News Headlines
- 2,000 suffer from flu in RS
- New RS law on health insurance regulates health insurance of families of fallen soldiers and war invalids
- Dodik meets with Austrian Social Democratic Party secretary in Banja Luka
- Registration of RS citizens for privatization began on 3 January
- Better for BiH Parliament to reach compromise on Law on BiH Border Service than for High Representative to impose it – Asanin
- OHR should impose Law on BiH Border Service – Klein
- 10,000 Serbs and Muslims return to Livno Canton – BiH Federation media
- Police officer injured by bomb in Travnik
- BiH Federation 2000 budget 950 million KM – Tanjug
- Unknown assailants throw hand grenade and fire several shots at house in Obilicevo, no injuries
- KFOR arrests two for illegal possession of weapons in Kosovo Polje
- Six arrested for trying to illegally enter Kosovo at Morina border crossing
- Kouchner appeals to Greece to provide electricity for Kosovo – Greek Government official
- Serbian opposition parties hold meeting on joint strategy for elections
- Official Paris supports unification of Serbian opposition parties – French Foreign Ministry
- Prevlaka issue to be resolved soon after presidential elections in Croatia – Granic
- Montenegrin President Advisor Vukovic accuses Yugoslav administration of doing nothing on Prevlaka issue
- World news
- Spiric and Ivanic hold press conferences
- IMC defines instructions for equal media access during election period
- IMC defines prices for long-term licenses
- One badly injured in car accident on Banja Luka-Mrkonjic Grad route on 7 January
- Sports
- Weather
- KFOR arrests suspect of murder in Vitina
- Serbian opposition sign document on joint action
- Serbian opposition announces rally in March
- Serbian opposition to visit Banja Luka on 27 January
News Summary
Better for BiH Parliament to reach compromise on Law on BiH Border Service than for High Representative to impose it – Asanin
BiH Minister for Civil Issues and Communication Marko Asanin stated for RS radio that it would be better if the BiH Parliament reaches a compromise on the issue of the BiH Border Service than for the High Representative to impose a solution. He added that the International Community has a great interest in adoption of this law and the formation of the BiH Border Service, for with the Ministry is preparing in case the law is adopted by the BiH Parliament.
00:29
OHR should impose Law on BiH Border Service – Klein
According to BETA, UN Special Envoy to BiH Jacques Klein stated that the OHR should impose the Law on the BiH Border Service. He added that adoption of the law is being obstructed by hard-liners among the Serb and Croat leaders in BiH. According to Klein, the law would mean the beginning of central institutions and the functioning of a state government. It does not take away any authority from the entities. As Klein stated, the entities are not sovereign and are not republics or separate states. The UN has recognized BiH as a state with which the International Community will cooperate. Klein concluded that formation of the BiH border Service is necessary to fight crime, corruption and smuggling in BiH.
00:45
Spiric and Ivanic hold press conferences
BiH Parliamentary representative Nikola Spiric stated at a press conference in Banja Luka that organized training for Mujahedins in the BiH Federation still exists. According to Spiric, although the BiH House of Representatives decided that the number of naturalized Bosnians should be published, such lists have not yet been submitted. This has caused much anxiety for top officials of BiH and the IC. RS authorities have given no significance to this problem. He added that there is a training camp for Mujahedins in Tesanj and their families are settled in abandoned Serb houses. Spiric said that Serb representatives would do everything at the next session of the BiH House of Representatives to adopt the new Election Law as proposed by the OHR. Democratic Progress Party President Mladen Ivanic stated that the upcoming elections in BiH would be a chance to stabilize political issues in the RS. Commenting on the work of joint BiH institutions, Ivanic said that Serb representatives have been left to themselves and that there is no coordination among RS institutions. He added that Brcko Supervisor Robert Farrand invited his party to nominate members to the Brcko Temporary Assembly, but that they rejected this because the deadline for the work of the Assembly has not yet been defined and because national equality in the Assembly has not been provided.
01:40
IMC defines instructions for equal media access during election period
The Independent Media Commission has defined instructions for equal media access during the election period in BiH. The IMC demands that all media outlets and press agencies provide equal access to all registered political parties, coalitions and independent candidates for any level of BiH authority. All public media outlets must provide free space for political campaign ads that are to be broadcast when they would reach a majority of the audience. Equality must be offered by individual media outlets to all campaign ads and candidates registered in election areas covered by the outlet. Private media outlets are not obligated to offer free access to parties, but if they do for one, they must do the same for all others on an equal basis. Each political unit must request that a media outlet broadcast their ads. The maximum duration of campaign ads is 60 seconds and the outlets must not shorten them unless they are longer than allowed. Media outlets can request that political units pay for the production of campaign ads at the same price for all units on an equal level of service. If ads are made free of charge for any political unit, the same must be done for any other similar requests. During the election period, public media outlets are required to provide political programming composed of balanced and complete information for voters. Private outlets are advised to provide political programming in the same manner. All political units must be provided an equal chance for participation without the obligation to pay. All political advertisements must be clearly marked as such with a note saying who paid for them. Ads cannot be longer than two minutes. Total time of a paid political ad must not extend five minutes per hour of political programming. During the election period, no media outlet can broadcast over 30 minutes of paid political ads from any individual political unit.
02:16
IMC defines prices for long-term licenses
The IMC issued an announcement stating that radio and TV outlets would have to pay for their long-term licenses depending on the power of their transmitters. TV stations having 0-250 watt transmitters would pay 100 KM per month, 250-500 watts 350 KM, 500-1000 watts 900 KM and over 1000 watts 4000 KM. Radio stations are to pay half of the above prices for the respective power of their transmitters. If a broadcast company does not pay within three months, it will lose its broadcast license.
01:16