LOWER HOUSE COMMITTEE DISCUSSES TESTIMONIES BY HIGH STATE OFFICIALS

OFFICIALS ( Editorial: --> 7997 ) ZAGREB, Oct 13 (Hina) - The Parliament Lower House's Committee for Internal Affairs and National Security on Tuesday continued its session which started yesterday. The session was convened with the aim of establishing the credibility of claims made in the media by the recently resigned President's Chief-Of-Staff Hrvoje Sarinic and presidential advisor Franjo Greguric, on the alleged misuse of authority by military intelligence services. Unofficial sources say that the Committee, which is sitting behind closed doors, should adopt some conclusions. Whether these conclusions will be adopted today is not certain. Committee members will discuss statements given yesterday by Hrvoje Sarinic, Franjo Greguric, Ivic Pasalic (the President's advisor for interior affairs) and Markica Rebic (assistant defence minister for intelligence-security issues). According to yesterday's statements by opposition leaders who attended the session, it is expected that some Committee members could request data on an investigation into the work of security services, which had been submitted to the Office for National Security (UNS), headed by Miroslav Separovic. Data on another investigation, carried out by the Defence Ministry, which is responsible for the work of a Croatian Intelligence Service (SIS) section, were also submitted to the Office. So far, no Committee member has requested that Separovic be summonsed to the session and present data from the investigation report. Today's session of the Committee is also attended by MPs who have the right to attend any session of the Sabor's (Parliament) working bodies, in line with the Parliament's Rule Book, including the leaders of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and opposition parties. After yesterday's hearing, Greguric and Sarinic told reporters they had told the Committee everything they knew, and presented individual evidence substantiating their claims. Pasalic and Rebic, on the other hand, denied having been involved in any way in the alleged cases of misuse of authority by secret services. (hina) rml/sp 131356 MET oct 98