ZAGREB, March 31 (Hina) - Croatian Peasant Party leader Zlatko Tomcic is satisfied parliament will define a position on unacceptable parts of the Hague war crimes tribunal's indictments even though, he said on Wednesday, an agreement
to take a stand was reached after 15 days of unnecessary arguing.
ZAGREB, March 31 (Hina) - Croatian Peasant Party leader Zlatko Tomcic
is satisfied parliament will define a position on unacceptable parts
of the Hague war crimes tribunal's indictments even though, he said on
Wednesday, an agreement to take a stand was reached after 15 days of
unnecessary arguing.#L#
Tomcic spoke to reporters after a meeting of parliament's leadership,
the chairpersons of the clubs of deputies, Prime Minister Ivo Sanader
and Justice Minister Vesna Skare-Ozbolt, at which it was agreed that
parliament would likely discuss the indictments in late April.
If there is something positive in today's agreement, it is that
parliament will discuss the political accusations in the indictments,
he said, adding that the discussion would be complex as it was likely
to raise the question whether to tackle only indictments against
generals Mladen Markac and Ivan Cermak or the four new ones the
Justice Ministry received today as well.
Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Ivica Racan, who apologised for
leaving early today's meeting due to prior commitments, said the SDP
advocated having a discussion which would credibly defend Croatia's
position and not one which would bring parliament into conflict with
the Hague tribunal's Office of the Prosecutor.
"I don't think the (latest) indictments against HVO (Bosnian Croat
Defence Council) officials are good reason to have that discussion,"
he said, adding a discussion should be held on Croatia-Bosnia
relations.
Racan stressed the Croatian Homeland War could not be equated with the
war in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
(Hina) ha sb