BOSNIAN HDZ PRESIDENT CLOSES PARTY'S CONVENTION

( Editorial: --> 4570 ) MOSTAR, May 17 (Hina) - Closing the two-day convention of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party of Bosnia-Herzegovina, the newly-elected party's president, Ante Jelavic, stressed that the "primary task at this moment was to stop negative forces fragmentising the party, weakening its unity and growing internal divisions". In the opposite, "the Bosnian HDZ will not have a clear and safe future," Jelavic warned. A political irresponsibility described by Jelavic as "gambling with political, national, economic interests and rights of life and existence of the Croat people in Bosnia-Herzegovina, will have to be responded to with a consistent political involvement". The task of the newly-elected leadership of the Bosnian HDZ is to act in line with the proclaimed principles of the HDZ as a state- building party of all the Croat people. The stability of the Bosnian HDZ can only be achieved by a "radical turn and consistent internal reorganisation," Jelavic said. he expressed opposition to unprincipled conflicts within the party, leadership or political ambitions and private interests which, according to him, "bring into question the overall HDZ social project". Stressing that the Dayton Agreement had no alternative, Jelavic said that the Bosnian HDZ would "more efficiently and to a greater extent cooperate with international institutions." He also advocated a "speedy establishment of joint institutions with Bosniaks and Serbs". Jelavic said he expected the international community to "ensure such conditions in which Serb politics would no longer be lead from Pale on Banja Luka, and Bosniak politics from the remains of Sarajevo's parallel institutions, but in which all political options would meet in Sarajevo for a joint establishment of democratic state institutions". The Bosnian HDZ "is not for division within the Bosnian HDZ on 'hard-line', 'meek', 'conformist' and 'uncompromising', 'cooperative' and 'less cooperative'" sides, he said. Jelavic asked the envoy of Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, Ivic Pasalic, to relay greetings to Tudjman, and a message that they "were, are and will remain by his side". Jelavic added that he hoped Tudjman would "realise very soon that the new leadership of the Bosnian HDZ will be cooperative". (hina) lm 172105 MET may 98