IVAN PRSKALO-APPOINTED NEW MAYOR OF MOSTAR

MOSTAR, Oct 28 (Hina) - Mostar City Council unanimously appointed Ivan Prskalo (former deputy mayor) for the city's mayor, and Safet Orucevic (former mayor) for the city's deputy mayor. Their mandates are expected for one year. This exchange of leading duties of city of Mostar is congruent with the Herzegovina-Neretva county Constitution, which regulates that the prefect and mayor must be of different nationality. Prskalo said that the hardest times in Mostar have past and the city should be the capital of the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina. "We must forget all disagreements", Prskalo stressed. He intervened for continuation of "real return of displaced persons in Mostar", and called on the international community to help in reconstruction of houses for the returnees. Orucevic said that the return of Croats to the Bijelo Polje suburb is the beginning of a new phase of Croat-Bosniak relations in Mostar. "Mostar is no longer the black spot of the Federation. The city is no longer the polygon for hatred testing", said Orucevic adding that Mostar is becoming the symbol of reconstruction and development. An exchange within the Mostar's City Council's leadership was also conducted on Wednesday. Former vice-president Ratko Pejanovic (Serb) was chosen for the City Council's president, and former president Goran Bilic (Croat) was chosen for the vice-president of Mostar's City Council. (hina) it jn/sp