MEMBERS OF COMMISSION FOR ESTABLISHMENT OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST AREN'T SWORN IN

ZAGREB, March 12 (Hina) - Members of the parliamentary commission for establishment of conflict of interest did not take an oath before Croatian President Stjepan Mesic on Friday, although this ceremony had been announced yesterday. A member of the commission, Antun Kapraljevic, said that they had given up the idea of being sworn in because of announcements of the Social Democratic Party that it would ask the Constitutional Court to assess whether the rule book of the commission was in compliance with the Constitution.#L# SDP parliamentarians said on Thursday that they would submit a request to the Court because of many provisions in the rule book which they considered to be contrary to the Constitution and the law on the prevention of conflict of interest. Ingrid Anticevic Marinovic of the SDP told Hina today that one of the most problematic provisions was that external members of the commission could be granted immunity which officials enjoyed. Kapraljevic said that immunity should be given in order to protect the external members from being sued for slander. He went on to say that it was in the commission's interest to get the Constitutional Court's opinion on the matter and therefore it asked the Court to solve the issue as soon as possible. The Office of President Mesic reported on Friday that the commission's members had notified the President of announced changes to the law on the conflict of interest so as to ensure "all legislative prerequisites for the start of the functioning (of the commission) and avoid possible ambiguities about its work". Mesic supported the forthcoming creation of legal frameworks for the normal activities of the commission, read the Office's press release. (Hina) ms sb