MOSTAR-BASED TV COMPANY TO AIR LIVE HERCEG BOSNA NEWS

MOSTAR, Jan 21 (Hina) - A Mostar television company on Thursday said it would start broadcasting live two news programmes as of Monday, January 25. The two programmes, to be aired from a Mostar television studio throughout the territory of Herzegovina, a region in southern Bosnia, and central Bosnia, will be the 'Herceg Bosna News 1', to air at 7pm, and 'Herceg Bosna News 2', to air at 10pm. According to Erotel director Branko Colak, Erotel will stop broadcasting the 'Herceg Bosna Chronicle' and will replace it with 'Herceg Bosna News'. Erotel will also launch a bid for tenders for the office of the programme's editor-in-chief. Erotel negotiator Jozo Curic said the company would request from the Independent Media Commission in Sarajevo permission to air a Croatian channel and re-air programmes of Croatian Radio- Television's (HRT) three channels. Royalties will be paid to foreign companies whose films Erotel will re-air via HRT's channels. Curic said "Croatian television stations in Bosnia-Herzegovina have to date been prevented from legitimately taking part in the exchange of EBU's (European Broadcasting Union) Eurovision programmes, because Croats and Serbs in Bosnia have been prevented from being admitted to the EBU," Curic said. The membership had been "usurped and is used exclusively for the interests of Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims) by Bosnia's only pre- Dayton Eurovision member - Radio Television of Bosnia- Hrezegovina," Curic said. (hina) ha jn