The Croatian portal Index published an article about the double standards in the actions of the Croatian prosecutor’s office and judiciary in general, citing as examples two cases involving a Serbian citizen and a Pakistani citizen.
While the Serb was quickly punished and expelled for posting a photo on social media, the Pakistani, despite a final conviction for rape and serving a prison sentence, was not expelled and has now been arrested again for a new criminal offense.
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Today, two pieces of news emerged which, when compared, raise serious questions about the way Croatian institutions apply laws concerning foreign nationals.
In the first case, a Serbian citizen was expelled because he posted a photo on a social network showing him raising three fingers while riding a motorcycle. In the second case, a Pakistani citizen, who was previously finally convicted of rape in Croatia, was not expelled even after serving a four-year prison sentence. He remained living and working in Croatia, where he has now been arrested again for a new rape.
According to the accusations, the Pakistani Mohamad Sh. raped a woman from Nepal in early June whom he had previously employed. The victim told him she was leaving because she feared for her safety, stating that she had heard his brothers were violent. According to the criminal complaint, he locked her in the apartment, physically assaulted her, and raped her multiple times. The woman reported everything to the police, and he was taken into custody.
What makes this case particularly concerning is the fact that Mohamad Sh. was convicted of rape back in 2021 and had already served a four-year prison sentence. Despite this, after being released from prison, he was not expelled, even though the Law on Foreigners clearly stipulates that a third-country national must be expelled if finally convicted of an intentional criminal offense punishable by an unconditional sentence longer than one year.
On the other hand, the police in Hvar initiated proceedings against a 22-year-old Serbian citizen because he posted a photo on Instagram showing him riding a motorcycle and displaying three fingers, which authorities interpreted as a nationalist symbol. The police located him, apprehended him, determined that the motorcycle had technical deficiencies, and removed it from traffic.
Along with a proposal for a misdemeanor charge against public order and peace, he was proposed a fine of 700 euros, and a decision on his expulsion from Croatia was immediately made, along with a ban on entering the European Union and the European Economic Area.
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Drastic difference in treatment
Why were the measures in one case quick and strict, while in the other they were not implemented at all – despite a significantly more serious criminal offense?
Lawyer Veljko Miljević explained to Index that expulsion is not an automatic process and that everything depends on who requests it and how the procedure is conducted.
“The State Prosecutor’s Office in the case of this Pakistani did not request expulsion, so he, after serving his sentence, remained here. For the other one, expulsion was immediately requested. And he should serve his sentence, but who will control that, I don’t know. In any case, there is no automatism. If I were a legislator, I would regulate this area better – there must be a clearly prescribed common criterion for when expulsion is requested for someone and when it is pronounced,” Miljević said.
Expulsion depends on a case-by-case basis Lawyer Ivan Jelavić, who has worked on numerous cases related to foreign nationals, also confirmed to Index that expulsion is indeed not always determined, but depends on a case-by-case basis. Journalists also asked the competent court whether an expulsion measure from Croatia was ordered in the case of the Pakistani Mohamad Sh. The answer will be published if and when it arrives. If you need a version for publication in the media, I can summarize the text or add a contextual introduction.
What does the law stipulate? The Law on Foreigners provides several grounds for the expulsion of third-country nationals. A foreigner may be expelled if he assists in illegal entry, transit or stay, if he enters into marriage or a life partnership for profit, if he commits an offense against regulations on employment and work of foreigners, public order and peace, weapons, drug abuse, customs and tax duties, as well as against regulations on preventing disturbances at sports competitions.
Precisely one of these offenses – against public order and peace – was committed by the Serbian citizen who showed three fingers, which led to a decision on his expulsion. Mandatory expulsion in certain cases However, the law provides not only for the possibility but also for the obligation to expel foreigners in certain situations. Thus, anyone who has been finally convicted of an intentional criminal offense punishable by an unconditional prison sentence longer than one year must be expelled. This directly applies to the Pakistani who was sentenced to four years in prison for rape in 2021. However, he was not expelled, and if such a measure was imposed on him, it was obviously not implemented, as he remained living and working in Croatia, where he has now been arrested again for a new rape.
The law also stipulates the obligation of expulsion if a foreigner has been repeatedly finally sentenced to a total of at least three years in prison within a period of five years, if he has been convicted of a criminal offense for which a prison sentence of at least eight years is prescribed, or if he poses a threat to national security. It remains to be seen whether this violent Pakistani, if found guilty and convicted again, will be expelled, as stipulated by the Law on Foreigners.
Incomprehensible criteria Every state, including Croatia, has the right to expel foreign nationals, even for misdemeanors, as was the case with the Serbian citizen who showed three fingers in the photo. However, if that is enough to ban entry into Croatia and the EU, it is difficult to understand by what exact criteria it is decided that someone who has been finally convicted of rape should not be expelled, but allowed to stay and commit the same criminal offense again. Such disproportion is difficult to explain, especially since the Law on Foreigners clearly stipulates that persons convicted of serious criminal offenses must be expelled.
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Source: Index.hr; Foto: Printscreen Youtube / WORLD WILD HEARTS