UNIONIST: CROATIA BECOMING WORLD BANK, IMF PROTECTORATE

ZAGREB, Aug 3 (Hina) - A union official said on Friday the government, with the latest increase in prices and reduction of welfare benefits, was unconditionally meeting the conditions set by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, thus making Croatia their protectorate. This is just the first step in meeting those conditions and will soon be followed by the privatisation of the power sector, from which Croatia's citizens and workers will not benefit, according to Kresimir Sever, president of the Independent Trade Unions of Croatia (NHS). He corroborated his statement with the recent increase in prices for Croatian Telecom (HT) services, saying the only to profit would be Deutsche Telekom, which has a majority share in the HT. The government is returning the favour for helping "patch up" holes in the budget, said Sever. He wondered if such steps were the government's answer to pre- electoral promises about 200,000 new jobs, which he reminded helped the incumbent authorities win the mandate. The government has done nothing to improve the situation in the country, Sever was adamant. He said the summer had not been chosen by chance for the increase in prices. Most Croats are on vacation and do not think about the higher prices that will "cool them" come autumn, he maintains. Sever appealed to unions, experts and scholars, who are entitled to urge the government to provide concrete solutions to overcome the crisis, to work together. If the government is incapable of working things out, it should resign, he said. (hina) ha