ZAGREB, Oct 28 (Hina) - With Ivic Pasalic, the only candidate, was elected president of the Croatian Bloc - Movement for a Modern Croatia (HB) at the party's first general assembly in Zagreb Sunday night.
ZAGREB, Oct 28 (Hina) - With Ivic Pasalic, the only candidate, was
elected president of the Croatian Bloc - Movement for a Modern
Croatia (HB) at the party's first general assembly in Zagreb Sunday
night. #L#
Thanking the voters for their confidence, Pasalic said that HB
branches would be established in all counties by the end of the
year, and the party would be prepared for parliamentary elections.
The general assembly was attended by about 1,900 envoys with a right
to vote from Croatia and abroad, as well as about a hundred guests.
Party vice-presidents are Jozo Meter, Milan Kovac, Branimir
Luksic, Ljubica Vrdoljak and Rudolf Vouk.
Pasalic stressed that the focal points of the party's programme
were economy, reducing unemployment, removing social insecurity
and the selling out of Croatian land.
The party adopted a Final Statement about the current situation in
the country which said that with the election of the incumbent
government in the beginning of 2000, citizens' living standards has
not improved, democratic authorities have not been established,
while Croatia has not made any significant progress in approaching
Euro-Atlantic associations.
The statement cites omissions at the foreign policy plan. "Croatia
is making no progress and "the government is showing increasing
cooperation with international factors who wish to tie Croatia with
the so-called Western Balkans".
In cooperating with the international war crimes tribunal, the
government is acting frivolously in protecting Croatian national
interests and has various attitudes towards certain indictees.
"The government is ignoring the tribunal's decision and is refusing
to allow General Ante Gotovina's defence attorneys to see documents
necessary for the defence," the statement reads.
Croatia's "policy towards Bosnia is undefined" and "the government
is ignoring its constitutional obligation to care for Bosnian
Croats," it continues.
The statement also cites omissions on the internal plan, assessing
that general insecurity was prevailing in the country, the Justice
Ministry is influencing the autonomous functioning of courts with
political decisions, and is choosing personnel under an
ideological, not expert criteria.
The statement concludes by saying that the incumbent authorities
are "insensitive towards social problems", that they have "an
unacceptable attitude towards the Croatian army and police," and
that "the conflict of coalition partners on the organisation of
secret and intelligence services led to their disintegration,
which has decreased the national security of the country."
(hina) lml