ZAGREB, May 27 (Hina) - Asked to comment on unofficial results of this year's population census, Croatian President Stjepan Mesic said that the results according to which the number of Serbs had dropped by eight percentage points in
relation to 1991 did not mean that that many Serbs had left Croatia, but that they stated some other nationality.
ZAGREB, May 27 (Hina) - Asked to comment on unofficial results of
this year's population census, Croatian President Stjepan Mesic
said that the results according to which the number of Serbs had
dropped by eight percentage points in relation to 1991 did not mean
that that many Serbs had left Croatia, but that they stated some
other nationality. #L#
"There is definitely a certain number of people who stated some
other nationality due to collective accusations, the fact that they
are from mixed marriages, or simply because they did not want to
take any risk," Mesic said in an interview on Croatian Radio.
According to the 1991 census, Serbs accounted for slightly less
than 12% of Croatia's overall population. According to unofficial
results of this year's census published in the media, they now
account for slightly more than four percent.
As a democratic country, Croatia must enable all of its citizens to
return, but it is another matter if they do not want to return, Mesic
said.
Croatia was a victim of a brutal act of aggression, which gave rise
to collective stigmatising and the process of guilt
individualisation has not been completed yet, Mesic said. Exactly
that is the reason why some people took the line of least resistance
and stated some other nationality, he said.
Commenting on the State Audit Office report on the process of
privatisation, which the government has assessed negatively
objecting that it does not contain the names of those who committed
criminal acts, Mesic said that previous reports did not include any
names either.
"The findings include cases, to which the police and State
Prosecution should act, consider them and possibly process them,"
Mesic said, adding that police and the State Prosecution should do
their part of the job.
Commenting on transcripts published in the media, in which he was
linked to Hrvoje Petrac and Vjeko Slisko, Mesic said that neither of
the two men had ever been in his election headquarters nor did they
have anything with his victory in the presidential elections.
According to the media, Hrvoje Petrac is believed to be a member of a
criminal organisation opposed to the criminal organisation which
Vjeko Slisko, who was killed in Zagreb last year, belonged to.
(hina) rml