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OMRI: Daily Digest, Vol. 3, No. 13, 97-01-20
From: Open Media Research Institute <http://www.omri.cz>
Vol. 3, No. 13, 20 January 1997
CONTENTS
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] RUSSIAN VEHICLE BLOWN UP NEAR GEORGIAN-ABKHAZ BORDER.
[02] AZERBAIJAN UPDATE.
[03] ARMENIAN OPPOSITION PARTY SAYS ITS MEMBER STILL UNDER ARREST.
[04] TAJIK GOVERNMENT, OPPOSITION TALKS IN TEHRAN.
[05] TURSUN ZADE STANDOFF.
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[06] KOSOVO LIBERATION ARMY CONTINUES OFFENSIVE.
[07] SERBIAN OPPOSITION PROTESTS 'BEASTS IN POWER.'
[08] MONTENEGRIN FOREIGN MINISTER KILLED IN CAR ACCIDENT.
[09] EXPLOSION PARTLY DESTROYS BRIDGE IN TENSE BOSNIAN REGION.
[10] FORMER BOSNIAN SERB LEADER IN CRITICAL CONDITION AFTER SUICIDE
ATTEMPT.
[11] ROMANIA'S FORMER RULING PARTY REORGANIZED.
[12] FRICTION IN ROMANIA'S RULING COALITION.
[13] BULGARIAN SOCIALISTS PREPARE FOR A NEW GOVERNMENT.
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] RUSSIAN VEHICLE BLOWN UP NEAR GEORGIAN-ABKHAZ BORDER.
An armored personnel carrier operated by Russian peacekeeping forces in the
Georgian-Abkhaz conflict zone blew up on 15 January after hitting an anti-
tank mine, ITAR-TASS reported on 17 January. According to a Sakinform
report monitored by the BBC, Georgian Deputy State Security Minister
Avtandil Ioseliani said that "soon" Russian peacekeepers will no longer be
required in the region as Georgia and Abkhazia are likely "to find a common
language without a mediator." -- Emil Danielyan
[02] AZERBAIJAN UPDATE.
The World Bank has extended a $14.7 million credit to Azerbaijan to promote
the privatization of the country's agricultural sector, ITAR-TASS reported
on 17 January. In other news, Azerbaijan's State Oil Company, SOCAR, has
supplied 10,000 metric tons of gasoline to Iran on a trial basis, Russian
media reported on 19 January. SOCAR is hoping to deliver 120,000 tons to
Iran on an annual basis. -- Lowell Bezanis
[03] ARMENIAN OPPOSITION PARTY SAYS ITS MEMBER STILL UNDER ARREST.
The chairman of a local branch of the opposition National Self-
Determination Union (AIM), Artush Hamazaspyan, is still under arrest on
charges of "participation in mass disorders" in the wake of 25 September
post-election unrest in Yerevan, Noyan Tapan reported on 17 January. Norayr
Khanzadyan, an AIM representative, said that Hamazaspyan was "severely
beaten" while in custody and the authorities are still holding him despite
repeated promises that he would be released. Out of the 27 AIM members
arrested after the election, Hamazaspyan is the only one still in custody.
Khanzadyan also claimed that Interior and National Security Minister Serzh
Sarkisyan has not yet delivered on his "promises" to compensate AIM for
some 10 million drams ($21,300) in damage to the party's headquarters. --
Emil Danielyan
[04] TAJIK GOVERNMENT, OPPOSITION TALKS IN TEHRAN.
Two weeks of difficult talks between the Tajik government and United Tajik
Opposition (UTO) ended in Tehran on 19 January with the signing of a joint
statement approving some important procedural issues but failing to
determine how many representatives each side will have in a prospective
National Reconciliation Commission, Western and Russian media reported on
19 January. The government wants to dominate the commission and render it
subordinate to Tajik President Immomali Rakhmonov, while the opposition
sees it as the first step toward a redistribution of power in a post-war
government. The two sides agreed on the procedure for approving a mutual
amnesty law and a central election commission and on holding a referendum
on governmental reform. -- Lowell Bezanis
[05] TURSUN ZADE STANDOFF.
The Tajik Presidential Guards clashed with local self-defense forces in
Tursun Zade in a fight over Central Asia's largest aluminum plant, ITAR-
TASS reported on 18 January. Two were injured during the exchange of fire
and an estimated 20 local-self-defense fighters were "detained" by the
Presidential Guard. The fight was the latest development in an ongoing
struggle for control of the country's single most valuable asset. In other
news, unidentified assailants killed a junior Russian officer in Dushanbe,
Reuters reported on 18 January. -- Lowell Bezanis
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[06] KOSOVO LIBERATION ARMY CONTINUES OFFENSIVE.
In a letter to Deutsche Welle's Albanian service, the Kosovo Liberation
Army claimed responsibility for the killing of Cun Dervishi in Skenderaj on
the night of 16-17 January, calling the ethnic Albanian man a "cooperator
with the Serbian occupiers." The secretive group also claimed
responsibility for the attempted assassination on 16 January of Radivoje
Papovic, dean of the state-run Pristina University, and for the 13 January
killing of Fazli Hasani, an ethnic Albanian who worked for the Serbian
police near Mitrovica. Meanwhile, some 1,000 Serbs held a demonstration in
Pristina on 18 January to protest the attack on Papovic. While Radio Serbia
put the blame for the attacks on Serbian opposition leader Vuk Draskovic,
the opposition claimed the United Yugoslav Left -- led by President
Slobodan Milosevic's wife, Mirjana Markovic -- were the real "terrorists"
responsible for the attacks and accused Milosevic of planning to use the
events in Kosovo as a pretext for declaring a state of emergency, BBC
reported. AFP quoted Draskovic claiming that "Milosevic is trying to play
his last card by preparing civil war in Kosovo without caring about the
consequences and the expected blood bath." -- Fabian Schmidt
[07] SERBIAN OPPOSITION PROTESTS 'BEASTS IN POWER.'
While the regime of Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic continues to
resist calls to recognize the opposition Zajedno coalition's wins in 17
November runoff municipal elections, the opposition continues to find
creative ways to protest. The latest effort to bypass official bans on mass
protests was to rally under the banner of "Pets Against the Beasts in Power,
" international media reported. On 19 January, an estimated 10,000 people
gathered in downtown Belgrade, all "coincidentally" out on the town walking
their pets. Other methods of bypassing bans on mass protests have included
thousands of motorists simultaneously experiencing mechanical difficulties
in downtown Belgrade, shutting down all traffic in the city center.
Meanwhile, UN human rights envoy Elizabeth Rehn met with government and
opposition officials, and on 18 January urged Milosevic to recognize the
Zajedno election wins. After meeting with Zajedno leader Zoran Djindjic on
19 January, German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel vowed that international
pressure against Milosevic would not abate, Nasa Borba reported. The
ruling Socialists were reported to be appealing an electoral committee
ruling recognizing the opposition victory in the Belgrade Assembly. Zajedno
leader Vuk Draskovic, addressing the crowd of pet owners on 19 January,
warned that the regime may be attempting to foment violence and urged
members of the military to side with the peaceful protesters. -- Stan
Markotich
[08] MONTENEGRIN FOREIGN MINISTER KILLED IN CAR ACCIDENT.
Janko Jeknic died in a traffic accident on 17 January when his car slammed
into a stalled bus. The accident took place on the Podgorica-Danilovgrad
road near Komanski Most, Montena-fax reported. One other person was
seriously injured in the incident. -- Stan Markotich
[09] EXPLOSION PARTLY DESTROYS BRIDGE IN TENSE BOSNIAN REGION.
An explosion eliminated a section of a wooden bridge near Koraj in Serb-
held territory in northern Bosnia late on 18 January. It is not clear who
caused the blast, but an electric detonation cord was found nearby, AFP
reported. The region has been a source of tension since the second half of
1996 as Muslim refugees try to exercise their right to return to their
homes just inside the Serbian side of the interentity border. Meanwhile in
Mostar, a gunman threatened Muslim journalists in full view of UN police,
Onasa wrote on 19 January. The Muslims were waiting for news of the outcome
of a meeting of the High Representative's office and said they will boycott
Carl Bildt's future meetings unless their security is guaranteed. --
Patrick Moore
[10] FORMER BOSNIAN SERB LEADER IN CRITICAL CONDITION AFTER SUICIDE
ATTEMPT.
Nikola Koljevic, a former vice president of the Republika Srpska, is in
critical condition after shooting himself in the head in Pale on 16 January,
news agencies said. Initial reports on 17 January suggested that he was
dead, but he actually was in a coma. SFOR flew him by helicopter to
Belgrade, where he underwent emergency surgery in the military hospital.
Doctors there are "reserved" about his chances for recovery, AFP wrote on
19 January. Koljevic had attempted several times to end his life after
being replaced as vice president following the 14 September Bosnian
elections. In late 1995 he participated in the talks that led to the Dayton
agreement, and in a suicide note for his family, he said he had done all he
could for his people. -- Patrick Moore
[11] ROMANIA'S FORMER RULING PARTY REORGANIZED.
The left-wing Party of Social Democracy in Romania (PDSR) elected former
President Ion Iliescu as its chairman on 17 January, Romanian and Western
media reported. The decision was taken at an extraordinary national
congress, at which a new party statute was also discussed. Iliescu pledged
to renew both the membership and the policies of the party that, under
different names, governed Romania from December 1989 until November 1996,
when it was defeated in general elections. He singled out the need to
combat corruption within the party's own ranks in order to improve its
image, which was seriously eroded by corruption scandals in recent years.
The PDSR, now the main force in the opposition, defines itself as a center-
left political organization. Critics, however, say it is a haven for former
communists and doubt its ability to reform itself. -- Dan Ionescu
[12] FRICTION IN ROMANIA'S RULING COALITION.
The "Romania's Alternative" Party (PAR) announced on 19 January that it is
withdrawing its "unconditional support" for Victor Ciorbea's government,
Romanian media reported. PAR, which is a member of the Democratic
Convention of Romania (CDR), complained that it was not offered state
secretary positions and local administration posts as promised. Radu Vasile,
secretary general of the National Peasant Party-Christian Democratic (the
main force in the CDR), suggested that the Senate might reverse the
nomination of PAR Chairman Varujan Vosganian to chair its Budget and
Finance Commission. -- Dan Ionescu
[13] BULGARIAN SOCIALISTS PREPARE FOR A NEW GOVERNMENT.
Nickolay Dobrev, nominated by his party to succeed the resigned Prime
Minister Zhan Videnov, presented the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP)
Executive Council on 19 January with a short-term stabilization program
aimed at improving the economy and fighting crime and corruption,
Standart and Trud reported. The program expects a short-term government
and early elections, and includes such measures as the adoption of a
currency board and procedures for closing insolvent banks. The same day,
President-elect Petar Stoyanov, who under the constitution is expected to
give Dobrev a mandate to form a new government, made his formal oath to the
constitution along with Vice President-elect Todor Kavaldzhiev. Police
cordoned off the ceremony with metal barriers, apparently concerned
protesters might again try to storm parliament as they did on 10-11
January. In his speech, Stoyanov endorsed the idea of early elections and
called for "a new social contract" between the authorities and the people. -
- Maria Koinova in Sofia
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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