Newsroom
Head of Croatia Mission meets authorities in Vukovar
VUKOVAR 19 July 2001
VUKOVAR, 19 July 2001 (OSCE) - The Head of the OSCE Mission to Croatia, Bernard Poncet, met on 18 July with representatives of the newly elected county and local authorities in Vukovar to discuss a wide range of issues related to the OSCE mandate. "I hope that the new authorities will encourage peaceful coexistence among communities in this region and equality of all citizens before the law, regardless of their nationality", Mr. Poncet told the new prefect of the Vukovar-Sirmium county, Nikola Safer.
Mr. Poncet was encouraged by the approach taken by the prefect in addressing problems of the region including inter-ethnic relations and the economy. After his meetings, he told the journalists: "This time we talked much more about the future than about the past."
Mr. Poncet also met with the Mayor of Vukovar, Vladimir Stengl, and was encouraged by the Mayor's comment about the possibility of closer co-operation between communities on both sides of the Danube.
He also held meetings with representatives of the Joint Council of (Serb) Municipalities with whom he reviewed the situation with respect to the Serb community, following the local elections. Mr. Poncet re-emphasized the legally binding character of the Erdut Agreement and Letter of Intent particularly as regards to the proportional representation of members of the Serb community in the police and other administrative offices in the Danube Region.
Although general progress had been achieved, Mr. Poncet noted, a number of difficult issues were still to be resolved, including the non-discriminatory resolution of property and other return issues.
Today, 19 July, Mr. Poncet is scheduled to meet the prefect of the Osijek-Baranja County and to visit the OSCE-sponsored project, mobile.culture.container. He will also meet representatives of the "Association for Peace and Human Rights" in Beli Monastir.
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For more information please contact Alessandro Fracassetti, Spokesperson, OSCE Mission to Croatia, tel. +385 1 309 66 20.
Mr. Poncet was encouraged by the approach taken by the prefect in addressing problems of the region including inter-ethnic relations and the economy. After his meetings, he told the journalists: "This time we talked much more about the future than about the past."
Mr. Poncet also met with the Mayor of Vukovar, Vladimir Stengl, and was encouraged by the Mayor's comment about the possibility of closer co-operation between communities on both sides of the Danube.
He also held meetings with representatives of the Joint Council of (Serb) Municipalities with whom he reviewed the situation with respect to the Serb community, following the local elections. Mr. Poncet re-emphasized the legally binding character of the Erdut Agreement and Letter of Intent particularly as regards to the proportional representation of members of the Serb community in the police and other administrative offices in the Danube Region.
Although general progress had been achieved, Mr. Poncet noted, a number of difficult issues were still to be resolved, including the non-discriminatory resolution of property and other return issues.
Today, 19 July, Mr. Poncet is scheduled to meet the prefect of the Osijek-Baranja County and to visit the OSCE-sponsored project, mobile.culture.container. He will also meet representatives of the "Association for Peace and Human Rights" in Beli Monastir.
--
For more information please contact Alessandro Fracassetti, Spokesperson, OSCE Mission to Croatia, tel. +385 1 309 66 20.