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| In Sarajevo, Cardinal Vinko Puljic stressed difficult position of Croats | World news | SCG Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic called Veselin Sljivancanin to surrender to ICTY | SNSD blames RS authorities for non-fighting organised crime |
| Public Works Minister Radimir Cacic to visit Jajce tomorrow | Feature: EU and BiH
| BiH needs law on missing persons, says President of the Federal Missing Persons Commission Amor Masovic | Tihic claims Oric was defending Srebrenica
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| American troops entered Saddam’s hometown Tikrit | Analysis: Does RS authorities’ will to fight organised crime exist? | World news
| Oric is expected to appear before ICTY judges on Tuesday |
| SARS is still taking victims | 2 years after arbitration, 80 percent of Dobrinja suburb apartments are not in living conditions | Cardinal Vinko Puljic said Sarajevo Croats are under pressure and in difficult position | Serbia-Montenegro Foreign Minister claims co-operation with ICTY is not questionable |
| Oslobodjenje | Milorad Dodik: Mafia and officers from RS, Serbia gathered in the Patriotic Group |
| Dnevni Avaz | Lozancic requests removals, Hadzipasic asks for arguments |
| Dnevni List | “Palm Sunday celebrated all over BiH”, “Interview with Federation Minister of Defense Miroslav Nikolic: We shall check claims on violation of UN embargo”; “Talks on Mostar re-organization: Mostar – functional city unit for returnees as well” |
| Vecernji List | “Niko Lozancic survived Police ambush”, “Milorad Dodik will be questioned as well”; “Sulejman Tihic: We are yielding to Croatia too much” |
| Slobodna Dalmacija | “Croatian Football Championship: Derby to Rapaic”; “American marines entered Saddam’s hometown” |
| Glas Srpski | Have the companies from F BiH exported weapons to Iraq: Traces well covered |
| Nezavisne Novine | Monthly income of most BiH workers not sufficient for basic needs: A salary for piece of bred; Investigation: RS Government Bureau in Belgrade issued a passport to Legija; Nikola Spiric, SNSD delegate to BiH Parliament; RS authorities are not willing to fight organised crime |
| Blic | “Criminals want to be protected witnesses”; Nikola Spiric: “BiH authority tolerate crime” |
Affairs; fight against organised crime | |
| Lozancic’s request for removals of Federation Police Chief, FOSS Head
| Dnevni Avaz front page, pg. 3 ‘Lozancic: I do not trust top public, secret services’ officials’ – Niko Lozancic, the BiH Federation Prime Minister, told the newspaper that his letter sent to the Federation Government, in which he had requested certain steps to be taken against acting Head of FOS Ivan Vuksic and Police Administration Director Zlatko Miletic, had nothing to do with the HDZ BiH efforts to remove top officials in the security sector before start of the application of the Civil Service Law. “This is about an effort by the Federation President aimed at honouring our joint commitment to functioning of all the Entity’s institutions exclusively on the basis of the law and professional criteria,” said Lozancic. Commenting on Lozancic’s request, Vuksic said he had not received yet any official information about the issue, and that he had just read in the newspaper about the Federation President’s letter to the Government. On the other side, Miletic said that everything had a political background. “I am just performing my duties in accordance to the law,” Miletic emphasized. In a statement for Dnevni Avaz, pg. 3 ‘Removals in FOSS or Interior Ministry can be made only on the basis of the arguments’, the FBiH Prime Minister, Ahmet Hadzipasic, confirmed he had received Lozancic’s letter with the request that certain measures are taken against the top police, intelligence officers in the entity. “The government will in the framework of its regular activities consider the situation in FOSS and Interior Ministry and analyse Mr. Lozancic’s request. But I must emphasise that the Government will make concrete decisions and moves related to the personnel issues only on the basis of the arguments,” said Hadzipasic. |
| Niko Lozancic survived Police ambush | Making comparison with the first, failed assassination attempt against late Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, Vecernji List (front and page 3) carries that the traffic patrol of the Federation of BiH Police seriously endangered life of Federation of BiH President Niko Lozancic when it blocked the passage to Lozancic’s car in a high speed two weeks ago. VL says that it is indicative that this incident had taken place half month before Lozancic sent a request to the Federation of BiH Government to act according to law and constitutional obligations, when the protection of the President of the Federation of BiH is in question. Lozancic believes that the Security Services and Federation of BiH Ministry of Interior are responsible for this incident and added: “It is out of question that I will give up demands to place certain Services under full control of the authorities elected in a democratic manner. It is out of question that I will give up regardless of this kind of pressures.” |
| Dodik: Mafia and officers from RS, Serbia gathered in the Patriotic Group | Oslobodjenje front page, pg. 3 ‘Mafia and officers from RS, Serbia gathered in the Patriotic Group’ – Interview with the RS Party of the Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) leader, Milorad Dodik. Dodik witnessed about the existence of the Patriotic Group comprising the former security officers from the RS and Serbia as well as some still active RS Army officers. At the same time, Dodik denied he had seven days before Zoran Djindjic assassination given a list with the names of the people from the RS supposed to take part in the assassination to the Serbian Justice Minister, Vladan Batic. He however admits he did talk to Djindjic about some people. Dodik also gave an interview to Vecernje Novosti (p 4, title: ‘Three clans in RS’), in which he describes the last conversation he held with late Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic and Serbian Minister of Justice Vladan Batic. Dodik says that the meeting was unofficial and it was held at Djindjic’s house. He stated that he had agreed with Djindjic that it would have been good if crime was fought at the same time in Serbia and RS. “I had said that SFOR had discovered a group in Prijedor, the other group had contacts with Momcilo Mandic and Cicko Bjelica, and a group of people close to Arkan’s organization functions in Banja Luka”, Dodik stated. Vecernje Novosti also quotes Dodik as saying: “As a person and as a politician, I fully support everything done in Serbia to fight organized crime, yet I am stunned with the fact that Serbian authority sought for cooperation from the Office of High Representative Paddy Ashdown instead from the institutions of RS and BiH”. |
| SNSD accuses RS authorities for not fighting organised crime | Nezavisne Novine, pg. 3 – ‘RS authorities have no will to fight organised crime’, Glas Srpski. pg. 2- ‘Affairs being multiplied’ – the SNSD delegate to BiH Parliament, Nikola Spiric, accused the RS authorities for lack of action against organised crime and assessed that there is no political will to fight it. According to Spiric, it is a task of the RS authorities to clean up its own space from organised crime, not to launch a thesis that they are the ones who are supposed to help Serbia in its actions against crime. Spiric claims that he heard from the international community circles that there is a pyramid in the RS Interior Ministry, Finance Ministry and Tax Administration which is involved in organised crime and that the authorities do not know about that. Spiric said that national parties cannot open space for possible arrests of those who committed crimes during the war as they still see those indicted for war crimes as national heroes. Blic, p 7 also report on the issue. |
| DNS claims: authorities linked with crime | Nezavisne Novine, pg. 4 – ‘Authorities connected with crime’- the daily carries an interview with the President of DNS, Jovan Mitrovic, who said that organised crime exists in the RS and the authorities are doing nothing to fight it. According to Mitrovic, RS authorities know who are the criminals who co-operate with Belgrade but does not want to do anything about it, as from the very beginning, those criminals were connected with the authorities. |
| Mandic responds to Dodik’s allegations | Glas Srpski, pg. 3- ‘Momcilo Mandic answers allegations by Milorad Dodik: No connection with reality!’ – The owner of ‘Manko’ Company and one of the biggest share holders of Privredna Bank Serb Sarajevo, Momcilo Mandic, said that all that Milorad Dodik, said about him in an interview for Radio B-92 was untrue. Mandic said that his property was not confiscated and that he is certain that it will not happen as he does not finance Radovan Karadzic’s security network. Speaking about himself, Mandic said that he is a businessman and he represents himself as one. He recalled that he welcomed the decision of the High Representative that its experts control management of ‘Manko’ and Privredna Bank and that he saw such action ‘as an opportunity to get rid of a label attached to him thanks to slender.’ Mandic also expressed his opinion on the attempt to link him with the most recent developments in Serbia: ‘I have never tried to hide that I am a Serb nationalist and that I support the party which kicked Dodik out from power at regular elections. I do not slender my people nor the RS authorities. I never had anything to do with Borislav Mikelic, with whom by the way, Dodik cooperated during the war.’ |
| Momcilo Mandic arrested? | The former assistant interior minister of the pre-war Republic of BiH and former RS interior minister, Momcilo Mandic, was arrested on Thursday, HINA learned on Monday from sources in Belgrade. According to HINA’s sources, Mandic was arrested after the basketball match Crvena Zvezda – Partizan in Belgrade, but competent bodies have not confirmed the arrest. In 1992, Mandic was appointed RS interior minister by then Bosnian Serbs leader and war crime suspect Radovan Karadzic. He was at that position until the end of 1993. After that, Mandic appeared in the public as a reputable businessman with operations both in Yugoslavia and the Republika Srpska (RS). He operated in the oil, financial and media sectors. Thanks to the action of SFOR and Office of the High Representative (OHR) to BiH, his financial funds on the accounts in BiH and Serbia and Montenegro have been recently frozen, According to ONASA. |
| Does Lukovic have BiH passport? | Nezavisne Novine, pg. 2 – ‘RS Government Bureau in Belgrade issued passport to Legija’ – the daily has learnt from a source close to the RS Government that the Head of the RS Government Bureau in Serbia, Mladen Cicovic was called for an informative conversation with Belgrade police last week, under a doubt that the passport to Milorad Lukovic Legija, one of the prime suspects for the murder of Serbian Prime Minister, was issued in this RS office. According to some unofficial information, Legija obtained another BiH passport in Bijeljina, as well as an ID card. The RS Police Spokesman, Zoran Glusac, said that Lukovic does not have BiH passport. |
| Serbian Justice Minister believes RS criminal groups linked with Djindjic’s murder | Nezavisne Novine, pg. 2 – ‘Batic: there is a connection between criminal groups in Serbia and RS which are involved in the assassination’- the Justice Minister of Serbia, Vladan Batic, stated for Banja Luka ATV yesterday that there is a link between criminal groups in Serbia and RS, which are involved in the assassination of Serbian Prime Minister. Batic accused RS authorities for lack of efficiency in fight against organised crime. Batic repeated the SNSD leader, Milorad Dodik, few days before Djindjic’s assassination, warned Serbian Prime Minister that illegal operations were to take place in Serbia. |
| Export of weapons to Iraq from F BiH | Glas Srpski, cover page – the daily quotes the Deputy Prime Minister of the F BiH Government, Dragan Vranjkic, who said few days ago that there is information on violation of the UN embargo by the companies from BiH Federation. According to GS, this was the first time that someone officially confirmed speculation that was spread around since the beginning of the Orao affair. According to some unofficial information, F BiH authorities are at the moment carrying an investigation in companies ‘Vitezit’ from Vitez and ‘Bratstvo’ from Travnik. Dnevni List (front and page 7, by Miso Relota, “We shall check claims on violation of UN embargo”) carries an interview with Federation of BiH Minister of Defense Miroslav Nikolic. Commenting on the statements given by American Ambassador Clifford Bond and Principle Deputy High Representative Donald Hays saying that a detailed investigation on violation of the UN embargo on weapon export by the companies from the Federation of BiH should be carried out, Nikolic says: “I am taking the claims stated by Bond and Hays seriously and we shall certainly investigate all indications that go in that direction.” With regard to the promise that the BiH Presidency gave to NATO’s Secretary General George Robertson saying that unified Army will be formed by the end of this year as well as the state Ministry of Defense, Nikolic says: “If the members of the BiH Presidency, as well as, the parties that won at the general elections expressed political will for forming of that Ministry of Defense, then they have to confirm their will through realization of the expressed political will.” He added that the Croat side has been advocating this concept for three or four years. |
| Feral Tribune on latest scandals in the RS | Feral Tribune (p 34-36, “The state at the fallback position”, by Ivan Lovrenovic) carries a chronicle of the dramatic events that have lately shaken the RS and that have, in Lovrenovic’s opinion, once again falsely announced the tentative abolition of that para-state. As for the speech by Dragan Cavic, the RS president, delivered at the extraordinary session of the RSNA following the extorted resignation of Mirko Sarovic, it is only those who are not familiar with the political mentality of the SDS who could think it was about the announcement of radical changes. Actually, Cavic only demonstrated a strong Darwinist instinct and political shrewdness, the shrewdness which got the priceless political support of Paddy Ashdown when, during the last elections, he legitimized the SDS also as a party of “reformist” orientation and potential. Cavic’s action is nothing but a tactic step back to one of the “fallback positions” which the RS, in its relations with the IC, has been allowed to avail of endlessly. Not even unambiguous claims by the ICTY Prosecution that the RS Army hides and protects Radovan Karadzic have incited Ashdown to make any stronger measure. As for Sarovic’s resignation, Ashdown seems to have made a bargain with him publicly saying it was an honorable and a wise act, saying he would not sanction him. Making comparison between Sarovic’s enormous political and criminal responsibility with the officials who were banned from holding any public office when removed by the HR in FBiH, Lovrenovic says one cannot escape the question of criteria and equal rightness. The article concludes by an assessment that it is the organization of the system that does not allow for changes – this is most obvious on the level of the BiH Presidency, the definition of which contains a rigidly exclusive ethnic-national compulsion: it is exactly the Dayton definition of BiH and the RS that does not allow the Serb member of the BiH Presidency to be anything but a consistent advocator of political philosophy of ethnic exclusivity on which this quasi-state is conceived. The latest events that have been shaking the RS can be interpreted as a public test of the will and intentions of the IC and its administration in BiH. Judging by the current situation (it has never been as clear as with Ashdown and his manner of ruling), it is them who have in their hands the possibility to enable that in BiH the degree of changes of political conditions, contained in the Dayton, is created – the degree which is needed for a start of a possible more serious transformation of the society and the state, which would make the state break up with the current monstrous and static improvisation. |
International community/OHR | |
| Ashdown urges for joint regional performance at the EU-Balkan Summit
| Dnevni Avaz pg. 2 ‘Four measures for performance towards the EU’ – The High representative, Paddy Ashdown, intends as soon as next week to launch comprehensive activities together with the representatives of the BiH authorities that will be part of preparations for the EU-Balkans Summit scheduled for June 21 in Thessaloniki. “I will very soon speak with my partners in the BiH authorities on how we can achieve as unique position as possible in the region, which we would then present to the EU leaders at the Summit,” Ashdown told the newspaper. Ashdown has already discussed the issue with the leaders of Serbia and Montenegro, as well as EC Chairman Romano Prodi and Greek Foreign Minister Georgios Papandreu. He said that he had proposed four measures to be part of the Western Balkan’s countries joint approach at the Summit. They include getting of a clear letter saying that these countries will be admitted into the EU, organization of the countries in the region in a way that will allow abolishment of the current visa-regime with the EU countries and asking for a financial assistance aimed at an easier overcoming of the transition process. |
| Cardinal Puljic writes to Ashdown | Oslobodjenje pg. 5, mentioned on the front page ‘To protect Catholics in Sarajevo and Brcko’ – The Head of the BiH Catholic Community, Cardinal Vinko Puljic, on Saturday sent two letters to the High Representative, Paddy Ashdown, pointing out at more and more frequent attacks and incidents against the Catholics in Sarajevo and other places. Slobodna Dalmacija (back page, “We will bear our cross in Sarajevo till the end”, Hina), Dnevni list (front page: “Palm Sunday Holiday celebrated throughout BiH” & p 3, “Palm Sunday rituals in the Cathedral of Sarajevo”, KTA), Jutarnji list (p 2, “Cardinal Puljic warned once again of the dire position of Catholics”, Hina) and Vecernji list (p 21, “Difficult position of Catholics in BiH”, Hina) report that, during the celebration of the holiday in Sarajevo, the Vrhbosna Cardinal Vinko Puljic warned of the difficult position of Catholics in BiH and that he called upon the believers to bear the weight of the cross until the end. The Cardinal is quoted as saying, after having reminded of all the recent incidents against Catholic Church officials in Sarajevo, that despite all the Church’s protests, such incidents obviously did not bother either the domestic or the international public – and all that in the name of democracy. The Cardinal wished that the Pope’s forthcoming visit to BiH would bring peace and justice to the country. |
| A prominent Banja Luka professor on BiH as an international protectorate | Miodrag Zivanovic, the Head of the Banja Luka University Department of Philosophy and Sociology, gave an interview for Vecernje Novosti (p 10, ‘Self-will without any responsibility’), in which he claims BiH is a protectorate. He stated: “BiH protector, embodied in person and work of Paddy Ashdown, is above the Constitution and laws. He lies accounts to nobody for his acts. He has absolutely all authority and no responsibility. On the other hand, the politicians elected by people at the elections should be responsible to their voters. Instead, they are responsible to the High Representative instead to people, so this disarrangement in general manifests as irresponsibility”. He also stated: “The problem of the international community is that it has no long term strategy of its activities in the Balkans. It actually functions at the level of daily politics and they react post festum. Since they have no strategic frame of their activities, they often make wrong moves. For instance, they had established an institution they named the Stability Pact for SE Europe, which represents their alibi for their failure in politics in the Balkans and for the entire farce named regional integration”. He also claims he had found an Internet page containing a list of European countries, divided in two columns – one containing names of the countries and the other describing state organization. He says that the page describes the state organization of BiH as a protectorate. He commented upon Mirko Sarovic’s resignation and lack of voters’ reaction by saying that voters were preoccupied with problems of surviving, but also said that people think that no rebellion makes any sense in a real protectorate. Regarding the appointment of Borislav Paravac, Zivanovic stated: “I was recently appointed to the position of the President of the House Council of my building, and I needed more votes than the new member of the BiH Presidency”. He claims that people know that the elections had turned into a farce, therefore fewer people cast a vote. |
Political developments | |
| Tihic: We are yielding to Croatia too much
| Vecernji List (front and page 2, by Zoran Kresic) carries that according to a big number of the attendants, who wanted to stay anonymous, the session of the Inter-State Council between BiH and Croatia did not result in approaching of the stands on open issues of the two sides. The high-ranked Croatian diplomats sent a message that resolving of any important open issue, such as the status of the Ploce Port and double citizenship, will not start before the elections in Croatia. Bosniak member of the BiH Presidency Sulejman Tihic said that ‘we’, not explaining whether ‘we’ refers to BiH as a state or Bosniak people, are too much yielding to Croatia and feel endangered in such relations. He especially stressed the issue of the Ploce Port and free passage through Neum. Croat member of the BiH Presidency Dragan Covic called on bigger investments in BiH while Chairman of the BiH Presidency Borislav Paravac wisely kept silent most of the time. VL concludes the article saying that although the agreement was not reached all participants agreed that resolving of disputable issues should not be prolonged any longer and this resulted in the statements saying that the relations between BiH and Croatia are not the best. |
| VL: “Authority in Federation of BiH still has Alliance for Changes” | Vecernji List (page 6, by Dejan Jazvic) carries that although the new Federation of BiH Government was formed long time ago cadres of the former authority, that is from the Alliance for Changes, are still at all leading positions in the Government, apart from the positions of the Ministers and their advisors. VL says that this is the result of the decisions that High Representative Paddy Ashdown passed during the elections that took place in October last year. One of the Ministers from the Federation of BiH Government says: “They all came to these positions thanks to their political eligibility and on the ground of friendship and kinship with former Ministers. For this reason we suspect that they will be doing everything in order to obstruct reform policy of the new Government.” |
| Mostar reorganization | Reminding of the High Representative’s proposal to form a Commission that would draw up a proposal for the reorganization of Mostar, presented to the Mostar City authorities during his last visit to this city, Dnevni List (front page & p 5, “Talks on Mostar reorganization: Mostar to be a functional urban unit for returnees also”, by Zvonimir Jukic) reports that the request of returnees of all the nationalities to Mostar area to be included in the talks on the city reorganization will be officially announced at a press conference by the Union of DPs and Refugees, due beginning of this week. In the process in which returnees make the key connective tissue in Mostar, they have been effectively left out as possible partners and now they request to take active part in it and to give their own contribution to building Mostar as a unified city in which there is place for all its citizens and peoples irrespective of which part of town they live in. The returnees claim to be the ones who suffer most by the current national division of the city, i.e. the division along the former BiH Army – HVO front-line. They also add that representatives of minorities get side-lined by the majority in the national municipalities saying that as many as 52% of Mostarians get side-lined by the majority. As an illustration, the returnees mention employment policy in administration sector, as the structure of employees is exclusively mono-ethnic. The most obvious consequence of such a policy is exchange and sale of property and the wish to return fading away. DL goes on to say that Serb returnees to Mostar are dissatisfied with the current organization of Mostar but with their alleged representatives in the City Council of Mostar as well. The paper reminds that Vujadin Berberovic, the representative of Serb returnees to Ortijes, has on a number occasions said that the Serb representatives in the Mostar City Council have during their mandate never raised any issue regarding the position and status of Serbs in Mostar, which clearly shows they are not the true representatives of that people. DL also adds that, in the City Council of Mostar, at least 25% of councillors are elected through the election engineering created by SDA and HDZ which enabled the 2 parties to fill the positions of Serb councillors with their members. |
| Editorial: “Social unrest does not concern authorities in the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton: Hiding behind technical mandate”
| Dnevni List (page 2, by Zvonimir Jukic) carries an editorial in which the author describes a very difficult welfare situation in the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton and criticizes HDZ and SDA for the fact that the Government in this Canton has not been formed yet. The editorial says: “The demands of the international organizations to finally form the HNC Government are in vain because local power-wielders prefer technical mandate, behind which they skillfully hide, than the real one in which they would have to cope with social unrest that is imminent.” The editorial also says that the program of work of Mostar Mayor Hamdija Jahic and Mostar Deputy Mayor Ljubo Beslic is still a question mark, however, the good thing is that Mostar citizens started to talk openly about all injustice that troubles them. |
| BiH to request more accelerated return of Serb refugees to Croatia | BiH Minister for Human Rights and Refugees Mirsad Kebo will today during a meeting with Croatian Minister for Public Works, Reconstruction and Construction Radomir Cacic request from the Croatian Government to speed up activities in relation to property return to Serb refugees from Croatia. Ministers Kebo and Cacic should also discuss the Program of help of the Croatian Government to return of Croats to BiH. (Blic, p 4) |
Other issues | |
| ‘BiH need Law on Missing Persons’
| Oslobodjenje pg. 7, mentioned on the front page ‘Next burial in Potocari to take place on July 11’,Dnevni Avaz pg. 5 ‘BiH needs the Law on Missing Persons’ – Interview of Amor Masovic, the President of the Federation Commission for Missing Persons, for Fena. “BiH need a law on missing persons that would in an harmonized way resolve the issue of the right of the missing persons’ families regardless of what ethnic group they are belonging to,” said Masovic. |
| Different views on work of Milica Bisic | Nezavisne Novine, pg. 3 – ‘Bisic – a symbol of a questionable reform’ – Nezavisne Novine reports that local politicians have very different views about work of the former Director of the RS Tax Administration, Milica Bisic. Those from ruling parties see Bisic as a personification of honesty and symbol of the tax reform, while those from the opposition not only doubt her intentions, but also claim that she was involved in some very questionable business deals. DNS President, Jovan Mitrovic, does not think highly of Bisic, quite the opposite. According to Mitrovic, she was involved in some very mysterious deals and it is much better for the RS people that she left. High official of PDP, Branko Dokic, assessed that Bisic’s departure represents a great loss for the RS and added that her appointment for the Deputy Finance Minister only proves that she was an expert. SNSD delegate to BiH Parliament, Nikola Spiric believes that RS has enough of its own experts to do the job properly. Tihomir Gligoric from SP RS believes that Bisic was very brave at the beginning but that she lost the race with those who evaded paying taxes. |
| Nezavisne Novine editorial on Bisic
| Nezavisne Novine, pg.2, editorial – the daily carries an editorial by Dragan Jerinic entitled ‘Leaving or running away’ in which the authors speculates about the reasons behind the resignation of the TS Tax Administration Director, Milica Bisic. Jerinic said that Mladen Ivanic’s experiment on which he worked for two years, together with the team of economy experts, has fallen apart in two days, The author draws the conclusion from the series of resignations of the key officials in the RS Tax Administration (first Ljubomir Golijanin, deputy director, then Milica Bisic, director). Jerinic wonders how much the fact that RS Chief Auditor is to publicise his report on the work of the RS Tax Administration motivated Bisic to resign and asks whether Bisic should answer the allegation that RS Tax Administration has grown into the branch office of Nova Banjalucka Bank? The author concludes that Bisic was not only a secretary in the Government who can just say – I had enough and leave, she was the head of one of key RS institutions and she should do some explanation. |
| VL: Interview with Head of Federation of BiH Pension Insurance Fund Marko Matic | Vecernji List (front and page 5, by Oliver Cvitkovic, “Pensions will not be bigger, they can only be even smaller”) carries an interview with Head of Federation of BiH Pension Insurance Fund Marko Matic. With regard to the unification of two Pension Insurance Funds with the seat in Mostar, Matic says: “Now we can conclude that we managed to secure regular financing of the Fund, and as far as parallelism is concerned it has been reduced to a considerable extent and there is about 30% of the things that should be done in that area. In any case, although the seat of the Fund is in Mostar, it will still have its branch office in Sarajevo, where the central service is placed. The one has to bear in mind that most of our beneficiaries, that is over 70% of them are from the area that PIO (former Bosniak Insurance Fund) was covering.” Asked about the status of 750 retired HVO soldiers, Matic says that he will discuss this issue with Croat member of the BiH Presidency Dragan Covic next week and Matic hopes that they will find a good solution in order to resolve this problem finally. |