CONTROVERSIAL BOSNIAN MOSLEM POLITICIAN TO RUN IN ELECTIONS

MOSTAR, June 13 (Hina) - The director of the OSCE regional office in Mostar, Wolfgang Odendhal, said at a meeting with leaders of Bosnian political parties in Mostar on Thursday that international donors would provide financial support for election campaigns of parties taking part in nation-wide elections in September. OSCE official Folmer Kristensen said that the Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia-Herzegovina (HDZ B-H), the Union of Bosnian Social Democrats, the Democratic People's Union, the Party of Economic Renewal and three independent candidates had submitted their lists of canditates by 13.00 hours on Thursday and that the registration deadline would expire at 17.00 hours on Friday. Susan Kosinski of the US government agency for international development said that the agency would provide technical, financial and training assistance to policial parties for the forthcoming elections. Three officials of this agency had already arrived in Bosnia-Herzegovina, she added. Kosinski stressed that parties applying for support from the US agency had to be democratic and without war crimes suspects among their members. Zlatko Jurisic of the Democratic People's Party said that the list of candidates of this party would be headed by its president Fikret Abdic. It was most likely that the party would also put up Abdic as a candidate for a future three-member presidency of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Jurisic said. Abdic is a controversial Moslem politician and successful businessman from the Bihac area of western Bosnia. In the first democratic elections he won a majority of votes for presidential office but renounced the post to the benefit of the current president Alija Izetbegovic. During Serb aggression on the country Abdic declared autonomy of western Bosnia and his followers fought the Moslem-led government army. (hina) vm jn 132152 MET jun 96