TRIESTE: HEARING IN LAWSUIT OF CRO SAVERS WITH SLOVENE BANK BEGINS

TRIESTE, March 4 (Hina) - The lawsuit in which the first 175 Croatian savings account holders with the former Ljubljanska Banka sued the bank's office in Trieste for EUR1.65 million opened at a hearing in Trieste Monday. The Croatian plaintiffs say they lost their savings in 1991 when Slovenia separated from Yugoslavia. Bozidar Vukasovic, representing some of the Croatian savers, hired two well known attorneys from Trieste, Enzio Volli and Guido Pastri, to defend Croatian savers' interests before the Trieste court. They demand the return of their money and the freezing of Nova Ljubljanska Banka funds in the amount of EUR1.65 million. According to Vukasovic, Nova Ljubljanska Banka attorneys believe the freezing is not necessary. Vukasovic said the dispute would be solved soon, as "it was not in the interest of any party to prolong it, particularly not Nova Ljubljanska Banka as it damages its reputation." The next hearing is scheduled for March 11. Vukasovic said the Trieste branch of the Ljubljanska Banka did not, as in Croatia, transform into the Nova Ljubljanska Banka, but still has the same business registration and tax number as before 1991. The entire case involves about 140,000 Croatian savers and EUR150 million, without interest. (hina) np sb