RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 3, No. 216, 99-11-05

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RFE/RL NEWSLINE

Vol. 3, No. 216, 5 November 1999

CONTENTS

[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA

[01] NEW ARMENIAN CATHOLICOS INAUGURATED

[02] ARMENIAN PRESIDENT PRESENTS NEW PREMIER TO CABINET

[03] AZERBAIJANI OPPOSITION VOWS TO REVIVE NATIONAL RESISTANCE

[04] AZERBAIJAN VOICES OBJECTIONS TO RUSSIAN VISA PROPOSAL...

[05] ...WHILE GEORGIA SEES ADVANTAGES

[06] GEORGIAN PRESIDENT DECLARES A NEW ANTI-CORRUPTION CRACKDOWN

[07] KAZAKHSTAN'S PRESIDENT HOLDS OUT OLIVE BRANCH TO

[08] ...WHILE OPPOSITIONISTS CALL FOR NEW ELECTIONS

[09] BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT WRAPS UP VISIT TO KAZAKHSTAN

[10] KAZAKHSTAN SENDS MEDICS TO SITE OF PROTON ROCKET CRASH

[11] KYRGYZ FOREIGN MINISTER ENDS VISIT TO IRAN

[12] IMF DISCUSSES TERMS FOR NEW LOAN TRANCHE FOR TAJIKISTAN

[13] TURKMENISTAN'S CENTRAL BANK TO MAINTAIN TIGHT MONETARY

[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

[14] U.S., EU TO COORDINATE APPROACH TO YUGOSLAVIA

[15] EU OFFICIALS CALL FOR LIFTING OF SANCTIONS ON YUGOSLAVIA

[16] ALBRIGHT: U.S. HAS INTEREST IN MONTENEGRO'S SECURITY

[17] MONTENEGRIN PREMIER MEETS YUGOSLAV CHIEF OF STAFF

[18] SERBIAN OFFICIALS SAY MONTENEGRO'S CURRENCY CHANGE A NATO

[19] ...REJECT U.S. PLEDGE TO LIFT SANCTIONS FOR ELECTIONS

[20] POVERTY ON THE RISE IN YUG0SLAVIA

[21] NEW ORGANIZATION PAYS FINE FOR SERBIAN EDITOR

[22] STUDIO-B SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH BANJA LUKA STATION

[23] U.S. ASKS ISRAEL TO STOP BROADCASTING SERBIAN TV

[24] PETRITSCH DISAPPOINTED WITH FAILURE TO SECURE BORDER

[25] THREE PEOPLE SENTENCED IN MOSTAR CAR BOMB ATTACK

[26] DEL PONTE RAPS CROATIA FOR NOT COOPERATING WITH WAR CRIMES

[27] POLL: MOST CROATS SAY TUDJMAN SHOULD RESIGN FOR HEALTH

[28] OPPOSITION DEMONSTRATION HELD IN TIRANA

[29] ROMANIAN STUDENTS RENEW PROTESTS

[30] HISTORY TEXTBOOK SCANDAL TO BE DEBATED BY ROMANIAN

[31] MOLDOVAN PARLIAMENT AMENDS BUDGET

[32] BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT MANDATES GOVERNMENT TO NEGOTIATE

[33] BALKAN LEADERS URGE INVESTMENTS

[C] END NOTE

[34] RADIO LIBERTY'S PETER DORNAN

[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA

[01] NEW ARMENIAN CATHOLICOS INAUGURATED

Nersisian, who was elected on 27 October to head the Armenian

Apostolic Church, was inaugurated as 132nd catholicos in

Echmiadzin on 4 November in the presence of senior clerics

and members of the Armenian leadership, RFE/RL's Yerevan

bureau reported. The former Archbishop of Armenia's largest

diocese vowed during the ceremony to intensify cooperation

between the Church and state. He also prayed that "the Lord

keep the Armenian nation united and the state unshakeable,"

according to Noyan Tapan. LF

[02] ARMENIAN PRESIDENT PRESENTS NEW PREMIER TO CABINET

Kocharian on 4 November presented newly appointed Premier

Aram Sargsian to acting ministers, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau

reported. Sargsian is expected to name his new cabinet next

week. Kocharian told journalists that most current ministers

will retain their posts. LF

[03] AZERBAIJANI OPPOSITION VOWS TO REVIVE NATIONAL RESISTANCE

In a joint statement issued on 3 November, the

leaders of the opposition Azerbaijan Popular Front, Musavat,

Azerbaijan National Independence, and Azerbaijan Democratic

Parties announced the establishment of a National Resistance

Movement that will oppose what they termed the "defeatist"

policy of the Azerbaijani leadership in conducting

negotiations on a settlement of the Karabakh conflict, Turan

reported. The signatories called for immediate compliance

with four 1993 UN Security Council resolutions calling for

the withdrawal of Armenian forces from occupied districts of

Azerbaijan. They also demanded that the Azerbaijani

leadership make public details of the ongoing peace

negotiations. A similar national resistance movement was

created following the signing of a ceasefire agreement in

1994 (see "RFE/RL Caucasus Report," Vol. 2, No. 42, 21

October 1999). LF

[04] AZERBAIJAN VOICES OBJECTIONS TO RUSSIAN VISA PROPOSAL...

on 4 November that "it is hard to see the link between the

Russian military action in Chechnya and the introduction of a

visa regime on the border with Azerbaijan," Reuters reported.

Azimov added that "Azerbaijan has active economic,

humanitarian and cultural ties with Russia, and the

introduction of a visa regime would undoubtedly hurt those

contacts." Presidential staff official Novruz Mamedov told

ITAR-TASS he considers the imposition of a visa regime

unjustified and at variance with the emphasis laid on

integration between CIS member states. During a cabinet

meeting earlier that day, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir

Putin had called for the introduction of visas for citizens

of Azerbaijan and Georgia entering the Russian Federation,

and Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Vladimir Rakhmanin

said on 4 November that a note has been sent to Georgia

proposing talks on the issue, according to ITAR-TASS. LF

[05] ...WHILE GEORGIA SEES ADVANTAGES

Irakli Menagharishvili said on 4 November in Strasbourg that

he considers the imposition of a visa requirement for persons

wishing to cross the Russian-Georgian frontier unnecessary

but noted that Tbilisi is ready to discuss the issue with

Moscow, Caucasus Press reported. Menagharishvili added that

the requirement should apply not only to Georgia's border

with Chechnya but along the entire extent of its frontier

with the Russian Federation, including Abkhazia. Russian

Border Guard commander Lieutenant-General Valerii Chkheidze

said the requirement "will help restore order" at the

Russian-Georgian border and will serve as a reminder to

Russia that Georgia is an independent state. But Abkhaz

Prosecutor-General Anri Djergenia said he considers the

requirement "unacceptable," explaining that it will hinder

the entry into Russia of Abkhaz wishing to sell agricultural

produce and who depend on that trade as their sole source of

income. LF

[06] GEORGIAN PRESIDENT DECLARES A NEW ANTI-CORRUPTION CRACKDOWN

Shevardnadze gave the heads of government departments and

regional administrations one month to draft plans for

stamping out corruption and the shadow economy, ITAR-TASS and

AP reported. Economics Minister Vladimir Papava estimated

that the shadow economy currently accounts for 40 percent of

the country's economic activity, compared with up to 80

percent in the early 1990s. Shevardnadze had earlier declared

1999 a year of active struggle against corruption. LF

[07] KAZAKHSTAN'S PRESIDENT HOLDS OUT OLIVE BRANCH TO

Nursultan Nazarbaev on 4 November told state-

owned Khabar TV, which is run by his daughter, that the OSCE

employs "double standards" in its evaluation of the level of

democracy in various countries, Interfax reported. The OSCE

evaluated the conduct of the 10 and 24 October elections to

the lower chamber of the parliament as falling short of OSCE

commitments to free, fair, and accountable elections (see

"RFE/RL Newsline," 26 October 199). But Nazarbaev added that

he "does not want to divide society into winners and losers"

after that poll. The Otan party, which unequivocally backs

him, won a parliamentary majority in the elections. Nazarbaev

said he is ready to cooperate with the opposition and that he

would greet the return to Kazakhstan of former Premier

Akezhan Kazhegeldin. Nazarbaev added that he does not think

Kazhegeldin should be punished for "errors" made during the

privatization process. LF

[08] ...WHILE OPPOSITIONISTS CALL FOR NEW ELECTIONS

Kazhegeldin's Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan told

journalists in Almaty on 4 November that opposition forces

should unite to pressure the country's leadership into

admitting that the outcome of the October parliamentary poll

was falsified, RFE/RL's correspondent in the former capital

reported. Ghaziz Aldamzharov, who is chairman of the party's

executive committee and who failed in his election bid,

argued that new parliamentary elections should be held next

year and be followed by a presidential poll. LF

[09] BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT WRAPS UP VISIT TO KAZAKHSTAN

Lukashenka ended a two-day official visit to Kazakhstan on 4

November, having signed with his host, President Nazarbaev, a

10-year economic cooperation agreement and a cultural

agreement, Interfax reported. Lukashenka had told journalists

on his arrival the previous day that a "large number" of

agreements would be signed during his visit. Lukashenka

reportedly expressed interest during his talks with Nazarbaev

in buying crude oil and other minerals from Kazakhstan, while

Nazarbaev said his country is ready to export grain to

Belarus and buy tractors produced there. Nazarbaev also

commented that Kazakhstan is prepared to "cooperate" with the

envisaged Russia-Belarus union. On arriving, Lukashenka had

expressed optimism that if that union materializes, both

Kazakhstan and Ukraine will join it. He implied that such a

fusion could form the nucleus of the Eurasian Union, for

which Nazarbaev has been lobbying since 1994. LF

[10] KAZAKHSTAN SENDS MEDICS TO SITE OF PROTON ROCKET CRASH

large group of medical personnel has been sent to the region

of central Kazakhstan affected by the 27 October explosion of

a Russian proton rocket shortly after blastoff from the

Baikonur cosmodrome, RFE/RL's Almaty correspondent reported.

Those medical personnel will screen all local residents

before the end of November. LF

[11] KYRGYZ FOREIGN MINISTER ENDS VISIT TO IRAN

Imanaliev returned to Bishkek on 3 November following a two-

day visit to Tehran, RFE/RL's bureau in the Kyrgyz capital

reported. Imanaliev met with President Mohammad Khatami,

Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi and Mejlis speaker Ali Akbar

Nateq- Nouri and discussed bilateral relations and Kyrgyz

President Askar Akaev's upcoming visit to Iran. LF

[12] IMF DISCUSSES TERMS FOR NEW LOAN TRANCHE FOR TAJIKISTAN

Second European Department Director John Odling-Smee held

talks in Dushanbe on 4 November with President Imomali

Rakhmonov on the possibility of further IMF support for the

Tajik economy, Asia Plus- Blitz reported. Rakhmonov said such

help is needed to reduce the country's budget deficit and

strengthen the balance of payments. Odling-Smee said that the

outcome of the upcoming elections and progress in

implementing political reform will "only partially" influence

the bank's decision on releasing the loan tranche, according

to Interfax. Other IMF officials said the decision on doing

so will be taken early next year. LF

[13] TURKMENISTAN'S CENTRAL BANK TO MAINTAIN TIGHT MONETARY

An unnamed Central Bank official told Interfax in

Dushanbe on 4 November that in the coming years the bank will

abide by its moderately strict monetary policy with the aim

of reducing annual inflation to 6 percent by 2005 and to 4

percent by 2010 and ultimately making the country's currency

fully convertible. Inflation for 1999 is estimated at 40

percent, double the figure for 1998. President Saparmurat

Niyazov had harshly criticized the work of the Central Bank

in September (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 21 September 1999). LF

[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

[14] U.S., EU TO COORDINATE APPROACH TO YUGOSLAVIA

of State Madeleine Albright and German Foreign Minister

Joschka Fischer agreed in Washington on 4 November that the

U.S. and the EU will coordinate their policies toward

Yugoslavia, Reuters reported. The two sides said U.S. and EU

officials will hold meetings in the coming weeks to work out

a coordinated strategy. While German officials said the

meetings will focus on deciding whether to lift the sanctions

on Yugoslavia before or after elections in Serbia, U.S.

officials said the meetings will focus merely on creating

"common objectives." Fischer stressed that the U.S. and

Germany see "eye to eye" on the need to remove Yugoslav

President Slobodan Milosevic from power. VG

[15] EU OFFICIALS CALL FOR LIFTING OF SANCTIONS ON YUGOSLAVIA

lifting of sanctions against Yugoslavia as a means of easing

the burden on average Serbs and supporting the opposition. On

3 November, Hans Koschnik, the German emissary to Bosnia-

Herzegovina, said the sanctions should be lifted and replaced

with "intensive cooperation" with the Serbian opposition,

"Die Woche" reported. Koschnik's call was supported by

officials in the Social Democratic and Christian Democratic

parties of Germany. On 4 November, French Foreign Minister

Hubert Vedrine sent a message to his EU colleagues in which

he called for gradual lifting of those sanctions that affect

average Serbs. At the same time, Vedrine said the sanctions

that "directly touch upon the leaders of the regime in

Belgrade" should be maintained and even tightened. VG

[16] ALBRIGHT: U.S. HAS INTEREST IN MONTENEGRO'S SECURITY

Secretary of State Albright on 4 November said the U.S. has

an "important interest" in the security of the Balkans,

"including that of Montenegro," Reuters reported. A senior

State Department official said the remark was a "carefully

worded" and "direct message" to the Belgrade leadership.

Albright also said the U.S. will seek new ways to offer

economic aid to Montenegro without propping up the regime in

Belgrade. On official suggested that the U.S. might allow

flights to and from Montenegro, but bypassing Serbia. VG

[17] MONTENEGRIN PREMIER MEETS YUGOSLAV CHIEF OF STAFF

Vujanovic on 4 November said he met with Yugoslav Chief of

Staff Dragoljub Ojdanic in order to "establish an environment

in which any incident will be avoided," Reuters reported. The

meeting took place that day, despite Montenegrin President

Milo Djukanovic's pledge that he will hand over any war

criminal who happens to be on Montenegrin territory to the

Hague based war crimes tribunal. The tribunal indicted

Ojdanic for war crimes last May. Djukanovic said the arrest

of war criminals such as Ojdanic is "linked to a high degree

of risk, risk that the international community is cautioning

Montenegro not to take." In Washington, State Department

spokesman James Rubin expressed sympathy for Djukanovic's

position, indicating that the Montenegrin leader is not "free

to act" as he would like and that the U.S. believes his

intention to cooperate with the war crimes tribunal is

"genuine." VG

[18] SERBIAN OFFICIALS SAY MONTENEGRO'S CURRENCY CHANGE A NATO

Ivan Dacic, the spokesman for Milosevic's Socialist

Party, on 4 November described Montenegro's new currency

policy as a "move carried out by NATO which is using this

puppet creation only as a means to an end." Serbian Radical

Party head Vojislav Seselj said Montenegro's leadership is

heading for "all-out secession," which he called "a very

dangerous direction." Meanwhile, the National Bank of

Yugoslavia announced that it has halted transfers of funds to

firms in Montenegro from accounts of firms in Serbia. The

bank said it took the measure to prevent the "uncontrolled

issue of money in the territory of Montenegro," Beta

reported. VG

[19] ...REJECT U.S. PLEDGE TO LIFT SANCTIONS FOR ELECTIONS

dismissed the recent U.S. pledge to lift most sanctions in

exchange for free and fair elections as an attempt by U.S.

Secretary of State Albright to ensure that "her bootlickers

will win" the vote. He described the strategy as "violence."

The official Yugoslav news agency Tanjug described the U.S.

offer as "new tactics and tricks" being prepared by the

Clinton administration. VG

[20] POVERTY ON THE RISE IN YUG0SLAVIA

coordinator Steve Allen on 4 November said poverty has nearly

doubled in Yugoslavia over the past year. Allen said the

percentage of the population considered to be living in

poverty increased from 33 percent in July 1998 to 63 percent

in September 1999. The poverty level includes all people who

have a monthly income equivalent to $60 or less. The figures

do not include Kosova. Allen also noted that Yugoslavia's

national health insurance fund is on the verge of collapse.

VG

[21] NEW ORGANIZATION PAYS FINE FOR SERBIAN EDITOR

organization calling itself Team 29 has paid the fine that

Cedomir Jovanovic received for violating the media law in

Yugoslavia (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 October 1999),

according to a Beta report monitored by the BBC. Jovanovic is

the editor of the opposition Alliance for Change's

publication "Promene." In a statement to the press, Team 29

pledged to "continue to assist in the struggle for a

democratic Serbia by the means which the regime of Slobodan

Milosevic allows." The Alliance for Change told Beta it is

not familiar with the new organization. VG

[22] STUDIO-B SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH BANJA LUKA STATION

independent Studio-B radio and television station has signed

an agreement with independent Banja Luka Radio-TV to share

news and cultural broadcasts, Studio-B reported on 4

November. Meanwhile, Studio-B director Dragan Kojadinovic

said some of his station's programs are still being jammed in

Serbia. VG

[23] U.S. ASKS ISRAEL TO STOP BROADCASTING SERBIAN TV

Spacecom company, which operates the Amos-1 satellite, has

stopped allowing Serbian state television (RTS) to use its

satellite for broadcasting. That move comes after the U.S.

complained to Israel about the practice, AP reported. U.S.

Secretary of State Albright had asked Israeli Prime Minister

Ehud Barak at the recent Oslo summit to stop letting RTS use

the Israeli satellite for broadcasts, the newspaper "Yedioth

Ahronoth" reported. VG

[24] PETRITSCH DISAPPOINTED WITH FAILURE TO SECURE BORDER

The international community's high representative

in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Wolfgang Petritsch, on 4 November said

he is disappointed over the failure of the joint presidency

of Bosnia to adopt a draft law on a multiethnic state border

service, Reuters reported. Bosnian Muslim President Alija

Izetbegovic said he supported the proposal but that his

Croatian and Serbian counterparts disagreed on how wide the

border under control of the state service should be. The

proposal called for the border belt to be 30 kilometers wide.

Last week, the head of the UN international police force in

Bosnia, Detlef Buwitt, said Petritsch will impose a law if

Bosnia fails to adopt one by December. VG

[25] THREE PEOPLE SENTENCED IN MOSTAR CAR BOMB ATTACK

court handed down three foreign nationals prison sentences

ranging from five to eight years for their roles in planting

a car bomb that injured almost 50 people in Mostar in 1997,

ONASA reported on 3 November. The three men were also

sentenced to five years' expulsion from Bosnia following

their release. VG

[26] DEL PONTE RAPS CROATIA FOR NOT COOPERATING WITH WAR CRIMES

The chief prosecutor of the Hague-based war crimes

tribunal, Carla del Ponte, said on 4 November in Zagreb that

she is "very disappointed" that Croatia is not cooperating

fully with the tribunal. She was reacting to Croatia's

refusal to hand over documents regarding Zagreb's Flash and

Storm military operations in 1995. Del Ponte threatened to

"report Croatia's noncompliance" with the UN Security Council

unless it starts cooperating. Croatian Justice Minister

Zvonimir Separovic said Croatia believes the tribunal has no

jurisdiction over the operations, which he described as a

"legitimate liberation of our land." Del Ponte said she is

not questioning Croatia's right to carry out the operations.

She said the tribunal wants to investigate whether war crimes

were committed in the course of the operations, which sparked

a mass exodus of Serbs from Croatia. VG

[27] POLL: MOST CROATS SAY TUDJMAN SHOULD RESIGN FOR HEALTH

More than 60 percent of Croats say President Franjo

Tudjman should resign for health reasons, according to an

Media Metar poll cited by AP on 5 November. VG

[28] OPPOSITION DEMONSTRATION HELD IN TIRANA

Ilir Meta's cabinet outlined its priorities in the parliament

on 4 November, some 3,000 demonstrators gathered in Tirana's

main square to demand new elections, AP reported. Opposition

Democratic Party leader Sali Berisha addressed the crowd,

saying "new elections are the only way out of the deep crisis

this country is in." In the parliament, Meta said the new

government will focus on fighting corruption, stabilizing the

country, and improving public order. The Democratic Party

boycotted the session. VG

[29] ROMANIAN STUDENTS RENEW PROTESTS

took to the streets in Bucharest and other towns on 4

November to protest small grants and bad living conditions in

dormitories. Prime Minster Radu Vasile met with Daniel

Onisor, leader of the Students' League, and signed an

agreement stipulating that grants will be increased by 10

percent every month from January to May 2000 and by 50

percent in October 2000. But two student organizations from

Bucharest announced that the agreement does not meet their

minimum demands and that they will picket university

buildings and go on a strike as of 5 November, RFE/RL's

Bucharest bureau reported. MS

[30] HISTORY TEXTBOOK SCANDAL TO BE DEBATED BY ROMANIAN

Democratic Party and independent deputies joined

lawmakers from the nationalist Greater Romania Party and

Party of Romanian National Unity on 4 November to initiate a

motion for debate in the Chamber of Deputies of the dispute

over the "de-mythicized" history textbooks (see "RFE/RL

Newsline," 13 October 1999). The 55 deputies said in their

motion that by allowing these optional textbooks to be used

in classrooms, the Education Ministry condones "the gross

affront of Romania's historical past, the trivialization,

marginalization, and falsification of historical truth" and

thereby risks "the danger of losing our national identity,"

Romanian radio reported. MS

[31] MOLDOVAN PARLIAMENT AMENDS BUDGET

November approved the amendments to the 1999 budget that it

had rejected one week earlier, Infotag reported. The amended

budget increases the deficit from 383 to 583 million lei ($52

million) and proposes covering the shortfall by borrowing on

the international financial market, Infotag reported. Earlier

on 4 November, Prime Minister Ion Sturza told legislators

that they have 12 days to approve the amended budget and

government-proposed privatization laws. He said he and his

cabinet will resign if these changes are not approved. "The

government needs a vote of confidence or one of no

confidence. We are ready for any outcome," Reuters quoted him

as saying. MS

[32] BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT MANDATES GOVERNMENT TO NEGOTIATE

The parliament on 4 November voted 146 to

68 with five abstentions to mandate the government to

negotiate the early closure of the Kozloduy nuclear plant.

The legislators said that the government must seek EU

compensation for the closure, AP reported. The same day,

Guenter Verheugen, EU commissioner in charge of expansion,

told Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nadezhda Mihailova in The

Hague that Sofia is in an "excellent position" to begin

accession talks with the EU, BTA reported. Verheugen said

Bulgaria "fully meets political criteria" for EU membership

and has started the process of economic reform. MS

[33] BALKAN LEADERS URGE INVESTMENTS

November, the presidents of Bulgaria, Romania, and Greece

urged the implementation of the Balkan Stability Pact,

proposing that various projects be financed by international

financial institutions. In a joint declaration, Petar

Stoyanov, Emil Constantinescu, and Kostas Simitis pledged

that "their countries will contribute to the substantiation

[sic] of the Stability Pact." Simitis said Greece intends to

mobilize over the next five years $500 million from the

private sector to finance transport, energy, and

telecommunication projects in the region, Reuters and AP

reported. The three leaders urged the EU to raise funds to

help remove from the River Danube debris from bridges bombed

by NATO earlier this year. MS

[C] END NOTE

[34] RADIO LIBERTY'S PETER DORNAN

On All Saints Day (1 November), in Springfield in the

U.S. state of Pennsylvania, the former head of Radio

Liberty's Samizdat Unit, Peter Dornan, died of cancer at the

age of 76. He was the first editor of "Materialy Samizdata,"

a weekly Radio Liberty publication that became the biggest

collection of annotated documents on human rights violations

in the Soviet Union.

"Materialy Samizdata," originally created for internal

use only, was soon made available to external subscribers. It

became the main source of information for scholars and

journalists interested in the subject of human rights

violations in the USSR. It was also a key source on Soviet

dissidents' struggle for their individual, political, social,

national, and cultural rights.

Dornan joined Radio Liberty in 1956 as a research

analyst. He was instrumental in the creation of a samizdat

archive at Radio Liberty in 1968 and was its custodian until

1988, when he retired. He was also the author of the most

exhaustive study on Andrei Sakharov at the beginning of the

1970s (which was included in "Dissent in the USSR: Politics,

Ideology, and People," ed. Rudolf Tokes, Johns Hopkins

University Press). Thanks to Peter Dornan, samizdat documents

played a key role in Radio Liberty broadcasts.

Indeed, it was thanks to samizdat and the efforts of

Dornan that Radio Liberty's broadcasts became a real

"domestic" service, broadcasting to the Soviet Union

documents about and authored by people living inside the

country.

Dornan also acted as a talent scout for other

departments of Radio Liberty: it was on his initiative that

the current editor of "RFE/RL Newsline," who began her career

as a freelance translator of Georgian samizdat, was signed up

in 1980 by Radio Liberty Research.

The samizdat archive, comprising more than 5,000

documents, is now housed at the Central European University

in Budapest. Dornan recently donated his personal archive to

the Drew University Library in the U.S. state of New Jersey.

Mario Corti is acting director of RFE/RL's Russian Service.

05-11-99

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

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