INTERNATIONAL PRESS INSTITUTE WRITES TO CROATIAN PRESIDENT

ZAGREB, May 9 (Hina) - The International Press Institute (IPI) sent a letter to Croatian President Franjo Tudjman on Thursday expressing concern about legal action taken against the editor- in-chief and a journalist of the Split-based satirical and investigative weekly "Feral Tribune", Viktor Ivancic and Marinko Culic. Ivancic and Culic had been charged with libel against the President for their articles in the Feral Tribune issue of April 29. IPI urged Tudjman "to ensure that all charges against the journalists of Feral Tribune are dropped and to end the campaign of harrassment currently being waged against the independent media in Croatia." "We regard the action taken against Feral Tribune to be part of a concentrated effort by the government to silence the critical voice of the independent media of Croatia in the run-up to important local elections this year," said the letter signed by IPI director Johann P. Fritz. The letter also cited the cases of the Rijeka-based independent daily "Novi List" and the recently closed weekly "Panorama". IPI is a global network of editors and media executives from newspapers, magazines, broadcasting organizations and news agencies in 85 countries. (hina) vm 091852 MET may 96