REGIONAL CONFERENCE ON MISSING PERSONS STARTS IN OSIJEK

OSIJEK, Dec 14 (Hina) - A two-day conference on missing people from Croatia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia started in the eastern Croatian town of Osijek on Monday. The event, organised by the International Commission for Missing Persons (ICMP), is being attended by representatives from eleven associations gathering the families of missing and imprisoned persons. The purpose of the meeting is to enable the families to exert pressure as strongly as possible on governments and government organisations, since they are the ones who have the data on the exact number of missing persons, said Kathryne Bomberger, ICMP's deputy head. The ICMP is trying to schedule a meeting in March next year between the Croatian and Yugoslav commissions for missing people. The meeting, which should also be attended by the families of missing people, is aimed at securing progress in the search for missing people, and especially at gathering the exact data. Croatia is still searching for 1,796 persons, said Stefica Krstic, president of the Osijek Association of the Families of Missing Croatian Soldiers. Today's meeting is another way Croatian associations are seeking help, especially from the ICMP, in discovering the truth about the fate of the missing, she added. Dragan Medic, president of the Yugoslav Association of Parents of Missing and Imprisoned Persons, said he expected the conference to "give impetus to the process of search for all missing people". According to Medic, Yugoslavia is looking for more than 2,000 persons, including former Yugoslav army (JNA) members and people who went missing during the Croatian military and police operations "Flash" and "Storm". The working part of the meeting will be held behind closed doors. The participants and organisers will speak about the results of the conference at a news conference scheduled for tomorrow. (hina) rml