just for such analysis, special tools HUP Skor, Reform Measurement Tool and Business Expectations

12

Exiting at the end of each year - a poll where employers express their satisfaction with the current business climate and provide forecasts for the future. The business environment is still unfavourable, and entrepreneurship is entered mostly out of necessity and less from personal motivation and

the average entrepreneur, and especially the small one, can hardly follow (new regulations are made on a daily basis) and for various imposition, fiscal and parafiscal, which are often unjustified and suffocate the business of entrepreneurs. In the traditional research of business expectations that the HUP

WE CAN PRAISE THE GOVERNMENT'S RAPID RESPONSE TO THE INCREASE IN LABOUR FORCE IMPORT QUOTAS, WHICH SAVED THIS SEASON FOR MANY EMPLOYERS, AND THE BEGINNING OF IMPLEMENTATION OF TAX REFORM AND EDUCATION REFORM recognition of business opportunities. The biggest lag according to HUP Skor has been recorded in three areas: excessive economic burden, latently weak labour market outcomes and structural problems in the education, health and pension system. Entrepreneurship in the Republic of Croatia is demanding because of the large volume of regulations that are subject to permanent changes that

conducts among its members, the general economic situation in 2017 was rated at 2.69 (from 5.0). For this year, employers have estimated that the economy will remain the same (48.3 percent) or be slightly better (46.6 percent). For business terms and investment, most believe it will remain the same (62.9 percent), and improvement is predicted by only a third of respondents. As main obstacles to busi-

ness, employers continue to point out high taxes and contributions, inefficient public administration and bad judiciary. HUP is actively working to improve the business climate in the Republic of Croatia with its proposals and observations on regulations as a member of the Economic Social Council (GSV) and one of the social partners of the Government of the Republic of Croatia. Increasing the volume of work would certainly be desirable, but it is impossible without an adequate labour force that is still lacking in the Republic of Croatia. Investing available funds of employers in raising wages for workers is not yet sufficient to compensate for the lack of workers in the market.

In you were in the Government, what steps would you take for the first time to accelerate economic growth?

— First of all, it is necessary to raise the competitiveness of the Croatian economy, primarily by reducing the burden on entrepreneurs through the implementation of real structural reforms that are

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

still absent, despite the announcements of the Government of Croatia, except the tax reform we see as a good initiative that started last year and that is still in progress. I would like to point out that parallel work on redesigning of Croatia needs to be done through each Minister and ministry. Such activities will lead to new investments and, consequently, greater competitiveness of domestic companies and growth of the economy, employment, salaries, income of the country, i.e. to sum it up - a better life for all citizens.

How competitive Croatian companies are compared to their European counterparts? What are the key obstacles to private sector development?

— Some companies, which we can call the crown of the Croatian economy, are on the demanding European Union market to achieve excellent results, but in general, we need to be more competitive.

Countries of the so-called new Europe we are confronted with has, at some point in time, undertaken profound reforms, attracting many investors and entrepreneurs today.

HUP Skor, which is comparatively measured by Croatia from 11 EU member states, this year was slightly higher and increased to 36 points, however, we are still at the bottom. The range of results for the other new EU members ranges from 46 points in Slovakia to 65 in the best of them Estonia, so our score of 36 points is by no means satisfactory. Key obstacles are lack of workforce, high tax and parafiscal burden, e.g. Croatia has the highest VAT in tourism from all countries in the region to deal with it, that makes us uncompetitive.

Unfortunately, the biggest difference in work and competitiveness between Croatian and foreign entrepreneurs lies in the environment that is in the state. But it must be said that employers themselves through investments and digitization can significantly raise their competitiveness. And here we come again to the investments we do not have because in an uncompetitive state, after all that we pay, one can hardly make money for investments, and the loans and capital are still relatively more expensive than with our competitors.

What is the quality of dialogue with all the factors in society that are part of your dialogue to improve the business climate?

— As part of the Economic So-

cial Council, which is also HUP a member of, we conduct social dialogue with the Government of the Republic of Croatia and trade unions. The quality of the dialogue can be assessed as positive but too dependent on certain situations and regulations and in this area we see room for significant changes.

HUP is a voluntary association that joins more than 6,000 members in its membership, accounting for more than 60% of GDP and employing more than 500,000 employees. On the daily basis of our members we receive inquiries for all key economic issues and we are

repeatedly warned about, and we responded to the Government of the Republic of Croatia to increase the number of foreign workers.

The government this year, we can boast it, reacted quite quickly and made a decision on additional quotas for the import of workers.

But as we are constantly pointing out, the quota system and permit system is actually only a firearm measure, but it is still necessary to find ways to keep Croatia's workforce in Croatia and to prepare future staff for the labour market through the education system in a better way than it has been done

IN AN UNCOMPETITIVE STATE, AFTER ALL THAT WE PAY, ONE CAN HARDLY MAKE MONEY FOR INVESTMENTS, AND THE LOANS AND CAPITAL ARE STILL RELATIVELY MORE EXPENSIVE THAN WITH OUR COMPETITORS trying to pay all of them equal care and employers' demands to communicate to the Government of the Republic of Croatia through the work of the aforementioned GSV. How much in workflow can be felt the leave of workforce into European countries? What staffs are most lacking?

— Certainly, a lack of workforce can be felt, which the HUP has

so far. Employers are prepared to raise salaries and raise the standard to their employees, but the above mentioned business breakdown relief is needed - certainly no employer is happy with the fact that workers are leaving and that he must import workforce from abroad, the goal for all is to keep workers in Croatia but here also we are expecting from the state to reduce the amount of imposition

THERE IS ROOM FOR FURTHER GROWTH, BUT LACK OF WORKFORCE IS WORRYING Can you feel in Croatia optimism regarding a slight recovery of the European economy?

— In the second quarter, the Croatian GDP grew by 2.9%, and every such positive move HUP welcomes, especially considering the increase in exports and personal consumption as a result of wage growth in Croatia.

But employers are still not overoptimistic and have been communicate via HUP that there is room for further growth, with the greatest limitation factor being the lack of workforce.

in order to increase the space for the salary raise. At present, there is a great shortage of workers in the trade sector, continuously there are about 3000 retailers, especially in the area of Dubrovnik and Istria, missing for the needs of tourist season. In other industries, also there is still a shortage of workforce - for example, there are currently 110 workers missing in the metal industry, 321 in shipbuilding, 280 in the wood industry, and 120 workers in the electronics industry.

In relation to that, what are your suggestions to the government of the Republic of Croatia?

— Actually conduct of Reforms.

In addition to these horizontal measures that I have mentioned earlier and for which implementation requires deeper structural reforms, we consider that even smaller concrete measures could significantly facilitate business in the Republic of Croatia, such as treating the workers accommodation and meal allowance as an non-taxable expense, to raise the threshold of the non-taxable part of the salary in order to pay the 13th salary to the workers, to consider the possibility of recruiting retired people and to reduce VAT on accommodation and catering.

Such and other changes and incentives would strengthen our own competitiveness, become more attractive in attracting and preventing young people from leaving and responding more strongly to market opportunities.

As someone who is at the helm of an employers' association, what would be the good moves of this government, and what should be done more in order to improve the business environment?

— We can praise the Government's rapid response to the increase in labour force import quotas, which saved this season for many employers, and certainly the beginning of tax reform and education reform, as well as the delay in introducing property taxes, according to the current proposal.

We hope that the Government will not stop on these moves and that other, more thorough reform, such as public administration, health care and other departments will be expected from autumn.

Every step in the direction of entrepreneurship business relief can be considered as a good move and we hope to see more and more of them in the future.

13

CORPO RATE

Renault Nissan Adriatic

Tourism and Economic Growth Boost Sales

The overall Croatian market has recorded the highest growth in Europe in the first six months of this year, with a 20% increase compared to 2017, and as such, it "pulls" other markets from our cluster and gives us the title of the cluster with the highest recorded growth in Europe

JEAN-PIERRE MESIĆ

General Manager of Renault Nissan Adriatic

Jean-Pierre Mesić has been the General Manager of Renault Nissan Adriatic since 2016 and is in charge of all sales and post-sales activities for the brands Renault, Dacia and Nissan in the former Yugoslav states and Albania.

The Adriatic Region is one o Renault's nine clusters in Europe, and despite being the smallest cluster in Europe, based on sales results, Mesić is proud of the fact that they hold the biggest market share, in terms of the sales of Renault and Dacia, in Europe for the second consecutive year, which puts this cluster right below France.

How would you rate the potential of this market and how much does its dualilty (in and outside the EU) affect the devising of your sales strategy?

— Car markets in all the countries listed above reached their maximum in 2008, with 100,000 vehicles sold.

After that, the vehicle sales kept declining until 2013, after which they started to grow again. We predict that they will continue to grow for at least another 5 years. In Croatia, this growth is significantly fueled by the tourism boom, which leads to a substantial increase in rent-a-car business, but also in the increase in the overall economic growth. Our cluster is made up of countries that are not yet EU members and they have the greatest potential for growth, because their recovery is still ongoing and they are far from reaching their maximum in terms of population and other resources they have.

14

How satisfied are you with the results in the region in 2018?

Which brands have the greatest potential for growth?

— We are extremely pleased with all of our results - in the first 6 months, the car sales in the entire region increased by 11% and light commercial vehicles by 15% relative to the same period of 2017. In addition to Renault, Dacia is another brand with a high potential in all the countries of the region. Renault's complete knowhow and skills have been used in

Did the economic recovery of Croatia boost the demand for your vehicles?

— After years of stagnation or a very slight market increase in the private customer segment since 2014, the 27% sales growth in this segment, in the first six months of this year, clearly indicates an increase in the living standard of citizens and the real need for renewal of their outdated fleet. This is also supported by increasingly favourable financing terms that our citizens are resort-

WE ARE EXTREMELY PLEASED WITH ALL OF OUR RESULTS - IN THE FIRST 6 MONTHS, THE CAR SALES IN THE ENTIRE REGION INCREASED BY 11% AND LIGHT COMMERCIAL VEHICLES BY 15% RELATIVE TO THE SAME PERIOD OF 2017 production of Dacia vehicles, which means that no additional investment was required in their development and research which makes them more affordable. They are also still reliable and durable, having the ideal investment / return ratio.

ing to more and more, unlike a few years ago, when the vehicles were mostly purchased with cash. If we look at the growth in vehicle sales, we can conclude that the economy is recovering as this channel represents 70% of the total sales of all

REDY FOR ELECTRIC CAR How ready is the Croatian market for the transfer to electric cars? What does your company offer in this segment in the Adriatic market?

Ever since the launch of electric cars with a battery capacity of at least 40 kW, like our Renault ZOE with a 300km range, the market has generally become ready for electrification of motor traffic, but in Croatia, we still have to wait for that. Namely, the state must do its part in implementing a long-term systematic policy to encourage the purchase of EVs by introducing measures of positive discrimination for EVs, changes in electricity distribution and other measures. Renault today offers three models of electric vehicles - the aforementioned small city car, the 100% electric Renault Zoe, currently the best-selling EV in the European market, the Twizy four-wheel bicycle-car hybrid, and Kangoo Z.E. which attracted attention from numerous Croatian companies during the last call for applications for subsidies.

vehicles in our country.

It is important to point out that the overall Croatian market has recorded the highest growth in Europe in the first six months of this year, with a 20% increase compared to 2017, and as such, it "pulls" other markets from our cluster and gives us the title of the cluster with the highest recorded growth in Europe. In addition to these very important growth factors, there is another factor that can significantly affect the car market and that is the new WLTP protocol.

This protocol forces all automotive manufacturers to modify their engines to reduce emissions, and these changes and new technologies come with a price.

You were quoted as saying that, as a manager, you value human capital the most. How satisfied are you with your team and distribution network?

— I think that human capital is crucial for a company. It's the driving force behind the company, and it propells its progress. The most important thing is to recruit good people, then help them grow, constantly motivate them and thus keep them at the company. We, in our company, have the ability to direct the career of our employees so that they can reach international positions within the Alliance. This is great for people who manage to do that, but it is also a validation for us, as a branch, that first recognized them as talents. I am extremely pleased with my team with whom I am communicating a lot. Each day, we learn together how to be simpler and faster, while focusing on what matters.

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

INTERVI EW

Harmonization Will Take Months All data, including personal data, are becoming increasingly more important for business operations in Croatia as well. Consequently, it is necessary to conduct a quality and continuous education of employees in order to familiarize them with rules for protection of all data, including personal data, as stipulated by GDPR eral Data Protection Regulation.

What kind of legal text did we ultimately get?

ALEKSANDAR CRNKOVIĆ Attorney-at-Law and Expert in GDPR matters

All EU members, to some extent, were unprepared for application of GDPR. According to research conducted in Germany in December of 2017 by Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung (ZEW), Mannheim, on a sample of 700 enterprises, 40% of surveyed enterprises had only heard about GDPR by then, but they didn’t start the adjustment. “As an expert in this field, I can say that only few serious enterprises may implement complete harmonization with GDPR rules in such a short period, unless a high level of harmonization existed previously,” stated Aleksandar Crnkovic, attorney-at-law from Zagreb and expert in GDPR matters. “Situation was far worse in Croatia, because many did not even hear about GDPR before the numerous media reports in April of 2018.”

Our interlocutor says that in average, large enterprises were much more prepared for application of GDPR than micro companies, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) were. GDPR is a complex interdisciplinary matter, which requires experts in the field of IT

16

and law, which is something that SMEs most often do not have. The situation is the same in all EU members and therefore GDPR itself provides certain advantages for SMEs. Unfortunately, the necessary measures for SMEs that were supposed to be taken into consideration by the European Commission according to recital 167 of GDPR, have not been adopted until today.

Responding to the question on the consequences which Croatia would bear for lack of preparation, Crnković states that it is difficult to

— I am currently cooperating with NOYB – European Center for Digital Rights on a project of analysis of GDPR implementation laws in all EU members and I have to point out that Croatian implementation law is not the worst one. Of course, the law could have been more detailed and could have clarified a series of issues that GDPR leaves unresolved. The law ensures independence of the Personal Data Protection Agency (AZOP) as a supervisory body, it stipulates its organization, legal procedure in front of AZOP and supervision thereof. On the other hand, possibilities to define rules for personal data protection

GDPR IS A COMPLEX INTERDISCIPLINARY MATTER, WHICH REQUIRES EXPERTS IN THE FIELD OF IT AND LAW, WHICH IS SOMETHING THAT SMES MOST OFTEN DO NOT HAVE talk about this subject at this point. “ It is important to emphasize that after the initial storm in the media at the onset of GDPR application, we now have a calm before an even bigger storm, and this is certainly to be expected once the supervisory bodies really start to conduct their supervision”, states D&C interlocutor.

In a public debate in which you participated personally, there were many motions for changes and amendments to the Law on the Implementation of the Gen-

more clearly have been exercised only to a limited extent. For example, processing of genetic data is prohibited, while processing of biometric data is limited. A positive element of this law is certainly the respondents' possibility to exercise their rights to personal data protection. Taking into consideration the success of Association Franak, it is certainly commendable that the Croatian legislator allowed for possibility of organization of citizens in associations in the field of personal data protection.

From the onset of implementation, it was a known fact that General Regulation is a major challenge for public administration. How to discipline the public administration when – if sanctioned – it would be paying fines to itself, i.e. to the state budget?

— Implementation of GDPR must be viewed much more extensively than merely through imposition of monetary sanctions. Namely, by applying GDPR, new rules were introduced for personal data management for the purpose of protection of citizens’ personal rights and privacy. This way, for example, GDPR includes the right to be forgotten, right to verification of accuracy of personal data, as well correction and transfer thereof. Also, GDPR expands the obligations to inform and undertake actions in relation to violation of personal data and the respondent must be informed immediately and comprehensively about the violation of personal data in case of a hacking attack. GDPR rules apply equally to physical persons and legal entities and to public authorities (state administration bodies and other state bodies, local and regional government units, persons with public authorizations or legal entities performing public service). The regulation does not stipulate separate rules for public administration, however certain provisions allow of exceptions. For example, GDPR rules do not apply to data processing conducted by the competent authorities for the purpose of prevention, investigation, revealing or prosecuting criminal offenses or the execution

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

of criminal sanctions, including protection against threats to public safety and prevention thereof.

The GDPR implementation law prevented sanctioning of state administration bodies and other state bodies by administrative monetary fines, while imposing of such administrative fines may not jeopardize exercise of public authority or public service by persons with public authority or legal entities performing public service. However, GDPR clearly raised the bar of personal data protection for public administration as well, which has to protect personal data from loss, changes and manipulations. Clear rules have been determined about the purpose and methods necessary to facilitate such protection. Therefore, public administration will inevitably have to invest more effort and funds in the stipulated risk analyses, documenting of proceedings, assessments of effects of data processing and techniques for personal data processing. At the same time, public administration bodies are under obligation to submit evidence to the regulatory bodies that they fulfilled their obligations from the Regulation, as well as under obligation to submit reports in cases of personal data violation. Certainly, each person who sustained material or non-material damage due to personal data violation is entitled to receive compensation of such damages from the controller or the processor, which includes public authorities.

Regardless of GDPR, Criminal Code of the Republic of Croatia stipulates criminal offense of unauthorized use of personal data, punishable with imprisonment up to one year and in case this criminal offence was committed by an official in the performance of service or a responsible person while exercising public authority, with imprisonment between six months and five years.

Which actors in the business sector may be identified as ones who

really and completely understood what this Regulation brings?

— There are certain sectors in the economy that process more personal data than others, for example, marketing agencies, banks, telecoms and internet service providers, online stores, hospitals, pri-

on them? Do they exercise it?

— It is precisely transferring the obligation to educate the citizens about their rights that GDPR transfers to those who process their personal data. We are increasingly observing the increase of citizens’ concern about protection of their

A CRITICAL MASS OF RESPONSIBLE CITIZENS AWARE OF THEIR RIGHTS, WITHOUT WHICH A RESPONSIBLE CIVIL SOCIETY OR CONTROL OF FUNCTIONING OF A LEGAL STATE CANNOT EXIST, IS SLOWLY FORMING vate polyclinics are certainly more vulnerable in case of violation of the Regulation than for example a purely manufacturing enterprise that processes only the data of its employees. Some enterprises that are more vulnerable in case of violation of GDPR indeed seriously understood the “threat” from these new rules and invested a lot of effort and assets in adjustment of their operations. I am intentionally saying some enterprises, because I daily notice that some, even large enterprises, continue to blatantly violate the Regulation because they failed to implement the harmonization with the Regulation at all or they failed do it adequately.

Are the citizens, for whose protection of rights this Regulation is actually intended, aware of the means that GDPR bestowed

rights, including protection of personal data. This proves that the level of trust in power of citizens to protect their rights is increasing and that a critical mass of responsible citizens aware of their rights, without which a responsible civil society or control of functioning of a legal state cannot exist, is slowly forming. Awareness of the value of personal data and the need for their protection in the society is increasingly growing and this Regulation precisely contributes to such development. Of course, there are certain groups that do not consider protection of their personal data as being currently important.

We especially see this among the younger population prone to give up on their privacy entirely for the purpose of personalized marketing, for example, or greater popularity on social networks. Citizens’

personal data have long been an important resource in operations of many companies and it is up to each citizen to decide how they will dispose of their personal information and up to the state to enable effective protection thereof.

In this case, it is not only the supervisory body of the Republic of Croatia that may impose sanctions, but they may be imposed also by a supervisory body of any EU member where a company is performing its business activities, or in case of more serious violations, even by the EC directly, like in the recent Facebook case. Do you expect such drastic moves in Croatia?

— Personal Data Protection Agency (AZOP) is now an independent state body, it has far greater competences than prior to adoption of the Law and we have to wait to see the results of its work. If necessary, supervisory bodies may conduct joint investigations and joint implementation measures with participation of members or staff of supervisory bodies of other member countries. There is a possibility, for example, for members of the Austrian supervisory body to conduct an investigation together with AZOP members on the territory of Croatia and vice versa.

Considering that a number of enterprises founded by enterprises from other EU countries are currently operating in Croatia and that stipulated sanctions may amount up to 4% of company’s total annual turnover on an international level, it is realistic to expect that investigations and measures imposed against companies in other EU members will affect their affiliated companies in Croatia. However, a reverse scenario is also possible, where supervision of a company in Croatia would result in supervision and sanctioning of affiliated companies in other EU members.

QUALITY AND CONTINUOUS EDUCATION What should companies that in the meantime realized that this is a serious and potentially costly matter do?

— Survey “Making the Enterprise Data Centric”, conducted in Germany and the United Kingdom by the Vanson Bourne market research company, demonstrated that companies’ dependence on data has significantly increased in the past five years. According to that same survey, almost one third of respondents believe that the managerial staff does not know how valuable these data are for the operations of their companies. All data,

including personal data, are becoming increasingly more important for business operations in Croatia as well. Consequently, it is primarily necessary to conduct a quality and continuous education of employees on all levels, in order to enable them to understand the importance of data in general and also to be familiar with rules for protection of all data, including personal data. Personal data protection was often neglected, and all entities that process such data will have to invest additional effort to act in accordance with principles of legal, fair and transparent personal data processing.

17

CORPO RATE Shire

With Patients Every Step of the Way In Croatia, we need to work on setting up a system for evaluating and approving the use of medicines for rare diseases. This system should reflect a low number of patients as well as the severity of the illness of the affected patients and society as such. Orphan drug status currently does not have many practical implications when placing a drug on the list of expensive medicines in Croatia

VIKTORIJA ZADRO HUML

General Manager Shire for Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Worldwide 350 million people live with one of over 7000 recognised rare diseases. While the pharmaceutical industry is developing new and innovative therapies at an incredible pace, diagnosis and early treatment are sometimes the weakest link when it comes to addressing diseases which often have high mortality rate. Sometimes years pass before the right diagnosis is established.

For patients with a rare disease diagnosis, less than 1 out of 10 receive treatment specific for the disease. In order to improve the results, industry is urging clinicians, patients and health care systems in countries to form strong

18

partnerships and get the right medicines to patients.

Shire, the UK based company founded in 1986 is the world's leading biotechnology company focused on helping patients with rare diseases and specialized conditions.

“Our ambition is bold and simple; to help people with rare diseases

families and caregivers throughout their journey”, says our interlocutor.

Today, Shire has over 40 medicinal products available across many speciality and rare disease areas.

“In Croatia we focus on genetic diseases, haematology, immunology and internal medicine”, says Ms Zadro Huml. “Shire is driving

SHIRE IS DRIVING BREAKTHROUGH SCIENCE IN POORLY UNDERSTOOD DISEASES. IN CROATIA WE FOCUS ON GENETIC DISEASES, HAEMATOLOGY, IMMUNOLOGY AND INTERNAL MEDICINE live better lives”, says Viktorija Zadro Huml, General Manager Shire for Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. And to do so, Shire is going beyond developing medicines. It's aim is to improve diagnosis, accelerate access to treatments and support people with rare diseases, their

breakthrough science in poorly understood diseases. Currently we're conducting over 40 research programs globally, 20% of patients involved are children and 70% are rare disease specific.”

To what extent are rare diseases

a problem in Croatia? What are rare diseases?

— A disease or disorder that affects fewer than 1 in 2000 is defined as rare. Worldwide 350 million people live with one of over 7000 recognised rare diseases. In Europe rare diseases affect about 6-8% of the total population, which means that roughly 250,000 people in Croatia are currently affected. Rare diseases are among the toughest and most complicated of diseases.

They are often severe, debilitating and can lead to early death. Most are genetic in origin and start at birth or in childhood. Sadly, estimated one in three children born with a rare disease will not reach their 5th birthday.

Why is mortality so high?

— Although more than 7000 rare diseases have been identified, 95% of rare diseases have no treatment.

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

The path to diagnosis for a patient with a rare disease is often very challenging and sometimes lasts more than 10 years visiting up to 8 different specialists. For patients with a rare disease diagnosis, less than 1 out of 10 receive treatment specific for the disease. 80% of rare diseases of genetic origin, meaning that these people have not brought this condition on themselves with an unhealthy lifestyle and that they cannot help themselves with lifestyle changes.

The statistics sound drastic.

What can be done?

— The statistics are drastic! These are often some of the most overlooked patients and we need to ensure that they are given focus.

Industry is developing new and innovative therapies at an incredible pace. However, industry needs partnership with clinicians, patients and health care systems in countries to get these medicines to patients. We

need to get better at speeding up diagnosis for rare disease patients, as speed matters. Late diagnosis can lead to irreparable consequences and complications of the underlying disease, complicate treatment and significantly affect the prognosis of success. Impact on patient’s life and

a low number of patients as well as disease severity of the affected patients and society as such. "Orphan drug" or orphan drug status currently does not have any practical implications when placing a drug on the list of expensive medicines in Croatia.

SHIRE'S PIPELINE IS RICHEST IT HAS EVER BEEN IN SHIRE'S HISTORY AND CURRENTLY INCLUDES COMPOUNDS WITH POTENTIAL INDICATIONS FOR THE TREATMENT OF RARE DISEASES AT ALL STAGES OF CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT life of the family is huge. We also need to accelerate access and work on innovative access models to get these medicines to patients.

According to the National Program for Rare Diseases from 2015, in Croatia, we need to work on setting up a system for evaluating and approving the use of medicines for rare diseases. This system should reflect

What can be done to increase awareness of rare diseases among doctors and in society?

— Diagnosis is still a big challenge.

For example, according to literature prevalence, less than 40% of patients with Gaucher disease in Croatia are diagnosed, and the situation is similar for Fabry disease. Shire invests heavily in educating clinicians and

offers genetic testing free of charge to help patients get the most accurate diagnosis. Late diagnosis can lead to irreparable consequences and complications of the underlying disease, which makes it difficult to cure and significantly affects the clinical outcome. Our role is to help raise awareness of rare diseases, accelerate diagnosis and, together with competent institutions, provide access to treatment for all eligible patients.

What therapies developed by Shire are you particularly proud of?

— Shire has a lot of drugs that represent a major step forward in treatment. I am particularly proud of medicines for diseases for which there are currently no other alternative treatments. These include, for example, treatment of Hunter syndrome or as of recent short-bowel syndrome with intestinal failure.

These medicinal products are the only hope for children and adults affected by these serious illnesses.

5 NEW DRUGS AVAILABLE FOR CROATIAN PATIENTS BY 2020 What are Shire's further plans for rare diseases? Is the company conducting research on new drugs / therapies?

— Speed is important, especially for patients waiting for treatment. Shire has built a fast, entrepreneurial, international culture in which we give employees freedom and opportunities for excellence with a high degree of ethics and responsibility. Innovation is the foundation of building our strong clinical programs. We are serial innovators and try to incorporate this philosophy into

everything we do. Shire's pipeline is richest it has ever been in Shire's history and currently includes compounds with potential indications for the treatment of rare diseases at all stages of clinical development.

Globally we have about 40 clinical trials in various phases of testing and we expect to release 20 new drugs over the next three years. We plan to bring more possibilities for treating patients with rare diseases and to make at least 5 new drugs available for Croatian patients by 2020.

19

CORPO RATE Lancôme

Love Your Age, Love Your Sensitivity The new Advanced Génifique Sensitive is a unique answer to the chrono-sensitivity that affects a large majority of women. It encapsulates a fresh-activated formula that soothes the skin, stimulates its youthful properties and strengthens it when it is sensitive

Who among us has not been through times when our skin responds to seasonal changes, periods of stress or disruptions in our diet with unpleasant sensations such as heat discomfort, stinging or itching? These are all warming signs that women feel more than they see.

Far from unusual, according to the IFOP study on 2,000 women in China and the United States, sensitive skin is a universal and cyclical phenomenon that affects nearly two out of three women around the world. Lancôme has studied this

tive thanks to a capsule that contains antioxidants that are 99% pure which the user releases when she opens the bottle to create a boosted Youth Activating Serum for heightened efficacy. This daring goal resonates with the values Génifique has embraced for the last 8 years: a universal serum, a timeless serum, a holistic serum. Simply put: an iconic product.

Bold and universal: these characteristics have always been at the heart of Lancôme's ongoing efforts to support all women in their quest for beauty and well-being, says

skin condition, but a common, cyclical occurrence that affects all women, regardless of age, skin type or skin colour. While bad skin days do not occur all the time, they have a very real impact on the skin as they cause weakening, oxidation and inflammation. Indeed, these signs of sensitivity outbreaks may cause the skin to age prematurely.

Drawing on its formulation art, Lancôme has once again come up with a bold expert response to the new issue of sensitivity outbreaks: ADVANCED GÉNIFIQUE SENSITIVE. This dual concentrate offers all

the power of the iconic Advanced Génifique Youth Activator, enhanced with a new soothing probiotic fraction, combined with a blue ampoule infused with extremely pure antioxidant active ingredients.

It’s a highly-concentrated Advanced Génifique, freshly activated in oneclick for a one-month treatment period and maximum effectiveness.

When confronted with these bad skin days, the skin is deeply soothed with its youthful aura restored.

Advanced Génifique Sensitive is the product of a technological achievement combining all the

ADVANCED GÉNIFIQUE REMAINS THE EVERYDAY SERUM AND THE ESSENTIAL FIRST STEP IN A COMPREHENSIVE SKINCARE ROUTINE WITH SENSORY AND VISIBLE EFFECTIVENESS phenomenon and made an enlightening observation: during these times of skin sensitivity, a state of inflammatory crisis seizes the skin and skin ageing quietly accelerates.

The new Advanced Génifique Sensitive is the result of a daring goal: develop a one-month course of treatment with a fresh-activated formula that soothes the skin, stimulates its youthful properties and strengthens it when it is sensi-

20

Françoise Lehmann, General Manager, of the Lancôme International.

A consequence of modern life, Lancôme is redefining them on the basis of the 'chrono-sensitivity' concept – the idea that bad skin days aren't inevitable as in the case of atopic skin sensitivity. Rather, they come and go, manifesting for several days to several weeks, and may happen several times a year. In other words, they're not an established

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

power of the iconic Advanced Génifique serum, enriched with a new soothing probiotic fraction, the lactobacillus, with an antioxidant complex consisting of vitamin E and ferulic acid. The latter is a particularly powerful but difficult-to-stabilise active ingredient, which the Lancôme laboratories succeeded in isolating within an ampoule using fresh cosmetics. It is then activated at the last minute for maximum effectiveness.

As women's habits change and their needs evolve, increasing numbers are seeking exceptional

lies an exceptional carefully selected trio, resulting from a bifidobacterium (bifidobacterium longum) and yeast (saccharomyces cerevesia).

Already present in the Advanced Génifique serum, in Advanced Génifique Sensitive they are combined with soothing lactobacillus (lactobacillus casei) for the very first time.

These probiotic fractions are obtained via a cutting-edge biotechnological process which makes it possible to create extracts rich in the fundamental components of cell life, e.g. lipids, amino acids and carbohydrates whose properties really

ADVANCED GÉNIFIQUE IS MUCH MORE THAN A SERUM, IT'S AN ODE TO WOMEN AND BEAUTY techniques to combine with their usual routine for instant results. Ampoules, masks and other boosters have got skincare addicts talking.

When bad skin days push the skin into silent inflammatory crisis mode, an emergency response is required in the form of a fresh, all-new cosmetic treatment that soothes the skin and protects its aura of youth.

In the formulation of Advanced Génifique Sensitive, the Lancôme Laboratories combined three major probiotics fraction families for the first time. At the heart of the formula

complement the skin.

In addition to the Youth Activator action, Lancôme has added an extremely pure, powerful antioxidant complex to the Advanced Génifique Sensitive formula, consisting of ferulic acid and vitamin E. These two ingredients actively prevent oxidative stress – from internal or external factors – which attacks the skin, making it even more fragile. These active ingredients are able to target a wide range of oxidative stress, protecting against harmful effects that damage

cell membrane lipids essential to skin integrity.

In spite of its effectiveness, ferulic acid is extremely unstable and thus very difficult to incorporate into a formula. Drawing on its know-how, Lancôme opted to isolate the ferulic acid and vitamin E in an ampoule that is split open in a single click when the bottle is opened.

In practical terms, this bold and original 'fresh cosmetics' concept also protects the antioxidant effectiveness of the ferulic acid by keeping it sealed until opening.

Once the product is activated, the active ingredients in the ampoule combine with the base to release their antioxidant properties, combat the various free radicals that attack

the skin and offer maximum effectiveness throughout the treatment.

As a result, the skin is doubly soothed and protected by the Youth Activator base and the antioxidant-infused blue ampoule. Instant results are observed. The skin is relieved and released from the discomfort of sensitive times with its normal appearance restored – as women like it.

With this unique bottle, each woman is free to activate her skincare at the moment of her choosing, when she feels the need for it. Once open, she has one month to use the fresh treatment daily. One month to soothe, balance and repair the skin to better combat sensitive outbreaks and the passing of time.

THE ICONIC ADVANCED GÉNIFIQUE Launched in 2009 and updated in 2013, the 'little black bottle', as it is dubbed in Asia, has since transformed into a global icon. A universal serum and the first step in any Lancôme routine, this extraordinary skincare offers a positive approach to beauty. The irrefutable proof is its success to date: 20 million youth activators have already convinced women around the world, more than 150 international prizes have been awarded to the product and a woman goes home with this incomparable power concentrate every ten seconds, somewhere in the world.

Génifique also presents Génifique Yeux Light Pearl, which combines a fresh, lightweight serum with instant blurring effects with a spring-effect stainless pearl massage applicator. The result? Bigger eyes and a younger gaze.

Advanced Génifique is much more than a serum, it's an ode to women and beauty.

21

CA N H ACK IT

British Airways Admits That Over 380,000 Customers Had Their Data Stolen The airline could be hit by a big fine, but otherwise the consequences are limited

IT IS not a message any frequent flyer looks forward to receiving. On September 7th, British Airways (BA) said it had emailed over 380,000 customers who had booked flights with the carrier between August 21st and September 5th admitting that their credit-card details had been stolen by hackers. BA’s embattled chief executive, Alex Cruz, attributed the breach to a “malicious, fairly sophisticated attack” on its website. The airline thinks the hackers obtained names, street and e-mail addresses, and credit-card numbers, expiry dates and security codes—more than enough information to steal money from bank and credit-card accounts. Mr Cruz has promised compensation for any customers financially affected by the hack.

The airline has not released the full details of what happened, and is still investigating the breach. But it has admitted that it was only data used in transactions in that 15-day period, not saved credit-card data on customer accounts, that was stolen. Cyber-security experts say that hack sounds like it breached the system that managed customer payments, unlike previous attacks on other big companies where saved data was stolen.

Whatever the cause of the attack, aviation

22

analysts think BA is likely to be hit hard by fines from regulators. Under the EU’s new General Data Protection Regulation, which came into force in May, BA could face a fine of up to 4% of its revenues if it is determined that it did not do enough to protect customer information. That would be around £500m ($650m). If regulators decide that the penalty should be levied on the entire revenues of IAG, BA’s parent, that number could swell to as much as €1bn ($1.16bn). After adding the cost of compensating customers affected by the breach, it is no wonder that the group’s shares dropped in value by 2% on the morning the news became public.

BA COULD FACE A FINE OF UP TO 4% OF ITS REVENUES IF IT IS DETERMINED THAT IT DID NOT DO ENOUGH TO PROTECT CUSTOMER INFORMATION But analysts are wary about saying that the hack will affect BA or IAG’s longer term performance. BA has been hit by a serious of complaints about falling standards of service on its flight and by a computer crash that stranded

75,000 of its passengers last May. Mr Cruz has been crucified in the media for both public-relations meltdowns. Yet neither issue has really affected demand for BA flights.

So why do BA passengers keep coming back to the airline, in spite of it losing their credit-card data, checked-in baggage and taking away free nosh onboard? The answer is that they have little choice. New airlines simply cannot take market share away from BA at Heathrow. As long as it uses each take-off and landing slot it is allocated 80% of the time, it can keep it for the next season. As a result, the share of slots at Heathrow owned by BA’s parent has risen from 36% in 1999 to 54%. It has also been gobbling up slots at Gatwick from defunct airlines such as Monarch, to make sure Norwegian, a disruptive long-haul low-cost competitor, cannot get their hands on them. However much the airline's computer systems go wrong or it cuts back its level of service onboard, new competitors cannot push it off the runway. Another IT disaster will not change that.

From The Economist, published under licence.

The original article, in English, can be found on www.economist.com

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

C O RPO RATE

Lumbrela d.o.o.

Powerful Audit Tool

Tickmark Audit Software (TAS) modernizes business and facilitates auditor's work since it provides cloud storage of all documentation and enables access to working papers to all members of the audit team, regardless of their location

Tickmark Audit Software (TAS) is the title given to a specialized cloud-based programme solution that provides support in auditing financial reports, both in Croatian and English language. The software was developed

by Lumbrela d.o.o., a company founded in 2011 with the goal of providing business consultancy and software-related services.

In order to increase its market competitiveness, the company decided to boost its software publishing capacities by introducing the new TAS functionality with the help of a grant from the European Regional Development Fund, awarded at the E-Impuls competition. The grant was awarded to the company's project titled "Increasing market competitiveness of the Lumbrela Company through investment in expansion of its service provision capacity�.

Apart from modernizing business activities, Tickmark Audit Software (TAS) greatly facilitates auditor's work since it provides cloud storage of all documentation and enables access to working papers to all members of the audit team, regardless of their location. By the same token, this specialized software solution enables audit firms to perform structured documented work in accordance with International Auditing Standards on pre-prepared templates. Furthermore, in line with the auditing standards' requirements, this tool has an advanced

operational management capability which enables users to define roles and permissions (reading, editing, browsing, archiving, etc.) for each individual user on each individual project.

Since Tickmark is based on the cloud computing technology, which uses a specialized Amazon Web Service, the users, apart from having a computer and access to cloud computing, do not need any additional investments in hardware

infrastructure, which has a beneficial impact on cost-effectiveness of auditing companies.

During the implementation of this project, the company has invested in hardware and software infrastructure with the view of increasing the software's production capacity and introducing the new TAS functionality. Special emphasis was put on the Import of Trial Balance module, which provides customized management

APART FROM HAVING A COMPUTER AND ACCESS TO CLOUD COMPUTING, TICKMARK'S USERS DO NOT NEED ANY ADDITIONAL INVESTMENTS IN HARDWARE INFRASTRUCTURE, WHICH HAS A BENEFICIAL IMPACT ON COSTEFFECTIVENESS OF AUDITING COMPANIES

and financial reporting based on the data obtained from the client's accounting system (gross balance sheet). Under the project's framework, and in addition to the aforementioned module, the company is developing a mobile phone platform that will enable the use of some of Tickmark's functionalities and the us of a module with statistical data related to the implementation and documentation of the audit report.

Through constant development of new modules, Lumbrela's goal is to additionally improve user experience in operating Tickmark, and offer to its clients / auditing companies a tool that will help them to bolster their own competitiveness. For more information about Tickmark, please go to www.tickmark-software.com.

23

INTERVI EW

We Prepared a Number of Surprises for the New Christmas Market Pronounced as the best Christmas market in Europe for three times in a row – Advent in Zagreb will bring again various events, warm and cosy atmosphere and a real holiday offer, where everyone will find something for themselves

MARTINA BIENEFELD

Director of Zagreb Tourist Board

They say that there is no better Christmas Market in Europe than the one in Zagreb, and maybe it’s not too soon to say that the capital of Croatia is an excellent place to visit any time of the year. Numerous tourists who return to Zagreb in all seasons are the best proof of that.

With prestigious awards for the best Christmas Market behind you, what surprise do you have in store for us this year?

the Advent in Zagreb project has developed into a wholesome and strongest tourist product of the city. This was recognized by our fellow citizens as well, who are among the best promoters of not only Christmas, but Zagreb in general. I often say that an event can succeed only if the local community accepts it, and the Advent

in Zagreb is the best example of this, because it managed to show and return to the streets that “good spirit” of Zagreb and the Christmas atmosphere, which are felt everywhere around. Here lies the key to our Christmas success and we are proud of the results we achieved.

How many guests do you expect

CHRISTMAS IN ZAGREB MANAGED TO RETURN TO THE STREETS THAT “GOOD SPIRIT” OF ZAGREB AND THE CHRISTMAS ATMOSPHERE, WHICH ARE FELT EVERYWHERE AROUND, AND THIS WOULDN’T HAPPEN WITHOUT OUR DEAR FELLOW CITIZENS

— We are in final preparations for Advent in Zagreb, so we won’t reveal the surprises just yet, but what I can tell you is that three times in a row best Christmas Market in Europe will be full of various events, warm and cosy atmosphere and a real holiday offer, where everyone will find something for themselves.

24

— Last year, we recorded around 115,000 arrivals and 210,000 overnight stays during December, and considering the growth we are seeing month after month, we expect a higher number of guest this year as well. The offer is diverse, so guests can enjoy skating at one of the most beautiful city locations – King Tomislav Square, and there are also special programs in Zrinjevac, European Square and other locations in the city centre.

Especially magical is the Upper Town (Gornji grad), which revives the holiday atmosphere in its true meaning thanks to its specific charm and the spirit of old times.

Last year, you organized the Festival of Lights for the first time by combining modern technologies and the waking of the spring. Will this too become a part of your traditional offer?

How did Zagreb manage to impose itself with its offer in competition of markets with a long tradition and fame, some of which, like the Austrian Market, for example, are in our close neighbourhood?

— After perennial efforts invested in promotion and contents,

this year? What is a typical profile of your guest and what can they find for themselves in the upcoming Christmas celebration?

Photo: Julien Duval / ZTB archives

— The Festival of Lights Zagreb is a festival where light artists use the city and its views as a painting canvas thus announcing the spring and the tourist season.

Innovative art and the magic of light offer yet another reason to visit the capital of Croatia, and we at the Zagreb Tourist Board

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

Photo: Julien Duval / ZTB archives

Photo: Julien Duval / ZTB archives

Photo: Julien Duval / ZTB archives

will certainly develop this project with the goal of achieving longterm event organization and enriching of the cultural and tourist offer in that part of the year.

What do modern artists want today and what can you offer them with the Festival of Lights?

ALONG WITH HISTORICAL SIGHTS AND INDIVIDUAL ATTRACTIONS, THE MAIN FEATURE OF OUR TOURIST OFFER IS THE EMOTION AND ATMOSPHERE PRESENTED IN AN INTERESTING AND AUTHENTIC WAY

the capital ready for such events that require great creativity, huge accommodation capacities and flawless logistics?

— An increase of overnight stays and arrivals doesn’t depend only on events, but also on the infrastructure that is supposed to follow the development of the city. The importance of infrastructure for a city is best seen in last year’s opening of the new terminal at the Franjo Tuđman Airport, which gave an additional tourist momentum to Zagreb. We at ZTB try to develop each project in a sustainable and quality manner, and this applies also to the Christmas Market which we will develop with the highest possible quality in the future, taking care of each individual segment. Of course, we are not alone in our projects so we cannot act independently from the City, because without the city’s support we could not implement our projects, including Advent in Zagreb or the Festival of Lights. Our synergy is natural and necessary, and I am glad that city offices are receptive to our ideas, together with the entire tourist industry.

Photo: M. Vrdoljak / ZTB archives

— Along with historical sights and individual attractions, the main feature of our tourist offer is the emotion and atmosphere presented in an interesting and authentic way. This is precisely what we are trying to offer with the Festival of Lights, by paying attention to its sustainability, and by acknowledging the criteria set by City offices and the profession. If everything is done in accordance with specifications of the profession and with due respect towards the cultural and historical heritage of the city, each project, including the Festival of Lights Zagreb, will be a source of pride for most of our fellow citizens, and it will be an additional motive for tourists to visit Zagreb.

In terms of organization and infrastructure, to what extent is

Photo: M. Vizek / ZTB archives

Photo: D. Rostuhar / ZTB archives

ZAGREB IS AN INEXHAUSTIBLE INSPIRATION FOR TOURISTS To what extent does Zagreb contribute today to Croatia’s revenues from tourism and to extension of tourist season for the whole year? Did young artists, creative people and private sector recognize their chance?

— Zagreb is at the very top of most visited destinations in Croatia, and what’s specific for our city is that it has an all-year-round attractive

offer. Zagreb Tourist Board, in cooperation with city offices, actively participates in development of creative projects and initiatives, because precisely these are an important element in development of quality social activities. Our projects provide space for young artists and creatives, and we are always open for new ideas and quality suggestions.

25

COLUMN JAGODA POROPAT DARRER

Business Communications Professional

LOST IN TRANSLATION:

LANGUAGE AND POWER Once it was a saying that you are worth as much as many languages you speak. Perhaps nowhere this saying is more true than when you find yourself in France. How easy can you get lost in translation as a tourist in a small French square in an even smaller village or chateau? Very easy. EU language policy under the motto „United in diversity“ in that case is leaving interlocutors wet without the English language umbrella or well developed Human (Spoken) Language Technology Burgundy, France.

What a marvelous place to start a vacation. After few hours driving from Italy, it is a third language field we are entering in. Changing, as the shades of the soil - from clay, through silt to loam and limestone. Enologist will say that soil defines the wine, and that limestone offers beneficial nutrients to grapes that make them grow better and produce sweeter grapes. It’s special because it retains moisture in dry weather, but also offers good drainage in cool weather. The chalk soils of the Aube in Champagne, Chablis in Burgundy, and Pouilly and Sancerre in the Loire Valley, produce bold-flavored zesty white wines. The Calcareous soils found in the Southern Rhône region are famous for making the classic Côtes du Rhône blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre, wine experts say. And we were all eager to taste it.

Except from the major cities we visited as Lyon, Dijon, Metz... the smaller ones – Beaunne, Bèze, Châteauneuf, the scent of charm they add to its touristic offer it is surly not knowing foreign languages at all, just French. We were all like caught in a known British sitcom ‘Allo 'Allo. Remember the catchphrase of resistance leader Michelle "Listen very carefully; I shall say this only once"?

According to the report by international language training company Education First, which looked at proficiency of English in 80 countries, France was ranked 22 out of all EU nations and 32th overall. With a score of just 54.39 France ranked between Nigeria and Italy. Netherlands

26

took the top spot with an English language proficiency of 71.45, followed by Sweden with 70.40 and Denmark with 69.93. The report, blamed France’s poor result on the “limited education reforms on language instruction” as well as the teaching quality in the public education system. Adeline Prevost, from the Paris office of Education First, said that the main problem lies with France’s fear of losing its own culture and language. “The French have to

people still haven’t accepted that their own language, once lingua franca, has lost its influence in favor of English. However, EU language policy is based on respect for linguistic diversity in all Member States and on the creation of an intercultural dialogue throughout the EU. The EU therefore supports the idea that every citizen should master two foreign languages in addition to his or her mother tongue (europarl.europa.eu). Yet, Eurostat's

“EUROSTAT'S DATA SHOWED THE DOMINANCE OF ENGLISH WITH 94 PERCENT OF UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN THE EUROPEAN UNION CHOOSING ENGLISH AS THEIR SECOND LANGUAGE, WITH FRENCH A DISTANT SECOND AT 23 PERCENT, AND GERMAN AT 21 PERCENT.” understand that just because they are talking, reading or listening in English it doesn’t mean that we will kill our own language. Of course that won’t happen. This is the wrong mentality.”

Ben McPartland from The Locals emphasizes that another theory that has been put forward in the past is that many French

data showed the dominance of English with 94 percent of upper secondary school students in the European Union choosing English as their second language, with French a distant second at 23 percent, and German at 21 percent.

In order to preserve multilingualism, European Parliament

study “Language equality in the digital age: Towards a human language projects” promotes Human Language Technology (HTL) as a key to overcome language barriers, not just through English language but directly from one (any) language to another. “HTL are software systems designed to handle human language in all its forms: spoken, written or signed. The EU is a unique endeavor involving more than 500 million citizens sharing about 80 different languages. European diversity is very valuable for the European society. On the other hand language barriers among countries, citizens, and businesses have strong social and economic consequences such as (1) fostering a language divide, (2) hampering workers’ mobility, (3) hindering access to cross-border public-services, (4) reducing citizens’ engagement and participation in political debates and processes, and (5) creating fragmented markets of cross-border trade and e-commerce, particularly for SMEs.” Overcoming language barriers brings benefits to all.

The same EU document mentions some future predictions “Looking into the future, according to eminent voices such as Google CEO Sundar Pichai (Bort, 2016), we are moving from a mobile-first to an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-first world. Spoken LT are part of many AI scenarios that are quickly becoming mainstream.” Perhaps our very next visit to France will already be AI managed, and some improved Siri will order the best bottle of French wine in neat French language following our straight orders in Croatian. Lost in translation, never more.

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

C O LUMN DANIJEL KOLETIĆ

CEO of Apriori World

UNIQUENESS IS A KEY TO SUCCESS

Event branding requires serious investment and at least 5 years of continuous work to create perception at a higher, European or global level. Some of the Croatian cities such as Zagreb, Split and some islands are very successful in creating strong brands Another summer is behind us. I believe you have rested and continued to intensively create new values. In this issue, I decided to write on the topic of branding and events. The best strategy in creating a brand of a destination or a country is when that same country, its government, public administrative bodies, cities or counties invest in the branding process themselves. Some destinations or events become a brand itself, like London, which is recognized as a tourist, historical and financial centre although this metropolis, for example, hosted an important event such as the Olympics.

Frankfurt is also branded as a financial hub, and New York has become an inevitable destination for events such as New Year's Eve on Times Square due to its various popular contents. On the other hand, Los Angeles, and its surrounding area is the center of the world's most popular film industry and the host of the prestigious Oscar Movie Awards.

Such events create a global perception of cities that are remembered forever. One of the world's strongest events in this regard is the organization and hosting of the Olympic Games, the brand that is complemented and upgraded every four years.

This is best seen in the organization of spectacular opening ceremonies, which are viewed by billions of people around the world. In 1984, the former Yugoslavia and Sarajevo hosted the Winter Olympics, and we all proudly remember that event.

In Croatia and the surrounding countries, there are several cities whose management has recognized the importance of investing in infrastructure with the

aim of branding the destination and ultimately influencing the economy. The leading city in the region in this sense is certainly Zagreb. By organizing two events, the tourist season was expanded and profit was generated during the time of the year when usually nothing was ever organized before. Thanks to Janica and Ivica Kostelić and their success

hotels will also surely be opened.

The city of Split has become one of the world capitals of popular and techno rave music, thanks to the Ultra Europe Festival, and Zrće in Novalja on the island of Pag is a synonym for entertainment. More recently, Dubrovnik has been branded a film-making location and, apart from its historical and cultural riches, it

I AM PROUD THAT I HAVE CREATED A PRO PR CONFERENCE WITH MY TEAM, AN EVENT THAT IS UNIQUE in sports, the Snow Queen event, a competition in the World Ski Cup, has been established on Sljeme, and it is constantly developing since 2005. This event provided global publicity for Zagreb, but the vision for the development of mountain tourism was also created. Following this vision, next year Zagreb will have a cable car, ski slopes will expand as well as all the necessary capacities. As a logical sequence, new

is more and more popular with numerous movie fans as the place where the popular Star Wars, Game of Thrones and Robin Hood were filmed. Dubrovnik also hosts a number of world congresses.

I am particularly proud that I was a member of the Organizing Committee for the 40th World Congress of agencies for monitoring and analysis of media in 1995, when the organizer of this prestigious event was Press Clipping,

WIN-WIN BRANDING I am proud that I have created a PRO PR Conference with my team, an event that is unique because it is held every year in a different city of the region, and its participants are influential communication experts who are extremely skilled in creating ideas and publicity which is very useful for the publicity of our host cities.

the agency for monitoring and analysis of the media. Recently, Croatia is also becoming a cycling destination, thanks to the cycling competition Tour of Croatia.

On the other hand, Slovenia is branding itself as a world leader in winter sports competitions, while Bosnia and Herzegovina is a leader in film industry thanks to the organization of the Sarajevo Film Festival, and Serbia is recognized by the EXIT Festival held in Novi Sad. Montenegro was once the leading country in the region when it comes to organizing concerts of famous global stars but at this time, similar to Macedonia, it does not achieve publicity based on the branding of its destinations and events.

Event branding requires serious investment and at least 5 years of continuous work to create perception at a higher, European or global level. For this process, there is a need for professionalism in approaching work, international connectivity, strategic communication at the local, regional and international level and significant financial resources. In creating a brand destination, cities with a greater number of inhabitants and hotel capacities have a stronger chance.

For the successful branding of a country or a destination, it is essential to gain understanding from the politicians.

Behind every event, there are different target groups that communicate faster in the digital age and convey their impressions, which is why branding is becoming simpler and easier. My advice to everyone is to invest funds in destination branding by organizing events which, in order to succeed, must be unique. Only such an event can multiply the invested money.

27

PEO PLE & EVENT S

09 NATIONAL RECEPTION JUN

OF SWITZERLAND “SWISS EVENING

Branko Baričević EC, Stefan Estermann, Ex Swiss Ambassador to Croatia, Marko Pavić, Minister of Labor and Pension System

21 FIVE YEARS OF JUN

This year’s reception also marked the farewell of Ambassador Estermann who left Zagreb after four years. National reception organised by the Swiss Embassy in co-operation

IBSZ BRIGHT HORIZONS

with the Swiss Club in Croatia (Swiss living in Croatia). Around 200 guests, among them dignitaries such as: minister Marko Pavic, deputy speaker of the parliament Željko Reiner.

Stefan Estermann Ex Swiss Ambassador to Croatia

Under the auspices of the UK Embassy and with the support of the City of Zagreb and the International British School of Ljubljana, International British School of Zagreb – Bright Horizons, marked the

5th anniversary of its work and activities. The ceremony that took place in the Kaptol Boutique Cinemas, was attended by numerous parents and children who presented their school with musical performances.

H. E. Andrew Stuart Dalgleish, United Kingdom Ambassador

Milena Prodanić Tišma, Director and founder at Bright Horizons

07 INDEPENDENCE DAY OF THE SEP

REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA

Mr. Nazif Xhaferi, Charge d'Affaires of Embassy of the Republic of Macedonia, Mrs. Pranvera Xhaferi, Mr. Nazifa Xhaferia’s wife, Mr. Bashkim Misimi, third Secretary at Embassy of the Republic of Macedonia, Archpriest Kirko Velinski, a parochial priest, Mr. Tome Apostolovski, President of Macedonian National Minority Council of the City of Zagreb and President of Coordination of the Council of representatives of Macedonian national

28

The celebration was held in the premises of the Embassy of Republic of Macedonia in Zagreb. The

minority of Republic of Croatia, Mr. Blerim Volina, Colonel, Mr. Boban Vojnovski, Sergeant, Mr. Orce Lambevski, former President of the Macedonian National Minority Community in the Republic of Croatia, Mr. Orce Stojkovski, President of the Council of Macedonian National Minority of the City of Pula, Mrs. Lena Đapić, representative of Macedonian national minority of Zagreb County, Mrs. Jagoda Treneska Cvetičanin,

event was attended by a large number of guests, representatives of diplomatic and public life in the Republic of Croatia.

representative of Macedonian national minority of the city of Osijek, Mrs. Kostadinka Velkovska, actress, Mrs. Judita Rey Hudeček, President of Croatian-Macedonian Association, Mrs. Branka Batinica, Vice President of Croatian-Macedonian Association, Mrs. Olivera Buzađić, Vice President of CroatianMacedonian Association, Mrs. Ana Dalipovska, representative of the Roma community in the Republic of Croatia

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

06 BRITISH AMERICAN SEP

TOBACCO PRESENTS GLO 2

Ante Ramljak and associates

Janko Popović Volarić

07 CRAVAT SEP

highlight of the eventing was the performance of world-famous Maksim Mrvica. BAT presented a tobacco warming device in Zagreb. BAT invested $2.5 billion in its development.

British American Tobacco presented the second version of its device for so-called gloing, the GLO 2, at the Zagreb Fair’s Pavilion 5.

The event was attended by celebrities, and

DIPLOMACY

Antal Bekefi, Maksim Mrvica, Ivana Miljan Tremac, John Brady

In order to strengthen the role of the cravat in the branding process and positioning of Croatia in the world, the expert round table "Cravat Diplomacy" was organized by Academia Cravatica and the Public Diplomacy Club of the Croatian Society for UN

in Zagreb. In the framework of the expert round table, the writer Miro Gavran was appointed the first Croatian Cravat Ambassador during a solemn inauguration in which the Military and Historical Unit of the Croatian Cravat Regiment participated.

Gordan Markotić, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of Republic of Croatia

11 CROATIAN-AUSTRIAN SEP

BUSINESS FORUM

Croatian Chamber of Economy organized the Croatian-Austrian Business Forum titled “Railway Infrastructure and Logistics” regarding the official visit of the Federal President

of Republic of Austria Alexander Van der Bellen to Republic of Croatia. The forum was also attended by the President of Croatia Kolinda Grabar Kitarović.

Federal President of Republic of Austria Alexander Federal President of Republic of Austria Alexander Van der Bellen to Republic of Van der Bellen to Republic of Croatia, President of Croatia, President of Croatia Kolinda Grabar Kitarović. Luka Barilović, President of HGK Croatia Kolinda Grabar Kitarović

MORE PHOTOS ON

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

29

PEO PLE & EVENT S

11 AMCHAM – BUSINESS SEP

BREAKFAST WITH THE MINISTER

American Chamber of Commerce in Croatia has the pleasure organizing a business breakfast with a guest speaker, Minister of Labour and Pension System, Marko Pavic. Minister Pavic held the main speech where he presented Measures of Active Employment Policy as well as upcoming projects and plans of the Ministry of Labour and Pension System.

Further, Minister addressed the situation on the Croatian labour market and the reform of the pension system.

Berislav Horvat, Andrea Doko Jelušić, AmCham's Executive Director in Croatia ,Marko Pavić, Minister of Labour and Pension System

Marko Pavić, Minister of Labour and Pension System

Domagoj Frank HP produkcija doo, Andrea Dako Jelušić AmCham

14 AHK SEP

Director AHK Sven Thorsten Potthoff , President AHK Ralf Blomberg. Head of the German Embassy's Economy Department and a permanent deputy ambassador Harald Seibel,

Director AHK Sven Thorsten Potthoff and entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist Nenad Bakić

30

SUMMER CELEBRATION

Great interest in the first meeting after the summer break Traditional Summer Celebration of the German-Croatian Chamber of Industry and Commerce gathered numerous members and guests from Croatian-German business circles this year as well. More than 120 people socialized in the beautiful ambiance of the Oleander terrace in Zagreb’s Esplanade Hotel with selected wines and culinary delicacies.

Chief Executive Officer of Auto Croatia Bogdan Tihava with associates

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

Subscribe NOW! News, analysis, interview and commentary on events occuring in Croatia, in diplomatic and business community. Every month, in English, directly to your desk.

Reliable and efficient information platform offering diverse useful information about local, regional and foreign investment opportunities, trends, legislation updates and researches.

In print and online.

SUBSCRIBE NOW FOR COMPREHENSIVE COVERAGE OF DIPLOMACY, POLITICS, BUSINESS AND SOCIETY IN CROATIA

Payment instructions: www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr/ subscription Call us 091 766 5479 or send us request on: Sven Darrer sven@diplomacyandcommerce.hr

only

399KN per year!

”Diplomacy&Commerce” for only 54€ per year!

12 issues + 12 special editions + 12 supplements...

31

CA L A M IT Y F O RE T O L D

The Fire that Destroyed Rio’s Museum Was Waiting to Happen A shock, but not exactly a surprise

WHEN Mario Moscatelli was growing up in Rio de Janeiro in the 1970s, his father often took him to the National Museum, which is held in a spectacular palace built by the Portuguese.

The boy would ogle the mummies and the reptiles. He became a biologist, married an entomologist and introduced his daughters to the collection. This eventually grew to 20m items, including a large dinosaur skeleton, Greek and Roman antiquities procured by adventurous emperors, thousands of pre-Colombian artefacts, rare books and the 11,500-year-old remains of a woman known as Luzia, possibly the oldest human fossil found in the Americas.

On the evening of September 2nd, Luzia appears to have died a second death in a fire that destroyed the palace and much of its collection.

The causes are still unknown, but what has enraged Brazilians is that the fire could have been avoided. In 2004 inspectors warned that exposed wires and poor safety standards could lead to a devastating blaze. Successive governments ignored curators’ pleas. They built new museums and universities rather than maintaining old ones, and even blocked private-sector efforts to help.

Two decades ago, a project to modernise the museum with $80m from the World Bank flopped because the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, which houses it, refused to turn it

32

into an independent trust. In 2014 Congress budgeted 20m reais ($4.8m) for refurbishment, but the federal government never released the funds. The recession of 2015-16 made things worse. According to the newspaper Folha de São Paulo, the National Museum received just 98,000 reais ($23,600) from the government between January and August. On the museum’s 200-year anniversary in June, its director

IN JUNE, ITS DIRECTOR MOVED HIS OFFICE TO THE FORMER BEDROOM OF DOM PEDRO I, BRAZIL’S FIRST EMPEROR, TO DRAW ATTENTION TO THE TERMITES, MOULD AND STRUCTURAL DECAY THAT HAS LED HIM TO CLOSE MANY moved his office to the former bedroom of Dom Pedro I, Brazil’s first emperor, to draw attention to the termites, mould and structural decay that has led him to close many exhibition rooms.

As firefighters fought the flames at the National Museum palace late into the night (nearby hydrants lacked water, so they had to draw it from a lake) scientists saved what they could

from adjacent buildings. The candidates in Brazil’s forthcoming presidential election lamented the loss and promised a stronger commitment to protecting Brazil’s cultural heritage. President Michel Temer said that the museum’s reconstruction would begin immediately.

Mr Moscatelli predicts it will eventually be abandoned, just like a plan to clean up Rio’s rubbish-filled Guanabara Bay that he helped the state develop in the lead-up to the 2016 Olympics. That was supposed to be one of the “positive legacies” that would help justify the cost of the games, now estimated to be more than $13bn. It never happened.

Andrew Carnegie, an American businessman and philanthropist, called museums “wise extravagances”. If so, Brazil’s politicians lack wisdom as well as money. There have been other fires. One in 2010 destroyed a vast collection of tropical cobras at the Instituto Butantan; another in 2015 consumed a tower at the Portuguese Language Museum. All point to a “myopic vision that treats our national patrimony as if it were simply a perfume shop”, says Valeria Piccoli, chief curator of the Pinacoteca Museum in São Paulo.

From The Economist, published under licence.

The original article, in English, can be found on www.economist.com

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

PO LI TI C S

Text: ŽELIMIR MARAŠ

SOCIALISM STRIKES BACK

Revolution(s) Ahoy Young voters for old candidates and vice versa Somehow, all the people of Europe are awaiting some revolutions these days. And in North America too. The Economist magazine is convinced that Emmanuel Macron will save Europe, since he is quite an Anglo-Saxon liberal type. And the French are crazy for their handsome and young president. But there are some other revolutions ahead.

LIBERAL REVOLUTIONS

The two liberal revolutionaries praised by The Economist are the aforemention Emmanuel Macron and Justin Trudeau, another young and handsome charmer, this one also French by origins, but from Canada. Macron did not hesitate to form his own political party, win the elections, dismiss the two old leading parties and form

around centrism as an idea. He was proud to show his much older wife off to the world and say: well, in times when nobody thinks it is bad to have a much younger wife, like Trump (or many others), or to have a same-sex spouse, should I

always influence the lives of ordinary people. So Macron's rule has to be judged on how the situation has improved for the working classes, and not on the overall figures. Terrorism. The despair of the banlieus. The integration of

SO THE YOUNG PEOPLE USE SOCIAL NETWORKS TO CLEARLY HELP THE OLD SCHOOL SOCIALISTS GAIN MOMENTUM, WHICH IS QUITE AMAZING. AND TO SEE BRITAIN WITH A STRONG WELFARE STATE ONCE AGAIN? THAT WOULD BE EVEN MORE AMAZING feel guilty for having my choice of love? Of course not. And there was a social revolution, for that matter, which Macron also started. But, let us first do a bit of worrying.

No society has been run properly by the power of the market. The world's leading banks and capital

minorities. The ecology, which Trudeau somehow forgot when he talked about dirty oil extraction.

We wait for some results to judge before we call anyone the saviour of Europe or North America. It is nice to be charming, but it is nicer to be effective.

Well, this is not Soviet socialism, nor Tito's socialism, but Scandinavian socialism is back, and is growing even more as an idea in countries that were either totally opposed to it (the U.S.) or were on the threshold but abandoned it during the Thatcherism era (UK), or in places where they were strong but lost ground (France). And the three prominent fugures pushing it are Bernie Sanders, Jeremy Corbyn and Jean-Luc Melenchon. In one of the episodes of the satirical Family Guy cartoon, the mean little baby, Stewie, said something like: “So, who is the person that young people love so much? Oh, yes, Morgan Freeman”. Indeed, he is a cult figure among the youth. So, it shouldn’t surprise us that the most popular people among the youth that did not vote for ages (or have never voted before) are old geezers like Bernie Sanders and Jeremy Corbyn.

And they have archetypal nemeses: Hilary Clinton and Theresa May, both polished upper-class women distant from the ordinary people.

No wonder Theresa May lost her almost landslide victory after three terrorist attacks and is losing points after the recent catastrophic building blaze. Simply, the old guys from the left are something that the disenfranchised youngsters can relate to, and they show compassion and seem to really care. And don't be surprised if Corbyn and Sanders, if they gain enough strength, form the next governments in the two Anglo-Saxon giants. As for Melenchon, his constant 20% of the vote is a good sign that France might be in love with a Catholic Thatcherite for a while (Fillon) and now with a liberal (Macron), but the essential problems of French society cannot be solved by money. Social dialogue is lacking in every society nowadays. So the young people use social networks to clearly help the old school Socialists gain momentum, which is quite amazing. And to see Britain with a strong welfare state once again? That would be even more amazing.

THE RIGHT HOLDS POSITION Many people thought Trump would be a strange populist, but now he is doing the same-old, same-old American stuff, supporting key allies in the Middle East (Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar), even after contradictory remarks and the fact they hate each other. And Theresa May might be shaken and stirred, but she is not out yet. Brexit is beginning, and Conservatives around the world might be happy.

Some might say that the real revolution is desired among the conservative population in the Anglo-Saxon giants. Theresa might meet Macron in a humble position, as a near-loser meeting the shiny winner, but it will fade away soon. When problems have to be confronted and solved, we will judge them according to their deeds. UKIP failed and fell apart, while Marine Le Pen and Geert Wilders did not make it. The traditional right is still the strongest at the right part of the political spectrum.

33

INTERVI EW

A Good Journalist Always has Something to Say

When someone is doing the easiest job in the world and still manages to make a commotion among the viewers in the region asking them if they were better before or now, why would they retire? Goran Milić wants to pack his bags and go to Cuba to ask the local citizens what will happen when the regime and the system change over there GORAN MILIĆ

Journalist, Editor in Cheif

Since he moved 25 times by now in his life, Goran Milić, a veteran of Croatian journalism, is thinking that he might try living in the 26th place – in Split, as a good mix of cities where he lived lately. But before that, there are other places he would be willing to visit carried on the wings of journalistic curiosity. As an expert in questioning the past and the future in the Balkans, Milić is most probably most qualified to take a peek into the soul of those who wait for changes with hope and fear, in places that are yet to experience their transformation from socialism to capitalism.

want to work longer than the prescribed legal deadlines. Accelerated retirement made sense for miners, and even for some policemen, but not for journalists.

However, since journalists had access to the media, this talk about “difficult lives of journalists”, “stressful job”, shorter lifespan, etc. was often presented to the public.

Others didn’t understand why they are being forced to retire from state-owned media when they turn 65 and, eventually shifted to the second-rate status of a freelancer.

— Hahaha, this is how I described it by comparing experience from three countries where I filmed this series. In Croatia, life is better, but it is much more difficult than before. There is less safety, it is necessary to work more, often even two-three jobs. It’s much tenser and there is greater fear for the future of children and grandchildren than before. But, people have

IF YOU ASK ME IF LIFE IS BETTER OR MORE DIFFICULT TODAY, I WILL ANSWER VERY SIMPLY: WITHOUT A DOUBT BETTER, BUT MORE DIFFICULT

In the past, journalists fought for accelerated retirement and it was considered that not many would live long enough to retire. And here you are in your seventies actively working, and you enjoy the status of a walking journalist legend. Are you an exception or are times then and now very different?

Luckily for the profession, the idea of accelerated retirement didn’t pass and many journalists did their best work after they turned 60. Because, let’s be honest, journalism is a far easier job than digging trenches. If you are too old to go out to the field and to run after daily events, there is always the position of an experienced editor and mentor to younger staff.

— Not only in so-called socialist, but also in many other countries of the world, people were divided into those who want to retire as soon as possible and those who

The series “Nekad i sad (je li bilo bolje)” (Then and Now (Was It Better)) is trying to give an answer to the eternal question: did

34

we live better before or do we have more today. After the making of the shows, what is your conclusion?

more real estate, they live in better houses and apartments, standard for summer vacation is higher, cars are better, a trip to Trieste is no longer necessary, that’s a fact. So, it’s better but more difficult.

In Bosnia Herzegovina, poet and wise man Abdulah Sidran defined the situation like this: Today is so bad that ANY TIME BEFORE WAS BETTER. And what’s worst, as time goes by, it will seem increasingly better in the extent in which we will be worse…”

In Serbia, I liked the story about a man from Vranje who went to see

a fortune teller: - Woman, you guessed everything in my life, tell me how will my life be in this capitalism?

- Oh, Jovanče… It will be very difficult, very difficult in the first 30 years…

- Oh indeed… And after these 30 years?

- Then you’ll get used to it.

I recounted the event in the series because I think that the first 30 or so years of communism were difficult as well. Quite difficult.

And then people got used to it, so today many people talk about the past times with nostalgia. Especially the Serbs, because with today’s uncertainty that comes with liberal and chaotic capitalism, Serbian people feel strong nostalgia for Yugoslavia.

The past should not be forgotten, but we should move forward. What do you think is stopping a more serious progress of relations between the countries in the region and how to overcome that? It seems that relations between the people are progressing.

— The memory of recent wars and the Balkan syndrome where nobody wants to be a national minority hampers the progress. Life in a common state and similarity of languages we communicate with has contributed in the past to close

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

ties and very often a sincere liking of the other nations in SFRY. But, since there is a small step between love and hate in the human nature, since people close to each other can love and hate each other much more than it would happen with unknown and distant cultures, we are now living this posttraumatic stage. There are numerous examples of mutual respect, friendly meetings, as though wars never happened, but sometimes, all it takes is a spark for rage and hostility to return. I lived in Strasbourg from 1953 to 1957, and I don’t remember any student in my school speaking German in public. And there were at least 20% Germans. Hassler, Burger, Heider, Knauff, I remember them to this day. Two civilized European nations found peace 20 -30 years after the terrible World War II, but things tend to do differently with us. In some other segments of life much faster than with Germans and the French, in other segments significantly slower...

HALF THE PROBLEMS IN THE BALKANS CAME FROM UNCONTROLLED VANITY, AND ONLY HALF OF THEM ARE FINANCIAL. THESE VANITIES ARE WHAT ANNOYS ME

You moved all around the world and around the country. Has the time come for you to settle in one place, and is that place Zagreb? How does Zagreb seem to you today?

— If moving means relocation from one city to another for more than three – four months, then I moved 25 times in my life. That is why I cannot respond to this question with certainty. Zagreb is my home town, it has improved significantly since the 1987 Univerziade, it is very comfortable to live in, it has everything a person needs, and it’s not a megalopolis, it’s not too big for citizens to be bothered by traffic jams, lack of parking, great distances, social issues, the homeless, crime on the streets… Zagreb did not receive too many new citizens in this resettlement of the population all over ex-Yugoslavia, in average there is a surplus residential squares, but if you give in to hedonism just a little, you will realize that Zagreb is also an expensive city. I have a

traffic jams because there are more cars. Most cities have newly built airports. They are mainly connected by highways and surrounded by bypasses. Ljubljana looks the best, and it rightfully became the European Green Capital. I already said that Zagreb is a comfortable and well organized city. Belgrade is most attractive for fun, it offers good quality and relatively cheap gastronomy and rich nightlife.

Along with Sarajevo, these four cities are constantly growing in terms of tourism, so the locals are renting rooms and suites increasingly more. Overnight stays are measured in millions. I was surprised by the fast growth of Priština, which went from an unattractive little town to become an interesting place to live. Podgorica and Skopje aren’t bad either. But you know what they have in common? Those major companies that employed dozens of thousands of people have disappeared everywhere. In all those cities, hospitals are the biggest employers! If that was America, it would be great because hospitals there are a source of profit. But here, in the Region, they are a place of expense!

Do you have any unfulfilled life’s wishes and business plans you would like to fulfil?

feeling, even though I don’t know if my guess is correct, that I would like to spend the last years of my life in Split. I never lived there, but it seems to me that Split is a result of all the cities I stayed for longer periods of time – Zagreb, Belgrade, London, New York, Montevideo, Sarajevo… It a smaller city, but it is beautiful, diverse, exciting...

How would you describe the capitals in the region today (by

appearance, infrastructure, investments) and in your opinion, is there a great difference between the more westerner cities and the rest?

— I visited all the capitals several times in the past five or six years, and I knew them well even before the war. They all made progress and they all look better than 30 years ago. There are a lot more hotels and they offer better quality service than before. There are more

— Yes I do. I am now planning a trip to Cuba. I want to do a series of travel and documentary stories where I would speculate about what will happen once they change the regime and the system there.

Will these people, who lived poorly for 60 years, but are used to security and modesty and have developed remarkable skills to beat the poverty, survive in new circumstances? When they work for three times higher salaries, but it might not be enough for fulfilment of piled up wishes. When the Cubans who escaped return and impose the “a la Miami” rules? Of course, I would always do that with associations to what happened to us, so the local viewers could understand all that better.

RESTRAINT, PLEASE What makes you happy today, and what makes you sad?

— I don’t have great demands, I am satisfied with ordinary things. For example, for the first time in 48 years of work, I could afford a drive from Zagreb to Cavtat via Trieste. Autistic, by car, by myself… Two weeks in the Adriatic. I visit friends at the end of the season, I go to an un-

known café, talk to people about big things and small. Without a cameraman, without a sound engineer. All by myself. And what annoys me?

Our vanities. I think that half the problems in the Balkans came from uncontrolled vanity, and only half of them are financial. We cannot seem to understand that civilization is restraint from uncontrolled outburst of emotions.

35

B USINESS NEWS Carlsberg

Samsung

NEW STRATEGY WITH MOBILE PHONES

Samsung realized that it did not make sense to compete with the flagship models only, when the sales results of the Galaxy S9 and S9 + smartphones came in the second quarter of this year. Instead, middle-ranking devices will have a primacy, and in that segment, the South Korean technological

giant wants to make a move, which is certainly not very good news for Chinese manufacturers. As ICTbusiness reports, although the number of S9 and S9 + models sold wasn’t stated, it is known that on an annual level, mobile business achieved 30 percent less revenue than same time last year.

Croatian Chamber of Economy (HGK)

Photo: Ronald Gorščić CROPIX

KOREA AND CANADA INCREASING IMPORT FROM REPUBLIC OF CROATIA

Analysts aren’t too happy about the export performance in the first half of the year and modest growth rate of 2.5 percent, seen in euro, because of expectations for a lower contribution to GDP growth, and growth of imports by 6.4 percent has increased trade deficit. In the first half of the year, a total of EUR 6.94 billion worth of goods was exported, while the largest growth is tied to export of

petroleum products, while HGK analysts also highlighted the increase in export of used cars. Growth in value of export of processed wood, chemical and food products was recorded, while, as expected, shipbuilding recorded the largest decline in terms of export Looking at the main export markets, Italy and Germany, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Austria are the top five for Croatian companies this year, and among the top ten are Serbia, Hungary, France and the United States, and this year Belgium, where export continues to grow strongly.

NEW PACKAGING

The beer industry is trying to reduce the share of PVC use in its business, in line with the growing environmental standards in the European Union. The latest example is Carlsberg, which has been operating in Croatia since 1993 through its main brand Pan Beer. They announced the launch of Carlsberg Snap Pack, which should cut plastic waste by 1200 tons per year. It is about technology that, instead of the existing plastic, will connect the pack of six cans together into so called six packs. These packages will first appear on the UK market, and then on the Norwegian market. For now, they announced that they will start in Denmark in early 2019, while other markets, including Croatia, as stated from Carlsberg Croatia, are left in the sphere of business secrets to protect themselves from the competition, and the exact date of the presentation in Croatia will be published afterwards.

Facebook

BILLION-DOLLAR INVESTMENT IN A NEW DATA CENTRE

Google

NEW TAX

Fearing the negative impact on its automotive industry, Germany is calling for a European tax on digital revenues not to be introduced in haste.

"There is need for some time to debate," Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said in Vienna after a meeting of European "treasurers". But he added that the final agreement could be reached by the end of the year. This is a proposal from the European Commission in March, whose members would charge a tax of three percent to digital revenues of large companies. Only revenues from digital advertising would be taxed, where Google, Facebook and Amazon are at the forefront, so tax was already nicknamed in public as "Google Tax". Adoption of the

36

proposal requires the support of all 28 members. But 11 states have already announced that they will introduce national web taxes if there are no solutions at a European level. European diplomats claim that Germany is seeking assurances that the tax will not endanger the auto industry that could be the target of technology companies’ retaliation.

Facebook has announced that it will invest more than a billion dollars in building a data centre in Singapore, which will use only energy produced from renewable sources and will adapt to the climate in that city-state. According to rough estimates, the centre would start working in 2022 and it will "foster" Facebook's servers and centralize its business in the field of information technology, stated Company’s VP responsible for infrastructural data centres, Thomas Furlong. It will cover an area of 170,000 square meters and will have 11 floors and be equipped with systems that will allow normal operation at high humidity and temperatures mostly above 25 degrees Celsius. Facebook specially lists a most modern cooling system that uses water instead of air and works better in high humidity conditions. The facade will be made of perforated lightweight material that will allow better airflow. The company expects to utilize entirely the energy produced from renewable sources.

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

British American Tobacco

NEW DEVICE - GLO

British American Tobacco (BAT) investments in Croatia will reach 45 million euros by the end of year or in three years after TDR's takeover, this was highlighted on Thursday at the BAT Press Conference, which featured a tobacco warming device - glo, now available on the Croatian market as well. Glo is a product that brings a similar smoking experience, but without combustion and is potentially less harmful than classic cigarettes, BAT claims, noting that the development of the device lasted for four years and more than a hundred experts from five continents participated in it. Croatia has become the centre of the BAT Adria region and is one of the first markets in the region where glo is launched, BAT General Manager for the Adria Region Antal Bekefi says. Based on the data presented, BAT has invested heavily in research and development and since 2012 has invested more than $ 2.5 billion in developing new generation products.

Inditex

SELLING ALL THEIR BRANDS ON THE INTERNET

Inditex's brands include Pull & Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho and Uterque and are sold through a network of nearly 7,500 physical stores. The Spanish retail chain

Inditex, the owner of Zara, plans to move sales of all its brands to the Internet by 2020, including those markets where they do not have any physical stores. Inditex recorded a 41-percent jump in online sale last year, with a 10-precent share of this sales channel in total net income at the group level. This means that the Spanish company is still behind certain competitors, such as Swedish H&M, which accounts for almost 12 percent of total revenue through online sale.

Tie

“THE TIE DIPLOMACY”

Hangar 18

"ZLATNA KUNA" FOR THE MOST SUCCESSFUL MEDIUM-SIZE ENTERPRISE Hangar 18 d.o.o. won the Zlatna Kuna Award for the most successful medium-size enterprise (from 50 to 249 employees) in Koprivnica-Križevci County. This is the second Zlatna Kuna Award for Hangar 18, since they won this award in the category of the most successful small enterprises (up to 49 employees) in 2015. Hangar 18 is among the 50 fastest growing companies in Central Europe and for the second consecutive year among the 500 fastest growing tech companies in the region of Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). At the end of last year, Hangar 18 completed the project: Investing in Construction and Equipping of Logistics Centre in Koprivnica and Improving Business Processes Co-Financed by EU Funds. The total value of the investment was 7 million HRK.

Croatia has the best opportunity to promote the tie over the next period when it is preparing, and from January 1, 2020, when it assumes the European Union presidency. As Zvonimir Frka-Patešić, a long-time diplomat who is currently serving as head of the Office of the President of the Croatian Government, clarified, the tie is a recognizable European symbol and it is also a custom for the presiding country of the EU Council to gift ties with national pattern to European diplomats. In 2020, they will try to reach an agreement for the Croatian tie to be placed on a monument to a

national dignitary who also has some form of a tie on the sculpture, in every capital city of the EU.

MET Group

TAKEOVER OF RWE ENERGIE IN ROMANIA

Switzerland's MET group has successfully taken over the Romanian subsidiary of German RWE, RWE Energie SRL (RWEE). This acquisition consolidated its position on the market for the supply of electricity to businesses and positioned itself among the first three suppliers in Romania. Aside from Croatia, the Swiss MET Group is present on 27 other European markets.

The takeover of RWE Energie represents an excellent opportunity to integrate a

significant Romanian energy supply portfolio - with a potential to achieve synergy - and marks the further consolidation of MET Group on the Romanian market, but points also to the trend of further consolidation of the market of energy and energy product suppliers throughout Europe. With its steadily growing market share of almost 10 percent, MET is one of the three largest electricity suppliers for business entities on the Romanian market.

37

CO RPO RATE

Tourist Board of Hvar

Photos: Arhiva TZ grada Hvara / Jakša Kuzmičić

Welcome to Hvar, the Home of Croatian Tourism!

Throughout 2018, the town of Hvar and the Tourist Board of Hvar are marking 150 years of organized tourism at this location

This is the year when the people of Hvar are celebrating their rich tourist tradition, which has brought Hvar global fame and turned it into one of the most coveted destinations of resort tourism in the world.

Ever since 1868, when Hygiene Association of Hvar was established as the first organised tourist association in Europe, up until today, the town of Hvar has gone a long way, with the dialogue between the local community and the town administration ensuring the town’s notable economic growth.

Today, Hvar is a destination which is developing in a planned and sustainable manner. Leaning on tradition, a rich cultural, historical and natural heritage, we desire to position Hvar as a unique yearround destination able to attract tourists of various profiles; our quantitative and qualitative indicators suggest that we are heading in

the right direction.

YESTERDAY, TODAY, TOMMOROW – 365 DAYS A YEAR

Today, Hvar is positioned on the global tourist map as one of the most interesting destinations, which attracts many tourists throughout the year thanks to the variety of its offer.

Hvar is a town where you can experience history, taste local specialties and wines, attend concerts and see plays, run a half-marathon, sail in our aquatorium or simply enjoy the Hvar vibe - all year long!

CULTURE

Hvar is the island’s cultural capital. Apart from incredibly preserved cultural heritage, towards which the people of Hvar are particularly attentive, especially as regards conservation, our select cultural program has set Hvar apart and it is now one of the most significant

centres of cultural events in Croatia.

NATURE

Hvar is situated in a unique natural surroundings, turning towards the south, which never ceases to gift it with bright skies. Combined with a crystal clear sea, Hvar is a true treasure cove of scenes, moods and adventures that natural heritage has to offer!

SPORTS

Hvar has also been recognized as a destination of recreational tourism. Hvar is the host of different sports events, both national and international in character, such as the Hvar Half Marathon, Hvar For Trail, Hvar Wine Run and, most importantly, ÖTILLÖ Swimrun World Series qualifying event. These events attract hundreds of visitors and competitors from all over the world.

Also, there are beautiful beaches, cycling routes, and countless possibilities for fishing and diving.

TRADITION

Heritage is immensely important to Hvar – both material and non-material. On the one hand, there is the lace of Hvar, on the other its special gastro offer – we always introduce our guests to our tradition and the Mediterranean lifestyle in our Pharian way. Our craftsmen play a vital role in the promotion of traditional heritage, which is why we always support them and aspire to assist them in presentations of their products.

Indigenity, quality and sustainability – this is what tourists expect and get in Croatia. Hvar is an important factor on the map of the Croatian tourist offer, with great results again this year! – GARI CAPPELLI, Croatian Minister of Tourism The celebration of 150th anniversary of organised tourism in Hvar is taking place under the patronage of the President of the Republic of Croatia Kolinda Grabar Kitarović.

ONE OF THE FIRST CENTRE OF SPA DID YOU KNOW? Hvar is an old centre of spa and health resort tourism, one of the first. In 1900, on the foundations of the Prince’s Palace, the first hotel was built – Empress Elizabeth’s Spa and Health Hotel. Today, it is home to the Palace Hotel. In the 2019 season, this Palace Hotel is to become the first five-star hotel, changing its name to Palace Elizabeth.

38

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

REPO RTAGE

Text: ROBERT ČOBAN

Dinosaurs' Footprints, Tito's Cadillac and Šerbedžija's Commune The lyrics of Oliver's song "Cesarica" are coming from the terrace of the Neptune Hotel on the other side of the port on Veliki Brion. My room at the Karmen Hotel has no air conditioning but has one of the best views on the Mediterranean. The hotel was built in 1913 by Paul Kupelwieser, an Austrian industrialist who in 1893, purchased the entire archipelago with a plan to develop tourism on it Kupelwieser, whose grave I stumbled across while riding a bicycle in the island's hitherland, implemented his plan with a lot of gravity. In a very short time, the dense shurbland was removed, various tree were planted and the initial construction works were carried out. The first energy generating facility here was a windmill (it pumped water, powered engines for refrigeration, was used for crushing stone, etc.), and followed by an aggregate. The first guests arrived to Brioni in 1896 and were placed in a rather modest accommodation. Agriculture was not forgotten either, while the year 1896 also marks the beginning of archaeological and conservation activities. In order to eliminate malaria, Kupelwieser turned to the famous bacteriologist Robert Koch, and who first sent his associates to come to Brioni, and later came

himself. According to their instructions, all the ponds and puddles were dried out, the mosquito larvae, who were the source of malar-

ia, were destroyed, and the patients were treated with Quinine.

Just one year later, there were no new cases of malaria.

ROOM WITH THE VIEW: Morning in the port of Veliki Brion

THE FIRST GUESTS ARRIVED TO BRIONI IN 1896 AND WERE PLACED IN A RATHER MODEST ACCOMMODATION

FROM JOYCE TO STRAUSS

The construction of even bigger hotel facilities ensued after the initial success, and up until 1913, four hotels, with a total of 320 rooms, and a dozen villas were built. In 1908, the island got running water. Along with the hotels, other facilities were built - a pier, a post office with a telephone exchange, 50 kilometres of roads and trails, a beach with 180 changing rooms, an indoor swimming pool with warm seawater, a casino, horse stables and a number of different sports fields, including the largest golf course in Europe (18 holes and 5,850 metres of paths).

Wine and oil came from Brioni’s own vineyards and olive trees, while milk and excellent cheeses were also produced at Brioni. The islands were also advertised as a climatic health resort. From 1910, the islands had their own weekly newspapers called Brioni-Inselzei-

39

WHOLE WORD: Tito with Ho Chi Minh and Queen Elizabeth II

tung. From it we can learn that 11 archdukes and archduchesses (July 31st, 1910), 16 princes and princesses (March 31t, 1911), and 18 industrialists (April 27th, 1911) were in Brioni at the same time. The aforementioned dates tell us that the tourist season lasted almost year-round, and from the type of guests staying at Brioni we can see that the islands were all about social status and prestige.

The Boat House, a beautiful building in the port, built in the Secession style, used to be the local doctor’s office, and today, it houses a small museum which shows us that the Romanian King Michael, the painter Gustav Klimt, the inventor Guglielmo Marconi, Archduke Franz Ferdinant, writers James Joyce and Thomas Mann and composer Richard Strauss all visited Brioni at certain point.

The World War I hindered the ever growing popularity of Brioni, and after the war, Brioni and Istria became a part of Italy, but were still owned by the Kupelwieser family. The tourism competitioni in Italy was much stiffer, Brioni started to struggle as a tourist destination, and the 1929 stock market crash led to Charles Kupelwieser (Paul's son) first declaring bankruptcy and the following year, committing suicide. In 1936, after officially declaring bankruptcy, the archipelago came under the management of the Italian Ministry of Finance. Not long after that, Italy decided to make significant investments there (and introduces a regular hydroplane flight to Brioni). But a new global catastrophe prevented the collection of profit from these investments. Instead of wealthy aristocracy, Brioni's hotels are now occupied by naval officers.

Just before the end of the war, Brioni were bombarde by the Al-

40

lied forces several times, with the biggest destruction happening on April 25th, 1945 when two hotels, a part of the coastline and many houses were destroyed.

FROM ELIZABETH TAYLOR TO HAILE SELASSIE

Shortly after the war, in 1947, Josip Broz Tito came to Brioni for the first time and this was the beginning of the archipelago’s new history, which was even more spectacular than the one from the

Tito’s official residence (in 1953) and "Brionka", a residence for foreign statesmen (1957).

For the next thirty years, Tito regularly spent here some of his work years and a lot of his spare time. As a host and a statesmsn, he met in Brioni with 53 head of states and political parties, and even more prime ministers, ministers and foreign delectations – from Queen Elizabeth II and Gaddafi to Khrushchev, Gorbachev and the Ethiopian king Haile Se-

I HAVE THE INTERNET ONLY ON THE TERRACE OF MY ROOM, AND OCCASIONALLY YOU CAN "STEAL" IT FROM SOME OF THE YACHTS, WHICH ARE ANCHORED A FEW METERS AWAY secessionist era. In 1949, Brioni were chosen as Tito's residence at sea. War wrecks were removed, and infrastructure (communications, waterworks) was gradually renovated and expanded. Hotel buildings were renovated and parks widened. Two representative buildings on the west coast of Veliki Brion were built - "White Villa",

lassie. Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Sophia Loren and Gina Lollobrigida were also his noted guests here. In that thirty-yearperiod, and especially in the decade immediately prior to Tito’s death, the entire planet came to see the head of Yugoslavia, it seems. The exhibition “Tito at Brioni” covers this era. Looking at it, one cannot

OWNER OF ARCHIPELAGO: Paul Kupelwieser, an Austrian industrialist

help but conclude that in the next thousand years, all the former Yugoslav states are not going to be able to achieve a fraction of the international reputation and prestige that Tito did for the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during his governance. Tito's 5.6-metres-long Eldorado Cadillac, from 1953, is still parked in front of the museum.

The reason why I came to Brioni for the second year running is now famous Ulysses Festival, which artists Lenka Udovički and Rade Šerbedžija, who also happen to be married to each other, have been staging for 18 years now. The festival’s organizer for the past four decades has been maestro Duško Ljuština, the principal of the Kerempuh Theatre from Zagreb.

There are very few people in this world who are like Duško. His organizational skills, coupled with extraordinary social intelligence, led to this small “Lika Commune” at Brioni becoming one of the most successful and longest-running regional theatre festivals launched during the transition period.

TWO “LA BELLE EPOQUE”

Brioni is a national park and all facilities on it are owned by the state, which has numerous negative but also several extraordinarily positive effects. There is not a single car on the island and it seems as it is frozen in time, maybe in the year 1983. During breakfast on the terrace, a hotel pianist plays classic melodies, there are no bars with loud music, no "drunken English" and "brave Russian" people that are swarming all over the Adriatic.

There are just nice, quite people, including a few from Belgrade.

Biljana Srbljanović tells me that she has been visiting the island for years, because the isolated Brioni

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

HISTORY EVERYWHERE YOU GO: View of the Verige Bay from the Roman villa

SUICIDE AFTER 1929 STOCK MARKET CRASH: Graves of Mary and Charles Kupelwieser

give her perfect peace of mind which she needs for writing. I have the Internet only on the terrace of my room, and occasionally you can "steal" it from some of the yachts, which are anchored a few meters away.

I arrive at the Ulysses terrace after literary being kidnapped by Ljuština Jr., Todorić Jr. and Ivan Burazin who respected my wish to have a long sleep after watching a fantastic theatre play called Bakhe by the Zagrebačko Kazalište Mladih (the Zagreb Youth Theatre).

Since this was the last time that this play was staged on the Minor Fortress on the Mali Brion Island, a small celebration ensued to mark this. Actors were behaving like typical actors – there was a lot of alcohol, Duško brought two accordion players from the coastline and everybody had a music wish.

Young Ivan Todorić, the son of the wealthiest Croat, and his wife Milica come to the Ulysses every year. Although they are no longer the official sponsors of the festival,

Constitution of the Republic of Croatia” (“Ustav Republike Hrvatske”) and “Let’s Keep it Between Us” (“Neka Ostane Medju Nama”).

Rade is also here, frequently leaning on the bar. He sometimes even sings. Next week, he will be playing one of his more famous roles as King Lear, whom he’s been playing since the festival’s incep-

Duško Ljuština did not shun them, in contrast how the former owner of Agrokor and similar people in our region were shunned as soon as something went wrong. Ljuština also personally checks the tickets at the Fažana pier from which the audiences leave for Mali Brion.

Only an hour later, he is sitting with the renowned actress, Va-

THE MAGICAL TERRACE OF THE ULYSSES IS THE MEETING PLACE OF THE PEOPLE FROM THE ACTING, MEDIA AND BUSINESS WORLD IN CROATIA AND THE ENTIRE REGION nessa Redgrave who also happens to be a family friend of Lenka and Rade and the regular festival guest.

The former mayor of Novi Sad, Igor Pavličić is also a guest at the terrace, while the fantastic Croatian actress, Ksenija Marinković was the most vocal in ordering songs from the accordion players.

In Serbia, she is known for her roles in the films such as “The

ELIMINATED MALARIA ON THE ISLANDS: Robert Koch

tion. Last year, I was fascinated to see how Rade, age 72, carried his daughter, actress Lucija Šerbedžija, down the steep stairs of the Minor Fortress. His own father lived to the ripe old age of 104. Lika's genes are indestructible. I should know, my wife is from Lika.

Year after year, the magical terrace of the Ulysses is the meeting place of the people from the

acting, media and business world in Croatia and the entire region.

Everything on this terrace is unpretentious, somewhat derelict, but with the charm that is due to the unusual mixture of the Austro-Hungarian and socialist chick, and as a direct consequence of the fact that the 20 years of the Kupelwiesers' and 30 years of Tito's presence created the two la belle epoque of the archipelago.

Everything before and after that, did not come even close in glamour. If you take a bicycle and go for a ride on the island, you will see that there is much more history than at first glance - from the fossilized footprints of a dinosaur on the north coast of Veliki Brion to the remains of the magic Roman villa and the Koch Road.

Brioni has no 5-star-hotels and luxury resorts, and no water parks and nightclubs. However, the atmosphere on the terrace of the Karmen Hotel (2*), overlooking the harbour, where I wrote this article, is absolutely priceless.

KING LEAR: Rade Šerbedžija and Ksenija Marinković

41

C ULTURE NEWS

10th International Photography Festival Organ Vida Organ Vida is an annual international photography festival that takes place every September in Zagreb. Exhibitions themselves held on numerous locations across Zagreb will remain open until the end of September 2018. Each year, Organ Vida focuses on one main theme processing the current social and political situation. This jubilee edition is entirely dedicated to women’s’ perspectives. The topic of the jubilee 10th edition and the name of the main exhibit that was presented at the Museum of Contemporary Art, which is the festival’s main partner this year, was Engaged, Active, Aware – Women’s Perspectives Now. This is a juried exhibition that gathered 20 international male and female artists and presented works created in a period of post-capitalist global turmoil, technological progress, strengthening of the right wing, pressure from religions that are yet again limiting women’s rights and the illusion of a 21st century democratic society in which we find the situation where women’s rights won a long time ago must be won all over again.

'Roma' wins Golden Lion World Literature Festival the first in Croatia to charge tickets Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron’s film "Roma" won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, bringing the first major festival win for Netflix.

“Roma”, named after a neighbourhood in Ciudad de Mexico where the scriptwriter and director Cuaron grew up, is a drama in Spanish language that received almost unanimous compliments from the critics. “Roma” defeated the other 20 films, including the costumed drama “Favourite” and a dark western comedy “The Sisters Brothers”. Cuaron is known for his Oscar-winning film “Gravity”.

Sixth World Literature Festival was held in Zagreb and Split from September 2 – 8. This year, in about sixty programs, World Literature Festival (FSK) gathered around one hundred authors from 17 countries, including French star novelist Frédéric Beigbeder and three winners of the prestigious Man Booker and Man Booker International awards, Pole Olga Tokarczuk, Australian Richard Flanagan and Israeli David Grossman. One of the guests was Chigozie Obioma, Nigerian-America writer and youngest finalist for the Man Booker Award, as well as Swede Jonas Hassen Khemiri, one of the favourite writers of Scandinavian literature, then José Luís Peixoto, most important Portuguese mid-generation author. When it comes to domestic authors, guests were Slavenka Drakulić, Damir Karakaš, Dorta Jagić, Korana Serdarević, Tea Tulić and many others.

'Doctor Death’ gets court permission and will continue to exhibit preserved human bodies Exhibit of preserved human bodies in Berlin stays open, German Court confirms and thus ends the perennial legal battle between its creator Gunther von Hagens, also known for the nickname “Doctor Death”, and the City Administration. “The museum will survive”, his grandson Rurik von Hagens stated for dpa. Spokesman for the court also confirmed the settlement, according to which the Museum has agreed to announce new exhibits two weeks in advance so the city could get enough time to determine the origin of the sample. Exhibit at the museum at the central square, Alexanderplatz, displays bodies that were preserved by using the method of plastination, where Hagens extracts fluids from the body before replacing them with silicone.

42

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr

44

www.diplomacyandcommerce.hr