SERB DEMOCRATIC FORUM HOLDS SESSION

ZAGREB, Feb 22 (Hina) - The Serb Democratic Forum (SDF), which has been active in Croatia since 1991 as a non-party and non-government organization, has, especially last year, consistently been advocating the rights of the Serb people to a home, citizenship and the protection of property, and its fight for the return of Serbs to Croatia, as well as the return of all displaced persons and refugees to their homes, whatever their nationality or religion, will continue, president of the SDF Presidency, Veljko Dzakula, said on Saturday, after being re-elected to that post. #L# The obligation of the SDF last year, as well as this, was to remove the consequences of war by organising humanitarian help, to visit Serb residents, especially in areas liberated after the Croatian military operation "Storm", and to breathe life into Serb villages in western Slavonia, Dzakula said. He added that, besides solving the problem of return and reunion of separated families, the most important issue was how to help Serbs to claim their property, considering the fact that there had been looting and destroying of their property. Dzakula stressed that the SDF was not sufficiently represented in the media, and that it still did not have its own offices. The available financial resources used to finance the SDF (Croatia's capital grant of 406,000 kuna, or DM 114,366, membership fees, etc.) were not sufficient, he said. According to one of the SDF founders, Milorad Pupovac, "with the efforts so far, the SDF should, in line with the Erdut Agreement, Letter of Intent and the forthcoming elections in the Danubian area, support all forms of integration, respecting human rights, and should boost cooperation with non-government organisations in Croatia and the world". (hina) lm 221641 MET feb 97