MR. PRESIDENT, STOP SUIT AGAINST FERAL, SAYS HELSINKI COMMITTEE

ZAGREB, 24 September (Hina) - The Croatian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights has issued a public appeal to President Tudjman to "stop legal proceedings against Viktor Ivancic, editor-in-chief of Croatian weekly Feral Tribune, and Marinko Culic, Feral's reporter. In the appeal, issued on the eve of tomorrow's resumption of a libel suit against messrs Ivancic and Culic at the Zagreb district court, President Tudjman is urged to withdraw his permission for instigation of the process and thus stop it. Charges against the two journalists were pressed on 25 September 1996 by the Zagreb office of the state prosecutor. Charges were pressed in accordance with Articles 71 and 72 of the Penal Code of Croatia. The Croatian Helsinki Committee believes that "the practice whereupon state prosecutor presses charges for libel ex officio "makes Croatia an international outcast, both from the point of view of culture and of politics." The Croatian Helsinki Committee notes that several European countries have similar laws but that politicians rarely use them to redress their grievances against journalists, preferring civil suits instead. (Hina) mr 242042 MET sep 96