No. 156, 17 August 1992

SUCCESSOR STATES TO THE USSR

GEORGIAN NATIONAL GUARD CLASHES WITH ABKHAZ FORCES: SOME HOSTAGES
RELEASED. Up to 19 people were killed on 14 August when Georgian
National Guard troops sent to Abkhazia to hunt for security officials
abducted by supporters of ousted Georgian President Zviad Gamsakhurdia
came under fire from Abkhaz MVD troops in the Abkhaz capital
of Sukhumi, Western agencies reported. The Abkhaz government
protested that the sending of Georgian troops constituted an
"occupation" and denied that the abducted officials were on Abkhaz
territory; all but three of the hostages were released later
that day. On 15 August Georgian Prime Minister Tengiz Sigua and
State Council deputy chairman Dzhaba Ioseliani traveled to Sukhumi
and negotiated an agreement with Abkhaz officials on a cease-fire
and withdrawal of all troops from the town; sporadic gunfire
persisted, however, on 16 August, and each side accused the other
of violating the cease-fire agreement. Sigua threatened that
"unconstitutional units" in Abkhazia would be neutralized if
they failed to surrender their arms. (Liz Fuller)

RUSSIAN MILITARY CONCERNED OVER EVENTS IN ABKHAZIA. On 15 August
Russian Defense Minister Pavel Grachev sent a telegram to the
Georgian and Abkhaz leadership calling on them to guarantee the
safety of Russian troops stationed in Abkhazia. On 16 August
a Russian paratroop regiment was sent from Gyandzha in Azerbaijan
to Sukhumi to protect Russian military facilities and help evacuate
Russian vacationers and the families of Russian troops stationed
there, Russian TV reported. (Liz Fuller)

BLACK SEA FLEET TO EVACUATE RUSSIANS FROM GEORGIA. Ships from
the ex-Soviet Black Sea Fleet will be used to evacuate some 1,700
Russian citizens from Sukhumia Black Sea vacation spot in Georgia
that is now at the center of fighting between Georgian troops
and rebel soldiers loyal to the breakaway Abkhazian region. General
Sufiyan Beppaev told ITAR-TASS on 16 August that the ships would
take the tourists up the Black Sea coast to the southern Russian
port of Novorossiisk. Two tourists in Sukhumi were killed in
the crossfire between Georgian and rebel soldiers. UPI reported
that Russian paratroopers landed in the area on 16 August to
protect CIS/Russian military installations and to help evacuate
Russian citizens. (Doug Clarke)

DUDAEV REACTS TO EVENTS IN ABKHAZIA. Chechen President Dzhokhar
Dudaev has signed an order saying that the actions of the Georgian
State Council against Abkhazia constitute a threat to Chechnya
and all the republics of the Caucasus, and ordering the republic's
armed forces to be ready to repel aggression, ITAR-TASS reported.
Dudaev also gave instructions for military units of the Confederation
of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus to be received and accommodated
in Chechnya. The Assembly of Mountain Peoples of the Caucasus,
which created the confederation, came into being in 1989 largely
at the urging of the Abkhaz who were seeking allies against the
Georgians. It has never been clear just how much support the
confederation enjoys and what its military units amount to. (Ann
Sheehy)

NAGORNO-KARABAKH GOVERNMENT RESIGNS, REPLACED BY DEFENSE COMMITTEE.
On 15 August an emergency session of the parliament of the Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic accepted the resignation, tendered on 10 August, of
Prime Minister Oleg Esayan and his government, Radio Mayak reported.
The session named Karen Baguryan acting parliament chairman in
place of Georgy Petrosyan and created a Defense Committee to
be headed by Robert Kocharyan, a member of the board of the Armenian
Pan-National Movement and a close associate of Armenian President
Levon Ter-Petrossyan. The Defense Committee is intended to manage
all aspects of government including defense; a state of emergency
was declared in Nagorno-Karabakh on 13 August in response to
recent Azerbaijani military successes. (Liz Fuller)

ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT TO DEBATE VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE IN PRESIDENT?
Following a rally in Erevan on 14 August by three thousand people
calling for his resignation, on 15 August Armenian President
Levon Ter-Petrossyan acceded to demands by the opposition "National
Unity" coalition and convened an emergency parliament session
for 17 August which will consider Ter-Petrossyan's suggestion
that a referendum be held to determine whether he should resign,
ITAR-TASS reported. Ter-Petrossyan has come under increasing
pressure in recent months over his refusal to grant recognition
to the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. (Liz Fuller)


MOLDOVAN-RUSSIAN TROOP TALKS LINKED TO "MILITARY COOPERATION."
Redefining the agenda of the talks on the future of Russia's
troops in Moldova, Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced
in a press release that they covered in their first round "not
only the status of Russian troops and their stage-by-stage withdrawal,"
but also "the prospects of military cooperation among the two
states." Such cooperation was allegedly necessitated by "the
fundamental changes to the defense system of the former USSR
that would result from the withdrawal of troops in that sector."
The Ministry's reference to the defense system of the former
USSR reflects the growing tendency of Russian officials to identify
Russia's security interests with those of the former Soviet Union
in certain areas not contiguous to Russia. This linkage would
place Moldova in a different situation from that of the Baltic
States and Ukraine, and it also contravenes both Moldova's neutral
status and the country's refusal to join any CIS military structure.
The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the first round
of the talks as "preliminary and exploratory" and held "in a
warm atmosphere with both sides being satisfied with the results."
They agreed on 14 August to adjourn the talks and resume them
in Chisinau as soon as possible. Chisinau has made no comment
on the negotiations as yet. (Vladimir Socor)

CIS MEETING ON VISA-FREE TRAVEL. High-ranking CIS consular officials
are to meet in Minsk on 17 and 18 August to discuss visa-free
travel for CIS citizens within the commonwealth, Interfax reported
on 16 August. Interfax says that the Slavic and Central Asian
republics are expected to make the strongest appeals for visa-free
travel, but, while Russia wants a multilateral agreement, Ukraine
has insisted on concluding bilateral agreements on the issue.
When the CIS was created, member-states committed themselves
to open frontiers, but this principle has been under threat recently.
Russia and Ukraine signed an agreement on visa-free travel at
the recent meeting between Yeltsin and Kravchuk in Yalta. (Ann
Sheehy)

YELTSIN APPOINTS COUNSELORS. As a result of the reorganization
of the presidential apparatus, President Boris Yeltsin has reappointed
five of his former "state counselors" as ordinary "counselors,"
Rossiiskie vesti reported on 13 August. Yulii Vorontsov was appointed
counselor for foreign political questions, Aleksandr Granberg
for economic and social problems of the CIS, Mikhail Malei for
problems of conversion, Nikolai Malyshev for questions of science
and higher education, and Aleksei Yablokov for questions of ecology
and health. (Alexander Rahr)

RUSSIA'S "RED DIRECTORS" END CONFERENCE. The All-Russian Conference
of Manufacturers closed on 14 August after tabling several demands,
ITAR-TASS and Interfax reported. The organizer, Yurii Gekht of
the Industrial Union, was elected chairman of the manufacturers'
coordinating council which will prepare a congress to be held
during the final quarter of 1992. The conference proposed, inter
alia, a guaranteed and indexed minimum wage and the removal of
VAT from certain staple foodstuffs and goods. It asked its supporters
in parliament to appeal to the constitutional court to determine
the legality of presidential and government decrees on privatization
and other issues. (Keith Bush)

CONFERENCE URGES RESIGNATION OF GOVERNMENT. Yurii Gekht said
that he would inform the Russian parliament of the documents
drafted during the conference, and he would try to ensure that
the government discusses the drafted program with the manufacturers.
If the government refuses to accept the program, the manufacturers
may seek its resignation. Gekht deplored the boycotting of the
conference by Gaidar and other cabinet ministers. The Times of
14 August reported that the ministers were ordered to stay away
by President Yeltsin. (Keith Bush)

ANTI-YELTSIN REFERENDUM: SIGNATURE CAMPAIGN CONTINUES. The report,
issued at the end of July, that Yeltsin's opponents had collected
the necessary one million signatures to demand a referendum on
the Russian president's ouster, was inaccurate. Pravda reported
on 11 August that the necessary number of signatures has not
yet been collected but that the leaders of the anti-Yeltsin campaign
are continuing their efforts. (Elizabeth Teague)

CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS OPPOSE YELTSIN. The leader of the Russian
Christian democrats, Viktor Aksyuchits, said in an interview
with Moskovskie novosti (no 33) that the Christian democrats
want to organize the removal of President Boris Yeltsin using
pressure from workers' strikes. Aksyuchits said he would run
for the post of Russian president. He distanced himself from
ultra-rightist forces and noted that his movement seeks to recreate
Russia in accordance with its pre-revolutionary traditions. He
emphasized that the former Soviet Union could be reestablished
under a different banner. (Alexander Rahr)

RUSSIAN IMPORT DUTIES TO BE RAISED. Citing a Russian presidential
decree, Interfax on 13 August reported that import duties will
be raised on 1 September. The minimum rate will be raised from
5% to 15%. Import duties on cars and electronics will be 25%
and the duty on alcohol will be 50%. Import duties will not be
levied on most staple foodstuffs, including meat and fish products,
flour, fats, and vegetable oils. Duties will be waived on products
from certain unnamed less-developed nations. Among the grounds
given for the higher rates are the need to raise more money to
service the country's foreign debt and, in the case of alcohol,
to meet demands from domestic producers who have been suffering
from cheap imports. (Keith Bush)

AZERBAIJAN INTRODUCES NEW CURRENCY. On 15 August Azerbaijan introduced
its own currency, the "manat," which for the time being will
be used in tandem with the ruble. One manat is worth ten rubles;
denominations of one, ten and twenty manats have been issued.
According to first deputy prime minister, Vahid Akhmedov, the
decision to introduce the manat was prompted by the fact that
the National Bank owed over 4 billion rubles in back salaries
following massive salary increases to many state employees in
early July. (Liz Fuller)

GERMAN DEVELOPMENT MINISTER IN CENTRAL ASIA. Carl-Dieter Spranger,
the German Minister for Development, began a ten-day visit to
Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Mongolia on 15 August, according
to an RFE/RL correspondent report. Spranger will be assessing
opportunities for Germany to support market and democratic reforms
in the region.(Cassandra Cavanaugh)

KARIMOV CUTS SHORT VISIT TO PAKISTAN. Uzbek President Islam Karimov
left Pakistan two days ahead of schedule, cutting short a planned
visit to Karachi where he was to meet with Pakistani businessmen
to discuss possible joint ventures, AFP reported on 14 August.
Heavy rains have caused flooding and deaths in that city and
have brought the city's administration to a halt. Karimov left
Islamabad for Tashkent on 14 August, after meeting for 90 minutes
with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and attending Pakistani Independence
Day celebrations. (Cassandra Cavanaugh)

ANOTHER INCIDENT ON TAJIK-AFGHAN BORDER. On 14 August, an armed
group of Tajiks demanded that border guards allow them to return
to Tajikistan from Afghanistan; in the resulting firefight, one
border guard was wounded, Khovar-TASS reported on 15 August.
This and similar stories of clashes between border guards and
Tajiks bringing weaponry from Afghanistan give substance to a
report in Nezavisimaya gazeta of 15 August (summarized by ITAR-TASS),
that guards on the Tajik-Afghan border are exasperated by the
lack of support from Tajikistan and Russia. The guards remain
under a Tajik-Russian agreement of 21 July, but the Tajik opposition
wants them replaced by units of the Tajik army. (Bess Brown)


RUSSIAN DIPLOMAT DEFECTS TO BRITAIN. On 24 July, Viktor Oshchenko,
a diplomat in Russia's Paris embassy, requested political asylum
in Great Britain. A spokesman for the Russian Foreign Intelligence
Service, Yurii Kobaladze, told Komsomolskaya pravda on 14 August
that Oshchenko had been "under suspicion" for a considerable
period of time. According to the newspaper, Oshchenko worked
for the former KGB administration "T" for scientific and technological
intelligence. (Victor Yasmann)

TURKEY TO BUY RUSSIAN ARMS. Turkey has decided to buy $300 million
worth of arms from Russia, according to Ismet Sezgin, the Turkish
minister of the interior. The announcement was made in an interview
in the 13 August issue of the newspaper Milliyet, according to
ITAR-TASS. Sezgin was quoted as saying that Turkey would buy
helicopters and armored troop carriers. Russia was said to have
consented to the deal with the proviso that the arms not be transferred
to a third party. Turkey is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization. (Doug Clarke)

NEW AIRLINER HIT OF MOSCOW AIRSHOW. ITAR-TASS on 14 August reported
that the medium-range Tupolov Tu-204 airliner was the highlight
of the fourth day of the "Mosaeroshow-92." The plane is built
in Ulyanovsk in Russia and is powered by British-made jet engines
and has some American-made avionics. A stock company called "Bravia"
has been formed to market the aircraft abroad, and the report
said that Iran, India, and China had shown an interest. (Doug
Clarke)

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

NO GROUND TROOPS FOR BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA? On 14 August NATO representatives
meeting in Brussels voted to rule out massive use of land forces
in the conflict. The WEU had taken a similar decision the day
before, perhaps guided by the fact that few countries are willing
to commit soldiers. France on 14 August joined Turkey in offering
just over 1,000 men to help protect relief shipments, while Spain
the next day pledged 20 officers and an unspecified number of
volunteer soldiers, the BBC reported. (Patrick Moore)

UN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION NAMES MAZOWIECKI AS SPECIAL INVESTIGATOR
FOR BOSNIA. The Los Angeles Times on 15 August said that the
UNHCR meeting in Geneva the previous day had asked former Polish
Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki to look into human rights abuses
in Bosnia and file a report on 28 August. The session had been
characterized by clashes between American and Serbian representatives,
but the US-sponsored final document was not tough enough for
some Islamic delegates, who wanted Belgrade singled out as the
aggressor. (Patrick Moore)

HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN CROATIAN CAMPS. The Guardian on 15 August
and news agencies carried extensive reports on Croatian-run camps
in Herzegovina, at which women, children, and old people are
held in addition to soldiers. Croat officials gave journalists
permission to visit the area and claimed that the civilians had
come there voluntarily in hopes of being included in a prisoner
exchange, but the Guardian account describes a lawless and dangerous
frontier-type society in Croatian-controlled areas of Herzegovina.
One military man warned inquisitive reporters: "A journalist
is like a soldier, the less you know, the longer you live." Some
western newsmen fresh from Herzegovina told the RFE/RL Research
Institute on 14 August that they had the distinct impression
that the Croats were trying to keep them out of certain areas
of Mostar. (Patrick Moore)

UN CONVOY REACHES GORAZDE. A UN convoy carrying 48 tons of relief
supplies reached the besieged Bosnian city of Gorazde on 15 August.
Gorazde has been surrounded by Serbian forces for four months,
and hunger and disease are reported to be widespread. On its
return journey to Sarajevo, the convoy's progress was stopped
when it encountered a mined bridge. Both the Muslims and Serbs
in the area blamed the other side for the mining. The convoy
managed to reach Sarajevo safely early on 17 August. (Gordon
Bardos).

BOSNIA TO ISSUE OWN CURRENCY. On 16 August, Sarajevo Radio reported
that the Bosnian government was planning to issue its own currency.
Until now, Bosnia had been using the Yugoslav dinar. Bosnia's
Serbs, who control over 60% of the territory of the former Yugoslav
republic, have already issued a currency for their "Serbian Republic,"
which is the only legal tender in those areas. (Gordon Bardos).


BULGARIAN MOTORISTS BREAK UN EMBARGO. BTA reported on 14 August
that Bulgarian motorists are breaking the UN embargo imposed
on Serbia by filling up their gasoline tanks and driving across
the country's northwestern border. As they enter Serbia, BTA
said, the smugglers sell the gasoline for some $35 per tank.
Reportedly, some 3,000 cars every day pass the border crossing
near the city of Vidin, in northern Bulgaria, and a customs official
suggested that Bulgarian motorists applying this method alone
in July could have provided Serbia with 3,000 tons of fuel. (Kjell
Engelbrekt)

BULGARIA TO CANCEL FORMER SOVIET CONTRACTS. Bulgaria is contemplating
the cancellation of more than 12 joint industrial plant construction
contracts with the former USSR. Reportedly most of the sites
have been abandoned and the equipment and building materials
have been stolen. Bulgarian officials are having some difficulty,
however, in identifying the appropriate authorities with whom
to negotiate in the former Soviet republics. Bulgaria hopes to
negotiate for deliveries of coal, power and metals in repayment
according to Reuter. (Duncan M. Perry)

KLAUSPROPOSES CHANGES TO CZECHOSLOVAK UKRAINIAN TREATY. According
to CSTK, Czech Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus proposed an amendment
to the Czechoslovak-Ukrainian treaty which is currently under
preparation. At a meeting with Ukrainian Ambassador to Czechoslovakia
Roman Lubkivsky on 14 August, Klaus said the treaty should be
worded in a way that would still make it applicable in the case
of Czechoslovakia's disintegration. Lubkivsky reportedly said
that his government was interested in close economic cooperation
with the Czech Republic and in the participation in the activities
of the "Visegrad Troika."(Jan Obrman)

KLAUS TO HUNGARY TODAY. Czech Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus told
MTI before his departure for Hungary on 17 August that he was
alarmed by the collapse of bilateral economic ties between the
two countries. He said that Czechoslovakia's share of Hungary's
foreign trade amounted to only 2% and that he would seek to improve
the conditions for economic exchange between the two neighbours.(Jan
Obrman)

HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER WANTS TO REPRESENT ALL HUNGARIANS. Prime
Minister Jozsef Antall said that he is wishing to be, "in spirit",
the Prime Minister of 15 million Hungarians inside and outside
Hungary, reported MTI. Antall also said that although he had
been criticized for a similar remark made in his inagural speech
in May 1990, he still maintains that there is no need to differenciate
between the history and literature inside and outside of Hungary's
borders. . "We all have to return to the common root", he said.
Antall made his remarks during a meeting of Hungarian doctors
gathered for the III World Congress of Hungarians. (Karoly Okolicsanyi)


THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC UNION (NDU) CHANGES INTO A PARTY. The
NDU, which was created as a political movement in May 1991, announced
that it will turn into a registered political party on 20 August
1992, reported MTI. The change will be announced by the former
reform communist Imre Pozsgay, a leading figure during Hungary's
peaceful transfer of power from one-party system into multiparty
democracy during 1987-1990. Pozsgay is the head of NDU and an
independent parliamentary deputy. The NDU intends to be a party
of the center and will run in the 1994 general elections. (Karoly
Okolicsanyi)

BALTIC LEADERS IN BORNHOLM. The three Baltic prime ministers
will join their five Nordic counterparts in an informal summit
set to start today (17 August) on the Danish island of Bornholm,
AFP reports. The traditional summer gathering of the Nordic heads
of government was expanded to include Estonia's Tiit Vahi, Latvia's
Ivars Godmanis and Lithuania's Alexsandras Abisala at Danish
Prime Minister Poul Schlueter's suggestion. The leaders are expected
to discussion Nordic cooperation but may also touch upon the
crisis in the former Yugoslavia and the withdrawal of Russian
troops from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. (Riina Kionka)

IMF CHIEF TOURS BALTIC STATES. The IMF plans to suppport Estonia's
balance of payments with credits of $40 million, BNS reports.
The Bank of Estonia and the government presented IMF Managing
Director Michel Camdessus with the memorandum on economic policy
necessary to begin receiving credit. Camdessus told reporters
on 14 August that the IMF is committed to supporting the Estonian
economy "as long as necessary," remarking that that "the fear
of foreign investment is a legacy of national socialism," Rahva
Haal reports. Camdessus will travel to Riga on 17 August and
to Vilnius on 19 August. (Riina Kionka)

ESTONIAN, LATVIAN EXCHANGE RATES. The Estonian Credit Bank will
begin quoting the Russian ruble in relation to the Estonian kroon
on 17 August, BNS reports. The kroon will be worth 12 rubles
initially, down from the earlier exchange rate of 10 rubles.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Latvia announced that it would begin trading
CIS rubles starting on 17 August. A spokesman for the bank said
there would be no restrictions on the amounts of CIS currencies
that may be bought or sol by Latvian commercial banks. (Riina
Kionka)

RUSSIAN MFA CONCLUDES HUMAN RIGHTS VISIT. A Russian Foreign Ministry
delegation concluded a one-day fact-finding visit to Riga on
14 August, BNS reports. Delegation chief Vyaceslav Bahmin, of
the MFA International Culture and Humanitarian Cooperation Department,
said the situation was satisfactory on the whole, but that Russia
is concerned about some aspects of interethnic relations, for
instance the implementation of Latvia's langauge law. The Latvian
government has not yet commented on the visit. (Riina Kionka)


ESTONIA BORDERS DATE FROM 1920. The Estonian government on 15
August declared that the Russian-Estonian border is fixed by
the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty, and that all other attempts to regulate
the border "should be seen as provocations," BNS reports. The
declaration is the latest in a recent wave of posturing by both
sides over the border issue. Russia maintains that the frontier
runs along those borders established after the war, whereas Estonia
says it has never recognized Russia's postwar takeover of territories
in the northeast and southeast. (Riina Kionka)

POLISH STRIKERS SHARPEN RHETORIC...The national strike committee
formed by six radical unions with an eye to staging a confrontation
with the government announced it would organize strikes in selected
enterprises beginning 18 August. The committee also issued an
appeal to "Poles in uniform" not to "turn their arms on society."
Andrzej Lepper, the demagogic leader of the radical Self-Defense
farmers' union, charged that army units were converging on Lublin
to forestall a protest there. The government dismissed these
charges as nonsensical and hysterical, and a spokesman for the
Polish military told PAP that "you don't use a cannon to shoot
a sparrow." A government spokesman also expressed dismay that
some trade unions had joined forces with Self-Defense, and the
internal affairs ministry said it would publish a list of unlawful
acts committed by Lepper's followers. (Louisa Vinton)

...AS SOLIDAIRITY CLOSES RANKS. As the strikers' tone became
more extreme, Solidarity moved to restore unified support for
the union's more moderate commitment to negotiations. In a statement
issued on 14 August, the union's national leadership emphasized
both the importance of the Network (grouping Solidarity locals
from Poland's largest enterprises) and the need for unity in
the face of a resurgence by organizations geared to the restoration
of the communist system. Accepting this logic, the Network opted
against forming a threatened national strike committee, settling
instead for strike committees at individual enterprises. President
Lech Walesa met with Solidarity chairman Marian Krzaklewski on
15 August to offer "close institutional cooperation" with the
union. Meanwhile, Walesa on 14 August named former finance minister
Andrzej Olechowski to serve as presidential adviser on economic
matters. (Louisa Vinton)

POLAND CELEBRATES "MIRACLE ON THE VISTULA." Thousands of World
War II soldiers converged on Warsaw to mark the anniversary of
Poland's defeat of the Red Army in 1920 and take part in the
first world congress of Polish combatants. Celebrations took
place nationwide as the national military holiday was held on
15 August for the first time since the war. In the company of
the defense minister, President Walesa visited the communications
unit in which he performed military service in 1963-64. Meanwhile,
150,000 people took part in the traditional pilgrimage to Czestochowa
on the occasion of Assumption Day. (Louisa Vinton)

US CONGRESSMEN SEND LETTER TO ROMANIAN PRESIDENT. A group of
62 congressmen sent a letter to president Ion Iliescu in connection
with presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for 27
September. According to RFE correspondent in Washington, the
letter urged Iliescu to show "renewed commitment" to democracy
during the campaign. It also expressed congressional support
for more independent media in Romania; adequate civilian control
over the Romanian Intelligence Service; and respect of basic
human rights, especially for minorities. The US lawmakers added
that they were waiting to see how the elections were conducted
before taking a final decision on restoring most-favored-nation
trading status to Romania. (Dan Ionescu)

ILIESCU REPORTEDLY ASSAULTS ROMANIAN JOURNALIST. According to
Romanian reporters, quoted by an RFE correspondent in Bucharest,
President Iliescu jostled a journalist during his visit on 15
August to the Black sea port of Constanta when the newsman said
that exiled Romanian King Michael should be allowed into the
country and then joined others in heckling Iliescu. Eight other
journalists were allegedly beaten up by plainclothes policemen
after Iliescu left the scene. Iliescu could not be reached for
comment on the alleged incident. The Romanian Journalists' Association
protested the incident. (Dan Ionescu)