CROATIAN REFUGEE REPS TALK WITH HEAD OF OSCE MISSION

( Editorial: --> 7605 ) OSIJEK, May 29 (Hina) - The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) mission head in Croatia, Tim Guldimann, held talks on Friday in Osijek with the president of the Association of Croatian Returnees, Mato Simic, about the process of return. The talks were held in accordance with the previous agreement on regular monthly meetings, with the purpose of solving current problems in the Croatian Danube region. Guldimann expressed his dissatisfaction with the two-way return process. He believes that Croatian Government is able to do more on restoring houses, as well as resolving other issues, all of which could speed up the two-way return process. In his opinion, the Croatian Government has not done enough for the return of "80,000 Croats who had to leave their homes" and the 12,000 displaced Serbs who now live in Croats' houses. Croatian representatives informed Guldimann about a number of "problems on the field". They reiterated the requests made at the previous meeting regarding the seven houses in the Croatian Danube region, currently occupied by Serb refugees, which makes the return of their Croat owners impossible. Guldimann said that they were working on a solution to this problem, and that the concrete answer could be expected "in two or three weeks". "I fear that the refugees will take matters into their own hands," Simic said. Guldimann agreed with the Croatian Returnees representatives who, dissatisfied with the Amnesty Act, stressed that "all must pay for their crimes". (hina) jn jfk/bag 292217 MET may 98