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Serbia Today 96-06-04
Serbia Today
4 June 1996
CONTENTS
[01] REACTIONS TO THE GENEVA MEETING
[02] BASIC STANDS ADOPTED FOR THE TALKS WITH THE PARIS CLUB
[03] FOUNDATIONS LAID IN 1918
[04] RETURN TO THE MAINSTREAM SCHOOLS
[05] EUROPEAN CONDITIONS TO CROATIA
[06] REPUBLIC OF SRPSKA REQUESTS THE RELEASE OF SOME 2,300 SERBIAN PRISONERS
[07] IFOR OBSTRUCTS RELIGIOUS SERVICES
[01] REACTIONS TO THE GENEVA MEETING
Holding of the elections in Bosnia this year is the major task and the most vital item of the Dayton
Agreement and its overall implementation. This is being stated today in Washington in the first reactions to
the yesterday's meeting held in Geneva. The U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher who has reached in
Geneva an agreement with the President of Serbia Slobodan Milosevic, Croat President Franjo Tudjman
and the leader of the Bosnian Muslims Alija Izetbegovic, stated that he is expecting that over the next two
weeks Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe will announce the precise date of the elections,
but that the elections, anyway, will be held this year and within the foreseen term. One of the commentators
in Washington remarked that the postponement of the elections is Bosnia can occur only if the war is to
break out there again, which is not expected by anyone. The U.S. side is of the view, according to "The New
York Times", that holding of the elections is Bosnia is the major and the most vital step in further
implementation of the Dayton Agreement.
The Geneva meeting is qualified yesterday in London as a confirmation of the politics of reality and search
for effective solutions on the basis of the Bosnian reality, and not in the spirit of the media campaign and
individual interests.
The Brussels media are placing in the forefront the talks between President of Serbia Slobodan Milosevic
with the U.S. Secretary of State, with the view that the Yugoslav side has completely fulfilled all of its
obligations undertaken in Dayton.
The balance of the Geneva meeting is securing continuation of the implementation of the Dayton
Agreement and most of all of its crucial civil provisions, in which the implementation started facing more
and more serious crisis in the inter-ethnic relations, states the official Paris. The agreement on the respect of
the Dayton decision on holding of the general elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina, according to the views of
Paris, is a decisive factor for the Dayton project of construction of a single state structure in Bosnia-
Herzegovina. (Politika, June 4, 1996)
[02] BASIC STANDS ADOPTED FOR THE TALKS WITH THE PARIS CLUB
Federal Government has adopted yesterday basic stands for the preliminary talks between the
Yugoslav delegation and the representatives of the Paris Club. The talks which are to start today, are the
first contact between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the representatives of the Paris Club and the
beginning of preparations for the normalization of the financial relations between the FR of Yugoslavia and
the governments of the creditors. They are taking place at the same time as the activities of the FR of
Yugoslavia in the normalization of the relations with the International Monetary Fund and the other
financial institutions. (Borba, June 4, 1996)
[03] FOUNDATIONS LAID IN 1918
The insistence on the state continuity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in front of the
international community is justified and it should not be given up. This is the opinion of Dr. Gavro Perazic,
professor of the international law at the Podgorica University and member of the expert teams representing
the state in the negotiations and disputes before the international organizations. The main argument that the
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia should remain the state-successor is the togetherness of Serbia and
Montenegro, achieved through their common state which was created in 1918 by the two at that time
internationally recognized states. This state unity, these two republics have also confirmed in 1945 when
the second Yugoslavia was created, and this continuity they have preserved also in the year 1991 after the
disintegration of the SFR of Yugoslavia. Since the other republics of the SFRY have forcibly seceded,
Serbia and Montenegro have succeeded in preserving their state, and any dispute of this state would be its
unjust punishment. "We do not need to create a new state, to ask for its recognition, to draft new treaties,
and to again apply for membership in the international organizations", said Dr. Gavro Perazic. (Politika
ekspres, June 4, 1996)
[04] RETURN TO THE MAINSTREAM SCHOOLS
During his recent visit to Prishtina, British Ambassador in the FR of Yugoslavia, Ivor Roberts, had
talks with the chief of the Kosovo County, Aleksa Jokic and discussed the solution of the question of
education of pupils of the Albanian minority. Ambassador Roberts, it is reported, has said that in the
solution of the problem of Kosovo "the next step is the return of pupils of Albanian national minority into
the legal (mainstream) educational institutions". The school curriculum which is adopted is in force in the
entire territory of the Republic of Serbia and is being applied in all the schools and also with the members
of all the national minorities. It is only rejected by the pupils and students of the Albanian national minority
because their representatives, in the so-called 'government' bodies of the non-existent 'Kosovo republic'
have adopted 'their own' curriculum, which is very much different from the official one. This is also the
reason why all the attempts so far for the talks about education have failed. Over the last days, however,
there are many indications that the Albanian children are abandoning tuition in the basements and are
preparing to enroll in secondary schools and faculties with the diplomas and school certificates obtained
from the official authorities of Serbia. This is showing that many Albanian pupils did not voluntarily leave
schools and faculties in 1990, but that they have done so under pressure and threats of their political leaders.
It is especially important to say that children of many Albanian leaders, just those who were the loudest in
the demand for Albanians to abandon 'Serbian schools', were sent for schooling abroad. They are having in
their hands today the diplomas of the world universities, while their poor compatriots have received
diplomas from the non-existent 'republic of kosovo' or have ended up as smugglers and black-marketeers.
(Politika, June 4, 1996)
HUMANITARIAN AID MUST 'GO AFTER THE REFUGEES'
Republican Commissioner for Refugees Bratislava Morina had talks yesterday in Belgrade with
the coordinator of the Special Department of the UN High Commissariat for Refugees for Former
Yugoslavia, Rene van Ruen about the return of refugees and displaced persons to their homes in Bosnia and
Croatia and about the possibilities for integration of those who should decide to remain in Yugoslavia. Van
Ruen stressed, among others, that the question of the return of Serbs to Krajina at this moment is very
important and that the international forces in Eastern Slavonia will do everything possible during their
mandate to establish confidence between the Croat and Serbian population in this area. Morina stated the
stand of the Serbian side that humanitarian and other aid must "go after the refugees", i.e. that it should be
directed to places where the refugees are located. (Politika, June 4, 1996)
[05] EUROPEAN CONDITIONS TO CROATIA
Council of Europe will determine a list of five conditions pertaining to the development of
democracy and the respect of human rights which Croatia must fulfil in order to become member of this
organization, Reuters reports, quoting the spokesman of this organization. The list of conditions, with the
time schedule for their implementation, will be adopted today at the meeting of ambassadors of the
member-countries of this organization. The conditions, it is reported, include the cooperation of Croatia
with the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague, holding of free elections in Bosnia, especially in
Mostar, the return of Serbian refugees, freedom of media and the election of the opposition lord mayor of
the city of Zagreb. (Politika, June 4, 1996)
[06] REPUBLIC OF SRPSKA REQUESTS THE RELEASE OF SOME 2,300 SERBIAN PRISONERS
Representatives of the Republic of Srpska have requested yesterday in Banja Luka from the
Commander of the South-West IFOR Sector General Michael Jackson, to urgently intervene for the release
of some 2,300 Serbian soldiers and civilians detained in the area of the Croat-Muslim federation. According
to the provisions of the Dayton Agreement, they should have been released even in January. General
Jackson and the chief of the delegation of the International Red Cross in the Republic of Srpska, Pierre
Craenbil, were given the lists of Serbia civilians and soldiers who are still imprisoned. "It is clear that we
should do more", said General Jackson and underlined that greater efforts are needed by the international
community for this problem to be solved. (Vecernje novosti, June 4, 1996)
[07] IFOR OBSTRUCTS RELIGIOUS SERVICES
Members of the IFOR, from the ranks of the Spanish army, a few days ago, during the Orthodox
feast of Saint Trinity, were obstructing the religious service in the Monastery of Tvrdos near Trebinje and
were bothering the faithful and monks of this monastery. This was revealed by the Episcope of Zahumlje,
Herzegovina and Coastal Area, Atanasije Jevtic, sending on this occasion, a letter of protest to the
Command of the international forces. The Spaniards, says the letter, early in the morning have surrounded
with five armored transporter cars the monastery of Tvrdos which is the seat of this Eparchy. The
transporters were parked also in front of the very entrance into the monastery. This army has the habit of
passing at great speed with its armored cars, many times per day, by the Monastery and monastery
cemetery, even if at that time there is a religious service officiated in the monastery or a memorial service
held for the deceased. Episcope Atanasije Jevtic recalls that the same soldiers also on May 10 and 11, 1996
were obstructing the religious litany during the transport of remains of Saint Vasilije Ostroski to his
homeland in Herzegovina. "We do not know why, except if they wish to prove that they are the masters of
our monastery space and our peace in this ancient God's and man's sacred grounds", says Episcope
Atanasije is his letter to the Command of the international forces, and adds: "This is a painful recollection
for us of the times of Austrian, German and other occupations when the Monastery of Tvrdos and other our
Orthodox houses of worship were destroyed, just as the case was now when in this tragic war most of the
destruction was caused to our churches and monasteries". (Vecernje novosti, June 4, 1996)
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