HUP SIGNS JOINT STATEMENT ON ECONOMY WITH LS, HSS, HNS, AND IDS

ZAGREB, Dec 17 (Hina) - Heads of the Croatian Association of Employers (HUP) and a coalition including the Croatian Peasants' Party (HSS), the Liberal Party (LS), the Croatian People's Party (HNS) and the Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), on Friday signed a joint statement in which they harmonised their standpoints on the necessity of taking urgent measures to change negative economic trends after the parliamentary elections scheduled for early January. HUP president Branko Roglic said that HUP officials decided to support the four political parties because their standpoints on the current economic situation and the way of solving the problem were almost the same as standpoints of the HUP. Our members will be informed of today's joint statement, however, Roglic stressed, they would make their own decision who to vote for at the elections. LS president Vlado Gotovac said this was the first time political parties were meeting an economic agent with an attempt to listen to its interest due to the reconstruction of the economy and the realisation of the social peace. HUP main director Zeljko Ivancevic said that employers expected to hold talks also with other political parties on most significant economic problems. (hina) it mm