1,386 Have Diplomatic Passports In Croatia

A whopping 1,386 people in Croatia have a diplomatic passport. Although owning the diplomatic passport does not mean necessarily diplomatic immunity, the owners of the passport have many privileges whilst travelling across boarders.

Daily newspaper Vecernji list investigated the issue after a member of parliament was arrested this week in Bosnia for driving a stolen vehicle. The MP, Ivan Drrmic, had one of these diplomatic passports with him at the time of his arrest.

Even though Drmic was on a personal trip, and even though he could have just used his ID card, he used the passport, stirring up debate in Croatia about the issuing of the passport, and how one uses it.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issues the diplomatic passports under a host of categories, such as for the National Bank governor, judges, security officers, mayors and their families. The diplomatic passports are only issued for official trips and are supposed to be returned once their visit is complete. It seems though in practice this is not the case.