INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON BLEIBURG VICTIMS BEGINS IN ZAGREB

ZAGREB, May 12 (Hina) - The international conference "Bleiburg 1945 - 1995", on soldiers and civilians killed by the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) in Bleiburg field, Austria, on May 15, 1945, six days after the end of World War II, began today in the Croatian Parliament building. The meeting, organized by the Committee for marking the 50th anniversary of Bleiburg victims, was opened by Parliament speaker Nedjeljko Mihanovic. The two-day conference would hear reports on historic circumstances and facts concerning the Bleiburg tragedy. Bleiburg and the Way of the Cross had been forbidden topics in the past five decades and if the tragedy had been discussed, the number of victims would always be diminished, Mihanovic said in his opening address. At today's session Count Nikolai Tolstoy would speak about the Yalta Conference and the forced repatriation of East European nations. (hina) jn rm vm 121515 MET may 95