Sanader in custody: The political decision that fits HDZ

How appropriate for HDZ and Jadranka Kosor. The former PM Ivo Sanader will remain in custody during next two months. It was this Monday’s decision of the County Court in Zagreb preceded by the judge Kresimir Devcic in the process of Hypo bank - the first point on Ivo Sanader’s list of charges. The explanation for such decision is a possible escape of the former head of a state and an ex-reigning party boss.  The fact that the current president of the Parliament Luka Bebic along with Jerko Rosin, Mario Zubovic and Mirjana Sanader wanted to pledge for Sanader’s bail and prison release, didn’t help either. No. Devcic made his decision – Sanader can escape. And where could he escape now?

When ‘busting out’ to Austria last year, Ivo Sanader passed the Slovenia-Croatian border crossing as a free man. The moment when the Parliament lifted his immunity and when the warrant has been issued, the former PM was arrested in Austria. So, it is hard to talk about the possibility of the re-escape when Sanader in fact didn’t escape the first time.

The witnesses of the Hypo affair, as the witnesses of other affairs related with the former boss, have all been interrogated. So, is there any other motive, except the political one, for keeping Ivo Sanader in prison for the next two months?

Of course, Sanader can’t bark out of custody as he could from his house in Kozarceva or from Josip Jelacic Square. Sanader can’t speak up from Remetinec how every one knew everything and how all the officials of the reigning party are crossing their hearts surprised how Sanader stole money. Sanader can’t stand up in front of the cameras, not at the beginning, not in the middle and especially not near the end of the election campaign and throw the outrage at Jadranka Kosor and his recent party colleagues. Sanader can’t talk to any person except to the people in his defense team, to one of a few guards in Remetinec and to his prison ‘’colleague’’.

No, with the political decision of the judge Kresimir Devcic Sanader has been silenced to the end of the election campaign. He has already been condemned in public as the only one responsible for the things that happened; Mladen Bajic gave his impunity to talking cowards, but those cowards have never returned the money.

As the political decision loaded him with his first accusation for getting the war profit in the case of Hypo bank (despite the fact the war had finished years ago), it seems that his verdict will be compounded in a same manner. As some other verdicts of the Croatian judiciary. And there are loads of them…