CROATIAN GENERAL ELECTED CHAIRMAN OF EUROPEAN VETERAN COMMITTEE

PULA, March 17 (Hina) - President of the Association of Croatian Homeland War Veterans, Djuro Decak, is the new chairman of the World Veteran Federation's permanent committee for European issues. The committee elected him on Friday, at its 17th session being held in the north Adriatic town of Pula under the auspices of Croatian President Stipe Mesic. Decak received 11 votes out of the total 20 votes of representatives from European countries, while the second candidate and the former chairman of the veteran committee, Cyprus's Andreas Christophi, received eight. One participant abstained from voting. Assessing his election fell on time of general support given to Croatia by Europe and the world, Decak told Hina the decision had surprised him, considering the fact that the duty had been performed until now by world war II veterans. "My appointment for four years as chairman of the European Veteran Committee obliges all associations in Croatia to face the increasing problems better," Decak said. On the fourth day of the session on Friday, participants discussed the rights of veterans and victims of war in some countries. The motion of the Croatian delegation on the establishment of a regional institute for the protection of the rights of war veterans, seated in Zagreb, was adopted at the session. (hina) lml jn