LIOVIC: NO MAJOR IRREGULARITIES IN AUDIT'S REPORT ON DISABLED WAR VETERANS' ASSOCIATION

ZAGREB, Dec 1 (Hina) - The findings of an audit of the operation of the Association of Disabled Croatian Homeland War Veterans (HVIDR), which the State Audit Office carried out last week, do not include any major irregularities, HVIDR president Marinko Liovic told reporters on Friday. The audit shows some minor irregularities, which Liovic believes are "not sufficient for minor offence responsibility, let alone criminal responsibility, as the media tried to present." The audit, financed by the Ministry of Homeland War Veterans, was carried out at the request of the parliamentary Committee on Internal Affairs and National Security, which was dissatisfied with the findings of an audit carried out at the Ministry early this year. The audit reported about irregularities in the work of some associations, but those associations were not named. The media subsequently reported about irregularities in the operation of the HVIDR and extremely high costs for some items, such as 1.56 million kuna costs for postal fees. "The new findings show that the Veterans' Ministry had intentionally submitted inaccurate data on the operation of the associations to the State Audit Office," said Liovic. He believes that the intention of the Ministry was to prepare the public for the reduction of veterans' rights, which he says is why the HVIDR was exposed to the media lynch. (hina) rm