BRIEF NEWS BULLETIN IN ENGLISH NO. 4786 HINA Zagreb, 28 October 2002

HR-POLITICS-Politika BRIEF NEWS BULLETIN IN ENGLISH NO. 4786 HINA Zagreb, 28 October 2002 CROATIAN PRESIDENT TO BE RECEIVED BY POPE IN DECEMBERZAGREB, Oct 28 (Hina) - Croatian President Stjepan Mesic will have an audience with Pope John Paul II in December, the President's Office confirmed on Monday. Sources from the Vatican and the Croatian Embassy at the Holy See reported that President Mesic is to be received by the Pope on December 16. A day later the Croatian head of state is to participate at the ceremonious lifting of this year's Christmas tree in St. Peter's Square. This year the tree is from Croatia and on that occasion, President Mesic will make a brief speech. The Christmas tree that will decorate St. Peter's Square will come from Gorski Kotar and it will arrive in Rome on December 8 while the ceremonious set-up of the tree will be held at 16.00 hours on December 17, the same sources reported. Apart from the 28-metre-high tree in St. Peter's Square, decorated with Croatian s