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MILS NEWS 31/05/96

Macedonian Information Liaison Service Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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


CONTENTS

  • [01] UNPREDEP MANDATE EXTENDED
  • [02] GLIGOROV: 'SWEDEN AND FINLAND AMONG THE BEST FRIENDS OF MACEDONIA'
  • [03] DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS BETWEEN MACEDONIA AND UKRAINE
  • [04] MACEDONIA - THE 32ND MEMBER OF EUROPEAN TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION
  • [05] ANNUAL MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE OF CEI IN VIENNA
  • [06] SANTEUR AND DINI SOON IN SKOPJE
  • [07] 'KATIMERINI': MACEDONIA IS BECOMING A NUCLEAR DEPOT
  • [08] RECOMMENDATION TO PARTLY REPEAT ELECTIONS IN ALBANIA
  • [09] POPOVSKI: 'MORE MUNICIPALITIES WITH A BILINGUAL STATUS'
  • [10] EXPORT-IMPORT ACTIVITIES RATHER SLOWER
  • [11] 'PTT MACEDONIA' SIGNED A CONTRACT WITH FRENCH 'ALCATEL-CIT'
  • [12] POLEMICS WITH VIEWS AND PRACTICE OF LAZAR KOLISHEVSKI

    MILS SUPPLEMENT

  • [13] 'Poisoned Pupils Are Recovering, The Case is Politicizing'

  • MILS NEWS

    Skopje, 31 May 1996

    [01] UNPREDEP MANDATE EXTENDED

    UN Security Council last night passed the suggestion of UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros Ghali to extend the mandate of UNPREDEP Mission in Macedonia for six more months. According to Macedonian Radio, 14 Council members voted for, while Russian Federation restrained from voting.

    [02] GLIGOROV: 'SWEDEN AND FINLAND AMONG THE BEST FRIENDS OF MACEDONIA'

    Macedonian President Kiro Gligorov was received yesterday by the Swedish King Carl Gustav XVI, at the Royal Palace in Stockholm. As Macedonian Radio reported, they had discussed the current situation in Macedonia and Balkans, especially in context of the implementation of the Dayton Accord and the UN role in it. President Gligorov had emphasized the contribution of Swedish soldiers within the Nordic battalion of UNPREDEP in Macedonia and thanked for the Swedish support to Macedonia in becoming independent and joining the European institutions. Swedish Sovereign, praising the constructive foreign policy of Macedonia in the region, had stressed that the country was an important factor of peace and stability in the region and in Europe.

    In the talks President Gligorov had with Swedish Prime Minister Joran Person, the traditional friendly relations between the two countries were stressed, strengthened by the great number of Macedonian migrant workers in Sweden.

    Macedonian President also met with Swedish Parliament Speaker Birgita Dao discussing the possibilities for further develpment of the bilateral parliamentarian cooperation.

    At the end of his visit to Sweden, Gligorov met with the representatives of the Macedonian comunity in this country, and held a press conference at the Swedish Foreign Ministry.

    He stressed that Finland and Sweden were among the best friends Macedonia had, and that there was a great interest in the development of the mutual cooperation.

    [03] DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS BETWEEN MACEDONIA AND UKRAINE

    At yesterday's meeting of Macedonian Parliament President Tito Petkovski and a Ukrainian delegation, led by Minister Valerij Pustavajtenko, the bilateral economic and parliamentarian cooperation were discussed, as well as the need from opening diplomatic - consular offices in both countries. The necessity from signing bilateral agreements was also emphasized, especially regarding the economic and trade cooperation.

    Delegation of the Republic of Ukraine was received by Macedonian Vice Prime Minister and Economy Minister Bekjir Zuta, when the current cooperation in many economic fields was positively viewed.

    Minister Pustavajtenko stated that it was necessary to establish diplomatic relations between the two countries as soon as possible and to create legal basis for further improvement of the economic cooperation. He pointed out the possibilities to cooperate with the Skopje Industrial sector, as well as in the field of agriculture production, light industry, etc.

    [04] MACEDONIA - THE 32ND MEMBER OF EUROPEAN TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION

    Macedonia was accepted as the 32nd member of the Conference of European Ministers of Transport (CEMPT). Macedonian Transport Minister Dimitar Buzlevski reported yesterday that Macedonia would thus obtain a quota of 128 transport licenses for 1996 for free access at European markets. 'The licenses will be valid since July 1 this year, and they are in a sufficient number,' said Buzlevski.

    [05] ANNUAL MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE OF CEI IN VIENNA

    Macedonian Foreign Minister Ljubomir Frchkovski is attending today's regular Annual Ministerial Conference of Central European Initiative in Vienna, where the Macedonia-FR Yugoslavia Agreement on Mutual Recognition is expected to be greeted. The situation in Kosovo and CEI extention to five more member countries is going to be discussed.

    Minister Frchkovski is expected to have bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Poland, Hungary and Austria.

    [06] SANTEUR AND DINI SOON IN SKOPJE

    President of the European Commission Jacque Santeur and Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini will visit Skopje, Belgrade, Saraevo and Zagreb on June 7-8, announced Italian Foreign Ministry yesterday. According to the announcement, their goal is to express the Union's policy for reconciliation and support of the cooperation between former Yugoslav republics.

    [07] 'KATIMERINI': MACEDONIA IS BECOMING A NUCLEAR DEPOT

    Greece asked from the European Parliament recently to answer what is being done against the intention of Macedonia to become an international nuclear depot. According to the Greek daily 'Katimerini', it was asked by Nikitas Kalamanis of the ultra-nationalistic party 'Political Spring', and a member of the European Parliament. 'Katimerini' claims that, according to articles in Macedonian daily 'Dnevnik', the notifications that the abandoned Macedonian mines are going to be used as storage places for worn out lightning rods are only excuses for the construction of depots for 'imported' nuclear waste.

    Meanwhile, Macedonian Minister of Works Jorgo Shundovski, in his interview for weekly 'Puls', categorically denied the information that there were intentions to construct a nuclear power station in the country.

    [08] RECOMMENDATION TO PARTLY REPEAT ELECTIONS IN ALBANIA

    Swiss Foreign Minister and President of OSCE Flavio Kotti said yesterday that Albania should consider the possibility to partly repeat the elections. He said the serious irregularities that appeared during the parliamentarian elections could jeopardize the stability and democratic development of the country.

    State Electoral Commission of Albania announced in the meantime that 89% of the voters had voted in the first round, and that 102 deputies had been elected - 95 of Berisha's Democratic Party, 5 of the Socialist Party and 2 of the Party for Human Rights. According to the Commission, the voting should be repeated at four electoral units.

    [09] POPOVSKI: 'MORE MUNICIPALITIES WITH A BILINGUAL STATUS'

    Macedonian Parliament yesterday passed the Law on Trade Companies and discussed the proposed new territorial diving of Macedonia to 111 municipalities. Minister of Justice Vlado Popovski said the Law on Territorial Dividing should be passed in two phases, and stressed that all political speculations about it should be eliminated. The aim of this Law is, according to him, not to create pure ethnic municipalities, but to improve the relations between nations. He supported that with the increased number of bilingual municipalities from current 32.35% to 39.64%. The new Law anticipates 36 municipalities to use Albanian language and alphabet, besides Macedonian, 6 of them to use Turkish and 2 Serbian language and alphabet, informed Popovski.

    MP Dzeladin Murati described the Law as 'political drawing of boundaries' and said that Tetovo should have five township centres.

    Zoran Shapuric said the new Law would bring to even poorer municipalities, pointing out that 80% of the current are being financed by the government. He said Macedonia should have no more than 50-60 municipalities.

    The discussion was discontinued due to the lack of quorum.

    [10] EXPORT-IMPORT ACTIVITIES RATHER SLOWER

    Macedonian Chamber of Commerce Executive Board informed at yesterday's session that only 16% of the total income of Macedonian economy had come from foreign income realizations in 1995. It was said that the export had meanwhile decreased for 38% and the import for 13.5%. Such a situation would be surpassed by an improved offer, by creating conditions for better usage of capacities, as well as by a greater influx of foreign investments and credits. Entrepreneurs repeated the problems regarding the, according to them, unrealistic interest rates, as well as the lack of stimulus for the exporters.

    They said the foreign policy of the country should be harmonized with the foreign trade, and that wider relations with the EU should be a priority.

    [11] 'PTT MACEDONIA' SIGNED A CONTRACT WITH FRENCH 'ALCATEL-CIT'

    PTT Macedonia and the French company 'Alcatel-CIT' signed an Annex-Contract on Digital Telephone Exchanges yesterday in Skopje. The Contract was made in accordance with the rules and procedures of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development regarding the supply of telecommunication equipment.

    [12] POLEMICS WITH VIEWS AND PRACTICE OF LAZAR KOLISHEVSKI

    The book 'Our View of The Time of Kolishevski' by Krste Crvenkovski and Slavko Milosavleski was promoted yesterday in Skopje. Promoter Ivan Katardziev said the book was a polemics with the views and the practice of Lazar Kolishevski as an inevitable VIP of the Macedonian last 45 years history and as one of the participants in the crucial moments of the National Liberation War.

    Meanwhile, Kolishevski stated for the today's issue of 'Fokus' weekly that he knew nothing about the terrible shooting of 53 prisoners in Veles in 1945, about which many Macedonian media showed a great interest lately.

    MILS SUPPLEMENT

    [13] 'Poisoned Pupils Are Recovering, The Case is Politicizing'

    ('Dnevnik', 31 May 1996)

    National Democratic Party (NDP), one of the political parties of Albanians in Macedonia, has asked from the UN and OSCE missions to take over the investigation of the case of poisoned pupils from Tetovo at the hotel 'Galeb' in Struga.

    The reason stated was that this party 'does not trust to the Macedonian government'. This gives political dimensions to the case, despite the public appeals to avoid that.

    NDP has suspected that the Ministries of Health and of Internal Affairs would not present the true results from the analyses, and, therefore, sent a letter to UNPREDEP Chief of Mission Henryk Sokalski, asking for a parallel analysis to be made in the Mission's laboratory, or, if necessary, for making analyses abroad.

    Fifty three pupils of the secondary medical school 'Nikola Stein' from Tetovo were hospitalized three days ago, immediately after their one-day excursion to Struga. The results from the analyses, for which special substances were needed from abroad, are being waited for. D-r Dragan Filipovik from Tetovo Medical Centre claims that the reasons for the poisoning are still not known, but it is certainly not the bad food.

    Doctors claim the poisoned pupils are not in danger. D-r Marija Spirovska from the Epidemiology Department of Tetovo Medical Centre told us that there were around twenty pupils left at the hospital, who were getting better.

    'Nine children were transferred to the Epidemiology Clinics in Skopje to establish the reasons for poisoning, and not because they were more complicated cases, as there were some speculations,' said D-r Filipovik. He claimed the parents of those nine kids should not to worry.

    While official results are waited for, however, parents' dissatisfaction increases. Many versions are being constructed and the atmosphere in Tetovo is becoming hotter and hotter.

    'The case reminds very much of the poisoned Albanian pupils in Kosovo in 1990. It was proved then that chemical warfare agents had been used. The symptoms are very similar,' said Bedrein Ibraimi, Secretary of NDP.

    According to him, a possibility of diversion should not be excluded. Its initiators should be looked for among those 'who do not want any good to Macedonia', and whose motive was to 'increase the inter-ethnic tensions and de- stabilization of the country.'

    That is precisely the reason for the insisting of NDP to have a report made by OSCE and UNPREDEP, which are neutral. The two missions, allegedly, have already formed a joint team which members had already went to Tetovo to take blood samples and other analysis material.

    'This unfortunate case must not be politicized before objective and relevant analyses are made. Any forecasts would be counter-productive at this moment,' said Marsel Biljali from PDP.

    He categorically rejected the speculations that children were pretending: 'The children are really sick, and the doctors had confirmed that. It is absurd to say they are pretending,' claims Biljali.

    Hisen Ramadani, an MP and a political expert, has put the case in a wider context: 'The international peace bothers some factors from outside and some extremely nationalistic circles inside the country. The suspicion that the incident is backed politically must not be excluded. The possible goal might have been to worsen the relations between Macedonians and Albanians. The state, and especially Ministry of Internal Affairs, must react promptly to confirm or eliminate the eventual criminal or terrorist component of the case.'

    Ramadani interceded for the principle of transparency to be used by the state and to have the public informed on time about all the results. It would be a prevention against the speculations that are spreading quickly and that could be very harmful.

    Minister of Health Care Ilija Filipche had appealed to restrain from politicization of the case at the Parliament session the day before yesterday. Unfortunately, the speculations are faster than the analyses results, which are expected today.

    (end)

    mils news 31 May, 1996

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