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RFE/RL Newsline, 02-08-01
CONTENTS
[01] WASHINGTON TRIES TO CONVINCE MOSCOW TO STOP NUCLEAR TRANSFER TO
[02] ...AS RUSSIAN ENERGY MINISTER HOPES FOR MORE U.S. OIL EXPORTS
[03] ...AND U.S. AMBASSADOR IN MOSCOW CALLS FOR END TO CD PIRACY
[04] MOSCOW ACCUSES SAUDI ARABIA OF INDULGENCE TOWARD TERRORISM
[05] SPECIAL ENVOY SUPPORTS PUTIN ON KALININGRAD...
[06] ...AS LOST POLISH PLANE SENT HOME
[07] THE CRISIS IS OVER
[08] SOROS FOUNDATION DISPUTE CONTINUES
[09] REPUTED RUSSIAN MOBSTER ARRESTED IN OLYMPIC FIGURE-SKATING
[10] ...IMPLICATING RUSSIAN, FRENCH SKATING ASSOCIATIONS
[11] PRIVATIZATION OF OIL-MAJOR STAKE POSTPONED...
[12] ...AS OIL EXPORT DUTIES ARE HIKED
[13] NOTHING TO BREATHE IN MOSCOW...
[14] ...AS OFFICIALS SPRING INTO ACTION
[15] YUKOS HEAD COMMENTS ON WORK OF KOZAK COMMISSION
[16] TATAR MUFTI DISCUSSES POSSIBLE U.S. INVASION OF IRAQ...
[17] ...AND MULLS RELIGIOUS EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGE WITH BAGHDAD
[18] POLISH PRIEST DECIDES NOT TO FLY...
[19] ...AFTER TWO COLLEAGUES FAIL TO LEAVE MOSCOW AIRPORT
[20] UNEMPLOYMENT SOARS IN POCKETS OF SIBERIA AND FAR EAST
[21] BUSINESSMAN PROFILED IN 'THE NEW YORK TIMES' SHOT ONE DAY LATER
[22] KIRIENKO SAYS HE RECEIVED PERMISSION TO POACH
[23] VIRTUE IS NOT ITS OWN REWARD
[24] ARMENIAN CHURCH LEADER CALLS ON ISRAEL TO RETURN SEIZED PROPERTY
[25] ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT PROJECTS STEADY INFLUX OF TOURISTS
[26] ARMENIAN PRESIDENT CRITICIZED BY FORMER SUPPORTER
[27] U.S. EMBASSY IN BAKU PICKETED BY DISPLACED NEIGHBORS
[28] RUSSIAN PRESIDENT CRITICIZES GEORGIA FOR CHECHEN INCURSIONS...
[29] ...AS GEORGIAN DEFENSE MINISTER CONVINCES RUSSIAN DETACHMENT TO
[30] GEORGIAN SECURITY MEETING ACCUSES RUSSIAN FORCES OF ARMS DEALING
[31] RUSSIAN COLONEL REPORTEDLY KIDNAPPED IN TBILISI
[32] CASE CLOSED ON DEATH OF KAZAKH OPPOSITIONIST'S DAUGHTER
[33] CORRECTION:
[34] KYRGYZ AMNESTY BILL RETURNED TO PARLIAMENT FOR REEXAMINATION
[35] FRENCH AIR DIVISION LEAVING KYRGYZSTAN IN AUTUMN
[36] TAJIK SECURITY CHIEF SAYS ALL ILLEGAL GROUPS ERADICATED...
[37] ...AND MOST BORDER PROBLEMS WITH UZBEKISTAN SOLVED
[38] UZBEKISTAN'S KHANABAD AIR BASE TO BE RECONSTRUCTED
[39] NEW UNDP GRANTS FOR UZBEKISTAN
[40] BELARUSIAN VENDORS HOLD ONE-DAY STRIKE
[41] BELARUSIAN OFFICIAL BRINGS LIBEL SUIT AGAINST OPPOSITION NEWSPAPER
[42] LUKASHENKA PLEDGES TO MAKE STATE-MEDIA JOURNALISM PRESTIGIOUS
[43] BLAST KILLS 20 UKRAINIAN MINERS
[44] UKRAINIAN DEFENSE MINISTER APOLOGIZES FOR TRAGIC AIR SHOW
[45] ESTONIA CONSIDERS JOINING CFE TREATY
[46] HEADS OF BALTIC AGRICULTURE MINISTRIES MEET IN LATVIA
[47] LITHUANIAN PRESIDENT NAMES REPRESENTATIVE FOR KALININGRAD
[48] POLAND OPPOSES BEING NET CONTRIBUTOR TO EU BUDGET
[49] POLISH GOVERNMENT SENDS 'EUROBUS' TO BOOST SUPPORT FOR EU
[50] CZECH ENVIRONMENT MINISTER WANTS TO PHASE OUT NUCLEAR POWER
[51] CZECH FOREIGN MINISTER SAYS PREDECESSOR LIKELY TO RESIGN AS EU
[52] ...BUT HINTS SRBA AFFAIR DOES NOT THREATEN UN DUTIES
[53] LEXA LAWYER COMPLAINS TO ECHR
[54] SLOVAK CHIEF NEGOTIATOR WITH EU SAYS AGREEMENT 'NOT AT ANY COST'
[55] EXTREMIST SLOVAK LEADER INDULGES IN CLICHE DISCOURSE
[56] HUNGARY'S FIDESZ-ERA MINISTERS DENY LINKS WITH COMMUNIST-ERA
[57] ...AS MEDGYESSY COMMISSION MEMBERS LEAK INTENDED QUESTIONS TO
[58] ...AND JOURNALISTS' PASTS ARE SLATED FOR SCRUTINY
[59] HUNGARIAN LABOR MINISTRY TO SET UP EQUAL-OPPORTUNITY DIRECTORATE
[60] HUNGARY'S MINORITIES INCREASINGLY WILLING TO IDENTIFY THEMSELVES
[61] MONTENEGRIN POLITICIANS MEET UNDER EU PRESSURE
[62] CONSTITUTIONAL CHARTER COMMISSION DEADLOCKED
[63] KOSTUNICA SAYS TIES TO DOS BROKEN 'IRREVOCABLY'
[64] EUROPEAN BANK MONEY FOR SERBIAN INFRASTRUCTURE
[65] SERBIAN NGO PROTESTS MEDIA MANIPULATION
[66] FORMER MACEDONIAN ALBANIAN GUERRILLA LEADER SHOT DEAD
[67] ALBANIAN PARLIAMENT APPROVES NANO CABINET
[68] CROATIAN COURT ORDER REARREST OF WAR CRIMES SUSPECTS
[69] BEDTIME FOR BABO
[70] ROMANIAN GOVERNMENT TO DENY ENTRY TO WAR CRIMINALS
[71] ROMANIAN PRIME MINISTER DENIES RIFT WITHIN RULING PARTY
[72] ROMANIAN POLICE INVESTIGATE XENOPHOBIC MAYOR
[73] ROMANIA TO RECEIVE EU FUNDS THROUGH SAPARD FARM-AID PROGRAM
[74] BULGARIAN PRESIDENT SAYS MISSILES MUST BE DESTROYED 'QUICKLY AND
[75] ...AS PROTESTING FARMERS OCCUPY MILITARY COMPOUND IN ZMEJOVO
[76] BULGARIAN PRESIDENT SAYS IMPLEMENTATION OF NATO MEMBERSHIP ACTION
[77] BULGARIAN AGRICULTURE MINISTER PLEDGES 'NO LOBBYING' FOR ANY
[78] There is no End Note today.
1 August 2002
RUSSIA
[01] WASHINGTON TRIES TO CONVINCE MOSCOW TO STOP NUCLEAR TRANSFER TO
TEHRAN...
U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham on 1 August told reporters in
Moscow that the United States is deeply concerned by the extension of
Russian nuclear cooperation with Iran and that this cooperation is not
in Russia's own self-interest, Western and Russian news agencies
reported. Speaking after talks that he and U.S. Undersecretary of State
for Arms Control and International Security John Bolton held with their
Russian counterparts, Abraham remarked that the United States
"consistently urges Russia to cease all nuclear cooperation with Iran,
including its assistance to the reactor in Bushehr." Meanwhile,
ITAR-TASS and AP reported on 31 July that despite Washington's
pressure, Moscow is going to proceed with its 10-year program of
technical cooperation with Teheran, which might include the
construction of five new reactors. VY
[02] ...AS RUSSIAN ENERGY MINISTER HOPES FOR MORE U.S. OIL EXPORTS
Meanwhile, Energy Minister Igor Yusufov said after his meeting with
Abraham that the beginning of Russian oil exports to the United States
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 June 2002) is "a good start" and that these
shipments should be increased, polit.ru reported on 31 July. Yusufov
added that Russian energy exports will be one of the main topics at the
U.S.-Russia Energy Forum in Houston in October. VY
[03] ...AND U.S. AMBASSADOR IN MOSCOW CALLS FOR END TO CD PIRACY
Alexander Vershbow, the U.S. ambassador to Russia who also took part in
political and economic negotiations held by Abraham and Bolton in
Moscow, alleged that the Russian defense industry is involved in the
production of pirate CDs, and that Russia must stop this practice if it
wants to join the World Trade Organization, "Vedomosti" and other news
agencies reported on 1 August. Vershbow also revealed that in June he
sent a letter to Media Minister Mikhail Lesin in which he drew the
minister's attention to the fact that Russia, where annual domestic
demand for CDs does not exceed 10 million copies, currently produces
200 million discs per year and occupies second place after China in the
manufacturing of illegal audio recordings. Vershbow added that he
presented to Lesin a list of Russian defense enterprises producing
pirate CDs, including one factory that is headed by Oleg Gordyiko, who
heads a commission on intellectual property rights within the Russian
Chamber of Commerce and Industry. VY
[04] MOSCOW ACCUSES SAUDI ARABIA OF INDULGENCE TOWARD TERRORISM
Aleksei Volin, a government deputy chief of staff, said Russia
considers the decision of an Islamic court in Saudi Arabia to sentence
Deni Magomersaev and Iriskhan Arsaev to six and four years in prison,
respectively, for hijacking a Russian aircraft to Saudi Arabia in March
2001 to be "very mild," RIA-Novosti reported on 31 July. During the
storming of the aircraft by Saudi special forces, Magomersaev and
Iriskhan Arsaev, both ethnic Chechens, were captured and a third
hijacker and a Russian stewardess were killed (see "RFE/RL Newsline,"
16 and 19 March 2001). Saudi Arabia refused to extradite the men to
Russia and decided to try them in an Islamic court. Volin added that
the sentences for the hijacking is much milder than routine Islamic
verdicts for theft and that such decisions make Saudi Arabia appear to
be "a sanctuary for terrorists." VY
[05] SPECIAL ENVOY SUPPORTS PUTIN ON KALININGRAD...
Dmitrii Rogozin, head of the State Duma's Foreign Affairs Committee and
President Vladimir Putin's special representative to the European Union
on Kaliningrad, called on the Russian parliament, the presidential
administration, and public opinion to adopt a common position on the
Kaliningrad problem, "and not to look on idly as President Putin tries
to solve the issue for all of us," strana.ru and other Russian news
agencies reported on 31 July. Speaking to journalists, Rogozin said he
fully supports Putin's demand for visa-free transit between the exclave
and the rest of Russia. Putin is acting as a president who defends the
Russian Constitution and as a citizen who does not want to see his
nation divided, Rogozin said. Rogozin also noted that he has carefully
studied the Schengen agreement that regulates entry and immigration
into the EU and other European countries and that, in his opinion, the
document is flexible enough to grant some sort of special status for
Kaliningrad. VY
[06] ...AS LOST POLISH PLANE SENT HOME
A LOT passenger airliner carrying 41 passengers from Warsaw to
Kaliningrad that landed at the Chkalovsk Naval Base in Kaliningrad
Oblast apparently by mistake on 31 July has been allowed to return to
Poland, PAP reported on 1 August. According to ITAR-TASS, Polish
authorities believe that the pilots landed at the base, which is about
20 kilometers away from Kaliningrad's civilian airport, accidentally
because they were unfamiliar with the area. A joint team of the Federal
Security Service, the Baltic Fleet, the Prosecutor-General's Office,
and other agencies was summoned to investigate the incident. Air
service between Warsaw and Kaliningrad was inaugurated on 26 July. RC
[07] THE CRISIS IS OVER
The standard of living for the Russian population has finally reached
the levels attained prior to the August 1998 economic crisis, RosBalt
reported on 1 August, citing a briefing by Vladimir Sokolin, head of
the State Statistics Committee. According to Sokolin, real incomes have
increased 24 percent since September 1998 and real wages have increased
by 55 percent. He added that pensions are 28 percent higher than in
September 1998. RC
[08] SOROS FOUNDATION DISPUTE CONTINUES
The Soros Foundation's Open Society Institute has again suspended its
operations in Russia, claiming that a dispute over the right to use the
premises where its Moscow office are located (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23
July 2002) is preventing it from functioning, polit.ru reported on 31
July. According to the institute's Moscow director Yekaterina Genieva,
the company Nobel Technologies has surrounded the building with armed
guards in an effort to collect the $50,000 in back rent that it claims
the institute owes. Polit.ru reported that, on 30 July, a Moscow court
ruled in favor of the Open Society Institute, saying the 10-year lease
it signed with the building's previous owner is legally binding and
gives the institute the right to remain on the premises another six
years. The institute's activities in Russia will remain suspended until
the dispute is resolved, Genieva said. RC
[09] REPUTED RUSSIAN MOBSTER ARRESTED IN OLYMPIC FIGURE-SKATING
SCANDAL...
U.S. federal prosecutors announced on 31 July the arrest in Italy
earlier that day of reputed Moscow crime boss Alimzhan Tokhtakhunov for
allegedly fixing the ice-dance and pairs figure-skating competitions at
the Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games in February, Russian and
Western news agencies reported. According to investigators,
Tokhtakhunov used his influence with the French and Russian skating
federations to pressure a French judge to vote for Russia's Yelena
Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze in the pairs event in exchange for a
Russian vote for France's Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat in the
ice-dance competition. Both teams won gold medals in their respective
competitions, although the scandal that erupted over the pairs decision
led the International Olympic Committee to award a second gold medal in
the event to Canada's Jamie Sale and David Pelletier (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 22 February 2002 and "End Note," "RFE/RL Newsline," 8 March
2002). MES
[10] ...IMPLICATING RUSSIAN, FRENCH SKATING ASSOCIATIONS
U.S. Attorney James Comey described the scheme as a "classic quid pro
quo: 'You'll line up support for the Russian pair; we'll line up
support for the French pair and everybody will go away with the gold,
and perhaps there'll be a little gold for me,''' AP reported on 31
July. Tokhtakhunov, a 49-year-old Russian citizen who was born in
Uzbekistan, reportedly sought to gain a visa to return to France, where
he had been living until he was forced to relocate to Italy, while the
beleaguered French national ice-hockey program would get $1 million,
according to AP. Evidence listed in the complaint filed in the
Manhattan federal court on 31 July includes transcripts of wire-tapped
conversations between Tokhtakhunov and an unidentified Russian
ice-skating official; between Tokhtakhunov and a "female ice dancer,"
presumably Anissina; and between the ice dancer's mother and
Tokhtakhunov, who is also known by the nickname "the Taiwanese." The
transcripts also implicate French Ice Skating Federation President
Didier Gailhaguet. "The Canadians were 10 times better and, in spite of
that, the French with their vote gave us first place," the unidentified
Russian official was quoted as telling Tokhtakhunov after the pairs
event, AFP reported. MES
[11] PRIVATIZATION OF OIL-MAJOR STAKE POSTPONED...
The government has decided to postpone the privatization of a 5.9
percent stake in LUKoil, the country's largest oil producer, ntvru.com
and other Russian media reported on 1 August. According to a company
press release, the decision was made because "the price on the markets
today is not acceptable to the government." According to Bloomberg, the
company's stock has fallen by 22 percent since the beginning of June,
closing on 31 July at $14.22 a share. The government hopes to get from
$15-16 per share for the stake, reaping approximately $800 million to
$900 million. The government initially sought to privatize the stake in
2001, but was unable to get a bid more than $13 a share and the
privatization was postponed. RC
[12] ...AS OIL EXPORT DUTIES ARE HIKED
Beginning 1 August, export duties on crude oil, gasoline, and diesel
fuel have been increased, strana.ru reported. The duty on crude oil was
raised from $20.40 per ton to $21.90, in accord with a government order
issued in the beginning of June. Duties on oil products were raised
from 25 euros to 35 euros per ton. According to unidentified sources in
the Economic Development and Trade Ministry, the decision was made in
order to ensure sufficient fuel supplies in Russia during the autumn
harvest season and the upcoming winter heating season. RC
[13] NOTHING TO BREATHE IN MOSCOW...
Continued high temperatures and numerous forest fires in Moscow Oblast
have left Moscow choking in a thick cloud of smog, Russian news
agencies reported on 1 August. Officials stated that the air quality
does not yet present a danger to public health, strana.ru reported. In
Moscow Oblast, more than 800 firefighters are fighting 120 separate
fires that have blackened almost 300 hectares. Meanwhile, fires rage in
other parts of the country as well. In Vladimir Oblast, 607 fires are
burning, polit.ru reported, and local officials are complaining of
shortages of firefighters and equipment. According to strana.ru,
Yaroslavl Oblast and Nizhnii Novgorod Oblast are also particularly hard
hit. As in Moscow, air quality in the city of Nizhnii Novgorod has been
affected. RC
[14] ...AS OFFICIALS SPRING INTO ACTION
On 31 July, Natural Resources Minister Vitalii Artyukhov signed an
order setting up a national firefighting operational center to be
headed by Deputy Natural Resources Minister Valerii Roshchupkin. The
center will be in charge of coordinating the response to major fires
and ensuring the most effective use of available firefighting
resources. The same day, the ministry's press service announced that
all the deputy natural resources ministers will be dispatched across
the country from 1-3 August to deal with the situation, RosBalt
reported on 1 August. Aleksandr Povolotskii will travel to the
Northwest Federal District; Roshchupkin will visit the Far East Federal
District; and Kirill Yankov will travel to the Siberian Federal
District. RC
[15] YUKOS HEAD COMMENTS ON WORK OF KOZAK COMMISSION
Yukos head Mikhail Khodorkovskii told Interfax on 31 July that the new
concept for administering the exploitation of natural resources devised
by the commission headed by deputy presidential administration head
Dmitrii Kozak does not call for a revision of existing agreements on
natural resources. According to Khodorkovskii, the Kozak commission
does not intend to propose revising existing license agreements,
although changes might be made in procedures for issuing licenses for
prospecting and developing new mineral deposits. The same day, however,
Ekho Moskvy reported that President Putin asked the government to draft
a federal law that would overhaul the entire system of property
relations in the extraction industries. According to the station, the
amendments to the law on mineral resources already drafted by the Kozak
commission reportedly stipulate that the state will own mineral
resources in the ground as well as the extracted minerals, which would
require the cancellation of licenses currently held by developers of
mineral deposits, who will then have to work according to new
concession agreements, according to the station. JAC
[16] TATAR MUFTI DISCUSSES POSSIBLE U.S. INVASION OF IRAQ...
Iraqi Ambassador to Russia Abbas Khalaf was in Kazan on 30 July for a
meeting with President Mintimer Shaimiev on expanding cooperation
between Iraq and Tatarstan, RFE/RL's Kazan bureau reported on 31 July.
Shaimiev said that the ambassador's visit, which came soon after his 1
July appointment, demonstrates Iraq's interest in -- and respect for
--Tatarstan. Khalaf responded by saying that his goal is to raise
relations to "a new level." Khalaf also met with Tatarstan Muslim
Religious Board Chairman Gusman Iskhakov in Kazan, islam.ru reported on
31 July. According to the site, various topics were discussed, but the
first priority was the possible invasion of Iraq by Great Britain and
the United States. The director of the presidential department for
external relations, Timur Akulov, sat in on Iskhakov's meeting. JAC
[17] ...AND MULLS RELIGIOUS EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGE WITH BAGHDAD
Khalaf and Iskhakov also discussed possible cooperation in the field of
religious education, islam.ru reported. Khalaf said that Iraq is ready
to send two teachers to higher Islamic education institutions in Kazan
and to invite Tatar students to come to Iraq for training at Saddam
Hussein University. Khalaf also invited Iskhakov to visit Iraq to fully
acquaint himself with the religious life of the population there. JAC
[18] POLISH PRIEST DECIDES NOT TO FLY...
Polish Roman Catholic Reverend Krzystof Kowal arrived by bicycle in
Irkutsk after leaving the Polish town of Koszalin two months ago to
take up his new post as father superior of the Cathedral of the
Immaculate Heart of the Virgin Mary, ITAR-TASS reported on 31 July.
Kowal said the 7,000-kilometer trip helped him to get to know Russia
and its people. JAC
[19] ...AFTER TWO COLLEAGUES FAIL TO LEAVE MOSCOW AIRPORT
In April, one of his colleagues, Bishop Jerzy Mazur, the former head of
Irkutsk's Catholic diocese, who was also on his way to Irkutsk, was
stopped by police at Moscow's Sheremetevo Airport, declared persona non
grata, and sent back to Poland (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 22 April 2002).
In May, Mazur started conducting religious services at Irkutsk's
Catholic cathedral by telephone from Poland (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 7
May 2002). Two years earlier, Bishop Andrzej Sliwinski from Elblag,
Poland, disappeared en route to Irkutsk, where he was expected to
consecrate the cathedral (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 7 September 2000).
Sliwinski left Warsaw on an Aeroflot flight and was supposed to change
planes at Moscow's Sheremetevo Airport, but failed to turn up. He was
later discovered at a hotel near the airport. He said he had checked in
at the hotel after he felt ill during his flight from Warsaw. JAC
[20] UNEMPLOYMENT SOARS IN POCKETS OF SIBERIA AND FAR EAST
Unemployment in the Siberian Federal District increased by 38.2 percent
in the first half of the year compared with the same period last year,
Interfax-Eurasia reported on 31 July. In Chita Oblast, the number of
unemployed doubled over that period, and in the Republic of Tuva it
grew by more than 73 percent. In the district overall, about 2.6
percent of the economically active portion of the population is
registered as unemployed, the agency reported. Registered unemployment
figures are generally assumed to understate actual unemployment. Of the
regions in the district, Tuva has the highest percentage of registered
unemployment with 10.7 percent, and Novosibirsk Oblast has the lowest
with 1.2 percent. JAC
[21] BUSINESSMAN PROFILED IN 'THE NEW YORK TIMES' SHOT ONE DAY LATER
Andrei Chunyak, who was featured in an article about his cafe in
Vladivostok in the "The New York Times" on 30 July, was killed the next
day, Interfax-Eurasia reported. Chunyak was shot four times in the head
and chest with a nine-millimeter "Baikal" pistol with a silencer,
according to the agency. According to "The New York Times," in addition
to being a co-owner of Studio Coffee, Chunyak was also a trader in
scrap metal. Chunyak dismissed questions about the connection between
organized crime and his sector. "What you see on TV -- it's rubbish.
The main thieves are the bureaucrats. They are the mafia," the
newspaper quoted him as saying. The article profiled the trend of
"businessmen" turning from "thuggery to tamer, more lawful business."
JAC
[22] KIRIENKO SAYS HE RECEIVED PERMISSION TO POACH
The press secretary for Sergei Kirienko, presidential envoy to the
Volga Federal District, threatened to file suit if newspapers in the
Republic of Komi do not issue a retraction of reports that Kirienko and
some companions engaged in illegal fishing of grayling from a protected
river in a national park, presscenter.ru reported on 31 July.
Kirienko's press secretary claimed that Kirienko received written
permission in advance from local natural-resource officials to catch
the fish. JAC
[23] VIRTUE IS NOT ITS OWN REWARD
Tatar Interior Minister Asgat Safarov verbally ordered his ministry on
30 July to begin giving monetary rewards to police officers who refuse
to accept bribes, RFE/RL's Kazan bureau reported the next day, citing
intertat.ru. A few days earlier, Safarov awarded a police officer
working at KamAZ in Chally 10,000 rubles ($320) for reporting that a
suspect had tried to bribe him after being detained while allegedly
trying to steal a crane from the company, Interfax-Eurasia reported on
31 July. JAC
TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[24] ARMENIAN CHURCH LEADER CALLS ON ISRAEL TO RETURN SEIZED PROPERTY
IN WEST BANK
The head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Catholicos Garegin II,
issued a statement on 31 July calling on Israel to return Armenian
Church property in the West Bank, according to RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau.
The seized Armenian Church property, a 20-hectare tract on the
outskirts of Bethlehem, was seized by the Israeli military for use in
the construction of a 350-kilometer "security wall" separating Israel
from the West Bank. The Armenian Church property is maintained by the
Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which filed a lawsuit challenging
the seizure last week. RG
[25] ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT PROJECTS STEADY INFLUX OF TOURISTS
Industry and Economic Development Deputy Minister Ara Petrosian has
announced that the level of tourism in Armenia is projected to maintain
the high level reached last year, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported on
31 July. The projected 120,000 tourists for 2002 is a source of
important revenue for the Armenian government and would match the
record level of last year that was attributed to an influx of Armenians
from the diaspora for the celebration of Armenia's 1,700th anniversary
of the state establishment of Christianity. The Armenian tourism sector
is limited, however, by an underdeveloped infrastructure. RG
[26] ARMENIAN PRESIDENT CRITICIZED BY FORMER SUPPORTER
In a 31 July statement, Self-Determination Union party leader Paruyr
Hairikian, a noted Soviet-era dissident and former presidential
adviser, criticized Armenian President Robert Kocharian for failing to
fulfill his 1998 campaign promises and announced that the incumbent
president does not deserve to be re-elected in 2003, according to
RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau. Although Hairikian resigned his position as an
adviser to President Kocharian in May, his announced opposition is the
latest loss of political support for the president's re-election bid.
RG
[27] U.S. EMBASSY IN BAKU PICKETED BY DISPLACED NEIGHBORS
A group of local residents who were forced from their homes near the
U.S. Embassy in Baku staged a picket in front of the embassy on 31 July
to protest the Baku municipal authorities' failure to compensate them
for their forced move, the ANS news agency reported. The demonstrators
demanded that they either be allowed to move back into their homes or
receive adequate compensation. The Baku residents were forced form
their homes as part of a new expanded security plan by the Azerbaijani
government seeking to extend and secure the embassy perimeter. RG
[28] RUSSIAN PRESIDENT CRITICIZES GEORGIA FOR CHECHEN INCURSIONS...
In comments during a 31 July televised interview, Russian President
Vladimir Putin rebuked the Georgian government for failing to prevent
recent incursions by Chechen rebels into Chechnya from bases in
Georgia's volatile Pankisi Gorge, AP reported. President Putin's
criticism followed an announcement by the Russian Foreign Ministry
earlier the same day that deplored Georgia's "reluctance to take
practical steps against terrorism." Following reports that eight
Russian border guards have reportedly been killed in clashes with
Chechen fighters this week, Russian officials reasserted that the
situation in Georgia necessitates "targeted retaliatory operations" by
Russian military forces (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 31 July 2002). RG
[29] ...AS GEORGIAN DEFENSE MINISTER CONVINCES RUSSIAN DETACHMENT TO
LEAVE UPPER KODORI GORGE
Georgian Defense Minister David Tevzadze met with officers of a small
detachment of Russian border guards that entered the Marukhi pass in
the Georgian-controlled upper Kodori Gorge on 31 July, according to the
online Civil Georgia news agency (http://www.civil.ge). After the
meeting, the Russian force withdrew from the upper part of the Kodori
Gorge. Georgian Defense Ministry officials also condemned incursions by
Russian military aircraft conducting bombing sorties on Georgian
territory. RG
[30] GEORGIAN SECURITY MEETING ACCUSES RUSSIAN FORCES OF ARMS DEALING
In a report to a Georgian cabinet meeting on 31 July, National Security
Minister Valeri Khaburzania accused Russian peacekeeping troops
deployed in Abkhazia of engaging in illegal arms trafficking, according
to "The Georgian Times." The minister specifically charged Russian
forces with selling and supplying arms and sophisticated weapons to the
Abkhaz military and pointed to the recent seizure of antiaircraft
weapons during the detention of Russian military officers (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 29 July 2002). In a discussion of the increasing violence
and kidnapping of foreign citizens in Georgia, Prosecutor-General
Nugzar Gabrichidze said that "too much freedom of speech caused an
increase of crime" and called for a serious effort to combat such
crimes, noting that such violence has led to "harsh criticism" of
Georgia by the international community. RG
[31] RUSSIAN COLONEL REPORTEDLY KIDNAPPED IN TBILISI
Russian Colonel Igor Zaitsev was kidnapped outside his home in Tbilisi
on 31 July by unknown gunmen, "The Georgian Times" reported. Under
pressure from a wave of similar abductions in recent months, Interior
Minister Koba Narchemashvili launched an immediate investigation. RG
[32] CASE CLOSED ON DEATH OF KAZAKH OPPOSITIONIST'S DAUGHTER
Police in Almaty have closed the investigation into the death of Leyla
Baysetova, daughter of opposition weekly "Respublika" Editor Lira
Baysetova, concluding that she was a drug addict who hanged herself
with her jeans in a moment of temporary insanity, Kazakh Commercial TV
reported on 31 July. Leyla Baysetova was arrested, hospitalized, and
died last month under mysterious circumstances shortly after her mother
published material relating to Swiss bank accounts rumored to belong to
President Nursultan Nazarbaev and members of his family (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 3 July 2002). Police denied on 31 July that law enforcement
officials were involved in Leyla Baysetova's death or that she had been
beaten in custody, as alleged last month by the international watchdog
organization Reporters Without Borders. But Kazakh television
questioned the police's findings, saying no attempts had been made to
analyze Leyla Baysetova's blood to determine if she had taken drugs and
no jeans were presented as evidence. AA
[33] CORRECTION:
The dollar conversion of 26 million tenges in the 31 July "RFE/RL
Newsline" item titled "Prosecutor Demands Eight-Year Sentence for
Kazakh Oppositionist" should have been $170,000.
[34] KYRGYZ AMNESTY BILL RETURNED TO PARLIAMENT FOR REEXAMINATION
On 31 July, Kyrgyz President Askar Akaev refused to sign a bill adopted
earlier this month by both houses of parliament that would grant
amnesties to all involved in the 17-18 March clashes in southern
Djalalabad Oblast and in subsequent antigovernment protests along the
Bishkek-Osh highway on 7-8 June, RFE/RL and Kabar news agency reported.
The bill has generated controversy because it would apply equally to
demonstrators and the police who fired into the crowds. After it was
strongly criticized again at a recent roundtable discussion in Bishkek
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 29 July 2002), Akaev sent it back to parliament
for "elaboration." The deputies can approve the amnesty over the
president's veto by a two-thirds vote. AA
[35] FRENCH AIR DIVISION LEAVING KYRGYZSTAN IN AUTUMN
The 420-strong French contingent of the international antiterrorism
coalition based at Bishkek's Manas airport will withdraw in October and
be replaced by a roughly equivalent number of Danish, Dutch, and
Norwegian troops, according to the French commander at Manas, Jean-Marc
Laurent, ITAR-TASS and AFP reported on 31 July. French pilots and
technicians were stationed in Kyrgyzstan in December, followed by two
French C-135 refueling aircraft and six Mirage 2000-D fighter jets that
arrived in February. The Mirage jets are due to be replaced by F-16
fighters belonging to the Norwegian Air Force. AA
[36] TAJIK SECURITY CHIEF SAYS ALL ILLEGAL GROUPS ERADICATED...
In an interview on 31 July, Security Council Secretary Amirqul Azimov
claimed total success in clearing Tajikistan of illegal militant
formations and narcotics rings, saying government forces have
eliminated all of them, Interfax reported. However, Azimov pointed out
that drug cultivation and smuggling continue unabated in Afghanistan
and warned that Afghan traffickers could still cross into Tajikistan
during August and September while the mountain passes remain open.
Meanwhile, Interfax-AVN reported on 29 July that in June and July
Russian border guards seized more than 1,100 kilograms of narcotics
along the Afghan-Tajik border. AA
[37] ...AND MOST BORDER PROBLEMS WITH UZBEKISTAN SOLVED
Also on 31 July, Azimov said that about 70 percent of the Tajik-Uzbek
border had been delineated, Asia Plus-Blitz reported. The 30 percent
still under dispute is the section running along Tajikistan's northern
Sughd Raion. Azimov added that, since there are currently no members of
the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) on Tajik territory, there is
no reason for Uzbekistan to unilaterally mine its borders with
Tajikistan, and expressed confidence that the issue of removing the
landmines "will be solved positively." In recent years some 100 Tajik
and Uzbek citizens have been killed or wounded after venturing into
unmarked mine fields near border zones. AA
[38] UZBEKISTAN'S KHANABAD AIR BASE TO BE RECONSTRUCTED
The U.S. Army has issued a tender to refurbish the runway and build
other facilities at Khanabad air base, uzreport.com reported on 31
July. Both American and Uzbek construction companies are invited to bid
for the project, which is estimated to cost between $1 million and $5
million, according to the news agency, citing an army press release.
About 1,000 U.S. troops are currently based at Khanabad. Iranian radio
commented on 31 July that the tender shows that the Pentagon intends to
establish a long-term presence in Uzbekistan. AA
[39] NEW UNDP GRANTS FOR UZBEKISTAN
The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) will finance projects in
Uzbekistan from 2002-04 worth over $68 million, Interfax reported on 31
July. The projects will include micro-credit initiatives for small
businesses, developing more wide-scale access to modern
telecommunications technologies, environmental protection, and the
prevention of HIV and AIDS. AA
CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE
[40] BELARUSIAN VENDORS HOLD ONE-DAY STRIKE
More than 150,000 outdoor-market vendors went on strike on 31 July in
all major Belarusian cities, protesting what they claim is too large a
tax burden, Belapan reported, quoting a source on the strike committee.
In particular, the protesters demanded talks with the government over a
new regulation requiring outdoor-market vendors to use cash registers.
They claim that this effectively doubles their tax burden. Leanid
Kalitsenya, the leader of the protest action in Minsk, told Belapan
that if the authorities want to introduce cash registers, they must
also reform the tax system. Vendors declared to continue their protests
if the authorities prove to be uncooperative. JM
[41] BELARUSIAN OFFICIAL BRINGS LIBEL SUIT AGAINST OPPOSITION NEWSPAPER
Anatol Tozik, the chairman of the powerful and fearsome State
Monitoring Committee, has filed a libel suit with a district court in
Minsk against the Minsk-based private newspaper "Nasha svaboda" and its
staff writer Mikhail Padalyak, Belapan and RFE/RL's Belarusian Service
reported on 31 July. Tozik is demanding some $110,000 in damages from
"Nasha svaboda" for running an article earlier this month that he
claims injured his "honor, dignity, and business reputation." The text
of the article in question states: "Anatol Tozik, who is holding a
monopoly for supplying the current president with analytical
information on economic, business, and financial matters, has
repeatedly approached [President Alyaksandr] Lukashenka with personal
complaints about current Prosecutor-General [Viktar] Sheyman's
unsuitability for the position." Padalyak claims that the article was
based on analytical memos of Russian special services. "This is nothing
more than an order from the top-level authorities to stifle the
independent press," "Nasha svaboda" Editor in Chief Pavel Zhuk
commented on the lawsuit. Zhuk previously ran two newspapers --
"Svaboda" and "Naviny" -- that were shut down by authorities. JM
[42] LUKASHENKA PLEDGES TO MAKE STATE-MEDIA JOURNALISM PRESTIGIOUS
President Lukashenka said on 31 July that the government will do
everything in its power to make working as a journalist for state media
a prestigious position, Belapan and Belarusian television reported.
Lukashenka made the comments while visiting the editorial office of
Belarus' largest government-controlled newspaper, "Sovetskaya
Belorussiya," which he ordered earlier this year to become a
"European-type publication." Lukashenka suggested that the media should
be a mirror of society and tell the truth. "So far it has not been the
case and the authorities are to blame for this in many respects," he
noted. According to the president, state-media journalists should be
given more freedom provided they are committed to accuracy, honesty,
and responsibility. Journalists should openly criticize negative
occurrences and, if necessary, the authorities, he said. Lukashenka
admitted that he has reacted "morbidly" to criticism by the independent
press. JM
[43] BLAST KILLS 20 UKRAINIAN MINERS
A blast in the Zasyadko coal mine in Donetsk Oblast late on 31 July
killed 20 miners, Ukrainian and international news agencies reported.
This latest disaster in Ukraine came four days after the tragic
air-show in Lviv and three weeks after 35 miners died in a fire in
another mine near Donetsk (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 8 and 29 July 2002).
The Zasyadko mine suffered two additional tragic blasts recently -- 50
miners died in May 1999 and 55 in August 2001. Donetsk prosecutors have
launched a criminal investigation into the latest blast. Ukraine's
Independent Trade Union of Coal Miners has demanded that the manager of
the Zasyadko mine, former Prime Minister Yukhym Zvyahilskyy, be
punished. Trade unionists claim that disasters at the Zasyadko mine
occur because Zvyahilskyy sends miners to work even if the
concentration of methane gas in mine shafts exceeds safety limits. JM
[44] UKRAINIAN DEFENSE MINISTER APOLOGIZES FOR TRAGIC AIR SHOW
Defense Minister Volodymyr Shkidchenko told journalists in Sevastopol
on 1 August that "the armed forces realize their responsibility [for
the air-show catastrophe in Lviv] and apologize to all of the Ukrainian
people," UNIAN reported. President Leonid Kuchma said the same day that
he has rejected Shkidchenko's resignation. In an apparent reference to
a recent statement by four opposition leaders blaming the top political
leadership for the air-show disaster (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 31 July
2002), Kuchma said some politicians have taken advantage of the
air-show tragedy to gain "political dividends." JM
[45] ESTONIA CONSIDERS JOINING CFE TREATY
Foreign Ministry Deputy Chancellor Harri Tiido asserted on 31 July that
Estonia is seriously considering joining the Treaty on Conventional
Forces in Europe (CFE), BNS reported. Tiido noted that the original CFE
treaty, which was signed in November 1990 by NATO and Warsaw Pact
countries, was not open to new members, and the updated version signed
in 1999 has not yet been ratified and is thus not in force. His
comments were prompted by recent statements by Russian officials,
including Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov, that the Baltic states should
sign the CFE treaty before joining NATO, as otherwise the potentially
destabilizing possibility that NATO could place large amounts of
weaponry there would remain open. Tiido called Russian concerns about
this "groundless" and added, "The accession of Estonia, Latvia, and
Lithuania to NATO would increase the number of Russia's partners in
NATO by its three neighbors, and that is a positive, rather than
negative, outlook." SG
[46] HEADS OF BALTIC AGRICULTURE MINISTRIES MEET IN LATVIA
The state secretaries of the three Baltic agriculture ministries held
talks in Sigulda on 29-30 July to form a common position for their
membership negotiations with the EU, BNS reported on 31 July. Alfonsas
Tamosiunas (Lithuania), Laimdota Straujuma (Latvia), and Tarmo Noot
(Estonia) decided they should point out that, as former Soviet
republics, they were in a different situation than other EU candidates
and had to switch from state to private ownership of farming lands
between 1991-95. They declared that the agricultural quotas suggested
by the European Commission were too low and proposed that the size of
the quotas should be based on the average production from 1995-99 and
not be lower than current production. The secretaries agreed that they
should hold meetings on a regular basis, and the next one will be in
Estonia in October. SG
[47] LITHUANIAN PRESIDENT NAMES REPRESENTATIVE FOR KALININGRAD
Valdas Adamkus on 31 July appointed parliament's Foreign Affairs
Committee Chairman Gediminas Kirkilas as his representative for
resolving transportation issues concerning Kaliningrad Oblast, ELTA
reported. It seems likely that the selection of Kirkilas, who is a
deputy chairman of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party, was probably
prompted by the decision of Russian President Putin to appoint State
Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Dmitrii Rogozin as his special
envoy for Kaliningrad (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 15 July 2002). As part of
its negotiations to join the EU, Lithuania agreed to introduce Schengen
agreement visa requirements for Kaliningrad residents next year, thus
ending their previous visa-free travel to Lithuania. Russia fears that
the introduction of visas will result in the isolation of Kaliningrad.
Adamkus made the appointment on the eve of his scheduled meeting with
Kaliningrad Oblast Governor Vladimir Yegorov on 1 August in Palanga. SG
[48] POLAND OPPOSES BEING NET CONTRIBUTOR TO EU BUDGET
Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz told PAP on 1 August that
Poland may decide not to join the European Union if its financial
contribution to the EU budget exceeds profits. Cimoszewicz noted that
EU declarations thus far indicate that Poland will receive more funds
than it will have to pay. "I am deeply convinced that final settlements
will confirm the declarations," the minister added. In Cimoszewicz's
opinion, the EU delay in presenting a common stand as regards financial
affairs is the only threat to EU expansion according to the previously
agreed schedule. JM
[49] POLISH GOVERNMENT SENDS 'EUROBUS' TO BOOST SUPPORT FOR EU
MEMBERSHIP
The government on 31 July sent a "Eurobus" across the country to
promote the idea of European integration and Poland's membership in the
EU, Polish radio reported. The Eurobus -- which is equipped with six
Internet terminals, a database, and promotional materials -- was
presented to Poland by the British Embassy in Warsaw. "Such an
instrument as the Internet bus improves, promotes, [and] encourages
society. And such a journey around Poland may widen such information
and such knowledge," British Ambassador Michael Pakenham commented. "It
is no event for Warsaw, Krakow, or Poznan when our Eurobus appears in
the main square. We have chosen towns for which we have the certainty
that this will be an event," said Slawomir Wiatr, the government
official responsible for the EU promotion campaign. JM
[50] CZECH ENVIRONMENT MINISTER WANTS TO PHASE OUT NUCLEAR POWER
Environment Minister Libor Ambrozek said in an interview with the daily
"Pravo" of 31 July that he wants the controversial Temelin plant to be
the country's last nuclear-power station, dpa reported. Ambrozek said
he will soon ask the government to adopt an energy policy that includes
a phase-out of nuclear power. He said he wants to focus on renewable
energy sources, such as hydroelectric and wind power, in the future.
But Ambrozek said Temelin will remain operational. Austrian Freedom
Party parliamentary group leader Hans Achatz was quoted by CTK the same
day as saying in response that this is "a big step in the right
direction." MS
[51] CZECH FOREIGN MINISTER SAYS PREDECESSOR LIKELY TO RESIGN AS EU
CONVENTION DELEGATE...
Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda said on Frekvence 1 radio on 31 July
that UN General Assembly Chairman Jan Kavan will probably resign as one
of the three Czech representatives to the EU Convention, CTK reported.
Kavan is also a parliamentary deputy representing the ruling Social
Democratic Party (CSSD). Svoboda said that "it would be good" if an
agreement is reached with Kavan to withdraw as delegate to the EU
Convention because coordination of the three posts will be difficult.
He said it is also unclear who should cover the costs of shuttling
Kavan between New York and Prague, where his party's coalition enjoys a
one-seat majority in the lower house, or flights to Brussels. MS
[52] ...BUT HINTS SRBA AFFAIR DOES NOT THREATEN UN DUTIES
Svoboda ruled out preventing Kavan from joining the Foreign Ministry
staff, a precondition for chairing the UN's upcoming General Assembly,
if ex-aide Karel Srba is found guilty on charges of conspiracy to
murder journalist Sabina Slonkova (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 and 24
July 2002). Kavan in the 1 August "Mlada fronta Dnes" sought to
distance himself from Srba, saying he was recommended by Miroslav
Slouf, an adviser to CSSD's previous prime minister, Milos Zeman. MS
[53] LEXA LAWYER COMPLAINS TO ECHR
Juraj Torkan, a lawyer representing former Slovak Intelligence Service
chief Ivan Lexa, on 31 July told CTK he has launched a complaint with
the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg over what he claims
are violations of Lexa's rights. Torkan said the offenses with which
Lexa is being charged were amnestied by former Premier Vladimir Meciar
in late 1998, when he was temporarily wielding some presidential
prerogatives after the end of former President Michal Kovac's mandate.
Torkan also claimed the prosecution is "gagging my client and his
counsel" because the defense is being denied access to the charges,
which are classified as "top secret." At the same time, he claimed, the
charges had been made public on an Internet website, and this is "a
typical example of the inequality of weapons," since he cannot respond
to them. It is unclear whether the charges made public on the site
http://www.geocities.com/ivanlexa2002 are really those with which Lexa
is in fact charged. The daily "Sme," cited by CTK, wrote on 31 July
that the website on which they appear is one offering general access
and allowing users to create any document they wish. MS
[54] SLOVAK CHIEF NEGOTIATOR WITH EU SAYS AGREEMENT 'NOT AT ANY COST'
Jan Figel, chief Slovak negotiator with the EU, on 31 July said
Bratislava should not be ready to pay "any price" for the successful
conclusion of accession negotiations with the EU. Like his Czech
counterpart, Pavel Telicka (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 30 July 2002), Figel
said he will not hesitate to recommend that the government refrain from
completing the accession negotiations by yearend if the EU shows no
readiness to compromise. MS
[55] EXTREMIST SLOVAK LEADER INDULGES IN CLICHE DISCOURSE
Real Slovak National Party Chairman Jan Slota on 31 July reiterated his
well-known views on the Roma and on ethnic Hungarians but denied he has
any personal aversion toward members of those national minorities, CTK
reported. Slota said that in his youth he had some Romany and ethnic
Hungarian friends. In a debate with readers published in the daily
"Narodna obroda," Slota said that Slovakia is "spoiling the Roma" by
granting them social benefits while "their only concern is
reproduction, theft, and robbery." Slota denied his anti-Hungarianism
stems from the fact that his first wife was a Magyar, saying "we are
good friends." He also said he has good relations with Hungarian
Coalition Party Chairman Bela Bugar, but added, "However, I must admit
that when they [meaning ethnic Hungarians] meet, they all pull
together, and the end of the rope is Budapest." MS
[56] HUNGARY'S FIDESZ-ERA MINISTERS DENY LINKS WITH COMMUNIST-ERA
SECRET SERVICES...
According to information from the National Security Office, five
members of the FIDESZ-led government had links to communist-era secret
service agencies, the weekly "Heti Vilaggazdasag" reported on 1 August.
The weekly said that two members of Viktor Orban's cabinet had ties to
the domestic security (III-III) department, and three were linked with
the counterintelligence (III-II) agency. Although the names of those
involved were not made public, former PHARE Funds Minister Imre Boros,
Orban's former office chief, Istvan Stumpf, former Finance Minister
Mihaly Varga, and former Sports Minister Tamas Deutsch denied any
connection with communist-era secret services. Imre Mecs, chairman of
the parliamentary commission investigating ties to those agencies by
cabinet members since the change of regime, said a second list from the
Historical Office registry shows that a previous cabinet member signed
a cooperation pact with the country's security agency and that three
members filed reports. MSZ
[57] ...AS MEDGYESSY COMMISSION MEMBERS LEAK INTENDED QUESTIONS TO
MEDIA...
The chairman of the parliamentary commission investigating Prime
Minister Peter Medgyessy's counterintelligence past, Laszlo Balogh
(Hungarian Democratic Forum), on 31 July said he wants to learn from
Medgyessy how the latter was recruited, what his job duties were, and
what the criteria for his selection were. Medgyessy is slated to appear
in an open hearing on 1 August. Balogh said he also wants to know if
Medgyessy wrote reports himself or if they were written by a contact in
the secret services. Free Democrat committee member Andras Bohm said he
wants to find out who approached Medgyessy, under what conditions, and
with whom he was in contact. FIDESZ deputy Istvan Simicsko said he will
attempt to ascertain whether Medgyessy cooperated with state security
for personal gain or for career purposes, "Magyar Hirlap" reported. MSZ
[58] ...AND JOURNALISTS' PASTS ARE SLATED FOR SCRUTINY
Some 1,500 print journalists will be screened beginning in September
for involvement with the communist-era domestic security services,
"Nepszabadsag" reported on 1 August. A list identifying those to be
screened is currently being drafted, said Judit Leb Feher, chairwoman
of the panel of judges screening public figures. The law allowing
background checks on journalists covers national, regional, and local
newspapers and magazines that help shape economic, social, political,
and cultural life. The law prescribes that editors in chief and their
deputies, editors, copy editors, columnists, and senior staff be
vetted. MSZ
[59] HUNGARIAN LABOR MINISTRY TO SET UP EQUAL-OPPORTUNITY DIRECTORATE
The Labor Ministry plans to launch an equal-opportunity directorate to
help integrate disadvantaged segments of the population into the work
force, Labor Minister Peter Kiss told "Magyar Hirlap" on 31 July.
Katalin Levai, head of the new directorate, said the office will be
split into three units focusing on women, the handicapped, and Roma.
One initiative to be launched this fall will use EU PHARE subsidies to
help draw 1,000 women into the labor market. A budget of 830 million
forints ($3.3 million) has been allocated to help women over 40 and new
mothers. A joint Hungarian-British program will also be piloted in Zala
County to help the handicapped find employment. Levai also outlined
details of a 2.5 billion forint initiative aimed at reducing the ranks
of the long-term unemployed, particularly within the Romany population.
MSZ
[60] HUNGARY'S MINORITIES INCREASINGLY WILLING TO IDENTIFY THEMSELVES
More than 300,000 Hungarian citizens identified themselves as members
of one of the country's 13 officially recognized ethnic minorities,
Hungarian dailies reported on 1 August, citing data from the February
2001 census. The figure is a considerable increase since 1990,
according to Tamas Mellar, president of the Central Statistics Office.
During the census, nearly 95 percent of Hungary's 10 million people
volunteered to declare its ethnic affiliation. The number of Roma rose
from 142,000 to 190,000, while that of ethnic Germans doubled to
62,000. The number of ethnic Romanians declined. Meanwhile, 90 percent
of people said they are a member of one of nearly 260 faiths. More than
5.5 million people said they are Catholics, while 1.6 million are
Calvinists, 300,000 are Lutherans, and nearly 13,000 are Jewish. MSZ
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[61] MONTENEGRIN POLITICIANS MEET UNDER EU PRESSURE
The pro-Belgrade and pro-independence parties that dominate the
Montenegrin parliament agreed under pressure from a delegation of
European Union ambassadors in Podgorica on 31 July to launch talks with
other political parties on revising controversial media and electoral
legislation, RFE/RL's South Slavic and Albanian Languages Service
reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 31 July 2002). Talks began late in the
morning the next day. Elsewhere, almost all radio and television
broadcasters belonging to the Association of Independent Electronic
Media of Montenegro (UNEM) said they will interrupt their broadcasts
for half an hour on 1 August to protest the media legislation recently
passed by the new majority coalition in the legislature and reluctantly
signed into law by President Milo Djukanovic. On 1 August, the Council
of Europe criticized the new legislation as being politically motivated
and contrary to European norms. PM
[62] CONSTITUTIONAL CHARTER COMMISSION DEADLOCKED
The commission tasked with drafting the Constitutional Charter for the
new loose union of Serbia and Montenegro ended its work on 31 July
without agreeing on a final text in several key areas, RFE/RL's South
Slavic and Albanian Languages Service reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline,"
31 July 2002). Miodrag Vukovic, who is a member of the commission from
the Montenegrin parliament, told RFE/RL that the points of agreement
did not touch on substantial issues and could have been concluded by
any two "independent states that are not in any sort of relationship."
Elsewhere, Serbian Justice Minister Vladan Batic, who has led the fight
in Serbia against the joint state, called for the new entity to be
simply an alliance of two independent countries. The alliance would be
valid for eight years and be renewable. The two states would share
common foreign, defense, and internal economic polices, he added. PM
[63] KOSTUNICA SAYS TIES TO DOS BROKEN 'IRREVOCABLY'
In the latest of a series of interviews with domestic and foreign
media, Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica told Beta news agency on
31 July that he no longer communicates with his principal rival,
Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 29 July
2002, and "RFE/RL South Slavic Report," 25 July and 1 August 2002).
Kostunica added that his ties to the Democratic Opposition of Serbia
(DOS) are now broken permanently, and that many of the DOS leaders are
more interested in their own power than in the good of the state. In
related news, Velimir Ilic of the small New Serbia (NS) movement
announced that his party is leaving DOS to protest the coalition's
recent treatment of Kostunica's Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS). Ilic
added that there are other reasons for his party's decision but did not
elaborate. PM
[64] EUROPEAN BANK MONEY FOR SERBIAN INFRASTRUCTURE
Representatives of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
(EBRD) signed an agreement in Belgrade on 31 July with Serbian and
Yugoslav officials regarding a loan of nearly $74,000,000, RFE/RL's
South Slavic and Albanian Languages Service reported. Yugoslav Deputy
Prime Minister Miroslav Labus said the money will go for several
projects including the Ibar Valley road, a road from Nis to the
Bulgarian border, and part of the main Belgrade-Nis highway. PM
[65] SERBIAN NGO PROTESTS MEDIA MANIPULATION
The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia (HOPS) said in a
statement in Belgrade on 31 July that ethical principles have recently
been widely violated in the Serbian media. The statement referred
specifically to the publication in mass-circulation newspapers of
transcripts of, or excerpts from, private telephone conversations
involving prominent officials in the run-up to the 29 September Serbian
presidential election. HOPS argued that the "publishing of such
contents and the ensuing scandal-mongering...diverts attention from
serious topics and is reminiscent of manipulation methods [employed by]
the previous regime" of President Slobodan Milosevic. The statement
added that such practices help create a "mood of paranoia typical of
markedly undemocratic countries." PM
[66] FORMER MACEDONIAN ALBANIAN GUERRILLA LEADER SHOT DEAD
Assassins killed Jusuf Ilazi, who is a former leader of the National
Liberation Army (UCK), in a drive-by slaying in Tetovo on 31 July, AP
reported. Police arrested an ethnic Albanian from a nearby village in
connection with the murder. It is not clear what the killers' motive
was. PM
[67] ALBANIAN PARLIAMENT APPROVES NANO CABINET
Following a 10-hour debate on 31 July, the legislature voted 81-48 to
approve the government of Prime Minister Fatos Nano, AP reported (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 29 and 30 July 2002). Nano repeated his pledges to
integrate his country into Euro-Atlantic institutions by fighting crime
and corruption. He also pledged to tackle the endemic electric power
shortage. PM
[68] CROATIAN COURT ORDER REARREST OF WAR CRIMES SUSPECTS
On 31 July, the Supreme Court ordered the rearrest and return to prison
of seven former policemen formerly held in detention in conjunction
with the torture of hundreds of Serbs and Yugoslav Army men at Split's
Lora military prison during the 1991-95 war, RFE/RL's South Slavic and
Albanian Languages Service reported. A lower court recently released
the men for lack of evidence pending the resumption of their trial (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 23 July 2002). The Supreme Court agreed with the
prosecutor that it is too early in the trial to consider releasing the
men. Critics charged that the release was evidence of the political
bias of much of the Croatian judiciary in favor of suspects who
allegedly committed crimes against Serbs. PM
[69] BEDTIME FOR BABO
On 31 July, the Croatian district court in Karlovac sentenced Fikret
Abdic -- also known as "Babo" (Daddy) -- to 20 years in prison for war
crimes committed while he ruled the Bihac pocket in northwest Bosnia
between 1993 and 1995, RFE/RL's South Slavic and Albanian Languages
Service reported. Now a Croatian citizen, he was tried in Croatia on
the basis of evidence from Bosnia. He may still appeal to the Supreme
Court. Abdic was a powerful kingpin in the Bihac area for many years
and served time in prison under communist rule for a variety of
economic crimes associated with his Agrokomerc conglomerate. He was
widely regarded locally as a folk hero and planned to run for the
presidency in the 5 October Bosnian general elections. Hilmo Pasic of
the Bosnian election commission said in Sarajevo that Abdic will remain
on the ballot until he is actually sentenced, presumably after his
appeal is processed, Deutsche Welle's Bosnian Service reported on 1
August. Bosnian Foreign Minister Zlatko Lagumdzija said he wants Abdic
off the ballot as soon as possible. PM
[70] ROMANIAN GOVERNMENT TO DENY ENTRY TO WAR CRIMINALS
The Romanian government on 31 July adopted a draft modifying the law on
foreign citizens that would deny entry to war criminals, Mediafax
reported. The law provides that war criminals and persons deemed guilty
of committing criminal acts against peace and humanity who try to enter
Romania will be returned to their country of origin. The draft follows
the expulsion from the United States to Romania of former Nazis
Nikolaus Schiffer and Michael Negele (see RFE/RL "Newsline," 25 July
2002). ZsM
[71] ROMANIAN PRIME MINISTER DENIES RIFT WITHIN RULING PARTY
Romanian Prime Minister and Social Democratic Party (PSD) Chairman
Adrian Nastase on 31 July denied once again that internal rifts are
splitting his party, Romanian media reported. Speaking after a meeting
of the PSD's Permanent Delegation, Nastase said media reports on the
alleged rifts are mere "holiday scenarios," as all PSD branches work
together closely. The Bucharest-based "National" daily the same day
claimed that the prime minister fears a split within the party similar
to the split of the former National Salvation Front in 1992, which
resulted in the forming of the current PSD and the Democratic Party.
The paper alleged that Nastase's main opponent is President Ion
Iliescu, whose supporters intend to form a new party with the
Democratic Party. In an interview with "Adevarul" on 1 August, former
Democratic Party Chairman and former Prime Minister Petre Roman, hinted
that he would be interested in reconciling with Iliescu. ZsM
[72] ROMANIAN POLICE INVESTIGATE XENOPHOBIC MAYOR
Gheorghe Funar, the xenophobic mayor of Cluj, is being investigated by
the police regarding the public display of a statue honoring wartime
leader and Hitler ally Marshal Ion Antonescu, Romanian media reported.
Government Ordinance 31 adopted earlier this year forbids the public
display of statues and the promotion of persons sentenced for "crimes
against humanity and peace." Funar, the secretary-general of the
extremist Greater Romania Party, has previously said that Antonescu is
"a martyr" and a hero. He risks a jail sentence of six months to five
years. In related news, on the night of 30 July several road signs with
the name of the city were painted with the Hungarian name of Cluj,
Kolozsvar. The mayor's office has ordered police to find the felons and
also fined the Cluj branch of the Hungarian Democratic Federation of
Romania (UDMR) 14.8 million leis (some $500) for illegally painting the
signs. UDMR leaders asked the police to investigate Funar for abuse of
office. ZsM
[73] ROMANIA TO RECEIVE EU FUNDS THROUGH SAPARD FARM-AID PROGRAM
The European Commission on 31 July authorized Romania to begin the
implementation of the SAPARD farm-aid program, Mediafax reported. The
EC is to begin releasing funds earmarked for Romania for 2000 worth
153.2 million euros ($150 million). Romania will be eligible for
additional funds worth 156.3 million euros for 2001 and some 158
million euros for 2002-06. In the first phase, the funds are intended
to improve the marketing and processing of agricultural products and
for the development of rural infrastructure. All EU candidate countries
except Hungary have launched their own SAPARD programs, with only
Poland receiving more SAPARD funds than Romania. ZsM
[74] BULGARIAN PRESIDENT SAYS MISSILES MUST BE DESTROYED 'QUICKLY AND
SAFELY'...
President Georgi Parvanov said on 31 July after a meeting of the
Consultative Council on National Security that there is "a common
political will" on the council to destroy the country's Soviet-made
SS-23, Scud, and Frog missile systems "in line with the schedule [and]
by ensuring maximum safety for the people and the environment," BTA
reported. Parvanov said that the SS-23 components considered the safest
to destroy will be scrapped immediately after signing an agreement with
subcontractors for the project "in the next few days." With respect to
the destruction of the SS-23 engines, he said that "consideration will
be given to as many [alternative] methods as necessary to ensure the
safety of the process." Parvanov also said that "certain circles and
individuals [in Bulgaria] have an interest in creating tension" linked
with the missile-destruction project but these tensions "cannot be
attributed to external influences." MS
[75] ...AS PROTESTING FARMERS OCCUPY MILITARY COMPOUND IN ZMEJOVO
Parvanov also said that the "dialogue" with the residents of the Stara
Zagora region, who oppose the missile destruction because they fear
ecological damage, "must be more active and open," BTA reported. The
same day, more than 200 farmers occupied a bunker in the Zmejovo
military compound to protest the planned destruction of the missiles,
dpa reported. Some 11,000 residents of Zmejovo have signed a petition
against the missile destruction. MS
[76] BULGARIAN PRESIDENT SAYS IMPLEMENTATION OF NATO MEMBERSHIP ACTION
PLAN ON COURSE
President Parvanov said on 31 July after a meeting of the Consultative
Council on National Security that the council has positively assessed
all pertinent state institutions' implementation of NATO's Membership
Action Plan (MAP), BTA reported. The president said the
interoperability of Bulgarian with NATO forces is improving and that
positive results have been achieved in the armed forces' structural
reforms. MS
[77] BULGARIAN AGRICULTURE MINISTER PLEDGES 'NO LOBBYING' FOR ANY
BULGARTABAC BIDDER
Agriculture and Forestry Minister Mehmed Dikme pledged on 31 July that
his ethnic Turkish Movement for Rights and Freedoms will not lobby for
any of the bidders in Bulgartabac and will support the bidder whose
offer best protects Bulgaria's growing tobacco industry and national
interests, BTA reported. Also on 31 July, Dikme said that protests by
agricultural workers against low prices for agricultural products can
be viewed as justified, but not so the actions of "certain political
forces" that seek to exploit the situation to their advantage and
instigate protests. MS
END NOTE
[78] There is no End Note today.
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