NO AGREEMENT ON RETURN IN SIX MOSTAR MUNICIPALITIES

( Editorial: --> 2928 ) MOSTAR, March 27 (Hina) - One more attempt failed in Mostar on Friday to reach agreement between the Croat and Bosniak sides on the return of displaced persons and refugees to the six city municipalities. Last week the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton government accepted a return plan for only eight of the canton's 14 municipalities because an agreement on return in Mostar's six municipalities had not been reached. President and Vice-President of the Federation of Bosnia- Herzegovina Ejup Ganic and Vladimir Soljic were present at today's meeting. Following negotiations, head of the High Representative's Office in Mostar Martin Garrod said that agreement was not reached on return in the Mostar municipalities of Jugozapad (Southwest) and Jug (South), which have a Croat majority. He said that an agreement on return was reached in three municipalities with majority Bosniak populations, and had almost been reached for a fourth municipality with a Croat majority. Garrod said that negotiations would continue but did not say precisely when. Vladimir Soljic said that the Croat side did not accept the return program by which more Bosniaks would return to western Mostar than Croats to eastern Mostar. Soljic said that in western Mostar where there had been Croat authority, a much higher number of Bosniaks had remained than had Croats in the eastern part of the city where there had been Bosniak authority. Soljic holds that in Mostar it is necessary to correct the ethnic structure which has been changed to the detriment of the Croat people. Ejup Ganic blamed today's failure on the Croat side. Ganic invited Croats to return to the municipalities with Bosniak majority as early as tomorrow. He advocated greater involvement by the international community in Mostar and the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton so that the Dayton peace agreement could be implemented because "obviously there are views which are quite contrary to the Dayton agreement", he said. (hina) mrb/as 272207 MET mar 98