News for February 7th, 1997

The Yugoslav Society for the Constitutional Law expressed their "deepest disagreement with the tragic-comic attempt for the ending of the crises in which this country has found itself", in reference to the demand of the president of Serbia for a special law which would end the dispute regarding the local elections. The society also expressed its concern that the adoption of the special law (lex specialis) will open the possibility for the indefinite prolonging of the unconstitutional state which the country is in.

Well known legal experts, judges, professors and lawyers, estimated in Belgrade tonight that the law, proposed by the President of Serbia, which will would enable recognition of local election results is unconstitutional and is just a way for Slobodan Milosevic to say: "I am the State". This is not lex specialis but a political action sui generis which could act as a law saying, between the lines, that extraordinary measures have been introduced, said Zoran Tomic, professor on Law School, addressing a packed amfitheatre No. 5 on the School of Philosophy in a debate about the post-election crisis in Serbia. The debate, organized by the Student Protest, was visited by judges of the Supreme Court who expressed to the public on the 3rd of December last year their disapproval of the manipulation of the courts during the election crisis, by judges of other courts and by Slobodan Vucetic, judge of the Constitutional Court of Serbia. Many lawyers of Belgrade and professors of the Philosophy School were also present.

The coalition Zajedno in Smederevo asked of the Smederevo police department to stop disturbing the peaceful citizens and stop the constant identification, questioning and arresting of the activists and supporters of the coalition Zajedno.

The reconstruction of the Serbian Government will be announced at the session of the Serbian Parliament, on which the law resolving the ongoing political crises should be adopted.

The delegates of the parties in the coalition Zajedno will not take part in the session of the Serbian Parliament at which the law recognizing the local elections is to be adopted, stated Slobodan Vuksanovic, spokesman for the Democratic Party. Vuksanovic also confirmed that the coalition will launch an amendment which would include the counties of Novi Beograd and Mladenovac. The coalition will continue their demonstrations until the Parliament acknowledges the results of the local elections in accordance with the report of the OSCE committee.

The Syndicate of Doctors and Pharmacists of Serbia invited its members and all other doctors, dentists and pharmacists to the protest gathering at the plateau in front of the School of Philosophy on Saturday, February 8, at 6 o'clock.

In their letter to the public, 14 members of the RTS cultural editorial strongly condemned the brutal behaviour of the police, the entry of the School of Philosophy and the beating and arresting of students.

The Crises Headquarters of the Art Academy in Novi Sad issued announcement to the public, after yesterday's assembly of the students and professors of the Academy, at which the official lecture boycott was stated.

The representatives of the coalition Zajedno did not come to the consultations with the president of FRY Zoran Lilic regarding the mandates in the new federal government even though their invitation was promptly delivered, as was the case with all the other parties in the Federal Parliament. Lilic will continue the consultations on Monday.

The local Board of the Syndicate for education, science and culture in Pirot decided today to continue the strike until further notice.

The teachers in all the schools in Kragujevac stopped classes demanding the payment of the December and January salaries, which would allow for the government and the syndicate to start talks.

The representatives of the Serbian government and the syndicate of education workers did not come to an agreement regarding the end of the strike which has lasted for more than two weeks, since the government didn't accept the demands of the teachers for the payment of the December and January salaries and the increasing of the wages.

The Norwegian ambassador in Yugoslavia Jon Gardner handed the president of the Civic Alliance of Serbia, Vesna Pesic the invitation of the Norwegian Helsinki Committee to visit Oslo.

Vesna Pesic, the president of the Civic Alliance of Serbia and delegate in the Serbian Parliament has prepared the amendments to the proposed law of the determination of the temporary results as final in the elections for the delegates in the county and city Parliaments. The amendment proposes the results stated in the records from the electoral location instead of the naming of the temporary results as definite.

The delegation of the Protest Board of the Students Protest of the University of Nis spoke with the head of the information service of the Third Army Division of the Yugoslav Army, colonel Velimir Obradovic, who told the student that the army would not get involved in the events surrounding the local elections in Serbia.

Dusan Kovacevic, drama writer, said at the 82nd protest rally of the coalition Zajedno in Nis that Serbia will be lead by the student generation.

The inhabitants of a number of Belgrade settlements continued the action "Noise in fashion", through which they have been protesting since January 2 against the reports of the government controlled RTS.

About 2,000 citizens of Leskovac gathered tonight in the city center at the 57th protest against the annulment of the results of the local elections. The police didn't allow the demonstrators to go for the protest walk through the city.

Thousands of citizens continued their protest in Kragujevac demanding the complete acknowledgment of the results of the local elections in Serbia.

The Fund for Humanitarian Rights called all the victims and witnesses of the police violence against the attenders of the protest in Belgrade to contact this organization and help the identification of the victims and policemen who beat the demonstrators and accidental passers.

The Musical New Year was celebrated in Leskovac tonight, but "Zajedno" coalition followers stopped a formal procession, which was to be lead by Snezana Djurisic, the guest of honour, because of her alleged statement in which she called the students a mob. The demonstrators explained that the reason for their gathering was Mrs. Djurisic's statement in which she said that the students were a mob and that she would confront them with tanks, even if her own children were among them".

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