(May 26, 2911) The Holy See and Croatia sealed a treaty to implement an agreement
on Catholic schools in the country. Archbishop Marin Srakić, president of the Croatian
Episcopal Conference, and Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor, confirmed the agreement Monday
at the Episcopal conference headquarters, reported the bishops' news agency. The agreement
was signed 15 years ago and will now be implemented. The document recognizes the
Catholic Church's right to establish schools of all types and grade levels and specifies
the respective obligations of the state, including regarding teachers' salaries.
It fixes norms for enrolment, the type of instruction offered, the appointment of
directors and the approval of the statutes of Catholic primary and secondary schools.
The agreement notes the Catholic schools presently at work in the country: two primary
schools and 12 secondary schools. The Church also runs almost 50 daycares. In her
address during the signing ceremony, Prime Minister Kosor stressed the importance
of the agreement, arrived at on the eve of Pope Benedict XVI's apostolic visit to
Croatia, which is scheduled for next week. In his intervention, Archbishop Srakić
pointed out that Catholic schools are not exclusive to the faithful. He mentioned
the example of Kosovo, where 90% of the students of Catholic schools are Muslim.