PROCESS OF ESTABLISHING CANTONAL POLICE AT A STANDSTILL

MOSTAR, Aug 19 (Hina) - The process of establishing a joint police force in the Hercegovina-Neretva canton has come to a standstill because local Croat officials oppose the deployment of Moslem policemen in Capljina and Stolac, while Moslem officials oppose the arrival of Croat policemen in Jablanica, the Mostar office of the International Police Task Force (IPTF) said in a statement on Tuesday. The IPTF recalled that a joint cantonal police force should have been established by August 15. The head of the Mostar office of the international High Representative to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Martin Garrod, said that he hoped that the problems related to the establishment of the cantonal police force were not serious. The cantonal branch of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party said in a statement that it had asked from responsible cantonal institutions that "the second stage from the agreement on establishing the cantonal police force be postponed until the Bosniac (Moslem) side has fulfilled the obligations that preceded the signing of the agreement." The HDZ demanded that a rule under which there should be one police officer per 250 inhabitants should also be applied "for more than 60,000 displaced persons who have found refuge" in the canton. (hina) vm jn 192017 MET aug 97