SARAJEVO, March 25 (Hina) - Croatian and Bosnian authorities are agreed that all refugees must be enabled to return to pre-war homes and that in doing so, property rights must be respected, the two countries' representatives concluded
in Sarajevo on Monday.
SARAJEVO, March 25 (Hina) - Croatian and Bosnian authorities are
agreed that all refugees must be enabled to return to pre-war homes
and that in doing so, property rights must be respected, the two
countries' representatives concluded in Sarajevo on Monday.#L#
The head of the Croatian government's office for displaced persons
and refugees, Lovre Pejkovic, and Assistant Foreign Minister Josko
Paro, met representatives of international organisations active in
Bosnia and Herzegovina, and later with Bosnian officials headed by
Human Rights and Refugees Minister Kresimir Zubak.
The meetings addressed the Bosnian Croats who recently have been
arriving to Knin, Gracac, and Benkovac in Croatia after being
evicted, in line with property laws, from houses in the western
Bosnian town of Drvar into which they had moved after having been
expelled from their homes during the war. Since they have not been
provided with alternative accommodation in Bosnia and cannot
return to pre-war homes, they started arriving in Croatia.
Around 100 Bosnian Croats have already come to Croatia seeking
accommodation and assistance, said Pejkovic. This represents an
objective problem for Croatia, he added, commenting on allegations
in some Bosnian media that the Drvar situation was being
exaggerated for political reasons.
Some Drvar Croats see their stay in Croatia as only temporary and
wish to return to pre-war homes in Bosnia, whereas others see their
future in Croatia, said Pejkovic.
Paro said international representatives saw the situation in Drvar
as a problem. The Croatian government wishes to help those wishing
to return, he said, adding that to achieve this, Bosnia and Croatia
should improve the exchange of information relating to the
situation in the field.
The deputy minister for refugees of Bosnia's Federation, Mijat
Tuka, announced the two countries' representatives would soon meet
again to draw up a special plan for Drvar.
Croatia and Bosnia and Bosnia's two entities will at the same time
step up activities in connection with transborder returns.
The deputy minister for refugees of Bosnia's Serb entity, Branko
Vukadinovic, maintained the current situation in Drvar was
primarily the result of the implementation of property laws. In
line with said laws, 2,000 evictions are carried out in the Bosnian
Serb entity daily.
(hina) ha