OMRI Daily Digest II, No. 92, 12 May 1995

From: "Steve Iatrou" <siatrou@cdsp.neu.edu>

CONTENTS

  • [01] SARAJEVO'S "SNIPER ALLEY" CLAIMS ANOTHER VICTIM.

  • [02] FIERCE BATTLES IN NORTHEASTERN BOSNIA.

  • [03] SERBIAN PARLIAMENT REBUKES CROATIA.

  • [04] BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT RECOGNIZES PARTISANS AS WW II COMBATANTS.

  • [05] BULGARIAN CABINET EXPECTS ECONOMIC GROWTH, SWIFT PRIVATIZATION.

  • [06] BULGARIAN PRIME MINISTER TOPS OPINION POLLS IN SOFIA.

    •

    OMRI DAILY DIGEST

    No. 92, Part II, 12 May 1995

    SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

    [01] SARAJEVO'S "SNIPER ALLEY" CLAIMS ANOTHER VICTIM.

    A French UN peacekeeper was critically wounded on 11 May after being shot in the head along Sarajevo's main strip, known as "Sniper's Alley," Nasa Borba reported the following day. The total of French peacekeepers critically wounded or killed in Bosnia-Herzegovina now stands at 37. French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe on 11 May said the new French government will debate the possibility of withdrawing its troops from the former Yugoslavia if safety conditions do not improve, international media reported. Emerging from meetings with UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros Ghali the same day, Juppe also indicated that empowering UN peacekeepers to employ greater force against violence may be an alternative to a pullout. France has some 4,500 troops in Bosnia--the largest contingent in the region. Meanwhile, representatives of the Contact Group are slated to meet on 12 May to probe ways of improving prospects for peace in war-torn Bosnia, Vecernji list reported. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [02] FIERCE BATTLES IN NORTHEASTERN BOSNIA.

    Serbian forces continue to pound the Croatian enclave of Orasje, in northeastern Bosnia-Herzegovina, international media reported on 12 May. According to Reuters, recent Serbian attacks on the enclave appear to be the fiercest in several years, with an estimated 500 shells landing in the hamlet of Matici on 11 May. The Serbian offensive appears to be aimed at forcing the Orasje Croats back across the border into Croatia in order to remove the pocket as an obstacle to a Serbian supply corridor. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [03] SERBIAN PARLIAMENT REBUKES CROATIA.

    The Serbian legislature on 11 May adopted a resolution condemning Croatia's 1 May offensive against a rebel Serb-held enclave in Western Slavonia, Nasa Borba reported the following day. The offensive resulted in the retaking of territory. Tanjug reports that according to the text of the resolution, the Serbian parliament especially condemns "crimes against the civilian population" and Croatia's "lack of respect for the ceasefire." Ultranantionalists, notably accused war criminal and Serbian Radical Party leader Vojislav Seselj and leader of the Democratic Party of Serbia Vojislav Kostunica, have registered their opposition to the resolution. They claim it is too mild and a de facto testament to Serbian President Slobodan Milo-sevic's unwillingness to defend either Croatia's rebel Serbs or the ideal of a greater Serbia. Meanwhile, Reuters on 11 May reported that UN authorities have somewhat "backed away from earlier allegations that the [Croatian] army shot fleeing Serbs" as it advanced in Western Slavonia. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [04] BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT RECOGNIZES PARTISANS AS WW II COMBATANTS.

    The Socialist majority on 11 May adopted a law giving former partisans the status of combatants against Nazi Germany in World War II, Demokratsiya reported the following day. Opposition deputies voted against the bill. The Union of Democratic Forces argued that the communist-dominated partisan movement was controlled by Moscow and did not emerge until Germany's attack on the Soviet Union in 1941. They also pointed out that most sabotage acts were directed against Bulgarian installations and not against German military facilities. Socialist Deputy Angel Wagen-shtayn, a well-known film director, said that "whoever thinks the anti-fascist resistance was illegitimate is a fascist." The UDF faction issued a declaration saying that the law in effect restores the privileges of former communist party members and proves that the Socialists have not broken with their communist past. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [05] BULGARIAN CABINET EXPECTS ECONOMIC GROWTH, SWIFT PRIVATIZATION.

    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Economic Development Rumen Gechev on 10 May said that the government's major economic goals in 1995 are strict financial discipline and 2.5% economic growth, BTA reported the same day. The cabinet projects an increase in GDP averaging 4.5% a year during its term in office. Gechev said that privatization, to be carried out in two stages, will start in January 1996 and end in late 1997. Some 150 enterprises will be selected for privatization. The Kozloduy nuclear reactor, the military-industrial complex, the Bulgarian Telecommunications Company, the Bulgarian Post, and one or two major banks are among those enterprises that will not be privatized, Gechev said. The private sector's share in GDP, which accounted for 30% in 1994, is projected to reach 55-60% by the end of 1996 and 70-75% in late 1997. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [06] BULGARIAN PRIME MINISTER TOPS OPINION POLLS IN SOFIA.

    In an opinion poll published by Trud on 12 May, Zhan Videnov headed the list of Bulgarian top politicians. Some 36% of respondents said they have a favorable impression of him, while 23% said their impression is unfavorable. Ivan Kostov, leader of the Union of Democratic Forces, came second, with 26% and 11%, respectively. President Zhelyu Zhelev ranked third (23% and 28%). Videnov's strong showing and the high percentage of negative votes for Zhelev are attributed to the ongoing fight between the president and government, particularly over Bul-garia's possible application for NATO membership and the land restitution law. The opinion poll was conducted in Sofia, which is one of the UDF's strongholds. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    This material was reprinted with permission of the Open Media Research Institute, a Prague-based nonprofit organization.

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