No. 64, Part II, 30 March 1995

This is Part II of the Open Media Research Institute's Daily Digest.
Part II is a compilation of news concerning East-Central and
Southeastern Europe. Part I, covering Russia, Transcaucasia and Central
Asia, and the CIS, is distributed simultaneously as a second document.

EAST-CENTRAL EUROPE

ESTONIAN PRESIDENT WAITS FOR RUSSIAN APOLOGY. Lennart Meri, in an
interview with Die Welt on 29 March, said he would not attend the
celebrations in Moscow marking the 50th anniversary of the end of World
War II before Russia "properly apologized" for its occupation and
annexation of the Baltic States, BNS reported. Die Welt noted that
President Boris Yeltsin has apologized to the people of Poland, the
Czech Republic, and Hungary for the actions of the Red Army. But the
newspaper commented that "Moscow has not distanced itself by so much as
a single word from the Soviet policy of violence against the Baltic
States." The presidents of the Baltic States received invitations to the
ceremonies in Moscow but decided, as a sign of Baltic solidarity, that
either all three or none would attend the Moscow celebrations. --
Saulius Girnius, OMRI, Inc.

FATE OF TWO RUSSIAN ARMY DESERTERS IN LITHUANIA UNCLEAR. Two 18-year-old
Russian soldiers stationed in Kaliningrad were detained by Lithuanian
police near Vilnius on 25 March, Interfax and BNS reported. Aleksandr
Vaselkov and Ruslan Kurdiukov wanted to avoid being sent to fight in
Chechnya and had sent letters on 27 March to the Lithuanian president
and parliament asking for political asylum. Russian officials have
demanded the soldiers extradition. Russian Ambassador in Vilnius Nikolai
Obertyshev told Lithuanian Foreign Ministry Secretary Albinas Januska
that Russian embassy officials should at least be allowed to talk to the
deserters. Seimas Deputy Chairman Aloyzas Sakalas was quoted by Interfax
on 29 March as saying that the Seimas's Committee on Human Rights and
Nationalities had recommended that the soldiers not be extradited. Since
there is no legislative basis for extraditing deserters to Russia, it is
likely that the Seimas will make the final decision on their future. --
Saulius Girnius, OMRI, Inc.

IMF TO DELAY LOAN TO UKRAINE. The International Monetary Fund on 29
March announced that it is postponing a final decision on granting
Ukraine a $1.8 billion credit package pending the passage in the
parliament of the 1995 budget, international agencies reported. The loan
was to be considered by the IMF board on 31 March. Oleksander Sundatov,
the IMF's representative in Kiev, said that although Ukraine's
parliament had approved the budget on its first reading the previous
week, the document did not list all revenues and expenditures. A final
vote on the budget is not expected for a month. -- Ustina Markus, OMRI,
Inc.

BELARUSIAN NEWS. The presidential press service has announced that Minsk
courts have been unable to confirm any of the corruption charges made by
deputy Syarhei Antonchyk in his December report against the head of
presidential affairs, Ivan Tsitsyankou, according to Belarusian Radio on
29 March. Antonchyk's report has been dismissed as a ploy to gain
attention in his bid for a parliament seat in May. Belarusian Television
reported the same day that 71 deputies have signed an appeal to the
Constitutional Court to review President Alyaksandr Lukashenka's decree
dismissing Iosif Syaryedzich, chief editor of the parliament newspaper
Narodna hazeta, and creating an oversight committee for mass
information. Finally, it was reported on 28 March that an international
meeting was held in Minsk to discuss the coordination of legal affairs
between Belarus's Ministry of Justice and the parliament.
Representatives from the Council of Europe said the two bodies must
regulate procedures forconcluding and implementing international
agreements. -- Ustina Markus, OMRI, Inc.

POLAND'S CONCORDAT STILL ON HOLD. The Sejm on 29 March voted 184 to 166
to remove from the agenda of its current session the report declaring
that the concordat does not violate the current constitution. The vote
was carried by Democratic Left Alliance and Union of Labor deputies; the
Polish Peasant Party (PSL) and most opposition deputies favored debate.
The Sejm also voted down a PSL motion that would have made possible a
vote to ratify the concordat before the new constitution is completed.
The final deadline for the ratification vote remains 31 December 1995.
Gazeta Wyborcza on 30 March argued that the two votes show that anti-
clerical forces are better organized and more motivated than parties
sympathetic to the Church and that compromise on Church-state relations
in the new constitution is becoming less likely. "Attacking the
concordat is the result of political calculation," Bishop Tadeusz
Pieronek commented from Rome. Pieronek added that the Church would
accept a formulation on "worldview neutrality" in the new constitution
if there were an explicit guarantee that the state would not promote
atheism. -- Louisa Vinton, OMRI, Inc.

WALESA PONDERS DECREE POWERS. President Lech Walesa, speaking to
reporters before departing for an official visit to Sweden on 29 March,
argued that presidential elections should be held only after work on the
new constitution is completed, Gazeta Wyborcza reported. Walesa also
proposed that citizens be asked in the constitutional referendum to
grant the president the right to rule by decree for five to ten years.
Constitutional Commission Chairman Aleksander Kwasniewski said that
work on the new constitution could be completed within two months but
that the timing depended largely on Walesa, who has six months to
propose changes to the draft approved by the parliament. Kwasniewski
argued that the presidential elections should take place according to
the current legal schedule--between 22 October and 22 December, on a
date to be set by the Sejm speaker. -- Louisa Vinton, OMRI, Inc.

COMMUNIST SECRET POLICE AGENTS TO BE NAMED IN RELEASED FILES. The Czech
government on 29 March announced that citizens will be able to learn the
names of former communist secret police agents when a new law enabling
them to inspect files comes into effect next year, Czech media report.
Files of the StB security service are classified according to code names
given to agents and collaborators, but the cabinet decided that real
names will be disclosed. But Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus said the names
of some informants will be blacked out to distinguish between who was "a
chattering neighbor and who was an agent who worked purposely,
knowingly, and to order for the StB." A list of thousands of purported
StB agents, with real and code names, was published several years ago by
a Czechoslovak newspaper. The official files will be open for inspection
for five years from 1 January 1996. -- Steve Kettle, OMRI, Inc.

SLOVAK PREMIER ON CABINET'S FIRST 100 DAYS. Vladimir Meciar on 29 March
evaluated the first 100 days of his government as "successful," Slovak
media reported. He said his cabinet's accomplishments include the
preparation of two budgets (one of which was provisional), the passage
of the "clean hands" program to fight corruption, the creation of a
construction ministry, and the signing of the Slovak-Hungarian treaty.
Meciar said coupon privat-ization will start in June, and property worth
55 billion koruny will be sold. He criticized opposition parties for not
cooperating with his government, saying that only his coalition partners
are willing to work together in the interest of Slovak citizens. --
Sharon Fisher, OMRI, Inc.

CONTROVERSY OVER SLOVAK-HUNGARIAN TREATY CONTINUES. Representatives of
the Slovak National Party, a member of the ruling coalition, have said
the party will not
support the ratification of the Slovak-Hungarian treaty. But Meciar said
on 29 March he believes the parliament will support it anyway, Slovenska
Republika reported. Jan Luptak, chairman of Meciar's other coalition
partner, the Association of Slovak Workers, told the newspaper that he
viewed the government's progress on the treaty positively but added that
the inclusion of the Council of Europe Recommendation 1201 is
"unacceptable" to his party. Hungarian Christian Democratic Movement
Deputy Chairman Pal Farkas said it is necessary to start implementing
the agreement and stressed that the government should finally start
discussions with representatives of minorities. Another ethnic Hungarian
party in Slovakia, the Coexistence movement, has called for
constitutional changes to give minorities the right to self-government.
At a press conference on 28 March, the party said that cultural and
educational autonomy cannot exist without territorial autonomy. --
Sharon Fisher, OMRI, Inc.

HUNGARIAN, SLOVAK COMMENTS ON NATO. Hungarian Defense Minister Gyorgy
Keleti has said that within the next three years, Hungary will complete
the reforms necessary to prepare its armed forces for full integration
into NATO. He told Reuters on 28 March that Hungary will meet all the
military and technical requirements for NATO membership. He also said
that Hungary will make its military and civilian air traffic control
systems NATO-compatible within the same time frame, allowing the country
to take part in joint air defense operations with NATO. Meanwhile,
Slovak Foreign Minister Juraj Schenk, in an interview with The
Washington Times on 28 March, stressed his country's position that the
Visegrad countries should enter NATO as a bloc and not individually, as
advocated by the Czechs. He said "the partial, individual approach can
end in undesirable results." He also commented that NATO should reach an
understanding with Russia on eastward expansion "so that Russia doesn't
feel in danger." -- Michael Mihalka, OMRI, Inc.

HUNGARY, AUSTRIA DISCUSS SCHENGEN AGREEMENTS. Hungarian Internal Affairs
Minister Gabor Kuncze and his Austrian counterpart, Franz Loeschnak, met
at the Austrian-Hungarian border on 29 March to discuss the impact of
the so-called Schengen agreements. Under those accords, seven member
countries of the European Union recently abolished border controls at
their joint borders, causing huge traffic jams at border crossings
between EU and non-EU states in particular. Austria is planning to sign
the Schengen agreements next month and implement them fully within two
years. Hungarian media report an unnamed Hungarian official as saying
that Hungary would find Austria's implementation of the agreements
"discriminatory" toward Hungarians. He warned that Hungary's tourist
trade could be threatened if tourists had to wait for hours at border
crossings to enter or leave Hungary. Poland recently protested attempts
to separate EU and non-EU traffic at its border with Germany, saying it
would not allow Poles to be treated like "second class citizens." --
Jiri Pehe, OMRI, Inc.

SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

RUSSIANS COVER SERBIAN TROOPS AND TANKS MOVING INTO CROATIA. Newsday
reports on 30 March that the Russian commander of UN forces in Serbian-
occupied eastern Croatia told Belgian troops recently not to block a
Serbian military convoy moving in from Serbia. The shipment involved at
least 900 rump Yugoslav soldiers, up to 20 tanks, ground-to-ground
rockets, and various other weapons. The paper says that "this was the
largest movement of Yugoslav troops into the zone since they withdrew as
part of a ceasefire negotiated in 1991." It also notes that the arrival
of new M-84 and T-72 tanks tips the military balance in the area in the
Serbs' favor. Croatia has protested the development as proof of the UN's
inefficiency and of Belgrade's direct involvement in the conflict. --
Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

IZETBEGOVIC WARNS THAT MILOSEVIC STILL WANTS A GREATER SERBIA. Slobodna
Dalmacija on 30 March quotes Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic as
telling his mainly Muslim party's convention two days earlier that
Serbian President Slobadan Milosevic has cut ties to Bosnian Serb leader
Radovan Karadzic but that Milosevic remains close to the Bosnian Serb
military establishment. He also noted that the Serbian president still
aims at setting up a greater Serbia at the expense of Croatia and
Bosnia. Meanwhile on the Bosnian battle fronts, the VOA says that heavy
snowfalls have reduced fighting to sporadic levels, while Vjesnik
reports that Serbian forces still control the key television transmitter
in the Majevica hills northeast of Tuzla. Nasa Borba covers Karadzic's
latest statements, in which he threatens to take Tuzla and Sarajevo if
the government offensive continues. He also said he will consider UN
forces hostile if the world body calls in NATO air strikes against his
troops. -- Patrick Moore, OMRI, Inc.

MACEDONIAN ALBANIANS MEET WITH VAN DER STOEL. Bedredin Ibrahimi,
secretary of the ethnic Albanian Democratic People's Party (PDP), and
other party representatives met with the OSCE High Commissioner on
National Minorities Max van der Stoel, Flaka reported on 30 March. The
PDP representatives claimed that the Macedonian government is making no
serious effort to eliminate discrimination against ethnic Albanians and
to improve the human rights situation in the country. The PDP recently
boycotted parliament sessions following a police crackdown on the self-
declared Albanian-language university in Tetovo in February. Van der
Stoel called on the Albanians to continue a dialogue with the Macedonian
government in order to solve the university conflict and other problems.
-- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

MACEDONIA SEEKS FINANCIAL AID. Nova Makedonija on 30 March reported that
Macedonia is seeking loans totaling $85 million from the EBRD and the
World Bank. The money is intended for Macedonia's private sector,
primarily for small industrial, agricultural, and tourist companies.
Deputy Minister for Development Spase Lazarevski was quoted as saying
that talks with the EBRD are about to start, while negotiations with the
World Bank have reached the final stage. It was also reported that a
fund aimed at creating and securing new jobs in the private sector will
be set up. Macedonia and Germany will each pay 10 million German marks
($7 million) into the fund. -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

ROMANIAN TV UNION LEADER CONTINUES HUNGER STRIKE. Television Union
leader Dumitru Iuga, who has been on a hunger strike for the past 28
days to protest alleged political interference in state television,
talked for four hours to journalists on 29 March. He vowed to continue
his protest and said the parliament was dragging its feet over the
confirmation of a new TV management board, whose members were elected by
the staff on 25 July 1994. According to Iuga, the administration is
seeking to put its appointees in top management posts. Radio Bucharest
reported that groups of demonstrators picketed the TV building in a show
of support for the union leader, whose condition was said to be
deteriorating rapidly. -- Dan Ionescu, OMRI, Inc.

PROTESTS CONTINUE IN CHISINAU. Students continued to strike in the
Moldovan capital on 29 March, despite reports the previous day that a
compromise had been reached with the Moldovan government, Reuters
reported. Some 5,000 students rallied in front of the government
building, while hundreds of others marched through the city calling on
residents to join them. The students are protesting plans to replace
courses in the history of the Romanians with courses in the history of
Moldova. Moldovan President Mircea Snegur met the same day with
representatives of students and teaching staff in an attempt to defuse
the crisis. Romanian TV, citing Moldpres, said that Snegur proposed a
moratorium until a solution was found. He also suggested that the
controversial Article 13 of the country's constitution, which defines
the official language as Moldovan rather than Romanian, could be revised
by the parliament. In a related development, a spokesman for the
Romanian Foreign Ministry dismissed speculation in the Moldovan media
that the Romanian embassy in Chisinau had been involved in the protests.
-- Dan Ionescu, OMRI, Inc.

BULGARIAN JUDICIAL COUNCIL WANTS INVESTIGATION SERVICES HEAD DISMISSED.
The Supreme Judicial Council on 29 March recommended that Ani Kruleva,
director of the National Investigation Service, be dismissed for
incompetence, BTA reported the same day. The 25-member council voted in
a secret ballot to relieve Kruleva of her duties. Under Bulgarian law,
President Zhelyu Zhelev has to approve the decision. Kruleva, who was
appointed by Zhelev in 1992, came under fire when eight members of the
council introduced a motion for her dismissal on 15 March on the grounds
of serving political interests, incompetence, and lack of
professionalism. The Presi-dent's Office did not comment on the
council's vote, but Kruleva was cited by Reuters as saying that "only a
presidential decree can relieve me from my post . . . . I am still NIS
director until such a decree is issued." -- Stefan Krause, OMRI, Inc.

TWO MAIN ALBANIAN OPPOSITION PARTIES SAY THEY COOPERATE. The leaders of
the Albanian Socialist Party and the Democratic Alliance passed a
declaration on 29 March saying that their parties "are not in conflict,"
Gazeta Shqiptare reported the following day. The Democratic Alliance
considers itself a center-right party, while the SP is the successor of
the Communists. SP deputy leader Namik Dokle stressed that both parties
cooperate on "many important political questions, such as supporting the
creation of a constitutional state, the battle against corruption, the
protection of human rights, and especially efforts to base privatization
on a law passed in the parliament and not on decisions by the
government." -- Fabian Schmidt, OMRI, Inc.

[As of 1200 CET]

Compiled by Jan Cleave

The OMRI Daily Digest offers the latest news from the former Soviet
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