BOSNIA'S SURVIVAL DEPENDS ON REFUGEE RETURN - ALBRIGHT

( Editorial: --> 6998 ) SARAJEVO, Aug 30 (Hina) - The United States and the whole international community will give all the necessary support to those who wish to return to their homes throughout Bosnia- Herzegovina but they will also criticise politicians from all three ethnic groups who oppose the return, the US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said in Sarajevo on Sunday. Albright visited the Franciscan Faculty of Theology, where she met a group of about 100 people who have returned to the Sarajevo suburb of Stup. The meeting was held in the presence of a member of the Bosnia- Herzegovina Presidency, Kresimir Zubak, and the Federation President and Vice President Ejup Ganic and Vladimir Soljic. US Ambassador Richard Kauzlarich, who also attended the meeting, said the decision of Stup residents to return to their homes represented the victory of inter-ethnic tolerance and was a proof that return is possible despite huge obstacles. Since the singing of the Dayton peace agreement, 496 families have returned to Stup, which was on the front line during the war. The ethnic composition of returnees is 60% Croat, 30% Bosniak and 10% other nationalities. Thank you for your faith and courage to return to your homes, Albright told the returnees in Croatian, adding that their efforts symbolised the fight for mutual trust and tolerance which is a key precondition for the survival of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Only those who implement the Dayton agreement can count on the help of the international community, the US Secretary of State said. The establishment of an efficient police force, which would be able to guarantee safety in the country, and successful elections are currently - along with the return - the two most important aims, Albright said. Albright called on Bosnian citizens to use the chance the forthcoming elections are offering them and vote for the forces of progress and democracy. The head of the Franciscan province of Bosna Srebrena, Friar Petar Andjelovic, who welcomed Mrs Albright, told Hina he considered her visit to the Franciscan Faculty of Theology to be the symbol of direct support for the stands of the Bosnian Franciscan order. The Americans have shown readiness to learn from the Bosnian Franciscans what Bosnia-Herzegovina should look like as well as support for the idea of an integral Bosnia in which all peoples should enjoy equal rights. (hina) rml 302113 MET aug 98