ZAGREB, June 17 (Hina) - The Association of Croatian Displaced Persons and Refugees from Srijem, Backa and Banat (northern Serbia) warned in Zagreb on Tuesday about the difficult position of over 140,000 Croats living in those parts.
Croats in Srijem, Backa and Banat were not a national minority in FR Yugoslavia, they did not have the protection of state institutions, nor were their rights guaranteed, president of the Association, Franjo Orlovic, told a press conference held in Zagreb on Tuesday. He said the peaceful reintegration of the Croatian Danubian area would not improve the position of Croats living on the other bank of the Danube river (in Serbia).
ZAGREB, June 17 (Hina) - The Association of Croatian Displaced Persons
and Refugees from Srijem, Backa and Banat (northern Serbia) warned in
Zagreb on Tuesday about the difficult position of over 140,000 Croats
living in those parts.
Croats in Srijem, Backa and Banat were not a national minority in
FR Yugoslavia, they did not have the protection of state institutions,
nor were their rights guaranteed, president of the Association, Franjo
Orlovic, told a press conference held in Zagreb on Tuesday.
He said the peaceful reintegration of the Croatian Danubian area
would not improve the position of Croats living on the other bank of the
Danube river (in Serbia). #L#
Vesna Kljajic, a reporter with the Association's "Zov Srijema"
newspaper, warned about the atmosphere of fear among the Croat residents
and about the fact that Croats who had lived in these parts for
centuries were being deprived of their rights.
Besides the fact that Croats had no ethnic rights, they had no
right to amnesty in Yugoslavia, to being exempt from serving in the
army, political representations on higher levels were being denied,
there was no financial help to cultural institutions, and Croatian
newspapers could not be sold, Kljajic said.
"Little, almost nothing is being said about over 140,000 Croats who
have remained in Srijem, Backa and Banat," Orlovic stressed, adding that
it was very important to "break the silence" over the problem and to
boost the interest of the media and public in the position of the large
number of Croats in those parts.
Orlovic advocated reciprocity in the rights of Croats and Serbs in
the two countries. "What the Serbs want as a minority in Croatia, Croats
should also get in Serbia," Orlovic said.
Ten branches of the Association of Croatian Displaced Persons and
Refugees from Srijem, Backa and Banat number about 45,000 refugees and
displaced persons who had left about one million dollars-worth of
property in Serbia. The Associations representatives also warned about
the problems of these Croats in Croatia, especially pensioners.
(Hina) lm jn
171649 MET jun 97