CRO PEASANTS' PARTY ON GOVT REACTION TO FARMERS' PROTEST

ZAGREB, Oct 22 (Hina) - Croatian Peasants' Party (HSS) president Zlatko Tomcic said on Friday the government and ministry of agriculture were aware of their errors and the failure to fulfil obligations from a June agreement with farmers. They "are tossing the ball to demagogy, misinforming the public, and mocking the farmers," he told reporters in Zagreb. Tomcic and Croatian Farmers' Association president Ivan Kolar today reiterated the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry had not paid farmers either the basic or the additional price of wheat or even subventions. Commenting on yesterday's "nervous government reactions" on a farmers' protest, Tomcic said the farmers had not forgotten the government's obligations and would keep protesting. Premier Zlatko Matesa's statement that farmers were the most privileged class in the country was also a nervous one, he said. Tomcic also commented on Finance Minister Borislav Skegro's statement about "magnificent tractors on the roads", saying that 80 percent of the tractors the farmers used to block roads was more than 20 years old. Kolar said the Croatian Peasants' Association wanted nothing but for the money to reach the farmers. "We have no use of false promises, and when the money is deposited on the accounts, we won't speak up," he said, and added he was satisfied the farmers were now paid on a daily basis which, he pointed out, would not have happened had they kept their mouth shut. (hina) ha mm