DEFENCE MINISTER VISITS DJAKOVO MILITARY DISTRICT

OSIJEK, Oct 14 (Hina) - Croatian Defence Minister Zeljka Antunovic and Croatian Armed Forces Chief-of-Staff General Petar Stipetic spoke in Osijek on Monday with representatives of the Djakovo military district and prefects of Slavonia counties. Antunovic said that answers to questions relating to the reorganisation and care of about 4,000 redundancies in the military district should be known by next April. #L# After the closed meeting, Antunovic said this did not mean that by that time 4,000 people would find themselves unemployed, but the ministry would try to provide for them in various ways. "Through the reorganisation process and transition programmes, our task is to bring them to the civil sector and secure their employment there," Antunovic said. The institute "stimulating redundancy pays" is not defined and no decisions to that effect have been made, Antunovic said, assessing media speculation about the issue as "half-information and misinformation". "Anybody with conditions for retirement will not receive stimulating redundancy pay. This is intended for those who have no conditions for further development in the Armed Forces, nor for retirement," the minister explained, adding that the decision on the amount of stimulating redundancy pays would depend on available budgetary funds next year. "The exact amount and conditions will be known very soon," she said. Replying to a reporter's question, Antunovic said that media information that the navy and air force would be abolished was completely false. "Talks are being held on their reorganisation, capacities, number of aircraft and ships, but not about their abolishment," she asserted. (hina) lml sb