Read about International Treaties, Human & Minority Rights in Turkey Read the Convention Relating to the Regime of the Straits (24 July 1923) Read the Convention Relating to the Regime of the Straits (24 July 1923)
HR-Net - Hellenic Resources Network Compact version
Today's Suggestion
Read The "Macedonian Question" (by Maria Nystazopoulou-Pelekidou)
HomeAbout HR-NetNewsWeb SitesDocumentsOnline HelpUsage InformationContact us
Thursday, 28 March 2024
 
News
  Latest News (All)
     From Greece
     From Cyprus
     From Europe
     From Balkans
     From Turkey
     From USA
  Announcements
  World Press
  News Archives
Web Sites
  Hosted
  Mirrored
  Interesting Nodes
Documents
  Special Topics
  Treaties, Conventions
  Constitutions
  U.S. Agencies
  Cyprus Problem
  Other
Services
  Personal NewsPaper
  Greek Fonts
  Tools
  F.A.Q.
 

RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 3, No. 192, 99-10-01

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>

RFE/RL NEWSLINE

Vol. 3, No. 192, 1 October 1999


CONTENTS

[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA

  • [01] ARMENIA, GEORGIAN PRESIDENTS SEEK CLOSER TIES
  • [02] TBILISI FEARS MOSCOW WANTS TO INVOLVE GEORGIA IN
  • [03] TBILISI SAYS GIORGADZE NOW IN SYRIA
  • [04] KAZAKHSTAN PREMIER RESIGNS TO HEAD NATIONAL OIL
  • [05] ASTANA THREATENS TO FORCE KAZHEGELDIN'S RETURN
  • [06] KYRGYZSTAN TIGHTS SECURITY ACROSS COUNTRY
  • [07] TAJIKISTAN REGISTERS CANDIDATES, PARTY
  • [08] KARIMOV CHALLENGES 'FORCES WITH EVIL INTENTIONS'
  • [09] UZBEKISTAN AGREES TO RESUME GAS SHIPMENTS TO

  • [B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

  • [10] SERBIAN RIOT POLICE BEAT DEMONSTRATORS AGAIN...
  • [11] ...AS POLICE ACTIONS ARE CONDEMNED
  • [12] SERBIAN DAILY SHUT DOWN
  • [13] SERBIAN OPPOSITION LEADERS MEET TO DISCUSS EARLY
  • [14] KFOR COMMANDER CONCERNED ABOUT SECURITY IN
  • [15] ETHNIC ALBANIAN PATIENTS, STAFF REMOVED FROM
  • [16] BERISHA WARNS OF ALBANIAN FEDERATION...
  • [17] ...AS HIS PARTY PURGES MODERATES
  • [18] U.S. BACKS ALBANIAN BID FOR WTO
  • [19] SLOVENE PRESIDENT PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR ALBANIA
  • [20] HUNGARIAN CONSUL BUILDING IN ROMANIA FINED FOR
  • [21] INCREASE IN ATTACKS ON ROMANIAN JOURNALISTS
  • [22] ROMANIAN MINORITY DEPUTIES WANT MORE
  • [23] U.S. PLEDGES TO CONTINUE SUPPORT FOR MOLDOVA
  • [24] BALKAN FINANCE MINISTERS CONCERNED ABOUT

  • [C] END NOTE

  • [25] KARL HEINRICH MENGES (1908-1999)

  • [A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA

    [01] ARMENIA, GEORGIAN PRESIDENTS SEEK CLOSER TIES

    During a two-day visit to Yerevan, Georgian President Eduard

    Shevardnadze told his Armenian counterpart, Robert

    Kocharian, that he wants priority to be given to the

    development of closer ties among the three southern

    Caucasus countries, ITAR-TASS reported on 30 September.

    Kocharian, for his part, welcomed Shevardnadze's support for

    signing more agreements between their two countries. PG

    [02] TBILISI FEARS MOSCOW WANTS TO INVOLVE GEORGIA IN

    CHECHEN CONFLICT

    Levan Aleksidze, a foreign policy

    adviser to Georgian President Shevardnadze, said that he

    fears Moscow may want to push Chechens into fleeing to

    Georgia and then use that as an excuse to attack his

    country, Interfax reported on 30 September. "If the Georgian

    side lets the Chechens in," he said, "Russia will start

    destroying them in Georgia." Meanwhile, Georgian Interior

    Minister Kakha Targamadze denied in Kyiv that Georgia has

    anything to do with the supply of arms to the Chechens,

    ITAR-TASS said. PG

    [03] TBILISI SAYS GIORGADZE NOW IN SYRIA

    Igor Giorgadze,

    the former Georgian security chief who is wanted on

    suspicion of involvement in terrorist attacks on President

    Shevardnadze, is now in Syria, Georgian Interior Minister

    Kakha Targamadze told Prime News on 30 September.

    Targarmadze indicated that Georgia has been unsuccessful in

    seeking his extradition, largely because of the work of

    "Russia's special services." PG

    [04] KAZAKHSTAN PREMIER RESIGNS TO HEAD NATIONAL OIL

    COMPANY

    Nurland Balgimbayev resigned as prime minister

    on 1 October to become head of KazakhOil, the company he

    had worked for before becoming premier two years ago,

    Interfax reported. President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who had

    been critical of Balgimbayev's leadership, immediately

    appointed Kasymzhamart Tokayev as acting prime minister.

    Until now, Tokayev was deputy prime minister and foreign

    minister. PG

    [05] ASTANA THREATENS TO FORCE KAZHEGELDIN'S RETURN

    Kazakhstan's Prosecutor-General Yuri Khitrin told ITAR-TASS

    on 30 September that if former Prime Minister Akezhan

    Kazhegeldin does not return home after receiving medical

    treatment, the Kazakh authorities will try to compel him to

    return, using what Khitrin said would be "unpopular but forced

    measures." Khitrin said he has sufficient evidence to convict

    Kazhegeldin of money laundering, abuse of office, and tax

    evasion. In other comments, Khitrin said he is supervising the

    investigation of an illegal sale of MIG-21 fighters to North

    Korea and that he knows of no evidence to support claims

    that there are foreign militants operating in Almaty. PG

    [06] KYRGYZSTAN TIGHTS SECURITY ACROSS COUNTRY

    Facing

    a continuing challenge from rebels in the southern region of

    the country, Bishkek has increased security throughout the

    country, increasing its monitoring of mosques and checking

    the passports of those suspected of not having legal

    residence permits, Kabar reported on 30 September.

    Meanwhile, rebels in the south continued to hold 13

    hostages, Interfax reported. The news agency quoted

    Kyrgyzstan Interior Minister Omurbek Kutuyev as saying that

    the current situation in his country "is similar to events in

    Daghestan." PG

    [07] TAJIKISTAN REGISTERS CANDIDATES, PARTY

    Tajikistan's

    Central Electoral Commission registered incumbent President

    Imomali Rakhmonov, leader of the Congress of People's Unity

    Party Sayfiddin Turayev, and former tax official Sulton

    Quvvatov as presidential candidates, Iranian radio reported

    on 29 September. The same source added that the

    commission has also registered the Islamic Rebirth Party. PG

    [08] KARIMOV CHALLENGES 'FORCES WITH EVIL INTENTIONS'

    IN UZBEKISTAN

    Speaking on 30 September near the Uzbek-

    Kyrgyz border, Uzbekistan President Islam Karimov said he is

    prepared to defend his country against all those "with evil

    and bad intentions" who might seek to "stir up trouble" in his

    country. PG

    [09] UZBEKISTAN AGREES TO RESUME GAS SHIPMENTS TO

    KAZAKHSTAN

    Uzbektransgaz will resume shipments of gas

    to southern Kazakhstan under the terms of an agreement

    reached between Astana and Tashkent, Kazakhstan's Khabar

    TV reported on 30 September. The two countries will settle

    their accounts by writing off Kazakhstan's debts for gas

    against Uzbekistan's debts for rail service. PG


    [B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

    [10] SERBIAN RIOT POLICE BEAT DEMONSTRATORS AGAIN...

    Serbian riot police charged at and beat back a crowd of

    some 40,000 protesters as they attempted to march to the

    main Yugoslav government building in Belgrade, the

    independent B2-92 Radio reported. At least 10 people were

    reported injured in the incident, which took place as

    marchers attempted to cross a bridge into Novy Belgrade.

    Police said 21 people were arrested, and they warned the

    organizers of the demonstrations, which have entered their

    ninth consecutive day, to stop disturbing "public peace and

    order." Zoran Djindjic, a leader of the Alliance for Change

    (SZP), said protestors will continue to rally and will attempt

    again to march to Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's

    home in the Dedinje district. Rallies attended by some 10,000

    people were also reported in Nis and Novy Sad. PB

    [11] ...AS POLICE ACTIONS ARE CONDEMNED

    NATO Secretary-

    General Javier Solana said in Madrid on 30 September that

    the Yugoslav government will not solve discontent among

    Serbs by "dealing violently with people demonstrating

    peacefully," Reuters reported. Solana said he would like to

    see opposition forces in Serbia "more united." Serbian

    Renewal Movement leader Vuk Draskovic, who has refused to

    join in the opposition protests, said "Milosevic is ready for

    bloodshed...the lives of people mean nothing to him."

    Draskovic repeated his desire for early elections so that

    Milosevic can be replaced via the ballot box. The Russian

    Foreign Ministry said it is concerned by the clashes, and it

    urged dialogue between the opposition and the government.

    U.S. National Security Adviser Sandy Berger said the police

    actions in Belgrade are "contemptible," an RFE/RL

    correspondent reported. Berger added that the use of force

    by Milosevic shows his regime's desperation. The U.S. based

    humanitarian organization Human Rights Watch condemned the

    "unnecessary and excessive use of force by Serbian police."

    PB

    [12] SERBIAN DAILY SHUT DOWN

    Police sealed off the offices

    of the independent daily "Glas Javnosti" on 30 September and

    slapped a 15-day ban on the publication of the newspaper,

    the AP reported. Police said the shutdown was due to

    "financial irregularities," while editor Vjekoslav Radovic said it

    was because the daily had printed leaflets distributed at

    opposition rallies. On 1 October, police also surrounded the

    offices of the Alliance for Change, reportedly to detain Ceda

    Jovanovic, the publisher of the leaflet "Promene" (Changes).

    Jovanovic told Reuters by telephone that he and several

    others had barricaded themselves in the office. He said the

    attempt to arrest him was "expected." PB

    [13] SERBIAN OPPOSITION LEADERS MEET TO DISCUSS EARLY

    ELECTIONS

    The leaders of 17 Serbian opposition groups

    held a round-table meeting on 30 September to discuss their

    participation in early elections, Reuters reported. The

    meeting was organized by the Democratic Center. Miladin

    Kovacevic, an official from the Serbian Renewal Movement,

    said the meeting was constructive and was just the first in a

    series of discussions among the opposition on its strategy

    and tactics for calling early elections. In Paris, the dissident

    Serbian economists' Group 17 held talks with French Foreign

    Minister Hubert Vedrine on a plan to distribute oil to parts of

    Serbia governed by opposition parties. Vedrine said he

    backed the group's "energy for democracy" plan. PB

    [14] KFOR COMMANDER CONCERNED ABOUT SECURITY IN

    KOSOVA

    Lieutenant-General Michael Jackson, the head of

    NATO forces in Kosova (KFOR), said in Tirana on 30

    September that he is not satisfied with the level of security

    in the Serbian province of Kosova, AP reported. Jackson

    added, however, that his troops are determined to break the

    "cycle of violence" in the province based on "ethnic hatred."

    Jackson met with Deputy Premier Ilir Meta and Defense

    Minister Luan Hajdaraga during his trip. Discussions centered

    on the situation in Kosova as well as the NATO troops in

    Albania (AFOR-2). There are some 2,000 troops in AFOR-2

    operating under KFOR command. They maintain

    communications between the port city of Durres and the

    Kosova border. Jackson said those troops will likely remain in

    place as long as KFOR is in Kosova. PB

    [15] ETHNIC ALBANIAN PATIENTS, STAFF REMOVED FROM

    HOSPITAL IN KOSOVA

    KFOR troops have removed the

    remaining nine ethnic Albanian patients and 10 Albanian

    nurses and doctors from the main hospital in the divided

    town of Mitrovice, AP reported on 30 September. The

    hospital is in the northern part of the town, dominated by

    Serbs, while the southern part of the town is controlled by

    ethnic Albanians. French KFOR troops keep the two sides

    separated. Ethnic Albanians needing medical treatment will

    now be taken to Prishtina. PB

    [16] BERISHA WARNS OF ALBANIAN FEDERATION...

    Former

    Albanian President Sali Berisha said on 30 September that

    Albanians throughout the Balkans may unite if "anti-Albanian

    racism" continues in other countries where Albanians are in

    the minority, Reuters reported. Speaking at a convention of

    the opposition Democratic Party, which he heads, Berisha

    said "we are not seeking to change borders" but one could

    not exclude the possibility of Albanians forming a "federation

    of free Albanians in the Balkans as a fundamental condition of

    survival." He added that UN governance in Kosova is only a

    "first step toward independence." PB

    [17] ...AS HIS PARTY PURGES MODERATES

    Three members of

    the Democratic Party's steering committee considered to be

    more moderate than party leader Berisha were expelled from

    the party on 30 September, AP reported. Ylli Vejsiu, who was

    often critical of Berisha for his autocratic ways, was

    dismissed along with two other committee members. The

    expulsions come one day after party official Genc Pollo's

    decision not to challenge Berisha for the chairmanship of the

    party (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 30 September 1999), accusing

    Berisha of manipulating the nomination process. Local media

    also report that Pollo and his family had received death

    threats. PB

    [18] U.S. BACKS ALBANIAN BID FOR WTO

    The U.S. said on 30

    September that it has agreed to support Albania's bid to join

    the World Trade Organization, AFP reported. In a bilateral

    agreement signed in Washington, Albania will reduce tariffs

    and other trade barriers in the agriculture, banking,

    insurance, and telecommunications sectors, among others.

    U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky said the

    agreement will benefit Albania by increasing its commercial

    ties with the U.S. and other WTO members. PB

    [19] SLOVENE PRESIDENT PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR ALBANIA

    Milan Kucan said in a meeting with his Albanian counterpart,

    Rexhep Meidani, in Ljubljana that Slovenia strongly supports

    the democratic process in Albania, ATA reported on 30

    September. Kucan also said his government will work with

    Albanian officials to help them towards the country's goal of

    joining NATO and the EU. Meidani, on a two-day visit to

    Slovenia, said relations between the two countries were

    good but that increased trade and a more liberalized visa

    regime should be worked on. Meidani also met with Foreign

    Minister Boris Frlec and parliament speaker Janez Podobnik

    as well as attending a business conference. PB

    [20] HUNGARIAN CONSUL BUILDING IN ROMANIA FINED FOR

    FLYING FLAG

    The Mayor's Office in the city of Cluj-Napoca

    has slapped an 80,000 lei ($5) fine on the owner of a building

    inhabited by the Hungarian consulate-general for flying the

    Hungarian flag, according to a 29 September Hungarian TV2

    report cited by the BBC. Mayor Gheorghe Funar said the

    building's owner would be fined again if the flag is not

    removed. VG

    [21] INCREASE IN ATTACKS ON ROMANIAN JOURNALISTS

    The

    Agency for Media Monitoring has noted a "sharp increase" in

    recent months in the number of attacks on Romanian

    journalists investigating corruption cases, AP reported on 30

    September. The agency reported that three journalists who

    were writing stories on illicit business deals were attacked

    this month. Two of the journalists were pushed and shoved

    by a group of construction workers, while the third was

    thrown from a moving train. VG

    [22] ROMANIAN MINORITY DEPUTIES WANT MORE

    REPRESENTATION

    Representatives of minorities in Romania's

    parliament are planning to push for changes to the electoral

    law that would give those minorities greater representation

    in local and national legislatures, according to a 30

    September Mediafax report cited by the BBC. VG

    [23] U.S. PLEDGES TO CONTINUE SUPPORT FOR MOLDOVA

    U.S. Undersecretary of State Strobe Talbott on 29

    September told visiting Moldovan Foreign Minister Nicolae

    Tabacaru that the U.S. will continue to support Moldova's

    independence and integrity "especially in the context of the

    present situation in Southeastern Europe," Basa-Press

    reported. Both officials agreed that Moldova and Russia

    should quickly finalize plans for the withdrawal of Russian

    troops from the Transdniester. VG

    [24] BALKAN FINANCE MINISTERS CONCERNED ABOUT

    STABILITY PACT

    The finance ministers of Bulgaria,

    Macedonia, and Albania voiced their concerns about the

    delay in implementing the Balkan Stability Pact, BTA reported

    on 30 September. Bulgarian Finance Minister Murayev Radev

    said the speed at which the Stability Pact is developing is

    "not satisfactory." The three ministers, who were meeting in

    Washington, D.C., agreed to approve a final report on their

    countries' infrastructure needs at a November meeting in

    Sofia. Radev said they will also invite finance ministers from

    Romania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Croatia to attend the

    meeting. VG


    [C] END NOTE

    [25] KARL HEINRICH MENGES (1908-1999)

    By David Nissman

    Last week, Karl Heinrich Menges, one of the world's

    greatest Altaists and Turkologists, died in Vienna at the age

    of 91. His knowledge is not adequately represented by his

    published books, book reviews, and articles because he saw

    the Altaic languages as a linguistic spectrum: each of his

    writings expressed only a small part of that spectrum, and to

    understand his thoughts it was necessary to have known him

    personally.

    I was a student of his from the late 1950s until the late

    1960s, and a friend and colleague later. He imparted to me

    and his few other students his knowledge not only of the

    classics of Central Asian literature but also the cultures,

    folklore, and language of the Turkic and Tungusic peoples of

    Siberia and the Russian East.

    Menges was a survivor. His sense of humor and ability

    to imitate accents and mannerisms did not always stand him

    in good stead. When he was a professor at Berlin, his

    occasional parodies of Adolph Hitler drew unwelcome

    attention from the Gestapo. That, together with his work in

    the anti-Nazi resistance, resulted in his interrogation and

    arrest. He was released shortly thereafter, and one of his

    students in the Japanese diplomatic corps advised him that

    he had heard he was to be arrested shortly. He went home,

    packed a few things, and left for Turkey.

    In Turkey, he settled in at the University of Ankara.

    Conditions in Turkey at that time were not good for emigre

    German scholars, so he left for Russia in 1940. When he

    arrived in Moscow, he was contacted by the U.S. Embassy

    and offered a job at the University of California. He left

    immediately, taking the Trans-Siberian Railroad to Vladivostok.

    He was able to take a Japanese freighter to San Francisco,

    arriving there in December 1941, just before the outbreak of

    war between Japan and the United States. As noted above,

    he was a survivor and occasionally lucky.

    Of his published works, his study of the Altaic words

    embedded in the Old Slavic epic poem, "The Lay of the Host

    of Igor," is perhaps his most original. He was able to

    demonstrate the openness of the steppe and the way

    different languages and cultures intermingled under the

    conditions of the freedoms available in a region without

    boundaries.

    His study, "The Turkic Languages and Peoples: An

    Introduction to Turkic Studies," was published in Wiesbaden in

    1968. It was one of the essential works for newer

    generations of Central Asian and Turkic scholars.

    Karl Heinrich Menges could have published more, but in a

    way he knew too much and had too little time.

    But remarkable people like Menges always have too

    little time. His death is not only a loss to scholarship but also

    a personal loss to all who knew him.

    The author is the editor of the "RFE/RL Iraq Report."

    01-10-99


    Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
    URL: http://www.rferl.org


    Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
    Back to Top
    Copyright © 1995-2023 HR-Net (Hellenic Resources Network). An HRI Project.
    All Rights Reserved.

    HTML by the HR-Net Group / Hellenic Resources Institute, Inc.
    rferl2html v1.01 run on Friday, 1 October 1999 - 16:33:13 UTC