GRANIC: PHONE-TAPPING USED IN 78 CASES IN 2003; IN 2,440 CASES IN 1999

ZAGREB, Sept 25 (Hina) - Claims that the authorities are tapping the phones of some opposition officials are serious, but false, and their purpose is to instigate the fear of illegal work of security services, Croatian Vice-Premier Goran Granic said in Thursday's issue of "Jutarnji list" daily. #L# The accusations should be looked into by the State Prosecutor's Office, said Granic. The vice-premier, who also chairs the council co-ordinating the work of security services, presented data on phone-tapping conducted by the Counter-Intelligence Service (POA) and police, explaining that in case of the POA, decisions on phone-tapping were made by the Supreme Court at the request of the POA director, while in the case of police, decisions were made by an investigating judge at the request of the State Prosecutor's Office. According to POA data, in 1999 the phones of 2,440 persons were tapped; in 2000 that number was 123; in 2001 the phones of 215 persons were tapped; in 2002 the number dropped to 141, and this year to 78, Granic said. The phones of 96 persons were tapped in police investigations in 2002, while in 2003 phone-tapping measures were used against 75 people, said Granic, adding that cases where phone-tapping had been used mostly concerned drug abuse. Asked whether there had been illegal phone-tapping, Granic said the legal procedure in force over the last three years prevented abuse through supervision of security services. By 2000, charges were pressed in six cases for illegal conduct, and disciplinary proceedings were initiated against 17 members of security services, he said. (hina) rml