CROATIAN P.E.N. PRESIDENT WRITES DANIJEL BUCAN

ZAGREB, Jan 21 (Hina) - President of the Croatian P.E.N. international writers' association, Slobodan Prosperov Novak, wrote an open letter to the Croatian Television (HTV) editor-in- chief, Danijel Bucan, saying that Bucan's membership at P.E.N. was not in accordance with the censorship of programme and refusal to broadcast the "1+1" show. Reminding Bucan that he was a member of P.E.N., an organisation whose goal is to protect freedom of the media, Novak criticised Bucan's explanation for having taken the show "1+1" off the air "due to hatred speech". Novak held Bucan's explanation had an inappropriate context because "HTV has since 1992 in its programmes been assaulting and vulgarly abusing almost all politicians of the Opposition and critically inclined intellectuals". Taking off the air of an entire show because of one remark of criticism aimed at the Opposition is cynical, Novak wrote. According to him, Bucan ought to, for the same reason, stop airing the central news and political shows which are, as he put it, good examples of hatred most frequently neatly packaged into an offensive context for most people. Novak expressed hope that at the next similar incident he would not have to suggest to Bucan that he withdraw his membership from the P.E.N. Bucan told Hina on Tuesday the reason he did not allow the broadcasting of a political show called '1+1' was that a participant in the political show called on hanging a politician of the Opposition. Due to non-airing the show on Monday evening, the Croatian Journalists' Association held a protest, and said such actions of the HRT were a "blatant example of censorship". (hina) lml