Refugee return is not a threat, OSCE Croatia Mission Head says

ZADAR, 24 September 2003 - Head of the OSCE Mission to Croatia, Ambassador Peter Semneby, said today in Zadar that refugee return should not be seen as a threat but rather an opportunity to build an enriched and integrated society in Croatia.

He said this during talks with the Prefect of the Central Adriatic County of Zadar, Sime Prtenjaca. Ambassador Semneby encouraged local, regional, as well as national leaders to send messages to their communities that the return of refugees is not a threat.

"Croatia's European Union integration process represents a great opportunity to build an integrated and harmonious society with which all its people, regardless of nationality, can identify," Semneby said.

At the invitation of the County Prefect, the Ambassador today visited the Zadar County, one of the hardest hit regions during the 1991-1995 armed conflict in Croatia. He visited war-torn areas of the Zadar hinterland as well as sites for economic development projects.

The two discussed issues important to the OSCE mandate and Croatia's path to the European Union including the removal of obstacles to the return of refugees, the repossession of property, demining and the rights of minorities.

Ambassador Semneby emphasised that a joint EU vision shared by all citizens of Croatia would also help in healing scars left over from the recent war.

"This is the core of the OSCE's work in Croatia," the Head of the OSCE Mission concluded.