OMRI DAILY DIGEST
No. 176, 11 September 1996

NEW SLOVAK FOREIGN MINIS-TER'S FOREIGN TRIPS. Pavol Hamzik on 10
September held a series of meetings in Brussels to stress the importance
of Slovakia's Western integration, Slovak media reported. The new
minister began his foreign trips by first visiting Vienna on 4
September. He will travel to Prague on 12 September and to Budapest on
18 September. Meanwhile, Slovak Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar will hold
long-delayed bilateral talks with his Hungarian counterpart, Gyula Horn,
during the Central European Free Trade Agreement summit on 13-14
September in Jasna, central Slovakia. Representatives of the Czech
Republic, Poland, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania, Latvia, and Lithuania
will also attend the summit. --  Sharon Fisher

SWIMMING SCANDAL IN HUNGARY. Tamas Gyarfas, Hungary's top swimming
official, resigned on 9 September following allegations that 11 of 22
members of the country's swim team went to the Atlanta Olympics based on
imaginary times at a qualifying meet that never took place, Hungarian
and international media reported. Hungarian Olympic Committee officials
said the discovery of fraud will not affect the team's results. Hungary
won three gold medals, one silver, and a bronze in the Olympic swimming
competition. Interior Minister Gabor Kuncze, who oversees sport, on 10
September called for an investigation. --  Sharon Fisher

HUNGARIAN REFUGEE CAMP CLOSED. The Nagyatad refugee camp in southern
Hungary was closed on 9 September, Reuters reported. Since 1991, the
camp has held thousands of Croatians and Bosnians fleeing the Yugoslav
wars of succession. According to Hungarian officials, Hungary's refugee
efforts no longer need facilities the size of Nagyatad since only 500
mainly Bosnian refugees remained in the camp that a few years earlier
held 2,000 refugees. Nagyatad's remaining refugees are being transferred
to a smaller refugee camp in Eastern Hungary, a step they oppose since
it moves them further from home. --  Ben Slay

[As of 12:00 CET]

Compiled by Saulius Girnius