Cherie in dock for helping US hotel tycoon in £40m row over Croatian island
CHERIE Blair is embroiled in a £40million battle between a Texan tycoon and the residents of a Croatian island where he wants to build a 320-bed hotel.
The wife of former prime minister Tony Blair is said to have used ‘very aggressive’ behaviour to quash local opposition to the scheme.
Residents in Supetar, a 16th-century port on the island of Brac – a favourite holiday destination of Boris Johnson – claimed she was brought in to scare the ‘small village’ into submission.
Mrs Blair, a £1,000-an-hour QC, was hired by hotelier Marion Duzich, 72, who is locked in a 17-year dispute over a £2million parcel of land bought from the Croatian government in 2005.
Residents insist the site – used as a fire station and a football pitch – is theirs,
‘Handed out copies of her memoir’
claiming it was formed from small parcels of land donated by their parents and grandparents during the Communist era. When a court ruled against them, the town used planning laws to allocate the land for sport, blocking the development.
The David-and-Goliath fight turned bitter last month when Mr Duzich allegedly used security ‘heavies’ to block firemen from reaching the station, and changed the locks – an act described as ‘barbaric and violent’ by opponents.
This week the hotelier, who allegedly threatened officials with a £40million bill for lost revenue and fees, said opposition to the hotel was politically motivated.
Plans for the site next to his Supetrus hotel and holiday resort include the new hotel, a business centre for 600 workers, a garage for 500 cars and a water park.
Mrs Blair joined his legal team more than two years ago. In a meeting on Brac with officials she handed out copies of her memoir, Speaking For Myself, before reportedly launching into an ‘aggressive monologue’.
She is said to have accused town mayor Ivana Markovic of ‘destroying Croatia’s international reputation’ and said Miss Markovic, 43, would be held personally responsible for the £40million damages bill. This week, the mayor said: ‘She gave me the book and started her monologue.
She was very aggressive. Her approach was not appropriate. She was a big lawyer from London and we are just a little village.
‘This was one of the most unpleasant meetings I have ever had as mayor. They didn’t understand that I was protecting the property of the town.
‘It’s a trauma for the town. Local people feel they gave the land for the pitch and made it with their own hands.’
Jakov Zlatar, general secretary of Supetar fire brigade, founded in 1994 with engines donated by British crews, said: ‘The whole thing has exploded in our faces. We’re a small community, everybody knows everybody. This is tearing the flesh of the community apart.’
He said the row delayed the movement of equipment to the force’s new station, adding: ‘We really don’t need this problem with the firefighting season starting in 20 days. It’s going to be a very hard year with forest fires. We have a lot to do to prepare.’
Ana Klaric, who works in tourism, said: ‘Mr Duzich does not get the pulse of the community. He thinks money can solve all his problems. That’s why he is paying a star barrister Cherie Blair. He believes her image would put more pressure on city authorities.’
Mr Duzich said: ‘Mrs Blair wasn’t aggressive. She was to the point, but she was looking for a peaceful resolution. We paid top dollar for the land. But the city has pursued all legal means in the Croatian court system to prove it was not a legal purchase. The mayor is doing all this for political gain.
‘We engaged Mrs Blair to mediate an agreement and avoid arbitration in the US. We will never do anything against Croatian laws.’
Omnia, the legal firm Mrs Blair founded, said: ‘Omnia Strategy LLP represents Mr Duzich. Lawyers from the firm, including Mrs Blair, attended a settlement meeting involving Mr Duzich and others in Brac about two years ago.
‘As is customary, all parties agreed to maintain the confidentiality of the discussions.
‘Since 2015 the mayor of Supetar has pursued a campaign of harassment against our client and the resort. Mr Duzich never “blocked the fire station”. Rather, the resort lawfully took back possession of the land it owns pursuant to a Constitutional Court decision dated 28 October 2021.
‘Ultimately, in the event that the authorities do not respect his rights, Mr Duzich has the right to invoke grievance mechanisms under international law.’
‘She was very aggressive’