Dear Ms President Kolinda Grabar Kitarović,

In relation to your upcoming official visit to Hungary, which will be hosted by the President of the Government of Hungary Mr. Viktor Orban, the Initiative „Welcome“, a civic initiative that brings together many organizations and volunteers working daily with refugees who are passing through Croatia, would like to invite you to use this opportunity to share your concern about those policies of the Hungarian Prime Minister that are directed against the fundamental rights of refugees as well as Hungarian citizens. It is extremely important to steer the discussion in a way that would lead to the removal of the fences and wires that have been erected along the borders with Croatia and Serbia. Also it is important to call on the government of Mr. Orban to stop using repressive measures.

Citizens of Croatia have clearly demonstrated by their own example how important it is to show solidarity with people who are fleeing war and deep social injustices. Today we can be proud of the fact that Croatia has not erected wire fences, that our police helps out rather than beats refugees, that our public and the refugees themselves are not frightened by the military and that numerous citizens have organized themselves spontaneously and provided assistance to the refugees – precisely on the basis of our own experience with war, displacement and deep economic injustice which lead many of our compatriots to leave the country. Consequently Croatia has gained additional legitimacy for advocating with its partners in the European Union for a more humane approach to refugees, one that would fully adhere to international standards in human rights protection.

Unfortunately, the policies of Prime Minister Orban are diametrically opposed to such an approach and thus the initiative „Welcome“calls upon you to use your authority and to build on the actions of many citizens of Croatia who are opposed to wires, isolation and the militarization of a humanitarian crisis and to convince Mr. Orban as much as circumstances allow you to abandon his repressive policies and acts that have been enshrined in new legislation. It is in the interest of Croatia, as well as of the whole EU, that the fences and wires along the Croatian-Hungarian (as well as the Serbian-Hungarian) border are taken down as quickly as possible.

The initiative „Welcome“ calls upon you to, as part of the official foreign policy of Croatia, use the meeting with Prime Minister Orban to discuss: further possibilities for securing safe land and air corridors through which refugees could travel; ways to provide refugees temporary protection status on the whole territory of the European Union and finally efforts through which the armed conflicts in Iraq, Afganistan and Syria would begin to be resolved through talks under the auspices of the United Nations that would result in concrete actions aimed at ending these armed conflicts.

Upon your shoulders, as the President of the Republic of Croatia, lies a big responsibility not to keep silent about problems which the policies of Prime Minister Orban are causing to the refugees as well as to the whole European Union. Much rather we hope that you will discuss these problems in an open and constructive manner so that such policies are laid to rest.

In Zagreb, October 6th 2015

Initiative „Welcome“