SKARE-OZBOLT CALLS FOR RETURN TO EASTERN CROATIA

( Editorial: --> 5197 ) VUKOVAR, Jan 17 (Hina) - The president of the National Committee for the restoration of trust, Vesna Skare-Ozbolt, Saturday called on all displaced persons who can return to their empty houses in eastern Croatia to do so, thus contributing to the normalisation of living in the area. "We will continue to work on the return of everybody to their homes now that the UNTAES has left and we have taken over authority in the Danube river region", Skare-Ozbolt said in Vukovar after a conference of the Operative Headquarters for the Return to the Danube River Region. Top officials of the National Committee for the restoration of trust, of the Government's Office for Displaced Persons and the Centre for the Reconstruction and Development of the Danube River Region also took part in the conference. Skare-Ozbolt said the conference discussed the return to those houses currently occupied by Croatian citizens of Serb nationality, between 3,000 and 3,500, who have to return to their former places of residence in Croatia. She called on them to return and on local governing bodies to take the responsibility for resolving these returns. It was concluded that all representatives and members of local bodies of authority have to return to places where they were elected, and thus contribute to a prompter normalisation of living. It was also decided on steps for a prompter mine-clearing of the Danube river region which, according to Skare-Ozbolt, will become a big issue in the near future. The head of the Croatian Government's Office for Displaced Persons, Lovre Pejkovic, said the office will visit all displaced persons in the Danube river region and arrange with each family the fastest way of returning to other places in Croatia, in order to simultaneously enable displaced persons from the Danube river region, currently in other parts of Croatia, to return to their homes in the eastern part of the country. "The most delicate issue is that of occupied houses, both in the Danube river region and in other parts of Croatia", said Pejkovic. "We call on everybody not to take the law in their own hands and to realise that at this moment the Croatian Government is taking all responsibilities", he added, pointing out the Government's goal is to "step up the two-way return." According to the president of the Joint Council of (Serb) Municipalities, Milos Vojnovic, all tensions arising from the return have to calm down, in order to create a peaceful climate for resolving issues of all displaced persons and refugees. Vojnovic said a dynamic two-way return plan must be made. Even though Vojnovic said "out of fear and uncertainty" people "continue" to leave eastern Croatia, Assistant Interior Minister Josko Moric said that as of 15 December, 65 families left eastern Croatia for Serbia, while 47 families came to Croatia from Serbia. (hina) ha 171656 MET jan 98