B-H BISHOPS CALL FOR RESPECT FOR DAYTON AGREEMENT

ZAGREB, 17 July (Hina/IKA) - The Archbishop of Sarajevo, Cardinal Vinko Puljic, and Bishops Franjo Komarica, Ratko Peric and Pero Sudar, sent an appeal to the Bosnian state officials and international community following a session of the Bishops' Conference of Bosnia-Herzegovina, which was held in Banja Luka from 14 to 16 July. In the appeal they called on 'domestic and international politicians as well as on the international community to be more diligent in their support for the implementation of the Dayton peace agreement', the Catholic Information Agency IKA reported. #L# "We are witnesses to a fatal boycott of the Dayton agreement and visible discord and indecisivness of the Contact Group in implementing all the signed regulations concerning the protection of human rights and basic human freedoms," which are mentioned in the first paragraph of the Dayton peace agreement, the appeal said. Although the same paragraph clearly says that all displaced people and refugees have the right to return to their homes and be given back their property, this is not being done in reality because there is a lack of readiness, knowledge and cooperation between the politicians who are in charge of these tasks, the appeal said. The members of the Bishops' Conference of Bosnia-Herzegovina called on all priests to remain with their believers no matter what. The bishops called on Republika Srpska authorities to solve the cases of abducted priests Ratko Grgic and Tomislav Matanovic and to release them, IKA said. (hina) rm mm 171526 MET jul 97