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MILS NEWS 96-09-03Macedonian Information Liaison Service Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: "Macedonian Information Liaison Service" <[email protected]>CONTENTS
MILS SUPPLEMENTMILS NEWSSkopje, 03 September, 1996[01] MACEDONIA EXPECTS RUSSIAN ASSISTANCE FOR THE EXTENSION OF UNPREDEP MANDATEThe Republic of Macedonia expects to be fully supported by the Russian Federation in the request for the mandate of UNPREDEP to be extended and in the efforts of Macedonia to become a non-constant member of the UN Security Council. According to an announcement of Macedonian Foreign Ministry, this was said at a meeting between Macedonian Head of Diplomacy Ljubomir Frchkovski and Charge D' Affaires Ambassador of the Russian Federation in Macedonia Yuri Petrovic Trushin yesterday. During the talks the two officials had paid a great attention to the need for a cooperation in some international initiatives. The bilateral economic cooperation had also been discussed, and was said that the already agreed on and harmonized treaties should be signed as soon as possible.[02] YUGOSLAV PRIME MINISTER KONTIC IN MACEDONIA TODAYFollowing the invitation of Macedonian Prime Minister Branko Crvenkovski, his Yugoslav counterpart Radoje Kontic should arrive for a two-days visit to Macedonia today. Local media reported that he would be accompanied by a many ministers and entrepreneurs from FRY, and during their stay several agreements on economic cooperation and on regulation of bilateral connections should be signed, such as: agreements on road, railway and air transport, on investment protection, and on avoiding of double taxation.During his visit, FR Yugoslav Prime Minister Kontic will have meetings with his host, Prime Minister of Macedonia Branko Crvenkovski, with Macedonian President Kiro Gligorov and Parliament President Tito Petkovski. Meanwhile, Macedonian-Yugoslav Commission for Determining the Border Line held its first session yesterday in Belgrade and made the preparations for the establishing of the border line between the two countries. [03] YUGOSLAVIA CONCERNED ABOUT NEGOTIATIONS FOR FORMER SFRY SUCCESSIONAgency 'Makpress' reported an information of Yugoslav 'Beta' agency according to which the Yugoslav Commission for Succession had sent a letter to the international mediator for succession issues, Sir Arthur Wots, expressing concern for the destiny of the negotiations. The letter, sent before the new round of negotiations on succession, read that Wots's Memorandum for Understanding had contained such shortages that forced Yugoslav party to make their own document and send it to Wots. The Commission had sent him comments with remarks to his Draft Memorandum, describing it as returning to the start of the unsuccessful negotiations that were previously going on under protection of the former Secretariat of the Working Group for Succession Issues. The letter also read that the Memorandum was based on the suggestions of the Badenteur's Commission, which concluded that SFRY had dissolved in 1992, i.e. that the republics now independent had not made a secession.The next negotiations round on succession of former SFRY is scheduled for 5 and 6 September, 1996 in Brussels, when Wots should negotiate with each delegation of former Yugoslav republics separately in order to find a common basis for the future agreement. [04] SIMITIS: 'NEGOTIATIONS WILL END IN FAVOUR OF ATHENS''Negotiations with Skopje will continue and will end in favour of Athens,' Greek Prime Minister and leader of PASOK Costas Simitis had stated yesterday, officially starting the pre-electoral campaign for the early parliamentarian elections, scheduled for 22 September. In the interview for 'Elefterotipia', Simitis said Greece had started the negotiations in New York with a good will and on the basis of its well-known stands. To the question what he was going to do about 'the blockade of Skopje issue, despite the optimism expressed during the last few months', Greek Premier said, as 'Makfax' agency reported, that the mistakes made in the period between 1990-1993 had been the reason for coming into a dead end, which the Government of PASOK had been trying to overcome during the last three years. 'The Interim Accord did bring some positive results. With it, 'Skopje' had changed its national flag and gave up the irredentistic and expansionistic politics towards Greece and recognized the border,' said Simitis for 'Elefterotipia'.[05] IMPROVEMENT OF MACEDONIAN-GREEK COOPERATION DISCUSSEDInternal Affairs Minister of the Republic of Macedonia Tomislav Chokrevski had a meeting yesterday with the Head of Greek Liaison Office in Skopje Alexandros Mallias. Macedonian radio reported that the two officials had talked about the bilateral cooperation in the filed of international crime, drugs and terrorism.Alexandros Mallias also had a meeting with Macedonian Minister for Culture Slobodan Unkovski and they agreed on a realisation of some cultural events and initiatives in the forthcoming period. Both of them expressed an interest in improving and expanding of the cultural cooperation between the two neighbouring countries. [06] FAREWELL VISITS OF THE AMBASSADOR OF HOLLANDPresident of the Republic of Macedonia Kiro Gligorov yesterday received the Ambassador of Holland to Macedonia Gerhard van Pallandt in a farewell visit. The relations between Macedonia and Holland were positively estimated, as well as the bilateral cooperation within the European integrations. According to Macedonian media, President Gligorov stressed the contribution of the first Dutch Ambassador to Macedonia for the fruitful bilateral cooperation.Ambassador Pallandt paid farewell visits to the Prime Minister Crvenkovski and to the Foreign Minister Ljubomir Frchkovski, as well. [07] POSSIBLE OPENING OF MACEDONIAN EMBASSY IN NEW ZEALAND'The Government of New Zealand would not mind if the Republic of Macedonia opens an Embassy in Wellington in order to improve the relations between the two countries,' a high official of the New Zealand Foreign Ministry stated for the Radio program in Macedonian in Pert, west Australia. According to Macedonian Radio, it was also said that over 60 applications for emigrant visas a year are submitted to the Embassy of New Zealand in Bonn, and that about 17 of them are rejected, as that is the average number of those who do not fulfill the strict criteria for settling in New Zealand.[08] MACEDONIAN TRADE EXCHANGE WITH FOREIGN COUNTRIESThe mostly exported Macedonian products in the first half of 1996 were tobacco, cigarettes, wine and shoes, A-1 Television reported yesterday. The mostly imported ones are the oil, small cars, zinc and telephone machines. Most of Macedonian products were imported by EU member countries and former Yugoslav republics, while Macedonia had imported mostly from EU member countries, and from Central and Eastern European countries. Macedonian export had reduced most to Bulgaria, Russia, Ukraine and Italy. The total worth of exchange Macedonia had with foreign countries in the first six months of this year was $1,207 million, which brought a deficit of $311 million, a record since the independence of Macedonia.[09] DRAFT LAWS ON LEGAL PROCEDURE AND ELECTORAL CAMPAIGN ACCEPTEDAt its session yesterday, Macedonian Government accepted the Draft Law on Legal Procedure, which determines the rules of court procedures. The announcement of the Secretariat for Information said the Law consisted of four parts with 478 Articles, and it was a super-structuring of the legal system in Macedonia, as it respects the newly established legislation and protects the rights, freedom and interests of the citizens involved in disputes.At the session, the Draft Law on Electoral Campaign was also accepted, by which the campaigns for Presidential, parliamentarian and local elections were regulated. It determines the rules of behaviour of the candidates, political parties, groups of citizens who nominating a candidate and of the media. The norms established provide an equal treatment of political parties in the media and respect the different opinions, said the announcement. The Government also decided conditions to be set for the construction of a long-distance power line on the location between Samokov and Makedonski Brod. [10] POPOVSKI: 'SUGGESTIONS OF THE OPPOSITION ACCEPTED'Macedonian Parliament should hold its 51st session today, on which Agenda are: several laws from the monetary field, the ratification of the Macedonian-Slovenian Agreement on Free Trade and the Draft Law on the City of Skopje. Yesterday, several Commissions had their meetings yesterday discussing these issues and the Law on Local Elections, which is put on the Agenda of the 52nd Parliament session, scheduled for Wednesday. The Commissions for Legislation and for Internal Policy supported the Law on Local Elections. Macedonian Minister for Justice Vlado Popovski underlined that almost 80% of the suggestions of the National Democratic Institute from Washington had been included in the Draft Law.According to him, the objections of the opposition parties submitted in written to the Ministry of Justice had been also accepted. Popovski emphasized that remarks of VMRO- DPMNE, Democratic Party and Liberal Party had been included. [11] PRISTINE PAPER ACCUSED MACEDONIAN GOVERNMENTAgency 'Makpress reported that Pristine paper 'Bujku' in Albanian language read recently that processes intended against Albanians were continuing in Macedonia and that Macedonian Government was 'warming up' the situation about the 'Tetovo university', instead of 'calming it down'. Further on, "Bujku' read that 'this regime was continuing the 'storms' by bringing charges against 11 Albanians who had participated in the recent meeting in Tetovo, accusing them of violating the public order and of using the Albanian flag'. According to the paper, 'such accusations were a characteristic of the totalitarian regimes, as well as of the remaining of the communist ones'. It continued with the estimations that 'the demonstration of discontent with their bureaucracy by Macedonians is considered a human right'.'Bujku' supported it with the following: 'Those who were defending the 'Tetovo university' on peaceful protest meetings were brought charges against, while Macedonian authorities evaluated the expressed hostility by Macedonian students towards Albanians at the meeting in Skopje as free expressing of dissatisfaction of the students'. The paper concluded that 'unfortunately, all of that was happening in front of representatives of OSCE and foreign Embassies in Macedonia'. [12] NORMALIZATION OF EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM IN KOSOVO AGREEDAfter seven years of boycott of Serbian schools in Kosovo by Albanians, Serbian President Miloshevic and the leader of the Democratic Alliance of Kosovo Ibrahim Rugova yesterday signed an Agreement on Normalization of the Educational System for Albanian pupils. Media reported that the agreement should bring back Albanian pupils and professors to schools, which they had left in 1989 and began to go to alternative 'schools' in Albanians seated in their homes. Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Marjanovic stated that his Government had estimated this Agreement a major step forward, which would prevent Albanian children from suffering the negative consequences of political differences.[13] BOSNIAN REFUGEES IN MACEDONIA VOTEDDuring the elections that were organized in the last few days at 25 municipalities of Macedonia and in three camps for Bosnian refugees, 80% of the registered 1,055 voters (of the total number of 5,000 refugees) had voted. The ballots had already been sent to Saraevo, by which these Bosnian citizens were given the possibility to participate in the first elections after the war. Macedonian radio reported that was announced by the OSCE Chief of Mission for Bosnian Refugees in Macedonia and Albania and their Participation in elections, Michael Barton.MILS SUPPLEMENT[14] 'Pre-Trial Confinement - Farewell to a Legal State'('Dnevnik', 31 August, 1996)'Issues recently presented by the media regarding the Draft Law on Legal Procedure, especially the introduction of the 'pre-trial confinement', is simply preparing the public to accept the violation of the Constitution in advance,' Ignat Panchevski, a lawyer from Skopje, stated for 'Dnevnik'. He divided the arguments presented in favour of this claim into two groups. The first are essential and refer directly to the basic principle of the legal procedure, which is the presumption of innocence. The introducing of 'pre-trial confinement' violates the principle that everybody is innocent until otherwise is proved. Pre-trial confinement is a measure which provides the presence of the suspected in the investigation and is not a punishment. The imprisonment is a sanction declared only by a verdict and only if the defendant is proved guilty. 'Pre-trial confinement is definitely a precedent. We have convicted the defendant without any evidence supplied,' Panchevski said, adding that: 'The term is not short, on the contrary, it is long. Stay in prison for nine minutes only and you will easily believe in that. The state should definitely 'clear the garbage in front of its door'. Meri Mladenovska, a lawyer, said: 'There are about 300 people imprisoned prior to a trial in Macedonia. Only twenty of them have been accused of major crimes, for whom one might say that more time is necessary to obtain the evidence. But, pre-trial confinement is applied for minor crimes, as well. There is a great number of possibilities for people to be manipulated. Noone can be sure that he would avoid a half-year imprisonment for a minor theft.' 'The state has still not examined all the possibilities which would lead to a conclusion that the 90 days term, established by the Constitution, is too short. The procedures are unnecessarily long, for which the courts themselves are to be blamed. Two months can pass from one to another appearance in court. The delivery departments in courts more often do not work than they do work. Court Expert Institute has a too small number of personnel and can not meet all the needs of courts. The police very often supplies the evidence after criminal charges are brought,' Snezana Angelkovic, a lawyer from Skopje, said. The other argument is of a formal and principle aspect. Pre- trial confinement is not included in the Material-Crime Law, while it is included in that on Legal Procedure with all its details. 'This is an illogical matter. Each student of law knows that such a thing can not be allowed. If the Constitution sets the pre-trial confinement term of 90 days, it must not be changed with inventing new names for the same thing. It might suit the lawyers, but the end will be no good for anybody,' Aleksandar Bojkov, a young lawyer from Skopje, said. The way the Draft Law had been prepared proves that it is unclear. 'Dnevnik' unofficially found out that after the 'bargaining' among the experts engaged by the Government to deal with the 'confinement', the final result of 6:5 had been imposed by a pressure, which resulted in the current Draft Law. The same sources told us that this is a solution which should compensate for the alleged not precisely stated term in the Constitution. Will Pandora's Box of disrespecting the Constitution be fully opened with the passing of the Law on Legal Procedure? 'It is obvious that the Constitution is violated. The eventual passing of this Law by the Parliament will be a beginning of our farewell to the legal state,' Panchevski said categorically. (end)mils news 03 September, 1996Macedonian Information Liaison Service Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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