CROATIAN PARLIAMENT SPEAKER LEAVES FOR STRASBOURG

ZAGREB, April 23 (Hina) - Croatian Parliament speaker Vlatko Pavletic left for Strasbourg on Tuesday to attend a discussion on Wednesday on Croatia's application for full membership in the Council of Europe. Before leaving, Pavletic told reporters at Zagreb airport that "it's time Croatia was granted recognition it deserves," adding that the admission of Croatia to the Council of Europe depended on many factors and on some member states which were not inclined to it. Pavletic recalled that President Tudjman and he had signed "letters of intent" which obliged Croatia to fulfil 21 conditions before it could be admitted to the Council of Europe. "We have already fulfilled some of those provisions while some will be fulfilled within the set time limits," he said. "In some matters Croatia is ahead of some Council of Europe member states," Pavletic said, adding that, for example, Croatia had not imposed capital punishment during the war. Pavletic said that Croatia had created better legal grounds for solving minority issues than many other countries. Certain deviations in practice had been caused by war, he added. (hina) vm mm 231911 MET apr 96