SARAJEVO MEDIA ON CROATIAN PRESIDENT'S DEATH

SARAJEVO, Dec 12 (Hina) - It has been a long time since one event attracted as much attention in the media in Bosnia-Herzegovina as the death of Croatia's President Franjo Tudjman. On Saturday, first fifteen minutes of all news broadcasts of the Bosnian Radio and Television (RTV BiH) covered the information about the death of President Tudjman and all other events relating to it such as statements of Croatian officials, opposition, reactions of common people and expressions of condolence forwarded from abroad. Everybody, without exception, spoke of Tudjman showing respect for the late President. Almost the identical tone prevailed in information programmes of the electronic media in the Bosnian Serb entity where latest news items from Zagreb were aired at the beginning of broadcasts. The death of President Tudjman and first reactions upon it made headlines in the Sarajevo press. "Croatia Bids Farewell to Tudjman" is a great front-page headline of the "Oslobodenje" daily. Another daily "Dnevni Avaz" added that President Tudjman died at the age of 77. Although relations between neighbouring Croatia and Bosnia were not seldom marked by complexity and controversies, in general there were no comments or reactions in the Bosnian media which might deny Tudjman's historic merits. It was only Oslobodjenje that already tried to analyse the consequences of the departure of Croatian President from political scenes. The daily's editor-in-chief, Mirko Sagolj, signed a comment on this matter. (hina) ms