COALITION LEADERS HOLD TALKS ON DISSOLUTION OF UPPER HOUSE, NEW STATE PROSECUTOR

ZAGREB, Jan 31 (Hina) - Leaders of Croatia's ruling six-party coalition discussed on Wednesday the possibility of discontinuing the House of Counties and reached an agreement on the candidate for the post of State Prosecutor, who is to be discussed by the government tomorrow. Although they discussed the possibility of dissolving the upper house, the coalition leaders did not take a stand on whether the upper house should actually be dissolved, Prime Minister and Social Democratic Party leader Ivica Racan told reporters after the meeting. In line with results of opinion polls, the coalition parties expect victory in the elections for the upper house, which should be held in mid-July. Regarding this, the dissolution of the House of Counties is a matter of principle and not the revoking of somebody's right to rule through that chamber, Racan said. According to Racan, the coalition leaders tonight also discussed mistakes which were made during the adoption of constitutional changes at the end of last year, when MPs failed to discuss a problem which arises upon the dissolution of the upper house. The mandate of the current composition of the upper house expires in mid-May. Since the Constitution envisages that the House of Representatives (lower house) cannot adopt a series of laws without consent by the upper house, its work would be obstructed until the new upper house is constituted. Another problem to be considered is the issue of reducing the costs of state institutions. The dissolution of the upper house, which is a very important issue, will not be discussed from the position of economies but that aspect has to be taken into account as well, Racan said. The coalition leaders tonight also harmonised their views regarding the appointment of the new State Prosecutor whose name Racan did not want to reveal as the issue would be discussed by the government tomorrow. Unofficial sources claim the joint candidate should be Radovan Ortynski, a judge at the Zagreb County Court Investigative Centre. The coalition leaders also discussed the upcoming local elections and the election law, which contains a disputable issue - the election of mayors and prefects. The possibility of direct election of mayors and prefects was considered but their powers would then have to be much greater, Racan said. The meeting also discussed a proposal by Croatian Democratic Union's Jadranka Kosor that maternity allowances be returned to last year's level. There are no funds in the budget for such a decision right now, Racan said. The government is considering the possibility of reducing the maternity leave, which currently can last up to three years, in order to secure more satisfactory maternity allowances. The HDZ does not want and will not cause a constitutional crisis, the head of the HDZ parliamentary bench, Vladimir Seks, said tonight, expressing belief that the coalition would not decide on the dissolution of the upper house. "I am very sceptical toward the possibility that the six-party coalition decide to dissolve the chamber because some of the ruling parties count on satisfying some of their politicians with seats in the upper house," Seks said. The dissolution of the upper house requires constitutional changes and since they are adopted in three stages, this is too short a period for changes to be adopted by the June elections for the House of Counties. Asked how his party would react should the initiative on the dissolution of the chamber pass, Seks said he could not say but added "the HDZ does not want to and will not cause a constitutional crisis." The idea which is being entertained by the coalition, namely that the functioning of the lower house in that period be regulated with a new constitutional law, is unconstitutional, he said. There remains the solution that the laws, which the two chambers decide about equally, be stopped until the new upper house is constituted, Seks said. (hina) rml