REINTEGRATION OF DANUBE AREA PUBLIC HEALTH PROCEEDS

VUKOVAR/BELI MANASTIR, July 28 (Hina) - The Croatian Health Insurance Office + (or HZZO), reintegrated its two branch offices in Vukovar and Beli Manastir on + Monday, and the reintegration of Beli Manastir's health centre Into the Croatian + National Health Service began on the same day as well. On this occasion Health Minister Andrija Hebrang and the HZZO head Stjepan Turek toured these two eastern Croatian towns. "Today we have returned exiled workers to their jobs in our two branch + offices, and they work normally as of today," Turek told reporters in Beli Manastir. He + added that the HZZO also took 30 local workers. "This is a larger number (of employees) than it is necessary, but we have + taken those people because of Croatia's attempt not to create social tension in this + delicate area," Minister Hebrang said. The minister, along with his associates, held talks in Beli Manastir's health centre, for the first time since the occupation, with the not legal management + of the institution. After the talks he told reporters that agreement on reintegration had been reached. He said that it was agreed that a joint commission be set up, + including the not legal head Dmitar Raseta, the legal head Zarko Zelic, and representatives of + the HZZO, UN Transitional Administration (UNTAES) and of the World Health Organisation (WHO). The commission is expected to check all documents of employees, to elaborate systematisation and propose contracts with the HZZO, in+ a one or two months. "All of those who can work, according to their documents, will be offered employment contracts," Hebrang said adding that for redundancies they would try+ to find a solution of their social status in other state-run sectors. The commission for the reintegration of Beli Manastir's health centre will + begin to work on Wednesday. The head of the centre, Zarko Zelic, said that 130 workers had been working in Osijek all the time of their exile, and all of them would like to come back to + Beli Manastir soon. According to Zelic, at the moment there are 236 workers in the health centre, whereas about 200 employees are enough, and that's why some 160 people will be redundancies. Raseta, who is not legal head of the institution, said that the centre was relatively well equipped, as about 600,000 German marks had been invested into + it during the occupation. He voiced hope that the reintegration would be soon + completed. (hina) mm mš 281617 MET jul 97