dDH: Protests in Serbia Archive (1996-1997): Serbian Renewal Movement: News of Feb. 9

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Protests in Serbia Archive
Serbian Renewal Movement: News of Feb. 9

10th February, 1997

Eighty second day of the protest in belgrade

At yesterday's meeting of the Coalition ZAJEDNO, president of Serbian Renewal Movement Vuk Draskovic said in his speech to the gathered citizens that many journalists asked him what was going to happen on tuesday after the session of the Parliament - "nothing will happen that would influence the conduct of the citizens who are protesting", replied Vuk Draskovic.

"What will happen afterwards - depends upon whether the results of the OSCE report will be fully recognized. If all that happens, which I doubt, even if Milosevic orders the Assembly to honestly recognize the election results of 17th November in all the election units, there still won't be any hope for the democratic dialogue" - stressed Vuk Draskovic.

Giving a comment on Milosevic's decision to make Radmila Milentijevic Minister of Information, a woman who is allegedly professor of University in New York, Vuk Draskovic said:

"That is a woman that stirred up the war, supported Milosevic's politic which is against the country, anti-national and anti-democratic and which brought us here. That woman from America supported ethnic clearance in Bosnia and Croatia. That woman, when she was young, was responsible for the schism of the orthodox church in America. She knew very well who she worked with, why she did what she did and under whose orders. That woman, when occasionally visits her village near Smederevska Palanka, secretly comes in at night and leaves for America in the same way. On the national tv that woman was said to be a patriot because she said that there was no election theft. Today, "Politika" (public newspaper) says that her statement is patriotic. If there was no theft, then Slobodan Milosevic must file resignation - why did he then submit a special law to the Parliament? - said Vuk Draskovic in his speech to the gathered citizens.

Dragan Tomic, president of the serbian parliament - i was right!

Answering the question of the Hungarian radio why he called the demonstrations fascistic and the peaceful demonstrators fascists Dragan Tomic, president of the Serbian Parliament said:

"My statement was right on, since the demonstrations were destructive then. Some fascistic groups appeared in Belgrade at that time and were demolishing Belgrade. My statement had an effect, because after my statement the demonstrations became more peaceful up until a couple of days ago when some groups appeared after the opposition meetings and started to create disorder. Militant nuclei of these groups were made of refugees from Bosnia and Croatia that are unsatisfied because they had lost their fatherland. They blame others for it, although they had left it by their own free will".

Don't permit abolition!!

Students of the University of Nis sent a letter to the professors, who are representatives in the Serbian Parliament. In the letter they demand from those professors to state in the Parliament students' attitudes towards the new law proposal. In the letter they say:

"It must not be allowed for this legal act to be an abolition for the men who broke the law and Constitution and who must answer for that".

Students of Nis asked for prosecution of the policemen that injured the autonomy of the University by breaking in the Faculty of Philosophy. Students demand from the highest authority, the Parliament, to make a decision in accordance to which a process of persecuting and punishing all those who caused the situation in Serbia by their illegal actions would start.

Eightieth day of the students' protest

"At the beginning of this century eighty days were enough to finish a trip around the world, but in Serbia at the end of twentieth century eighty days of the protest were not enough for the students to win justice" - this was said among other things on the students' protest in Belgrade.

Professor of the Faculty of Law Vojin Dimitrijevic spoke to the students: "As a lawyer I cannot explain a legal circus which I never saw before. There is no way out of this vicious circle in this system, and a way out of it is changing the system through the agreements of sensible people at a round table.
President Milosevic , who named the students "fifth column" (traitors) and the president of the City Hall Dragan Tomic who called the students fascists have to apologize"- said Professor Dimtrijevic.

Demonstrations triggered off from abroad

In yesterday's interview for the Greek newspaper "To vima" President of Serbia Slobodan Milosevic spoke about the war in ex-Yugoslavia:

"There would be no war in ex-Yugoslavia if foreign economic, political, geo- strategic and other interests had not interfered. That war would not start if it weren't encouraged by secessionist tendencies and nationalism which boiled up to the point when the war could not be avoided".

President of Serbia Slobodan Milosevic is of an opinion that the demonstrations, which have lasted for eighty days throughout Serbia, have been incited from abroad. He also said that the problems of municipal elections should be solved in the institutions of the system.