SDP DEPUTIES WALK OUT OF PARLIAMENTARY SESSION

ZAGREB, Jan 30(Hina) - Deputies of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) on Friday walked out of the parliamentary session after the session's chairman, Sabor President Vladimir Seks, barred an SDP MP, Nenad Stazic, from continuing to convey the position of the SDP deputies' club on a law which regulates the rights of state officials and office-holders.#L# Seks first warned Stazic that he was not sticking to the topic, eventually banning him from speaking after he mentioned the case of two dismissed officials in the Family Affairs Ministry - Stefanija Bortek-Knesaurek and Marijan Krizic. Stazic later told reporters that Bortek-Knesaurek and Krizic had been officials for only a few days, but the existent law enabled them to receive the full salary of office-holders for the next six months, and half of the salary for the subsequent six months. "The same goes for the notoriously indisposed Stipe Cacija," Stazic added ironically. In order to prevent the recurrence of such absurdities, the SDP club is going to move at the next parliamentary session a minimum period during which a person should be in office so that he or she could exercise the rights regulated by the law on office-holders, including the right to the salary, SDP parliamentarians told reporters. Mato Arlovic reiterated that SDP MPs were being discriminated against. Milanka Opacic added that the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) was using tolerant language at the rhetorical level but in practice had resumed its arrogance. Opacic and Arlovic went on to say that a precedent was set when Seks barred Stazic, who was speaking on bahalf of his party's club, from saying anything more on the topic. This has not happened in the last dozen years, Arlovic said. (Hina) ms sb