CONCLUSIONS OF CRO ELECTION COMMITTEE, IMPLEMENTATION COMMITTE

ZAGREB, Mar 17 (Hina) - President of the Croatian Election Committee Ivan Mrkonjic on Monday held a press conference in Zagreb at which he stated the conclusions reached at the Committee's meeting with the Election Implementation Committee in the Croatian Danubian Area. The most important conclusions referred to the registration of candidates for elections in the area under transitional administration, Mrkonjic said. Local elections and elections for the Croatian Parliament's House of Counties will take place on 13 April throughout Croatia, including the Danubian area, where they were announced by Transitional Administrator Jacques Klein last Tuesday. He also set the deadlines for parties in the area to present their candidates; 23 March for candidates for local administration, 25 March for candidates for the Upper House. According to Mrkonjic, it was concluded that the above mentioned deadlines referred only to political parties in the UNTAES-administered area. Not one party from that area had been registered at the Croatian Administration Ministry so far, he said, adding that a party in the course of forming must register by 23 March. Deadlines for the registration of candidates in other areas of Croatia, where elections were announced earlier, are over. The conclusions point out that the candidate-procedure must be repeated only in six new municipalities, established after Klein's decision on the changes of municipal boundaries. The new municipalities are Negoslavci, Markusica, Sodolovci and Jagodnjak, and transitional municipalities Tenja and Mirkovci. Mrkonjic pointed out that the establishment of these new municipalities caused boundary-changes in three more municipalities in the Osijek and two in the Vukovar County. If UNTAES changed election units as well, the candidate-procedure might be repeated in these municipalities too, Mrkonjic said, adding that UNTAES would deliver the list of election units on Monday or Tuesday. He assessed that the reached conclusions were in accordance with the Croatian law and that they put in equal position political parties in Croatia's liberated areas and those which would be formed in the Danubian area. This would enable the holding of elections in the Danubian area on the same day as in the rest of Croatia, with some specific features, Mrkonjic concluded. The meeting of the Croatian Election Committee and the Election Implementation Committee for the Danubian Area was attended by representatives of the Osijek and Vukovar County election committees. (hina) ha jn 172007 MET mar 97