CROATS HINDERED AGAINST RETURNING TO SARAJEVO

( Editorial: --> 7211 ) SARAJEVO, Oct 9 (Hina) - The Sarajevo Canton's Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia-Herzegovina (HDZ BH) on Friday warned that local authorities in Sarajevo were persisted in preventing Croats from returning to their pre-war homes in Sarajevo, thus violating regulations contained within the Dayton accord and the Sarajevo Declaration. The declaration refers to the return of 20,000 non-Muslims to Bosnia's capital before the year's end. In a statement to Hina, the Sarajevo HDZ BH today analysed the complaints by large numbers of Croats who wish to return to their homes, and concluded that municipal authorities were not processing their requests and were putting responsibility on to the authorities of the Croat-Muslim Federation of BH or the Office of the international High Representative for BH. The Sarajevo HDZ BH notes that municipal authorities in many cases flatly refused to accept the return requests, particularly in relation to flats of the former Yugoslav Peoples' Army. The statement warned that housing commissions responsible for handling requests for returns were mono-national and as such Croatia officials in the Sarajevo Canton could not be held responsible for attempts to transform Sarajevo into a mono- national town. (Hina) sp/ha 091651 MET oct 98