SDA CLAIMS PRESSURE ON BOSNIAKS IN ISTRIA INCREASED

PULA, Oct 18 (Hina) - Istrian County prefect Ivan Jakovcic on Thursday received representatives of the county's Party of Democratic Action (SDA) at their request. They complained about increased pressures on Bosniaks (Moslems) living in Istria. The representatives, among whom was the chief imam of Pula, Vahid Hadzic, informed Jakovcic that Bosniaks were receiving threats by telephone, police were taking them in for questioning and searching their vehicles during routine traffic control. The present security level could be brought into question should the pressures continue in conditions "of an increasingly present anti-Moslem hysteria around the world, in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in the United States." Prefect Jakovcic stressed that every resident of Istria County would be protected independent of his or her nationality or religion. A spokeswoman for Istria police, Stefanija Prosenjak Zumber, told Hina police had no knowledge of any telephone or other threats against Bosniaks, but was not able to say whether they had been brought in for questioning. As far as searches of vehicles were concerned during traffic control, police treat all drivers equally, she asserted. (hina) lml sb