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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 4, No. 39, 00-02-24Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 4, No. 39, 24 February 2000CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] NEW ARMENIAN CABINET LINEUP AGREEDPrime Minister AramSargsian and the eight political parties represented in the parliament reached agreement late on 23 February on the composition of a new streamlined cabinet, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported the following day. The number of ministries has been cut from 24 to 16, of which six will be headed by new appointees. The defense, national security, interior, and foreign ministers retain their posts. The Communist Party will join the cabinet for the first time since ceding power in the 1990 Supreme Soviet election, and a member of the opposition National Democratic Union will head the Ministry of State Property. Former Premier and Economy Minister Armen Darpinian loses his post. His ministry will be merged with the Finance Ministry, which will be headed by current Minister of Finance Levon Barkhudarian. President Robert Kocharian is expected to endorse the new cabinet on 24 February. LF [02] AZERBAIJAN PIPELINE TALKS FAIL TO RESOLVE PROBLEMSTen daysof talks in Baku between Georgian government representatives and potential investors in the planned Baku-Ceyhan oil export pipeline, which were also attended by Azerbaijani and Turkish government representatives, ended on 23 February without an agreement being signed, Reuters reported. Those talks will resume in Istanbul on 26 February. According to Caucasus Press, the sides agreed on four concerns raised by the Georgian government, but there was no consensus on responsibility for the security of the pipeline, for which Georgia declines to take responsibility, or the amount that Georgia will receive in transit tariffs. Georgia is reportedly demanding $0.20 per barrel, while Turkey will receive $1.59 per barrel of the total $2.58 tariff. LF [03] CONOCO TO RESUME OPERATIONS IN AZERBAIJANThe U.S. oilcompany Conoco will acquire a 20 percent stake in the consortium to develop the Zafar/Mashal offshore Caspian oil field, Turan and Interfax reported on 22 February. The other partners in the production-sharing agreement to develop that field, which was signed in April 1999, are Exxon (30 percent) and Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR (50 percent). Conoco closed its office in Baku last month following its failure during three years of negotiations to conclude an agreement with the Azerbaijani government on reviving the shallow-water sector of the Gyuneshli oil field (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 October 1999). LF [04] GEORGIAN GUERRILLA LEADER ARRESTED IN WESTERN GEORGIAPolicein the west Georgian town of Zugdidi have arrested Ramin Pirtskhalava, a deputy leader of the White Legion guerrilla detachment operating in southern Abkhazia, on charges of manslaughter, Caucasus Press reported on 23 February. On 21 and 23 February, representatives of the Abkhaz parliament and government in exile claimed that the Abkhaz authorities are deploying additional militia in the security zone along the Inguri River, which separates Abkhazia from the rest of Georgia. Under a protocol signed on 3 February, a maximum of 320 Abkhaz police may be deployed in Abkhazia's southernmost Gali Raion. LF [05] USAID, RED CROSS, EU ALLOCATE FUNDS FOR GEORGIAN DISPLACEDPERSONSThe U.S. government and the International Committee of the Red Cross signed an agreement in Tbilisi on 24 February to provide $1.2 million for ethnic Georgian displaced persons who fled the conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Caucasus Press reported. Those funds will be used to restore homes and assess how to reintegrate the displaced persons into social life. Also on 24 February, Caucasus Press cited the Georgian Foreign Ministry as saying that the EU will extend its funding for the restoration of homes damaged during the fighting in South Ossetia. Some 150 displaced persons from Abkhazia blocked traffic on Tbilisi's main boulevard on 21 February to demand their allowances, which have not been paid since November 1999. LF [06] KAZAKHSTAN'S PREMIER WARNS AGAINST UNSANCTIONED OIL SALESAddressing the parliament on 23 February, Qasymzhomart Toqaevexpressed concern that crude oil is being exported from Kazakhstan through off-shore zones at dumping prices, RFE/RL's Astana correspondent reported. Toqaev later told journalists that in 1999, three joint ventures exported a total of 28,000 tons of crude at prices ranging from $47.46-- $64.32 per metric ton, compared with the world market price of $114.74, according to Interfax. He said that a state commission has been created to monitor the oil sector. Toqaev also expressed the hope that rising world prices for oil and non-ferrous metals will boost the country's economy in 2000. Also on 23 February, Rosneft Vice President Sergei Oganesyan told journalists in Moscow that his company may sell part of its 7.5 percent stake in the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, Interfax reported. That consortium is building a pipeline to export crude from western Kazakhstan to the Black Sea port of Novorossiisk. LF [07] FORMER KAZAKH PREMIER'S BODYGUARDS CHARGEDTwo of AkezhanKazhegeldin's bodyguards who have been held in custody since December have been formally charged with illegal possession of weapons, RFE/RL's Almaty bureau reported on 24 February (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 22 December 1999). The former commander of Kazhegeldin's squad of bodyguards told journalists in Almaty on 21 February that all the weapons his men had at their disposal were returned to the authorities following Kazhegeldin's resignation in the fall of 1997. LF [08] TAJIK OPPOSITION FIGURE BACKS RULING PARTY IN PARLIAMENTARYPOLLIn an article published on 21 February, First Deputy Premier Khodji Akbar Turadjonzoda appealed to the Tajik electorate to back the ruling People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan (the former Communist Party) in the 27 February parliamentary elections in order to prevent a possible confrontation between the legislature and the executive, should the opposition Islamic Renaissance Party (IRP) win a majority in the new parliament, Asia Plus-Blitz reported. Turadjonzoda also criticized an IRP campaign slogan that equates the IRP with Islam and argues that votes cast against the party are anti-Islam. He claimed that the 2 percent of the vote which the IRP's candidate polled in the November 1999 presidential poll reflects its popularity among the electorate. IRP leader Said Abdullo Nuri predicted earlier this month that his party will win 35 percent of the seats in the new parliament. LF [B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[09] NATO READY TO DEAL WITH MILOSEVIC THREATNATO's SupremeCommander in Europe General Wesley Clark told the "International Herald Tribune" of 24 February that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic recently launched a new campaign of covert operations to challenge the Atlantic alliance. Serbian agents have gone into Kosova and neighboring areas, including Montenegro, to sow unrest, according to Clark. He stressed that NATO is determined to make Kosovska Mitrovica a multi-ethnic community, despite the "intimidation and other dirty work of the military units, gangs, and thugs who have been sent there by Belgrade." On his recent visit to the Balkans, he added, he warned ethnic Albanian leaders not to contribute to the tensions, saying that NATO does not want fighting to spread to the Presevo-Bujanovac-Medvedja area of southern Serbia. Up to 100,000 ethnic Albanians live in that region, to which the Belgrade authorities recently sent an additional 200 special police. PM [10] FRANCE TO SEND MORE TROOPS TO KOSOVAIn Washington on 23February, French Defense Minister Alain Richard told a press conference that his government has decided to send between 600 and 700 soldiers to Kosova in addition to the 4,500 it already has there. He said this is necessary in order to "take control of the situation," AP reported. U.S. Secretary of Defense William Cohen said that "a greater show of force and a greater capability is going to be essential" in Mitrovica in the very near future and that Washington is considering sending more troops. In London, a Defense Ministry spokesman told Reuters on 24 February that the U.K. does not plan to send any additional forces to the province. There are approximately 30,000 NATO troops in Kosova, in addition to 7,000 peacekeepers from non-NATO countries. PM [11] HOLBROOKE WARNS MILOSEVIC AGAINST NEW CONFLICTU.S.Ambassador to the UN Richard Holbrooke said in New York on 23 February that Belgrade is "playing a very dangerous game" by provoking unrest in Mitrovica. He added: "They lost four wars in the last eight years. I don't know what they think they're doing, but whatever it is, it's not going to work." The ambassador stressed that "the Serb leadership in Belgrade is trying to partition [Kosovo] at the Mitrovica bridge. This is a campaign being directed by Belgrade, directed by Mr. Milosevic and his senior colleagues. They are infiltrating people. Mitrovica is now certainly the most dangerous place in Europe. The reason for that is not because Albanians and Serbs don't like each other. That's an established historical fact. It's because the leadership in Belgrade, led by President Milosevic, is conducting a campaign to undermine the efforts of NATO and the United Nations," AP reported. PM [12] NATO TO RESETTLE ALBANIANS IN MITROVICANATO spokesmen saidin Mitrovica on 23 February that the Atlantic alliance will soon start moving ethnic Albanians back to their homes in Serb-held northern Mitrovica. Local Serbian leader Oliver Ivanovic argued that a crisis "will come to a head within 10 to 15 days" unless NATO abandons those plans, AP reported. Meanwhile in Brussels, unnamed NATO officials said that the alliance's North Atlantic Council, which is its governing body, will hold a special meeting on 25 February to discuss the situation in Kosova. PM [13] MACEDONIA CONCERNED ABOUT BELGRADE'S PLANSA spokesman forthe Macedonian Defense Ministry told an RFE/RL correspondent in Skopje on 23 February that troops went on a higher state of alert and increased the number of border patrols recently. He said that the main reason was the increased concentration of Serbian forces in the south of that country (see "RFR/RL Newsline," 23 February 2000). He added that Skopje is also concerned that events in Kosova could affect Macedonia's internal stability. "From the other side of the border, things can happen that can get out of control," he said. PM [14] EU AID FOR KOSOVAThe European Commission announced inBrussels on 23 February that it will make available $5.6 billion to promote democracy and stability in the Balkans. The program will run through 2006 and will be funded primarily with money taken from the EU's agricultural budget. Most of the funds will go to Kosova. PM [15] KOSOVA ADMINISTRATION CALLS FOR FREEDOM FOR PRISONERSTheUN's provisional administration issued a statement in Prishtina on 23 February calling on the Security Council to appeal to the Belgrade authorities to free the approximately 1,600 Kosovars being held in Serbian prisons. The statement also called on Belgrade to allow the Red Cross free access to the prisoners. PM [16] BOSNIAN ELECTION CAMPAIGN BEGINSIn Sarajevo on 23 February,the OSCE's Robert Barry officially opened the campaign for the Bosnian local elections slated for 8 April. He said that 68 parties, seven coalitions, and 18 independent candidates will compete for 3,300 offices. A total of 21,000 candidates have registered. Elections will not take place in Brcko, which has a special status. The vote in Srebrenica is slated for October. PM [17] CROATIAN COURT AGAINST WIRE-TAPPINGThe Constitutional Courton 23 February overturned legislation allowing the interior minister to tap telephones and read correspondence in cases where the minister deems national security to be at risk. The court ruled that the legislation violates constitutional provisions dealing with citizens' basic rights. PM [18] ZAGREB WELCOMES REFUGEESSpeaking in the parliament on 23February, Prime Minister Ivica Racan dismissed criticism from conservative deputies that the government wants to resettle Serbian refugees before it finds jobs for "thousands" of Croats. Racan said that his government does not favor Serbs over Croats but merely wants to guarantee "the return of Croatian citizens." Elsewhere, an OSCE spokesman praised the government's plan to resettle 16,500 refugees (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 21 February 2000). He stressed, however, that the government will be judged by how it implements the plan. PM [19] CROATIAN GOVERNMENT FUDGING ON CAMPAIGN PROMISE?Theparliament on 23 February began discussing the government's plan to cut officials' salaries by 10-20 percent. During the campaign, the governing coalition promised to cut salaries by 40 percent, but the proposed legislation provides only for the salary of the president to be cut by that amount. The pledge was very popular in the election campaign. Officials receive high wages by Croatian standards. Observers note, however, that the massive wealth accumulated by many officials came not from their salaries but from the opportunities they received by being part of the large insider network of the former ruling party. PM [20] HUNGARIAN VISITOR CONFIRMS CHARGES AGAINST ROMANIAN COMPANYHungarian Justice Minister Ibolya David told her Romaniancounterpart, Valeriu Stoica, in Bucharest on 23 February that Hungary will launch court proceedings against the Aurul company "within two days." She said Hungary wants the assets of the Romanian-Australian company suspected of causing the recent cyanide spill to be seized in order to pay for the damage, Romanian and Hungarian media reported. Also on 23 February, a large UN team of experts arrived in Romania to open an investigation into the incident, which has cause widespread pollution in Central European rivers. MS [21] ROMANIAN NATIONALISTS NOT TO PROSECUTED...The Aradprosecutor's office announced on 22 February that it has halted proceedings against Romanian nationalists who disrupted last October's celebration of "Martyrs' Day" during Hungarian Justice Minister David's visit to that city (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 7 October 1999). The prosecutor said the demonstrators acted "spontaneously" and cannot be charged with "breach of the peace. " MS [22] ...WHILE CLUJ PRESSES CHARGES AGAINST ITS MAYORThe Clujtown council on 23 February voted by an overwhelming majority to press charges against Mayor Gheorghe Funar. Using council funds, Funar paid a fine imposed on him by a local tribunal for having caused losses to the Alimentara company. Funar said he will appeal the decision. Meanwhile, another Romanian mayor, Marin Lutu, has been detained for 30 days on suspicion of fraud. Lutu is the mayor of one of Bucharest's city districts. He was expelled from the National Party Christian Democratic (PNTCD) after he refused to renounce his seat on the board of a company that he is suspected of having favored in a privatization tender. MS [23] 'BABIUC CRISIS' STILL UNSOLVED IN ROMANIAThe NationalLiberal Party says it will not agree to Defense Minister Victor Babiuc's replacement until Transportation Minister Traian Basescu apologizes to President Emil Constantinescu for having insulted him in connection with the so-called Babiuc crisis, Romanian Radio reported on 24 February (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 February 2000). Earlier, the coalition leaders agreed on ways to solve the crisis, and the presidential office said it does not expect Basescu to make a public apology. The PNTCD, meanwhile, has said it is no longer demanding that Basescu apologize to Constantinescu, adding that the Democratic Party nominee for the defense portfolio must have Constantinescu's approval, since the president is the army's commander in chief. MS [24] BULGARIA ALERTS INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTIONS ON LIBYA TRIALAccording to Foreign Minister Nadezhda Mihailova, Bulgariahas "alerted all international institutions" and is seeking "contacts on all levels, formal and informal," to enlist help for the six Bulgarians facing the death penalty in Libya, AP reported on 23 February (see "RFE/RL Newsline, " 23 February 2000). She also said Sofia has asked the Libyan authorities to postpone the trial in order for the defendants to "properly prepare their defense" and be allowed to meet with Bulgarian embassy officials. Both Mihailova and President Petar Stoyanov called on Bulgarians and the media to refrain from comments in order "not to jeopardize the lives of Bulgarians." MS [C] END NOTE[25] HARDSHIP FUELS GAMBLING FEVER IN ARMENIABy Emil DanielyanEvery morning dozens of mostly elderly men and women form a long line in the center of Yerevan in temperatures below freezing. It is not pension benefits or relief aid that they are waiting for. Somber and miserable, they are trying their lack at gambling--an activity that until now was unthinkable among that social group in Armenia. One of the many gambling halls in Armenia offers everybody a free ticket to take part in the opening draw of bingo. It's a chance that those mired in poverty cannot afford not to take. Bingo halls packed with desperate people are symptomatic of the nationwide fever for gambling. Lotteries, slot machines, and casinos are now part of the day-to-day life of a growing number of Armenians. And the proportion of those people involved in gambling industry has become so large that sociologists speak of a major change in the national culture. Armenia's persisting social hardships make the industry one of the fastest growing sectors of the economy. That growth has been particularly visible over the past year. Snark reported earlier this month that revenues in 1999 from licensing fees for casinos and gambling halls totaled 87.6 million drams (more than $160,000), while revenues from lottery licenses amounted to 6 million drams. Verzhine Marutian, 72, is poor, drawn, and not one's idea of a gambler. She was visibly happy when she became one of two lucky bingo players (out of more than 200 participants) to win 2,000 drams ($4). That sum is almost equal roughly a third or even half of her monthly pension. "Life forces us to come here," said another player, a man in his 70s who was not lucky that day. Life also forces many other people to bank on a sudden windfall. A game known as "lotto" and similar to bingo has come to be the most popular form of gambling. Those whose numbers listed on cards are called out in a draw can expect to win anything from a free lottery ticket to an apartment. There are now more than a dozen weekly lotto games, all of them run by private companies and broadcast live on nationwide television. Such games have regular slots on state-owned Armenian National Television, the channel that can be received by the largest number of people in the country. Every weekday at 7:10 p.m. local time ANT airs the lotto draw. Each day, the draw is organized by a different company. While competition is becoming increasingly tough, two local firms, Family Lotto and Kind Lotto, have emerged as the market leaders. In a country of just over 3 million inhabitants, they each sell up to 300,000 tickets a week. Only a quarter of ticket-holders win something. The main weekly prize is usually the equivalent of $10,000. More than a hundred other lucky ticket-holders win television sets, refrigerators, and washing machines, while thousands of others have to content themselves with smaller wins. "This gambling boom results from the hopeless situation the people are now in," said Aharon Adibekian, a local sociologist. "Gambling gives them hope for a better life, something which they haven't got from government officials and politicians in the last 10 years." The popularity of the games, Adibekian said, testifies to changes in a national character that was molded over centuries. A tragic history taught Armenians to tuck away extra money in the anticipation of worse times. Reliance on hard work rather than pure luck was a norm. Since the transition to the free market has still not translated into economic benefits for most people, Adibekian argued, gambling may be perceived to be the most realistic way of ending the miseries of life. "If things remain as they are, the younger generation may adopt it as a norm of behavior," he warned. Lottery firms admit that poverty is the major driving force behind their business. They are also keen to cite the benefits they bring to the economy. As one Kind Lotto executive put it, "a whole army of people" are kept busy selling lottery tickets. And they sell well, judging by the abundance of retailers in Yerevan alone. One such ticket costs 300-500 drams. Brisk sales are kept up by aggressive advertising, which gives television channels hefty revenues. In addition, the lottery firms are major taxpayers. Wealthier Armenians choose to gamble in casinos and smaller "game houses" that have slot machines only. According to official figures, there are nearly 80 such places in Armenia, the bulk of them in the capital. They, too, have spread rapidly in the last few years, often at the expense of other businesses. One of Yerevan's expensive jewelry shops shrunk its floor space by half last year to allow slot machines to be installed. Some casinos violate a government requirement stipulating that they must be at least 200 meters away from a school. Nor do they post a notice about the "negative consequences of visiting a casino," as is required by law. The author is an RFE/RL correspondent living in Yerevan. 24-02-00 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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