CROATIAN JOURNALISTS ASSOC. ON THE CHANGE OF VJESNIK CHEIF EDITOR

ZAGREB, Dec 14 (Hina) - The Croatian Journalists Association says appointment changes, particularly relieving a chief editor, should not be made before editorial staff and journalists express their views on such a move. The Association made the comment in a statement after the chief editor of the Croatian daily VJESNIK was relieved of his post. The Association is to now attempt to amend Paragraph 3 of Article 9 of the Media Act. The Act opens the way journalists to influence the selection of chief editor - but it doesn't oblige journalists to use the Act. The VJESNIK case confirmed that the Croatian Journalist Associations and Journalist Trade Union's requests were right in seeking a special national collective agreement on relations between journalists and their employers. This agreement might end the 'anarchic situation' of journalists merely being hired labourers working in the least protected vocation in Croatia. Such a situation prevented journalists in fulfilling all of their tasks, said the statement, which was signed by the Association chairman Ante Gavranovic and the Union leader, Stipe Jolic. (Hina) jn mms sd 141756 MET dec 94