No. 225, Part II, 17 November 1995

This is Part II of the Open Media Research Institute's Daily Digest.
Part II is a compilation of news concerning Central, Eastern, and
Southeastern Europe. Part I, covering Russia, Transcaucasia and Central
Asia, is distributed simultaneously as a second document. Back issues of
the Daily Digest, and other information about OMRI, are available
through OMRI's WWW pages: http://www.omri.cz/OMRI.html

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^TODAY'S TOP STORY^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
TOP TWO BOSNIAN SERB LEADERS INDICTED FOR "SAVAGERY" AT SREBRENICA. The
International Herald Tribune on 17 November said that the Hague-based
war crimes tribunal has again indicted Serb civilian leader Radovan
Karadzic and his military counterpart, General Ratko Mladic. This time
they are charged with being "directly responsible" for the "systematic
mass killings" of up to 8,000 Muslims at Srebrenica in July, which the
paper called "what may be the worst massacre committed in Europe since
World War II." One of the judges noted "scenes of unimaginable savagery:
thousands of men executed and buried in mass graves, hundreds of men
buried alive, men and women mutilated and slaughtered, children killed
before their mothers' eyes, a grandfather forced to eat the liver of his
own grandson." -- Patrick Moore
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE

UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT VETOES LAND REFORM BILL. The Ukrainian parliament
on 15 November voted 245 to 13 with 21 abstentions against the draft law
on land reform, claiming it was "a danger to Ukraine's economic
security," UNIAR reported. Supported by President Leonid Kuchma, the
bill would have provided for private ownership of land. Deputy Prime
Minister Petro Sabluk told Reuters the next day that the veto "does not
mean the process of land reform has stopped or will be stopped." But
Ukrainian Agricultural Minister Pavlo Haidutsky said the dismantling of
the collective farm system could lead to the sorts of decline in
agriculture that East European countries suffered after they allowed
private ownership. This year's grain harvest is estimated to be 36.5
million tons, which, according to Reuters, is an improvement over last
year. -- Bruce Pannier

UKRAINE GIVES GREEN LIGHT TO NUCLEAR REACTOR. Following a 10-day
shutdown, the sixth reactor at the Zaporizha nuclear power station was
put back on line, Reuters reported on 16 November. The reactor, the
first opened since the ban on new stations was lifted in 1993, began
operating in early October but was closed shortly after for repairs to
the steam generator and for examinations of possible leaks of
radioactive water. An official from Derzhkomatom noted that there was no
danger and that "some faults in a new reactor" are only natural. He
added that the reactor will operate at 40% capacity, increasing to 75%
in the near future. -- Roger Kangas

CONFLICT BETWEEN ESTONIAN DEFENSE MINISTER, ARMY CHIEF. Defense Minister
Andrus Oovel openly criticized Lt. Gen. Aleksander Einseln on 15
November for what he called shortcomings in building up the state
defense, BNS reported the next day. Oovel said he opposed the recent
appointment of Col. Vello Loema as acting chief of staff, noting that it
had not been discussed with his ministry, as required by Estonian law.
Opposition parliament deputy Juri Adams said such an open conflict was
something that a democratic country could not allow and suggested that a
no confidence vote against Oovel be initiated. Einseln will meet with
Oovel on 18 November after returning from Germany where he is to give a
lecture at a course for senior NATO officers. -- Saulius Girnius

LITHUANIA DEPORTS ILLEGAL REFUGEES. Lithuanian officials on 15 November
deported 108 illegal Asian refugees by placing them on the train to
Moscow. Most of the deported had been detained during the previous week
although one group had been held since the beginning of October. Since
Lithuania does not have an agreement with Russia and Belarus on the
unconditional return of such refugees, they are sent back on the basis
of case-to-case negotiations. The extent of the problem of refugees
trying to reach the West through Lithuania was shown by the detention of
a group of 49 Afghan refugees near the Polish border later that evening
and another group of 20 Asians the next day, BNS reported. -- Saulius
Girnius

RISE IN CRIME IN BELARUS. Belarusian acting Prosecutor-General Vasil
Kapitan told a news conference on 16 November that crime in Belarus was
getting worse, Belarusian Radio reported. The number of crimes
registered in the first ten months of the year was 108,527 or 12,500
more than in the same period last year. Of particular concern is the
53.5% increase in serious crimes. -- Saulius Girnius

FINAL STAGES OF POLISH PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN. Incumbent President Lech
Walesa on 16 November said that if he wins the 19 November second round
of presidential elections, Jozef Oleksy's government should resign.
Rzeczpospolita on 17 November reported the results of an opinion poll
conducted by the Social Research Bureau according to which Democratic
Left Alliance leader Aleksander Kwasniewski would have won 50.8% of
votes and Walesa 49.2% if elections had taken place on 15 November. Two-
thirds of those who voted in the first round for former Prime Minister
Jan Olszewski intend to vote for Walesa, as do more than half of those
who cast their ballot for former Labor Minister Jacek Kuron and Central
Bank President Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz. The Polish presidential campaign
officially ends at noon on 17 November. -- Jakub Karpinski

POLISH FOREIGN MINISTER IN MOSCOW. Wladyslaw Bartoszewski paid a one-day
visit to Moscow on 16 November, Polish dailies reported the next day. In
a meeting with his Russian counterpart, Andrei Kozyrev, Bartoszewski
discussed bilateral relations, which, he said, were "developing well"
despite political differences. Moscow supported Bartoszewski's proposal
to organize a Polish-Russian round table in spring 1996. With regard to
European security, Bartoszewski said that while Poland wants to take
part in a new, expanded NATO, it cannot envisage the transformation of
the alliance without NATO reaching agreements with Russia and Ukraine.
-- Dagmar Mroziewicz

CZECH FOREIGN MINISTER CALLS ON GERMANY TO COMPENSATE VICTIMS OF NAZISM.
Josef Zieleniec on 16 November called on Germany to compensate
unconditionally Czech victims of the wartime Nazi occupation, Czech
media reported. In a speech at Prague's Charles University, Zieleniec
said both governments should contribute to a Czech-German fund for the
benefit of those whose suffered. The Czech Republic is the only country
occupied by the Nazis that has never received wholesale compensation
from postwar Germany; victims of Nazism have so far received only money
from a special fund set up by the Czech government last year. In
negotiations over a joint parliamentary declaration currently being
prepared to heal old wounds in Czech-German relations, the German side
has linked the question of compensation with recognizing claims by
Sudeten Germans, 3 million of whom were forcibly expelled from
Czechoslovakia after World War II. -- Steve Kettle

CZECH DOCTORS SUSPEND PROTEST ACTION. Czech doctors, who have been
taking industrial action since the beginning of this month, temporarily
called off their protest on 16 November after being asked to do so by
President Vaclav Havel. After meeting with Havel, David Rath, chairman
of the Medical Trade Union Club (LOK), said the "administrative strike"
will be immediately suspended until the end of this month. Rath said
Havel told him that he sympathized with doctors' concerns over pay and
conditions but that he believed protest action was not the way to solve
the situation, Czech media reported. LOK members and other health
service workers staged a one-day strike on 1 November and since then
have refused to carry out normal administrative tasks. Health officials
threatened the doctors with sanctions, including cutting their pay and
possible criminal charges, if they continued with the protest. -- Steve
Kettle

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT PASSES RESOLUTION ON SLOVAKIA. The European
parliament on 16 November approved a resolution recommending that the
Slovak government respect democratic principles, cease attempts to cast
doubt on the mandates of democratically elected legislators, and
guarantee all citizens the right to freedom of expression in the media
and public life. The parliament warned that it might close its office in
Slovakia and stop its assistance programs if Vladimir Meciar's
government does not take democratic principles into account. The Foreign
Ministry rejected the resolution, which, it said, was "neither a
dialogue nor a discussion" but "a monologue and decision" made without
listening to the other party. Meciar's party--the Movement for a
Democratic Slovakia (HZDS)--responded by saying that the resolution "is
reminiscent of recent history, when the leader of Nazi Germany first
sent demarches to states and then occupied them with tanks." -- Sharon
Fisher

HUNGARY CRITICIZES SLOVAK LANGUAGE LAW. The Hungarian government on 16
November released a sharply worded statement expressing "sorrow and
dissatisfaction" at the Slovak parliament's adoption of a controversial
language law the previous day. It also stressed that the law might
hinder the development of bilateral ties, Hungarian and international
media reported. Foreign Minister Ladislav Kovacs said that before taking
any further measures, the Hungarian government will study the final text
of the new law. "Then we will make our concerns known to the Slovak
authorities before consulting the Council of Europe and the OSCE,"
Kovacs said. Foreign Ministry State Secretary Istvan Szent-Ivanyi said
the language law contravenes the Slovak-Hungarian treaty and pointed out
that if the treaty is ratified by the Slovak parliament, it will repeal
the language law. -- Sharon Fisher

SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

U.S., GOLDSTONE AGREE THAT WAR CRIMINALS MUST FACE JUSTICE. Richard
Goldstone, chief justice of the war crimes tribunal in The Hague, said
there cannot be real peace in the Balkans as long as war criminals go
unpunished, the BBC reported on 16 November. The Independent also quoted
him as saying that diplomats have no right to offer war criminals deals
as part of a peace settlement. The State Department stressed that there
can be no peace without justice and said that it expects Bosnia,
Croatia, and Serbia to cooperate with the tribunal, international media
noted. To date, Belgrade has been unwilling to hand over Karadzic,
Mladic, or any other of the 45 indicted Serbs. No Muslims have yet been
indicted. -- Patrick Moore

CROATIA DUCKS ON WAR CRIMINALS. The Guardian on 16 November reported
that Croatian Prime Minister Zlatko Matesa has indicated he has no
intention of handing over the six Bosnian Croats indicted on 13
November. Reuters quoted him as saying the charges have not been
substantiated and that Croatia must "abide by procedure." The
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on 17 November quoted Croatian spokesmen
as calling General Tihomir Blaskic's transfer back to Zagreb a rotation
rather than a promotion, as it has widely been viewed. Globus asked
Matesa why another of the six, Dario Kordic, recently got a medal for
promoting Croatia's reputation abroad. The newly appointed premier
replied: "It is not my job to give views on why Dario Kordic received
that medal. He was most probably given this medal by the president
himself." Elsewhere, Novi list wrote on 17 November that the Bosnian
army has been guilty of "genocide" against the Bosnian Croats. Slobodna
Dalmacija said that Blaskic is a professional who could not have
committed war crimes. -- Patrick Moore

BOSNIAN CROAT LEADER DISSATISFIED WITH DAYTON TALKS. Kresimir Zubak, in
a letter sent to U.S. negotiator Richard Holbrooke on 15 November, said
he cannot sign the proposed peace agreement because it does not
sufficiently take Bosnian Croat interests into account, the BBC reported
on 17 November, quoting Radio Herceg-Bosna. Zubak added that he had
expected to be more actively involved in drawing up the text, especially
with regard to the maps but that he had been informed via intermediaries
only. Meanwhile, a UN spokesman in Sarajevo complained that despite a
recent agreement, Bosnian government and Bosnian Croat forces are
denying the UN free movement, Nasa Borba reported on 17 November. --
Daria Sito Sucic

BOSNIA, CROATIA AGREE TO LINK CURRENCIES. Bosnia's Muslim-Croatian
Federation and the Croatian government agreed on 16 November to link the
Bosnian dinar and the Croatian kuna, German media reported on 16
November. The link will be based on the Deutsche mark and will go into
effect on 20 January 1996. The agreement was worked out with the
assistance of officials from the IMF and World Bank. -- Michael Wyzan

KOSOVAR HUMAN RIGHTS GROUP WANTS MILOSEVIC INDICTED. Kosovo's Council
for the Defense of Human Rights and Freedoms has said it will hand over
documents to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former
Yugoslavia that could lead to an indictment of Serbian President
Slobodan Milosevic. International agencies on 16 November reported that
the council has charged Milosevic, former Serbian police chief Zoran
Sokolovic, and other police officials with responsibility for crimes
against humanity and genocide, including the killing of about 150
Albanians since 1989. It also points to some 300,000 cases of harassment
and torture. According to Kosova Daily Report, the council said that in
October 188 persons were arbitrarily arrested or detained and 123
Albanian households raided. It also reported cases of plundering,
torture, and forcible induction into the army during that period. --
Fabian Schmidt

MONTENEGRIN PREMIER'S U.S. VISIT. BETA on 16 November reported that
developments surrounding the official recent visit to the U.S. by a
Montenegrin delegation, led in part by Premier Milo Djukanovic, may be
unnerving some officials in Belgrade. Djukanovic, who was in the U.S.
from 5-13 November, met with top U.S. administration staff for
discussions over NATO's possible use of the port of Bar. Tanjug on 15
November reported that Djukanovic discussed using Bar as a transit point
for personnel and equipment that may be involved in enforcing a peace
for Bosnia. The premier was quoted as stressing that "this was not a
matter of...installing NATO forces in Montenegro but of transportation."
BETA reported, however, that Djukanovic held the talks "without
consulting Belgrade." -- Stan Markotich

ITALIAN DELEGATION IN SKOPJE PROMISES LOAN. Italian government
officials, during a visit to Macedonia on 16 November, offered the
country a credit worth 24 billion lire (about $15 million), Nova
Makedonija reported the next day. The loan is for support of small and
medium-sized enterprises. Italy, which will take over the rotating EU
presidency in January, promised to use its good offices to help complete
the process of Macedonia's integration into international institutions.
-- Michael Wyzan

ROMANIA'S HUNGARIAN MINORITY RESUMES PROTESTS. The Covasna County branch
of the Hungarian Democratic Federation of Romania has called on
Hungarian pupils, teachers, and parents to resume their protests in
support of mother-tongue tuition at all levels, Adevarul reported on 17
November. The organization proposed hoisting white flags and forming
human chains around the county's Hungarian schools. Adevarul quoted
Romanian President Ion Iliescu in Paris as saying the ethnic Hungarians'
criticism of the education law was "demagogic." -- Matyas Szabo

ROMANIAN CHIEF OF STAFF AT NATO HEADQUARTERS. A military delegation led
by Romanian Chief of Staff Gen. Dumitru Cioflina has ended its visit to
NATO headquarters in Brussels, Radio Bucharest reported on 16 November.
A NATO spokesman praised Romania's participation in the Partnership for
Peace program and its active role in developing military cooperation
with NATO. Cioflina stressed that joint activities with NATO proved that
Romania was a "serious partner" whose final political goal was full
membership in the alliance. In another development, Romania on 16
November announced that it had met the demands of the 1990 Conventional
Forces in Europe treaty by cutting its armed forces by half, Reuters
reported. -- Matyas Szabo

MOLDOVA WILL NOT APPLY TO JOIN NATO. President Mircea Snegur on 16
November stressed again that his country does not intend to apply to
join NATO, BASA-press reported. Snegur told senior Moldovan officers at
the Defense Ministry that Moldova's participation in the Partnership for
Peace program does not mean it is planning to join the alliance, as
claimed by leaders of the breakaway Dniester region. Snegur stressed
that the Moldovan Constitution stipulated neutrality and that the
country would therefore not be part of any military alliance. -- Dan
Ionescu

BULGARIA TO GET RUSSIAN SPARE PARTS FOR DEBT. Russian and Bulgarian
negotiators on 15 November in Moscow signed an agreement whereby Russia
will provide $48 million worth of maintenance and spare parts for
Russian-built Bulgarian warplanes in partial repayment of its $100
million debt to Bulgaria, BTA reported. The agreement was reached during
a meeting of the Bulgarian-Russian Commission on Special Production. The
report said the Russians expressed an interest in setting up joint
ventures for the development, production, and sale of military equipment
to third countries. -- Doug Clarke

ALBANIAN PARLIAMENT RATIFIES FRIENDSHIP TREATY WITH ITALY. The Albanian
parliament on 16 November ratified a treaty between Albania and Italy
calling for wider economic cooperation and joint efforts to fight
organized crime, drug trafficking, and illegal immigration,
international agencies reported on 16 November. The treaty also includes
a provision regulating the immigration of Albanian seasonal workers to
Italy. The parliament the same day passed a law on the privatization of
the state-owned Trade Bank, Rilindja Demokratike reported. -- Fabian
Schmidt

[As of 12:00 CET]

Compiled by Jan Cleave

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