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RFE/RL Newsline, 02-06-20
CONTENTS
[01] DUMA ADOPTS TOUGH RESOLUTION ON KALININGRAD
[02] PUTIN CALLS FOR REPATRIATION OF CAPITAL...
[03] ...AND PRIMAKOV SECONDS CALL FOR CAPITAL-FLIGHT AMNESTY...
[04] ...AS PRESIDENT MEETS WITH MYSTERY BANKER
[05] MEDIA MINISTER PREDICTS HIS MINISTRY'S DEMISE
[06] ALTERNATIVE-SERVICE BILL MOVES FORWARD...
[07] ...AS DEPUTIES VOTE FOR LARGE PERSONAL STAFFS...
[08] ...AND SENATORS MOVE INTO LUXURY APARTMENTS
[09] MOSCOW DEPUTY MAYOR ESCAPES SECOND ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
[10] MORE BUSINESSMEN TO SEEK TOP SPOT IN KRASNOYARSK...
[11] ...AS UNITY HEAD BOWS OUT...
[12] ...AND FORMER LOCAL KINGPIN CONVICTED AND RELEASED
[13] FEDERAL OFFICIALS DECLINE TO TAKE OVER ULYANOVSK...
[14] ...AS ONE MAN IS KILLED DURING PROTESTS
[15] SHAIMIEV CRITICIZES SHIFTING FEDERAL POLICY ON MINERAL RESOURCES
[16] CZECH DELEGATION DOES BUSINESS IN ST. PETERSBURG
[17] FIERCE BATTLE UNDER WAY IN SOUTHERN CHECHNYA
[18] CORRECTION:
[19] ARMENIAN OPPOSITION SHRUGS OFF PRESIDENT'S WARNING NOT TO DISRUPT
[20] DASHNAKTSUTIUN LEADER DENIES PARTY IN OPPOSITION TO PRESIDENT
[21] FRANCE 'SURPRISED' BY AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT'S KARABAKH CLAIMS
[22] GEORGIAN PRESIDENT CALLS FOR SWIFT INVESTIGATION OF ARMS
[23] GEORGIA SOFTENS POSITION OVER WITHDRAWAL OF RUSSIAN MILITARY BASES
[24] PARLIAMENT-IN-EXILE CLAIMS RUSSIA PREPARING NEW ATTACK ON ABKHAZIA
[25] CAR USED IN ABDUCTION OF BRITISH BUSINESSMAN FOUND IN GEORGIAN
[26] MISSING RUSSIAN PEACEKEEPERS FOUND IN SOUTH OSSETIA
[27] DETAINED FORMER KAZAKH OFFICIAL SAID FORCIBLY SEDATED
[28] OPPOSITION ACTIVIST IN KAZAKHSTAN APPEALS TO RUSSIAN LEADERSHIP
[29] KAZAKH NGO CALLS FOR MORATORIUM ON DEATH PENALTY
[30] KYRGYZ PARLIAMENTARIAN'S APPEAL HEARING POSTPONED...
[31] ...AS LOCAL GOVERNOR MEETS WITH HIS SUPPORTERS...
[32] ...AND PLANNED RALLY IN OSH UNDER THREAT
[33] THOUSANDS AT RISK FROM LANDSLIDE IN TAJIKISTAN
[34] BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT SAYS INTEGRATION WITH RUSSIA CANNOT BE
[35] ...AND DECLARES UNWILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR 'MARCH' TO EUROPE...
[36] ...WHILE OPPOSITION LEADER WARNS AGAINST 'ANNEXATION' BY RUSSIA
[37] PRISON TERMS DEMANDED FOR BELARUSIAN JOURNALISTS ACCUSED OF
[38] UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT WRANGLES OVER SESSION AGENDA...
[39] ...DEMANDS PROBE INTO FORMER SECURITY CHIEF
[40] ESTONIAN LEGISLATURE PASSES NEW HEALTH-INSURANCE ACT
[41] LATVIA, EU TO DISCUSS AGRICULTURAL-PRODUCTION QUOTAS
[42] DUTCH CROWN PRINCE VISITS LITHUANIA
[43] AMENDMENTS TO POLAND'S LUSTRATION LAW RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL
[44] POLISH FOREIGN MINISTER PLAYS DOWN GERMAN STANCE ON EU FARM AID
[45] POLAND BACKS BULGARIA'S NATO BID
[46] POLISH FORMER MINISTER CHARGED OVER YAMAL PIPELINE DEAL
[47] ODS CHAIRMAN SAYS HE WILL RESIGN, BUT MIGHT SEEK RE-ELECTION...
[48] ...AS PARTY LIKELY TO LOSE POLITICAL, ECONOMIC INFLUENCE AFTER
[49] GERMAN EXPELLEES ORGANIZATION TO OPEN OFFICE IN PRAGUE
[50] U.S. NATO AMBASSADOR SAYS SLOVAKIA WILL NOT JOIN NATO WITH HZDS IN
[51] SLOVAK PARLIAMENT APPROVES DISPATCHING TROOPS TO AFGHANISTAN
[52] SLOVAK CONSTITUTIONAL COURT PRESIDENT INTERVENES IN
[53] NEW POLITICAL PARTY SET UP IN SLOVAKIA
[54] INDONESIAN PRESIDENT DISCUSSES WEAPONS PURCHASE IN SLOVAKIA
[55] HUNGARIAN JUNIOR COALITION PARTNER WITHDRAWS THREAT TO LEAVE
[56] HUNGARIAN PREMIER PLEDGES TO EXPOSE INFORMERS...
[57] ...AND THREATENS TO SUE 'MAGYAR NEMZET' OVER NEW ALLEGATION
[58] HUNGARIAN OPPOSITION UNCONVINCED, CALLS FOR PREMIER'S RESIGNATION
[59] HUNGARIAN DEMOCRATIC FORUM TO PROBE DEFECTION OF PARTY OFFICIAL
[60] YUGOSLAV GOVERNMENT REVEALS DOCUMENT ON MILOSEVIC'S ROLE
[61] HAGUE TRIBUNAL SAYS KARADZIC IS IN BOSNIA AND MLADIC IN
[62] ...BUT YUGOSLAV ARMY CHIEF DENIES KNOWLEDGE OF MLADIC...
[63] ...AS WASHINGTON AGAIN TELLS BELGRADE TO COOPERATE WITH THE HAGUE
[64] MONTENEGRO ABOLISHES DEATH PENALTY
[65] CROATIAN CUSTOMS OFFICERS STAGE A GO-SLOW
[66] CITIZENSHIP ISSUE DIVIDES BOSNIA AND CROATIA
[67] KLEIN SAYS BOSNIA STILL NEEDS FOREIGN SUPPORT
[68] BOSNIA MARKS WORLD REFUGEE DAY
[69] MACEDONIAN POLITICAL PARTIES DIVIDED OVER NEW PASSPORTS
[70] MACEDONIAN PARLIAMENT APPROVES PACKAGE OF LANGUAGE LAWS
[71] ALBANIAN RIVALS MEET BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
[72] FORMER KOSOVA GUERRILLA TURNS HIMSELF IN
[73] ROMANIAN PARLIAMENTARY COMMISSION HEAD DENIES ATTEMPTS TO OBSTRUCT
[74] ...ACKNOWLEDGES SRI HAS EAVESDROPPED ON SUSPECTS IN 1991-92...
[75] ...WHILE EXTREMIST LAWMAKER ALLEGES CNSAS MEMBERS ARE FORMER SPIES
[76] COMMISSION SET UP TO AMEND ROMANIAN CONSTITUTION
[77] ROMANIAN LEGISLATORS APPROVE PEACEKEEPERS FOR KOSOVA, BOSNIA
[78] ROMANIAN NATIONAL FLAG HOISTED AGAIN IN TRANSYLVANIAN TOWN
[79] ROMANIAN LIBERAL RIVALS CALL FOR EXTRAORDINARY PARTY CONGRESS
[80] ROMANIA TO SECURE BORDER WITH MOLDOVA
[81] MOLDOVA POSTPONES RENEWED NEGOTIATIONS WITH TIRASPOL
[82] PRESIDENT SAYS MOLDOVA DETERMINED TO PURSUE INTEGRATION IN EUROPE
[83] GAGAUZ-YERI PARLIAMENT REJECTS GOVERNOR'S REFERENDUM PROPOSAL
[84] BULGARIAN PRIME MINISTER ON OFFICIAL VISIT TO DENMARK
[85] BRITISH DEFENSE SECRETARY VISITS BULGARIA
[86] BULGARIAN COMPANIES TO GET PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT IN PUBLIC
[87] There is no End Note today.
20 June 2002
RUSSIA
[01] DUMA ADOPTS TOUGH RESOLUTION ON KALININGRAD
The State Duma on 19 June overwhelmingly approved a hard-line,
non-binding resolution on the Kaliningrad Oblast issue, "Izvestiya" and
other Russian news agencies reported. The resolution, which garnered
401 votes, demands that the European Union provide a visa-free transit
corridor between the exclave and the rest of Russia after neighboring
Lithuania and Poland enter the organization. It accuses the EU of
"disrespecting Russia's national sovereignty" and "violating the norms
of international law." The resolution backs President Vladimir Putin's
tough stance on the issue. After the vote, Deputy Foreign Minister
Yevgenii Gusarov told the newspaper that Russia will continue insisting
on visa-free transit not only for Kaliningrad residents but for all
Russian citizens. Kaliningrad Oblast Governor Vladimir Yegorov was
quoted as saying that the EU proposal for simplified visas for Russians
is unacceptable and that Kaliningrad residents alone would require
5,000 such visas per day. "Izvestiya" commented, however, that by
offering blanket support for Putin's position, the Duma has placed
Russia in a no-win situation, since it seems clear that the EU will not
back down from its position on the matter. VY
[02] PUTIN CALLS FOR REPATRIATION OF CAPITAL...
Speaking to a congress of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry,
the national umbrella business association headed by former Prime
Minister Yevgenii Primakov (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 June 2002),
President Putin noted that too much Russian capital is working for
Western economies and "Western economies that possess resources of
Russian origin are not interested in them being removed," RIA-Novosti
and other Russian news services reported on 19 June. He called on
business and the government to create favorable conditions for
repatriating Russian capital. "The government should not grab everyone
by the arm and ask where this money came from, since the government
itself failed to establish normal conditions for investment [in
Russia]," Putin said. Aleksei Volin, Putin's deputy chief of staff,
added that the government is considering an amnesty for capital that
left the country because of political and economic instability,
gazeta.ru reported on 19 June. "If only $100 billion of the estimated
$300 billion that left Russia is repatriated, state budget revenues
will be increased by 18.5 percent on account of income tax alone,"
Volin said. VY
[03] ...AND PRIMAKOV SECONDS CALL FOR CAPITAL-FLIGHT AMNESTY...
Addressing the same audience, Primakov urged the government to find
"some form of amnesty for capital that fled the country," RIA-Novosti
and other Russian news agencies reported on 19 June. Primakov argued
that much of this money was exported for perfectly legitimate reasons.
He stressed that Russia must continue to allow the free movement of
capital into and out of the country while simultaneously creating
incentives to encourage Russian business to repatriate their capital.
Arkadii Volskii, head of the Russian Union of Industrialists and
Entrepreneurs (RSPP), told the audience the state should restore the
practice of Western concessions -- a New Economic Policy-era practice
of granting special privileges to Western investors for a certain
period of time -- in order to improve the negative balance of foreign
investment and repatriate Russian capital. VY
[04] ...AS PRESIDENT MEETS WITH MYSTERY BANKER
Following his speech to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, President
Putin met for two hours with Sergei Pugachev, a senator representing
Tuva in the Federation Council and the former president of
Mezhprombank, "Izvestiya" reported. The discussions reportedly centered
on concrete ideas for repatriating Russian capital. However, the
newspaper speculated that Putin also asked Pugachev, who is reputed to
be the informal leader of the presidential "Petersburg clan," about a
18 June article in "Le Monde" alleging that Pugachev -- and possibly
other unnamed members of the presidential entourage -- is involved in
money laundering in France and Monaco. "Izvestiya" also quoted a source
close to Pugachev as saying, "Discussing a newspaper publication is not
on the presidential level." Pugachev is one of the least-known figures
in Putin's inner circle, the newspaper wrote. He is known as a major
sponsor of the Russian Orthodox Church and is reputed to have
considerable influence over the president. VY
[05] MEDIA MINISTER PREDICTS HIS MINISTRY'S DEMISE
Speaking to a conference devoted to the mass media on 19 June (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 18 and 19 June 2002), Media Minister Mikhail Lesin
predicted that his ministry will be abolished within two or three
years, having fulfilled its mission, Russian and Western news agencies
reported. Lesin said that the state will continue to play a role in the
national mass-media market, but claimed that that role will be minimal.
He stressed, though, that there will be no "panic selling of state
mass-media outlets." Lesin described the state's current policy of
providing direct federal subsidies to more than 2,000 newspapers as
"senseless," and predicted that after the Media Ministry is abolished,
the state will continue to control "one information agency, one
television channel, one radio company, and one national newspaper." In
addition, state interests will continue to be protected through
licensing, registration, and other media legislation, Lesin said. He
also noted that the country's small advertising market is the major
obstacle to developing the sector, but did not offer any suggestions
for enlarging it. VY
[06] ALTERNATIVE-SERVICE BILL MOVES FORWARD...
Duma deputies adopted on 19 June a government-sponsored bill on
alternative military service in its second reading, Western and Russian
news agencies reported. If adopted unchanged, the bill will make the
length of alternative service 3 1/2 years at a civilian facility or
three years at a military facility. Those with higher-education degrees
would have to serve only 22 months, according to Interfax. The vote was
274 in favor and three opposed, the agency reported. Pro-Kremlin
centrist factions were able to block most of the more than 300
amendments that were proposed after the first reading of the bill,
mostly by deputies from Yabloko and the Union of Rightist Forces (SPS).
Presidential Ombudsman for Human Rights Oleg Mironov told Ekho Moskvy
the same day that he considers "doing alternative service in military
units to be absolutely unacceptable" because young men would likely
become "pariahs among the servicemen and negative phenomena like
vicious hazing will assume new forms." Deputy SPS head Aleksandr
Barranikov introduced one amendment that would have reduced the term of
alternative military service to 2 1/2 years; however, that amendment
attracted only 71 votes. Displeased with the final results after the
more than four hours of debate, Barranikov declared, "The military
lobby won." JAC
[07] ...AS DEPUTIES VOTE FOR LARGE PERSONAL STAFFS...
Also on 19 June, deputies approved a bill in its third reading that
will allot each legislator as many as 40 assistants, ntvru.com
reported, citing RIA-Novosti. President Putin earlier vetoed a bill
allowing deputies up to 50 assistants. The voting was unanimous, with
370 votes cast in favor. Meanwhile, in an interview with "Rossiiskaya
gazeta" on the same day, the presidential envoy to the Duma, Aleksandr
Kotenkov, estimated that only about 150 of the Duma's 450 deputies are
actually primarily engaged in legislative work. The rest, according to
Kotenkov, are either public politicians, who spend most of their time
on party activities and only drop by the Duma "when there is an
opportunity to criticize the government," or they are private
businessmen. JAC
[08] ...AND SENATORS MOVE INTO LUXURY APARTMENTS
At the beginning of September, about 80 Federation Council members will
move into a lavish new Moscow residence, "Komsomolskaya pravda"
reported on 19 June. The newly constructed apartment complex comes with
a greenhouse filled with rare flowers, a lake stocked with carp, three
tennis courts, a picnic and barbecue area, centrally filtered water,
and an autonomous heating plant. It is located in the "ecologically
clean" Zapadnii raion in central Moscow, not far from Kutuzovskii
prospekt. The apartments range from 90 to 165 square meters and are
serviced by special "noiseless" high-speed elevators. According to the
daily, the complex is also equipped with a 24-hour supermarket, fitness
center, beauty salon, sauna, a sushi bar, an Italian restaurant, a
movie theater, and, of course, free parking. The apartments will be
furnished, and senators will only have to pay a monthly service fee of
$1 per square meter. JAC
[09] MOSCOW DEPUTY MAYOR ESCAPES SECOND ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT
Unidentified gunmen fired on the car of Moscow Deputy Mayor Iosif
Ordzhonikidze on 19 June, Western and Russian news agencies reported.
Some agencies reported that his driver was killed in the incident,
while utro.ru reported that this information is false. Ordzhonikidze --
who oversees international economic relations, casinos and gaming, and
several foreign-investment projects including the proposed construction
of a Formula-1 racetrack -- was not injured in the attack. He spent a
month in the hospital following a similar attack in December 2000 (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 20 and 21 December 2000) in which the driver of the
car was killed. In the spring of 2000, gunmen fired into the car of
Ordzhonikidze's assistant, Vyacheslav Borulnik, wounding his driver.
Borulnik escaped unharmed, utro.ru reported. RC
[10] MORE BUSINESSMEN TO SEEK TOP SPOT IN KRASNOYARSK...
As expected, Taimyr Autonomous Okrug Governor and former Norilsk Nickel
head Aleksandr Khloponin has officially registered as a candidate in
the 8 September gubernatorial race in Krasnoyarsk Krai, RIA-Novosti
reported on 19 June. Khloponin said that he believes the head of one of
the richest regions should not be a "politician, but an experienced
crisis manager." Also on 19 June, Moscow entrepreneur German Sterligov,
a former partner of businessman Artem Tarasov, has announced his
decision to seek the governorship, ntvru.com reported. Tarasov
announced his intention to vie for the post on 17 June (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 18 June 2002). JAC
[11] ...AS UNITY HEAD BOWS OUT...
Emergency Situations Minister and Unity faction head Sergei Shoigu told
journalists in Yekaterinburg on 19 June that he will not run for
governor of Krasnoyarsk Krai, ITAR-TASS reported. Shoigu denied all
speculation that he will run, saying it is "a premature question." "I
would not like to cause confusion in the minds of my fellow citizens,"
Shoigu was quoted as saying. RC
[12] ...AND FORMER LOCAL KINGPIN CONVICTED AND RELEASED
A Moscow court on 19 June found former Krasnoyarsk Aluminum head
Anatolii Bykov guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and sentenced him
to a suspended prison term of 6 1/2 years, with a five-year probation
period, Interfax reported. Bykov had to sign a written pledge not to
leave Moscow and was then released. Bykov was convicted of arranging
the attempted murder of entrepreneur Vilor Struganov in September 2000
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 16 October 2000). Ntvru.com, citing Interfax,
reported that Central Elections Commission Chairman Aleksandr
Veshnyakov said Bykov is eligible to participate in elections at any
level of government because his sentence was suspended. Bykov has not
said that he will run for governor of Krasnoyarsk Krai. JAC/RC
[13] FEDERAL OFFICIALS DECLINE TO TAKE OVER ULYANOVSK...
Responding to a call by Unified Energy Systems (EES) executive Andrei
Trapesnikov to impose federal rule in Ulyanovsk (see "RFE/RL Newsline,"
18 June 2002) because of its mounting energy debts, Ulyanovsk Oblast
authorities said that it is impossible to take Trapesnikov's statement
seriously, RFE/RL's Ulyanovsk correspondent reported on 19 June. Also
on the same day, Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov said he does not
believe that the introduction of federal rule in Ulyanovsk is
expedient. However, he said that the government is concerned by the
conflict among various levels of government in the oblast, which is
hindering the settlement of the energy debts. JAC
[14] ...AS ONE MAN IS KILLED DURING PROTESTS
On 17 June, more than 300 residents of a town in the Baryshkii Raion of
Ulyanovsk Oblast blocked the Penza-Ulyanovsk highway to protest the
lack of electricity to their village. During the protest, a passing car
killed one picketer and injured another. On 19 June, town residents
stopped their protest after electricity was restored. Ulyanovsk
Governor Vladimir Shamanov has been on vacation and, in his absence,
First Deputy Governor Viktor Sidorchev publicly called for the head of
the raion to resign, RFE/RL's Ulyanovsk correspondent reported. JAC
[15] SHAIMIEV CRITICIZES SHIFTING FEDERAL POLICY ON MINERAL RESOURCES
In an interview with "Nezavisimaya gazeta" on 19 June, Tatarstan
President Mintimer Shaimiev commented that the recent suggested
revisions of the law on the management of natural resources have
provoked anxiety among many federation subjects. He continued that the
proposed amendments to the law on underground resources would transfer
an entire range of issues to federal jurisdiction, while the regions
would only control those minerals that are easy to find on the earth's
surface, such as clay, sand, and crushed stone. Last month, President
Putin said that although he believes that both regional and federal
governments should benefit from natural resources, the decisive word
should belong to the federal government, particularly with regard to
the most valuable natural resources (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 22 May
2002). JAC
[16] CZECH DELEGATION DOES BUSINESS IN ST. PETERSBURG
Outgoing Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman led a large delegation of
Czech businessmen on a trip to St. Petersburg, where he held talks with
his Russian counterpart, Kasyanov, and participated in the St.
Petersburg Economic Forum on 20 June, Western and Russian news agencies
reported. Zeman declared that Russia is a stable state that is
fulfilling its international obligations and "the insurance of Czech
investments in Russia is no longer necessary," ITAR-TASS reported.
Zeman and Kasyanov also discussed curbing illegal immigration, visa
issues, the possibility of sending Russian citizens serving time in
Czech prisons back to Russia for incarceration there, and Russia's
accession to the World Trade Organization. The prime ministers also
signed an agreement under which Russia will supply nuclear fuel worth
$200 million to the Czech Republic outside the framework of Russia's
debt-repayment scheme. Businessmen traveling with Zeman concluded an
array of contracts with Russian counterparts, CTK reported. RC
[17] FIERCE BATTLE UNDER WAY IN SOUTHERN CHECHNYA
Fierce fighting erupted on 18 June in Vedeno between a Chechen
detachment of some 40 fighters and about 400 Russian troops backed by
artillery and air support, RFE/RL's Russian Service reported. Local
residents are fleeing to avoid being caught in hostilities. Also on 19
June, Russian troops ended a two-day battle in Achkhoi-Martan with a
group of Chechen fighters from Doku Umarov's command. The Chechen
succeeded in breaking through the lines of the Russians who had
surrounded them and escaping. LF
[18] CORRECTION:
An item in the 19 June 2002 issue of "RFE/RL Newsline" entitled "Former
Presidential Staff Official Detained for Fraud" incorrectly identified
the woman who was arrested. Her name is Larisa Serebryannikova.
TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[19] ARMENIAN OPPOSITION SHRUGS OFF PRESIDENT'S WARNING NOT TO DISRUPT
PARLIAMENT
The opposition parliament deputies who last week blocked the podium to
protest the speaker's refusal to initiate a debate on impeaching
President Robert Kocharian dismissed on 19 June Kocharian's warning of
the previous day that he will order police to intervene if they
continue impeding the legislature's work, RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau
reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 June 2002). Gagik Tadevosian
(Communist Party of Armenia) said Kocharian's statement "was unworthy
of the president of the republic," while Manouk Gasparian (independent)
announced that he will occupy the podium as soon as the fall session
opens on 15 September "and wait and see how the president will go about
removing me." LF
[20] DASHNAKTSUTIUN LEADER DENIES PARTY IN OPPOSITION TO PRESIDENT
In a 19 June interview with Noyan Tapan, Gegham Manoukian, who is a
leading member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutiun
(HHD), denied media speculation that the HHD could move into opposition
to President Kocharian. At the same time, he noted that since
Kocharian's election in March 1998, the HHD has never hesitated to
criticize aspects of the president's domestic, economic, social, or
foreign policies that it considers unacceptable. Manoukian also
predicted that although the question of Kocharian's impeachment will be
raised repeatedly in parliament in the coming months, it will never be
put to a vote. LF
[21] FRANCE 'SURPRISED' BY AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT'S KARABAKH CLAIMS
French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Catherine Waliski told RFE/RL's
Armenian Service on 19 June that her government is "somewhat surprised"
by President Heidar Aliev's disclosures of what he claims was an
agreement reached between himself and Kocharian in talks in Paris last
year mediated by French President Jacques Chirac (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 17 June 2002). She said that details of the negotiations in
Paris in March and in Florida, under the aegis of the OSCE Minsk Group,
in April "cannot be disclosed," and that the two presidents themselves
had agreed that details "should be kept confidential as long as there
is no final agreement between the two parties." She added that the two
presidents asked the international mediators not to divulge details of
the peace talks. She did not confirm or deny whether Aliev's claims
about the agreement reached between himself and Kocharian are accurate.
This is not the first time that Aliev has violated the confidentiality
of the OSCE-mediated Karabakh peace talks. While visiting the United
States in July 1997, he disclosed to the press details of a peace
proposal made by the OSCE Minsk Group two months earlier (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 1 August 1997). LF
[22] GEORGIAN PRESIDENT CALLS FOR SWIFT INVESTIGATION OF ARMS
CONSIGNMENT
Eduard Shevardnadze called on 19 June for a thorough investigation of
the consignment of arms intercepted near Tbilisi two days earlier,
pointing out that the weaponry in question is so modern that the
Georgian Army does not even have it, Caucasus Press and Interfax
reported. Shevardnadze rejected guerrilla leader David Shengelia's
claim that the arms belong to him and were intended for his guerrillas
fighting in southern Abkhazia. Prosecutor-General Nugzar Gabrichidze
similarly asked why, if the arms were intended for Shengelia's Forest
Brothers, the Land Rover transporting them was heading toward Tbilisi
instead of taking a shorter and more direct route from Tskhinvali,
where the arms were loaded, to Zugdidi, the guerrillas' base in western
Georgia. Criminal cases have been brought against the Georgian National
Security Ministry official and the Russian national who were
transporting the weaponry. "Nezavisimaya gazeta" on 20 June claimed
that the arms were destined for Chechen militants encamped in Georgia's
Pankisi Gorge. LF
[23] GEORGIA SOFTENS POSITION OVER WITHDRAWAL OF RUSSIAN MILITARY BASES
Georgian Foreign Minister Irakli Menagharishvili hinted on 19 June that
Tbilisi might extend the deadline it proposed earlier for the closure
of the two remaining Russian military bases in Georgia, Caucasus Press
reported. He did not elaborate. Georgia previously demanded that
Russian withdraw from those facilities within three to four years,
while Russian officials said the withdrawal will take a minimum of 10
to 14 years. LF
[24] PARLIAMENT-IN-EXILE CLAIMS RUSSIA PREPARING NEW ATTACK ON ABKHAZIA
Members of the Tbilisi-based Abkhaz parliament-in-exile claimed on 19
June that Russian special units have been deployed in three locations
in Abkhazia in preparation for an attack next month on the Georgian
population of the Kodori Gorge, Caucasus Press reported. Those sources
said that the units were sent to Abkhazia on the initiative of Abkhaz
Interior Minister Amazbey Kchach. LF
[25] CAR USED IN ABDUCTION OF BRITISH BUSINESSMAN FOUND IN GEORGIAN
CAPITAL
One of the cars used in the 18 June abduction of British banking expert
Peter Shaw was found abandoned in the Tbilisi district of Digomi on 19
June, Caucasus Press quoted National Security Minister Valeri
Khaburzania as saying. President Shevardnadze has written to the EU,
for whom Shaw was working in Tbilisi as a consultant, expressing his
regret at the "shameful" incident. No ransom demand has yet been made
public. In a statement on 20 June, EU Foreign Policy Commissioner Chris
Patten called on the Georgian authorities to take all possible measures
to secure Shaw's swift release. Patten noted that this is not the first
such incident in Georgia and that it has given rise to "deep concern"
within the international community. LF
[26] MISSING RUSSIAN PEACEKEEPERS FOUND IN SOUTH OSSETIA
Eight Russian contract servicemen who quit their unit without
permission on 17 June have now all been located, Caucasus Press
reported on 19 June. It remains unclear whether the men deserted
because conditions failed to meet their expectations or whether they
became lost in unfamiliar terrain, as Lieutenant General Valerii
Yevnevich, commander of the Russian Defense Ministry's peacekeeping
operations, has claimed. LF
[27] DETAINED FORMER KAZAKH OFFICIAL SAID FORCIBLY SEDATED
Former Pavlodar Oblast Governor Ghalymzhan Zhaqiyanov is being treated
at a clinic in Pavlodar with the powerful sedatives relanium (a
Polish-produced form of diazepam, prescribed for anxiety and panic
attacks) and dimedrol, according to a Kazakh politician who traveled to
Pavlodar earlier this week in the hope of visiting Zhaqiyanov. He was
refused permission to do so. Marzhan Aspiandarova of the Azamat Party
told a press conference in Almaty on 19 June that it is not known how
frequently Zhaqiyanov is being injected with these drugs or what the
dosage is, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reported. She added that he is being
forced to familiarize himself with the 12 volumes of the criminal case
brought against him (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 June 2002) while under
heavy sedation. Zhaqiyanov, one of the co-founders last fall of the
opposition movement Democratic Choice for Kazakhstan (DVK), is accused
of financial crimes. LF
[28] OPPOSITION ACTIVIST IN KAZAKHSTAN APPEALS TO RUSSIAN LEADERSHIP
Gennadii Bondarenko, who heads the DVK branch in Pavlodar, has sent an
open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin, State Duma Speaker
Gennadii Seleznev, and Russia's Ambassador to Kazakhstan Yurii
Merzlyakov asking them to provide moral and political support to the
population of Kazakhstan, Interfax and RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reported
on 19 June. Bondarenko said that DVK members are subjected to
harassment and persecution, and the Kazakh authorities ban peaceful
rallies and meetings. LF
[29] KAZAKH NGO CALLS FOR MORATORIUM ON DEATH PENALTY
Speaking at a press conference in Almaty on 19 June, Almaty Helsinki
Committee head Ninel Fokina argued that the Kazakh government should
impose a moratorium on capital punishment, Interfax and RFE/RL's Kazakh
Service reported. In his annual address to parliament, President
Nursultan Nazarbaev proposed in late April beginning a discussion on
imposing such a moratorium and possibly even abolishing capital
punishment completely. At present, Kazakhstan has some 40 prisoners on
death row. LF
[30] KYRGYZ PARLIAMENTARIAN'S APPEAL HEARING POSTPONED...
An appeal by parliament deputy Azimbek Beknazarov against the one-year
suspended sentence handed down to him last month was postponed on 19
June until 24 June because Beknazarov failed to appear at the court in
Toktogul, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reported. Beknazarov said he should
have been informed 10 days in advance that the hearing would not take
place in Djalalabad as originally specified, and that he will appear in
to Toktogul court only on 27 June, in compliance with the 10-day
advance-notice rule. LF
[31] ...AS LOCAL GOVERNOR MEETS WITH HIS SUPPORTERS...
Meanwhile, 10 supporters of Beknazarov met in the town of Djalalabad
with Djalalabad Oblast Governor Djusupbek Sharipov to demand that
Beknazarov's appeal be heard not in Toktogul but in Djalalabad,
RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reported. Sharipov rejected that demand, saying
he has no right to pressure the court, but he offered to provide buses
to transport Beknazarov's supporters from Djalalabad to Toktogul, a
distance of some 300 kilometers. He also told RFE/RL that the decision
to hold the hearing in Toktogul was made at the request of witnesses
who live in Toktogul who expressed fears for their safety should they
have to travel to Djalalabad. LF
[32] ...AND PLANNED RALLY IN OSH UNDER THREAT
Leaders of the opposition Ata-Meken Party told RFE/RL on 18 June they
plan to convene a mass rally in Osh on 23 June. But the following day,
Osh Governor Djantoro Satybaldiev told RFE/RL that the municipal
authorities have not given Ata-Meken permission for the rally, and he
will not permit such a gathering under the current difficult economic
conditions. He further claimed that the city's 400,000 ethnically mixed
population does not want any such gathering, to which Ata-Meken
expected to attract 10,000 participants. LF
[33] THOUSANDS AT RISK FROM LANDSLIDE IN TAJIKISTAN
Some 6,000 inhabitants of the Ayni Raion of northern Tajikistan are
endangered by a mass of 15 million cubic meters of earth and rock that
threatens to engulf three villages, Interfax reported on 19 June. An
earlier landslide in Ayni killed four and blocked roads leading into
the district, complicating an operation by the Emergency Situations
Ministry to evacuate those at risk (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 17 June
2002). LF
CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE
[34] BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT SAYS INTEGRATION WITH RUSSIA CANNOT BE
BLOCKED...
Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka chaired a training seminar
for government and administration officials in Mahileu on 19 June,
Belarusian television reported. He used this venue to make public
additional comments on his recent spat with Russian President Vladimir
Putin over Belarusian-Russian integration (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19
June 2002). Lukashenka noted that integration with Russia is not a
political game but a foreign-policy priority for Belarus. "It is too
early to celebrate a victory for the opponents of Russian-Belarusian
integration," he said. "I am becoming more and more aware of how
beggarly [those opponents] are, including our opposition. They are
already choking, to put it mildly, with their own sewage and burying
the rapprochement of Belarus and Russia. But it's too early for that."
Lukashenka stressed that even he and Putin are unable to stop the
advance of integration since, he argued, it is like a "wave rolling in
from both nations." JM
[35] ...AND DECLARES UNWILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR 'MARCH' TO EUROPE...
Lukashenka also explained to seminar participants why he primarily
meets with leaders from the CIS, the Middle East, Asia, and Africa,
while avoiding those from other parts of the globe. He said Belarus can
hope to find markets and understanding only among developing countries,
which, he said, "were traditionally in favor" of the former Soviet
Union. "I also can roughly say that I want to go to Europe," Lukashenka
divulged. "But how much do we have to pay for our march to Europe?
Russia has made its choice. You know with what Russia has paid. I too
have been asked to pay, not only politically but also economically. I'm
not ready to pay this price." JM
[36] ...WHILE OPPOSITION LEADER WARNS AGAINST 'ANNEXATION' BY RUSSIA
Zyanon Paznyak, the exiled leader of the Belarusian Popular Front, told
RFE/RL's Belarusian Service on 19 June that President Putin's recent
comments on Russian-Belarusian integration reflect yet another step in
Russia's policy of "annexation" toward Belarus. "The preceding steps,
which were hidden behind a screen of integration demagoguery, laid the
foundation for the destruction of the Belarusian culture, language,
national awareness, business, and economy, and prepared the country for
surrender. This stage is already completed, and now they are forcing
Lukashenka into a tight corner and opening only one door for him --
annexation," Paznyak opined. JM
[37] PRISON TERMS DEMANDED FOR BELARUSIAN JOURNALISTS ACCUSED OF
SLANDERING LUKASHENKA
A state prosecutor called for prison sentences of 2 1/2 years for
Mikola Markevich and two years for Pavel Mazheyka during their trial in
Hrodna on charges of slandering President Lukashenka in the weekly
"Pahonya" during the 2001 presidential-election campaign (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 12 June 2002), Belapan reported on 19 June. Defense lawyers
Syarhey Tsurko and Alyaksandr Birylau asked the court to acquit
Markevich and Mazheyka, arguing that the incriminating article never
reached readers since the entire print run of the issue that carried it
was confiscated by police at the printing press. The lawyers insisted
that what the prosecution claimed was a printout of an Internet version
of the article could not be accepted as evidence because, they argued,
the process of downloading it from the web was not properly witnessed
or documented. They also pointed out that Belarusian law does not
recognize the Internet as a mass medium. JM
[38] UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT WRANGLES OVER SESSION AGENDA...
The Verkhovna Rada on 20 June voted down a proposal for an agenda of
its current session that consisted of 106 issues, including the
impeachment of President Leonid Kuchma, UNIAN reported. The proposal
was opposed by United Ukraine, the Social Democratic Party-united, the
Communist Party, and the Socialist Party. The Communists and the
Socialists said they voted against the agenda primarily because it
included a motion to ban the Communist Party. Lawmaker Oleksandr
Turchynov from the Yuliya Tymoshenko Bloc, which proposed a motion to
impeach Kuchma, said the bloc will resort to both "parliamentary and
non-parliamentary" methods of struggle if it is "illegally deprived of
the possibility" to submit draft bills to the parliament. Meanwhile,
Our Ukraine has refused to participate in voting on the session's
agenda as long as it does not include a proposal to set up a commission
for investigating the bankruptcy of the Ukrayina bank and the
privatization of Ukrsotsbank. JM
[39] ...DEMANDS PROBE INTO FORMER SECURITY CHIEF
The previous day, the Verkhovna Rada approved a request by Hrihoriy
Omelchenko from the Yuliya Tymoshenko Bloc to open a criminal
investigation against former Security Service chief Leonid Derkach and
his son, lawmaker Andriy Derkach, AP reported. Omelchenko based his
request on an RFE/RL interview with National Security and Defense
Council chief Yevhen Marchuk in April, in which Marchuk said that
Derkach and his son made "illegal deals that made a colossal loss to
the state economy." In January, the parliament demanded an
investigation into the Derkachs' alleged involvement in selling arms to
the Taliban when they ruled Afghanistan (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 15
January 2002). In May, former presidential bodyguard Mykola Melnychenko
claimed on RFE/RL that his tapes made secretly in Kuchma's office
confirm that Derkach had links with the Iraqi and Iranian governments
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 23 May 2002). JM
[40] ESTONIAN LEGISLATURE PASSES NEW HEALTH-INSURANCE ACT
By a vote of 59 to one, parliament on 19 June adopted a long-debated
law on national health insurance that is intended to curb the rapid
rise of medical costs, ETA reported. The law will come into force on 1
October and replace an 11-year-old act that has been described as
outdated and harmful to the interests of patients and the health-care
system. Social Affairs Minister Siiri Oviir, who threatened to resign
if the bill was not passed, said the law is more patient-centered than
the version originally proposed and regulates the benefits paid for
sick days, maternity benefits, and various costs of doctor's visits or
hospitalization. Her predecessor, Eiki Nestor, noted that the law
deteriorated during its redrafting by the new coalition. Nestor claimed
that the pharmaceutical lobby succeeded in reducing the effect of
cheaper subsidized medicines under the scheme, securing almost ten-fold
profits over projections under the original version. SG
[41] LATVIA, EU TO DISCUSS AGRICULTURAL-PRODUCTION QUOTAS
Agriculture Minister Atis Slakteris told a meeting of the agricultural
organizations cooperation council in Riga on 19 June that the European
Commission (EC) most likely will make a final decision on the volume of
agricultural quotas for EU candidate countries at the end of the year,
BNS reported. However, Latvia's chief EU membership negotiator, Andris
Kesteris, will discuss Latvia's agricultural-output quota with EU
negotiators on 3 July in Brussels. The quotas suggested by the
commission are considered too low, as they are below even current
consumption levels. The previous day, a meeting of the joint committee
representing the European and Latvian parliaments adopted a resolution
recommending that the EC "be flexible in the talks regarding quotas and
reference productivity for cereals based on the respective reference
periods." SG
[42] DUTCH CROWN PRINCE VISITS LITHUANIA
Arriving from Tallinn on 18 June, Willem-Alexander and his wife Maxima
were welcomed at the Vilnius airport by Culture Minister Roma
Dovydeniene and officials from the presidential office and the Foreign
Ministry, ELTA reported. The royal couple then met with the local Dutch
community and attended a formal dinner in their honor hosted by
President Valdas Adamkus. The next day, the prince held talks at the
parliament with Chairman Arturas Paulauskas and Environmental Issues
Committee Chairman Alfonsas Macaitis. Vilnius Mayor Arturas Zuokas
welcomed the couple at City Hall and accompanied them on a tour of
Vilnius's Old Town. The couple also met with Environment Ministry
Secretary Emilis Gustainis and visited the Vilnius water-treatment
plant before departing for Riga. SG
[43] AMENDMENTS TO POLAND'S LUSTRATION LAW RULED UNCONSTITUTIONAL
The Constitutional Tribunal ruled on 19 June that amendments to the
1997 lustration law (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 15 February 2002) were
adopted earlier this year in an unconstitutional manner, Polish media
reported. The amendments removed intelligence, counterintelligence, and
border-protection service officers from the list of officials subject
to the lustration process. They also defined as secret-service agents
only those who had acted to the detriment of the political opposition,
the Church, and civil rights. The ruling means that the lustration
trials of some 20 politicians, which were suspended by the amendments,
will be resumed. This group of politicians includes former Prime
Minister Jozef Oleksy, Democratic Left Alliance parliamentary caucus
head Jerzy Jaskiernia, and Prime Ministerial Chancellery chief Marek
Wagner. "A beautiful day has dawned after the darkness of the night,
and it causes the birds to sing. This tribunal decision restores the
faith that Poland can be a state of law and respect for the law, and
that even the mightiest political forces must take this law into
account," commented Peasant Party lawmaker Bohdan Pek. JM
[44] POLISH FOREIGN MINISTER PLAYS DOWN GERMAN STANCE ON EU FARM AID
Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz said on Polish radio on 20
June that German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's pronouncements
concerning the impossibility of paying direct subsidies to farmers from
EU newcomer countries (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 June 2002) were
wrongly interpreted by Polish media. "I think this statement should be
treated as an appeal to the other 14 countries, Germany's partners in
the EU, and not as an announcement of bad news for candidate
countries," Cimoszewicz said. Meanwhile, Danish Agriculture Minister
Mariann Fischer Boel said the previous day in Warsaw that there is no
chance for Polish farmers to get higher direct subsidies than the
proposed 25 percent of what EU farmers receive. According to Boel, the
Polish government should look for other opportunities to improve the
situation in the Polish countryside. JM
[45] POLAND BACKS BULGARIA'S NATO BID
"We would like to see Bulgaria become a NATO member, and we fully
support Bulgaria's ambition in this regard," Polish President
Aleksander Kwasniewski told journalists in Warsaw on 19 June, following
talks with Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov, Polish media reported.
"We believe that the second phase of [NATO] enlargement should take
place as soon as possible," Kwasniewski noted. He added that Bulgaria,
Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia should be
invited to NATO at the alliance's summit in Prague in November. JM
[46] POLISH FORMER MINISTER CHARGED OVER YAMAL PIPELINE DEAL
Prosecutors have charged five people -- including Waclaw Niewiarowski,
industry minister in Hanna Suchocka's cabinet in 1992-93 -- with
exceeding their authority and harming the public interest in a deal
involving the construction of the Yamal-Europe natural gas pipeline and
the accompanying fiber-optic cable (see "RFE/RL Poland, Belarus, and
Ukraine Report," 21 November 2000). In particular, Niewiarowski is
accused of depriving Poland of control over the pipeline project by
letting a private contractor, the Gaz Trading Company, take a stake in
it. According to an intergovernmental agreement, Poland's PGNiG and
Russia's Gazprom were each to hold 50 percent of the shares in the
Polish-Russian company EuRoPol, which built the pipeline. Prosecutors
charge that Niewiarowski's activities allowed Gaz Trading to take a 4
percent stake in EuRoPol, while PGNiG and Gazprom were each left with
48 percent. JM
[47] ODS CHAIRMAN SAYS HE WILL RESIGN, BUT MIGHT SEEK RE-ELECTION...
Civic Democratic Party (ODS) Chairman Vaclav Klaus said in an interview
with the BBC on 19 June that he will offer his resignation as party
chairman at the next ODS national conference, whenever that conference
takes place, CTK reported. Klaus added that he has not yet decided
whether to also seek re-election at that forum. He was reacting to the
outcome of the 14-15 June Czech elections. Klaus said an extraordinary
ODS national conference may take place in the coming months or in
December, or the party's regular conference will be held next year. He
added that he believes September would not be a suitable term because
of the Senate elections scheduled for the fall. MS
[48] ...AS PARTY LIKELY TO LOSE POLITICAL, ECONOMIC INFLUENCE AFTER
DEFEAT
ODS politicians appointed to positions in media councils and state-run
companies under the "opposition agreement" between the ODS and the
Social Democratic Party (CSSD) are likely to lose their jobs in the
near future, CTK reported on 19 June. ODS Deputy Chairman Ivan Langer
told the agency that Vladimir Spidla, likely the country's next prime
minister, will probably want to meet the requests of the CSSD's new
coalition partners and to fill some posts with "his people" to the
detriment of the ODS. ODS parliamentary deputy Martin Kocourek said he
expects such changes to occur at the Czech Consolidation Agency, the
National Property Fund, and the Land Fund. Under the opposition
agreement, the ODS has tolerated a minority CSSD government since 1998
in exchange for positions of political and economic influence. MS
[49] GERMAN EXPELLEES ORGANIZATION TO OPEN OFFICE IN PRAGUE
The Sudeten German Landsmannschaft, an organization representing ethnic
Germans expelled from Czechoslovakia under the Benes Decrees, will open
an office in Prague in July, CTK reported on 19 June, citing Peter
Barton, who is in charge of setting up the office. Barton said the
purpose of the office is not to engage in propaganda but to serve as an
information center and to answer questions from Czech citizens
interested in Sudeten German-Czech relations. MS
[50] U.S. NATO AMBASSADOR SAYS SLOVAKIA WILL NOT JOIN NATO WITH HZDS IN
GOVERNMENT
A government with the participation of former Premier Vladimir Meciar's
Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS) would be a fundamental
obstacle to Slovakia's accession of NATO, U.S. Ambassador to NATO
Nicholas Burns said in an interview with the Austrian daily "Die
Presse" on 19 June, CTK reported. Burns said the U.S. is well-aware of
the HZDS's undemocratic record and that, during that party's rule of
Slovakia, corruption was strong and human rights were not always
respected. Burns said the U.S. does not believe Meciar and his party
have changed in recent years. This is the first time the U.S. has
officially announced its conditions for Slovakia's NATO accession. MS
[51] SLOVAK PARLIAMENT APPROVES DISPATCHING TROOPS TO AFGHANISTAN
The parliament on 19 June approved a government decision to send a
military engineering unit to participate in the U.S.-led mission in
Afghanistan, CTK and AP reported. The vote was secret, but before it
was taken, most of the objections for the initiative came from the
opposition Slovak National Party. Citing security reasons, the
government did not reveal either the number of troops to be sent or
their destination. A public-opinion poll conducted by Polis Slovakia in
mid-June showed that 50.7 percent of Slovaks are opposed to the
mission, while 35. 2 percent support it. Over 44 percent said they
believe the mission will facilitate Slovakia's NATO membership bid, and
35.8 percent did not share this opinion. In related news, the
government on 19 June approved sending two military helicopters and a
staff of 21 soldiers, including five pilots, to Bosnia to serve with
the Stabilization Force (SFOR) peacekeeping units as of 1 September.
The parliament must still approve the decision. MS
[52] SLOVAK CONSTITUTIONAL COURT PRESIDENT INTERVENES IN
DZURINDA-SCHUSTER DISPUTE
Constitutional Court President Jan Mazak on 19 June said that President
Rudolf Schuster's delay in approving Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda's
request that Schuster fire Transport Minister Jozef Macejko is "not
unconstitutional," CTK reported. Mazak said that if the president
receives a request to dismiss an official on charges of corruption, it
is his duty to investigate the allegations. He also said the
constitution does not set a time limit for the head of state to act.
Mazak was reacting to Dzurinda's earlier accusation that Schuster is
acting "unconstitutionally" in delaying Macejko's dismissal, claiming
the basic document stipulates that the president must dismiss cabinet
members at the request of the premier. Mazak said that only parliament
can deem a presidential act "unconstitutional" by a three-fifths
majority, in which case the matter must be examined by the
Constitutional Court (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 17, 18, and 19 June 2002).
MS
[53] NEW POLITICAL PARTY SET UP IN SLOVAKIA
A new political formation calling itself Coalition of Czechs and
Slovaks (KCaS) was launched in Bratislava on 19 June. Its founders said
their aim is to calm "national passions" sparked by polemics on the
Benes Decrees and to prove that "the Slovak nation, the Czech minority
[in that country], and other minorities in Slovakia can live in mutual
respect and solidarity." Founding member Jaroslava Cvesperova told CTK
that the political and social situation in the country has become
"stormy" due to "the undignified performance" of the Hungarian
Coalition Party [SMK]. She mentioned in this context a statement made
in Budapest by SMK Deputy Chairman Miklos Duray, who at a pro-FIDESZ
electoral meeting in Budapest in May used the term "Feldvidek" ("upper
lands") to describe the territories currently in Slovakia that were
part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Cvesperova admitted that the KCaS
might encounter difficulties in gathering the legally required 10,000
signatures for its registration ahead of the September elections. MS
[54] INDONESIAN PRESIDENT DISCUSSES WEAPONS PURCHASE IN SLOVAKIA
Continuing her tour of European countries, Indonesian President
Megawati Sukarnoputri on 19 June met in Bratislava with her Slovak
counterpart, Rudolf Schuster, CTK reported. After the talks, she said
her country is very interested in developing bilateral cooperation.
Schuster said Indonesia is interested in purchasing equipment for its
army and police and that Slovakia is offering mine sweepers. He also
said an agreement for the Slovak supply of medical equipment is likely
to be reached and added that Slovakia is ready to export to Indonesia
agricultural machinery, thermal power plants, and foodstuff. MS
[55] HUNGARIAN JUNIOR COALITION PARTNER WITHDRAWS THREAT TO LEAVE
GOVERNMENT
Following Prime Minister Peter Medgyessy's admission in the parliament
that he worked for the communist Hungarian counterintelligence services
between 1997 and 1982, the junior coalition Free Democrats (SZDSZ)
withdrew their threat to leave the government, Hungarian and
international media reported. SZDSZ Chairman Gabor Kuncze said it was
unfortunate that voters were not made aware of Medgyessy's past
activities before the elections but, despite misgivings, his formation
has decided to "put the country's interests before those of the party."
Kuncze said a caucus of the SZDSZ considered a proposal to submit a
no-confidence motion in the premier or abandon the government, but the
proposal was rejected. He said the decision was reached after intense
debate, but SZDSZ deputies who voted against or abstained pledged to
respect the decision of the majority. According to a report in
"Vilaggazdasag," the vote was 16 to four, but other SZDSZ politicians,
speaking on conditions of anonymity, said the actual tally was 11 of 18
deputies present in favor, four against, and three abstentions. MS
[56] HUNGARIAN PREMIER PLEDGES TO EXPOSE INFORMERS...
Prime Minister Medgyessy, speaking in the parliament on 19 June, said
he will submit proposals to changes in the current legislation
pertaining to intelligence activities under the communist regime, AP
reported. He said the modifications will allow the publication of the
names of all informers who participated in domestic surveillance
activities. Under the current legislation, the identity of domestic
informers or those who had access to their reports can be publicized
only in exceptional cases and only when politicians and other public
figures are involved. Medgyessy said he wants public disclosure to be
expanded to include all full-time members of intelligence,
counterintelligence, and military-intelligence services during the
communist regime, if they are still "public figures." MS
[57] ...AND THREATENS TO SUE 'MAGYAR NEMZET' OVER NEW ALLEGATION
Medgyessy also said on 19 June that he intends to sue the daily "Magyar
Nemzet" over yet another document it published on 19 June, which he
claimed is "a forgery," Hungarian media and Reuters reported. The
document was published on the front page, and "Magyar Hirlap" presented
it as a 1976 list compiled by Medgyessy of people employed by the
Finance Ministry and two other state-finance institutions suspected of
being likely to engage in counterrevolutionary activities. Medgyessy
said he received a copy of the document by fax a few months ago, adding
that it was sent to him by a FIDESZ deputy who also asserted it was a
forgery. "Those to whom nothing is dear, who forged the document and
spread libels, should be ashamed of themselves," Medgyessy told the
parliament. MS
[58] HUNGARIAN OPPOSITION UNCONVINCED, CALLS FOR PREMIER'S RESIGNATION
FIDESZ Chairman Zoltan Pokorni said on 19 June that his party does not
rule out the possibility of submitting a no-confidence motion in
Medgyessy, and National Security Commission Chairman Laszlo Kover
(FIDESZ) said the commission should meet in extraordinary session to
discuss the premier's past. Antal Rogan, FIDESZ deputy speaker of the
parliament, told the house that "Comrade D-209" -- Medgyessy's alleged
code name as a counterintelligence officer -- "must not remain prime
minister." MS
[59] HUNGARIAN DEMOCRATIC FORUM TO PROBE DEFECTION OF PARTY OFFICIAL
The Hungarian Democratic Forum's (MDF) National Ethics Committee is to
meet on 25 June to discuss the circumstances under which former MDF
Deputy Chairman Csaba Hende accepted the position of chief of staff for
former Premier Viktor Orban, Hungarian media reported. Committee
Chairman Andras Rubovszky said the request to examine the matter was
initiated by several MDF local organizations. Hende accepted Orban's
invitation to organize the center-right "civic" (polgari) groups and
subsequently resigned his positions in the MDF and the position of
chairman of the parliament's Employment Commission. Forum Chairwoman
Ibolya David said that most members of the MDF caucus objected to Hende
becoming Orban's chief of staff without notifying the party earlier.
The MDF ran in the April elections on joint lists with FIDESZ. MS
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[60] YUGOSLAV GOVERNMENT REVEALS DOCUMENT ON MILOSEVIC'S ROLE
The Yugoslav government unsealed secret papers showing that former
President Slobodan Milosevic decided in 1997 to place elite security
forces directly under his own control, AP reported (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 17 and 19 June 2002). The Interior Ministry recently
acquired the document from former state security chief Jovica Stanisic.
The document could help the war crimes tribunal based in The Hague to
prove Milosevic's direct responsibility for war crimes committed by
Serbian forces in Kosova in 1998 and 1999. Yugoslav Justice Minister
Savo Markovic told AP that the document will be given to prosecutors in
The Hague. Milosevic's lawyer has called the document a fake. PM
[61] HAGUE TRIBUNAL SAYS KARADZIC IS IN BOSNIA AND MLADIC IN
YUGOSLAVIA...
Carla Del Ponte, who is the chief prosecutor for the war crimes
tribunal based in The Hague, said in Brussels on 19 June that Belgrade
has done only "the barest minimum" in terms of cooperating with the
tribunal, Reuters reported. She added that a new law on cooperation is
merely "lip service" and that the Belgrade authorities have blocked
access to witnesses and archives (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 June 2002).
She stressed that she will ask the U.S. and EU to apply more pressure
on Belgrade to cooperate. In Sarajevo, Del Ponte's spokeswoman,
Florence Hartmann, said that "according to our information, Radovan
Karadzic is in the [Republika] Srpska and [his army commander General
Ratko] Mladic is still on the territory of Yugoslavia," dpa reported.
PM
[62] ...BUT YUGOSLAV ARMY CHIEF DENIES KNOWLEDGE OF MLADIC...
General Nebojsa Pavkovic, who heads the Yugoslav Army's General Staff,
said in Belgrade on 19 June that, "We are not protecting Mladic, and we
don't know where he is. For the past few months we have not had any
information about where he is, because the Yugoslav Army security
services do not deal with retired generals," Reuters reported. Reports
appear in the regional media from time to time about alleged sightings
of Karadzic or Mladic. These are, however, often contradictory and
virtually always impossible to prove. They might be regarded as a
Balkan version of Loch Ness monster stories. PM
[63] ...AS WASHINGTON AGAIN TELLS BELGRADE TO COOPERATE WITH THE HAGUE
An unnamed "senior State Department official" said in Washington on 19
June that Congress might set unspecified tougher conditions for giving
financial assistance to Belgrade if it does not take steps to improve
its cooperation with The Hague, Reuters reported (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 17 June 2002). The official noted that Congress is paying
particular attention to the Mladic case. PM
[64] MONTENEGRO ABOLISHES DEATH PENALTY
The parliament voted on 19 June to abolish capital punishment, which is
a necessary precondition for admission to the Council of Europe,
RFE/RL's South Slavic and Albanian Languages Service reported. Instead,
a penalty of 40 years in prison without pardon or parole has been
introduced as the maximum punishment for particularly serious crimes.
The legislature also passed legislation dealing for the first time with
corruption, money laundering, kidnapping, fraudulent bookkeeping, and
sexual abuse of a spouse. AP noted that Yugoslavia and Serbia have
abolished the death penalty within the past 12 months. The death
penalty has not been officially carried out in Serbia or Montenegro for
the past 10 years. PM
[65] CROATIAN CUSTOMS OFFICERS STAGE A GO-SLOW
Customs officials began a work-to-rule strike on 20 June, dpa reported
from Zagreb. An Interior Ministry spokeswoman said that there were no
major delays at border crossings, but added, "We'll see what happens
later." State-run television nonetheless reported that it was taking
one hour instead of the usual 10 minutes to enter Croatia from Slovenia
at the Istrian border crossings of Pasjak and Kupa. At the Macelj
crossing, cars were reportedly backed up 2.5 kilometers. The customs
officials want a 40 percent increase in their pay, which currently
averages about $430 per month. The strike comes at the start of the
tourist season, which is a major source of foreign currency. The strike
is scheduled to last until the evening of 21 June. PM
[66] CITIZENSHIP ISSUE DIVIDES BOSNIA AND CROATIA
Beriz Belkic, who holds the rotating chair of Bosnia's joint
presidency, told Deutsche Welle's Bosnian Service in Sarajevo on 18
June that one of the sticking points in relations between his country
and Croatia is the question of dual citizenship. He specifically
referred to the matter of ethnic Croats in Bosnia having the right to
vote in Croatia. Belkic said that this is not acceptable because it
suggests that some in Croatia still are making unspecified "political
calculations" regarding Bosnia. On 20 June, RFE/RL's South Slavic and
Albanian Languages Service quoted Bosnian Civil Affairs and
Communications Minister Svetozar Mihajlovic as saying that no agreement
on dual citizenship will be possible before the end of 2002 because
there is no chance of Croatia changing its voting laws before then.
Observers note, however, that there are powerful interests in Croatian
politics that oppose any change in legislation granting voting rights
to the diaspora. PM
[67] KLEIN SAYS BOSNIA STILL NEEDS FOREIGN SUPPORT
Jacques Klein, who heads the UN's international police mission in
Bosnia, told the Security Council in New York on 19 June that Bosnia
continues to be affected by deep political divisions, the presence of
war criminals, and a lack of rule of law, dpa reported. He noted that
the Croats and Serbs do not believe in the right of Bosnia to live as
an independent state. Klein charged that Croats make up 18 percent of
the population, hold one-third of the political power, and continue to
support a "criminal elite that has enriched itself while politically
and economically impoverishing its followers." He called Karadzic and
Mladic "the albatrosses around our necks." Klein warned the
international community against reducing its role in Bosnia until the
key problems there are solved. PM
[68] BOSNIA MARKS WORLD REFUGEE DAY
The League of Refugees of Bosnia-Herzegovina commemorated World Refugee
Day on 20 June by naming Roman Catholic Bishop Franjo Komarica of Banja
Luka its Man of the Decade for his work in helping refugees and
displaced persons from all ethnic groups, RFE/RL's South Slavic and
Albanian Languages Service reported. There are currently more than
500,000 displaced persons within Bosnia and 650,000 refugees living
outside its borders. PM
[69] MACEDONIAN POLITICAL PARTIES DIVIDED OVER NEW PASSPORTS
The government on 19 June approved a proposal by the Interior Ministry
regarding the languages to be used in new passports, Macedonian media
reported. The proposal, which follows the Slovenian example, states
that passports will be issued in two different versions. In addition to
the version that carries the Macedonian-language word for "passport" on
its cover, there will be a second version with the word "passport"
written in its Albanian-language form, "Nova Makedonija" reported.
Media reports do not, however, agree as to which languages are to be
used for the personal data inside the passport. The opposition Social
Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM) announced that it opposes the
proposal, which the party says contradicts both the Ohrid peace
agreement and the subsequent compromise on its implementation reached
among the leaders of the four largest political parties. UB
[70] MACEDONIAN PARLIAMENT APPROVES PACKAGE OF LANGUAGE LAWS
The parliament voted on 19 June to adopt nine laws aimed at making
Albanian an official language as specified in the August 2001 Ohrid
agreement, AP reported. The key measure -- regarding the use of
Albanian in government institutions -- passed the 120-member
legislature with 88 votes in favor, three against, and the remaining
deputies abstaining. PM
[71] ALBANIAN RIVALS MEET BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
Leaders of the government coalition and the opposition met in Tirana on
18 June for one hour and 20 minutes to try to choose a successor to
President Rexhep Meidani, whose term expires shortly, Deutsche Welle's
Albanian Service reported. He cannot be re-elected. Representing the
governing coalition were Socialist Party Chairman Fatos Nano, party
Secretary-General Gramoz Ruci, and Social Democratic Party Chairman
Skender Gjinushi. Present on behalf of the opposition were Democratic
Party Chairman Sali Berisha, Republican Party Chairman Fatmir Mediu,
and Reform Democratic Party Chairman Genc Pollo. Nano and Berisha,
whose bitter rivalry has helped give Albanian politics its frequently
dysfunctional character, appeared smiling and joking before
journalists. The two men said that all present at the talks agreed not
to divulge any of the contents of the proceedings to the press and to
meet again. Pollo said that progress was made in reaching a consensus
on a new president, but he did not elaborate. The parliament is
scheduled to elect a new president on 24 June. PM
[72] FORMER KOSOVA GUERRILLA TURNS HIMSELF IN
Two ethnic Albanians have surrendered to the UN-led police in Kosova
following the recent arrest of four others in connection with crimes
against civilians following NATO's occupation of Kosova in mid-1999,
Reuters reported from Prishtina on 19 June (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19
June 2002). One of the two men who gave himself up is reportedly Daut
Haradinaj, the brother of prominent political leader Ramush Haradinaj.
Both brothers are former guerrilla officers. PM
[73] ROMANIAN PARLIAMENTARY COMMISSION HEAD DENIES ATTEMPTS TO OBSTRUCT
WORK OF CNSAS...
Ion Stan, chairman of the parliamentary commission overseeing the
activities of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), on 19 June
denied media reports alleging that the commission has sought to
obstruct a body in charge of the former communist secret police files,
RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. Stan said his commission is,
however, insisting that the National Council for the Study of
Securitate Archives (CNSAS) must act in compliance with the law. After
the council said it intends to make public names of former Securitate
officers still employed by the SRI, Stan threatened to take the council
to court. On 19 June, he said current legislation obliges the council
before disclosing such names to interview those suspected of having
aided the Securitate as "political police," to grant them the right to
appeal the council's decisions and the right to appeal to courts if the
council decides against them. Only after all these steps are taken, he
said, can the CNSAS make their names public in the official gazette. MS
[74] ...ACKNOWLEDGES SRI HAS EAVESDROPPED ON SUSPECTS IN 1991-92...
Stan also said on 19 June that the SRI indeed placed the telephones of
13 Romanian personalities under surveillance in 1991-92, as claimed by
writer and political scientist Stelian Tanase, RFE/RL's Bucharest
bureau reported. Stan said the surveillance was carried out with the
approval of the Prosecutor-General's Office, as stipulated by law.
Tanase told the commission that he suspects his conversations are still
monitored and added that he has never endangered the country's national
security -- the only legal ground on which the Prosecutor-General's
Office can approve telephone surveillance. Former SRI Director Virgil
Magureanu denied such surveillance has been carried out by the service
"as political police" and said the 13 were at the time suspected of
activities endangering national security. MS
[75] ...WHILE EXTREMIST LAWMAKER ALLEGES CNSAS MEMBERS ARE FORMER SPIES
Daniela Buruiana, deputy chairwoman of the parliamentary commission
overseeing the activities of the SRI, on 19 June said three CNSAS
members have had "ties to foreign intelligence agencies" and threatened
to publish proof of such links if the CNSAS does not renounce its
intention to publish the names of SRI officers employed by the
Securitate, Mediafax reported. Buruiana, who is a member of the
extremist Greater Romania Party (PRM), named former Foreign Minister
Andrei Plesu, anticommunist dissident and poet Mircea Dinescu, and
essayist Horia Roman Patapievici as alleged foreign-intelligence
agents. She said her information comes from "people who had direct
links with the Romanian Foreign Intelligence Service." MS
[76] COMMISSION SET UP TO AMEND ROMANIAN CONSTITUTION
Representatives of parliamentary parties in the Chamber of Deputies and
the Senate on 19 June reached an agreement on the composition of the
commission that is to examine proposals for amending the constitution,
RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. The commission is to include nine
PSD parliamentarians, five parliamentarians from the PRM, and two each
from the PNL, the Democratic Party, and the UDMR. The parties
representing national minorities other than the UDMR will have one
representative. The commission will also include one representative
each from the presidency, the government, and the ombudsman. Decisions
are to be made by a two-thirds majority. The agreement has yet to be
submitted for the approval of the two chambers of the parliament. MS
[77] ROMANIAN LEGISLATORS APPROVE PEACEKEEPERS FOR KOSOVA, BOSNIA
A joint session of the Romanian parliament on 20 June approved the
dispatch of 50 Romanian soldiers to serve with KFOR forces in Kosova
and SFOR forces in Bosnia, Mediafax reported. MS
[78] ROMANIAN NATIONAL FLAG HOISTED AGAIN IN TRANSYLVANIAN TOWN
Hungarian Democratic Federation of Romania (UDMR) Chairman Bela Marko
told journalists on 19 June that the Romanian national flag has again
been hoisted over the building of the Covasna County Council in
Sfantu-Gheorghe, Romanian radio reported. One day earlier, the flag was
also flying again above the mayoralty's building. Marko said the
incidents involving the disappearance of the flags were a "response to
offensive acts" by Covasna County officials representing the Social
Democratic Party (PSD). He said there was a link between the incidents
and the dismantling of bilingual street signs on the building hosting
the local prefect's office. Marko said he was persuaded this was a
reflection of "the lack of collaboration" between local PSD and UDMR
officials and that the joint PSD-UDMR commission will examine the
dispute in Covasna County at a meeting in Bucharest on 20 June. MS
[79] ROMANIAN LIBERAL RIVALS CALL FOR EXTRAORDINARY PARTY CONGRESS
National Liberal Party (PNL) Chairman Valeriu Stoica and his rival,
Deputy Chairman Dinu Patriciu, on 19 June called on PNL local
organizations to approve the convocation of an extraordinary PNL
congress to decide on the leadership's fate, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau
reported. Stoica described the "Patriciu wing" as "a small but noisy
group" that wants nothing but "power to negotiate with the [current]
power." Patriciu pledged not to run for the party's chairmanship at the
extraordinary congress and said the PNL needs to prepare for the 2004
parliamentary and presidential elections. The two rivals spoke at a
meeting in Bucharest at the seat of the Group for Social Dialogue.
While Patriciu argued that that the PNL can win the next elections by
itself, Stoica said an alliance unifying forces opposed to the PSD must
be forged. Democratic Party Chairman Traian Basescu, whom Stoica views
as a potential ally, said his party is "searching for a credible ally"
and that the PNL must decide if it is ready to exclude the PSD as a
potential ally, as the Democrats do. MS
[80] ROMANIA TO SECURE BORDER WITH MOLDOVA
Romania will spend some $48 million to secure its border with Moldova
in a bid to stop illegal immigrants from entering Europe, AFP reported
on 19 June, citing border police chief Aurel Neagu. Neagu said the EU
will provide over half of the money necessary for the project. The
Moldovan border is the main transit route for illegal and economic
immigrants attempting to enter the country to make their way to more
prosperous West European countries. Neagu said, "Not a day passes
without at least one attempt to cross the border illegally." He also
said Romania is holding talks with Bulgaria and Hungary on deploying
joint border units aimed at stopping illegal immigration. MS
[81] MOLDOVA POSTPONES RENEWED NEGOTIATIONS WITH TIRASPOL
Moldova on 19 June announced it has postponed the resumption of
negotiations with Tiraspol, RFE/RL's Chisinau bureau reported. Chisinau
believes the planned meeting in Kyiv necessitates more thorough
preparations, and Moldovan officials said they intend to submit to the
forum a draft document on the special status of the Transdniester. They
also said the draft proposed by Tiraspol reflects the separatists'
"negative attitude," and described the document as hardly different
from their 1999 version. They said Tiraspol continues to speak of "two
equal-right subjects of international law," of mutual recognition of
"sovereignty," and of settling disputes on the basis of "international
law." MS
[82] PRESIDENT SAYS MOLDOVA DETERMINED TO PURSUE INTEGRATION IN EUROPE
President Vladimir Voronin told representatives of the tripartite
Moldova-European Commission-Council of Europe group that his country is
determined to pursue cooperation with the Council of Europe and
integration in the EU. Voronin said these are "priorities" for his
country, a presidential office press release said on 19 June. He said
Moldova will implement "concrete measures" toward these aims, will
fulfill its obligations as a member of the Council of Europe, and will
promote democratic institutions and values. Voronin also welcomed the
council's announced intention to open a permanent office in Chisinau,
saying this will enable it to follow the situation in Moldova
objectively. MS
[83] GAGAUZ-YERI PARLIAMENT REJECTS GOVERNOR'S REFERENDUM PROPOSAL
The Popular Assembly of the Gagauz-Yeri Autonomous Republic on 19 June
rejected a proposal by Governor Dumitru Croitor to hold a plebiscite in
the region, Flux reported. Fifteen of the 29 deputies present voted
down the initiative (see "RFE/RL's Newsline," 19 June 2002). MS
[84] BULGARIAN PRIME MINISTER ON OFFICIAL VISIT TO DENMARK
Prime Minister Simeon Saxecoburggotski on 19 June traveled to Denmark
for a one-day official visit, BTA reported. Saxecoburggotski and his
Danish counterpart, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, discussed Bulgaria's
prospects for EU and NATO accession. Rasmussen said he hopes countries
that are not ready to join the EU in the first wave get a clear signal
on their prospects at the end of the Danish presidency. European
Affairs Minister Meglena Kuneva, who accompanied Saxecoburggotski, said
Bulgaria plans to close five more chapters in its accession
negotiations during the Danish presidency: Financial Control, Customs
Union, Transport Policy, Cooperation in the Fields of Justice and Home
Affairs, and Energy. Denmark will take over the six-month EU presidency
from Spain on 1 July. UB
[85] BRITISH DEFENSE SECRETARY VISITS BULGARIA
After a meeting with Defense Minister Nikolay Svinarov, visiting
British Defense Secretary Geoffrey Hoon on 19 June said he was pleased
to learn of Bulgarian progress in army modernization, BTA reported.
Hoon lauded British-Bulgarian military relations, adding that Britain
will continue to assist in the training of Bulgarian officers and to
support the Defense Ministry and the General Staff. Hoon and Foreign
Minister Solomon Pasi discussed the possibility of an international
conference on the anniversary of the 11 September attacks in the United
States, mediapool.bg reported. During its UN Security Council
presidency, which starts in September, Bulgaria plans to organize a
conference focusing on the links between organized crime and terrorism.
UB
[86] BULGARIAN COMPANIES TO GET PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT IN PUBLIC
PURCHASES
Experts from the Ministry for Economy will consider ways to offer
preferential treatment to Bulgarian companies in public purchases
without violating agreements with the EU, "Dnevnik" reported on 19
June. After a meeting of the Council on Economic Growth, Employers
Union Chairman Vasil Vasilev said domestic producers are less affected
by legally imported goods from European countries than by goods from
the Middle East and the Far East, which are often imported illegally.
The council is also considering ways to promote the consumption of
Bulgarian goods. "At the moment, we are collecting original ideas for
the promotion of our products," Economy Minister Nikolay Vasilev said.
UB
END NOTE
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