ZAGREB, Sept 14 (Hina) - Continuing to voice their dissatisfaction with the apprehension of five persons suspected of war crimes against Serb civilians in Gospic in 1991, Croatian war veterans and disabled war veterans announced
protest rallies on Thursday. The latest apprehensions of soldiers in Gospic remind of the game kill-off, the president of the Federation of Homeland War Volunteers Associations (ZUHDDR), Miro Laco, told reporters on Thursday. He objected that Prime Minister Ivica Racan was using the term 'war criminals' in his media statements, thus prejudging their guilt although no one has sentenced those people. This is not the first time Racan is doing this, Laco said. After such public statements, all declarative statements about the protection of dignity of the Homeland War are in vain, he said. Protest meetings against the apprehensions are possible and the ZUHDDR will participate in them only
ZAGREB, Sept 14 (Hina) - Continuing to voice their dissatisfaction
with the apprehension of five persons suspected of war crimes
against Serb civilians in Gospic in 1991, Croatian war veterans and
disabled war veterans announced protest rallies on Thursday.
The latest apprehensions of soldiers in Gospic remind of the game
kill-off, the president of the Federation of Homeland War
Volunteers Associations (ZUHDDR), Miro Laco, told reporters on
Thursday.
He objected that Prime Minister Ivica Racan was using the term 'war
criminals' in his media statements, thus prejudging their guilt
although no one has sentenced those people. This is not the first
time Racan is doing this, Laco said.
After such public statements, all declarative statements about the
protection of dignity of the Homeland War are in vain, he said.
Protest meetings against the apprehensions are possible and the
ZUHDDR will participate in them only if they are to be appropriately
organised, without any political connotations.
A headquarters for the protection of dignity of the Homeland War,
established in Split on Wednesday, today became the headquarters
for all four southern Croatian counties, i.e. the entire Dalmatia,
the headquarters' chairman Tonci Turic said. He showed reporters
numerous fax massages and telegrams expressing support for their
actions, sent by some parliamentary representatives, Homeland War
associations, and others.
The headquarters today requested that President Stipe Mesic
dissolve the government and that the president of the Croatian
National Sabor, Zlatko Tomcic, call an extraordinary parliamentary
session due to the situation in the country.
"We might have known that this government will call us a group of
extremists. However, these threats will not stop us and we will
insist on our requests," Turic said.
"If by noon tomorrow, September 15, it does not receive an answer to
these requests, the headquarters will use all legal means to
accomplish its goal, i.e., preserve the dignity of the Homeland War
and the survival of the Croatian national state," the statement
read.
Asked what legal means they would use if forced to, the
headquarters' representatives said they would use protests and
civil disobedience.
They said that messages of support had been sent by the Association
of Croatian Trade Unions (HUS), MPs Zvonimir Puljic, Ivica Tafra,
Ivan Skaric, Zvonimir Separovic, Ante Beljo, Marija Budimir Bekan
on behalf of former 'Diokom' employees, and all Homeland War
associations, as well as several smaller parties.
(hina) jn rml