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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 1, No. 186, 97-12-29Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 1, No. 186, 29 December 1997CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] TURKMENISTAN, TURKEY SIGN AGREEMENTSTurkish Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz completed his three-day visit to Turkmenistan on 28 December by overseeing the signing of several agreements between the two countries, ITAR-TASS reported. The most significant document was a memorandum of understanding for a gas pipeline across the bed of Caspian sea and via Azerbaijan and Georgia to Turkey and further to Europe. Prior to Yilmaz' departure to Baku on 28 December, Iranian President Mohammad Khatami arrived in the Turkmen capital, Ashgabat, and discussed with Yilmaz and Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov the Turkmen- Iran- Turkey-Europe pipeline. Khatami and Niyazov attended the opening ceremony of the first stage of this route, the 200-kilometer Korpedzhe- Kurdkui pipeline, on 29 December. BP[02] DELAYS IN TAJIKISTANTajikistan will hold a national referendum on amendments to the constitution in the first half of 1998, RFE/RL correspondents in Dushanbe reported. Possible amendments are being discussed by the National Reconciliation Commission but some members of the United Tajik Opposition (UTO) favor waiting to name a date for the referendum until its members have officially taken up positions in the Tajik government. The announcement of which positions the UTO representatives will receive is already overdue. The last 650 fighters of the UTO still in Afghanistan awaiting transportation back to Tajikistan also have been delayed by weather, logistics and lack of finances, and may not return before mid- January. BP[03] AZERBAIJAN, KARABAKH ASSESS COPENHAGEN SUMMITAzerbaijani Foreign Minister Hasan Hasanov told Interfax on 22 December that he was satisfied with the outcome of the Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe Foreign Ministers' meeting in Copenhagen, Interfax reported. Hasanov said the meeting laid the foundation for resolving the conflict via negotiations. In an interview with the independent Armenian newspaper "Azg" on 23 December, Hasanov termed Armenia the instigator of the conflict and called on Yerevan to "withdraw its forces from Azerbaijani territory" and negotiate Karabakh's status. But the Prime Minister of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, Leonard Petrossian, and the enclave's Foreign Minister, Naira Melkumian, both complained that "nothing was done" in Copenhagen to expedite the resumption of negotiations, Interfax and Noyan Tapan reported. Melkumian noted that the meeting also rejected Karabakh's request to be recognized as a "conflict party" for the entire duration of the negotiating process. LF[04] ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT PASSES 1998 BUDGETThe National Assembly on 27 December voted overwhelmingly to pass the 1998 draft budget, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported. Deputies agreed to the government's proposed increase in excise tax on gasoline in return for a wage hike for government employees and other provisions that had figured in the1995 election program of the ruling Hanrapetutyun coalition. The budget forecasts a 5.2 percent increase in GDP and an annual inflation rate of 13 percent, which will reduce the budget deficit to 5.5 percent from its current level of 6.7 per cent. LF[05] GEORGIAN-SOUTH OSSETIAN TALKS CANCELLEDTalks in Moscow under joint Russian and OSCE auspices between Georgian and South Ossetian representatives on an interim agreement on the breakaway region's political status within Georgia have been cancelled because of the Ossetian side's maximalist approach, Interfax reported on 23 December quoting Georgian presidential representative for resolving conflicts, Irakli Machavariani. Machavariani said that the South Ossetian leadership had reverted to its original demand, modified three years ago, of independence from Georgia and unification with North Ossetia within the Russian Federation. Both Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze and his South Ossetian counterpart Lyudvig Chibirov had expressed confidence that their meeting in mid-November had given fresh impetus to the search for a compromise settlement of the conflict. LF[06] AZERBAIJANI PM IN GEORGIAVisiting Georgia on 26-27 December, Artur Rasi-Zade and the President of the Azerbaijani state oil company, Natik Aliev, assessed progress in reconstruction of the Baku-Supsa oil export pipeline, which is scheduled for completion in late 1998. Aliev subsequently told journalists that the choice between Russia and Georgia as the main export route for Azerbaijan's Caspian oil will depend on how those countries meet the obligations they have signed to date. An agreement signed in September between Russian, Chechen and Azerbaijani officials on the transit of Azerbaijani oil via Chechnya is valid only until 31 December. Following a brief meeting in Baku on 28 December with Turkish Prime Minister Yilmaz, Azerbaijani President Heidar Aliev again endorsed the western export route via Turkey, ITAR-TASS reported. LF[07] NEW IMF LOANS FOR AZERBAIJANThe IMF has approved further loans to Azerbaijan totalling approximately $64 million, an RFE/RL correspondent in Washington reported on 23 December. The loans are intended to support the country's ongoing transition to a market economy and to prepare for the anticipated influx of revenues from offshore oil production. The IMF is apprehensive that while increased oil revenues will relieve constraints on growth, they may also drive up the value of the manat and crowd out development in the non-oil sector. LF[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[08] HARDLINERS HAMSTRING BOSNIAN SERB PARLIAMENT...Legislators representing Radovan Karadzic's Serbian Democratic Party (SDS) and its ally, Vojislav Seselj's Serbian Radical Party (SRS), prevented the opening session of the new Bosnian Serb parliament from doing anything more than confirming the legislators' mandates. At the session that met in Bijeljina on 27 December, Republika Srpska President Biljana Plavsic wanted legislators to elect Mladen Ivanic prime minister. She also wanted parliament's top offices to be divided among the main Serbian parties. The hard-liners, however, demanded all key positions for themselves. The next session is slated for 12 January. PM[09] ...AS MUSLIMS AND NON-NATIONALISTS WALK OUTThe deadlock is likely to continue at the January session because none of the main factions has a clear majority. The SDS and SRS together hold 39 seats, which is three short of a majority in the 83-seat body. Plavsic's Serbian People's League (SNS) has 15 seats, and her potential allies among Serbian parties control 11. A further 18 seats are held by Muslims, Croats, and other deputies from the mainly Muslim-Croat federation, who were elected by refugees. An RFE/RL correspondent reported from Bijeljina on 27 December that the deputies from the federation walked out before the end of the session. PM[10] PLAVSIC CALLS FOR PROSPERITYPresident Plavsic told parliament in Bijeljina on 27 December that it must develop a program to combat the Republika Srpska's main problems, which she identified as unemployment, poverty, and difficulties in making ends meet. Plavsic also stressed that representatives of the Republika Srpska will take part in joint Bosnian institutions as equal participants. She called the Republika Srpska "a state of the Serb people," but added that "there is room in it for all others who are ready to accept our values and defend it as we do." PM[11] SERBS WARNED AGAINST BECOMING "NORTH KOREA."Hanns- Heinrich Schumacher, a deputy to High Representative Carlos Westendorp, told the Bosnian Serb parliament in Bijeljina on 27 December that the Republika Srpska risks becoming the "North Korea of Europe, where a corrupt few enjoy their lives to the detriment of the whole society and lock their territory to the outside world." He called on deputies to open transportation links to the rest of Bosnia, to take part in joint institutions, to allow refugees to return home, and to help in the work of the Hague-based war crimes tribunal. PM[12] IZETBEGOVIC PRAISES "TOLERANT ISLAM."Alija Izetbegovic, the Muslim member of the Bosnian joint presidency, said in Sarajevo on 26 December that his Party of Democratic Action (SDA) contains some extremists but that it is basically a bastion of what he called "tolerant Islam" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 12 December 1997). He argued that the SDA fights all forms of extremism, whether it be that of Serbs, Croats, or Muslims. Izetbegovic stated that the poor state of Croatian-Bosnian relations is due to the Croatian leadership's lack of respect for Bosnian sovereignty. He suggested that the Croatian leadership might not have given up on its earlier plans to join the Serbian leadership in a partition of Bosnia. Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, for his part, recently told Italian media that he continues to believe that Islam presents a threat to Europe. PM[13] BOSNIA HUNTS ARAB TERRORISTSBosnian Interior Minister Mehmed Zilic told Croatian TV on 26 December that his police have arrested two Arabs and are looking for a third in connection with a bomb blast in Mostar in September that injured 50. Zilic added that "the method by which the terrorist attack was carried out led us to believe that we were dealing with professional terrorists from Islamic countries." Croatian officials and journalists have long blamed what they call Islamic extremists for continued tensions between Croats and Muslims, who are nominal allies. PM[14] DOCUMENTS ON ARKAN STOLENSwedish police are investigating the recent theft of documents about war crimes committed by Serbian paramilitary leader Zeljko Raznatovic, better known as Arkan, "Nasa Borba" reported on 27 December. The documents were allegedly stolen from the car of a Swedish diplomat working at the Hague- based war crimes tribunal, who was en route from Stockholm to The Hague. Swedish police protested to the court about what they called the "unprofessional conduct" of the driver. The police said that they fear that the anonymity of some witnesses mentioned in the documents might be compromised. PM[15] NEW SERBIAN PRESIDENT TAKES OFFICEMilan Milutinovic, a supporter of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, took the oath of office as president of Serbia in Belgrade on 29 December. The previous day, legislators belonging to Vojislav Seselj's Serbian Radical Party announced that they will boycott parliament if it does not set up a commission to investigate the 21 December election, in which Milutinovic defeated Seselj. PM[16] VOJVODINA COALITION DEMANDS AUTONOMYRepresentatives of eight political parties and other organizations agreed in Novi Sad on 27 December to form the Vojvodina movement, an RFE/RL correspondent reported from that city. Their goal is to restore the province's autonomy, which was abolished in 1988 following street demonstrations organized by Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic. PM[17] KOSOVO ALBANIANS CALL FOR PROTESTStudent representatives in Pristina urged Kosovars on 27 December to stage a peaceful protest on 30 December to demand the reopening of the Albanian- language section of Pristina University. Several thousand Kosovars held peaceful marches in several cities and towns on 24 and 25 December on behalf of the university, but student leaders suspended the demonstrations following what they called attacks and provocations by the Serbian police. Serbian media reported on 25 December that unknown assailants shot at a police car near Podujevo and tossed grenades at a police building in that same town, an RFE/RL correspondent reported from Pristina. PM[18] BOMB BLAST IN WESTERN MACEDONIAAn explosion damaged at least four cars and surrounding buildings in Tetovo on 24 December. Another explosion one week earlier had damaged a court building in Gostivar. Both cities have a majority Albanian population. Police have arrested two suspects with Macedonian names in connection with the Tetovo blast, according to Reuters. There were no casualties in the explosions and nobody claimed responsibility for the attack. FS[19] US DEFENSE SECRETARY DISCUSSES MACEDONIA'S FUTURE AFTER UNPREDEPWilliam Cohen said that he discussed with President Kiro Gligorov "ways which would be helpful for tracking some sort of security arrangements" after the mandate of the United Nation Preventive Deployment Force in Macedonia (UNPREDEP) runs out in August 1998. Cohen met with Gligorov in Skopje on 24 December during a Christmas visit to the 300 US troops in the 700 strong peacekeeping contingent. He pointed out that the US was "looking for creative ways in which we can be helpful," after the withdrawal. Macedonian Defense Minister Lazar Kitanovski said that both sides discussed setting up a joint training center, MIC reported. FS[20] ALBANIAN BISHOP ENDS JUDGES' HUNGER STRIKERoman Catholic Archbishop Rrok Mirdita persuaded 22 Albanian judges on 26 December to give up their hunger strike (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 December 1997). They had moved their protest against possible dismissals to the Heart of Christ Church during a Christmas mass on 23 December. The previous day police had evicted them from the Tirana court building. Mirdita promised to arrange a meeting with President Rexhep Meidani. The judges protest against a law requiring a university law degree as a precondition for employment, which they say favors communist-era degrees. Up to 400 judges and prosecutors trained in six months courses in 1993 may be disqualified by the law. Meanwhile, the High Council of Justice dismissed one judge and took disciplinary measures against two others on 26 December in connection with the protests. FS[21] EU SENDS EMERGENCY AID TO FLOODED ALBANIAN REGIONSThe EU has given 10 tons of emergency food aid to 7,500 people affected by floods in northern Albania. It also is preparing to ship additional food, blankets, winter clothing and shelter materials. The heaviest rains since 1985 have inundated about 8,000 hectars of land around Lezha, much of which lies below sea level (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 22 December 1997). FS[22] ROMANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER RESIGNSForeign Minister Adrian Severin announced his resignation on 23 December after an investigation failed to substantiate his allegations that local politicians and journalists were working as spies for foreign governments (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 December 1997). The following day President Emil Constantinescu said he would swear in Andrei Plesu as Severin's successor on 29 December, after consultations with the government coalition. He did not comment on Severin's move. Plesu, 49, was a leading anti-communist dissident and the first post-communist culture minister. FS[23] ROMANIAN POLICE BEAT NUNS AT CHRISTMAS MASSPlain- clothes policemen kicked and punched Orthodox nuns in the face at a Christmas mass on 25 December in Bucharest. The nuns had disrupted the service by shouting slogans criticizing Patriarch Teoctist for collaborating with the regime of communist-era dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. They were then violently evicted and assaulted outside the cathedral. Many inside and outside the clergy have called for the patriarch's resignation for "passively" standing by while Ceausescu demolished 90 churches between 1978 and 1989. Teoctist is also controversial for planning to build a $150 million super- cathedral in Bucharest rather than spending the money to rebuild the destroyed churches. Meanwhile, former King Michael, who was present during the service with his family, said he would permanently move to Romania from his Swiss exile. FS[24] BULGARIA'S PRESIDENT GIVES FIRST CHRISTMAS MESSAGEPetar Stoyanov on 25 December praised what he called the effort of all Bulgarians to cope in difficult times. Speaking to young people, he added that he is "sure that young Bulgarians will be playing a decisive role tomorrow, not only in the fate of their own country but also in that of a united Europe." Stoyanov, who is a practicing Christian, urged "all non- Christian Bulgarians luck, joy and happy days." His predecessor, Zhelyu Zhelev, is an atheist who delivered his main address at New Year's. PM[C] END NOTE[25] THE PARTY'S OVER; THE NOMENKLATURA ISN'TBy Paul GobleSix years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the communist party has largely disappeared in most of the successor states. But one of its most unfortunate creations -- the nomenklatura -- continues to exist in most of them, albeit in a somewhat modified form. In Soviet times, the communist party used a variety of institutions to control society -- the army, the secret police, and so on. But one of its most effective levers was a system of control over personnel appointments in virtually all aspects of public life. Party committees at various levels had the final word over who could be appointed to this or that post and over who would be pushed up the career ladder or be cast aside. Known as the nomenklatura, this group of people selected by the party formed the real elite of the Soviet Union. At each level, they tended to interact only with each other. And they formed a ruling class every bit as tightly defined as any other in history. Some of the members of this group were committed to communist ideology, but by the end of Soviet times, most were driven by careerist motives. And not surprisingly, many of its members were largely indifferent to the fate of communism at the end of the Soviet Union. Indeed, in their pursuit of individual and collective self- interest, some of them viewed the demise of the Soviet system as a golden opportunity to enrich themselves, to own what they used to merely control. Or as one shrewd Estonian observer of this situation once put it, "1991 was less about democracy and freedom than about giving the nomenklatura the retirement plan." The continuation of the nomenklatura class, if not the nomenklatura system of appointments, has taken a variety of forms which cast a shadow over the life of these countries. The first and most important is simply the continuity of individuals in office, people used to working together and working together in the peculiar style of the Soviet past. Ten of the 12 presidents of the countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States were senior members of the nomenklatura. And even one of the three Baltic presidents -- Algirdas Brazauskas of Lithuania -- is as well. On the one hand, that should come as no surprise: these were the most politically active members of Soviet society, and after only six years, these are the people one might expect to be in power. But on the other hand, whatever they choose to call themselves -- democrats, reformers, or something else -- their experiences of the hard school of the Soviet nomenklatura are likely to dominate much of their behaviour with each other and with the rest of society. Indeed, many things that are otherwise inexplicable about the ways in which senior officials in these countries interact with each other -- the kinds and extent of corruption, the secrecy, the power of shadowy figures occupying no clear post -- become clear considering the positions these same people occupied in Soviet times. The continuing role of the nomenklatura even has an impact on the way in which the governments of CIS states deal with each other. Armenian officials have pointed out that Russian President Boris Yeltsin, himself a senior nomenklatura member, deals very differently with the presidents of Georgia and Azerbaijan, both of whom share that tie, than with the president of Armenia who does not. And this lack of nomenklatura ties, these officials suggest, limits rather than enhances the special relationship that exists between the Russian Federation and Armenia. At the very least, they say, it colors the way in which the Russian president receives the Armenian president when the latter comes to Moscow. And yet a third example of the way in which the nomenklatura works is its efforts to find and promote politicians who can function in the more open democratic marketplace but who are committed to defending the interests of the nomenklatura class defined now, as often as not, as the "new" Russians or the "new" generation of leaders elsewhere. One case of this very much on public view this month is in Lithuania. There, Arturas Paulauskas, who led the first round of voting for a new president, appears to be someone the old nomenklatura hopes to use to defend or even advance its privileges. The son of a KGB colonel with close ties with many of the former communist elite, Paulauskas, 44, presented himself as a man of a new generation -- even as an appointee of Vytautas Landsbergis, the man who led Lithuania's march to the recovery of its independence. Like some other former members of the nomenklatura, Paulauskas may be able to emancipate himself from its claims and its habits. But his candidacy and the support the old nomenklatura is giving it are yet another reminder that communism may in fact be gone but one of communism's most unfortunate creations is going to be around for a long time to come. 29-12-97 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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