ZAGREB, March 13 (Hina) - The return of all displaced and refugee Croats to their homes is not a political, but an exclusively economic issue for the government, European Integration Minister Ivan Jakovcic said in Zagreb on Monday.
The new government's policy is not discriminatory, Jakovcic told a session of parliament's Committee on Human Rights, appealing to all willing to return to be understanding and patient given the disastrous economic situation in the country. The government will seek more substantial financial assistance from the international community in order to make returns feasible as soon as possible, the minister announced. "I expect in that respect we shall have good co-operation with appropriate bodies of the EU (European Union) and other international institutions," he said. Parliament's Committee on Human Rights today endorsed a government programme on the implementa
ZAGREB, March 13 (Hina) - The return of all displaced and refugee
Croats to their homes is not a political, but an exclusively
economic issue for the government, European Integration Minister
Ivan Jakovcic said in Zagreb on Monday.
The new government's policy is not discriminatory, Jakovcic told a
session of parliament's Committee on Human Rights, appealing to all
willing to return to be understanding and patient given the
disastrous economic situation in the country.
The government will seek more substantial financial assistance
from the international community in order to make returns feasible
as soon as possible, the minister announced.
"I expect in that respect we shall have good co-operation with
appropriate bodies of the EU (European Union) and other
international institutions," he said.
Parliament's Committee on Human Rights today endorsed a government
programme on the implementation of conclusions reached by a EU-
Croatia working group at a February 15 meeting in Brussels. The
conclusions refer to changes in several laws which contain
discriminatory provisions towards national minorities.
Assistant Foreign Minister Vladimir Drobnjak announced the
"discriminatory" laws would be changed by April 15, when the EU-
Croatia working group should next convene.
Drobnjak explained the changes refer to the constitutional law on
the rights of national minorities, and laws on the official use of
the language and alphabet of national minorities, the education of
national minorities, areas of special government concern, and the
status of displaced persons and refugees.
Drobnjak said it might not be possible to change laws on electronic
media by the next Brussels meeting. It is important however to show
reforms in that area are well underway, he added.
Minister Jakovcic agreed with complaints that changes on Croatian
Radio-Television (HRT) were slow, but rejected suspicions that the
new government would like to control the media like the past one
did.
He announced new laws on the HRT and telecommunications would be
forwarded to parliament very soon, and that experts would be
consulted in drafting them.
(hina) ha jn