ASSEMBLY WARNS ENTITIES: REFUGEE RETURN GOOD BUT STOP OBSTACLES

( Editorial: --> 8081 ) STRASBOURG, 29 Jan (Hina) - The Council of Europe's Parliamentary Assembly in Strasbourg on Thursday expressed satisfaction with the fact that many refugees and displaced persons had returned to Bosnia-Herzegovina or found long-term solutions in other countries during 1996 and 1997. But at the same time it stressed that refugees were almost exclusively returning to zones where they were part of the majority ethnic population. During the past two years 204,000 displaced people within the country returned to their homes, 172,900 refugees returned to Bosnia and 350,000 others found a long-term solution in the countries which had accepted them, the final document said. However, the document mentions that return up to now had occurred almost exclusively in zones where the refugees and displaced people belonged to the majority ethnic group. Only 35,000 people had returned to areas where they belonged to the ethnic minority. The CE Parliamentary Assembly expressed regret because of obstacles which slowed down return, first of all in the Bosnian Serb entity, but also in the Moslem-Croat Federation. It called on all authorities to protect the human rights of all its citizens and aid the return of all refugees and displaced people to their homes. (Hina) jn mb 291653 MET jan 98