HOMELAND WAR VOLUNTEERS REQUEST INTERIOR MINISTER'S RESIGNATION

ZAGREB, Nov 10 (Hina) - The Alliance of Associations of Volunteers of the Homeland War (ZUHDDR) on Wednesday requested the resignation of Croatian interior Minister Ivan Penic following an incident when three police officers beat up the deputy president of the Alliance's Zagreb Office, Ivan Drvis. The ZUHDDR hold that Penic should resign because of "Subjective and moral responsibility", the Alliance's president, Miro Laco, told a news conference Wednesday. Laco said police officers on Tuesday morning beat up Drvis without reason, stressing Drvis was an active military official and a volunteer and invalid of the Homeland War. "This is the second case in the past twenty days that police was abusing Drvis, and police officers who beat him up even threatened him if he reported the incident to the authorities," Laco said. He said there were indications police had not abused Drvis by accident. The announcement that the police officers would undergo disciplinary measures was described as Laco as timely and professional, but added that the Interior Ministry had reacted in this manner "in fear of a media campaign and kind of a public lynch". Drvis is known to the public as one of the authors of a report by three officials of the security and intelligence service SIS about abuse at the Defence Ministry. After he was dishonourably released from military service, the Constitutional Court annulled the decision and was returned to his duties. The leadership of the People's Democratic Party informed reporters about the assault on Drvis. They said police officers physically attacked Drvis during a raid in a part of Zagreb on Tuesday, at 3am, after he had requested the police officers give him the numbers of their police badges. They claimed the assault was a reply to Drvis's last year's statement that he held evidence about corruption in the police. (hina) lml jn