CROATIAN GOVERNMENT SENDS PROTEST NOTE TO GERMAN GOVERNMENT

( Editorial: --> 9896 ) ZAGREB, April 27 (Hina) - The Croatian Government on Monday sent a protest note to the German Government in relation to comments made by German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel over last week's incidents in Drvar (western Bosnia-Herzegovina). The Croatian Government Communications Office released a press statement in Croatian which said the protest note was sent through the German Embassy in Zagreb and read as follows: The Government of the Republic of Croatia and the Croatian public with disapproval received the statement made by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany, Klaus Kinkel, given yesterday in relation to incidents which had occurred in recently in Drvar. Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel only condemned the Croatian side and without foundation criticised the Croatian President, from which it could be concluded that certain responsibility for the incident lied with the Republic of Croatia. Minister Kinkel in total ignores the fact that the incidents in Drvar, which Croatia not only does not approve of but condemns, broke out following attacks on displaced believers in Derventa, among whom was Cardinal Vinko Puljic, even though their visit was announced with and received written approval from the Republika Srpska authorities. In a well-known and already used scenario, the displaced were prevented from visiting their homes and attending a religious ceremony on the ruins of the burnt down Catholic church in Derventa, and because of this rocks were thrown at them and they were held prisoner. There was a failure of intervention by local police and SFOR, and what is regretful, an absence of serious reaction and condemnation by the international community, and this experience did nothing to enable the visit by the displaced believers on Saturday to Plehana, even though an agreement had been reached with the Republika Srpska authorities for this visit. From this it can be clearly seen the Serb side was responsible and the international community applied unequal criteria towards displaced people. SFOR members, who did not protect displaced Croats in Derventa, on the same day raided the homes of Croats accommodated in Drvar under the excuse of seeking weapons and buzzed the town with airplanes, while in this area the facts speak for themselves that Serb returnees since their arrival incited and provoked incidents. The Croatian authorities allowed the recent arrival by Republika Srpska leaders Biljana Plavsic and Milorad Dodik to lay wreaths in Jasenovac, while the Republika Srpska authorities did not, despite promises, realise the arrival of displaced Croats in Derventa and protect them from later attacks. Alongside all the facts, the Republic of Croatia leadership does not approve the violence which occurred in Drvar and contributed to a calming of the situation, in which aim President Tudjman immediately sent his advisor for humanitarian affairs, Dr. Slobodan Lang, to Drvar. These incidents show the whole complexity and difficulty of the peace process in Bosnia-Herzegovina and the special sensitivity of the issue of return of refugees, who were expelled from their homes during the war. It is especially unacceptable to criticise only the Croatian side when it is known that more than half of the total number of Croats have been banished from their homes, while at the same time the process of return is only happening in areas where Croats are in power or form a majority, as in the western part of Mostar, Stolac, Drvar and other places, often outside the agreed procedures, which provokes added tension. In accordance with its responsibilities, Croatia will continue to contribute to the process of return, taking part and actively contributing to the work of the Conference on Regional Return, which will be held on 28 April in Banja Luka. As a result we hold as unfounded and unacceptable the statements given by German Minister Kinkel, because such a one-sided stance objectively does not contribute to resolving this difficult and sensitive problem. Additionally, the stance of Minister Kinkel for the return of Serbs on former occupied territories of Croatia and criticising President Tudjman, in total neglects the fact that only in Croatia are people returning. The result is the return to liberated areas of more than 33,000 people from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) to Croatia and from the Croatian Danube River region to other parts of Croatia. This process, contributed by the work of the National Committee and programme of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, is continuing which bears witness to not only the existence but also to the results of the clear Croatian policy of re-establishing trust. As well, the normalisation of relations between Croatia and the FRY shows the results in stabilising the situation in relations with our neighbouring country, towards which the Government of the Republic of Croatia gives an active and constructive contribution. The unorganised return of Serbs, following four years of occupation and departure from parts of Croatia, could provoke security problems, especially when banished Croats have still not returned to their homes, while at the same time there exist significant financial limitations and psychological after effects of war and occupation. Right now in the next few days the exhumation and identification will begin of almost one thousand victims of Serbian aggression in Vukovar, while the fate of two thousand missing Croats is still unknown. All these issues were recently discussed in the Croatian National Parliament, which is usual for every state which has developed democratic relations, giving the Government and the entire public a chance to express its stance. From the discussion and conclusion, it is clear that the process of re-establishing trust and return is long-term and often hurtful, which is shown in the experience of all previous wars in the world, especially in Europe. It is surprising that, in his statements, Minister Kinkel uses the term "Krajina", in other words the term which, during the occupation of Croatian state territory, was forced into use by the self-styled Serb authorities, which is against international conventions. From its side Croatia will fulfil the responsibilities it has accepted, keeping in mind all relevant and objective facts, which was repeated during the meeting between President Tudjman and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the FR of Germany and France. Such one-sided and unacceptable statements, which Croatia rejects, in fact halt the processes which the Republic of Croatia and the international community support. It is an unacceptable and in diplomatic practice an unusual way for a minister of foreign affairs to publicly address and criticise the president of a foreign country. As a result the Government of the Republic of Croatia sends a protest to the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany. (Hina) jn mb 272011 MET apr 98