SLOVENE CITIZEN ARRESTED IN CROATIA STILL REFUSING FOOD

PULA, Aug 23 (Hina) - Slovene citizen Josko Joras from Mlini in Buje municipality in Istria, whom the Croatian police arrested on Wednesday afternoon, has continued refusing food on Thursday and Friday, the head of the Pula District Prison, Ingrid Popovska Cukon, told Hina on Friday. #L# She added that, according to prison regulations, prisoners are considered to be on hunger strike after refusing food for three days, after which they are weighed and put under medical observation. Joras's attorney, Danijel Starman, said that he had contacted the Helsinki Committee and Amnesty International in Slovenia and other European human rights associations. According to Starman, once Joras has been released, he will sue the Croatian state and seek compensation. Starman remarked that "Joras is a political prisoner and has special treatment in the Pula jail." Joras is a Slovene citizen who lives in Mlini near Buje. On Wednesday he was arrested and sentenced to 30 days' imprisonment at the Pula District Prison after failing to appear in court in seven misdemeanour trials conducted against him since 1999 at the Pula County Court and ignoring fines and court expenses the court ordered him to pay, reads an order issued by the Magistrate's Court in Umag. Based on these facts, the judge ruled that the unpaid fines should be compensated for with a month-long prison sentence. The judge also ruled that all foreign flags Joras had put up on his house without the approval of the relevant Croatian state bodies be removed, except for that of the European Union. Attorney Starman on Thursday stated that his client did not recognise the jurisdiction of the Croatian state and did not intend to pay the fines amounting to around 680 euro, regardless of the fact that this could mean his release. (hina) sp rml sb