|
|
|
Serbia Today, 96-10-29
Serbia Today
29 October 1996
CONTENTS
[01] OBJECTIVE - BETTER STANDARD AND PROSPERITY OF FR YUGOSLAVIA
[02] MILUTINOVIC VISITING ZAGREB TODAY
[03] FOUR FAIRS OPENING IN NOVI SAD
[04] ITALIANS VISITING THE YUGOSLAV CHAMBER OF ECONOMY
[05] COMMON GRAVE FOR VICTIMS AND ASSASSINS
[06] ISRAEL AND CROATIA
[07] THE SARAJEVO GOVERNMENT MUST CHOSE BETWEEN THE US AND IRAN
[08] SCANDAL AT THE TADIC TRIAL AT THE HAGUE
[09] HUMANITARIAN AID - LIFE THREATENING
[01] OBJECTIVE - BETTER STANDARD AND PROSPERITY OF FR YUGOSLAVIA
"The basic goals of the Yugoslav policy have remained the same after the
lifting of the sanctions; these are above all peace and stability in Europe,
equitable cooperation with other countries and full membership in international
institutions. Our objectives include the revitalization of the economy,
scientific and technological, democratic and general cultural development. And
the basic objective and our aspirations should be primarily directed towards the
improvement of the standard of living and the prosperity of Yugoslavia." This is
part of the statement made by President Zoran Lilic during a visit to the Srem
County yesterday. Stressing the belief that we will soon manage to catch up with
those that we wanted to side with even before, President Lilic said: "The Dayton
Agreement is primarily a result of the Yugoslav efforts and policy we have been
pursuing in the past several years. The lifting of the sanctions is the
consequence of the correct choice of strategy. It is also an acknowledgment of
all that FR Yugoslavia did to help preserve peace and create a more stable
situation in the area outside FRY." The future of the Republic of Srpska and of
the Moslem-Croatian Federation, i.e. Bosnia and Herzegovina - depends above all
on peace and stability in that region. Harmonious development and equal
treatment of both entities in the distribution of financial resources for the
economic reconstruction is also a prerequisite for renewing trust among them",
President Lilic said adding that this is the only path to the future for the
Republic of Srpska that would not have been created had it not been for the
Yugoslav support.
(Borba, October 29, 1996)
[02] MILUTINOVIC VISITING ZAGREB TODAY
Federal Foreign Minister Milan Milutinovic will visit Zagreb today upon an
invitation of his Croatian colleague - Mr. Mate Granic. The talks between the
two ministers will encompass the analysis of the current results in implementing
the Agreement on the normalization of Yugoslav-Croatian relations and
consultations on further efforts to enhance the bilateral relations.
(Borba, October 29, 1996)
[03] FOUR FAIRS OPENING IN NOVI SAD
Yesterday in Novi Sad four fairs have been opened: the 12th International
Building, Ceramics and Construction Material Fair, the 5th International
Specialized Tools and Machinery Fair "SIAMA", the 4th International Energy Fair,
and the 3rd International Welding Exhibition. Some 200 domestic and foreign
exhibitors will display tools and machinery, hardware and software systems,
measuring devices, welding accessories and tools, energy and fuel producing
installations, the latest in building technology. "Present contacts with foreign
partners have confirmed their interest regarding our economy. These partners are
encouraged by the fact that our trade regulations have been adequately
harmonized with the law and the practice in Europe. With the normalization of
our membership and presence in European and global trade and economic
organizations, the interest for collaborating with our companies will be fully
evident", said the Chairman of the Yugoslav Chamber of Economy Mr. Mihailo
Milojevic at the opening of these joint fairs.
(Ekspres, October 29, 1996)
[04] ITALIANS VISITING THE YUGOSLAV CHAMBER OF ECONOMY
Representatives of fifty Italian companies and as many Yugoslav
counterparts met yesterday at the Yugoslav Chamber of Economy to discuss future
cooperation. The Italian delegation was headed by Dr. Giuseppe Dacquano,
Commissioner of the Foreign Trade Institute, while Deputy Chairman of the
Yugoslav Chamber of Economy was his host. The objective of the visit was to
present investment projects of Yugoslav companies to Italian firms interested in
business cooperation. The Italians showed greatest interest for projects
involving food processing, furniture production, footwear and clothing,
construction materials, tourist facilities and railways. The head of the Italian
delegation particularly stressed that not only trade representatives came with
him to Yugoslavia but also executives of large firms interested in industrial
cooperation and investment, technology transfer and founding of joint ventures.
(Politika, October 29, 1996)
[05] COMMON GRAVE FOR VICTIMS AND ASSASSINS
Yesterday's burial in the town of Omis of the remains of Domobrans,
Ustashas, and Resistance fighters, accompanied by military honors and use of
state symbols, marks the beginning of the implementation of the idea of mixing
the bones of World War II victims and assassins. This was the first case of
concrete enactment of the "Croatian reconciliation" policy, advocating the
burial in common graves of Quisling troopers and Resistance fighters. This idea
already raised a wave of protests after President Tudjman made public his
intention to modify in this sense the Memorial grounds of the Jasenovac
extermination camp - run during WW II by Croatian Nazis - the Ustashas. Numerous
protests voiced by municipal and county chapters of the Croatian League of
Anti-Fascist Veterans, commonly stress: "The systematic and vandalistic
destruction of all monuments related to the Resistance and the Partisan forces,
accompanied by the sacrilegious exhumation of the dead, clearly indicates the
pathologic vanity and omnipotence of totalitarianism. We think that it is insane
to reconcile Fascism and Anti-Fascism, i.e. the fighters of the two sides."
Anti-Fascists veterans from Dalmatia stress the "shameful fact that the town of
Omis has been completely purged of all symbols and monuments related to the
national Liberation war", and believe that this "concern" for the remains of the
dead Partisans is but "the worst cynicism and hypocrisy". The Resistance
veterans have indicated that they are determined to ask protection and support
from the International WW II Veterans Federation, as well as from UNESCO, the
Holy See and human rights organizations.
(Politika, October 29, 1996)
[06] ISRAEL AND CROATIA
Last weekend, the Jerusalem Post (published in Tel Aviv) published an
article indicating the imminent establishing of diplomatic relations between
Israel and Croatia. The author quoted one Dan Baram, figuring as the "Croatian
honorary consul to Israel", who affirmed that President Tudjman allegedly
modified his book "Wastelands of Historical Reality" in which he minimized the
number of Jewish holocaust victims. The basic idea of the article is to indicate
the Croatian concern for the penetration of Islamic fundamentalism and its
determination to establish diplomatic relations with the Jewish state in order
to embellish its international community "image". However, in an interview for
the Belgrade daily "Vecernje Novosti", Mr. Zvi Ravner - head of the Eastern
Europe Department at the Israeli Foreign Ministry, categorically denied any
anticipation of diplomatic relations with Zagreb. More concretely, he affirmed
that pending further developments, diplomatic relations between Croatia and
Israel are out of the question. "We can not send our ambassadors to a country,
whose president has positions concerning the holocaust that can be interpreted
as anti-Semitic", remarked Mr. Zvi Ravner, and rejected affirmations that Mr.
Dan Baram (a businessman of Croatian origin) is a honorary or any other kind of
Croatian consul to Israel, for the "simple reason that Croatia has no official
representatives on any level in Israel".
(Vecernje Novosti, October 29, 1996)
[07] THE SARAJEVO GOVERNMENT MUST CHOSE BETWEEN THE US AND IRAN
"The Sarajevo government has to make a choice between Iran and the US - its
principal military partner", stated in Sarajevo President Clinton's Special
Envoy for military stabilization of the Balkans - Mr. James Perdue. In an
interview broadcast by the Sarajevo Television, he said that Bosnia must
interrupt its military ties with Teheran, or risk to loose major arms deliveries
from the US. Furthermore, the US insists on the withdrawal of Moslem-Croatian
Federation Defense Minister Hassan Chengic, accused by Washington of continuing
his close relations with Teheran. Should Sarajevo opt for Iran, the US will not
continue the cooperation - warned Mr. Perdue.
(Politika, October 29, 1996)
[08] SCANDAL AT THE TADIC TRIAL AT THE HAGUE
The key element of the indictment prepared by Hague Tribunal Prosecutor
Grant Nieman against Bosnian Serb Dusan Tadic - namely one of the protected
witnesses, referred to with a code name "witness L", publicly confessed that he
lied under oath. Dragan Opacic - "witness L", confessed that he had been
blackmailed by Sarajevo authorities, and that he has been specially trained by
the Moslem Police with a single final instruction before leaving for the Hague:
"Lie or you are dead". Infuriated by the scandal and the unexpected turn of
events, the Prosecutor has withdrawn all charges against Tadic concerning the
prison camp Trnopolje, where Tadic allegedly committed crimes according to
Opacic's testimony. Although charges for other crimes have not been dropped,
observers and analysts remark that this scandal might generate "immeasurable
damages" to the reputation and the credibility of the Hague tribunal itself. The
seriousness and the unpleasantness of the situation is illustrated by the fact
that Prosecutor Nieman anticipated that he will not desist at this point. "The
accusations against the Bosnian government are highly indicative and serious,
and they go far beyond the Tadic case framework. They will be thoroughly
investigated because they jeopardize the existence of the tribunal and the
international community efforts to bring criminals to justice", said Mr. Nieman.
(Ekspres, October 29, 1996)
[09] HUMANITARIAN AID - LIFE THREATENING
A news program called "Document 2" broadcast last week by the Norwegian
network TV2 revealed a scandalous truth. Reporters Gerfard Helskog and Terie
Olsen spoke openly about the criminal actions of Norwegian pharmaceutical forms
and humanitarian organizations that supplied medical rejects to the needy in
Bosnia. Thus they profited in two ways - they secured tax alleviation and got
rid of tons of useless medicines that they would have to pay to destroy. Having
visited Bosnia, the two reporters personally witnessed that the people of Mostar
have received 200 tons of medicinal rejects brought there as humanitarian aid.
They stressed that slimming products, mouthwash, 50 year old creams, useless
glasses, an x-ray machine dating back to the 60's, are just some of the most
drastic examples of cynical humanitarian shipments destined to people that are
hungry and freezing. One of the reporters stressed that such charity is nothing
but ruthless brutality. Bosnia can't dispose of the junk because it would have
to by expensive western-made incinerators, nor can it be sent back to the
donors. The TV program indicates that Norwegians are not the sole suppliers of
medicinal junk, because similar "donations" have been sent from Germany, France
and England.
(Vecernje Novosti, October 29, 1996)
|
