GABELICA OPPOSES RIGHT OF MINORITIES TO SPECIAL REPRESENTATION

ZAGREB, Nov 5 (Hina) - Croatian Pure Party of Rights (HCSP) parliamentary representative Ivan Gabelica on Thursday proposed the abolishment of the national minorities' special parliamentary representation, claiming that this regulation in the existing law was anti-constitutional. "We should change the Constitution if we want national minorities to have special representation in the Croatian National Sabor", said Gabelica at today's session of the Lower House. The Constitution makes no mention anywhere about national minorities having the right to separately elect their representatives. The Croat people has less election rights than national minorities, who are by law, enabled to vote for their special representatives as well as for other candidates in the elections. "It is not my intent for national minorities to understand this proposal as an act directed against them", Gabelica said presenting his proposal on changes to the election law. According to the Constitution, the nation alone has the right to elect representatives to parliament "and not some special groups", Gabelica said. "If representatives of authorities are elected according to the criterion of nationality, and not exclusively according to the criterion of citizenship, then why not according to their religion or sex as well", he asked. One cannot at the same time advocate a civil society and demand special rights for minorities, which are even greater than those enjoyed by minorities in western democracies, he remarked. Minorities should join existing parties or form their own parties and try to enter parliament through them, Gabelica believes. Minority representatives discussed Gabelica's move while awaiting a discussion on the opposition request to form a commission which would investigate the alleged misuse of military-security parties. Njegovan Starek said that independent minority MPs believed that Gabelica's proposal was aimed at "removing minorities from all election activities". Milan Djukic (Serb National Party, SNS) said that "the hatred towards national minorities, especially towards Serbs, was common and interwoven into Gabelica's political platform. Srecko Bijelic (Croatian People's Party, HNS) suggested that all parliamentary parties, with help from the Government, draw up a joint election law within a period of three to four months. Bijelic also suggested that a referendum be called in case his first proposal failed. (hina) jn rml/sp