RIJEKA, March 2 (Hina) - Veterans Minister Ivica Pancic said on Friday Croatia had nothing to be ashamed of in connection with veterans' care which he said "is on the level of the U.S. and some other developed post-war countries,
while being considerably more advanced than others." The minister was addressing a round table on a veterans' rights bill the Social Democratic Party organised in the northern Adriatic city of Rijeka. The new bill gives care for veterans and their families the same attention as the current one, "despite claims to the opposite by individuals, especially those connected with the former authority or some who were privileged without justification." The new bill will not deprive veterans of even one right but regulate some differently and avoid the overlapping of some for the same individuals, said Pancic. He warned that only 20 percent of the veterans thus far had exerc
RIJEKA, March 2 (Hina) - Veterans Minister Ivica Pancic said on
Friday Croatia had nothing to be ashamed of in connection with
veterans' care which he said "is on the level of the U.S. and some
other developed post-war countries, while being considerably more
advanced than others."
The minister was addressing a round table on a veterans' rights bill
the Social Democratic Party organised in the northern Adriatic city
of Rijeka.
The new bill gives care for veterans and their families the same
attention as the current one, "despite claims to the opposite by
individuals, especially those connected with the former authority
or some who were privileged without justification."
The new bill will not deprive veterans of even one right but
regulate some differently and avoid the overlapping of some for the
same individuals, said Pancic. He warned that only 20 percent of the
veterans thus far had exercised some important rights, for instance
to flats, pensions and the disabled person status.
The Veterans Ministry will be open to all proposals on the new
veterans' law but adoption will depend on the economic situation
and the state's possibilities, said Pancic.
Representatives of Homeland Defence War associations attending the
round table pointed out more than 1,000 veterans had committed
suicide since the end of the early 199s war of independence from the
ex-Yugoslavia.
They also pointed to the breaches of some provisions on veterans'
rights and red tape, advocated a review of military ranks and some
other rights, stressing unemployment was the biggest difficulty
veterans were faced with and that they lived on the brink of
misery.
Minister Pancic later told reporters that all veterans'
associations which wanted to be ministry partners, regardless of
the approach in the exercising of rights, must respect the tenets of
civil society.
He said the ministry would no longer negotiate with those who
publicly advocated abolishing democracy, did not respect the
principles of the rule-of-law or human rights.
(hina) ha sb