Newly inaugurated Croatian president Ivo Josipovic has openly admitted determination to destroy corruption within Croatia as one of several attempts to appease the EU. In recent years, national highway companies, railroad companies, university professors, and even the former defense minister have all been charged with embezzlement; some up to $2 million. The biggest cast, however, is the food companies Podravka. Mostly privatized, the government does own part of this massive business, which employs 7,000 people in a town near Zagreb. Its success has lead to six top managers being arrested on charges of embezzlement of up to $47.5 million. The scandals continue, as journalists fight to uncover corruption, only to suffer the wrath of Croatia's criminal underground. In 2008, a journalist was killed in a car bomb suspected to be caused by the Croatian underground. Currently seven journalists live under constant police protection after uncovering sensitive information that could ultimately lead to their deaths. As part of their bid to join the European Union, corruption is one issue that will have to be eradicated in the near future. How Josipovic hopes to accomplish this though, is still unknown.
He is thinking about composing an opera about corruption after his retirement though.
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