ZAGREB, 13 May (Hina) – Debate on a proposal to amend the Foreigners Act on Wednesday began with a heated exchange, as MPs from the Bridge party accused the ruling majority of not caring about Croatian workers, while the governing coalition defended its migration policy as responsible and sustainable.
Speaking on behalf of the Bridge group, Božo Petrov said the bill was not about alignment with EU rules but an attempt by the government to conceal that it had lost control of the labour market. He argued that foreign workers were being used to depress wages and criticised the absence of wage protection mechanisms.
Petrov said Croatia lacked proper oversight of how many foreign workers had entered the country, where they worked and under what conditions, warning that the state was failing to manage migration responsibly.
His remarks triggered reactions from several ruling coalition MPs, with repeated requests for procedural interventions leading to numerous warnings from session chair Ivan Penava. Hrvoje Zekanović (Christian Democratic Party) received three warnings and lost the right to speak on the issue before Interior Minister Davor Božinović had even presented the bill.
Bridge accused the government of pursuing “population replacement” policies and recalled that labour import quotas had been abolished. Miro Bulj claimed HDZ-linked figures were profiting from agencies importing foreign labour, calling the policy “anti-demographic” and “anti-sovereigntist”.
HDZ MPs rejected the accusations. Marin Piletić said Croatia had record employment, historically low unemployment and rising wages, while Majda BuriД‡ described the legislation as a complex law protecting the Croatian labour market.
Zekanović mocked Bridge for criticising foreign workers while relying on their services, mentioning construction workers from Uzbekistan, cleaners from Nepal and nannies from the Philippines. He asked them whether they could tell the difference in the quality of steak prepared by Filipinos and Nepalese compared with “pure-blooded Croats” and whether they were principled enough to avoid using the Pelješac Bridge because it had been built by Chinese contractors.
SDP MP Mišo Krstičević said the government was presenting a major political issue as a merely technical matter and questioned why the Interior Ministry, rather than the Labour Ministry, had drafted the legislation. He stressed that Croatia’s economy could not function without foreign labour but said the country still lacked a clear labour import and integration policy.
Jelena Miloš of We Can! criticised the continued role of labour aggregators, accusing them of exploiting workers, leaving unpaid wages and damaging public finances. IDS MP Dalibor Paus also highlighted the lack of a comprehensive integration policy.
HSLS MP Dario Hrebak welcomed the inclusion of higher healthcare standards for foreign workers, while DOMiNO MP Damir Biloglav questioned why Croatia had numerous agencies importing foreign labour but none focused on encouraging Croats abroad to return.
Closing the exchange, HDZ MP Goran Kaniški said the bill continued the government’s “responsible, balanced and long-term sustainable migration policy” aimed at protecting Croatian citizens, the economy and national security while ensuring legal and controlled residence and employment for foreign nationals.
