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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 3, No. 216, 99-11-05Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 3, No. 216, 5 November 1999CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] NEW ARMENIAN CATHOLICOS INAUGURATEDArchbishop GareginNersisian, who was elected on 27 October to head the Armenian Apostolic Church, was inaugurated as 132nd catholicos in Echmiadzin on 4 November in the presence of senior clerics and members of the Armenian leadership, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported. The former Archbishop of Armenia's largest diocese vowed during the ceremony to intensify cooperation between the Church and state. He also prayed that "the Lord keep the Armenian nation united and the state unshakeable," according to Noyan Tapan. LF [02] ARMENIAN PRESIDENT PRESENTS NEW PREMIER TO CABINETRobertKocharian on 4 November presented newly appointed Premier Aram Sargsian to acting ministers, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported. Sargsian is expected to name his new cabinet next week. Kocharian told journalists that most current ministers will retain their posts. LF [03] AZERBAIJANI OPPOSITION VOWS TO REVIVE NATIONAL RESISTANCEMOVEMENTIn a joint statement issued on 3 November, the leaders of the opposition Azerbaijan Popular Front, Musavat, Azerbaijan National Independence, and Azerbaijan Democratic Parties announced the establishment of a National Resistance Movement that will oppose what they termed the "defeatist" policy of the Azerbaijani leadership in conducting negotiations on a settlement of the Karabakh conflict, Turan reported. The signatories called for immediate compliance with four 1993 UN Security Council resolutions calling for the withdrawal of Armenian forces from occupied districts of Azerbaijan. They also demanded that the Azerbaijani leadership make public details of the ongoing peace negotiations. A similar national resistance movement was created following the signing of a ceasefire agreement in 1994 (see "RFE/RL Caucasus Report," Vol. 2, No. 42, 21 October 1999). LF [04] AZERBAIJAN VOICES OBJECTIONS TO RUSSIAN VISA PROPOSAL...Azerbaijan's Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said in Bakuon 4 November that "it is hard to see the link between the Russian military action in Chechnya and the introduction of a visa regime on the border with Azerbaijan," Reuters reported. Azimov added that "Azerbaijan has active economic, humanitarian and cultural ties with Russia, and the introduction of a visa regime would undoubtedly hurt those contacts." Presidential staff official Novruz Mamedov told ITAR-TASS he considers the imposition of a visa regime unjustified and at variance with the emphasis laid on integration between CIS member states. During a cabinet meeting earlier that day, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin had called for the introduction of visas for citizens of Azerbaijan and Georgia entering the Russian Federation, and Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Vladimir Rakhmanin said on 4 November that a note has been sent to Georgia proposing talks on the issue, according to ITAR-TASS. LF [05] ...WHILE GEORGIA SEES ADVANTAGESGeorgian Foreign MinisterIrakli Menagharishvili said on 4 November in Strasbourg that he considers the imposition of a visa requirement for persons wishing to cross the Russian-Georgian frontier unnecessary but noted that Tbilisi is ready to discuss the issue with Moscow, Caucasus Press reported. Menagharishvili added that the requirement should apply not only to Georgia's border with Chechnya but along the entire extent of its frontier with the Russian Federation, including Abkhazia. Russian Border Guard commander Lieutenant-General Valerii Chkheidze said the requirement "will help restore order" at the Russian-Georgian border and will serve as a reminder to Russia that Georgia is an independent state. But Abkhaz Prosecutor-General Anri Djergenia said he considers the requirement "unacceptable," explaining that it will hinder the entry into Russia of Abkhaz wishing to sell agricultural produce and who depend on that trade as their sole source of income. LF [06] GEORGIAN PRESIDENT DECLARES A NEW ANTI-CORRUPTION CRACKDOWNSpeaking at a cabinet meeting on 4 November, EduardShevardnadze gave the heads of government departments and regional administrations one month to draft plans for stamping out corruption and the shadow economy, ITAR-TASS and AP reported. Economics Minister Vladimir Papava estimated that the shadow economy currently accounts for 40 percent of the country's economic activity, compared with up to 80 percent in the early 1990s. Shevardnadze had earlier declared 1999 a year of active struggle against corruption. LF [07] KAZAKHSTAN'S PRESIDENT HOLDS OUT OLIVE BRANCH TOOPPOSITION...Nursultan Nazarbaev on 4 November told state- owned Khabar TV, which is run by his daughter, that the OSCE employs "double standards" in its evaluation of the level of democracy in various countries, Interfax reported. The OSCE evaluated the conduct of the 10 and 24 October elections to the lower chamber of the parliament as falling short of OSCE commitments to free, fair, and accountable elections (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 26 October 199). But Nazarbaev added that he "does not want to divide society into winners and losers" after that poll. The Otan party, which unequivocally backs him, won a parliamentary majority in the elections. Nazarbaev said he is ready to cooperate with the opposition and that he would greet the return to Kazakhstan of former Premier Akezhan Kazhegeldin. Nazarbaev added that he does not think Kazhegeldin should be punished for "errors" made during the privatization process. LF [08] ...WHILE OPPOSITIONISTS CALL FOR NEW ELECTIONSLeaders ofKazhegeldin's Republican People's Party of Kazakhstan told journalists in Almaty on 4 November that opposition forces should unite to pressure the country's leadership into admitting that the outcome of the October parliamentary poll was falsified, RFE/RL's correspondent in the former capital reported. Ghaziz Aldamzharov, who is chairman of the party's executive committee and who failed in his election bid, argued that new parliamentary elections should be held next year and be followed by a presidential poll. LF [09] BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT WRAPS UP VISIT TO KAZAKHSTANAlyaksandrLukashenka ended a two-day official visit to Kazakhstan on 4 November, having signed with his host, President Nazarbaev, a 10-year economic cooperation agreement and a cultural agreement, Interfax reported. Lukashenka had told journalists on his arrival the previous day that a "large number" of agreements would be signed during his visit. Lukashenka reportedly expressed interest during his talks with Nazarbaev in buying crude oil and other minerals from Kazakhstan, while Nazarbaev said his country is ready to export grain to Belarus and buy tractors produced there. Nazarbaev also commented that Kazakhstan is prepared to "cooperate" with the envisaged Russia-Belarus union. On arriving, Lukashenka had expressed optimism that if that union materializes, both Kazakhstan and Ukraine will join it. He implied that such a fusion could form the nucleus of the Eurasian Union, for which Nazarbaev has been lobbying since 1994. LF [10] KAZAKHSTAN SENDS MEDICS TO SITE OF PROTON ROCKET CRASHAlarge group of medical personnel has been sent to the region of central Kazakhstan affected by the 27 October explosion of a Russian proton rocket shortly after blastoff from the Baikonur cosmodrome, RFE/RL's Almaty correspondent reported. Those medical personnel will screen all local residents before the end of November. LF [11] KYRGYZ FOREIGN MINISTER ENDS VISIT TO IRANMuratbekImanaliev returned to Bishkek on 3 November following a two- day visit to Tehran, RFE/RL's bureau in the Kyrgyz capital reported. Imanaliev met with President Mohammad Khatami, Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi and Mejlis speaker Ali Akbar Nateq- Nouri and discussed bilateral relations and Kyrgyz President Askar Akaev's upcoming visit to Iran. LF [12] IMF DISCUSSES TERMS FOR NEW LOAN TRANCHE FOR TAJIKISTANIMFSecond European Department Director John Odling-Smee held talks in Dushanbe on 4 November with President Imomali Rakhmonov on the possibility of further IMF support for the Tajik economy, Asia Plus- Blitz reported. Rakhmonov said such help is needed to reduce the country's budget deficit and strengthen the balance of payments. Odling-Smee said that the outcome of the upcoming elections and progress in implementing political reform will "only partially" influence the bank's decision on releasing the loan tranche, according to Interfax. Other IMF officials said the decision on doing so will be taken early next year. LF [13] TURKMENISTAN'S CENTRAL BANK TO MAINTAIN TIGHT MONETARYPOLICYAn unnamed Central Bank official told Interfax in Dushanbe on 4 November that in the coming years the bank will abide by its moderately strict monetary policy with the aim of reducing annual inflation to 6 percent by 2005 and to 4 percent by 2010 and ultimately making the country's currency fully convertible. Inflation for 1999 is estimated at 40 percent, double the figure for 1998. President Saparmurat Niyazov had harshly criticized the work of the Central Bank in September (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 21 September 1999). LF [B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[14] U.S., EU TO COORDINATE APPROACH TO YUGOSLAVIAU.S. Secretaryof State Madeleine Albright and German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer agreed in Washington on 4 November that the U.S. and the EU will coordinate their policies toward Yugoslavia, Reuters reported. The two sides said U.S. and EU officials will hold meetings in the coming weeks to work out a coordinated strategy. While German officials said the meetings will focus on deciding whether to lift the sanctions on Yugoslavia before or after elections in Serbia, U.S. officials said the meetings will focus merely on creating "common objectives." Fischer stressed that the U.S. and Germany see "eye to eye" on the need to remove Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic from power. VG [15] EU OFFICIALS CALL FOR LIFTING OF SANCTIONS ON YUGOSLAVIAVarious European officials have recently called for thelifting of sanctions against Yugoslavia as a means of easing the burden on average Serbs and supporting the opposition. On 3 November, Hans Koschnik, the German emissary to Bosnia- Herzegovina, said the sanctions should be lifted and replaced with "intensive cooperation" with the Serbian opposition, "Die Woche" reported. Koschnik's call was supported by officials in the Social Democratic and Christian Democratic parties of Germany. On 4 November, French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine sent a message to his EU colleagues in which he called for gradual lifting of those sanctions that affect average Serbs. At the same time, Vedrine said the sanctions that "directly touch upon the leaders of the regime in Belgrade" should be maintained and even tightened. VG [16] ALBRIGHT: U.S. HAS INTEREST IN MONTENEGRO'S SECURITYU.S.Secretary of State Albright on 4 November said the U.S. has an "important interest" in the security of the Balkans, "including that of Montenegro," Reuters reported. A senior State Department official said the remark was a "carefully worded" and "direct message" to the Belgrade leadership. Albright also said the U.S. will seek new ways to offer economic aid to Montenegro without propping up the regime in Belgrade. On official suggested that the U.S. might allow flights to and from Montenegro, but bypassing Serbia. VG [17] MONTENEGRIN PREMIER MEETS YUGOSLAV CHIEF OF STAFFFilipVujanovic on 4 November said he met with Yugoslav Chief of Staff Dragoljub Ojdanic in order to "establish an environment in which any incident will be avoided," Reuters reported. The meeting took place that day, despite Montenegrin President Milo Djukanovic's pledge that he will hand over any war criminal who happens to be on Montenegrin territory to the Hague based war crimes tribunal. The tribunal indicted Ojdanic for war crimes last May. Djukanovic said the arrest of war criminals such as Ojdanic is "linked to a high degree of risk, risk that the international community is cautioning Montenegro not to take." In Washington, State Department spokesman James Rubin expressed sympathy for Djukanovic's position, indicating that the Montenegrin leader is not "free to act" as he would like and that the U.S. believes his intention to cooperate with the war crimes tribunal is "genuine." VG [18] SERBIAN OFFICIALS SAY MONTENEGRO'S CURRENCY CHANGE A NATOPLOT...Ivan Dacic, the spokesman for Milosevic's Socialist Party, on 4 November described Montenegro's new currency policy as a "move carried out by NATO which is using this puppet creation only as a means to an end." Serbian Radical Party head Vojislav Seselj said Montenegro's leadership is heading for "all-out secession," which he called "a very dangerous direction." Meanwhile, the National Bank of Yugoslavia announced that it has halted transfers of funds to firms in Montenegro from accounts of firms in Serbia. The bank said it took the measure to prevent the "uncontrolled issue of money in the territory of Montenegro," Beta reported. VG [19] ...REJECT U.S. PLEDGE TO LIFT SANCTIONS FOR ELECTIONSSeseljdismissed the recent U.S. pledge to lift most sanctions in exchange for free and fair elections as an attempt by U.S. Secretary of State Albright to ensure that "her bootlickers will win" the vote. He described the strategy as "violence." The official Yugoslav news agency Tanjug described the U.S. offer as "new tactics and tricks" being prepared by the Clinton administration. VG [20] POVERTY ON THE RISE IN YUG0SLAVIAThe UN's humanitariancoordinator Steve Allen on 4 November said poverty has nearly doubled in Yugoslavia over the past year. Allen said the percentage of the population considered to be living in poverty increased from 33 percent in July 1998 to 63 percent in September 1999. The poverty level includes all people who have a monthly income equivalent to $60 or less. The figures do not include Kosova. Allen also noted that Yugoslavia's national health insurance fund is on the verge of collapse. VG [21] NEW ORGANIZATION PAYS FINE FOR SERBIAN EDITORAnorganization calling itself Team 29 has paid the fine that Cedomir Jovanovic received for violating the media law in Yugoslavia (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 October 1999), according to a Beta report monitored by the BBC. Jovanovic is the editor of the opposition Alliance for Change's publication "Promene." In a statement to the press, Team 29 pledged to "continue to assist in the struggle for a democratic Serbia by the means which the regime of Slobodan Milosevic allows." The Alliance for Change told Beta it is not familiar with the new organization. VG [22] STUDIO-B SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH BANJA LUKA STATIONBelgrade'sindependent Studio-B radio and television station has signed an agreement with independent Banja Luka Radio-TV to share news and cultural broadcasts, Studio-B reported on 4 November. Meanwhile, Studio-B director Dragan Kojadinovic said some of his station's programs are still being jammed in Serbia. VG [23] U.S. ASKS ISRAEL TO STOP BROADCASTING SERBIAN TVThe IsraeliSpacecom company, which operates the Amos-1 satellite, has stopped allowing Serbian state television (RTS) to use its satellite for broadcasting. That move comes after the U.S. complained to Israel about the practice, AP reported. U.S. Secretary of State Albright had asked Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak at the recent Oslo summit to stop letting RTS use the Israeli satellite for broadcasts, the newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth" reported. VG [24] PETRITSCH DISAPPOINTED WITH FAILURE TO SECURE BORDERAGREEMENTThe international community's high representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Wolfgang Petritsch, on 4 November said he is disappointed over the failure of the joint presidency of Bosnia to adopt a draft law on a multiethnic state border service, Reuters reported. Bosnian Muslim President Alija Izetbegovic said he supported the proposal but that his Croatian and Serbian counterparts disagreed on how wide the border under control of the state service should be. The proposal called for the border belt to be 30 kilometers wide. Last week, the head of the UN international police force in Bosnia, Detlef Buwitt, said Petritsch will impose a law if Bosnia fails to adopt one by December. VG [25] THREE PEOPLE SENTENCED IN MOSTAR CAR BOMB ATTACKA Zenicacourt handed down three foreign nationals prison sentences ranging from five to eight years for their roles in planting a car bomb that injured almost 50 people in Mostar in 1997, ONASA reported on 3 November. The three men were also sentenced to five years' expulsion from Bosnia following their release. VG [26] DEL PONTE RAPS CROATIA FOR NOT COOPERATING WITH WAR CRIMESTRIBUNALThe chief prosecutor of the Hague-based war crimes tribunal, Carla del Ponte, said on 4 November in Zagreb that she is "very disappointed" that Croatia is not cooperating fully with the tribunal. She was reacting to Croatia's refusal to hand over documents regarding Zagreb's Flash and Storm military operations in 1995. Del Ponte threatened to "report Croatia's noncompliance" with the UN Security Council unless it starts cooperating. Croatian Justice Minister Zvonimir Separovic said Croatia believes the tribunal has no jurisdiction over the operations, which he described as a "legitimate liberation of our land." Del Ponte said she is not questioning Croatia's right to carry out the operations. She said the tribunal wants to investigate whether war crimes were committed in the course of the operations, which sparked a mass exodus of Serbs from Croatia. VG [27] POLL: MOST CROATS SAY TUDJMAN SHOULD RESIGN FOR HEALTHREASONSMore than 60 percent of Croats say President Franjo Tudjman should resign for health reasons, according to an Media Metar poll cited by AP on 5 November. VG [28] OPPOSITION DEMONSTRATION HELD IN TIRANAAs Prime MinisterIlir Meta's cabinet outlined its priorities in the parliament on 4 November, some 3,000 demonstrators gathered in Tirana's main square to demand new elections, AP reported. Opposition Democratic Party leader Sali Berisha addressed the crowd, saying "new elections are the only way out of the deep crisis this country is in." In the parliament, Meta said the new government will focus on fighting corruption, stabilizing the country, and improving public order. The Democratic Party boycotted the session. VG [29] ROMANIAN STUDENTS RENEW PROTESTSThousands of students againtook to the streets in Bucharest and other towns on 4 November to protest small grants and bad living conditions in dormitories. Prime Minster Radu Vasile met with Daniel Onisor, leader of the Students' League, and signed an agreement stipulating that grants will be increased by 10 percent every month from January to May 2000 and by 50 percent in October 2000. But two student organizations from Bucharest announced that the agreement does not meet their minimum demands and that they will picket university buildings and go on a strike as of 5 November, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. MS [30] HISTORY TEXTBOOK SCANDAL TO BE DEBATED BY ROMANIANPARLIAMENTDemocratic Party and independent deputies joined lawmakers from the nationalist Greater Romania Party and Party of Romanian National Unity on 4 November to initiate a motion for debate in the Chamber of Deputies of the dispute over the "de-mythicized" history textbooks (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 13 October 1999). The 55 deputies said in their motion that by allowing these optional textbooks to be used in classrooms, the Education Ministry condones "the gross affront of Romania's historical past, the trivialization, marginalization, and falsification of historical truth" and thereby risks "the danger of losing our national identity," Romanian radio reported. MS [31] MOLDOVAN PARLIAMENT AMENDS BUDGETThe parliament on 4November approved the amendments to the 1999 budget that it had rejected one week earlier, Infotag reported. The amended budget increases the deficit from 383 to 583 million lei ($52 million) and proposes covering the shortfall by borrowing on the international financial market, Infotag reported. Earlier on 4 November, Prime Minister Ion Sturza told legislators that they have 12 days to approve the amended budget and government-proposed privatization laws. He said he and his cabinet will resign if these changes are not approved. "The government needs a vote of confidence or one of no confidence. We are ready for any outcome," Reuters quoted him as saying. MS [32] BULGARIAN PARLIAMENT MANDATES GOVERNMENT TO NEGOTIATEKOZLODUY SHUTDOWNThe parliament on 4 November voted 146 to 68 with five abstentions to mandate the government to negotiate the early closure of the Kozloduy nuclear plant. The legislators said that the government must seek EU compensation for the closure, AP reported. The same day, Guenter Verheugen, EU commissioner in charge of expansion, told Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nadezhda Mihailova in The Hague that Sofia is in an "excellent position" to begin accession talks with the EU, BTA reported. Verheugen said Bulgaria "fully meets political criteria" for EU membership and has started the process of economic reform. MS [33] BALKAN LEADERS URGE INVESTMENTSMeeting in Borovets on 4November, the presidents of Bulgaria, Romania, and Greece urged the implementation of the Balkan Stability Pact, proposing that various projects be financed by international financial institutions. In a joint declaration, Petar Stoyanov, Emil Constantinescu, and Kostas Simitis pledged that "their countries will contribute to the substantiation [sic] of the Stability Pact." Simitis said Greece intends to mobilize over the next five years $500 million from the private sector to finance transport, energy, and telecommunication projects in the region, Reuters and AP reported. The three leaders urged the EU to raise funds to help remove from the River Danube debris from bridges bombed by NATO earlier this year. MS [C] END NOTE[34] RADIO LIBERTY'S PETER DORNANBy Mario CortiOn All Saints Day (1 November), in Springfield in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, the former head of Radio Liberty's Samizdat Unit, Peter Dornan, died of cancer at the age of 76. He was the first editor of "Materialy Samizdata," a weekly Radio Liberty publication that became the biggest collection of annotated documents on human rights violations in the Soviet Union. "Materialy Samizdata," originally created for internal use only, was soon made available to external subscribers. It became the main source of information for scholars and journalists interested in the subject of human rights violations in the USSR. It was also a key source on Soviet dissidents' struggle for their individual, political, social, national, and cultural rights. Dornan joined Radio Liberty in 1956 as a research analyst. He was instrumental in the creation of a samizdat archive at Radio Liberty in 1968 and was its custodian until 1988, when he retired. He was also the author of the most exhaustive study on Andrei Sakharov at the beginning of the 1970s (which was included in "Dissent in the USSR: Politics, Ideology, and People," ed. Rudolf Tokes, Johns Hopkins University Press). Thanks to Peter Dornan, samizdat documents played a key role in Radio Liberty broadcasts. Indeed, it was thanks to samizdat and the efforts of Dornan that Radio Liberty's broadcasts became a real "domestic" service, broadcasting to the Soviet Union documents about and authored by people living inside the country. Dornan also acted as a talent scout for other departments of Radio Liberty: it was on his initiative that the current editor of "RFE/RL Newsline," who began her career as a freelance translator of Georgian samizdat, was signed up in 1980 by Radio Liberty Research. The samizdat archive, comprising more than 5,000 documents, is now housed at the Central European University in Budapest. Dornan recently donated his personal archive to the Drew University Library in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Mario Corti is acting director of RFE/RL's Russian Service. 05-11-99 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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