OMRI Daily Digest II, No. 132, 10 July 1995

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

CONTENTS

  • [01] SERBS POUR INTO SREBRENICA.

  • [02] ARE AIR STRIKES IN THE OFFING?

  • [03] OTHER BOSNIAN DEVELOPMENTS.

  • [04] CONTROVERSY MOUNTING OVER MAZOWIECKI REPORT.

    [04] MILOSEVIC TALKS TO TIME MAGAZINE.

  • [05] MONTENEGRO PROTESTS NEW PASSPORT REGIME FOR MACEDONIANS.

  • [06] MONTENEGRIN OFFICIAL ON MEDIA.

  • [07] WORLD BANK APPROVES LOAN FOR BULGARIA.

  • [08] FORMER BULGARIAN DEPUTY MINISTER KILLED.

  • [09] BOUTROS GHALI CALLS ON GREECE, MACEDONIA TO END DISPUTE.

  • [10] RAMIZ ALIA RELEASED.

    •

    OMRI DAILY DIGEST

    No. 132, Part II, 10 July 1995

    SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

    [01] SERBS POUR INTO SREBRENICA.

    Bosnian Serb forces continued to push into the UN-designated "safe area" of Srebrenica, in eastern Bosnia, on 8-9 July. International media on 10 July indicated that their tanks are 1-2 kilometers from the town itself. Nasa Borba quoted a British UN spokesman as saying that "the Serbs have limited aims," but a Serbian representative told the BBC that his forces were determined to take the enclave for military reasons. The UN blamed the Bosnian government for the death of one Dutch peacekeeper, but the Serbs took another 32 of them away. A British UN officer told the BBC on 9 July that the men were not hostages but merely "enjoying the hotel" in nearby Bratunac. -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [02] ARE AIR STRIKES IN THE OFFING?

    Mlada fronta dnes on 10 July ran theheadline that the Serbs have taken hostages as insurance against NATO a ir strikes. AFP quoted the UN as threatening the Serbs with airborne retaliation if they attack a Dutch blockade barring the road to Srebrenica. "If this blocked position is attacked, NATO close air support will be employed. The [Serbs are] reminded of the grave consequences of ignoring this warning." Angry Bosnian government officials are not impressed, however; and the International Herald Tribune quoted Ambassador to the UN Mustafa Bijedic as saying that "if Srebrenica falls, that will be the end of the UN mission" in the embattled republic. -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [03] OTHER BOSNIAN DEVELOPMENTS.

    The BBC on 9 July quoted UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros Ghali as telling all sides in Bosnia either to renew the peace process and stop hindering UNPROFOR or to face the possible withdrawal of UN forces. Unknown assailants the previous day shot at the helicopters carrying EU negotiator Carl Bildt and his party near Konjic, forcing them to land. But Slobodna Dalmacija noted that the UN is showing spunk at least toward the Croats and that 2,000 French troops entered the Tomislavgrad area, despite warnings not to do so until their mission is clarified. Sky News on 9 July added that Bosnian Serb forces pounded Sarajevo and Bihac. -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [04] CONTROVERSY MOUNTING OVER MAZOWIECKI REPORT.

    The International Herald Tribune on 8 July reported that UN special envoy Tadeusz Mazowiecki has issued another report on human rights abuses in the former Yugoslavia. He cited offenses by all sides and said that snipers in Sarajevo should be treated as war criminals. The former Polish prime minister also mentioned the stepped-up "ethnic cleansing" of Croats by Serbs in the Banja Luka area, even though the Serbs refuse to let him visit their territory. The situation in Mostar also attracted his attention, including the plight of the few remaining Serbs. The 10 July Belgrade and Zagreb dailies center their attention on parts of the report that suggest Croatian offenses against Serbs in western Slavonia in May were worse than Zagreb has admitted. The Croats, however, remain adamant that there was no systematic policy against Serbian civilians during Operation Blitz. -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

    [04] MILOSEVIC TALKS TO TIME MAGAZINE.

    Reuters on 9 July reported that Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic has granted an interview to Time. This is the first time in over a year that he has spoken to an English- language publication. Milosevic stressed his commitment to working for regional peace but stressed once again that international sanctions against the rump Yugoslavia are hampering Belgrade's peace efforts. "Serbia is a major factor for peace in the Balkans . . . but we are under sanctions; we are in prison. The international community is making a mistake in expecting us to run in our struggle for peace but do so with the chains of sanctions on our legs," he commented. In other news, Milosevic on 7 July presided over the opening of Belgrade's first underground rail station in a ceremony that took part on Serbian Uprising Day, which marks the revolt against Nazi occupiers, Nasa Borba reported on 8-9 July. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [05] MONTENEGRO PROTESTS NEW PASSPORT REGIME FOR MACEDONIANS.

    Montenegro has protested to Belgrade over a new rule requiring that Macedonians visiting rump Yugoslavia travel with passports. Macedonians have so far needed only an identity card to visit that country. Montenegrin Minister for Tourism Dragan Milic said the regulation is "a direct attack on Montenegro's tourism industry," AFP reported on 9 July. Tourism has been a major source of hard currency for Montenegro since international sanctions were imposed on rump Yugoslavia. -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

    [06] MONTENEGRIN OFFICIAL ON MEDIA.

    Svetozar Marovic, speaker of the Montenegrin parliament, attended a meeting on 8 July of the administrative committee of Radio and Television Montenegro. He urged the organization to grant air time to opposition political parties. "The state media have to give everyone a chance, they have to hear everyone out," Montena-fax on 9 July reported him as saying. -- Stan Markotich, OMRI, Inc.

    [07] WORLD BANK APPROVES LOAN FOR BULGARIA.

    The World Bank on 8 July announced it has approved a $95 million loan for Bulgaria intended to help the country restructure its railroads, Reuters reported the same day. The loan will cover track renewal, training projects, and installation of modern signaling and telecommunications equipment. The total cost for the restructuring of Bulgarian railroads is estimated at $296 million; Bulgarian State Railroads, the EU's PHARE program, and the EBRD will provide the balance. The Bulgarian parliament recently passed a law on the relations between the state and the railroads, a World Bank condition for approving the loan. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [08] FORMER BULGARIAN DEPUTY MINISTER KILLED.

    Lambo Kyuchukov was found dead on 7 July on Mt. Vitosha, south of Sofia, Standart reported on 10 July. Kyuchukov was deputy education minister in charge of administrative and economic questions until his resignation last January. Police reported he was shot dead. He was last seen on 7 July at Sofia University, where he taught. Kyuchukov was allegedly well informed about the "hidden privatization" of student dormitories in Sofia, including bribes from Arab companies that wanted to rent buildings in the neighborhood. He also discovered that some 20 million leva ($300,000) were missing from the ministry's budget. According to Standart, he received telephone threats after this discovery. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [09] BOUTROS GHALI CALLS ON GREECE, MACEDONIA TO END DISPUTE.

    UN Secretary- General Boutros Boutros Ghali on 9 July urged Greece and Macedonia to resolve their dispute over the use of the name "Macedonia," international agencies reported the same day. Boutros Ghali, speaking on his way to Athens to receive the Onassis Prize for International Understanding and Social Achievement, said the main purpose of his three-day visit is "to reinforce the relationship between the United Nations and Greece." According to Greek officials, the discussions will include the Bosnian war and Greece's differences with Turkey and Macedonia. Boutros Ghali is scheduled to meet with President Kostis Stephanopoulos, Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou, and Foreign Minister Karolos Papoulias. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

    [10] RAMIZ ALIA RELEASED.

    In a surprise move, an appeals court on 7 July ordered the release of Albania's former communist president Ramiz Alia, international agencies reported. Alia was jailed in August 1993 and sentenced in July 1994 to a nine-year prison term on charges of violating the rights and freedoms of Albanian citizens. His term was later reduced by various courts of appeal and a presidential amnesty. Alia lost a Tirana court hearing on 10 June 1995 after a new penal code took effect. But his case was reviewed when State Prosecutor Sokol Parruca requested Alia's release following Albania's admission to the Council of Europe on 29 June. European politicians accused Albania's Democratic Party leaders of staging political trials against their old communist rivals. Supreme Court Chief Judge Zef Brozi called Alia's release "an example of the independence of Albanian justice." -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc. cd hr

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

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