Protests in Serbia Archive
Odraz B92 Daily News Service

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    ODRAZ B92, Belgrade                             Daily News Service

    Odraz B92 vesti (by 7 PM), February 3, 1997

    E-mail: odrazb92@b92.opennet.org, beograd@siicom.com
    WWW:    http://www.siicom.com/odrazb/, http://www.opennet.org/b92/
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    All texts are Copyright 1997 Radio B92. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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    NEWS BY 7 PM
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    POLICE PREVENTED PROTEST WALK

    Thousands of riot police blocked 35,000 protesters from walking
    through central Belgrade around 4 p.m. on Monday. Faced with
    police cordons, demonstrators turned back to Republic Square where
    Monday's opposition rally continued. Opposition leader Vuk
    Draskovic called on demonstrators to continue their peaceful
    resistence to a government that was responsible for police terror
    in Belgrade.

    Mr. Draskovic then asked all schools and workers to go on strike
    and citizens to stop paying taxes. ``Money is being taken away
    from citizens, so that the brutes who beat them can be paid,'' Mr.
    Draskovic claimed. He stressed that ``even in Tito's times police
    never entered schools and beat students.''

    After Monday's meeting, small groups of protesters threw stones
    and other objects at the police. The police retaliated and beat
    their attackers with batons.


    STUDENTS: POLICEMEN ARE NO LONGER OUR BROTHERS

    Student Protest 96/97 issued the following statement on Monday:
    ``Policemen are no longer our brothers. When we see them in the
    street, we turn away. They are the shame of Serbia. As long as
    they are only accountable to themselves and not their conscience,
    they do not exist for us. They used water cannons on a cold
    February night; chased people down dark streets; broke into the
    School of Philosophy and beat students.''


    SCHOOL OF PHILOSOPHY STOPS WORKING

    Deans at the School of Philosophy stopped all work on Monday in
    protest at Sunday's police break-in, FoNet reported. The Deans
    also demanded that all detained students be released and that
    those who were responsible for the police break-in to be held
    accountable for the illegal violation of the autonomy of the
    University.


    MANAGER OF NATIONAL THEATRE RESIGNED

    General Manager of the National Theatre, Aleksandar Bercek,
    resigned on Monday, following an argument with the Ministry of
    Culture, FoNet reported.

    Theatre employees also decided to stop work at the Theatre, in
    protest at the ``seriousness of the situation on the streets of
    Belgrade.''


    BILDT URGES MILOSEVIC TO AVOID VIOLENCE

    High Commissioner for Bosnia, Carl Bildt, called on Serbian
    President Slobodan Milosevic to refrain from using violence on the
    streets of Belgrade, AFP reported on Monday.

    Mr. Bildt's spokesman stated that ``the Office of the High
    Commissioner calls on President Milosevic to refrain from violence
    and use dialogue instead. Any other means of solving the crisis,
    such as the violent break-up of street demonstrations, will be
    strongly condemned by the international community.''


    BELGRADE MAYOR CALLS FOR COMMON SENSE AND URGENT SOLUTION

    Current Mayor of Belgrade Nebojsa Covic called on Monday for
    peace, common sense and an urgent solution to the current crisis.
    He appealed to citizens not to be vengeful and not to respond to
    police with force. ``I am very upset at the needless beating of
    citizens simply because they persist in their struggle for the
    recognition of what is rightfully theirs.'' Mr. Covic stated. He
    then reminded members of the police that they were facing the
    peaceful citizens of Belgrade, not enemies.


    MILOSEVIC MEETS SOKOLOVIC, STOJISIC AND STANISIC

    On Monday Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic met a delegation
    from the Serbian Minsistry of Interior to congratulate them on
    their successful anti-terrorist operations in Kosovo.

    The delegation included Interior Minister, Zoran Sokolovic, Head
    of Public Security, Radovan Stojicic-Badza and Head of State
    Security, Jovica Stanisic.

    The official announcement after that meeting stated that ``66
    terrorists had been arrested, several of whom were the
    perpetrators of terrorist acts in Kosovo. A large quantity of
    weapons, ammunition and explosive materials had also been found,
    which would indicate the existence of other terrorist activities
    in Kosovo.''

    The Serbian President also stressed that Serbia would not become
    an exercise park for terrorists. He then said that the citizens of
    Kosovo, regardless of their nationality, had the right to live in
    peace and freedom, and to solve political problems by political
    means, democratically and in public, without fear of violence or
    repression.


    STATE RADIO: NO MENTION OF POLICE FORCE AGAINST PROTESTERS

    State-controlled Radio Belgrade failed to mention the continued
    use of force against demonstrators in its Monday's main news
    bulletin at 15.00.

    The state said that ``the Zajedno coalition's attempt to block the
    bridge over the Sava failed because police had intervened to
    secure the free flow of traffic.'' The radio broadcast also
    ommitted to mention that police had used water cannons and
    truncheons and that many citizens had been beaten. The same news
    was broadcast on state television, followed by censored BBC
    footage.

    Prepared by: Goran Dimitrijevic
    Edited by: Julia Glyn-Pickett

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    ODRAZ B92, Belgrade                             Daily News Service
    E-mail: odrazb92@b92.opennet.org, beograd@siicom.com
    WWW:    http://www.siicom.com/odrazb/, http://www.opennet.org/b92/
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