SPLIT, May 10 (Hina) - The protest of several thousand Croatian Homeland War soldiers on Split's quay saw some lashing out at the government and its ministers, particularly Prime Minister Ivica Racan and Croatian Homeland War
Soldiers' Minister Ivica Pancic, as well as criticism to President Stipe Mesic for some of his statements.
SPLIT, May 10 (Hina) - The protest of several thousand Croatian
Homeland War soldiers on Split's quay saw some lashing out at the
government and its ministers, particularly Prime Minister Ivica
Racan and Croatian Homeland War Soldiers' Minister Ivica Pancic, as
well as criticism to President Stipe Mesic for some of his
statements. #L#
Soldiers applauded president of the Homeland War Invalids'
Association, Marinko Liovic, although they did dismiss his claims
about possible blocking of roads, saying a much more dangerous
statement had been uttered by European Integration Minister Ivan
Jakovcic threatening with autonomy of Istria.
Despite tensions and shouts of patriotism, the protest passed
peacefully and without incidents, and ended with the adoption of a
17-item declaration with requests to the Government and "regime
media".
The soldiers are requesting a cessation of the "systematic and
organised criminalisation of the Homeland War".
They are asking for an assessment of the constitutionality of
cooperation with the international war crimes tribunal in The
Hague, and of the Government to behave towards the tribunal "as a
government of a sovereign country".
The soldiers are also asking that possible crimes by members of the
Croatian army be exclusively tried in the jurisdiction of the
Croatian justice system, and general amnesty for all Croatian
soldiers.
With the declaration the soldiers are also requesting that the
Government accepts a dialogue with the Homeland War soldiers and
associations, and begins "carrying out legal obligations towards
soldiers". They are also asking for an urgent parliamentary
discussion on the issue.
The Government should not "cause divisions among the people through
its exclusively party-based policy," and should not make the
reconcile, forgive or forget until "all criminals who killed and
implemented genocide against from Vukovar to Dubrovnik" are
punished, the declaration states.
One of the requests is that they not be equalised with "fighters of
the People's Liberation War (Partisans from World War II), and Serb
and Montenegrin chetniks".
The soldiers called on all Homeland War associations to unite into
one association so they could, together with the Croatian people,
be unified in the defence of the reputation of the Homeland War and
state.
If the government does not take seriously the protest and begin
carrying out the requests, a hundred thousand soldiers will gather
at the next protest in Zagreb, organisers of the rally asserted.
(hina) lml jn