Protests in Serbia Archive
Odraz B92 Daily News Service

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    ODRAZ B92, Belgrade                             Daily News Service
    Odraz B92 vesti (by 12 Midnight), December 27, 1996

    e-mail: beograd@siicom.com      URL: http://www.siicom.com/odrazb/
            odrazb92@b92.opennet.org     http://www.siicom.com/b92/
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    All texts are Copyright 1996 Radio B92. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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    NEWS BY 12 MIDNIGHT
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    15 INJURED IN POLICE INTERVENTION

    Coalition Zajedno stated tonight that 15 were injured in the
    police intervention at 17:15 tonight. They said the special police
    forces that blocked the city centre intervened against citizens
    looking-on in the Terazije Square. Plain clothes policemen who
    were among the citizens beat up on them, wounding 15, one of which
    seriously. Zajedno's statement warned members of the police forces
    not to use force against citizens and that criminal suits will be
    brought against those who have done so.


    STATE DEPARTMENT SALUTES OSCE'S DECISIONS

    US State Department saluted tonight Felipe Gonzalez's conclusions
    stressing they coincided with the US demand that the local
    electoral results of November 17 be restored. State Department
    reiterated its belief that a sincere and constructive dialogue
    between the Serbian authorities and the democratic oppostition
    must be opened after the results have been restored. It urged
    President Milosevic accept the recommendations made in Gonzalez's
    report, pointing out that the immediate enactment of these is the
    best possible way out of the crisis in Serbia.


    DINI URGES BELGRADE TO ACCEPT OSCE'S RECOMMENDATIONS

    Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini called on Belgrade today to
    accept the OSCE's recommendations, reports Reuters. Italian
    Foreign Ministry issued a separate statement saluting the OSCE's
    recommendations for the opposition victories to be restored and an
    agreement between the authorities and the opposition in Serbia on
    democratic changes to be reached.


    VAN DEN BROEK (HA! ZNAM SPELING!): RESTORATION OF ELECTORAL
    RESULTS CAN END ISOLATION

    European Commissioner Hans Van Den Broek congratulated the
    democratic majority of Serbia on its courage, restraint, reslove
    (? UPORNOST) and sensibility in the present crisis. He told
    correspondent of ``Nasa Borba,'' Mirko Klarin President Milosevic
    can end the international diplomatic isolation only by restoring
    the local electoral results. Otherwise the erosion of his
    credibility will rapidly erode.


    GREEK OFFICIALS SILENT ON EVENTS IN SERBIA

    While the Greek government, parties student and other oganizations
    keep silent over the events in Serbia, althouth the dramatic
    scenes from Belgrade have been broadcast on the Greek tv stations,
    a part of most influential Greek press brings harsh judgements,
    reports for FoNet Slobodan Markovic. Leading Greek dailies ``Ta
    Nea'' and ``Elefterostipos'' for the main part refrain from
    commentaries, while the mass circulation ``Elefterotipia'' brings
    on its front page today that Yugoslavia is on the brink of a civil
    war. This daily blames Milosevic for the spilt blod in Belgrade,
    saying Milosevic is left with only one device -- violent force,
    which leads straight into a civil war and a bloody toppling of his
    regime. The daily underlines that Milosevic can no longer
    guarantee peace in Serbia, having presented the country with a
    clear dilemma: either me or a civil war in Serbia. Pro-
    governmental ``Teksosia'' claims, however, that in spite the
    continuation of bloody clashes in Belgrade, the West is still
    protecting Serbian President from an overthrow for it finds him a
    guarantor of the stability in BOsnia, former Yugoslavia and even
    the whole of the Balkans.


    NTV ON OSCE'S REPORT AND BEATEN RUSSIAN JOURNALISTS

    Russian commercial NTV said today that the opposition in Serbia
    received a staunch interational support, referring to the OSCE's
    report. The NTV report stated that it is highly unlikely that the
    Serbian authorities will accept the OSCE's recommendation to
    restore the electoral results and Zajedno's victory, reports for
    FoNet Branko Stosic. NTV warned of irreparable consequences this
    might ensue, same as the rumoured possibility of arrests of the
    opposition leaders. Russian media were dismayed at the silence of
    the official Moscow over the beating up of two Russian journalists
    in Belgrade adn urged the Russian Embassy in Belgrade to intervene
    with the Serbian authorities.


    MILUTINOVIC: OSCE'S REPORT GOOD, CONSTRUCTIVE AND WELL-BALANCED

    Yugoslav Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic stated today that his
    first impression on reading the OSCE's report is that it is good,
    constructive and well-balanced. Nevertheless, he found there are
    many elements in it to be examined. Main points -- that the report
    urges a dialgue ``within the system'' and that the elections
    ``were held in good order and that the majority of the people
    could cast their votes,'' that the left coalition won majority of
    votes -- are definitely clear. But the part that said that the
    oppostion had won in some municipalities, said Milutinovic, showed
    that ``the delegation had mixed their pots(?!), for they could not
    handle all details in 24 hours.'' He said the report is to be
    taken as a preliminary rather than a final one, for it is yet to
    be discussed by the OSCE's institutions.


    VOJIN DIMITRIJEVIC ON OSCE'S REPORT

    Lecturer at the School of Law and a high official with the Civil
    Alliance of Serbia, Vojin Dimitrijevic told FoNet tonight he
    believes the OSCE commission acknowledged Zajedno's victory in the
    Belgrade City Assembley, although Gonzalez's statement for the
    press did not state this literally. ``We find this logical -- for
    all Zajedno's demands have been graneted -- that this be granted
    as well, for the theft was the worst here,'' said Dimitrijevic.
    The misunderstanding about the findings of the commission may have
    arisen out of the failure of the commission to differentiate in
    its statement between the City Assembley and Belgrade
    municipalities' assembleys, so that maybe the City Assembley was
    one among the 9 OSCE found Zajedno victorious in. Dimitrijevic
    concluded the misunderstanding will be cleared when all the
    details of the report concerning the municipalities where Zajedno
    won be made public.


    BERISA'S MESSAGE TO KOSOVO ALBANIANS NOT TO SIT IDLE

    Albanian President Salli Berisa (??) criticized Serbia in harshest
    terms today, urging Kosovo ALbanians not to sit idle while the
    protests in Belgrade last if they want to achieve their rights,
    reports Reuters. He saluted the Belgrade protests, as having the
    right cause and being directed against a regime which perpetrated
    the severest conflict in Europe and which has been the cruellest
    and most anti-albanian of all times. He noted that yesterday's
    events showed that Milosevic is set on surviving on provoking a
    civil war in Serbia which could result in destabilizing the whole
    region. His message to the Kosovo Albanians was that they will
    have to fight themselves for their rights and not look at the
    interantional institutions for help. Stressing his commitment to a
    peaceful solution in Kosovo he reiterated his statment from the
    LIsbon OSCE summit that the nation will react as a whole to any
    confrontation. Reuters noted it is not clear what he meant by
    ``react as a whole'' but Berisa underlined that the internatioally
    acknowledged borders must be observed. ``A democratic Serbia, of
    course a Serbia which will grant national and human rights to the
    Albanians, will be a friendly Serbia for its neighbours and a
    peace and stability factor in the Balkans,'' he concluded.


    NIS ELECTORAL COMMISSION DOES NOT REACH A DECISION

    Serbian Ministry of Justice decided that the final report for the
    Nis City Assembly cannot be made until the Nis Electoral Committee
    had finished its work ordered by the Nis Municipal Court to re-run
    the procedure for 26 polling stations among which are the 17
    Zajedno filed complaints in. Serbian Government ordered the Nis
    Electoral Committee, on receiving this decisuion by the Ministry
    of Justice, to step up its work. Zajedno representatives in Nis
    claim that the commission has adjourned its work on all kinds of
    trivial pretexts just when these 17 polling stations were to be
    discussed. The commission announced yesterday it will not convene
    today, but pick up on its work tomorrow 9 a.m.

    Prepared by: Aleksandra Scepanovic
    Edited by: (not edited; to be resent upon editing)

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