Croatia Registers Over 3,000 More War Veterans During Pandemic

The Croatian War Veterans' Ministry said that the number of people granted the official status of war veteran rose by 3,324 from March 2020 to November 30 this year, news website Index reported on Sunday.

"There are currently 426,956 war veterans registered," the War Veterans' Ministry said, although data obtained by Index from the Defence Ministry and Interior Ministry puts this figure even higher.

The War Veterans' Ministry said that the reason for the recent increase is that some veterans were not eligible to be officially registered until amendments to the Law on the Rights of Croatian Homeland War Veterans and Their Family Members.

Since Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic's government passed the law four years ago, 7,075 people have obtained the status of veterans, the ministry also said.

Veteran status provides numerous rights, including health insurance, a pension, and being classified as a priority case when applying for a job.

On Saturday, Plenkovic praised veterans for their contribution to the establishment of a free and independent Croatia, and said that they should never again have to protest for their rights - a reference to demonstrations in 2015 when the previous government led by Zoran Milanovic was in power, calling for a constitutional law to enshrine the rights of war veterans.

Plenkovic added that over the last five years, his cabinet has increased spending on war veterans by roughly 500 million euros.

"Veterans led two battles: the first one was the battle for a free Croatia and they gave the most they could and had at that moment. Many veterans gave their lives for freedom - the most they could - and no one can give more for their homeland," he said.

"The second battle was the battle for...

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