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Voice of America, 99-09-21Voice of America: Selected Articles Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Voice of America <gopher://gopher.voa.gov>CONTENTS
[01] KOSOVO - DISARM (S-ONLY) BY TIM BELAY (PRISTINA)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254125 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: NATO has reached agreement with the Kosovo Liberation Army on a plan for the K-L-A to disband and let members join a new group to be called the Kosovo Protection Corps. Tim Belay reports that the compromise came only after more than two days of intense negotiations. TEXT: Disagreement in several areas delayed the final disbanding of the K-L-A. NATO credits the ten-thousand member rebel force with helping drive Yugoslav armed forces out of the province, but the alliance did not want the new Kosovo Protection Corps to act as a military organization. NATO said it would allow only two hundred members of the five-thousand member Corps to carry sidearms. The K-L-A wanted permission for most of the Protection Corps to carry weapons. NATO prevailed on that point, but on a question of who would be in charge, it appears the K-L-A won. General Agim Ceku, the former chief of staff of the K-L-A, has been named Commander of the Kosovo protection corps. /// Opt ///NEB/TB/GE /PLM 21-Sep-1999 05:51 AM EDT (21-Sep-1999 0951 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America [02] MONTENEGRO INDEPENDENCE (L ONLY) BY TIM BELAY (PODGORICA, MONTENEGRO)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254146 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: Observers in the Yugoslav Republic of Montenegro say they believe the republic's voters would approve a proposal to break away from Yugoslavia. But as Tim Belay reports from Montenegro's capital, Podgorica, they say such a vote is not likely to happen soon. TEXT: One month ago, Montenegro's leaders told the Yugoslav government they want broad autonomy for their republic or complete independence. Their message included a threat to hold a public vote on the matter if Yugoslav officials did not agree. That 30-day period is over now. But nothing has happened. And some observers say they believe nothing much will happen soon. The director of the Center for Democracy and Human Rights in Montenegro is Srdan Darmanovic. He says he believes Montenegrin officials will wait until they are able to coordinate a vote for independence with their supporters in Western Europe and the United States. /// DARMANOVIC ACT ONE ////// END ACT ///// DARMANOVIC ACT TWO ////// END ACT ///NEB/TB/JWH/JO 21-Sep-1999 12:59 PM EDT (21-Sep-1999 1659 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America [03] BELGRADE PROTEST PREVIEW (L-ONLY) BY PHILIP SMUCKER (BELGRADE)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254129 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: Serbian opposition leaders launch today what they hope will be a final push to oust Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic from power. From Belgrade, Philip Smucker reports organizers look forward to a new, charismatic leadership emerging from the daily protests. TEXT: Serbia's opposition movement is beginning a wave
of mass protests (this evening) in what it hopes will
be the beginning of the end of the rule of Yugoslav
President Slobodan Milosevic.
Despite divisions in their ranks and doubts about the
ability of peaceful protests to make a difference in
Serbia, opposition leaders say they are confident in
change.
The protests are being launched at time when Serbia's
economy has reached a new, all-time low for this
decade.
Goran Svilanovic, a leader of Serbia's Civic Alliance,
said the countrywide street protests /// OPT /// -
which begin at 6 pm Belgrade time - /// END OPT ///
are likely to start with a core of support and grow
into a mass uprising.
He said he expects the protests to continue into the
winter.
Most opposition leaders believe that only immense
public pressure will force Mr. Milosevic to step
aside.
Many analysts say that the Yugoslav President's
indictment as a war crimes suspect by the
international tribunal in the Hague will only
strengthen his determination to remain in power.
The Serbian opposition will begin Tuesday's protest by
comparing the Milosevic regime's promises on health,
education and welfare to the reality of what is now a
ruined state.
Serb demonstrators say they will stage a mock trial of
government and will issue a verdict on their guilt or
innocence.
Opposition leaders say that verdict will be delivered
to Parliament and to the front doors of the homes of
politicians.
Officials close to President Slobodan Milosevic say
demonstrators should not fear a police crackdown,
unless they disobey the law. (SIGNED)
[04] BELGRADE PROTESTS L-ONLY BY PHILIP SMUCKER (BELGRADE)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254162 INTERNET=YES CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: The Serbian opposition has begun a new wave of street demonstrations aimed at removing Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic from power. Philip Smucker reports on these protests from Belgrade. TEXT: The opposition leaders say Mr. Milosevic's policies have ruined the country and that they have three goals - the president's resignation, a transitional government and free elections. An estimated 35,000 citizens attended the demonstrations on a rainy night in Belgrade, and tens of thousands more protested in the streets of other cities in Serbia. The leader of Serbia's Democratic Party, Zoran Djindjic, urged demonstrators to put Mr. Milosevic on what amounts to a mock public trial in the coming days. He said that the latest round of street protests would be a test of nerves and endurance. //DJINDJIC ACT////END ACT//NNNN Source: Voice of America [05] CYBER YUGOSLAVIA BY LAUREN COMITEAU (THE HAGUE)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT NUMBER=5-44292 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: After a decade of wars that saw the break-up of Yugoslavia, there is now a new Balkan state vying for international recognition. It is called Cyber Yugoslavia, and it is located in -- cyberspace. Lauren Comiteau in the Hague tells more about this first computer internet "on line" nation. TEXT: /// BACIC ACT ONE ////// END ACT ////// BACIC ACT TWO ////// END ACT ////// BOGOEVJA ACT ONE ////// END ACT ////// BOGOEVA ACT TWO ////// END ACT ////// MUSIC - FADE UNDER ////// POPOVIC ACT ////// END ACT ////// BACIC ACT THREE ////// END ACT ///NEB/LC/JWH/KL 21-Sep-1999 08:14 AM EDT (21-Sep-1999 1214 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America [06] RUSSIA CAUCASUS (L ONLY) BY PETER HEINLEIN (MOSCOW)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254151 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: The leaders of two southern Russian republics bordering breakaway Chechnya have held an unauthorized meeting with the Chechen president amid growing fears of a new Caucasian war. V-O-A Moscow Correspondent Peter Heinlein reports that Russia, angered by bombs that killed hundreds of civilians, is continuing a military buildup along the Chechen border. TEXT: As Russian jets rained bombs on suspected rebel
positions in Chechnya (Tuesday), the presidents of
the neighboring republics of Ingushetia and North
Ossetia confirmed they had met Chechen President Aslan
Maskhadov. The meeting was held at the small Ingush
town of Magan a few kilometers from the Chechen
border.
A spokesman says the three regional leaders discussed
the current hostilities in nearby Dagestan, where
Russia has amassed a force estimated at 20-thousand
troops to battle Chechen-led rebels.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says the
objective is to seal off the breakaway region, but
many military analysts here believe Russia is intent
on reversing the humiliating defeat it suffered in
Chechnya three years ago.
President Boris Yeltsin has described the earlier
Chechen campaign as the biggest mistake of his
presidency.
The Itar-Tass news agency reports the three regional
leaders meeting in Magan discussed ways local law
enforcement groups could prevent what are called
"bandits" from Chechnya crossing into neighboring
republics. But Ingushetia's president was quoted as
saying no steps have been taken to seal the Chechen
frontier.
Journalists and others familiar with the terrain say
an attempt to blockade Chechnya would be almost
impossible, as well as expensive. President Maskhadov
himself has said there is little his forces or anyone
else can do to prevent illegal border crossings,
especially in remote, rugged mountain areas.
Moreover, analysts in Moscow say Mr. Maskhadov has
little control over rebel groups operating from
Chechen territory.
But in an interview published this week in a Moscow
magazine, President Maskhadov warned Russian military
strategists against any attempt to retake the
breakaway region. In a reference to the troop buildup
along the Chechnya/Dagestan border, Mr. Maskhadov said
"Never again will we allow" Russian troops to march to
the center of the Chechen capital, Grozny. (Signed)
NEB/PFH/JWH/gm
21-Sep-1999 13:25 PM EDT (21-Sep-1999 1725 UTC)
[07] COHEN - NATO (L-ONLY) (CQ) BY JIM RANDLE (TORONTO, CANADA)DATE=9/20/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254117 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: NATO defense ministers are taking a hard look at the lessons of the air war in Kosovo as they gather for annual informal talks in Toronto. U-S and Canadian officials say the ministers are seeking better ways to communicate, get troops into battle, and pay for the high tech tools of modern war. V-O- A's Jim Randle reports the 19 nations feel the strain of fielding nearly 80-thousand troops to keep the peace in Bosnia and Kosovo. TEXT: U-S Defense Secretary William Cohen says recent air combat over Yugoslavia showed the value of bombs and missiles guided by lasers and satellite signals, and also revealed that U-S capabilities surpass those of most NATO allies. Mr. Cohen says if NATO is to remain an effective military force, the allies must build or buy the equipment to fire satellite-guided weapons and similar advanced, expensive hardware. During the Kosovo campaign, Mr. Cohen says U-S pilots were exposed to unnecessary risk because some allied planes had old-fashioned radios that allowed Serb air defenses to listen in and try to figure out where planes were headed and when they would get there. On a flight from Washington to Toronto Monday, Mr. Cohen told reporters he would urge other NATO leaders to improve their military forces, and resist political pressures to cut military spending. Meantime, Canadian Defense Minister Art Eggleton says reorganization of NATO-led peackeeping forces in the Balkans will be a major issue in these talks because many allied nations are `feeling stretched' by fielding 31-thousand peacekeeping troops in Bosnia and over 45-thousand more in Kosovo. U-S officials have said the ministers will talk about ways to cut the Bosnia force by about one third, but no final decision is planned at this gathering. /// REST OPT///NNNN Source: Voice of America [08] NATO - MONEY (L ONLY)(CQ) BY JIM RANDLE (TORONTO, CANADA)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254137 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: The man who will soon lead the NATO Alliance, British Defense Minister George Robertson, says members must clarify NATO's goals and do a better job of managing their money and manpower. Mr. Robertson spoke in Toronto where alliance defense ministers are gathered to talk about the lessons of the Kosovo air war and the future of NATO. V-O-A's Jim Randle reports the talks come at a time when many NATO members are cutting military budgets. TEXT: Britain's George Robertson says one lesson from Kosovo is that smaller forces and lighter equipment are needed so they can be sent quickly to trouble spots and keep bad situations from becoming catastrophes. He says such forces will not be effective unless they are armed with the most advanced weapons available -- and that, he says, is expensive. ///ROBERTSON ACT ////// END ACT ////// COHEN ACT ////// END ACT ////// ROBERTSON ACT ////// END ACT ///NEB/JR/BK 21-Sep-1999 11:10 AM LOC (21-Sep-1999 1510 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America [09] E-U / FOOD (L-ONLY) BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254135 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: The European Union is ready to lift its ban on Belgian beef exports after tests showed only one percent of cattle examined had any trace of the cancer-causing chemical, dioxin. V-O-A correspondent Ron Pemstein reports from Brussels that even that one percent is causing concern about the rest of world's beef supply. Text: First there was mad cow disease in Britain and Portugal, which stopped their cattle exports. Then Belgian meat exports were banned by the European Union when animal feed contamination caused the appearance of cancer-causing dioxins in chickens, pigs and cattle. Belgium has now complied with the European Union's strict tests for resuming exports. According to the tests, 99 percent of the one thousand cattle tested had no problems. As for the remaining one percent, European Commission spokeswoman Thea Emmerling says the cattle appeared to be contaminated NOT by feed from the company, Verkest, but by their location near industrial complexes. ///Emmerling Act//////End Act//////Emmerling Act//////End Act///NNNN Source: Voice of America [10] N-Y ECON WRAP (S & L) BY BRECK ARDERY (NEW YORK)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-254163 CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: Stock prices in the United States were down sharply today (Tuesday) as a record U-S trade deficit caused the value of the U-S dollar to fall. VOA Business Correspondent Breck Ardery reports from New York. TEXT: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 10- thousand-598, down 225 points, more than two percent. The Standard and Poor's 500 index closed at 13- hundred-seven, down 28 points. The NASDAQ index lost more than two percent. Analysts say the intense sell-off was fueled by several factors. Perhaps the most important was the record U-S trade deficit in July. That caused a drop in the U-S dollar, touching off new fears that the U-S central bank will raise interest rates again, if only to defend the dollar. ///Begin opt//////Maguire act, opt//////end act, end opt//////Rest opt///NEB/NY/BA/LSF 21-Sep-1999 17:05 PM LOC (21-Sep-1999 2105 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America [11] TUESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)DATE=9/21/1999TYPE=U-S EDITORIAL DIGEST NUMBER=6-11479 EDITOR=ASSIGNMENTS TELEPHONE=619-3335 CONTENT= INTRO: President Clinton's refusal to discuss with Congress his reasons for granting clemency to a group of jailed Puerto Rican terrorists continues as a major controversy in the U-S press. Other topics under scrutiny in the editorial columns of America's newspapers Tuesday include a huge gift to minority education from the world's richest man; U-N peacekeepers in East Timor, and the implications for Indonesia; the terrorist situation in Russia, as the nation mourns a former first lady; penalizing Iraq's children to get at Saddam Hussein; and the peace process in Northern Ireland. Now, here with a closer look and some excerpts is _____________ and today's editorial digest. TEXT: President Clinton has granted clemency to about a dozen Puerto Rican terrorists jailed for more than a decade for conspiracy to bomb buildings and other terrorist acts. He did so because the group had not been linked directly to any killings. Many people, however, felt Mr. Clinton was mainly motivated by a desire to help his wife win a Senate seat in New York, where the Puerto Rican vote is important. Now, another controversy over the issue has developed. On New York's Long Island, Newsday says Mr. Clinton was "Wrong on clemency, [but] right on privilege." VOICE: . [Mr.] Clinton was right to cite `executive privilege' in denying Congress access to documents and testimony reflecting the advice he received from advisers on the question of clemency for convicted Puerto Rican separatists. Clemency in this case was a bad decision. But presidents since George Washington have properly asserted-and the courts have long recognized-a president's right to shield private executive-branch communications from prying eyes. TEXT: The Detroit News agrees, but in Oklahoma, The Tulsa World complains: VOICE: Good Lord, Mr. President. . Tell us the whole story. Americans might even agree with you if you can make a good case for clemency. As it is, no one is very happy with a president who forgives terrorists at precisely a time when there are plenty of anti- government, anti-establishment Americans just aching to perform terrorist acts. TEXT: Turning to yet another domestic topic, the one- billion-dollar gift from the world's richest man, Microsoft's chairman, Bill Gates, to establish college scholarships for minority students, The Boston Globe says: VOICE: While [Mr.] Gates and his fellow information- age titans are looking for tax write-offs and will never be confused with Mother Teresa, they deserve credit for looking beyond the computer screen to help solve some of society's problems. TEXT: Oklahoma's Tulsa World is also impressed, noting: VOICE: [Mr.] Gates . has a stake in the program other than his money. Better-educated young people will continue to fuel the high-tech industry that has made him wealthy and successful. It also could spawn the next generation of great American philanthropists. And the next such wave could, thanks to the Gates' foundation, reflect the ethnic diversity of the country. TEXT: As United Nations peacekeepers build up their strength on the island of East Timor, there is concern in The [Baltimore] Sun that the independence of half this island not lead to the fragmentation of Indonesia. VOICE: The cohesion of the world's fourth-biggest country, [EDITORS: fourth MOST POPULUS COUNTRY] with 210-million people on thousands of islands speaking hundreds of dialects, is more important than the secession of some 800-thousand [people] on a lesser isle. If Australia is taking the lead in the force that will aid, guide and protect East Timor, Washington should concentrate on helping Indonesia evolve toward democracy, reduce its army's role, strengthen civil society, restore the economy and- above all-hold together. TEXT: On the other side of the world, the terror bombing campaign in Russia, draws this response from today's Forth Worth [Texas]Star-Telegram. VOICE: Given the sad condition of Russia's economy, its ideological fragmentation and the general disillusionment of the populace, the terror bombings could be the gust of ill wind that tumbles the house of cards. Regardless of who is responsible, the bombings will exacerbate the political instability in Russia. The plunge toward anarchy could give rise to a new tyranny and perhaps a resurgence of Russian ultra-nationalism and expansion that could pose a real threat to world peace. TEXT: Still with Russian affairs, today's New York Times mourns the passing of Raisa Gorbachev, wife of Mikhail Gorbachev, who died of leukemia in Germany. VOICE: In many ways, Mrs. Gorbachev simply declared herself the Soviet Union's first First Lady, a powerful act by a commanding woman. Unlike most Kremlin wives, who favored mud-colored clothes and a secure position out of sight, Mrs. Gorbachev played a role that was front and center. /// OPT /// . Almost eight years after her husband's resignation and three years after his pathetic efforts to be elected Russian president, Mrs. Gorbachev, like her husband, is still more admired outside her own country than within. ///END OPT ///TEXT: In the Middle East, there are more comments about the hardships being wrought on the Iraqi people by the economic boycott against Saddam Hussein. However, New York's Newsday, on Long Island, says "Iraq Doesn't Deserve to Have Its Sanctions Lifted." VOICE: As pressure increased in the United Nations for easing sanctions on Baghdad or dropping them altogether, [President] Clinton must summon the will to stand fast and veto any such move to reward Hussein's enduring defiance. ... As long as Hussein is in control, Iraq will continue to be a massive headache. /// OPT ///TEXT: Back in Asia, there is still more criticism of the draconian measures Malaysia is taking toward the news media and other government critics. Here's the Honolulu (Hawaii) Star-Bulletin on that. VOICE: Last April the former deputy prime minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, was found guilty of four charges of corruption and sentenced to six years in prison. [Mr.] Anwar had been charged with abusing his position by attempting to block an investigation into charges that he had committed adultery and sodomy. . [Mr.] Anwar had been [Prime Minister] Mahathir Mohamad's protege and probable successor until the two men fell out over government economic policy during the Asian economic crisis. . The treatment of [Mr.] Anwar is a measure of how far the Malaysian courts have come from the time when they were respected throughout the world. Judges have also been remarkably harsh with people who criticized the courts. Murray Hierbert, a Canadian journalist for the Far Eastern Economic Review . has begun serving a six-week jail term for the crime of "scandalizing the court." [Mr.] Hiebert wrote about a lawsuit by the wife of a prominent judge ... [who] ... sued her son's' school, alleging that it had unfairly dropped him from the debate team. ... Prime Minister Mahathir bears a heavy responsibility for politicizing the justice system and damaging individual rights. His treatment of [Mr.] Anwar alone is enough to make him a pariah. /// END OPT ///TEXT: There is some strong criticism of a recent deal between the United States and North Korea, with support from South Korea and Japan, involving an end to some economic sanctions against Pyongyang in return for a halt to long-range missile testing by the North. Says The Augusta, Georgia, Chronicle: VOICE: It has been clear throughout the `90s that the Clinton administration policy toward North Korea is to appease, and Pyongyang's policy toward the U-S is to play the extortion game. It's got to stop. /// OPT ///END OPT ///TEXT: Lastly, some thoughts on the plan for a new Northern Ireland police force, recently put forth by the former British governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten. The Los Angeles Times says of the year-long Northern Ireland peace effort: VOICE: [The 175 recommendations] . could help set the foundation for policing in a time of peace. These proposals could improve almost any police force, but perhaps not without a radical overhaul of law enforcement and security practices. And that's precisely what's called for in Northern Ireland, where the heavy-handed Royal Ulster Constabulary, a largely Protestant force, enforces the law. Nevertheless, the vast majority in Northern Ireland understands that the population must embrace these proposals or risk what few political gains have been made. . The Patten report is a road map to sensible security. TEXT: That concludes this sampling of comment from
Tuesday's U-S press.
NEB/ANG/rrm
21-Sep-1999 11:28 AM EDT (21-Sep-1999 1528 UTC)
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