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Serbia Today 96-03-01
1 March 1996
In This Edition
YUGOSLAV POTENTIALS - GUARANTEED DEVELOPMENT
PRIVATIZATION - BUT NO ROBBERY
NO REACTIONS TO THE CRIMES AGAINST THE SERBS
CONTENTS
[01] INTEREST FOR THE RENEWAL OF COOPERATION WITH THE EU
[02] MUTUAL RECOGNITION INVOLVES CAPE PREVLAKA
[03] YUGOSLAV POTENTIALS - GUARANTEED DEVELOPMENT
[04] THE BRANCH OFFICES IN CHINA TO BE REOPENED
[05] PRIVATIZATION - BUT NO ROBBERY
[06] ONLY 20% OF THE SERBS STAYED
[07] THEY ARE HIDING 250 SERB PRISONERS
[08] DIFFERENT APPROACH FOR SARAJEVO AND MOSTAR
[09] NO REACTIONS TO THE CRIMES AGAINST THE SERBS
[10] WHO IS SHOOTING AT HUMANITARIAN WORKERS?
[11] RACIST LAWS BANNED FOREVER THE RETURN OF THE SERBS
[01] INTEREST FOR THE RENEWAL OF COOPERATION WITH THE EU
Ambassador Giorgio Franchetti Parda - head of the EU monitoring
mission for former Yugoslavia, met yesterday with the Serbian
Prime Minister Mirko Marjanovic and Federal Premier Dr. Radoje
Kontic. During the meeting, both sides endorsed the efforts of
the EU monitoring mission, within the mandate it received from
the founding signatories. The implementation of the Dayton
Agreement requires an urgent and complete reintegration of FRY
into the international community, which particularly requires
the collaboration with the European Union. Mr. Parda thanked for
the correct cooperation of the Yugoslav state bodies with the
monitoring mission and underscored the importance of the role
played by FRY and Serbia in the implementation of the Dayton
Agreement. (Politika, March 1, 1996)
[02] MUTUAL RECOGNITION INVOLVES CAPE PREVLAKA
In view of the return visit to Zagreb of the Yugoslav Foreign
Minister Milan Milutinovic, the Croatian weekly "Nacional"
published an interview with the head of the Yugoslav Bureau in
Zagreb - Mr. Veljko Knezevic. Amongst other things, he remarked
that most of the Serbian refugees from Krayina wants to return
home and added: "Regardless of the numerous reasons that
prompted the biblical exodus of the Krayina Serbs, they did not
loose the right to return. Had there not been such apocalyptic
fear, this population would have never fled." Asked about the
normalization of the relations between FRY and Croatia, Mr.
Knezevic responded that "both sides agreed that complete
recognition should be reached step-by-step." Mr. Knezevic added
that before such mutual recognition, "...the question of
Prevlaka has to be settled, because Yugoslavia insists on the
respect of the Dayton Agreement." (Politika, March 1, 1996)
[03] YUGOSLAV POTENTIALS - GUARANTEED DEVELOPMENT
A delegation of the Japanese Mitsubishi Bank - one of the
largest financial institutions in the world - headed by Elias
Lianos - Deputy General Manager for Europe, Africa and the Near
East, met with Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Marjanovic and
stressed the interest to take part in the renewal of the
Yugoslav economy and infrastructure through various forms of
cooperation. Reviewing the talks he had with Yugoslav financial
experts, businessmen and state officials, Mr. Lianos remarked
that he has the impression that in spite of the damaging effects
of the international sanctions, our country managed to preserve
its economy and know-how potentials, which constitute a basis
for future development along with the natural resources. In view
of the readiness displayed by the Serbian Government to endorse
the involvement of foreign firms in the realization of projects
that fit into national interests, it has been concluded that the
possibilities of cooperation be analyzed in the next few months.
(Politika, March 1, 1996)
[04] THE BRANCH OFFICES IN CHINA TO BE REOPENED
The Yugoslav Chamber of Economy will reopen its representative
office in China - said Office Chief Mr. Tihomir Tosic. The
objective is to revitalize the old business ties and establish
new ones between the two countries. The founding of
joint-venture firms and barter arrangements should represent the
most effective forms of future cooperation - Mr. Tosic said. In
order to alleviate the activities of Yugoslav firms on the
Chinese market, the representative office of the Yugoslav
Chamber of Economy will provide dependable information and
complete services. (Politika, March 1, 1996)
[05] PRIVATIZATION - BUT NO ROBBERY
In view of the 3rd congress of the Socialist Party of Serbia -
in an interview for "Vecernje Novosti" party spokesman Ivica
Dacic commented the congress document concerning the
privatization process. "Ever since our party was founded, we had
clear positions concerning the market economy orientation of the
national economy, which should be completed by major elements of
social justice - just like in numerous European countries. We
said then that we endorse all forms of ownership warranted by
the Constitution. Still, no one should force the companies into
a given form or modality of ownership transformation." - Mr.
Dacic said. He particularly stressed that SPS is not opposed to
the transformation of the ownership structure, but that
privatization should not mean the destruction of our companies,
if we managed to preserve them in spite of the drastic
international sanctions. There can be no privatization if this
means robbing the society of its resources - stressed Mr. Dacic.
(Vecernje Novosti, March 1, 1996)
[06] ONLY 20% OF THE SERBS STAYED
Yesterday, the Moslem-Croatian Federation Police entered the
Sarajevo quarter of Ilijas which has been abandoned by most of
the local Serbs. Some 50 Moslem and 40 Croatian policemen -
accompanied by IFOR Police - also entered the other Serbian
quarter of Vogosca, which is also to pass to the Moslem control
according to the Dayton Agreement. IFOR Police spokesman - Mr.
Aleksandar Ivanko stated that the quarter which had 17.000
inhabitants (mostly Serbs) now has a population of 3000. He also
remarked that the Moslems settling in Vogosca are making threats
to the Serbs that stayed. This is deteriorating the general
climate and exasperating the fear of the Serbian population.
The Government of the Republic of Srpska addressed a protest to
the representatives of the International community because the
Moslems illegally entered Ilijas. The Moslems attacked Serbian
civilians which were about to leave the area, because they do
not want to live under Moslem rule. International community
officials and IFOR have been asked to protect the Serbs that
decided to leave these parts of former Serbian Sarajevo. (Borba,
March 1, 1996)
[07] THEY ARE HIDING 250 SERB PRISONERS
Bosnian Moslem authorities are still holding prisoner numerous
Bosnian Serb Army (BSA) soldiers: 110 in Bihac and 140 in
Travnik - said the members of the Croatian Community of Herzeg
Bosnia state committee for prisoner exchange. They submitted
these facts to the members of the Prisoner Exchange Committee of
the BSA 1st and 2nd Corps at a meeting attended by ICRC and IFOR
representatives. According to Serbian sources, the Croatian side
was surprised that the International Committee of the Red Cross
did not inform the Serbs about these prisoners. Furthermore, the
Croatian side promised to provide more details about the mass
grave of BSA soldiers in Mrkonjic Grad, at the next meeting due
on March 4. The Association of Relatives of Captured and Missing
Serbian Soldiers from these two Corps has a list of 2000 BSA
soldiers that are reported missing since the last
Moslem-Croatian offensive against the republic of Srpska.
(Vecernje Novosti, March 1, 1996)
[08] DIFFERENT APPROACH FOR SARAJEVO AND MOSTAR
The international community "...applied quite different
standards regarding two Bosnian cities - Mostar and Sarajevo,
even though the problem is the same in both cases." - states the
Spanish newspaper "Diario 16" in a commentary about the exodus
of Serbs from Sarajevo. The author - Mr. Jose Palau stresses
that "two communities (Moslems and Croats in Mostar and Serbs
and Moslems in Sarajevo) share the town but not the national
identity and political convictions." Before the war, there was a
major Serbian community in Mostar as well, constituting 25% of
the population, but it has been eliminated through ethnic
cleansing - states the author adding that in the case of
Sarajevo the international community "sided with the Moslems."
(Politika, March 1, 1996)
[09] NO REACTIONS TO THE CRIMES AGAINST THE SERBS
The Moscow newspaper "Nezavisnaya Gazetta" warned yesterday that
"crimes against Serbs in Bosnia and Herzegovina have assumed a
massive character" and that the Hague Tribunal should consider
"all cases of breached human rights and crimes against
humanity". The impression that the Serbs are the "aggressors"
has been created throughout the world, and information and data
on the breach of the rights of the Serbs are being completely
ignored - remarks the Russian daily. The article reminds the
readers about the crimes committed by the Croatian Army in
Krayina and similar crimes of the Moslem-Croatian forces in
Bosnia. Along with mass murders, the authorities are amply using
the policy of persecuting of Serbs and denying them their civil
rights. The international community, its mediators and the UN
remains passive. Those in charge of the peace process must
provide serious guarantees to the Serbian population, or else
Bosnia "...will face another humanitarian catastrophe" - remarks
"Nezavisnaya Gazetta". (Borba, March 1, 1996)
[10] WHO IS SHOOTING AT HUMANITARIAN WORKERS?
Even though in October 1993, representatives of international
humanitarian organizations had been attacked more than 30 times
by Moslems and Croats, and only once by the Serbs, the
international humanitarian organizations keep insisting that
they can not proved aid to the people of the Republic of Srpska
because they fear Serb attacks. "This is completely false." -
stated Mr. Dragan Krekic - Commissioner for Refugees of the
Republic of Srpska - adding that ever since the war broke out,
no humanitarian worker was killed in RS territory. On the other
hand, international humanitarian organizations generally reacted
mildly to the dramatic attacks they faced in Moslem-Croatian
Federation territory. In spite of the obvious and constant
threats they continued to provide aid to the Moslems and Croats.
This confirms the fact that politics and not humanism play a key
role in the distribution of aid, namely that the countries
involved simply did not want to send aid to the Republic of
Srpska. This is also confirmed by the fact that last year UNHCR
sent to the Serbs the same amount of aid it supplied to the
Moslems in Sarajevo alone. Mr. Kekic also indicated that last
year 250 humanitarian organizations were active in the
Moslem-Croatian Federation, whilst only 8 operated in the
Republic of Srpska. (Ekspres, March 1, 1996)
[11] RACIST LAWS BANNED FOREVER THE RETURN OF THE SERBS
After a debate the Croatian Parliament will probably adopt today
the draft law on the reconstruction and the program for the
return of the expatriates. Both bills are profoundly racist
since they do not even mention the right of the exiled Serbs to
return to their homes and rebuild them. The Law envisages only
the return (by the end of the year) of about 100.000 Croats, and
the reconstruction of the homes demolished before mid-1995. This
means that the reconstruction of about 83.000 Serbian homes
destroyed during the Croatian offensive on Krayina last summer
has not been contemplated. The Law also specifies that the funds
for the reconstruction of homes be distributed only to those
that criminal charges have not been brought against. The trouble
is that such procedure has been practically initiated against
all Serbs that have fled from Croatia. The bill also does not
contemplate the reconstruction of Orthodox churches, but only
that of Catholic temples. The program for the repatriation of
refugees specifies that the region of Lika and Kordun are to be
settled by Croats living abroad, since these lands are no longer
treated as Serbian property but "unsettled territory". During
the Parliament debate, not a single Parliament Member (except
for Milan Djukic) stood up in the defense of the Serbs or their
property. (Vecernje Novosti, March 1, 1996)
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