Croatia: Ex-prime minister in corruption case on run

A FORMER Croatian prime minister under investigation in a corruption case left the country yesterday, police said, hours before parliament lifted his immunity from prosecution.

Ivo Sanader, now a member of parliament, left Croatia at midday, crossing into Slovenia, police spokesman Krunoslav Borovec said. Police "had no legal basis" to stop him at the time, the spokesman said, suggesting they had no arrest warrant.

Several former government officials and businessmen have been jailed as Sanader's successor, Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor, works to fight corruption, which is a key condition for Croatia's entry into the European Union.

But Sanader is the most senior government official to be investigated since Croatia gained independence in 1991.

Yesterday morning, prosecutors asked parliament to lift Sanader's immunity, and all politicians present supported the request. Parliament said state prosecutors want to investigate and detain Sanader on charges of conspiring to commit a crime and abuse of position.