POLLING STATIONS FOR BH CITIZENS IN CROATIA CLOSE

( Editorial: --> 0177 ) ZAGREB, Sept 13 (Hina) - Polling stations in Croatia which Bosnian citizens used this weekend to vote in absentia for as part of a general election in Bosnia-Herzegovina were closed at 4PM on Sunday, but ballot casting continued in several stations. According to the Croatian government's Office for Displaced Persons and Refugees, voting was completed in most polling stations by 7PM. Data on the full number of Bosnian citizens who cast their ballots in Croatia will be issued subsequently. A total of 38,661 out of 76,000 registered voters cast their ballots by 1PM at 61 polling stations in Croatia. The stations were jammed, especially in the afternoon, due to a complex voting procedure. Voters were most confused by the appearance of the ballots and ways of filling them in. The voting was monitored by 73 observers of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, while 150 150 accredited domestic and foreign observers monitored the two-day election. (hina) ha 132057 MET sep 98