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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 3, No. 189, 99-09-28Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 3, No. 189, 28 September 1999CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTE
[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] GEORGIA DENIES INTERCEPTING CHECHEN ARMS SMUGGLERSGeorgianBorder Guards Commander Valerii Chkheidze on 27 September rejected as "absolute rubbish" Russian media reports that two days earlier his men had detained five Chechens attempting to transport weapons across the border from Georgia into Chechnya, Interfax reported. He added that such reports are intended to create a negative image of Georgia as "a country conniving with terrorists." Also on 27 September, Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze similarly denied repeated Russian claims that arms are entering Chechnya via Georgia. He said that the only source of such clandestine weapons transfers are the Russian bases located in Georgia. Shevardnadze also told journalists that Georgia will not "change the regime" on Georgia's 80 kilometer border with Chechnya as it does not want to "support terrorism." But "Nezavisimaya gazeta" noted on 28 September that there are no effective controls along that frontier. LF [02] PRESIDENTS OF RUSSIA, KAZAKHSTAN AGREE TO MEETDuring atelephone conversation on 27 September, Boris Yeltsin and Nursultan Nazarbaev agreed on an unofficial meeting to be held at an unspecified date next month, ITAR-TASS reported. They also discussed the 24 September meeting in Astana of the prime ministers of the CIS Customs Union member states as well as Nazarbaev's separate talks with Russian Premier Vladimir Putin (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 September 1999). LF [03] KAZAKHSTAN'S OPPOSITION CANDIDATES PROTEST ATTEMPTED VOTEBUYINGThe leaders of the Azamat (Citizen) Party said at a press conference in Almaty on 27 September that the pro- presidential Civic Party has spent almost $1 million on its campaign for the 10 October elections to the lower chamber of the parliament, RFE/RL's bureau in the former capital reported. Part of that sum, they added, was provided by foreign investors. The law on elections does not set an upper limit on campaign spending. Also on 27 September, independent candidate Erkin Sultanbekov told a separate press conference that some candidates are attempting to win voters by buying computers for local schools or distributing food and clothing to orphanages. LF [04] KAZAKHSTAN'S UIGHUR MINORITY APPEALS TO PRESIDENTOrganizations representing Kazakhstan's ethnic Uighurs havesent an open letter to President Nazarbaev alerting him to the oppression of Uighurs in western China's Xinjiang Province, RFE/RL's Almaty bureau reported on 28 September. Sixteen ethnic Uighurs were sentenced to death in that region last week. Yusufbek Mukhlisi, who heads the Eastern Turkistani Revolutionary Front, told RFE/RL on 28 September that after the meeting of the "Shanghai Five" states in Bishkek last month (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 26 August 1999), the Chinese authorities launched a crackdown on Uighurs in Xinjiang. Those five states are Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. LF [05] KYRGYZSTAN PREPARING TO STRIKE AGAINST GUERRILLAS?Interfaxon 27 September quoted National Guard Commander Lieutenant- General Abdygul Chotbaev as saying that preparations are under way for a military strike against the ethnic Uzbek guerrillas holding 13 hostages in southern Kyrgyzstan. But Chotbaev added that all other possible means of securing the hostages' release, including "people's diplomacy," should also be used. Human Rights Movement of Kyrgyzstan Chairman Tursunbek Akunov left Bishkek last week for an unnamed Islamic state where he hopes to hold talks with the "senior commanders" of the guerrillas, RFE/RL's Bishkek bureau reported on 27 September. Akunov has been mediating between the guerrillas and the Kyrgyz leadership for several weeks. LF [06] TAJIK VOTERS APPROVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTSIn anationwide referendum on 26 September, voters overwhelmingly endorsed proposed changes to 27 articles of the country's constitution, Reuters reported. The final results of that vote are not yet available. Turnout was 91.2 percent of the 2.9 million electorate. The amendments provide for creating a bicameral parliament, extending the president's term in office from five to seven years, and allowing the formation of religious-based political parties (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 24 September 1999). LF [07] TAJIK OPPOSITION NAMES PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATEThe IslamicRenaissance Party, resuming its congress on 27 September after a one week-break, approved Minister of Economic and Foreign Economic Relations Davlat Usmon as its candidate for the 6 November presidential elections, Interfax and ITAR-TASS reported. Usmon was nominated by recently elected IRP chairman Said Abdullo Nuri, RFE/RL's Tajik Service reported. From 1990-1992 he was deputy chairman of the IRP and served as deputy premier in the National Reconciliation Government in 1992. ITAR-TASS quoted First Deputy Prime Minister Hodja Akbar Turandjonzoda as arguing at the congress that the party should not nominate a candidate for the poll, as doing so "could consolidate anti-Islamic forces against us." LF [B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[08] OPPOSITION PROTESTS CONTINUE IN SERBIATens of thousands ofpeople on 27 September demonstrated for the seventh straight day against the rule of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, Reuters reported. At least 15,000 protesters--less than one-third of the number who had taken to the streets the previous day--gathered in Belgrade's Republic Square to attend mock trials of Milosevic and his wife, Mirjana Markovic. Rally organizers blamed the low turnout on bad weather. In Novi Sad, opposition leader Nenad Canak said he will form a "transitional government" for Vojvodina and that he himself will be "premier." He added that he will seek international aid for the province. High turnouts were reported at rallies in Nis, Cacak, and Kragujevac. Serbian opposition leader Vuk Draskovic said in Prague the same day that he advocates ousting Milosevic by means of elections rather than street demonstrations (see above). PB [09] OPPOSITON ACTIVIST DETAINED IN BELGRADEMarchers in Belgradestopped and jeered at the capital's main police station to protest the arrest of opposition activist Nikola Djurickovic as well as a new police action that began on 27 September, AP reported. Djurickovic--who owns the sound system used at the Belgrade opposition rallies--was arrested the previous day and sentenced to a week in jail for having "irregular" residence papers. Police began a door-to-door action on 27 September to check the residence papers of all Belgrade citizens, saying this would let citizens "get acquainted" with local police. The opposition claims it is a "police sweep" aimed at opponents of the government. Vladan Batic, an organizer of the opposition rallies, said the government is "trying to count the opponents of the regime and mark us with yellow ribbons," as Germans had done with Jews before and during World War II. PB [10] YUGOSLAV RED CROSS SAYS POVERTY INCREASING...The Yugoslavbranch of the International Red Cross said on 27 September that some 2 million Yugoslavs are living in poverty, the news agency Beta reported, citing the daily "Blic." It said some 800,000 people are dependent on humanitarian aid. It is unclear if these figures include people in Kosova. The government said there are some 700,000 refugees from Bosnia- Herzegovina and Croatia in Serbia and about 250,000 displaced people from Kosova. The newspaper reported that the average wage has fallen below $80 a month. PB [11] ...AS CURRENCY LOSES VALUEThe Yugoslav dinar fell on theBelgrade black market on 27 September owing to growing inflation, Reuters reported. The exchange rate was 14-14.5 to the German mark compared with 13.5-14 the previous day. The official exchange rate is 6 dinars to DM1. Local media reported recent price hikes of between 10 and 300 percent on various goods. PB [12] SOLANA IMPRESSED WITH SERB, ETHNIC ALBANIAN EFFORTS INKOSOVANATO Secretary-General Javier Solana said on 27 September that the security situation in Kosova is improving and that he believes all sides are working toward peace and stability in the Serbian province, Beta reported. Speaking in Prishtina after talks with officials from the international community, Solana said some 45,000 UN peacekeeping troops (KFOR) from 45 countries have been deployed in Kosova thus far. He also praised the "brilliant leadership" of KFOR commander Lieutenant-General Michael Jackson and the UN's Kosova mission head, Bernard Kouchner. He warned that anyone who commits "criminal deeds" in Kosova will be punished. In Belgrade, Serbian official Veljko Odalovic said some 300 non- Albanians have been killed and 500 kidnapped in Kosova since KFOR troops arrived in June. In other news, the bodies of 22 ethnic Albanian men were discovered in a mass grave outside of Mitrovice. PB [13] SERBS IN KOSOVA CHARGED WITH WAR CRIMESThe internationalwar crimes tribunal at The Hague said on 28 September that it has provided UN peacekeeping forces in Kosova with information and evidence that led to the arrest of nine Serbs suspected of committing atrocities in Kosova, AP reported. The men were arrested in Rahovec and Mitrovice over the past three days by German, Dutch, and French KFOR troops. They are charged "in relation to war crimes in Kosovo," tribunal spokesman Paul Risley said. The men will be tried in the Serbian province, he said, adding that they have not been indicted by the court in The Hague. PB [14] BOSNIAN PRESIDENCY CHAIRMAN LAMENTS CORRUPTION, CRIMEAnteJelavic, the Croatian member and chairman of the Bosnian presidency, said on 27 September that terrorism, crime, and corruption are the greatest deterrents to the postwar development of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Hina reported, citing the Sarajevo daily "Oslobodjenje." Jelavic said that all people in administrative posts should be held responsible for that situation. Jelavic said that various tax rates and excise duties in the two entities that make up the Bosnian Federation have created conditions in which organized crime flourishes. PB [15] IRANIAN PRESIDENT PROMISES SUPPORT TO BOSNIAMohammadKhatami pledged his country's continued support to Bosnia- Herzegovina during a meeting in Tehran with Alija Izetbegovic, the Muslim member of the Bosnian presidency, on 27 September, the Iranian state agency IRNA reported. Khatami said that the Balkans are a "linking chain" between East and West. Izetbegovic called for strengthening bilateral relations and increasing economic ties. In other news, a Bosnian Muslim team said it has recovered the remains of 110 people in and around the town of Prijedor. The people were allegedly killed by Serbian forces from April to July 1992. PB [16] ALBANIA PROTESTS CALL FOR SEPARATE SERBIAN CORPS IN KOSOVAAlbania said demands by Serbian leaders in Kosova to create aparallel Serbian civil defense corps in the province are "provocative," Reuters reported. Deputy Foreign Minister Pellumb Xhufi said that Tirana is "categorically against" the setting up of such a force. He added that "the Kosova Protection Corps includes Serbs and is not exclusively Albanian." In other news, Albania and Macedonia agreed on 27 September to increase transport links between the two countries. Air traffic is to be restored between Skopje and Tirana, while a ferry link from Pogradec to the town of Ohrid will be inaugurated. A railway line between Pogradec and the Macedonian town Struga is also planned. PB [17] ROMANIAN PRESIDENT URGES PASSAGE OF LAND OWNERSHIP LAWSEmilConstantinescu has sent a letter to the leaders of the political parties represented in the parliament urging them to pass a package of bills on land ownership, according to a 27 September Rompres report cited by the BBC. The bills deal with the restoration of land ownership rights to farm land, forests, and waters as well as the privatization of farm land. In the letter, Constantinescu reminded the leaders that time is running out, given their 9 September promise to pass the bills within three weeks. VG [18] LOCAL GROUPS CLASH IN ROMANIAN CITYPolice arrested ninepeople in the city of Brasov on 27 September who allegedly were involved in a confrontation between local groups two days earlier, an RFE/RL correspondent reported. The clash started when 100 or so small-business owners, armed with clubs and knives, gathered to fight a gang that allegedly extorts money from them. Some 300 police officers were required to keep the two groups apart. The Romanian news agency Mediafax reported that the confrontation involved two rival gangs involved in a struggle for influence in the city. Several newspapers criticized the police for not making any arrests until two days after the incident. Prime Minister Radu Vasile said the police's response was "inadmissible." VG [19] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT ALTERS PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGESPresidential spokesman Anatol Golea on 27 September said thedraft law to amend the constitution has been altered following consultations with representatives of the Council of Europe, BASA-Press reported. Golea said the president's office has decided to scrap two provisions of the draft law stating that the president would be the chairman of the Supreme Council of the Magistrate and would be responsible for naming the prosecutor-general. The draft law is designed to increase the powers of the presidency. VG [20] BULGARIA CONSIDERS ALLOWING FOREIGNERS TO BUY LANDBulgarianPrime Minister Ivan Kostov has said his country may lift its constitutional ban on foreign ownership of land, according to a 27 September BTA report cited by the BBC. Kostov said the ban might be lifted in conjunction with the preparation of a package of laws on local self-government. VG [21] BULGARIAN PRESIDENT ASKS WEST TO HELP BALKANSPetar Stoyanovon 27 September said the best way to encourage the Serbian people to overthrow Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic is to help other countries in the Balkans, "The Chicago Tribune" reported the next day. Stoyanov, who is currently on a visit to the U.S., said Serbs must be shown that cooperation with the West pays off for countries in the region. He added that "any visible success in countries like Bulgaria, Romania, or Macedonia sends this message to the Serbian people." Stoyanov said Bulgaria has lost the equivalent of $5 million owing to UN sanctions and embargoes in the region over the past decade. He added that his country needs Western aid and investment. VG [C] END NOTE[22] MOSCOW'S CHECHEN OPTIONSBy Liz FullerStatements by leading Russian politicians and military officers over the past few days suggest that the Russian leadership is still undecided about the most effective way to defuse the threat that Chechen radicals pose. Those radicals are led by field commanders Khattab and Shamil Basaev, who have launched two invasions of Daghestan since early August. In military terms, there are four options. First, Moscow could launch a massive ground offensive, as was the case in December 1994. Second, it could intensify the aerial bombardment of Chechen targets, which Russian officials still insist is directed not against the civilian population but only against locations and facilities used by the "guerrillas." Third, it could send its own commandos into Chechen territory to locate and wipe out the most influential Chechen field commanders. And fourth, it could opt for a division of Chechnya, attempting to bring the northern, lowland region under its control while continuing massive air strikes against Grozny and the mountainous south. The dividing line between the two sectors would be the River Terek. It is in the south that Chechnya's oil, one of the sources of funding for the guerrillas' operations, is located. Depriving the "viable" northern half of Chechnya's most important prospective source of income would therefore increase the region's dependence on the federal budget. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has ruled out the first option "for the time being," saying that "if in order to eliminate the base of terrorism we have to use special forces, then we will do so, but very, very, accurately." That statement could be construed as Moscow's favoring the third option. "Nezavisimaya gazeta" noted last week that preparations for a full-fledged ground war could not be completed before the deterioration of weather conditions within the next four to six weeks. The newspaper also noted that it is politically inexpedient to launch such a war in the run-up to the December elections to the State Duma. Defense Minister Igor Sergeev said on 26 September that a ground operation cannot be ruled out. He added that several possible variants of such an operation exist, the primary objective of which would be to "eliminate bandits" and create a "security zone" around Chechnya. "Izvestiya" quoted an unnamed Russian military officer as saying that the third option is the most logical. He added that operations to eliminate specific field commanders were planned more than once during the 1994-1996 Chechen war but had invariably been called off under pressure from unidentified politicians in Moscow. Russian Air Force Commander Anatolii Kornukov has ruled out the second option, telling Interfax on 25 September that Russia will not resort to carpet-bombing to destroy Chechnya's infrastructure. The U.S., too, has made clear its opposition to indiscriminate air strikes, calling on Moscow to scale down its military operations against Chechnya and try to resolve the crisis through dialogue. Moscow's choice of military tactics will hinge on its plans for administering Chechnya once the guerrilla threat is neutralized and some semblance of order restored. With regard to those plans, the choice is more limited: Moscow can either continue to support President Aslan Maskhadov or select a "puppet" head of a "government in exile." Having initially advocated the latter course, Putin last week appeared to retreat from that position, saying that if Moscow decides on negotiations, Maskhadov, as the elected president of Chechnya, is the only possible interlocutor. But on 27 September, Putin said such talks are contingent on Maskhadov expressing condolences to the relatives of the more than 300 victims of the apartment bombings in Moscow, Buynaksk and Volgodonsk. The Russian authorities claim that Chechen terrorists were responsible for those attacks but have offered little evidence to corroborate those claims. If Moscow is confident that most Chechens support Maskhadov, rather than the field commanders who oppose him (some of whom participated in the attacks on Daghestan), then the most logical course of action would be the fourth of the military options listed above: seeking to divide Chechnya into a northern zone loyal to Moscow and a southern zone that, theoretically, could be blasted into the Stone Age in an attempt to eliminate the offending field commanders. That option would require deploying more Russian troops in Daghestan, to where the field commanders would withdraw in order to escape any carpet-bombing. It would also require intervention sooner rather than later in order to minimize the damage inflicted on northern Chechnya as well as alleviate the alienation and bitterness of the population of the northern region. Maskhadov's traditional support base is in the north of Chechnya. So, too, is that of one potential candidate for the post of head of a provisional Chechen government in exile: former State Duma speaker Ruslan Khasbulatov. In a recent interview with "Nezavisimaya gazeta," Khasbulatov expressed his intention to return to main-stream Russian politics. Alternatively, Doku Zavgaev, who was installed in Grozny in October 1995 to head a pro-Russian puppet government, could be recalled from his present post as Russia's ambassador to Tanzania to head such a cabinet. 28-09-99 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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