ZAGREB, Oct 18 (Hina) - Croatia's President Franjo Tudjman on Monday told foreign reporters that he was firmly confident that the ruling HDZ (Croatian Democratic Union) would win the forthcoming parliamentary election.
ZAGREB, Oct 18 (Hina) - Croatia's President Franjo Tudjman on
Monday told foreign reporters that he was firmly confident that the
ruling HDZ (Croatian Democratic Union) would win the forthcoming
parliamentary election.#L#
Tudjman's meeting with foreign journalists in the presidential
palace in Zagreb was organised within a programme of these 40 odd
journalists who are conducting a two-day visit in Croatia in order
to be better acquainted with the situation in the country through
their talks with government and parliamentary officials and
political parties' leaders as well as after a tour to the eastern
towns of Ilok and Vukovar.
On Monday's conference, Tudjman said the election "is likely to be
held before Christmas". Asked about his anticipation, Tudjman said
results of this voting will be such as "results at the eight
elections and one referendum held so far..."
He added that the coming parliamentary election would be without
"any mistake and manipulation", which means that they will be "fair
and honest."
Asked whether he will accept a premier designate from the
opposition or cohabitation in case that the opposition win the next
election, Tudjman avoided a direct answer.
"We shall see what will happen, and I shall, in any case, conduct as
the responsible Croatian president, elected by the people," he said
adding that it would be certainly in the interest of the Croatian
nation, people and the Croatian state.
Speaking of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Tudjman said "there is no Bosnia-
Herzegovina without Croats," and Bosnia can survive only as a
country of "three entities". Asked whether it was a slip of the
tongue when he mentioned three entities, Tudjman said he thought of
"three individual entities." Croats in Bosnia-Herzegovina was not
a minority community, but the equal constituent people "whose
survival in Bosnia-Herzegovina is of strategic importance for
strategic interests of the Croatian state regarding the form of
Croatia's border-line."
Asked to comment on frequent media rumours about his health,
Tudjman replied that he carried out regularly his duties and only
those who oppose the nowadays Croatia could stand behind such
reports. Those who speculate about my health are those who would
like to have another Croatia, who do not like this democratic
Croatia, to whose establishment I have contributed, he explained to
foreign reporters.
Croatia has been facing threats of sanctions for already eight-nine
years, but neither there were sanction nor there will be ones,
Tudjman was resolute in his answer to a question whether Mladen
Naletilic Tuta should be handed over to the Hague-based
international tribunal and whether, in case that the Hague-based
ICTY request the extradition of Croatian generals, Zagreb would
break off relations with that tribunal and thus expose itself to the
risk of sanctions.
"Croatian generals will not go to The Hague," Tudjman replied
clearly. "They liberated the Croatian land from the aggressor," and
Croatia does not deserve sanctions as it is one of most stable and
constructive factors in this part of Europe.
Tudjman declined to comment on the case of Mladen Naletilic Tuta, as
it is the matter of "Croatia's legal and health care system."
Asked about his comments on many irregularities in management of
Croatian banks, big companies, (il)legal process of privatisation,
the Croatian President answered that the Croatian Government
conducts an investigation in irregularities when they appear.
Croatia has achieved "surprising successes" in comparison to other
countries in transition in view of all social issues, Tudjman told
journalists and added that "a crisis situation has affected just 15
percent of the banking system."
The collapse of Croatia is being predicted by those who would like
to see a different Croatia than it is nowadays.
It doesn't stand that there is no investment of foreign capital,
Tudjman maintained. Companies such as Siemens, U.S. Bechtel and
Enron and the recent successful sale of a part of the Croatian
Telecommunications to the German partner show that Croatia is a
stable country for investments.
It is not true that Croatia is today farther from Europe than it was
eight years ago, Tudjman said refusing a statement by a Swiss
reporter who asked him to compare the standard of the Croatian man
to standard in other countries in transition.
"Unprincipled pressure which has no prospects", is being exerted on
Croatia, in order to show that Croatia is an integral part of the
south-western Balkans, without Slovenia but with Albania.
Tudjman explained that "Croatia has never been a part of Balkans"
according to its history and culture, and it was not in the Balkans
even when it was rescuing itself, with the assistance of the
Balkans, from the Hungarian, German and Italian imperialistic
interests. It is a short time period of seven decades (how long
Croatia belonged to the community of south Slavic peoples). During
its entire history (but above mentioned seven decades), Croatia is
part of the western European circle, and in the Balkan framework it
did not manage to ensure its equality.
An Israeli journalist wanted to hear Tudjman's stance about the
number of Ustashi victims and corrections in his book. The Croatian
President told him that he respected all results about the
Holocaust, "including also serious Israeli writers" and he had not
given his own assessments. To establish the truth can only help
restore confidence among people, and there must not be any
exaggeration when one speaks about the issue of victims, said
Tudjman adding that also Israeli scholars have admitted that there
were cases of exaggeration.
Prior to this press conference foreign reporters held talks also
with Croatia's Premier Zlatko Matesa while Deputy Foreign Minister
Ivo Sanader organised the dinner for these guests.
(hina) mm ms