UNHCR SARAJEVO DAILY MEDIA DIGEST
9, 10 and 11 February 2002

REFUGEE SERBS FEAR PROSECUTION IN CROATIA - VERITAS
BANJA LUKA, 08/02 (ONASA) - Director of the Documentation-Information Center "Veritas" Savo Strbac said on Friday that more than one hundred thousand Serbs do not dare return to Croatia, due to the fear that Croatian authorities might accuse them for war crimes. He said that so far more than 26,000 Serbs have been charged, adding that the Croatian judiciary is not respecting a minimum of European standards, "making a clear distinction between Serbs and Croats." He said that currently some 107 Serbs are in Croatian prisons.

MORE THAN 50% OF FACILITIES IN CENTRAL BOSNIA CANTON RECONSTRUCTED
VITEZ,10/02 (ONASA) - More than 50 percent of the housing facilities damaged during the war in the Central Bosnia Canton have been reconstructed, namely 20,400 out of 33,400 damaged facilities, cantonal Minister Slavica Josipovic said on Sunday. Josipovic said that the international community has promised it will invest approximately 25 million KM in this year for the reconstruction and return, which is approximately 30 percent less than in 2001. "We also expect three to four million KM from the competent BiH Federation ministry, and the budget of the Government of the Central Bosnia Canton also foresees the funds for the reconstruction and return in the amount of approximately 4.5 million KM. That is approximately 30 million KM of joint investments in the reconstruction and return," she said. According to information presented by Josipovic, BiH has received approximately five billion dollars, and only five percent has came to the Central Bosnia Canton, although this canton is at the first place in the property laws implementation. She warned on the bad cooperation with the colleagues at the Federation level and criticised BiH Federation Minister of Welfare, Refugees and Displaced Persons Mijat Tuka because "non-respecting of the priorities during the distribution of donations."

INTERNATION CONFERENCE STARTS IN SARAJEVO
SARAJEVO, 09/02 (ONASA) - Changes in the approaches and concepts of the international policies of support to BiH and countries of the South-Eastern Europe are necessary, as well as better coordination among the international organisations themselves operating there, agreed the participants in an International Conference that started on Saturday in Sarajevo. The International Conference "Developing New Policies of International Support-Lessons (not) Learned in BiH" - Peace and Security - institutional development and the rule of law was organised by the Soros Foundation's Open Society Fund (OSF). Representatives of the international organisations and BiH authorities discussed on this first day of the conference the contribution provided by the international community to the development of the institutions and economic reconstruction, as well as to scientific development and university education. The High Representative in BiH, Wolfgang Petritsch, said that the observation that could be heard lately in political circles that Afghanistan too could use one High Representative demonstrated that the international community in BiH did achieve certain results. Assistance should not be military only, but the essence of the international assistance should be focused on building institutions and that is a lesson that other countries could learn from Bosnia experience, Petritsch said. BiH Presidency member Beriz Belkic noted that, despite the international assistance, not one of the State institutions has been established fully. Belkic stressed that still below 50% of BiH citizens have confidence in the BiH institutions and sees BiH as the Commonwealth of (two) States, referring to the
Republika Srpska and BiH Federation, the two Entities making up BiH. Approximately 100 representatives of BiH authorities, non-governmental organisations, universities, and international organisations operating in BiH will tomorrow, the second conference day, discuss the issues related to the involvement of the international community in the social affairs, civil society and human rights, as well as within the framework of the Stability Pact for South-east Europe.

BERIZ BELKIC TO CHAIR BIH PRESIDENCY AS FROM NEXT WEEK
SARAJEVO, 08/02 (ONASA) - As part of the regular rotation, to be carried out on 14 February, Beriz Belkic, the representative of the Bosniak people, will take over the chairmanship of the BiH Presidency from Jozo Krizanovic, the representative of the Bosnian Croats. The solemn ceremony of the BiH Presidency to mark this rotation will be attended by top State officials, representatives of the international organisations and diplomatic corps in BiH, as well as officials of the both BiH Entities, the Secretariat of the BiH Presidency said on Friday. Under the BiH Constitutions, the February-October period should be the last eight-month term of office for the chairman of the BiH Presidency in the present composition of the collective head of the BiH state prior to the October elections

S. MESIC FAVORS INSTITUTIONAL APPROACH IN PROTECTING BIH CROATS
SARAJEVO, 11/02 (ONASA) - Croatian President Stjepan Mesic pushes for the improvement in the position of BiH Croats, but does so through the institutions of the BiH system, because he considers that an extra-institutional action can only have negative effects, the Office of the Croatian president said on Monday in reply to a letter Mesic was sent by ousted leader of the BiH Croat Democratic Union (HDZ) Ante Jelavic. ''With reference to the letter Jelavic sent to the Croatian president,
reported by the media these days, the Office of the Croatian president would like to note once more that President Mesic has not missed a single opportunity to push for the improvement in the situation of BiH Croats'', the press release from the Croatian President's Office read. The Croatian president holds that ''its is necessary to solve all problems through the institutions of the system'' and that ''any attempt to act outside the (BiH) system's institutions could only have negative consequences''.
Croatian President Mesic is also of the opinion that it is necessary to create conditions facilitating the refugee return, insisting in particular on the implementation of the ruling on the constituent status of all three peoples throughout BiH, the press release added. The Croatian president, the press release also said, will in future as well, be using his international contacts to help stabilise the situation in the neighbouring BiH, in close cooperation with the international community and not though conflicts with it

PI/OCM UNHCR SARAJEVO
11/02/02