PROFILES OF NEWLY-APPOINTED CROATIAN MINISTERS

ZAGREB, Jan 27 (Hina) - Slavko Linic, of the Social Liberal Party (SDP), Croatia's newly-appointed vice-premier, was born on September 19, 1949. He graduated from the faculty of Economy in Rijeka in 1973. He was the financial director and co-chairman of a financial and managerial service. Linic worked at the "Victor Lenc" ship-yard. He also performed the duty of chairman of the Rijeka Municipal Assembly Executive Council in 1990. He was elected Rijeka's mayor two times and was elected into the SDP Assembly in 1995 and 2000. Newly-appointed Croatia's Defence Minister Jozo Rados (Croatian Social Liberal Party, HSLS) was born on November 3, 1956, in Seonica near Tomislavgrad (Bosnia-Herzegovina). He graduated in philosophy and history and from the Electrical engineering Faculty in Zagreb. He worked in Osijek and Djakovo as a teacher. Rados also worked as a development project head at Zagreb's Rade Koncar company and at the electric bulb plant in Zagreb as a electrical engineering technologist. Rados has enrolled into postgraduate studies at the Zagreb Faculty of Political Studies. He has been a member of the HSLS since 1998 and was elected several times as MP into the Croatian National Sabor's House of Representatives. Rados was elected several times as HSLS vice-president and currently holds the post of the party's secretary-general. At elections in 1995 and 1997 Rados was elected as member into the Zagreb City Assembly and Zagreb Mayor in 1996. Newly-appointed Minister of Croatian Homeland War Veterans, Ivica Pancic, was born on January 31, 1968, in Vukovar. He is a graduate political scientist and is about to receive a post- graduate degree at the Faculty of Political Studies in Zagreb. Pancic participated in the defence of the eastern Croatian town of Vukovar until the town's fall in November 1991 when he was exiled. During 1993 and 1994 Pancic worked as an inspector in general crime prevention at the Interior Ministry. In May of 1997 he arrived at radio Vukovar to work as a reporter until January 1999 when he was laid off. In May 1999 Pancic became president of the Vukovar-Srijem County SDP branch. He is unmarried. Croatia's newly-appointed Foreign Minister Tonino Picula was born on August 31, 1961, in Mali Losinj. He graduated from the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb in 1987. From 1987 until 1989 Picula worked as a professional secretary for the "Cultural Worker" magazine, the oldest social and cultural events magazine in the former Yugoslavia. He has been active in politics from 1989, and since 1993 he has been the international secretary of the SDP. Picula is a member of the party's executive and main committees. He participated in the Homeland War. Since 1997 he has been an SDP councillor at the Zagreb County Assembly, and a member of the Assembly's Committee for international and inter-county cooperation and the Committee for the Development of Local Self-Government. Picula is the chairman of the Velika Gorica SDP town organisation and secretary for the Croatian Friendship Society with Bosnia- Herzegovina. Newly-appointed Finance Minister Mato Crkvenac (SDP) was born in 1945 in Donja Petricka near Bjelovar. He graduated in 1968 from Zagreb's Faculty of Economy and gained Master of Science and Doctor of Science degrees. Crkvenac has been working at the Faculty of Economy since 1973 and as of 1991 has the title of university professor for macro-economy and economy policy. During the 70's and 80's he was engaged at the State Institute for Planning. Crkvenac was active in projects of scientific research initiated by the Croatian Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Economic Research Institute, Zagreb's Faculty of Economy and Zagreb's Institute of Economy. He is a member of the Scientific Council of the Oil Academy. Crkvenac is the head of the Centre for Economic Policy and Development at the Faculty of Economy in Zagreb, and cooperates with international economic institutions and organisations. Crkvenac is the author of several books and a large number of study papers and articles published in the country and abroad, and in 1985 and 1995 received awards for his scientific work. Newly-appointed Economy Minister Goranko Fizulic (HSLS) was born on March 14, 1956 in Kotoriba. He graduated from the Faculty of Construction Science in Zagreb in 1980. He is married and the father of two children. Fizulic was a volunteer during the Homeland War from 1991 to 1992. He has been in private business since 1984. In 1989 Fizulic founded the "Magma" toy company and the "Turbo Limac" toy store chain. In the period between 1992 and 1995 he was MP at the Croatian National Sabor's House of Representatives. He is a cofounder of the HSLS in 1989 and performed the duty of vice- president of the party's head committee from 1992 until 1994 after which he became a member of the HSLS main committee until 1999. He was the cofounder and vice-president of the Presidency of the Croatian Employees' Association from 1993 until 1998. Newly-appointed Tourism Minister Pave Zupan-Ruskovic was born in 1947. She graduated from the Faculty of Economy in Zagreb where she also gained her masters degree. Ruskovic is the president of the Association of Croatian Travel Agencies and was president of the Croatian branch of the association of American travel agencies, and a member of the Croatian world tourist council of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, of the Croatian Employees' Association, the Croatian Council of the European Movement and the Rebuild Dubrovnik Fund. Ruskovic has received numerous awards in associations for her activities. Croatia's newly-appointed Agriculture and Forestry Minister Bozidar Pankretic has been a member of the Croatian Peasants' Party (HSS) since 1992. His last function was MP at the Croatian National Sabor's House of Counties. Pankretic was born on November 9, 1964 in the village of Gaj, near Vrbovec. He graduated from the Faculty of Agronomy in Zagreb and earned a master's degree in 1998 at the faculty. Pankretic was elected deputy county prefect of the Zagreb County in 1996, and became an MP in 1997, after which he was elected as vice- president of the House of Counties. Pankretic's political career has been tied exclusively with the HSS. He was member of the party presidency, then the Presidency Cabinet and Main Committee. He is also vice-president of the party and president of the HSS Zagreb City organisation. He was the initiator of the founding of the Croatian Alliance of Peasants. Pankretic is married and the father of two daughters. He was an active participant of the Homeland War. The newly-appointed Science and Technology Minister Hrvoje Kraljevic (HSLS) was born on March 16, 1944, in Zagreb. He has been a member of the HSLS since 1990 and was an MP at the Croatian Sabor's House of Representatives since 1998. He graduated from Zagreb's Faculty of Mathematics in 1996, earned a master's degree in 1968 and a doctor's degree in mathematics in 1973. Kraljevic became a regular professor at the Mathematics department of the faculty in 1983. He is the winner of several scientific awards. Since 1970 Kraljevic has cooperated with the "Mathematical Reviews" magazine and since 1978 with the "Zentralblatta fuer Mathematik". He also cooperated with the Lexicography Institute for the third edition of the General Encyclopaedia. From 1990 until 1995 Kraljevic was editor-in-chief of the "Mathematics Gazette" magazine, is a member of the Mathematical Society, the Croatian Mathematical Society and the Croatian Cultural Society. From 1983 until 1989 he worked as the director and from 1991 as the dean of the Faculty of Mathematics' mathematics department. In the period between 1970 and 1990 he was member of a number of science and education institutes. Kraljevic was a member of the Education, Culture and Sports Ministry Education Council Programme from 1990 until 1992 and a member of the "Rudjer Boskovic" award commission and the Zagreb City award commission from 1991 until 1992. He was also a member of the Zagreb University Education Committee from 1989 until 1994. Kraljevic has published some thirty papers and one university and two high-school text books. Croatia's newly-elected Environment Protection and Urban Planning Minister, Bozo Kovacevic, was a cofounder of the HSLS and the Liberal Party (LS). He was an MP at the House of Representatives for two mandates starting in 1992 and 1995. Kovacevic was born on January 11, 1955 in Daruvar. He graduated from the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb. In 1989 Kovacevic was elected as vice-president of the HSLS executive committee, followed by party vice-president and then HSLS secretary-general. In 1996 and 1997 Kovacevic was a member of the Croatian Sabor's delegation at the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly. After the founding of the LS in 1998 he became the party's spokesman and vice-president later. Kovacevic was an editor of the "Questions" magazine from 1977 until 1978, the founder and editor of the "Gorgodan" magazine between 1979 and 1983, and a member of the administrative committee of the Croatian Society of Philosophy and editorial office of the "Philosophic Research" magazine. He was also director of the office of the Croatian Helsinki Committee for a year. Kovacevic worked at the "Globus" publishing company as editor from 1983 until 1988 and taught sociology at the Institute of the Faculty of Technology and the Dramatic Arts Academy. Besides some sixty scientific papers, Kovacevic has published two books. Croatia's new Culture Minister Antun Vujic was born on July 14, 1945 in Dubrovnik. In 1967 he graduated in philosophy and sociology from the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb, earned a master's degree in 1976 and a doctor's degree in philosophy in 1985. Vujic was an active participant of the "Croatian Spring", a Croatian uprising in the former Yugoslavia in 1971 and lost his job because of it the following year. At the end of the eighties Vujic was one of the initiators of the establishment of the Croatian Committee for Human Rights (1989) and the founder of the Social Democratic Party of Croatia /SDH). He was active during the establishment of new union associations and civil initiatives, as well as non-government organisations. Vujic participated in the work of international social democratic and other conferences. In 1994, following the merging of the SDP and the SDH, Vujic became the SDP's Council chairman. He has been an MP since 1995, a member of the Croatian parliamentary delegation at the Council of Europe in 1996 and of the Interparliamentary union in 1997, and vice-president of the Parliamentary Education, Culture and Science Committee. In 1993 Vujic was the initiator and editor-in-chief of the Croatian Lexicon for which he won the State Science Award in 1998. Sime Lucin, Croatia's new Interior Minister, was born on November 4, 1958, in Trogir. He is married and the father to two children. Lucin graduated from Zagreb's Faculty of Political science. Since 1989 he has been the president of the Trogir town branch of the SDP and since 1992 the coordinator of SDP organisations for Dalmatia. In 1993 Lucin became vice-president of the SDP for two mandates, the second one in 1997. Lucin was elected Trogir Mayor in 1999. Newly-appointed Development, Immigration and Reconstruction Minister Radimir Cacic was born in 1949 in Zagreb where he graduated from the Faculty of Architecture. At the "Interpublic" company he worked for the United States State Department as business manager for Moscow and Eastern Europe. Cacic was the cofounder of Croatia Airlines in 1990. He was charged in 1985 with undermining the self-governing system of the former Yugoslavia, but was acquitted by the Supreme Court. Cacic was assistant lecturer at the Faculty of Construction in Zagreb. He also taught at a business school based on the Harvard Business School. In 1990 he was appointed into the Constitutional Commission for drafting the new constitution. He is a cofounder of the Croatian People's Party (HNS) and is a member of the party Presidency. He was MP at the House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999 when he was also chairman of the Urban Development and Environment Protection Committee. New Labour and Social Welfare Minister Davorko Vidovic was born on June 26, 1956 in Sisak. He is married with two daughters. Vidovic graduated in 1980 from the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb and worked as a professor in a high school in Sisak, teaching sociology, philosophy, phychology, logic and political economy. He also worked as a researcher at the Idea and Theory Work Centre. Vidovic was a participant of the Homeland war from August 1991 until August 1992 and was promoted to the rank of reserve major of the Croatian Army. In 1993 he was elected as SDP vice-president and in 1996 in the second mandate. Vidovic is the founder of the entrepreneurs' Forum, Social Democracy Forum, Seniors' Forum and the editor-in-chief of the SDP's general policy programme. He is a vice-president of the Croatian-Chinese Friendship Society and a member of the Coordination of Croatian friendship societies. Croatia's newly-appointed Maritime Affairs, Transport and Communications Minister Alojz Tusek was born on May 8, 950 in Zagreb. In 1976 he graduated from the Zagreb Faculty of Technical engineering and Ship-building. In 1985 he earned a master's degree at the Faculty of Technology. Tusek is currently a senior tutor at the Maritime Affairs College in Split. He is the author of several scientific papers, and about 50 engine, machine and gadget projects. Tusek was awarded a Homeland War medal and the "Storm" operation medal. Since 1993 he has been Split's councillor and from 1993 until 1995 he performed the duty of deputy mayor. He has been a member of the HSLS since 1990 and was a member of the HSLS head committee for a mandate. Ana Stavljenic Rukavina, Croatia's new Health Minister, was born on October 15, 1939 in Duga Resa. She graduated from Zagreb's Faculty of Pharmacy in 1963 and in 1968 from Zagreb's Faculty of Medicine. She earned a master's degree in 1971 at the Royal Postgraduate Medical School in London and a doctor's degree at the Zagreb University. Rukavina became regular professor at the Zagreb Faculty of Medicine in 1985 and is the head of the Faculty's clinical institute for laboratory diagnostics. Rukavina published more than 200 papers, she is the author of three books and 28 appendixes to books of other authors. She is the president of the Croatian Society for Human Genetics and the Croatian Chamber of Biochemists. Croatia's new Justice Minister Stjepan Ivanisevic was born on August 12, 1939 in Trpanj on the Peljesac peninsula. He graduated in 1965 from the faculty of Law in Zagreb where he earned his master's degree followed by a doctor's degree in the field of legal science. From 1961 until 1962 he worked at the Trpanj municipal administration. He became the head of the department for administrative science at the faculty of Law in Zagreb from 1990 until 1997. In the period between 1989 and 1995 Ivanisevic was president of the Postgraduate Studies Council for administrative political sciences. He is a member of numerous scientific and civil organisations. He was vice-president of the SDP from 1990 until 1993. In 1994 Ivanisevic became vice-president of the Croatian Action of Social Democrats and in 1998 a member of the SDP City Committee Council. Zeljko Pecek, the new Crafts, small-Scale and Middle-Scale Business Minister was born on April 25, 1954, in Pitomaca. He graduated from the Organisation and Computer Faculty in Varazdin. He began his career in 1976 as an intern at the Djurdjevac municipality institute for planning and analyses. After parliamentary elections on January 3 of this year, he has been appointed as MP at the House of Representatives. Pecek has been active at the Croatian peasants' Party since 1993, first as president of the Pitomaca municipality HSS branch, since 1994 has been a member of the HSS Main Committee and since 1996 president of the HSS County Organisation and member of the party Presidency. He has been a member of the party's presidency cabinet since 1998. (hina) lml