RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 4, No. 115, 00-06-14

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From: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>

RFE/RL NEWSLINE

Vol. 4, No. 115, 14 June 2000

CONTENTS

[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA

[01] ARMENIAN PREMIER SAYS POLITICAL CRISIS OVER

[02] COUNCIL OF EUROPE COMMITTEE ABIDES BY RULINGS ON ARMENIA,

[03] GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT ENDORSES NEW AGRICULTURE MINISTER

[04] GEORGIAN DISPLACED PERSONS THREATEN MASS PROTESTS

[05] RUSSIA QUESTIONS VERDICTS ON 'SEPARATISTS' IN EASTERN

[06] KAZAKHSTAN, TAJIKISTAN ASSESS BILATERAL RELATIONS

[07] TURKEY PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR REFORMS IN KYRGYZSTAN

[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

[08] PROTESTS GREET LI PENG IN SLOVENIA

[09] KOUCHNER BANS ALBANIA'S BERISHA FROM KOSOVA...

[10] ...TO THE CONSTERNATION OF RUGOVA'S SUPPORTERS

[11] ALBANIAN MEDALS FOR KOSOVA FIGHTERS

[12] DEL PONTE REJECTS AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL'S CLAIMS

[13] U.S. 'WELCOMES' MONTENEGRIN ELECTION RESULTS

[14] MILOSEVIC AIDE BLAMES MINORITIES FOR PODGORICA VOTE

[15] MONTENEGRIN LOSERS TAKE THEIR HATS

[16] SERBIAN AUTHORITIES REFUSE TO REGISTER OTPOR

[17] KLEIN CALLS FOR MORE BOSNIAN POLICE TRAINERS

[18] ROMANIAN DROUGHT, THEFT DECLARED 'SECURITY THREAT'

[19] BANKING CRISIS CONTINUES IN ROMANIA

[20] MOLDOVANS TO NEED PASSPORTS FOR ROMANIA

[21] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT SATISFIED WITH CHINESE VISIT

[22] UKRAINE TO CLEAR DEBT TO BULGARIA BY GAS SUPPLIES

[C] END NOTE

[23] OSCE URGES CENTRAL ASIA TO MOVE FASTER TOWARD DEMOCRACY

[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA

[01] ARMENIAN PREMIER SAYS POLITICAL CRISIS OVER

foreign ambassadors in Yerevan on 13 June, Andranik Markarian

said that the tensions that dominated Armenian politics for

the seven months following the 27 October Armenian parliament

shootings are now resolved, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported.

But he admitted that the negative impact of those tensions on

the macro-economic situation is still being felt. He again

pledged his government's commitment to the policy of reforms

embarked upon by previous cabinets, ITAR-TASS reported. LF

[02] COUNCIL OF EUROPE COMMITTEE ABIDES BY RULINGS ON ARMENIA,

The Political Committee of the Parliamentary

Assembly of the Council of Europe has endorsed its previous

recommendation that Armenia be granted full membership in

that organization, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported on 13

June. Armenia's admission is unlikely to be delayed by the

PACE Human Rights and Legal Affairs Committee's

recommendation that Azerbaijan's full membership be made

contingent on the conduct of the November parliamentary

elections (see "RFE/RL Caucasus Report," Vol. 3, No. 21, 26

May 2000). Meanwhile, Reporters sans Frontieres has appealed

to the Council of Europe to demand that Azerbaijan liberalize

its media laws and halt the persecution of journalists before

it is given full membership, Turan reported on 13 June. LF

[03] GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT ENDORSES NEW AGRICULTURE MINISTER

vote of 152 to two, deputies on 13 June approved the

candidacy of David Kirvalidze as minister of agriculture,

Caucasus Press reported. Kirvalidze, who was born in 1967 and

graduated from the Georgian State Agrarian University,

previously chaired the parliamentary committee for agrarian

affairs. LF

[04] GEORGIAN DISPLACED PERSONS THREATEN MASS PROTESTS

parliamentary deputy Djemal Gamakharia said on 13 June that

Georgian displaced persons from Abkhazia plan to stage mass

actions to protest the violent dispersal by Tbilisi special

police the previous day of some 300 displaced persons who had

gathered outside the Constitutional Court to demand payment

of their overdue allowances, Caucasus Press reported (see

"RFE/RL Newsline," 13 June 2000). Addressing members of his

Party for the Liberation of Abkhazia on 13 June, Tamaz

Nadareishvili, who is chairman of the Abkhaz parliament in

exile (which is composed of Georgian deputies to the Abkhaz

parliament elected in late 1991), expressed support for all

actions by the displaced persons aimed at resolving their

social problems. But he also warned the exiles not to give

way to "provocations" intended to destabilize the political

situation. Nadareishvili again called for military action to

bring Abkhazia back under the control of the central Georgian

government. LF

[05] RUSSIA QUESTIONS VERDICTS ON 'SEPARATISTS' IN EASTERN

In a statement summarized by Interfax on 13 June,

the Russian Foreign Ministry questioned whether the sentences

of between four and 18 years in prison handed down last week

on Russian nationals in eastern Kazakhstan are justified. The

Russians were found guilty of planning to overthrow the

leadership of East Kazakhstan Oblast and declare the region

an independent Russian Altai Republic (see "RFE/RL Newsline,"

9 June 2000). Russian politicians and commentators had

earlier suggested those charges were fabricated. LF

[06] KAZAKHSTAN, TAJIKISTAN ASSESS BILATERAL RELATIONS

Dushanbe on 13 June for talks with his Tajik counterpart,

Imomali Rakhmonov, on the eve of the Central Asian Union

summit, Interfax and ITAR-TASS reported. Rakhmonov told

journalists that he and Nazarbaev agree on the need to

realize the "vast" potential for greater integration in order

to raise bilateral ties to a "qualitatively new level."

Nazarbaev remarked upon the positive benefits of the Tajik

peace process. He also called for a speedy solution to the

war in Afghanistan, saying that the situation in that country

poses a direct threat to Kazakhstan. LF

[07] TURKEY PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR REFORMS IN KYRGYZSTAN

talks in Bishkek on 13 June with President Askar Akaev, Prime

Minister Amangeldi Muraliev and his Kyrgyz counterpart,

Muratbek Imanaliev, Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem told

journalists that he considers that Kyrgyzstan has made

greater progress toward democratization and economic reform

than its Central Asian neighbors, Interfax reported. He added

that Turkey will continue to support Kyrgyzstan's cooperation

with NATO and the OSCE. Cem also said that further bilateral

talks on regional security will be held in late August. LF

[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE

[08] PROTESTS GREET LI PENG IN SLOVENIA

speaker of the Chinese parliament, laid a wreath on 13 June

at the site of the bombed Chinese embassy building in

Belgrade (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 13 June 2000). Li said that

the bombing was "evidence of the barbarian character of the

NATO action, headed by the United States," Tanjug reported.

Prior to Li's visit to the Slovenian parliament in Ljubljana

on 14 June, some 50 demonstrators marched in front of the

building to protest Chinese policies regarding human rights

and Tibet. Branko Grims, who is a leading member of the

conservative Social Democrats, said that the government

should not invite guests as controversial as Li in the

future, AP reported. The Social Democrats belong to the

three-party governing coalition. Li played a key role in the

killings of hundreds or thousands of demonstrators on

Beijing's Tiananmen Square in June 1989. Foreign Minister

Lojze Peterle defended the visit, saying it was in return for

a previous trip by Slovenian leaders to China. PM

[09] KOUCHNER BANS ALBANIA'S BERISHA FROM KOSOVA...

Kouchner, who heads the UN's civilian administration in

Kosova, told former Albanian President Sali Berisha on 13

June that he must cancel a planned trip to Kosova on

unspecified security grounds. Berisha hoped to arrive in

Kosova the following day. Kouchner ordered police to bar

Berisha if he tried to enter the province from Kukes, an aide

to Kouchner said. Police controls were tight along the border

with Albania on 14 June, AP reported. Berisha said in Tirana

the previous day that he would not hold rallies in Kosova but

would simply "greet the people" to mark the first anniversary

of the end of Serbian rule. He added that the trip to Kosova

would be the "visit of my dreams," "Albanian Daily News"

reported. PM

[10] ...TO THE CONSTERNATION OF RUGOVA'S SUPPORTERS

trip to Kosova was organized by his closest political allies

in the province, namely Ibrahim Rugova's Democratic League of

Kosova (LDK), the LDK's QIK news agency reported from Prizren

on 14 June. LDK supporters who turned out to greet Berisha in

western Kosova were very disappointed. "We are very

surprised" by Kouchner's decision, said LDK Vice President

Eqrem Kryeziu, AP reported. "The motives for this are

completely unknown. The argument that Mr. Berisha's visit to

Kosova will destabilize the situation in Kosova is a lie,"

Kryeziu added. Albanian President Rexhep Meidani, whose

Socialist Party is close to Rugova's rival Hashim Thaci of

the former Kosova Liberation Army, visited Kosova recently

(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 25 May 2000). PM

[11] ALBANIAN MEDALS FOR KOSOVA FIGHTERS

Meidani posthumously awarded the Order of the Golden Eagle to

two Albanian citizens who died fighting Serbian forces in

Kosova in 1999, AP reported. PM

[12] DEL PONTE REJECTS AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL'S CLAIMS

Ponte, who is the chief prosecutor at the Hague-based war

crimes tribunal, said on 13 June that she stands by her

previous decision not to investigate NATO for war crimes, as

the regime of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic has

demanded (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 7 June 2000). She rejected

recent calls by Amnesty International for such an

investigation: "I can only assume our experts are more expert

than the experts at Amnesty International. And especially, my

people have much more experience in [investigating]...crimes

against humanity," Reuters reported. She added that Hague

investigators found no conclusive evidence that NATO

deliberately targeted civilians, as Belgrade and Amnesty have

charged. PM

[13] U.S. 'WELCOMES' MONTENEGRIN ELECTION RESULTS

Washington on 13 June, State Department spokesman Philip

Reeker said that "the United States welcomes the peaceful and

democratic municipal elections that took place June 11th in

the Montenegrin cities of Podgorica and Herceg Novi. These

elections mark an important step forward in the development

of democracy in Montenegro, as well as in Yugoslavia. The

successful conduct of these elections renews our hope that

all of Yugoslavia will soon enjoy the freedom and protection

of basic human rights already enjoyed by the people of

Montenegro," an RFE/RL correspondent reported (see "RFE/RL

Newsline," 13 June 2000). PM

[14] MILOSEVIC AIDE BLAMES MINORITIES FOR PODGORICA VOTE

Vuksanovic, who is Yugoslav deputy prime minister and a

leader of Montenegro's pro-Milosevic Socialist People's Party

(SNP), said that candidates supporting President Milo

Djukanovic won in Podgorica because they had the votes of

ethnic Albanians and Muslims. Vuksanovic added that the

minorities know that they do not have enough votes to elect

their own candidates and that they regard Djukanovic as their

best hope "for the destruction of Yugoslavia," "Vesti"

reported on 14 June. Vuksanovic argued that the Serbian

"Orthodox population sees its future in the union of Serbia

and Montenegro." Milosevic's supporters have charged for

several years that Djukanovic needs the votes of ethnic

minorities to win elections. Djukanovic responds that his

program appeals to people across ethnic lines because it

rejects nationalist politics. PM

[15] MONTENEGRIN LOSERS TAKE THEIR HATS

respective coalitions lost in the Montenegrin local elections

have accepted responsibility for those defeats and resigned,

"Vesti" reported on 14 June. Predrag Bulatovic quit as head

of the pro-Milosevic coalition in Podgorica, while Svetozar

Marovic resigned as leader of the pro-Djukanovic group in

Herceg Novi. PM

[16] SERBIAN AUTHORITIES REFUSE TO REGISTER OTPOR

the Otpor (Resistance) student movement said in Belgrade on

13 June that the Yugoslav Justice Ministry has refused to

register Otpor on the grounds that it has conducted "illegal

activities." These allegedly include calling on "people to

rebel and violently overthrow the constitutional order,"

Reuters reported. The spokesman added that the decision shows

that the regime is afraid of Otpor, which will begin to

pursue its campaign for registration in the courts. Meanwhile

in Luxembourg, the EU appealed to the fractious Serbian

opposition to unite in the face of increased repression,

RFE/RL's South Slavic Service reported. PM

[17] KLEIN CALLS FOR MORE BOSNIAN POLICE TRAINERS

who is the UN's chief representative in Bosnia, said at the

UN on 13 June that he is well on his way to meeting a target

of training 20,000 police by 2002. He added, however, that he

needs additional foreign experts to finish the job. Some

10,000 Bosnian police have completed training in human

rights, forensics, pathology, traffic control, and

criminology so far, he noted. Klein also stressed that NATO

must remain in Bosnia as long as each of the three ethnic

groups maintains its own army, an RFE/RL correspondent

reported. PM

[18] ROMANIAN DROUGHT, THEFT DECLARED 'SECURITY THREAT'

called for "the immediate and energetic intervention of the

government" to deal with the effects of the drought that

has affected 40 percent of agricultural land in the

country. Damage is estimated at more than $200 million.

President Emil Constantinescu said that the damage is due

not to the drought alone but also to "generalized theft."

Many irrigation pipelines have been stolen as well as oil

pipelines, resulting in the threat of a "large-scale

ecological catastrophe." MS

[19] BANKING CRISIS CONTINUES IN ROMANIA

institution, the Fortune Popular Bank, has ceased payments

to depositors and announced it will "start liquidation

procedures," Romanian media reported on 13 June. The IMF,

meanwhile, has released the second, $116 million tranche of

Romania's recently rescheduled stand-by loan. MS

[20] MOLDOVANS TO NEED PASSPORTS FOR ROMANIA

Moldovan citizens wishing to visit Romania will need

passports, Flux reported on 13 July. The Romanian media

earlier reported that the measure is aimed at improving

border controls in line with EU recommendations. Until now,

Moldovan citizens were able to visit Romania by presenting

only ID cards at the border. MS

[21] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT SATISFIED WITH CHINESE VISIT

Petru Lucinschi, returning to Chisinau from a five-day

visit to China, said on 13 June that the results of his

trip "surpassed all my expectations," RFE/RL's Chisinau

bureau reported. Lucinschi met with President Jiang Zemin,

Premier Zhu Rongji, and other officials. A joint

declaration signed by the two sides condemned separatism

and noted the two countries' identical views on today's

main international problems. Beijing expressed support for

Moldovan efforts to settle the Transdniester conflict and

to become integrated into European structures. Chisinau,

for its part, said it views Taiwan as an integral part of

the Chinese People's Republic. The two sides agreed on

concrete measures aimed at boosting bilateral trade. MS

[22] UKRAINE TO CLEAR DEBT TO BULGARIA BY GAS SUPPLIES

will export to Bulgaria some 600 million cubic meters of

natural gas in exchange for Bulgaria's involvement in

laying pipelines in the 1970s, AP reported on 13 June,

quoting Bulgarian officials. The Ukrainian side will buy

the gas from Russia, which recently rejected Bulgaria's

request to lower the cost of gas deliveries. A total of 200

million cubic meters will be delivered in 2000 and 378

million cubic meters in 2001. MS

[C] END NOTE

[23] OSCE URGES CENTRAL ASIA TO MOVE FASTER TOWARD DEMOCRACY

In her meetings with the Central Asian presidents

earlier this month, OSCE Chairwoman Benita Ferrero-Waldner

said her organization does not expect those countries to turn

into full democracies overnight. But she said more can be

done to implement the common values that underpin membership

in the OSCE.

She told the Central Asian leaders that the OSCE is

disappointed with the conduct of the elections in the region

over the past 18 months. All the countries failed in various

ways to meet the OSCE's standards for a democratic poll. She

recommended that roundtables be organized with the

participation of the government, extraparliamentary political

parties, and non-governmental organizations to introduce more

democracy into the political process.

In each of the five countries, the OSCE chairwoman was

told that the government shares the values of the OSCE and is

committed to democracy and human rights. But all the

governments asked for understanding, saying it is not easy to

sweep away the past and meet the standards of Western

democracies. Ferrero-Waldner insisted, however, that by

joining the OSCE the Central Asian countries committed

themselves to moving forward on democracy. She called for

steady steps forward and said her personal motto for Central

Asia is "evolution, not revolution."

In Turkmenistan, the chairwoman appealed to President

Saparmurat Niyazov to release four prisoners who the OSCE

believes were detained for political reasons. OSCE officials

said Niyazov gave a long explanation as to why the men should

stay in prison. But he said one of them--Nurberdy Nurmamedov-

-might be freed under an amnesty at the end of the year.

Nurmamedov is the leader of the opposition group

Agzybirlik, which has been refused registration. In February

he was sentenced to five years' imprisonment on charges of

hooliganism. International organizations suggest his arrest

was related to his criticism of last December's elections and

his political opposition to Niyazov.

Niyazov told Ferrero-Waldner that Turkmenistan is

creating its own type of democracy in accordance with its own

traditions and at its own tempo. He argued that free media

and a multi-party political system would be harmful to the

secure development of the country. Niyazov repeated what he

has told other OSCE leaders--that he expects "a form of

democracy" will emerge in Turkmenistan in about 10 years.

Of the six Turkmen NGOs that met with Ferrero-Waldner,

two represented civil society movements and the other four

were environmentalist groups. Some complained about

government control of the media and said lack of information

hinders democratic development.

In Kyrgyzstan, the OSCE chairwoman sought the release of

Feliks Kulov, the leader of the opposition Ar-Namys party,

and she asked President Askar Akayev to review measures

against Daniyar Usenov and other opposition leaders. Akayev

said he would consider her appeal but gave no assurances that

Kulov would be freed.

A meeting of NGOs charged that Kyrgyzstan no longer

deserves its previous image as a relatively liberal country

allowing more freedoms than other states in Central Asia. The

NGOs reported instances of police abuse and religious

persecution, noting that the government fails to fulfill the

promises it made to international organizations.

The OSCE chairwoman said she recognizes that Kyrgyzstan

has fallen short of its commitments but argued it is closer

to meeting them than other countries, notably Turkmenistan.

She urged the NGOs to support plans for a roundtable meeting

between the government and other groups in society, saying it

would be an important step in moving toward democracy.

In Tajikistan, the OSCE chairwoman told President

Imomali Rakhmonov that her group welcomes the end of the

civil war and will offer all the help it can in building a

new society. But she said the OSCE is concerned about the

rights of women in Tajikistan. She quoted an international

report suggesting that 27 percent of women in Tajikistan

suffer violence.

She also appealed for a review of the case against 21-

year-old Dilfuza Nomonova, who in January was sentenced to

death on murder charges in a trial that has drawn

international criticism. The OSCE is not making a judgement

on whether the woman is guilty, Ferrero-Waldner said, but it

does believe she should have had a fair trial. The chairwoman

said she is also disturbed at reports that the woman, who was

pregnant when arrested, was forced to undergo an abortion. As

a result, she became eligible for execution (in Tajikistan,

pregnant women cannot be executed).

In Kazakhstan, the OSCE chairwoman welcomed the

implementation of an OSCE project on penitentiary reform,

which, she said, should contribute to the improvement of

overall conditions in prisons, including the treatment of

prisoners.

But at a meeting with President Nursultan Nazarbayev,

Ferrero-Waldner also criticized the closure of some

independent newspapers for political reasons. At the Kazakh

NGO meeting, she was told that the state charges independent

newspapers higher fees for distributing and printing.

In Uzbekistan, the OSCE chairwoman asked President Islam

Karimov about the repression of opposition groups. One

prominent member of the opposition, Mikhail Ardzinov, had

asked her to intervene on behalf of two imprisoned members of

his organization.

The chairman of the Human Rights Society, Talib Jakubov,

said Uzbekistan is failing to meet its commitments to OSCE

principles. He said there have been many arrests and

detentions as well as reports of torture, and he asked what

the OSCE can do to protect the rights of those arrested.

The author is an RFE/RL correspondent based in Munich.

14-06-00

Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
URL: http://www.rferl.org

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