UPPER HOUSE ON THREE STATE JUDICIAL COUNCIL MEMBERS' RESIGNATIONS

ZAGREB, June 20 (Hina) - The Croatian parliament's House of Counties at Tuesday's session formulated a motion to relieve of duty three State Judicial Council (DSV) members at their own request. Requests to be relieved of duty were submitted by Andrija Erakovic, Davor Krapac, and Ante Caric. DSV is a body deciding on the appointments and relieving of judges. Erakovic, Krapac, and Caric were appointed to the Council in 1994, according to the law to an eight-year mandate. The attention of Upper House MPs focused on a letter from Krapac in which he said his request was motivated by the fact that the majority of the public had a negative opinion of DSV's work. Milan Markanjevic of the Social Democratic Party said DSV should resign as its members had been appointed at a time when politics played a more important role in decision-making than the profession, a statement which elicited strong criticism by Zvonimr Puljic of the Croatian Democratic Union, the formerly ruling party. The Upper House will take the final position on the three DSV members' requests in the continuation of today's session. According to the DSV Law, the House of Counties establishes the existence of reasons for relieving a DSV member of duty, whereas it is the House of Representatives which relieves him of duty. (hina) ha jn