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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 2, No. 111, 98-06-12Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 2, No. 111, 12 June 1998CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] GEORGIAN-ABKHAZ TALKS ADJOURNGeorgian Foreign Minister Irakli Menagharishvili joined the Abkhaz and Georgian envoys for a further round of talks in Moscow on 11 June. The talks adjourned without reaching agreement either on mechanisms for precluding further hostilities in Abkhazia's Gali Raion or for the repatriation of ethnic Georgians forced to flee during last month's fighting. They will, however, resume at an unspecified date after the envoys have held consultations in Tbilisi and Sukhumi. Georgian envoy Vazha Lortkipanidze told journalists after the talks that Georgia has not requested the withdrawal from Gali of the Russian peacekeepers deployed there. Helicopters carrying members of the CIS peacekeeping force were fired on while overflying Gali on 10 June, but no passengers or crew were injured, Interfax reported the following day. LF[02] ABKHAZIA ACCUSES RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRYSpeaking at a press conference organized by Interfax on 11 June, Anri Djergenia, the Abkhaz presidential envoy to the Moscow talks, accused the Russian Foreign Ministry of abetting Georgia. Specifically, Djergenia claimed that it was Russia that proposed Georgia should make the lifting of the restrictions on the Abkhaz-Russian frontier contingent on the successful repatriation of the fugitives. He also claimed that printed documents prepared by the Russian Foreign Ministry distorted the preliminary agreements he had reached with Lortkipanidze. LF[03] GEORGIAN LAWMAKER DENIES FUGITIVES WILL ACCEPT ABKHAZ CONDITIONSGeorgian deputy parliamentary speaker Vakhtang Kolbaya on 11 June denied media reports that said Georgian displaced persons from Gali are prepared to comply with Abkhazia's insistence that acceptance of Abkhaz citizenship be a precondition for repatriation (see "RFE/RL Newsline, 11 June 1998), Caucasus Press reported. Tamaz Nadareishvili, the chairman of the so-called Abkhaz parliament in exile, has claimed that as many as 4,000 ethnic Georgians from Gali have already applied for Abkhaz citizenship in order to qualify for repatriation, Interfax reported on 11 June. LF[04] LAGODEKHI ELECTIONS RESULTS DECLARED VOIDThe Georgian Central Electoral Commission has declared the poll in two electoral precincts in Lagodekhi void and has scheduled new elections for 21 June, Caucasus Press reported on 12 June. In the 7 June by-election, Socialist Party candidate Valeri Bakradze polled 35 percent, closely followed by ruling Union of Citizens of Georgia candidate David Kapanadze with 32.8 percent. Spokesmen for both parties accused the other of flagrant procedural violations. LF[05] KARABAKH ARMENIANS RALLY IN SUPPORT OF DEFENSE MINISTERSeveral thousand people demonstrated in Stepanakert on 11 June to demonstrate support for General Samvel Babayan, defense minister of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, in his bid to assume the vacant post of prime minister, RFE/RL's Stepanakert correspondent reported. One speaker at the demonstration proposed that Babayan combine the posts of prime minister and defense minister, while a second advocated pre-term presidential elections if President Arkadii Ghukasian rejects the demonstrators' demands. Ghukasian told RFE/RL on 12 June that the question of whether Babayan be allowed to combine the posts of defense minister and premier is currently being discussed. Ghukasian said he will appoint a new prime minister in two- three days. LF[06] ARMENIAN DEFENSE MINISTER WARNS AGAINST SPLIT IN KARABAKH LEADERSHIPMeeting in Stepanakert on 10 June with Ghukasian and Babayan, Vazgen Sarkisian warned against discord within the Karabakh leadership as long as the possibility of a new war persists. Sarkisian said that all solutions to the ongoing leadership crisis are acceptable to Yerevan. But he also underscored that "the army is a centralized and centripetal force" that excludes the possibility of combining military and political functions. LF[07] ARMENIAN PARLIAMENT REJECTS DRAFT ELECTION LAWSLawmakers on 11 June rejected three draft laws providing for a system of proportional representation system in parliamentary elections, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported. The Yerkrapah--the majority group within the parliament--continues to insist that all but 40 seats in the next 131- member parliament should be allocated to single-member constituencies. Most other parties-- including those aligned with the Yerkrapah in the Justice and Unity bloc, created to support Robert Kocharian in the March 1998 presidential elections--advocate proportional representation. Yerkrapah deputy Razmik Martirosian argued that no political party in Armenia can "take full responsibility for the country." He said the Yerkrapah is committed to drafting new electoral legislation from scratch. Meeting with the Yerkrapah on 9 June, Kocharian argued against pre-term parliamentary elections, except in the event of a "crisis," according to Noyan Tapan. LF[08] AZERBAIJANI LEADERSHIP, OIL CONSORTIUM AT ODDSIlham Aliev, president of Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR, has hinted that Baku may seek international arbitration in its dispute with an international consortium exploiting three off-shore Caspian oil fields. Aliev charged that experts from the Azerbaijan International Oil Consortium greatly underestimated the extent of repairs needed to the Baku-Supsa pipeline that was to have gone into operation this fall. He insists that the consortium pay the additional $276 million needed to complete those repairs. The AIOC says that SOCAR should make up the shortfall from oil sales. Aliev also criticized AIOC for deliberately delaying a decision on the route for the so- called Main Export Pipeline. That decision was to have been taken this fall, but an AIOC executive told AFP earlier this month that "we're running late" because of AIOC's disagreements with SOCAR. LF[09] MORE DEATHS BLAMED ON TOXIC SPILL IN KYRGYZSTANTwo more deaths are being blamed on the spill of sodium cyanide into the Barskoon River, raising the total to four, ITAR-TASS and RFE/RL correspondents reported on 11 June. Doctors say that the cause of death of a 72-year-old woman on 10 June was poisoning. The other latest victim was Sherimbek Sharsheev, who organized the Manas anniversary festivities in 1995. He died shortly after paying a visit to Issyk-Kul to assess the damage himself. BP[10] TERRORISM IN SOUTHERN KYRGYZSTAN?Law enforcement authorities in the Osh region of southern Kyrgyzstan have taken four people into custody in connection with two explosions in the area, ITAR-TASS and RFE/RL correspondents reported. Two people were killed while traveling on a mini-bus on 30 May, and two others in a private home two days later. Both those incidents were initially thought to have been gas canister explosions caused by carelessness. On 6 June, the Security Ministry announced it was exploring the possibility that the explosions were acts of terrorism. According to the ITAR- TASS on 11 June, authorities say the four men taken into custody have links to the Wahhabis. BP[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[11] NATO TO DISPLAY AIR POWER NEAR KOSOVANATO defense ministers agreed in Brussels on 11 June that the alliance will hold air exercises in Albania and Macedonia designed to show Belgrade their resolve in ending the violence in Kosova, Reuters reported. NATO said the military exercises could be held as early as next week. In its communique, the alliance condemned the use of "violence for political ends by either the authorities in Belgrade or Kosovar Albanian extremists." German Defense Minister Volker Ruehe said several other options were discussed at the meeting, including air strikes anywhere in Yugoslavia and the deployment of ground troops. He said "meaningful military measures" have to exist along with diplomatic efforts and that "the bloodshed" has to stop. Other measures discussed by the NATO ministers include creating a heavy weapon "exclusion zone" in Kosova, a no- fly zone, and the destruction of Yugoslav air defenses. In Belgrade, Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Vojislav Seselj, an ultra-nationalist, said Serbia will defend Kosova with all means at its disposal. PB[12] COHEN SAYS SECURITY COUNCIL'S BLESSING NOT REQUIREDU.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen said after the NATO defense ministers meeting in Brussels that UN Security Council authorization to use force in stopping the violence in Kosova is "desirable" but not required, Reuters reported. Cohen said "the U.S. does not feel it is imperative." He said that NATO military intervention in Kosova would be justified if it were "collective defense in terms of the instability that could be created" by a continuation of the current situation. U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Washington's goal is to create a cease-fire that would allow the two sides to resume talks. PB[13] YELTSIN INVITES MILOSEVIC TO MOSCOWRussian President Boris Yeltsin has invited Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to visit Moscow on 15-16 June to discuss the Kosova crisis, Russian agencies reported on 11 June. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Vladimir Rakhmanin outlined Moscow's position on Kosova. He said Moscow would only agree to the use of force there with the approval of the UN Security Council, where Russia has a veto. Russia could foresee NATO troops being used only for monitoring Kosova's borders with Albania and Macedonia. And while Moscow will not oppose the expansion of autonomy for Kosova, it would be against "tearing Kosova from Serbia or, especially, Yugoslavia." Russian Defense Minister Igor Sergeev is to be consulted in Brussels on 12 June about the NATO defense ministers meeting. PG[14] BLAIR REASSURES RUGOVA IN LONDONBritish Prime Minister Tony Blair told Kosova shadow state President Ibrahim Rugova on 11 June that Britain will try to gain the approval of the UN Security Council for the use of force to stop the violence in Kosova, Reuters reported. Rugova, who also met with British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, thanked Blair for his support and said the meeting was important for the ethnic Albanians in Kosova. "We urged urgent action," Rugova said. "There is a great danger that a massive ethnic cleansing will take place." Rugova is due to arrive in Paris on 12 June for a meeting with French President Jacques Chirac. PB[15] BERISHA WANTS NATO, UCK TO COORDINATE ACTIVITIESFormer Albanian President Sali Berisha has proposed that NATO coordinate any intervention in Kosova with the Kosova Liberation Army (UCK)," "Gazeta Shqiptare" reported on 12 June. He added that "both sides have the same aim, to stop ethnic cleansing." Berisha recently praised the UCK publicly. "Koha Jone" reported on 12 June that Berisha's relatives in the northern village of Vucitol, near Tropoje, have turned their house and land into a base for UCK fighters. FS[16] WESTENDORP SEES MODERATION IN SOME BOSNIAN- SERB AREAS...Carlos Westendorp, the international community's high representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina, said on 11 June that there have been "encouraging signs" of political moderation in parts of eastern Republika Srpska, Reuters reported. Westendorp spoke at the opening of a health clinic in Rogatica, near Serbia. He said that support for the current moderate government in Republika Srpska will be rewarded with increased aid. "Your people cannot live just on nationalism," he told them. "They need security, they need jobs." PB[17] ...BUT UN SECRETARY-GENERAL SAYS INCREASED VIOLENCE AGAINST REFUGEESKofi Annan said in New York on 11 June that refugees and displaced persons returning to their pre-war homes in Bosnia-Herzegovina are experiencing increased violence, dpa reported. Annan said in a report to the UN Security Council that the number of violent events has increased dramatically in the last three months. Annan asked the council to extend the mandate of the 2, 000-strong international police force in Bosnia. He said that local police forces in Croatian areas of Bosnia and in the Republika Srpska are opposing the integration of the forces with minority officers. In Brussels, NATO defense ministers agreed to extend the mandate of the 30,000-troop strong Stabilization Force (SFOR) in Bosnia. PB[18] GERMANY APPROVES SAKIC'S TRANSIT TO CROATIAThe Croatian Justice Ministry said on 11 June that Bonn has granted Croatia permission for concentration camp commander Dinko Sakic to change planes in Germany on his way to Zagreb where he is to stand trial on war crimes, Reuters reported. Sakic denies any wrongdoing during his term as head of the Jasenovac camp in Croatia, where several tens of thousand of people died during World War II. Croatia has until the end of June to extradite Sakic from Argentina. In other news, the Croatian government closed all schools a week before the beginning of the summer vacation to avoid a strike threatened by teachers over pay raises. Education Minister Bozidar Pugelnik said the closure would end "this circus" of failed negotiations between teachers' unions and his ministry. PB[19] ALBANIAN POLITICIAN DENIES MAFIA LINKSRitvan Peshkepia, a former legislator of the Democratic Alliance Party, told "Gazeta Shqiptare" on 12 June that he is not involved in any criminal activities. The daily wrote the previous day that Italian police are looking for Peshkepia on arms smuggling charges. Peshkepia said someone stole his diplomatic passport in 1991 and that he suspects someone has since used the document to pass himself off as Peshkepia. He added that he has contacted the Italian embassy and Albanian Prosecutor-General Arben Rakipi to clarify the matter. FS[20] ROMANIAN EDUCATION MINISTER OPPOSED TO HUNGARIAN UNIVERSITYAndrei Marga on 11 June told journalists that ethnic Hungarians face "no restrictions" in studying in their own language at universities and that setting up a separate state-financed Hungarian-language university is above all a "symbolic" demand. He said it is "deplorable" that university education in Cluj has been turned into an "ethnicized issue." Marga stressed that he continues to support a "multi-cultural approach" such as exists at the Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj. That approach, he explained, allows each ethnic community to preserve its identity without disrupting "inter-ethnic cultural communication." Marga said a separate university in Transylvania could be the harbinger of movements that are "undesirable," an RFE/RL correspondent reported. In a separate statement, the Education Ministry said solutions providing for "ethnic assimilation or ethnic separation" are "equally counter-productive." MS[21] MOLDOVAN COALITION STALEMATE CONTINUESPremier Ion Ciubuc and the leaders of the Democratic Convention of Moldova (CDM) and the Party of Democratic Forces (PDF) have failed to reach an agreement on the distribution of deputy cabinet ministers posts, RFE/RL's Chisinau bureau reported on 11 June. CDM co-chairman Mircea Snegur said after the meeting that the "warning" issued recently by the CDM and the PDF "remains in force" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 10 June 1998). MS[22] WORLD BANK OFFICIAL 'SATISFIED' WITH MOLDOVAN VISITRobert Grawe, World Bank regional director for Moldova, said in Chisinau at the end of a three-day visit that he was "very satisfied" with his talks with Ciubuc and other Moldovan officials. He said the talks produced a "partnership accord" on financing several projects in Moldova. However, the two sides did not discuss the frozen tranche of a World Bank loan. Discussions on that issue will take place in September depending on how the Moldovan economy performs, RFE/RL's Chisinau bureau reported. MS[C] END NOTE[23] HOW NOT TO FIGHT AN ANCIENT EVILby Paul GobleMany governments and political leaders in the post- communist states are responding to manifestations of anti-Semitism and ethnic extremism in ways that seem certain to make these problems worse. Some mainstream leaders deny that any problem exists or claim that it is so marginal that it need not be addressed. Others assume that banning the symbols of such extremist groups will be sufficient to deal with these phenomenon. Still others appear to believe that the best way to deal with such groups is to adopt part of the extremists' program in order to undercut the extremists. The history of Western Europe suggests that none of these strategies will work. Even more, it indicates that democratic leaders must take an active role in fighting such phenomena to prevent the latter from expanding and threatening democracy itself. Since the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, governments and mainstream political leaders across the region have routinely denounced anti-Semitism and ultra-nationalism. Sometimes leaders make these declarations under pressure from the West. Sometimes they do so out of a genuine commitment. Sometimes they speak from a recognition of just what these extremist movements might mean to the still fragile democratic systems in their countries. But a rising tide of anti-Semitic and ultra-nationalist activities across this region shows that these leaders have not yet found a way to implement these commitments. Not surprisingly, many governments and mainstream political leaders have dismissed incidents like the attacks earlier this year on the Moscow and Riga synagogues as the work of a few extremists who enjoy little support in the broader population. That is certainly what many in these countries and the West want to believe, but public opinion polls in these countries show that far more people continue to harbor anti-Semitic and extreme nationalist views. A recent poll in Russia, for example, found that approximately half the population could be described as anti-Semitic to one extent or another. If the authorities fail to bring those responsible for anti-Semitic or extreme nationalist actions to justice, many people are likely to conclude that the extremists enjoy even more support than they do. And such conclusions, in turn, will give these groups more influence, not less. Faced with that challenge, other leaders are considering taking actions that would ban the symbols of the extremists, such as the Nazi swastika. Such steps, these leaders believe, would be sufficient to keep the extremists at bay. However, as the experience of Western Europe shows, such bans may have an unintended effect. They may even give extremist groups the ability to win support among people who do not share their core views but who are angry at the government for other reasons. But the most dangerous pattern in the post- communist region now, however, is not that of denial-- either by claiming the problem does not exist or outlawing hated symbols. Rather, it is the tendency of governments or political leaders to succumb to the temptation to exploit anti-Semitic or ultra nationalist rhetoric or actions to win support for themselves. Many times politicians do this without any apology. Thus, Russian communist leader Gennadii Zyuganov used openly anti-Semitic language in his effort to win votes in the last Russian presidential race. But often political leaders advance a different argument, one suggesting that they can only isolate the extremists and win support for themselves by adopting part of the extremists' programs. Unfortunately, all too many both in these countries and abroad appear willing to accept that argument, at least implicitly, thereby failing to see that it can open the door to even worse horrors. A tragic example of this is the decree issued in October 1993 by Moscow Mayor Yurii Luzhkov and backed by President Boris Yeltsin calling for the expulsion from the Russian capital of "persons of Caucasian nationality." Seeking to exploit the hatred many Russians feel toward persons from the North Caucasus and Transcaucasus, Luzhkov and his backers apparently felt that they needed to take this step to build up their own support in the wake of the bloody conflict between Yeltsin and the old Supreme Soviet. But despite violating the Russian Constitution and despite its ominous echo of Stalin's decrees against Jews nearly 50 years ago, this decree is still on the books, nearly five years after the conflict that was used to justify it. And even if, as some like to suggest, Luzhkov's decree is at present not always enforced, its continued existence not only casts a shadow over Russian democracy but almost inevitably encourages other forms of ethnic extremism. That danger -- and it exists in many places across the region -- underscores why it is too soon to declare victory over these ancient evils and why it is absolutely necessary that everyone involved continue the fight. 12-06-98 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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