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OMRI Daily Digest II, No. 76, 17 April 1996
CONTENTS
[1] TUZLA AS MODEL FOR BOSNIA?
[2] BOSNIAN AID UPDATE.
[3] U.S WITHHOLDS RECOGNITION OF RUMP YUGOSLAVIA.
[4] BOMB ATTACK ON BELGRADE MOSQUE.
[5] CROATIAN POLITICAL CONFRONTATION ENTERS NEW PHASE.
[6] ROMANIA INAUGURATES CANADIAN-DESIGNED NUCLEAR POWER PLANT . . .
[7] . . . AS ROMANIAN-CANADIAN ECONOMIC COOPERATION INTENSIFIES.
[8] ROMANIA SETS DATE FOR LOCAL ELECTIONS.
[9] NINE ALBANIAN COMMUNIST-ERA OFFICIALS TO STAND TRIAL.
OMRI DAILY DIGEST
No. 76, Part II, 17 April 1996
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[1] TUZLA AS MODEL FOR BOSNIA?
The leader of the ex-communist Union ofBosnian Social Democrats (UBSD), Sejfudin Tokic, stressed that his party
is in the best position to overcome the ethnic divide in the war-torn
republic, Nasa Borba reported on 16 April. The next day, the same paper
carried an interview with leading UBSD politician and mayor of Tuzla,
Selim Besagic, who also backed Tokic's opinion, pointing out that multi-
ethnic Tuzla could serve as a model for the rest of Bosnia. Both men
claimed that the UBSD has already begun to attract much attention from
Serbs in the Republika Srpska (RS). Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic
has apparently organized his own party bloc to compete with Karadzic's
group in the RS elections due to be held across Bosnia by mid-September.
-- Patrick Moore
[2] BOSNIAN AID UPDATE.
The EU is looking into a case of corruption
surrounding its administration in Mostar, AFP reported on 16 April. An
EU spokesman said, however, that it was simply a case of
"irregularities" amid difficult circumstances and apparently not one of
widespread graft. Former EU Adminstrator Hans Koschnick defended his
record and told the Berliner Zeitung that it was simply a question of
"technical accounting matters" and that "there is no suggestion of any
misappropriation of funds." Elsewhere, the OSCE expressed concern that
there might be insufficient funding to promote independent media amid
Bosnia's nationalist-dominated media landscape, Reuters noted. Although
a number of potential financial sources have expressed interest, few
have commited specific sums (see OMRI Special Report, 16 April 1996).
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia has signed a $3 million agreement to repair
Bosnia's railways, Onasa said. The governor of Bosnia's Central Bank,
Kasim Omicevic, added that he is anxious that the international
community's monetary pledges be translated into deeds. -- Patrick Moore
[3] U.S WITHHOLDS RECOGNITION OF RUMP YUGOSLAVIA.
State Department officials
assured Kosovar shadow state Prime Minister Bujar Bukoshi that the U.S.
will withhold recognition of rump Yugoslavia, AFP reported on 15 April.
The officials told Bukoshi that Washington wants Belgrade to deliver on
the Bosnian peace agreement before making such a decision, but gave no
assurance that a solution to the Kosovo conflict would be a precondition
for recognition. Nonetheless, U.S. officials said that Kosovo "is very
high on our agenda." Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Rudolph Perina
"reconfirmed the U.S. desire to be helpful in finding a peaceful
solution." Bukoshi said he was satisfied with the U.S. assurances.
Austria recognized rump Yugoslavia on 16 April, Nasa Borba reported. --
Fabian Schmidt
[4] BOMB ATTACK ON BELGRADE MOSQUE.
A powerful bomb severely damaged
Belgrade's Bajrakli Mosque and shattered windows of surrounding
buildings on 16 April, Onasa and Reuters reported. Although there were
no casualties, Mufti Hamdija Jusufspahic called it "the most powerful
attack on the mosque and on the Islamic community in Belgrade ever." He
said the explosion caused substantial damage outside and inside the
building. No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing, which was
the third attack on the mosque since 1992. Mayor Nebojsa Covic visited
the scene soon after the attack and promised Mufti full cooperation. The
opposition Reform Democratic Party in Vojvodina called on authorities to
seize and punish the terrorists, while Democratic Party President
Vojislav Kostunica commented that the act harmed the country's
international relations. -- Fabian Schmidt
[5] CROATIAN POLITICAL CONFRONTATION ENTERS NEW PHASE.
President Franjo
Tudjman has vetoed for the fourth time in a row the opposition's
candidate for mayor of Zagreb, Novi list reported on 17 April. A loose
opposition coalition won a majority in the city council in last
October's elections, but Tudjman has thus far blocked every candidate
for mayor proposed. He claims that he will not hand the capital over to
"enemies of state policy." Tudjman's Croatian Democratic Community Party
(HDZ) candidate is presently acting-mayor despite a vote of no-
confidence from the council. There is widespread suspicion that the
HDZ's real aim is to hide evidence of its own past corruption. New
elections seem inevitable, and the polls suggest that the voters are
angry with Tudjman's behavior. Seven parties ranging from the right to
the left have formally reaffirmed their alliance. -- Patrick Moore
[6] ROMANIA INAUGURATES CANADIAN-DESIGNED NUCLEAR POWER PLANT . . .
At a
ceremony scheduled to take place on 17 April, visiting Canadian Prime
Minister Jean Chretien and President Ion Iliescu will officially
inaugurate Romania's first nuclear power plant. The plant, located in
Cernavoda and built with Canadian Candu technology, will eventually have
five units. The first unit, already completed, has a production capacity
of 705 megawatts, Romanian and international media reported. It is
scheduled to begin functioning in May and will reach its full production
capacity in August, meeting some 10% of the country's electricity needs.
-- Michael Shafir
[7] . . . AS ROMANIAN-CANADIAN ECONOMIC COOPERATION INTENSIFIES.
The
Canadian Bombardier Company President, Laurent Beadoin, will deliver on
17 April the first of 24 planes ordered by the Romanian airline Dac Air,
an RFE/RL correspondent in Bucharest reported on 16 April. Dac Air is
buying a fleet of 24 planes of the 8-3000 model. The first plane will be
presented at a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Nicolae Vacaroiu. On
16 April, President Ion Iliescu visited the Bucharest Turbomecanica
factory, which specializes in producing plane engines. He said the
Canadian Pratten Whitney Company is interested in acquiring 51% of
Turbomecanica shares, Romanian TV reported on the same day. -- Michael
Shafir
[8] ROMANIA SETS DATE FOR LOCAL ELECTIONS.
Local elections in Romania will
be held on 2 June, Radio Bucharest announced on 16 April. Octav
Cosmanca, who is in charge of local government affairs, said on Radio
Bucharest that the electoral campaign for local elections will start on
19 April. No date has yet been set for the autumn parliamentary and
presidential elections. Cosmanca added that due to a recently-passed new
law on local administration, prefects will no longer be able to dismiss
mayors without prior judicial approval. International bodies had harshly
criticized earlier practices, which allowed for the dismissal of mayors.
-- Michael Shafir
[9] NINE ALBANIAN COMMUNIST-ERA OFFICIALS TO STAND TRIAL.
Nine defendants
stood trial on 16 April under charges of committing crimes against
humanity, Reuters reported. In a series of trials, a total of 38
defendants are accused of conducting mass deportations and executions of
fugitives and political prisoners. The charges also include exiling
dissidents. The nine defendants who appeared in the first trial include
ex-Defense Minister Prokop Murra, head of Tirana's secret police Zef
Loka, National Police Chief Dilaver Bengasi, former President Ramiz
Alia's chief ideologist Foto Cami, and five former local party
secretaries. Another trial against five other former senior officials,
including a parliamentary speaker and an ex-Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court will open on 24 April. No trial date has yet been set for the
remaining 24 accused, including Alia. -- Fabian Schmidt
This material was reprinted with permission of the Open Media Research Institute, a nonprofit organization with research offices in Prague, Czech Republic.
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