BORKOVIC: IF GOVT CAN DEROGATE CONSTITUTION, WE CAN TOPPLE GOVT

ZAGREB, April 14 (Hina) - "If the Government Declaration on Cooperation with the ICTY is adopted in its proposed form, there is nothing left for us to do but again wage war for the establishment of the Croatian state," Branko Borkovic said on Friday on behalf of Croatian Homeland War (1991-1995) veterans. This also includes "taking up arms," because "if the Government can derogate the Constitution, so can we topple the Government," Borkovic told reporters in the Croatian National Sabor building on behalf of a Coordination of Homeland War Associations. Visibly upset, one of the Coordination's representatives, Ivan Pandza, demonstrated his war invalidity by putting his artificial leg on a table. The news conference was called after today's protest of Homeland War soldiers in front of the Sabor by the chairman of the parliamentary Committee on War Veterans, Djuro Decak. The Coordination of Associations and Decak demand from the Sabor not to adopt "the fatal declaration." Decak estimated that the government's draft led the Croatian people and state into a "historical disaster" and that the adoption of the draft meant the abolishment of powers of the Government, Constitution and judicial authorities, as well as the degradation of the Sabor, which represents "an act of annihilating the Republic of Croatia as a state." The news conference was also attended by the Minister of Croatian Homeland Soldiers, Ivica Pancic. Both Pancic and Decak agreed in one thing: the key problem is that the draft declaration was "put on the table too late", which caused tensions. Neither official, however, said whether they believed that the soldiers, who protested in front of the Sabor tied to each other with chains, were being manipulated. Pancic told the soldiers that he hoped the parliamentary debate would show that the Croatian people had the courage to confront this topic "because things cannot be swept under the carpet any more, if we want to be part of the international community." Pancic believes that in analysing the draft the soldiers have taken some elements out of the context, and that one can not speak of collective guilt but rather of the individualisation of blame for committed crimes. The draft does not question the dignity of the Homeland War or the fact that Croatia was the victim of the Great- Serbian aggression. Other representatives of the Coordination described the declaration as "an act of treason" (Zvonimir Trusic), whereas Ivica Perkovic of the Association of Homeland War Invalids (HVIDR) said he would claim responsibility for protest meetings, should soldiers be dissatisfied with the final text of the declaration. The general stand of the Coordination is that it will not allow the word "crime" to be brought in connection with the Homeland War. The Coordination believes the new government "is currying favour with The Hague Tribunal", admitting though that "the authorities and soldiers have never been on the same wavelength." The soldiers believe the Government is not respecting the Constitutional Law on Cooperation with the Hague Tribunal and that competent ministries are not doing their part of job in investigating crimes. Asked whether they had heard this morning's address by First Deputy Prime Minister Goran Granic to the Sabor, where he explained the draft declaration, Borkovic said that "Granic was speaking as if he were attending his own funeral and neither he nor anyone else has the right to negate the Homeland War." Borkovic said no explanation, regardless who from the authorities it was coming from, can make up for the text of the draft declaration. (hina) jn rml