PRESS CONFERENCE BY CROATIAN PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION IN STRASBOURG

STRASBOURG $ STRASBOURG, Nov 18 (Hina) - At the end of a three-day visit to the European Parliament, the delegation of the Croatian Parliament held a press conference on Thursday. Asked by a Dutch reporter whether Croatia was ready to cooperate with the International War Crimes Tribunal which was established yesterday, Chairman of the Croatian Parliament Stjepan Mesic replied that it was necessary to sign a declaration on extradition of war criminals so that the accused could be brought to trial. He stressed that all those who had committed crimes would not be pardoned. Speaking of Croatia's special guest status at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Mr Mesic said there was no reason for revoking such a status since Croatia had met all requirements at an internal level. Foreign reporters were interested in the freedom of the media in Croatia. Members of the delegation said that the freedom of the press was satisfactory whereas the situation on the television should be improved. Asked about the human rights situation, Ljubomir Antic said that the Human Rights Committee, headed by himself, received fewer and fewer complaints from citizens. 182024 MET nov 93