CULTURAL WORKERS ON CROATS' POSITION IN NORTHEAST, CENTRAL BOSNIA

ZAGREB, Jan 29 (Hina) - Croatian cultural workers from northeastern Bosnia and Posavina (northern Bosnia) on Saturday held a four-hour meeting in Zagreb to discuss the position of Croats in these areas. The meeting was dedicated to cultural problems of importance for Croats' survival in central and northeastern Bosnia organized in an independent national community. The greatest support to them had been offered so far by the Roman Catholic Church. The establishment of the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina halted the mutual killing of Croats and Bosniac (Moslems), and its failure would bring tragic consequences for both nations, this statement could be heard at the Zagreb meeting, organized by "The White Path" Action, "Matica Hrvatska" cultural society and the "Napredak" Cultural Association. The "Napredak" head, Franjo Topic, said that the spiritual production and culture were fields where Croats could foster their unity. The unity should be equally felt and promoted in centres as well as in "frontier" areas, but so far this had not been noticed, according to Topic. The head of the Tuzla-based Napredak branch, Zlata Music, said that several Croatian cultural and sports associations had been formed in Tuzla during the war blockade of this northeastern Bosnian city. However, Tuzla's Croats had no right for using their mother tongue, nor were premises allocated to any of newly-founded associations, according to Music. Guardian of Tuzla's Franciscan Monastery, Friar Petar Matanovic, described the current situation as "life in uncertainty", while Croats were still trying to hold a dialogue with Moslems (Bosniacs). Friar Matanovic emphasized that Bosnia- Herzegovina was Croats' homeland as much as it was Croatia, but the media often neglected this fact. He added that Croatia had not cared enough for Croats in those areas of Bosnia in the last four years. The leader of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) branch in Tuzla, Anto Zvonar said the deterioration of life conditions caused permanent emigration of Croats from the city. He added that the Moslem authorities would be glad if only a certain number of Croats remained in the city, so that they could use this number as a kind of 'coverage' for the Bosnian Federation. The culture deputy minister of Tuzla-Podrinje Canton, Ljupko Azdaja, said it was illusory to consider cultural rights when all authorities were in the Moslems' hands. A former dean of Technological College at Tuzla University, Dr. Zdenka Dusek, said there had been 350 Croat undergraduates at this university before the war while now there were only 60 of them. Other participants also stressed the difficult position of Croats in northeastern Bosnia as well as the areas of Vares, Travnik (central Bosnia) and Ravne-Brcko (northern Bosnia). (hina) mms 291230 MET jan 95