PREMIER MEETS HEAD OF CRO RETURNEES' ASSOCIATION

( Editorial: --> 5982 ) ZAGREB, Oct 5 (Hina) - Croatian Premier Zlatko Matesa and a delegation of the Croatian Returnees Association (ZPH) on Monday discussed the application of the Law on Areas of Special Government Care and announced possible changes. According to the Premier, the government and the ZPH would draft changes to the said Law in order to improve extant and possibly add new institutes. The changes will refer to "firmer ties between stimulant measures and development programmes, especially employment programmes", Matesa said after the talks. Also discussed was the issue of allocation of agricultural land to returnees which, the Premier said, the government supports and wishes the counties to understand as a priority issue. Matesa said he and the ZPH delegation discussed displaced Croats from Croatia and the large number of displaced Croats from Bosnia- Herzegovina (BH) currently in Croatia who, said Matesa, were not returning to BH in significant numbers. "It is our opinion that in this matter the international community has completely failed. There are no indications of either a return programme, or a programme for the reconstruction of BH, certainly not like (the return) programme (in force) in Croatia", said Matesa. ZPH president Mato Simic said the changes to the Law on Areas of Special Government Care should contain stimulant measures for a more expedite and higher quality return of displaced persons to their pre-war places of residence. Simic said that he and the Premier also discussed reconstruction in eastern Croatia. He was disappointed with the number of reconstructed houses. Simic called on the Premier to increase reconstruction in eastern Croatia where, he said, only the reconstruction of only 10,000 damaged houses was being planned by year's end. (hina) ha 051830 MET oct 98