Pale – Only a few hours after RS President Biljana Plavsic asserted in an interview to the German magazine Der Spiegel that she, having the constitutional right to do so, is not afraid to arrest her enemies headed by Radovan Karadzic, her exclusion from the SDS party of Serb countries took place. It was demanded that Mme. Plavsic step down from her position of the RS President and hand over her authorities to Dragoljub Mirjanic, Vice President, SDS Main Board voted for her removal.
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Pale – The world media agencies reported late afternoon yesterday, urgent information that SFOR troops surrounded the house of war crimes indicted Radovan Karadzic. According to the witnesses, in the action of the French and Italian troops near Karadzic’s dwelling, armoured transporters and helicopters were used in the action. According to the UN sources in Zagreb, it represents a kind of rehearsal, not only for Karadzic’s arrest but for that of all other war crimes indicted persons.
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Brioni – After receiving Bill Clinton’s message that there will be no more bargaining with peace in the Balkans, Franjo Tudjman held talks with US Ambassador to the UN, Bill Richardson. The Croatian President promised to use all his influence in Croatia to secure the arrest of all Croats indicted for war crimes committed in BiH who are believed to live in the territory controlled by HVO. Tudjman promised also to help with the strengthening of the BiH Federation. In this regard, he expects a meeting with President Izetbegovic as soon as possible. Tudjman also promised to let all Serbs who wish to come back to Croatia to do so.
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The Voice of America reported that the Hague Tribunal gave an ultimatum to the Croatian Defence Minister Gojko Susak to appear before the Tribunal in case that the Government in Zagreb refuses to submit the documents demanded in the prosecution process of the former HVO Commander, General Tihomir Blaskic. Blaskic’s lawyer said that the Hague Tribunal has no legal right to demand that Susak submit the documents, since they are state property and not Susak’s private papers.
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Zagreb – Croatia requested of various international institutions that General Jacques Klein remains in his current position in Slavonia, instead of taking over as Senior Deputy to the HR in BiH. President Tudjman demanded it personally from the UN Security Council and Foreign Minister Granic filed the same request to Madeleine Albright. The answer was negative since the US wish to have a man of good knowledge of the situation in the field in BiH in order to influence the DPA implementation before withdrawal of the American troops in August next year, Ivan Simunovic, Croatian Ambassador to the UN announced.
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Brcko – Robert Farrand, Brcko supervisor, officially opened the OHR Information Office in Stari Rasadnik, near Brcko in RS. The main task of the Office, in which international representatives will work 24 hours a day, is to give timely and accurate information to the expelled and displaced persons who wish to return to their homes.
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Sarajevo – BiH Trade Union addressed Boro Bosic, CoM Co-Chair and the other RS members of the CoM in a statement asking them to attend the next CoM session which will deal with a working program of the Donors Conference for reconstruction of BiH on 23 and 24 July in Brussels. Non attendance of the session would be counterproductive for the RS workers, since they would consciously refuse any significant means of help which the World Bank and the IMF have been planning for BiH reconstruction, which also means for RS.
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Summary SRT TV News
Pale – On July 19, late in the evening, the SDS HQ held a session on which it discussed Plavsic’s actions as a member of the SDS HQ in relation to the programme of the Party. Of 84 HQ members, 55 who attended the session unanimously agreed to dismiss Plavsic from SDS, and again appealed on her to resign. They also agreed that the Party unity must be preserved in order to resist the attempts to disintegrate it in the future.2:00
Bijeljina – Meeting of the RS Defence Ministry, MUP (headed by Kijac), and VRS – A joint press release was issued with regard to the current security situation in the RS:
- The defence forces will act in line with the RS constitution and defend the RS citizens, RS independence, its territory and Constitution;
- The VRS and MUP will act together and undertake measures to protect the above;
- The defence forces will, besides protection of the Constitution, also tend to their moral duties and defend RS institutions that act in line with the Constitution and interests of the RS;
- The VRS and MUP will respect the DPA;
- They call for all the IC organisations to carry out their duties in accordance their mandates, whereas the RS citizens should not jeopardise the already weak relations between the IC and RS institutions.
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Pale – The session of the RS Government – The Government discussed the RS participation at the donors’ conference, to be held on July 23 and 24. They agreed to start with the control and inspection of all RS enterprises for the purpose of learning which companies refused to pay taxes during the war and post-DPA period, whereas the financial police will see that their debts are serviced.
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Pale – The Collegium of the RS Parliament condemned the act of burning copies of the only RS state newspapers, Glas Srpski, which had been organised in front of the Presidential Palace in Banja Luka yesterday. They concluded that this was not an act of dissatisfied RS citizens, but yet another clumsy attempt of Plavsic’s supporters to draw attention to themselves. The Collegium thinks that Plavsic has committed an act of vandalism and taken one step further into the abyss. They underlined that this is not in accordance with the Sintra Declaration, the Paragraph on freedom of media, and asked the RS public attorney to instigate proceedings and punish those responsible for the act.
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The Editorial of the Glas Srpski also condemned the act of burning of several hundred copies of Glas Srpski, saying that this act is an imitation of the similar act of the ‘German corporal’, who had first burned down all the newspapers and institutions that had refused to support his policy, and then burned people in concentration camps. The Editorial wonders how neither Plavsic’s Cabinet nor any of independent papers or media send a letter of protest against such an act.
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Banja Luka Nezavisne Novine condemned the act of burning copies of Glas Srpski and said that politicians should not use media to attack each other.
Banja Luka – The RS President Plavsic held a meeting with the head of OSCE mission in BiH, Frowick. There was no press release issued nor statements given after the meeting, but SRT assumed that they discussed the forthcoming municipal elections in the RS and Federation.
Flash News:
In tomorrow’s issue, Der Spiegel quotes Plavsic who had said that she would use both the army and police to defend herself and order them to arrest Karadzic if necessary. She also accused Karadzic of killing his own people and establishing close ties with Milosevic. The Greek Eleftero Tipus quoted one Greek lawyer, an old friend of Karadzic, who said that the IC’s intention is not to arrest Karadzic, but prevent him from having any political influence. The current situation in the RS is a result of the bad US policy in the RS and Federation, the lawyer said.
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