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OMRI Daily Digest, Vol. 2, No. 204, 96-10-21
From: Open Media Research Institute <http://www.omri.cz>
Vol. 2, No. 204, 21 October 1996
CONTENTS
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] UN DENIES ALLEGED SUPPORT FOR ABKHAZ ELECTIONS.
[02] LUKOIL DISCUSSES NEW CONTRACT WITH AZERBAIJAN.
[03] KAZAKSTAN, RUSSIA REACH AGREEMENT ON ENERGY.
[04] PAKISTAN'S PRESIDENT VISITS UZBEKISTAN.
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[05] BOSNIAN LOCAL ELECTIONS IN DANGER.
[06] BOSNIAN SERB PARLIAMENT OPENS.
[07] GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER IN ZAGREB, BELGRADE.
[08] SERBIAN JOURNALIST 'BEATEN BRUTALLY.'
[09] BULATOVIC INSISTS PREVLAKA BE HANDED TO MONTENEGRO.
[10] INCUMBENT PRESIDENT, OPPOSITION PARTY LEAD IN ROMANIAN OPINION POLL.
[11] ROMANIAN DEFENSE MINISTER ENDS NATO-COUNTRIES TOUR.
[12] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT HOPES TO DISMISS GOVERNMENT AFTER ELECTIONS.
[13] PARTY PRESS AGITATE FOR BULGARIAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS.
[15] ALBANIAN DEMOCRATS CLAIM VICTORY IN LOCAL ELECTIONS.
[16] BOTH SIDES CLAIM IRREGULARITIES IN ALBANIAN LOCAL ELECTIONS.
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] UN DENIES ALLEGED SUPPORT FOR ABKHAZ ELECTIONS.
The Political Department of the UN has issued a statement denying that
Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali's special envoy for Abkhazia, Edouard
Brunner, expressed "support" for the parliamentary elections to be held in
Abkhazia on 23 November, ITAR-TASS reported on 19 October, quoting the
Georgian Foreign Ministry. Republic of Abkhazia Radio as monitored by the BBC
quoted Brunner on 11 October as stating that "when a parliament has run its
term ... it has to be renewed" and implying that ethnic Georgian refugees from
Abkhazia should be permitted to participate in the vote. The Abkhaz Supreme
Soviet in exile in Tbilisi denounced Brunner's statement and demanded his
replacement. -- Liz Fuller
[02] LUKOIL DISCUSSES NEW CONTRACT WITH AZERBAIJAN.
The president and vice president of LUKoil held talks in Baku on 19 October
with Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR and President Heidar Aliev on the
joint exploitation of the Inam off-shore Caspian deposit, which has known
reserves of 120-150 million metric tons, Turan and ITAR-TASS reported. LUKoil
wants a 50% share in the project. Speaking at a press conference in Baku on 19
October, Aliev mentioned as additional spheres for cooperation with LUKoil the
creation of a joint insurance company and of a company for the overhaul of
floating oil rigs. -- Liz Fuller
[03] KAZAKSTAN, RUSSIA REACH AGREEMENT ON ENERGY.
Kazakstani Prime Minister Akezhan Kazhegeldin signed seven bilateral
agreements with his Russian counterpart Viktor Chernomyrdin in Moscow on 18
October, ITAR-TASS reported. The agreements cover a range of issues from
rental of military complexes in Kazakstan to the avoidance of double taxation.
Also on 18 October, the Kazakstani government approved a resolution allowing
regional heads in six northern regions to make their own deals for electricity
supplies from Russia. Supplies to these regions were cut off in August because
of Kazakstan's unpaid bills, amounting to over $400 million. In exchange for
supplies of electricity, the northern regions are sending grain to Russia. --
Bruce Pannier
[04] PAKISTAN'S PRESIDENT VISITS UZBEKISTAN.
Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari on 20 October concluded a three-day visit to
Uzbekistan, where he met President Islam Karimov and other government
officials, ITAR-TASS reported. The two leaders signed several agreements,
ranging from anti-drug trafficking cooperation to joint-venture trading.
According to Uzbek TV on 18 October, bilateral trade is restricted because of
the blockage of transport routes across Afghanistan. Trade between Uzbekistan
and Pakistan stood at $12.7 million for the first six months of 1996, up from
$11.6 million for all of 1995. -- Roger Kangas
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[05] BOSNIAN LOCAL ELECTIONS IN DANGER.
Republika Srpska President Biljana Plavsic said on 18 October that the
organizers of local elections scheduled for 23-24 November have attached too
many conditions to the ballot and that the Serbs may boycott, BBC reported.
The real reason for the anger in Pale, however, is most likely that the new
election rules curtail opportunities to manipulate voter registration to pack
the election results in strategic towns (see ). Meanwhile, in tense
northeast Bosnia, IFOR troops discovered a booby-trap planted in a power
station in the formerly Muslim village of Koraj near Sapna, near the Bosnian
interentity border. The Serbs are suspected of trying to discourage further
attempts by Muslims to return to their homes in the region, Reuters reported
on 20 October. Plavsic called the Muslims' actions -- which are fully in
keeping with the Dayton agreement -- "terrorism along our borders," Onasa
noted. -- Patrick Moore
[06] BOSNIAN SERB PARLIAMENT OPENS.
The National Assembly of the Republika Srpska began its inaugural session in
Banja Luka on 19 October, international and regional media reported. The 83-
member body includes 17 Muslims and one Croat, as well as some Serbian
opposition deputies, but 45 of the seats and the legislature's key offices are
controlled by the nationalist Serbian Democratic Party (SDS). The non-Serbs
stood for the Bosnian Serb anthem, but then briefly walked out to protest an
oath of allegiance that involved expressions of loyalty to Orthodox
Christianity, including kissing a Bible and a crucifix. One SDS deputy charged
that it was "pure folklore" to have non-Serbs present, but a Serbian Socialist
deputy reminded him that "this is not a one-party parliament," AFP reported.
Republika Srpska President Biljana Plavsic said "this is the beginning of a
new era of Serb statehood, [but] we are not completely independent. Our
sovereignty is limited, and we have to respect what was signed." -- Patrick
Moore
[07] GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER IN ZAGREB, BELGRADE.
In Belgrade on 17 October, Thedoros Pangalos repeated the Greek view that "the
discrimination against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is no longer
justified" and urged that the country be "completely reintegrated into
international life," AFP and Reuters reported. During his visit, the two sides
agreed to liberalize their visa regimes and slash visa fees, and to start
direct talks aimed at promoting Greek investment in federal Yugoslavia. The
Greek foreign minister and his federal Yugoslav counterpart Milan Milutinovic
also signed a cooperation agreement between their ministries and discussed
regional developments and bilateral cooperation. Pangalos also met with
Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, federal Prime Minister Radoje Kontic,
and Serb Patriarch Pavle. The next day in Zagreb, Pangalos met with Croatian
President Franjo Tudjman and signed agreements on protection and promotion of
investments, preventing double taxation, and road traffic with his Croatian
counterpart Mate Granic. -- Stefan Krause
[08] SERBIAN JOURNALIST 'BEATEN BRUTALLY.'
The opposition Serbian Renewal Movement (SPO), led by Vuk Draskovic, alleged
on 18 October that Milovan Brkic, a journalist and SPO candidate in Belgrade's
civic elections, had been "beaten brutally" by police authorities, Beta
reported. According to an SPO statement, Brkic had published reports in
Srpska rec that the governing authorities found objectionable, prompting
them "to assault Brkic." According to the statement, "[they] broke a couple of
his ribs, ruptured his spleen, and inflicted a variety of other injuries to
his person." The SPO claimed that police repression and violence "picks up"
during elections, and that while "this time Milovan Brkic was the victim,
tomorrow it could be any Serbian citizen who disagrees with the ruling
powers." -- Stan Markotich
[09] BULATOVIC INSISTS PREVLAKA BE HANDED TO MONTENEGRO.
"Even though Croatia will still not admit it publicly, a legal, just, and
final fixing [of borders] with Montenegro includes Prevlaka's becoming part of
the natural [Montenegrin] hinterland, a result that is even in Croatia's own
interests," Montenegrin President Momir Bulatovic told an election rally in
Herceg Novi for the ruling Democratic Socialist Party (DPS) on 18 October,
Nasa Borba reported. The disputed Prevlaka peninsula belongs to Croatia but
is claimed by Belgrade and controls the federal Yugoslav navy's access to the
sea. At the same rally, Montenegrin parliamentary speaker Svetozar Marovic
said a vote for the DPS on 3 November would be a ballot for a strong Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia and "a life together ... [with] the citizens of
Serbia." -- Stan Markotich
[10] INCUMBENT PRESIDENT, OPPOSITION PARTY LEAD IN ROMANIAN OPINION POLL.
Incumbent President Ion Iliescu continues to lead in voter preferences in the
upcoming presidential race while the opposition Democratic Convention of
Romania (CDR) is preferred in the parliamentary contest, according to the
second of three public opinion polls planned by the IMAS polling agency before
elections on 3 November. Iliescu was backed by 31.9%, followed by CDR
candidate Emil Constantinescu (27.2%) and Social Democratic Union (USD)
candidate Petre Roman (21.9%), Romanian media reported on 20-21 October. But
the CDR scored 31.2% in voter preferences for parliament, followed by the
ruling Party of Social Democracy in Romania (28.5%) and the USD (19.7%). More
than a quarter of respondents (26.8%) were either undecided or did not intend
to vote. In other news, Evenimentul zilei asked the prosecutor's office to
investigate a report it had published that three minor presidential candidates
-- former Defense Minister Nicolae Militaru, the wonder-healer Constantin
Mudava, and Pensioners' Party candidate George Muntean -- submitted partly
faked lists of supporting signatures. -- Michael Shafir
[11] ROMANIAN DEFENSE MINISTER ENDS NATO-COUNTRIES TOUR.
Romanian Defense Minister Gheorghe Tinca ended a five-day tour of Norway,
Germany, and Denmark on 21 October, the latest stage of Romania's "NATO
offensive" aimed at boosting the country's chances of admission in the "first
wave" of NATO enlargement. Tinca delivered messages from President Ion Iliescu
to the NATO-member countries' chiefs of state and premiers, Romanian media
reported. The official governmental daily Vocea Romaniei cited presidential
spokesman Traian Chebeleu on 18 October saying reactions received from NATO
countries so far are "encouraging." -- Michael Shafir and Zsolt Mato
[12] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT HOPES TO DISMISS GOVERNMENT AFTER ELECTIONS.
Incumbent President Mircea Snegur confirmed on 18 October that if re-elected
he will try to dismiss the government headed by rival candidate Andrei
Sangheli, Infotag reported. If parliament refuses to dismiss the government,
Snegur said, he will call a referendum on the question. According to a poll
conducted by Chisinau University's Sociology Department, Snegur is leading in
voter preferences with 41.8% support to parliament chairman Petru Lucinschi's
33.7% and Sangheli's 10.6%. Also on 18 October, the Central Electoral
Commission finalized the list of nine candidates for the 17 November
presidential elections. Earlier, the Supreme Court had overruled the
commission's refusal to register Maricica Levitschi as a candidate. -- Michael
Shafir
[13] PARTY PRESS AGITATE FOR BULGARIAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS.
One week before the 27 October presidential elections, propaganda is
increasingly substituted for information in the party media. In a 21 October
commentary, the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) daily Duma wrote: "What is
good for the [Union of Democratic Forces (SDS)] is bad for Bulgaria." Zemya,
a daily close to the BSP, contended that the BSP candidate, Culture Minister
Ivan[14]
Marazov, was supported by Bulgarian intellectuals, while the SDS daily
Demokratsiya claimed that thousands of intellectuals support the united
opposition's candidate, Petar Stoyanov, and accused Marazov of being unable to
find winning moves and of making obvious blunders. Meanwhile, in a Fact agency
survey published in Standart, every third respondent said Marazov cannot
completely substitute for the BSP's original candidate, Foreign Minister
Georgi Pirinski, who was banned from the race by the Constitutional Court
because he was not born a Bulgarian citizen. -- Maria Koinova
[15] ALBANIAN DEMOCRATS CLAIM VICTORY IN LOCAL ELECTIONS.
Albanian President Sali Berisha claimed victory at a rally in front of
Tirana's Democratic Party headquarters after local elections on 20 October,
AFP reported. Early estimates gave the Democrats 55% of the overall vote.
According to the Voice of America the party won about 60% in the cities of
Durres and Tirana. Final results are not expected until 23 October. In the
1992 local elections the Socialist opposition won in the countryside but lost
in the cities. The turnout is estimated at around 70%. Deutsche Welle's
Albanian service reported that by noon only 30%-40% of eligible voters had
voted, which is low compared to previous elections. Council of Europe (CE)
observers said there had been no reports of serious incidents or "dramatic
occurrences," Reuters reported. The CE coordinated 365 international
observers. The OSCE withdrew from observing the elections after Albanian
authorities refused to accredit all its monitors. -- Fabian Schmidt
[16] BOTH SIDES CLAIM IRREGULARITIES IN ALBANIAN LOCAL ELECTIONS.
The ruling Democratic Party and opposition Socialists waged a war of faxes on
20 October, denouncing each other for alleged irregularities in the local
elections, especially in rural areas and smaller towns, Reuters reported.
According to the Democrats, their leader in one northern district, Ferik Veliu,
was stabbed by a supporter of the Socialists, Pal Ndreka. Elsewhere, the
Socialists claimed police had forced their way into voting booths and tampered
with ballot boxes in two or three polling stations, while the Democrats
accused Socialist supporters of intimidating voters. According to ATSH the
Socialists claimed fraud in Fier and Lezha, where they said election material
was strictly controlled by the chairmen of the election commission, who were
Democrats. The Democratic Alliance also protested that Democratic Party
election commission members elsewhere refused to cooperate with the
opposition. -- Dukagjin Gorani
Compiled by Steve Kettle and Susan Caskie
News and information as of 1200 CET
This material was reprinted with permission of the Open Media
Research Institute, a nonprofit organization with research offices in
Prague, Czech Republic.
For more information on OMRI publications please write to info@omri.cz.
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