MILS NEWS 96-10-14

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From: "Macedonian Information Liaison Service" <mils@mils.spic.org.mk>

CONTENTS

[01] DRAMATIC EVENTS CONNECTED WITH 'POISONED' ALBANIAN PUPILS IN TETOVO

[02] ASSOCIATION OF ETHNOLOGISTS: 'ETHNIC-POLITICAL POISONINGS'

[03] 'TETOVO UNIVERSITY' STUDENTS PROTESTED AGAINST 'POISONINGS'

[04] CENTRAL CELEBRATION ENTITLED 'MEETING OF GENERATIONS'

[05] REPRESENTATIVES OF 'MULTIGROUP' MET WITH PRESIDENT GLIGOROV

[06] GREEK PRESIDENT ASKED WASHINGTON TO HELP IN THE NAME ISSUE

[07] MACEDONIAN DEFENSE MINISTER IN TURKEY SINCE YESTERDAY

[08] MACEDONIAN PASSPORTS SOLD FOR $3,000 AT THE BAZAAR IN TIRANA

[09] OPPOSITION PARTIES OBJECT TO THE ELECTORAL LISTS

[10] MISUNDERSTANDINGS OF MACEDONIAN BELIEVERS IN AUSTRALIA SOLVED

[11] 'SERBS IN MACEDONIA' - SUBJECT OF A MEETING IN SREMSKI KARLOVCI

MILS SUPPLEMENT

[12] 'Debts Can't Be Paid In a Magic Way' ('Nova Makedonija', 12 October, 1996)

MILS NEWS

[01] DRAMATIC EVENTS CONNECTED WITH 'POISONED' ALBANIAN PUPILS IN TETOVO

The schools did not work on Thursday in Tetovo and its area, while pupils and their parents had gathered on Tetovo town square, protesting under the motto 'Leave Us Alone'. According to the local media, those gathered were addressed by the pro-rector Agni Dika, Senate President Miljaim Feizi and other representatives of 'Tetovo university', as well as by several pupils. It was demanded from the Government to reveal the 'poisoners', and from the Ministers of Internal Affairs and Health Care to resign. The slogans carried were: 'Keep Your Hands Off The Children', 'Government, Do You Feel Responsible', 'Stop The Experiments', etc. After about an hour, the people went to their homes.

On Friday, the situation was calmer, since no new cases of 'poisoning' were registered and most of the children were sent to their homes. The schools were closed due to the national holiday of 11 October, and it is still uncertain when they would continue to work. Some associations of Albanians and Tetovo Town Assembly had required for classes to be canceled in the primary and secondary schools, while Macedonian Ministry of Education had announced that the work would continue regularly. Ministry of Internal Affairs representatives organized a press conference last Friday, when Under-Secretary Dime Gjurev had stated that the police had not found any individuals who might be suspected of having anything to do with the 'poisoning'. He said the police had not intervened in the village of Golema Rechica in order to avoid incidents. He added the situation was under control and that there were no signs of a disturbed security. According to him, these events were much like those that took place in Kosovo several years ago.

The most recent information of 'Makfax' agency was that toxicologists from the USA would arrive in Macedonia to make additional examinations regarding the alleged cases of poisoning. This had been agreed at the meeting of PDP and US Embassy representatives the day before yesterday, Radio Tirana reported, adding that Macedonian authorities had approved it.

[02] ASSOCIATION OF ETHNOLOGISTS: 'ETHNIC-POLITICAL POISONINGS'

It was further said that the celebration of the 118 Anniversary of Prizren League on 10 June 1996 in Skopje, marked with the presence of the Albanian Ambassador to Macedonia and the Albanian members of Macedonian Parliament, had looked like a rehearsal for the carrying out of anti-Macedonian activities by the protagonists of the Great-Albanian separatism and nationalism.

[03] 'TETOVO UNIVERSITY' STUDENTS PROTESTED AGAINST 'POISONINGS'

[04] CENTRAL CELEBRATION ENTITLED 'MEETING OF GENERATIONS'

One of the other events by which the holiday was marked by putting into operation the 20 km long new motor way Tetovo-Gostivar, a part of the East-West Corridor, by President Gligorov. The President, Prime Minister Crvenkovski and other officials attended the laying of foundations for a power station in Negotino, which should improve the power supply in the villages under the mountains of Shara and Suva Gora. Vice Prime Minister Jane Miljoski had officially put into operation the new telephone exchange in the suburb of 'Karposh' in Skopje, which was obtained from the French company 'Alcatel'. Traditionally, the awards '11 October' for special contributions in culture, art, science, education and economy were given at the Macedonian Parliament.

[05] REPRESENTATIVES OF 'MULTIGROUP' MET WITH PRESIDENT GLIGOROV

[06] GREEK PRESIDENT ASKED WASHINGTON TO HELP IN THE NAME ISSUE

Stefanopoulos had emphasized that he had been neither a pessimist nor an optimist about the 'Skopje Issue' and concluded that 'Washington should remind both parties on the obligations signed with the Accord'. There were notifications that Greek-Macedonian talks about the name issue should continue today in Geneva, and according to the writing of some Greek newspapers, the Macedonian party should answer the Greek proposal for the triple name formula which would include the term 'Macedonia'.

Greek opposition paper 'Elefteros Tipos' read that there were some secret negotiations with Skopje, because Macedonian Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Erol Hasan had visited Athens on 09 October. The newspaper concluded that this visit was most certainly connected with the attempts of the Prime Minister Simitis to break the unyielding policy of the 'neighbouring country' offering some economic assistance for free and even an Agreement on Military Cooperation. In the context of that the paper 'Elefteros Tipos' claimed that, two days after the elections in Greece, the Macedonian Defense Minister had asked from the Head of the Greek Liaison Office in Skopje to start bilateral contacts, which aim would be signing of an Agreement on Military Cooperation, although it has not been planned with the Interim Accord. This idea was supported by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, although the competent Ministry had not been consulted, 'Elefteros Tipos' read.

According to 'Makfax', a seminar on Greek investments in Macedonia and Albania should be held in Thessaloniki during the next week, which would be organized by the North Greek Industrial Organization. Regulations referring to taxes and organization and protection of investments would be discussed, while Macedonian and Albanian experts would present several models of investments in their countries.

[07] MACEDONIAN DEFENSE MINISTER IN TURKEY SINCE YESTERDAY

[08] MACEDONIAN PASSPORTS SOLD FOR $3,000 AT THE BAZAAR IN TIRANA

[09] OPPOSITION PARTIES OBJECT TO THE ELECTORAL LISTS

'Nova Makedonija' read that VMRO-DPMNE representatives had also expressed their worry, claimimg that Macedonian Government was preparing to falsify the forthcoming local elections and that it was neglecting the Laws. 'By disrespecting the Law on Electoral Lists, every citizen is deprived from his right to have an insight in the Extract of the United Electoral List. Opposite to the regulations, the inspection is done personally by authorities, and not by voters, which makes one suspect the credibility of the data. The inspection made so far has shown that the lists are identical to those from 1994, which might seriously violate the regularity of the local elections,' the announcement of VMRO-DPMNE said.

[10] MISUNDERSTANDINGS OF MACEDONIAN BELIEVERS IN AUSTRALIA SOLVED

[11] 'SERBS IN MACEDONIA' - SUBJECT OF A MEETING IN SREMSKI KARLOVCI

FR Yugoslav Minister for Human Rights Margit Savovic underlined at the meeting that all important issues referring to the situation of Serbs in Macedonia had been discussed by Macedonian and FR Yugoslav Prime Minister Crvenkovski and Kontic, and that they were expected to be solved positively. Academic Milosh Macura, in the name of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, had insisted on the succession of Macedonia to former SFRY to be regarded in a different way, since one 'had to remember that it had never had para-military formations nor had ever attacked the Yugoslav National Army, that there had not been any mass expelling of Serbs, that there were no discriminations as in Bosnia and in Croatia, although there were sophisticated ones'. According to 'Nova Makedonija' daily, the participants were addressed by Bishop Pahomie, who said that Serbian orthodox priests were not allowed to work in Macedonia since 1941 and that both Serbian priests and believers were 'banished' from there.

MILS SUPPLEMENT

[12] 'Debts Can't Be Paid In a Magic Way'

('Nova Makedonija', 12 October, 1996)

The most important issue which should regain the confidence of savers in Macedonian banks - the 'frozen' foreign currency savings - is still waiting for the most adequate solution. This great burden both for the state and for the savers is beginning to be alleviated, but analyses and figures show that the final solution is still far. During the last four-five years, many efforts were made for a part of those savings to be paid to their owners. The top of the great foreign currency 'iceberg' has been partly broken, but the state has not got a 'magic stick' with which it might fully melt it in the next several years.

The same problem was tried to be solved in different ways by the countries-successors of former SFRY. Slovenia has managed to find a model by which they fully returned the high rating of their banking system. FR Yugoslavia, on the other hand, kept printing money without having a realistic support for it and their inflation rate reached extremely high figures. Macedonia could not afford to put the complete savings at the disposal of their owners, but it also managed to avoid the trap of the so-called primary money emission. It has chosen the model of a gradual, but realistic reducing of its obligations towards its own citizens. What has been done in the meantime and what will happen in future?

The banks in the Republic of Macedonia, at the end of 1992, officially had DM 1,586 billion, i.e. over $1 billion US of 'frozen' foreign currency savings. That was when the Government decided to find solutions for the inherited problem, which might have provoked social riots if it was neglected. In October, 1992, a Programme was passed which contained 14 models for solving the problem of the 'frozen' foreign currency savings. Some of them were included in the Laws on Foreign Currency Deposits, on Privatization, on State-Owned Flats, on Sale of Office Premises, etc. The crucial dilemma was how to find realistic sources of money which would not make any pressure on the high level of inflation. Any other solution would have been 'throwing dust in the eyes of the savers'. The banks were simply unable to service the savings by themselves, and the state had a weak financial power. For example, foreign currency reserves were then only $59.7 million US and were supposed to be used for things which were of a greater priority, such as the survival of the economic capacities.

Ministry of Finances had reported the data of the Macedonian National Bank, according to which DM 487 million were 'released' in 1993, 1994 and 1995. Simultaneously, interest rates DM 205 million worth were registered in the bankbooks. Thus, the total value of the debt remained was calculated to be DM 1,3 billion at the end of the last year.

According to the same information, the total debts of the state towards the savers has decreased for additional DM 94 million during this year, which means that it was DM 1,21 billion on 31 August, 1996.

One must take into account the fact that these figures will change by the end of this year because of the interest rates calculated. It will be an additional burden, since the news planned to be introduced in taxes will most probably exclude the 23% tax paid on savings.

(to be continued)

mils news 14 October, 1996

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