MERCEP'S ELECTORAL HEADQUARTERS ANNOUNCE SUIT AGAINST "NACIONAL"

ZAGREB, Jan 13 (Hina) - The electoral headquarters of the Croatian Popular Party (HPS) presidential candidate Tomislav Mercep said Thursday it would lodge a law suit against Srecko Jurdana, a reporter for the "Nacional" weekly, regarding a text he had written in the January 12 issue. The headquarters would request of the National Electoral Commission, Ethics Commission, Court of Honour of the Croatian Journalists' Society and the GONG non-government organisations to express their views on the subject. Jurdana wrote about Mercep that he was a "minor neo-fascist figure". Mercep's headquarters said that, according to Jurdana's description, "the minor neo-fascist figure such as Tomislav Mercep" was actually a Croatian Homeland War soldier who had provided people such as the author of the text, the possibility to sleep peacefully. Jurdana also wrote about Mercep that he was "a declared fascist threatening members of national minorities and political opponents with persecution -- without any police effects". The headquarters asked whether Nacional's reporter thought police would not act should what he wrote be true. (hina) lml mm