OPPOSITION PARTIES LIKELY TO WIN LOCAL ELECTION IN BOSNIA

SARAJEVO, April 9 (Hina) - Saturday's municipal election in Bosnia- Herzegovina brought about expected changes in many parts of the country faced with growing economic crisis and obstruction of political reforms caused by conflicting interests of nationalist political parties. Judging from first preliminary results some political parties announced on Sunday, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) made a better success than predicted before the polls. The SDP won a landslide victory in most important municipalities - former 'strongholds' of the (Moslem) Party of Democratic Action (SDA) - in Sarajevo Canton. According to some estimates, the SDA was on the second place and the Party for Bosnia-Herzegovina (SBiH), led by Haris Silajdzic, followed them. The SDP took the lead in other areas in Bosnia where the SDA used to be the strongest individual party until this election such as Zenica, Gorazde and Ustikolina. The SDA party led by Bosnia's collective Presidency's chairman, Alija Izetbegovic, seems still to enjoy bigger support in Moslem- populated areas of Herzegovina-Neretva and Una-Sana cantons. According to some returns from Bosnian Serb entity, results will be within outcomes predicted in the pre-election opinion polls. The nationalist Serb Democratic Party (SDS) - now being led by Dragan Kalinic and Dragan Cavic as some of its war-time leaders such as Radovan Karadzic and Momcilo Krajisnik are on the lists of ICTY indictees - enjoys prospects of remaining the strongest individual party. The SDS appears to have mustered over 50 percent of votes in municipalities in the eastern part of the Republic of Srpska. Candidates of the Party of Democratic Progress (PDP) of Mladen Ivanic or the Party of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) by Milorad Dodik scored well and took second or third place, according to preliminary results. In Banja Luka (north-western Bosnia) it is a toss-up whether the SNS party led by Biljana Plavsic or Dodik's SNSD will be victors. A low turnout is a first noticeable characteristic of the latest municipal election in Bosnian Croat areas. In some municipalities it was below 50 percent. According to first impressions, the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ BiH) remains the strongest individual party but the number of its supporters has fallen. A leader of an opposition party with 'Croat' premodifier said "voters have been disappointed with the HDZ but they are still not sure what is its right alternative and that's why many have abstained from voting." The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) mission that organised the election said it would announce first preliminary results on Monday. (hina) ms