ZAGREB, May 10 (Hina) - Continuing the session of the Croatian National Parliament House of Representatives, MPs on Wednesday discussed the draft amendments to the Constitutional Law on Human Rights and Rights of Minorities and party
benches expressed their stances. They mostly assessed the draft amendments were a transitional solution which could be accepted until a new constitutional law is drawn up. The Human Rights and National Minority Rights Committee gave the Government six months is which to draft the new law. Milanka Opacic stirred up the discussion when she, on behalf of the Social Democratic Party bench, protested against the fact that a representative of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) sat at the committee session, calling it a precedent which should not be repeated. Committee chairman Furio Radin responded "nowhere does it say the Committee should not invite
ZAGREB, May 10 (Hina) - Continuing the session of the Croatian
National Parliament House of Representatives, MPs on Wednesday
discussed the draft amendments to the Constitutional Law on Human
Rights and Rights of Minorities and party benches expressed their
stances.
They mostly assessed the draft amendments were a transitional
solution which could be accepted until a new constitutional law is
drawn up. The Human Rights and National Minority Rights Committee
gave the Government six months is which to draft the new law.
Milanka Opacic stirred up the discussion when she, on behalf of the
Social Democratic Party bench, protested against the fact that a
representative of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in
Europe (OSCE) sat at the committee session, calling it a precedent
which should not be repeated.
Committee chairman Furio Radin responded "nowhere does it say the
Committee should not invite to its sessions representatives of such
institutions".
Speaking about amendments to the constitutional law on human rights
and the rights of minorities, Opacic said the changes were
justified and the disputable "kotars" (districts) were not needed
in Croatia in the year 2000.
Vladimir Seks said on behalf of the Croatian Democratic Union party
bench the amendments were, with some changes, acceptable. He
opposed the idea that minorities had a proportional representation
in the executive authority, claiming "this is not the case anywhere
in Europe".
Proportional representation in all forms of authority has been
envisaged by amendments for minorities which make up more than
eight per cent of the entire population.
On behalf of the recently established Democratic Centre party,
Vesna Skare-Ozbolt said the party accepted amendments to the
Constitutional Law, and suggested some articles of the Council of
Europe Convention on Human Rights be included into the Law.
Damir Kajin of the Istrian Democratic Assembly endorsed the draft
amendments, saying he agreed with the minority representatives'
bench that the amendments be a temporary solution for a period of
six months, until a new constitutional law on the freedoms and
rights of national minorities is drawn up.
Joint party bench of the Liberal Party and Croatian People's Party,
the Croatian Peasants' Party and the Croatian Social Liberal Party
benches all agreed with this idea.
The Croatian Party of Rights bench opposed the suggested
representation of minorities in the Parliament, which would mean at
least five representatives of minorities.
(hina) lml jn