RECONSTRUCTED SLOVAKIAN PEOPLE'S HALL IN ILOK OPENED

ILOK, Aug 24 (Hina) - The UN transitional administrator for the Danube region of eastern Croatia, William Walker, and the Slovakian Ambassador to Croatia, Matus Kucera, on Sunday opened the reconstructed Slovakian People's Hall in Ilok. The reconstruction of the hall of the Slovakian national minority, which has lived in Ilok for more than two centuries, was a joint project of Slovakia, the European Commission's Humanitarian Office, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the GTZ company from Zagreb, UNTAES, several minor donors and local Slovakians. As the head of the Slovakian Ljudevit Stur cultural society from Ilok, Janko Mendjan, said, the reconstruction cost more than 800,000 kunas. In his first public speech, UN's new transitional administrator Walker expressed satisfaction with the reconstruction of Ilok's Slovakian hall. It was a very important step in the peaceful reintegration of Croatia's Danube region, he assessed, adding the opening of the hall was an example of how national minorities in a multi-ethnic society could express their cultural identity, thus contributing to the richness of national life. According to Slovakian Ambassador Kucera, today represented the beginning of a new life for Ilok's Slovakians who, as he said, very quickly got accustomed to being citizens of the new Croatia. "They will be good citizens of their homeland Croatia", Kucera said, adding the Slovakian school in Ilok, the Slovakian minority's only one in Croatia, needed to be reconstructed as well. Stipan Kraljevic, the Mayor of Ilok, pointed out the good cooperation with Ambassador Kucera in providing for Slovakians in Ilok during Croatia's Homeland War. Kraljevic recalled that 15 Slovakians were killed while fighting for Croatia, and wished that the newly opened Slovakian People's Hall be a place where Slovakians, Croatians and other residents of Ilok might cooperate. The gathered at today's event were also addressed by UNTAES armed force commander Major General Wille Hanset and the commander of UNTAES' Slovakian engineering battalion, Stefan Jangl. Also in attendance were the higher advisor for national minority issues at the Croatian Education and Sports Ministry, Dubravka Poljak-Makaruha, the advisor for social services and relations with UNTAES of the Danube Region Development and Reconstruction Centre, Tihomir Zivic, and the head of UNTAES' civil affairs, Gerard Fischer. Letters of thanks were given to those who assisted in the reconstruction of the Slovakian People's Hall. Some 200 of Ilok's 1,270 Slovakians fled the area in 1991. Some have recently started to return. Slovakians from Ilok say life during the Serb occupation was very hard; many were imprisoned or dug ditches along front. (hina) ha 241602 MET aug 97