Sarajevo – market massacre remembrance day – TV BiH showed pictures of the market massacre ‘to those who survived so they do not forget what happened, and to those who are now here to implement the DPA but who are not informed well about the Bosnian tragedy’.
Kalesija – the BiH Commission for Exchange took over from ICTY the bodies of 303 Srebrenica people killed in the course of the ‘exodus and massive murders caused by the chetniks’. The ICTY exhumed two mass graves located in the RS – Lazeta and Pilice. According to Amor Masovic, president of the Commission, some of the bodies were found ‘incomplete’ which proves that mass graves had been partly exhumed by the Serb team before the ICTY came, so as to hide the traces of the crime. He said he has information that there are still some bodies left at the Pilica site. It is obvious, Masovic said, that the people were mass-executed. TV BiH reiterated that of 8000 missing persons, 714 bodies have been exhumed so far. They warned that the world has not even tried to arrest any of those responsible for these crimes except for one pawn – Drazan Erdemovic.
3:00
Sarajevo – market massacre remembrance day – BiH TV showed the pictures of the massacre again because of the ‘world which thinks it is the one that brought peace to BiH, but at the same time forgetting that over 200000 people gave their lives for this country.’ Representatives of the Sarajevo Canton and Stari Grad municipality laid a wreath on the stone slab placed as a memento on the spot where the massacre happened. At the Sarajevo mosques, the Catholic cathedral, and the Orthodox church, people were praying for the victims of the massacre.
3:00
Sarajevo – German Defence Minister Volker Ruhe visited the city today. He met Izetbegovic, Zubak, and BiH Defence minister, and discussed the implementation of the DPA and establishing of the Federation army. He also met CoM Co-chairmen Silajdzic and Bosic after visiting the German SFOR troops in Sarajevo. Minister Ruhe said that the country needs economic development and stabilisation of peace. He believes that, through co-operation, Europe can provide assistance in development, but it will take some time. Silajdzic said that Germany is welcome here and the German soldiers are a stabilising factor in the region. Late this evening Minister Ruhe held a press conference, summing up the impressions of the day. He announced the offer of the German Government to train the Federation army in mine clearance, as well as to provide training for helicopter pilots. 4:00 >Davos – World Economic Forum – Minister of Foreign Trade Muratovic headed the BiH delegation at the Forum. He said that BiH presented the global problems which the country is facing, as well as the problems which could be expected in the future. The BiH delegation also discussed the refugee return, reconstruction of the country, transition process, the forthcoming Donors Conference, and bilateral relations with other countries.
3:00
Stuttgart – refugee return – the German Government should begin the process of returning refugees as of March, in accordance with the agreement signed by BiH and Germany by the end of last year. BiH Consul to Germany Spahic said that this would mean expulsion because the conditions for implementing the bilateral agreement have not been met yet, although BiH Government respects this process because ‘there is no BiH without its people.’ Federal Ministry of refugees, at a presser held today, pointed out the new problem of scattering of BiH refugees overseas instead of returning to their places of origin, whereas the UNHCR will add the final touch to ethnic cleansing by exercising their new plan of return to places of ethnic majority.
4:00
Sarajevo – Mithat Haracic, Sarajevo Canton Governor, sent a letter to HR Bildt regarding the gas situation.
1:00
Summary SRT News
The RS Assembly Commission for Constitutional issues, chaired by Dragan Kalinic, held a meeting in Pale. A special communiquŽ released after the meeting said that a frank and vivid discussion took place in regard to all the issues covered in the Information of the Constitutional Court of RS.5 min
Co-chairman of the CoM, Boro Bosic met with Volker Ruehe, German defence minister, in the Muslim Sarajevo. Also present was Haris Silajdzic. The discussion focused on the mandate of the German soldiers within SFOR. “We come to a conclusion that in the next 18 month we will see further stabilization of the political situation in the country. But we couldn’t make a prognosis for the time required for SFOR or any other International forces to act as a guarantee for peace. Concerning the return of refugees, we believe that minimal conditions for the return should be met, not only of political nature but also economical conditions,” stated Bosic after the meeting.
3 min
In Pale, the 13th session of the RS Government will take place tonight. Among the most important items on the agenda will be the draft regulation on armaments of the RS Interior ministry. Preparations will be made for the fourth meeting of the RS Assembly, scheduled for 7 February on Jahorina. (The session of RS Government was later postponed by tomorrow)
2 min
Vice premier of the RS Government Velibor Ostojic and minister of foreign affairs Aleksa Buha met with the representatives of municipalities of “Old Herzegovina” and discussed the restoration of this area. Special attention was devoted to the problem of refugees. The necessity was expressed for the telecommunication, traffic and information bounding of Herzegovina area with other areas of RS.
2 min
In the last two days, 57 families from Vukovar, Borovo Naselje, Bobota and Trpinje, villages belonging to the Eastern Slavonija and Western Srem, moved to Brcko and asked for shelter. “The world did not give us a chance to choose, we saw what happened in Sarajevo,” stated Svetislav Avramovic from Bobota, who found a ruined house for his family in Gorica near Brcko.
1 min
Moscow described Milosevic’s intention to recognize results of local elections in Serbia as startling. Despite that, the opposition is continuing with demonstrations, seeking freedom of the media and suspension of certain editors-in-chief.
1 min