DEPUTY JUSTICE MINISTER VISITS POSSIBLE MASS GRAVE SITE IN GOSPIC

GOSPIC, April 18 (Hina) - Croatia's Deputy Justice Minister Ranko Marijan on Tuesday visited the Obradovic Varos area near Gospic, a town in central Croatia, where investigators of The Hague-based war crimes tribunal are looking for possible mass graves. After several days of preparation, the investigators, the Lika- Senj County Court judge, the county's state attorney, and employees of the county's crime police yesterday began an investigation into the existence of a possible mass grave of Serb civilians. Croatia's judicial bodies have launched an investigation due to founded suspicion that the area is the location of a grave containing several bodies, Deputy Minister Marijan said. Action has been taken in line with the Law on Criminal Proceedings, and Croatia's judicial bodies are joined by "investigators of the International Criminal Tribunal from The Hague," he added. The deputy minister said he had come to see whether Croatia's judicial bodies had been enabled to conduct undisturbed work, adding that they had. It has been agreed with representatives of the International Criminal Tribunal to establish communication with the media and to put a quick end to the reporting blockade, "today, tomorrow at the latest, when the Croatian public will be given more, and more thorough information," Marijan said. Local residents are continuing to sign a petition against The Hague investigation and possible trials of Croatian soldiers in The Hague. The petition, initiated by Homeland War-related associations, the City of Gospic, and Lika-Senj County, has been signed by more than 1,600 people by 1 p.m. today. (hina) ha mm