BRIJUNI, July 7 (Hina) - The 3rd convention of the Croatian World Congress (HSK) ended in Brijuni on Sunday. The newly elected president of the HSK Simun Sito Coric, members of the Executive Committee and heads of various committees
held a news conference at which they expressed great satisfaction with achieved goals. The convention had been the most successful one so far, Coric said.
BRIJUNI, July 7 (Hina) - The 3rd convention of the Croatian World
Congress (HSK) ended in Brijuni on Sunday.
The newly elected president of the HSK Simun Sito Coric,
members of the Executive Committee and heads of various committees
held a news conference at which they expressed great satisfaction
with achieved goals.
The convention had been the most successful one so far, Coric
said. #L#
The leaders of the HSK said that in order for young people to
remain in Croatia and for people to return to Croatia, Croatian
laws should be adjusted to standards of western democracy, to
enable it to place its products on the international market and
create new jobs.
They stressed that the huge intellectual, professional and
other potentials of Croats outside Croatia had to be introduced in
the future development of their homeland.
"We expect the Ministry of Immigration to be officially
established as soon as possible," they said.
As regards the Dayton Agreement, they said that they supported
it, but they were against interpretations of the Agreement which
lessened the role and ignored the sovereignty of the Croat people
in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
"We ask all responsible factors in the homeland and abroad to
make sure that the Croat space in Bosnia remain Croat and that,
respecting justice, crimes committed by Serbia and Montenegro
against the Croat people are not overlooked," they said, adding
that before friendly neighbourly relations with Serbia and
Montenegro were established, they should pay the appropriate
compensation for war damages and publicly ask for clemency for
their wrongdoings, and that open issues of Croats in those two
countries should be resolved.
They also asked that a question on an international level
should be opened about the responsibility of international
institutions and influential individuals for the wrongdoings in
Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
In their statement, the HSK leaders appealed to the Croatian
authority to find a way of releasing Croat political prisoners who
were doing time in foreign prisons and who had advocated Croatian
freedom.
They called all Croat associations in the world to unite in
their work for the well-being of all Croats in the homeland and
abroad.
They expressed their belief that it was extremely important to
conduct a census of the Croatian diaspora in 2001.
They expressed full support to all Croatian government and
non-government institutions which cooperated with the Croatian
diaspora, especially the Informative Centre and the Croatian
Emigrants' Centre.
They also expressed full support for the Croatian government,
headed by president Franjo Tudjman, "we will have such an attitude
towards every authority the Croatian people choose at free and
democratic elections," the statement said.
(hina) lm
072037 MET jul 96