ZAGREB, Feb 2(Hina) - Croatia's Minister of Family and War Veterans' Affairs and Inter-Generation Solidarity and Deputy Prime Minister, Jadranka Kosor, and Prime Minister Ivo Sanader on Monday gave war veteran Darko Bestek back his
artificial leg, which he had given to former War Veterans' Affairs Minister Ivica Pancic four years ago, protesting over his being listed as a fake disabled war veteran.
ZAGREB, Feb 2(Hina) - Croatia's Minister of Family and War Veterans'
Affairs and Inter-Generation Solidarity and Deputy Prime Minister,
Jadranka Kosor, and Prime Minister Ivo Sanader on Monday gave war
veteran Darko Bestek back his artificial leg, which he had given to
former War Veterans' Affairs Minister Ivica Pancic four years ago,
protesting over his being listed as a fake disabled war veteran.#L#
"With this symbolic act the government has set an injustice right and
made it known that it will return dignity and respect to all Croatian
soldiers," Sanader said. "If they were willing to give their life, to
make the greatest sacrifice, we may assume that they will be ready to
understand the situation the country is in," Sanader said.
He said that a new law on war veterans would be adopted very soon and
that it would be drawn up in cooperation with Homeland War
associations. By adopting the law, we want to stress our respect for
them, Sanader said.
Giving Bestek back his prosthesis, Kosor said that much would be done
to return dignity to disabled war veterans as well as all other
soldiers and their families. "I am sorry for all the suffering you
went through in the past four years, and I believe that your future
will be better," Kosor said.
Bestek said he strongly believed the times of psychological media
pressure on soldiers by the former government were gone. This and
every future government will do a big thing for the soldiers if it
does not destroy their dignity and Homeland War values, Bestek said.
Bestek lost his leg in the war, after which he was given the status of
a disabled war veteran. The former ministry, with Ivica Pancic at its
helm, declared him a fake disabled war veteran and stripped him of the
right to help by another person.
Bestek came to the ministry and, dismissing accusations about being a
fake invalid, tried to give Pancic his prosthesis, which Pancic
rejected without an apology.
Bestek was later told that his disability certificate had been
cancelled by mistake.
Kosor announced that Bestek and Juraj Njavro, a former war veterans'
affairs minister from the Croatian Democratic Union, would be
appointed her advisors.
(Hina) rml sb