I have written to you on numerous occasions concerning the fate of golf development in Motovun, but to no avail. I must say that your persistent silence is beginning to worry me and other members of Motovun – Eco Town, an international association concerned with sustainable development of the town and its historic surroundings, both of which are of great cultural value to Croatia and beyond. Thus I am writing to you once again, this time in serious concern.

To the best of my understanding, the commission you have set up to vet the environmental impact study prepared for Jupiter Group, the British investor in golf development in Motovun, by the Croatian Civil Engineering Institute (Institut građevinarstva Hrvatske) has been effectively sidelined as of late. In late March the commission gave the investor fifteen days to either accept a reduction of the proposed number of beds to the maximum of two-hundred and fifty, or to have the study rejected. Since then, the commission has extended the deadline twice, first to the end of April, and then to mid-May, but the investor has not yet responded in any way. As far as I can gather from associates close to your ministries, the investor is now in direct contact with you, instead. In spite of considerable sensitivity of this development project, the commission composed of many specialists concerned with a wide gamut of development issues has thus been rendered obsolete.

The fate of Motovun, a medieval town of exceptional beauty, which has rightly been put on the tentative list of UNESCO’s World Heritage early last year, cannot and must not be decided by a few parties behind closed doors. In fact, the situation we now face is becoming increasingly alarming. Helped by the Croatian Civil Engineering Institute, which is widely believed to be at the pinnacle of the construction lobby in Croatia, Jupiter Group appears to be exempt from the law of the land. This cannot be tolerated any longer. As the president of Motovun – Eco Town, I request that you make public your dealings with Jupiter Group as soon as possible.