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OMRI Daily Digest, Vol. 2, No. 131, 96-07-09
From: Open Media Research Institute <http://www.omri.cz>
Vol. 2, No. 131, 9 July 1996
CONTENTS
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] TRANSIT TRADE AGREEMENT IN CENTRAL ASIA.
[02] NEW KYRGYZ ECONOMIC PROGRAM.
[03] RUSSIAN TO BE AN OFFICIAL LANGUAGE IN KYRGYZSTAN.
[04] KARIMOV CALLS FOR POLITICAL REFORM IN UZBEKISTAN.
[05] INTER-TAJIK TALKS RESUME IN ASHGABAT.
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[06] OSCE MAY BAN BOSNIAN SERB PARTY FROM ELECTIONS.
[07] HAGUE TRIBUNAL WANTS ARREST OF KARADZIC, MLADIC.
[08] DID THE ALLIES KNOW ABOUT SREBRENICA ALL ALONG?
[09] SPANISH PRIME MINISTER VISITS MOSTAR.
[10] SERBIAN COURT CONVICTS WAR CRIMINAL.
[11] BELGRADE, ZAGREB WORK TO NORMALIZE RELATIONS.
[12] BULGARIAN BREAD CRISIS CROSSES THE DRINA?
[13] LIBERAL ALLIANCE SET UP IN ROMANIA.
[14] UPDATE ON BULGARIAN VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES.
[15] NO RUSSIAN MILITARY IN BULGARIA, GOVERNMENT SAYS.
[16] ALBANIAN SOCIALIST PARTY LEADER WANTS NEW PROGRAM.
[17] SOCIALIST PARTY SECRETARY-GENERAL RESIGNS.
[18] NINE SENTENCED TO DEATH IN TIRANA IN 1996.
[19] ROMANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER IN GREECE.
[A] TRANSCAUCASIA AND CENTRAL ASIA
[01] TRANSIT TRADE AGREEMENT IN CENTRAL ASIA.
After four days of talks between customs and immigration experts in Islamabad,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China and Pakistan signed a protocol on unified
customs procedures for the transit of goods between the four countries on 6
July, according to BBC monitoring of Radio Pakistan. The agreement may
facilitate the Central Asian countries' access to Pakistan's ports. -- Bhavna
Dave
[02] NEW KYRGYZ ECONOMIC PROGRAM.
The Kyrgyz government released a program outlining the economic development of
the country up to 2005, ITAR-TASS reported. The main aims are doubling GNP and
lowering the inflation rate to 8% from the current level of 50%, said Kyrgyz
Economy Minister Talaibek Koichumanov. The parliament needs to approve about
100 draft laws to support the government's economic program, Koichumanov said.
-- Bhavna Dave
[03] RUSSIAN TO BE AN OFFICIAL LANGUAGE IN KYRGYZSTAN.
The Constitutional Court of Kyrgyzstan has approved amendments to Article 5 of
the Constitution, thus granting Russian the status of an official language,
Nezavisimaya gazeta reported on 1 July. The article had defined Kyrgyz as
the state language, granting "equal rights" for the free development and
functioning of Russian and other languages, without conferring special
recognition upon Russian. Earlier this year, the Kyrgyz parliament approved a
proposal by President Askar Akayev that Russian be granted the status of an
official language to facilitate ties with the CIS countries and prevent the
emigration of Russian speakers. -- Bhavna Dave
[04] KARIMOV CALLS FOR POLITICAL REFORM IN UZBEKISTAN.
Following his June trips to Italy and the United States, Uzbek President Islam
Karimov stressed that the next task of his government is to institute reform
measures in the areas of human rights and individual freedoms, Narodnoe
slovo reported on 6 July. In a press conference on 5 July, Karimov noted that
active opposition parties, a Western-style press, and the observance of
citizens' rights are essential to the continued development of Uzbekistan,
noting that they would "ensure democracy" in the country. Karimov also
reiterated his position that Uzbekistan supports CIS agreements, but not that
organization's "deeper integration." If implemented, the democratic reforms
discussed by Karimov would be a significant departure from current practices,
as noted in the May 1996 Human Rights Watch/Helsinki report. -- Roger
Kangas
[05] INTER-TAJIK TALKS RESUME IN ASHGABAT.
The continuation of the fifth round of inter-Tajik peace talks began on 8 July
in Ashgabat, Russian and Western sources reported. UN Special Envoy to
Tajikistan Gerd Merrem attended, in addition to government and opposition
representatives. Russian Foreign Minister Yevgenii Primakov was in Ashgabat on
the same day for an official visit with the Turkmen government, but it is not
known if he will participate in the peace talks, Opposition representative Ali
Akbar Turajonzoda remarked that Russia must be an active participant in the
peace process, RTR reported. -- Roger Kangas
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[06] OSCE MAY BAN BOSNIAN SERB PARTY FROM ELECTIONS.
The OSCE head of mission in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Robert Frowick, said he will
use his authority as supervisor of the September elections to bar the Serbian
Democratic Party (SDS) from the vote if Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic
remains its chairman, Onasa reported on 8 July. There is a growing consensus
among international officials in Bosnia that the Dayton treaty's ban on
indicted war criminals holding public office also extends to holding any role
in public life. The international community's High Representative Carl Bildt
is the odd-man-out because he accepts Karadzic's withdrawal from the
presidential race as sufficient. Bildt said Frowick would have to overturn a
28 June decision by the OSCE on the elections if he intends to ban the SDS
from the race, AFP reported. Frowick said he is willing to risk the collapse
of the elections to exclude the SDS. -- Patrick Moore
[07] HAGUE TRIBUNAL WANTS ARREST OF KARADZIC, MLADIC.
Prosecutors at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
are concluding hearings designed to keep pressure on the two most-important
indicted war criminals, Karadzic and his military counterpart Gen. Ratko
Mladic. Prosecutor Mark Harmon criticized the international community for
failing to arrest the two and demanded international arrest warrants, the BBC
reported on 8 July. The current warrants apply only to a handful of countries,
including Serbia, where authorities have turned a blind eye to Karadzic's and
Mladic's presence. Harmon said rump Yugoslavia should be reported to the UN
Security Council for its failure to arrest the men, Reuters reported. Nasa
Borba quoted Harmon stressing that the tribunal was not condemning "the
Serbian people." -- Patrick Moore
[08] DID THE ALLIES KNOW ABOUT SREBRENICA ALL ALONG?
International experts from the Hague-based tribunal exhumed the first body
from a mass grave at Cerska near Srebrenica on 8 July, the BBC reported. The
20-strong team hopes to determine whether those buried there and elsewhere
were victims of a massacre after the town fell on 11 July 1995. U.S. spy
satellite and U-2 photos showed a massacre of Muslim males by Serbs--those
pictures were available to NATO allies on 13 July, AFP quoted the French daily
La Croix . The first photos showed "men standing, surrounded by other men
with weapons. The following image showed them lying dead on the ground." The
U.S. and its allies claim that the little they know about the deaths came from
testimony and photos taken later. -- Patrick Moore
[09] SPANISH PRIME MINISTER VISITS MOSTAR.
Jose Maria Aznar met on 8 July with the EU administrator Ricardo Perez Casado
and the Muslim and Croat mayors Safet Orucevic and Mijo Brajkovic, Onasa
reported. He discussed the recent elections with the Croats and Muslims and
praised Perez Casado for his role in the elections. Aznar, who was accompanied
by Defense Minister Eduardo Serra and Chief of Staff Jose Rodrigo Rodrigo,
also visited the 1,600-man Spanish IFOR contingent in Medjugorje and Trebinje.
Meanwhile, Zdravko Misic, son of a commander in the Bosnian Croat army HVO,
has expelled a Muslim family from their home in west Mostar, threatening to
kill them, Onasa reported. -- Fabian Schmidt
[10] SERBIAN COURT CONVICTS WAR CRIMINAL.
Dusko Vuckovic was sentenced on 8 July in a Sabac court to seven years in
prison on several war crimes charges, including 16 counts of murder and one
count of rape, Tanjug reported. Vuckovic, a member of a paramilitary outfit
led by his brother Vojin, was involved in a series of raids against Bosnian
Muslim civilians throughout eastern Bosnia in spring 1992. He was arrested by
Serbian police in November 1993 for crimes committed in Celopek. Vuckovic's
trial and conviction in rump Yugoslavia instead of The Hague also underscores
Belgrade's unwillingness to compel accused war criminals to face charges at
the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. -- Stan
Markotich
[11] BELGRADE, ZAGREB WORK TO NORMALIZE RELATIONS.
Croatia and rump Yugoslavia have agreed to exchange information on those
missing, detained, or killed during the 1991 war. Pavle Todorovic, head of the
Yugoslav commission for humanitarian issues and missing persons, said this is
"a significant step forward. We are speeding up the solution to these burning
issues now that peace has been restored," Reuters reported on 8 July.
Todorovic said Croatia has accepted Belgrade's claim that there are no
prisoners of war in rump Yugoslavia, adding "the only people we have in our
custody are those who are accused of spying and conspiring against the state."
Croatia has agreed to release all its prisoners of war, perhaps by as early as
20 August. -- Stan Markotich
[12] BULGARIAN BREAD CRISIS CROSSES THE DRINA?
The price of a loaf of bread in Serbia is likely to jump, as grain stocks are
running low. Nasa Borba on 9 July called the situation "alarming"--
shopkeepers are verging on panic with grain supplies nearly out. There is
neither wheat nor flour on sale in the markets, the report said. The looming
crisis, at least on the surface, parallels conditions in Bulgaria. In mid-May,
Bulgarian bakeries were forced to either close or severely limit supplies to
cope with depleting wheat and flour stocks. (See .) -- Stan Markotich
[13] LIBERAL ALLIANCE SET UP IN ROMANIA.
The creation of the National Liberal Alliance on 7 July is "a significant
realignment of the Romanian political scene" ahead of this fall's presidential
and parliamentary elections, local media reported. The birth certificate of
the new alliance was signed by the Party of Civic Alliance (PAC) and the
Liberal Party '93 (PL '93); several other parties reportedly expressed
interest. PL '93 leader Dinu Zamfirescu said on 8 July that the parties in the
alliance intend to nominate a common candidate for president, to run common
lists in parliamentary elections, and to present a joint ruling program. They
will, however, preserve their distinct identities and structures. Romania has
a plethora of liberal parties or those claiming to be. -- Dan Ionescu
[14] UPDATE ON BULGARIAN VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES.
The united opposition on 9 July is expected to nominate a running mate for its
presidential candidate Petar Stoyanov, Demokratsiya reported. Todor
Kavaldzhiev, who was nominated by the Bulgarian Agrarian People's Union, is
likely to be officially approved by the other opposition parties. Kavaldzhiev
told Novinar that there should be no conflicts with the ethnic Turkish
Movement for Rights and Freedom over his candidacy because he defended Turks'
rights during the communist regime. Demokratsiya also reported that the
ruling Bulgarian Socialist Party is considering nominating a general as the
running mate of Foreign Minister Georgi Pirinski, who has not served in the
army. Meanwhile, the Union of Democratic Forces said it will ask the Defense
Ministry if Pirinski failed to serve in the Bulgarian army for health reasons
or because he also held U.S. citizenship at the time, Standart reported. --
Stefan Krause
[15] NO RUSSIAN MILITARY IN BULGARIA, GOVERNMENT SAYS.
There are no military installations on Bulgarian territory run by Russian
personnel, said the Defense Ministry, General Staff, and several high-ranking
officers on 8 July. They denied such allegations made by former Yugoslav Army
General Todor Atanasovski in Nova Makedonija, Duma reported. The Russian
military attache to Bulgaria, Gen. Anatolii Kiselev, called Atanasovski's
claims "delirious and utterly stupid." Bulgarian Chief of General Staff
Tsvetan Totomirov told Trud that Macedonia made the story up to justify its
allowance of U.S. and NATO installations and troops on its territory. --
Stefan Krause
[16] ALBANIAN SOCIALIST PARTY LEADER WANTS NEW PROGRAM.
Fatos Nano sent a memorandum to the Socialist Party calling for reforms, Zeri
I Popullit reported on 6 July. Nano wants changes in the party's statute and
program, including the elimination of all references to Marxism. Nano sent his
demands from prison, where he is serving a four-year term for misappropriation
of funds. The party will consider his proposals at a congress on 27 July. The
newspaper suggested removing communist-era officials from the party
leadership. Acting party leader Servet Pellumbi said he supported Nano, but
indicated he might step down before the changes took place, Reuters reported.
Meanwhile, Tirana's chief prosecutor denied media reports he was reviewing
Nano's case. -- Fabian Schmidt
[17] SOCIALIST PARTY SECRETARY-GENERAL RESIGNS.
Gramoz Ruci on 8 July resigned in reaction to Nano's initiative, Reuters
reported. Ruci was one of the party's most controversial leaders, because he
was the last communist-era Interior Minister from February to June 1991 and
head of the secret police Sigurimi for a short period after that. Ruci said he
hoped his resignation would ease party reforms. His resignation is regarded as
a victory by the party's reformers. -- Fabian Schmidt
[18] NINE SENTENCED TO DEATH IN TIRANA IN 1996.
In the first six months of 1996, the Tirana court sentenced nine people to
death, Albania reported on 7 July. The court's chief judge said six are
murderers and three are former communist officials convicted of crimes against
humanity. The sentences have not been carried out. Albanian law stipulates
that every death sentence is automatically appealed to the president. The
Albanian Helsinki Committee is calling for the death penalty's abolition.
Parliamentary speaker Pjeter Arbnori committed the country to abolishing the
death penalty after Albania's admission to the Council of Europe in summer
1995. The parliament has so far failed to issue such legislation. Twenty
people have been executed in Albania since 1990 and 12 have been pardoned. --
Fabian Schmidt
[19] ROMANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER IN GREECE.
Theodor Melescanu on 8 July arrived in Greece for a two-day official visit,
Greek and Romanian media reported. Meeting with his Greek counterpart,
Theodoros Pangalos, Melescanu stressed Greece's role in the region as the only
Balkan country in the EU. Pangalos said Greece will support Romania's bid for
EU and NATO membership. Both sides agreed to further consolidate relations.
Pangalos and Melescanu also discussed ways to boost bilateral trade and
economic cooperation. Melescanu will meet with President Kostis Stephanopoulos,
Prime Minister Kostas Simitis, Defense Minister Gerasimos Arsenis, and other
officials before returning to Bucharest. -- Stefan Krause
Compiled by Steve Kettle and Maura Griffin Solovar
News and information as of 1200 CET
This material was reprinted with permission of the Open Media
Research Institute, a nonprofit organization with research offices in
Prague, Czech Republic.
For more information on OMRI publications please write to [email protected].
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