ZAGREB, Nov 5 (Hina) - Croatia and a Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party foundation have agreed on the payment of more than 11 million kuna into the government budget which has been blocked in a bank account since mid-2002, the
State Prosecutor's Office said on Wednesday.
ZAGREB, Nov 5 (Hina) - Croatia and a Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ)
party foundation have agreed on the payment of more than 11 million
kuna into the government budget which has been blocked in a bank
account since mid-2002, the State Prosecutor's Office said on
Wednesday. #L#
In 1998, the sum of EUR1.5 million was transferred into the account
of the HDZ's Zaklada Hrvatskog Drzavnog Zavjeta foundation from an
Austrian bank in which Croatian emigrants had deposited money for
the defence of Croatia.
"The agreement on the unconditional transfer of EUR1.5 million from
the Zaklada account into the government budget has been reached
recently," Deputy Chief State Prosecutor Jadranko Jug told Hina. "I
don't know if the transaction has been technically carried out,
i.e. if the money from the Zaklada account has already been paid
into the government budget."
Upon discovering the secret account in Privredna Bank, the State
Prosecutor's Office asked for the money, claiming it belonged to
the government and not to the HDZ foundation. Last June, at the
request of the State Prosecutor's Office, the Zagreb Municipal
Court last June issued a temporary injunction on the disposal of the
funds.
Jug said the state would also ask, via the State Prosecutor's
Office, the return of EUR40,000 in interest which he added Zaklada
had spent for its own ends.
The latter sum will be asked in a trial initiated after charges were
pressed against former Zaklada manager Ivic Pasalic, and
administrative board members Anto Beljo and Ivan Aralica.
(hina) ha sb