CRO COMMISSION FOR RETURN OF PUBLIC RECORDS HOLDS SESSION

ZAGREB, June 15 (Hina) - The Croatian Culture Ministry's commission for the succession of public records and files held a session in Zagreb on Tuesday to consider the return of files from Austria, Italy, Slovenia and Yugoslavia (Serbia/Montenegro). After the meeting, an assistant to Culture Minister, Branko Kaleb, said the commission would ask the Croatian Foreign Ministry to initiate the resolution of the problem of the return of public records from Austria, as it has great value and importance for Croatia. The agreement on the return of public records and files was reached in 1923 between the government of the then Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (SHS) and the Austrian government. There is also a protocol on the matter between the then Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRJ) and Austria. According to Kaleb, some problems were resolved by the mixed commission which worked by 1990, but Austria has not so far given back agreed files for technical reasons. "It is about valuable cartographic material which should have been returned in 1988," Kaleb added. He said that in line with the Osimo Accords the then foreign ministers exchanged letters and the issue of public records of Zone B should have been solved in that context. "We ask the Croatian Foreign Ministry to raise this issue," Kaleb said adding that Croatia would then return possible material which may belong to Italy. During today's session the Croatian commission described the cooperation with Slovenia as good. An agreement between Croatia's and Slovenia's Public Record Offices is being drawn up on the exchange of files and records in conformity with general principles in this field. The commission considered the issue of the return of public records from Yugoslavia (Serbia/Montenegro) and concluded that experts should continue working and seeking solutions to the question of the succession in this area, Kaleb added. (hina) ms