Protests in Serbia Archive
Odraz B92 Daily News Service

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    ODRAZ B92, Belgrade                             Daily News Service

    Odraz B92 vesti (by 3 PM), January 29, 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 3 PM
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    ZAJEDNO PROTEST AT USE OF FORCE IN SMEDEREVSKA PALANKA

    The opposition coalition Zajedno condemns in the strictest terms
    the brutal violence used by the police against the protest
    marchers in Smederevska Palanka on Tuesday, said a Wednesday
    Zajedno statement. The coalition stressed that as well as many
    women and children who were assaulted by the ``enraged police,''
    the newly-appointed opposition Mayor of Smederevska Palanka, Dusan
    Naric and Ljubisa Brkic, the opposition deputy were beaten.

    The statement warned that Zajedno was working to identify those
    responsible for the violence.


    SEVERAL THOUSAND STUDENTS AT SLAVIA ROUNDABOUT

    Several thousands of Belgrade students gathered on Wednesday at
    central Belgrade's Slavia roundabout for an exercise called
    ``motion of an organized column of citizens through inhabited
    areas'' They also donated blood at the near-by Blood Transfusion
    Centre. The students completely blocked the traffic at the
    roundabout as they came from their respective schools. The
    exercise was organized by students from the Belgrade School of
    Traffic who had previously informed the city chief of traffic
    policemen of their intention. The aim of the ``public exercise''
    was to train citizens to properly and safely move in oranized
    columns along pavements and driveways in accordance with current
    Traffic Safety Law. No riot police interfered with the students
    and there were few traffic policemen.


    US CONCERNED OVER SHUT-DOWN OF TELEVISION OF BAJNA BASTA

    The US expressed grave concern on Tuesday over the decision of the
    Serbian government to shut down yet another independent media-
    television station 'Kanal 4' in Bajna Basta. Spokesman for the
    State Department Nicholas Burns described this on Tuesday as yet
    another proof of systematic attempts by Serbian President Slobodan
    Milosevic to deprive the Serbian people of free and objective
    information, the State Department's Wednesday bulletin reported.


    FORMER SOCIALIST DEPUTY ATTENDS OPPOSITION PROTEST MEETING

    Vladimir Ognjanovic, the former Socialist deputy and candidate in
    the recent local elections who refused to appeal against
    opposition victory, addressed the crowds gathered for a Zajedno
    protest meeting in Kragujevac on Tuesday. As a member of the
    former council in this city, he critcized the Socialist leadership
    for ``pauperizing the people for the sake of acquiring personal
    wealth.''


    MILOSEVIC PREPARING CLASHES IN KOSOVO AND SANDZAK

    Sulejman Ugljanin, Head of the Muslim National Council of Sandzak,
    said at a Tuesday news conference that Serbian President Slobodan
    Milosevic and his regime were attempting to instigate new
    conflicts in Kosovo and Sandzak in order to create unity in Serbia
    without reference to the elections. He urged the Sandzak people,
    especially Serbs and Montenegrins to keep their heads cool as
    peace in the region must be preserved.


    IVANOV: MILOSEVIC WILL OFFER SOLUTION SOON

    Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov stated on Wednesday
    that Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic had assured him that a
    solution to the current crisis would soon be worked out. Mr.
    Ivanov said that the implementation of the recommendations by the
    Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)[that
    the November 17 local electoral results be recognized] could be a
    solution to the crisis. Mr. Ivanov said that President Milosevic
    described the OSCE report as constructive and aimed at solving the
    problem. However, Mr. Ivanov said that implementing the OSCE
    recommendations in accordance with the laws of FR Yugoslavia
    presented another problem.

    Minister Ivanov said that both the Serbian government and the
    opposition were prepared to end the crisis through negotiation and
    that both oppose the use of force. He commented that the
    international community should help FR Yugoslavia out of its
    current problems by lifting the outer wall of sanctions and
    offering economic aid. He insisted that FR Yugoslavia should
    resume its position in the OSCE and other international
    institutions. Mr. Ivanov stressed that Russia opposed the
    isolation of FR Yugoslavia as a way to help solve its internal
    problems. He said Russia was in favour of establishing contact
    with the Serbian government and opposition in order to help them
    solve the crisis. He emphasized, nevertheless, that Moscow was
    against foreign interference as the elections are a Yugoslav
    internal affair.


    US AND EU CONTINUE PRESSURE ON MILOSEVIC

    US Secretary of State Madeline Albright and representatives of the
    European Union (EU) agreed in Washington that the pressure on
    Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic to recognize the November
    local electoral results should be continued, Reuters reported on
    Wednesday. Mrs. Albright met on Tuesday with Dutch Foreign
    Minister Hans Van Mierlo and European Trade Commissioner Sir Leon
    Britain to discuss the trans-Atlantic cooperation and its effect
    on international politics.


    TIJANIC AND CURUVIJA START A WEEKLY

    Aleksandar Tijanic, former Serbian Minister of Information and
    general manager of BK television, and Slavko Curuvija, owner and
    editor-in-chief of the Belgrade independent daily 'Dnevni
    Telegraf' have started a new weekly publication entitled
    'Gradjanin' [Citizen]. The daily 'Dnevni Telegraf' said on
    Wednesday that 'Gradjanin' was the first product of a new media
    company launched by Tijanic and Curuvija. Mr Tijanic will be the
    weekly's editor-in-chief and he plans to staff it with renowned
    Serbian journalists.


    TEACHERS' GENERAL STRIKE

    More than 300 out of 490 primary and secondary schools in
    Vojvodina had joined the teachers' general strike by Wednesday.
    The strike is being organized simultaneously by both state and
    independent trade unions. Apart from demanding that overdue wages
    be paid and that future salaries be raised, the independent trade
    union 'Nezavisnost' also demands that Minister of Education
    Dragoslav Mladenovic be replaced, that the Law on Labour be
    revised and that the teachers support Student Protest 96/97. Jagos
    Bulatovic, Chair of the Independent Teachers Trade Union of
    Serbia, told the newsagency Beta on Wednesday that an official
    count of the schools on general strike had not been carried out,
    but that over 100 out of 260 Belgrade schools had discontinued
    teaching by Wednesday morning.


    ROUND TABLE ON SERBIAN-CROAT RELATIONS BEGINS ON THURSDAY

    A 2-day round table on the topic of ``Serbo-Croat Relations and
    the Refugee Problem'' will begin in Belgrade on Thursday organized
    by the Human Rights Watch in Serbia. This meeting is a sequel to
    the October 1996 round table on ``Serbs in Croatia'' in Zagreb
    organized by Croat Human Rights Watch. 50 prominent figures from
    Croatia and 10 from Bosnia Herzegovina are expected to attend, all
    from peace and humanitarian organizations or independent media in
    these states.


    IZETBEGOVIC GETS AWARD FROM US CENTRE FOR DEMOCRACY

    Chair of Bosnia Herzegovina Presidency Alija Izetbegovic is this
    year's winner of the US Center for Democracy's award, reported
    Sarajevo's Radio Bosnia Herzegovina on Wednesday. The radio
    reported that the award was given for ``successful leadership
    under extremely difficult circumstances.'' A letter from the
    Centre's Chair to Mr. Izetbegovic said that the award was also a
    tribute to the political courage of the people of Bosnia
    Herzegovina and an encouragement to the Bosnian government to
    develop democracy in their state.

    Prepared by: Marija Milosavljevic
    Edited by: Mary Anne Wood

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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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