REFUGEES WANT YASUSHI AKASHI TO RESIGN

ILOK/ZAGREB, Sept 16 (Hina) - Refugees from Ilok, eastern Slavonia, have called on UN Special Representative, Yasushi Akashi, to resign. "If you are not able to protect the remaining non-Serb population in the occupied parts of Croatia and return the refugees to their homes, the only decent thing for you to do is to resign and go home," an open letter from refugee representatives says. The letter, which was sent yesterday, includes population data on the occupied villages of Ilok, Bapska, Sarengrad, Mohovo, Lovas, Opatovac, Tovarnik, Sotin, Tompojevac, 40 km S.E. of Vukovar. More than eight thousand people have been expelled from the area, while 54 were either dead or missing, the letter says. It goes on to say that before the war, Croats constituted 70 percent of the population of Ilok, the Slovakian community accounted for 12 percent and 10 percent of the population was Serbian. The letter also accuses UNPROFOR troops of doing nothing to stop Serb settlers taking possession of refugees' homes. This only put more pressure on the remaining non-Serbs to leave. The letter also protests against UNPROFOR's 'frequent presence at parties' organised by the occupying authorities. It warned Akashi that the Civil Affairs Department regularly delivered aid to a shady organisation known as 'Ring of Serbian Sisters' which then passed the aid on to Serbia. (hina) mm as sd 161231 MET sep 94