OSCE OFFICIALS VISIT VUKOVAR-SRIJEM COUNTY

VINKOVCI/VUKOVAR, Feb 28 (Hina) - The High Commissioner for Minorities of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Rolf Ekeus, and the head of the OSCE Mission to Croatia, Peter Semneby, on Thursday visited Vukovar-Srijem County, where they held talks with local representatives. In a short statement to reporters Ekeus said he hoped the Croatian parliament would soon adopt a law on minority and human rights. The Office of the High Commissioner is aware of the problems and will closely monitor the development of the situation and try to provide advice and assist in the adoption of the law, Ekeus said. The spokesman of the Joint Council of (Serb-dominated) Municipalities, Milan Trbojevic, said after a meeting between the OSCE officials and representatives of the Serb minority the two sides "have expressed mutual dissatisfaction with the Croatian justice system, which is at a rather low level, which negatively affects the position of national minorities in Croatia." The president of the Independent Serb Democratic Party (SDSS), Vojislav Stanimirovic, has warned about the failure to respect the current constitutional law on minorities, citing as an example Article 18 on proportional representation of national minorities on the local level, Trbojevic said. Stanimirovic quoted the example of Vukovar, Beli Manastir and Knin, where Serbs make up half of the population but do not have their representatives in the executive authorities. (hina) sb rml .