Croatian People's Party (HNS) leader Radimir Cacic has said that Saturday's violent protests in Zagreb were triggered by the policy which the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) has been pursuing for the last 20 years, notably the last seven years, and the economic and moral collapse of the current government and its failure to protect war veteran Tihomir Purda, which is why this opposition leader proposes calling parliamentary elections.
Addressing a news conference in Zagreb on Monday, Cacic labelled as "dirty slander" accusations by the ruling HDZ party that the Opposition was behind the protests and riots.
According to Cacic, the accusations are directed against the coalition of the Social Democratic Party, the HNS, the Istrian Democratic Party (IDS) and the Croatian Pensioners' Party (HSU), which he believes is the only relevant alternative political force to the incumbent government.
Considering that the police have established that the protests were not financed by the Opposition, government members who made such slanders should be penalised and the government should distance itself from such claims or the Opposition will file a lawsuit, Cacic said.
