Informazione
Center for Research on Globalization
Remember Iraq, Afghanistan and Yugoslavia
Speaking of Blackouts
www.globalresearch.ca 17 August 2003
The URL of this article is:
http://globalresearch.ca/articles/PRI308A.html
---
Speaking of blackouts.....maybe after experiencing a mere 16 or so
hours without power, people in the Canadian province of Ontario and in
the American states of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York might
think a bit about what it means when we wage war on civilians in other
countries and bomb electrical power plants.
And of course, when a power plant is bombed, the power does not come
back on in 16 hours as it did here. It is out for days, weeks , or
months, along with water treatment and pumping facilities, sewage and
sanitary systems, all food refrigeration and storage, hospitals and
medical facilities and communication and transport that depend on
electricity.
As very brief reminder, here are a few news items from [Iraq
April-August 2003] and May 1999 when we bombed power plants in
Yugoslavia. Remember, but more importantly...think.
Mart (PRIME News Group)
---
THE IMPACTS OF THE ELECTRICITY BLACKOUT IN IRAQ (2003)
The Age, Melbourne, 21 April 03
"Hundreds of people are dying who should not die, simply because there
is a lack of adequate nursing and because basic operations cannot be
performed due to the lack of medicines and electricity. Unless they get
the power and the water back on soon we are facing a disaster," (The
Age, Melbourne, 21 April 03)
Morning Star, 21 April 03
But the lack of electricity means that medicines cannot be refrigerated
and much hospital equipment lies idle. The UN children's fund Unicef
says that piles of rubbish are accumulating at the hospitals and up to
70 per cent of patients at the children's hospital now have diarrhoea.
(Morning Star, 21 april 03)
Department of Defense Press Briefing, 12 August 03
MR. BREMER: The problem of power I have addressed before; I will say it
again. The structural problem in electricity in this country is due to
malfeasance and incompetent economic management by the Ba'athists over
a period of almost 40 years. [It is not related to the bombing] When
the war started, this country had about 4,000 megawatts of generating
capability, but the demand was more than 6,000 megawatts. In other
words, before the war, there was a gap of almost 33, 34 percent, a
deficiency.[i.e. not due to economic sanctions and the 1991 Gulf War]
We are working to restore all of the generating capability in the
country. That means getting it back to 4,000 megawatts. We are running
between 3,3(00) and 3,400 megawatts a day. We will try to get to 4,000
megawatts by the end of September. We are affected by the kind of
sabotage which continues to be conducted against transmission lines and
by the lack of maintenance of these systems for a very long time and
the complete lack of capital investment in the power industry.
So getting to the point where we can provide every Iraqi with the
amount of power that he or she wants is a long-term problem, at least
another year, because you cannot create 2,000 megawatts of power
overnight.
What we are trying to do is, therefore, arrive at a solution which has
-- takes into account everybody's interest, not just the interest of a
few elite Ba'athists or people in the Republican Guard or the killers
of the Fedayeen Saddam, but trying to say to all Iraqis: We will share
all of the power we have, but you have to remember we don't have enough
power for everybody.
So three weeks ago, I instituted a policy of sharing the electricity
around the country, which means that at least you can plan on when the
blackouts will happen. Of course, this depends on not having attacks
against the power industry and not having breakdowns because of poor
maintenance.
On the whole, that system is beginning to work, and parts of the
country now are enjoying more electricity than they ever had before,
because we are able to share it.
But it will take time, and I'm sympathetic with the problem of the
people sleeping on their roofs and not having air conditioning at this
time. We simply have to work at it, and we will. We intend to restore
basic services to every Iraqi man, woman and child here, and we will do
that. (DoD Press Briefing, 12 August 03)
Pensacola News, 14 August 03
Paul Bremer, the chief U.S. administrator in Iraq, told reporters it
will take "staggering" sums - about $30 billion - just to restore
Iraq's electricity and water systems. [contracts to Western energy
companies to be financed on borrowed money]. That comes on top of a
reported $4 billion a month to maintain military forces and operations
there.
"It does leave us with a substantial problem in the next year - as we
have to make these major infrastructure investments - about where we're
going to get the capital," he said. Incredibly, Bremer apparently is
hoping that a lot of the money will come from a conference of "donor
nations" [creditors not donors] scheduled for October. Given the lack
of international support for the U.S. effort so far, it seems more
likely that American taxpayers will be the top "donor."
Meanwhile, the Bush administration is angering both Republicans and
Democrats by refusing to provide even rough estimates of what Congress
will be asked to appropriate next year for Iraq.
Bremer rejected an Arab reporter's assertion that the country was in
chaos, despite the fuel riots in Basra, more attacks on U.S. forces
that left two G.I.s dead, severe shortages of electricity exacerbated
by continuing sabotage, last week's bombing of the Jordanian embassy,
and new reports of accidents or sabotage at oil pipelines that have
resulted in fires, interrupting the flow of oil. (Pensacola News, 14
August 03)
CNN 11 August 03
[Denial that the bombing affected Iraq's Electricity Grid]
Paul Bremer and his people will tell you that they are actually
supplying more electricity now than Saddam's government was before the
invasion.
Ret. General Jay Garner Statement to House Sub-committee on National
Security, FDCH, 18 July 2003
GARNER: As I left, the North and South had as good a water and better
electricity than they ever had because they were getting electricity 24
hours a day. Now, the problem was in Baghdad. Because Baghdad never had
the electrical grid capacity to generate enough electricity for the
city. So that the electricity for Baghdad had to be ported or
transported from the northern grids and the southern grids into Baghdad.
Daily Telegraph, 11 August 03
But the British official in charge of the reconstruction of Iraq has
given warning that it could take at least a year before the country's
infrastructure is repaired and running at pre-war levels.
Andy Bearpark, coalition director of operations and infrastructure,
said that four months after the fall of Baghdad many critical
installations, from telephone networks to sewage treatment plants, are
still a year away from their pre-war standards.
And with temperatures hitting upwards of 122F (50C) he said that
pre-war power supply would not be restored to its former levels for
another couple of months, leaving many Iraqis to swelter in the summer
sun.
"We will be up to pre-war generation of electricity in the next 60 or
so days," said Mr Bearpark, 50, a bluff Rochdale man who has spent his
career directing post-war reconstruction across the globe. "At the
moment the minimum supply is three hours on, three hours off."
But protesters have long grown sceptical of coalition promises,
complaining that provision rarely matches them.
Mr Bearpark has his own complaints, blaming rebuilding delays on the
damage caused by looters, such as the organised gangs that strip pylons
of electricity cables for their copper.
It is up to Gen Freddy Viggers, Britain's deputy to the overall
coalition forces commander in Iraq, US Gen Ricardo Sanchez, to ward off
such criminals. "Our main job is to look after the security threat,"
said Gen Viggers, who liaises with Mr Bearpark to provide military
protection for rebuilding projects. 'We try to protect the pylon lines
but beyond that the military can't do much in terms of civil
reconstruction."
So fragile is Iraq's infrastructure that during a recent crisis, when
one of Iraq's main power stations was offline, the country's entire
electricity supply depended on a 30-mile stretch of cable. Mr Bearpark,
who reports directly to Iraq's US administrator, Paul Bremer, said:
"Freddy was able to put guards along that little section of wire to
prevent complete meltdown."
There are other successes, including the rapid re-equipping of schools
in time for the new school year beginning in September. Other complex
exercises, such as the currency swap that will see Saddam Hussein's
face disappear from banknotes from October, are dwarfed by major
projects.
"For the moment we are pumping raw sewage into the Tigris," Mr Bearpark
said. "Getting Baghdad's two sewage stations back will take 12 months.
Then there's the telecoms. Roughly 50 per cent of the network was taken
out by bombing. To get that all back will take a year."
Los Angeles Times, 11 August 03
The riots, in the city's north, were smaller than Saturday's protests
but more violent, British soldiers said.
"They're shooting at us," said one soldier manning a checkpoint. "It's
the petrol queues. They've been without electricity for four days now."
Many Iraqis are convinced that the U.S.-led occupation forces could
provide electricity and gasoline, if only they made it a priority.
"We have no electricity, no gasoline, no water, no butane, no wood,"
said Aruba Saad, a housewife. "Why don't the Americans do something?
How do they expect us to live? We're not animals."
Near the southern city of Diwaniyah, a U.S. soldier in a convoy died of
heat stress Saturday, Central Command said. Another soldier was found
dead in his quarters of unknown causes.
Sunday's unrest came as two Arab television networks broadcast videos
of masked fighters calling for armed uprisings against occupation
forces.
The Herald, Scotland, 14 August 03
[Iraq Electricity Blackout is Good for Business: The Spoils of War]
Patricia Hewitt, the trade and industry secretary, is understood to
have asked the Ministry of Defence to take a more active role in
support of British companies seeking reconstruction work.
She intervened after an approach from Siemens UK, which was putting
together a bid to help repair Iraq's shattered electricity
infrastructure, but faced stiff competition from America's General
Electric.
It was perhaps the first sign of a real impetus on the part of the UK
government to seriously promote UK business interests in the war-torn
country.
That, coupled with the announcement of Mr Wilson being appointed as
Tony Blair's special envoy to Iraq, and the announcement that British
Airways is resuming flights to Iraq after 13 years, may improve
prospects for UK firms.
They have viewed bidding for contracts in Iraq as a case of history
repeating itself, following military interventions in Kosovo and
Afghanistan.
Colin Adams, director of the British Consultants' Bureau, which
co-ordinated restruction projects in Kosovo, has said British firms
would be "extremely well -placed" for the rebuilding of Afghanistan.
---
THE IMPACTS OF THE ELECTRICITY BLACKOUT IN AFGHANISTAN (2001)
The Guardian, 8 October 2001 Attack on Afghanistan: The bombing begins:
50 cruise missiles fired: 2am news
The US and Britain launched a massive air onslaught on Afghanistan last
night, including 50 cruise missiles and wave after wave of heavy
bombers, in the opening blow of what President George Bush vowed would
be a "sustained, comprehensive and relentless" campaign against Osama
bin Laden and his supporters.
Cruise missile strikes aimed at crippling anti-aircraft defences were
followed by raids by high-altitude and stealth bombers. The sorties
were flown from the Gulf and the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia,
while B-2 long-range stealth bombers flew from the American Midwest and
refuelled in mid-air.
The bombing campaign, nearly a month after the terrorist massacres in
New York and Washington, was aimed at devastating the forces of
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban and the threadbare infrastructure of Bin
Laden's al-Qaida organisation.
The first indication from Afghanistan that the campaign had begun came
when several loud explosions were reported in Kabul and electricity
supplies were cut.
[Media lies: Denial that they bombed electricity grids]: New Republic,
29 October 2003
The insistence on not attacking bridges and electricity grids, the
sluggish and exquisitely calibrated air campaign, the parade of
American diplomats courting the former Afghan king--all testify to the
imperative of keeping the country's infrastructure intact.
---
THE IMPACTS OF THE BLACKOUT IN YUGOSLAVIA (1999)
http://cgi.cnn.com/WORLD/europe/9905/02/kosovo.02/
2 May 1999
Serbia plunges into darkness after NATO raid
BELGRADE, Yugoslavia (CNN) -- NATO air raids struck a series of major
Yugoslav power plants Sunday, knocking out power across Serbia,
including Belgrade, senior Yugoslav officials told CNN Sunday.
NATO bombs damaged a power plant in Kostolac, 25 miles (40 km)
southeast of Belgrade along the Danube River, which supplies
electricity to all subsidiary power plants across Serbia.
An official government source said NATO planes also hit a plant in the
southern city of Nis and another in Obrenovac, about 18 miles (30 km)
west of Belgrade.
State-owned Serbian television, a repeated target of NATO airstrikes,
went off the air around 9:45 p.m. (3:45 p.m. ET), as did all other
television and radio stations.
Yugoslav Minister of Health Leposava Milicevic, speaking with CNN by
phone, said the situation was causing serious problems throughout
Serbia.
Without electricity, water could not be supplied to critical locations
like hospitals, she said.
CNN's Brent Sadler, reporting from the Yugoslav capital, said:
"Belgrade is now in darkness for as far as the eye can see."
While there was heavy anti-aircraft fire in Belgrade, Sadler did not
report any explosions in or around the city center of Yugoslavia's
capital.
NATO renews attacks despite prisoner release
NATO and Pentagon declined to say whether the power plants were
targeted for an attack, and deferred further questions until a Monday
morning briefing.
But earlier Sunday, U.S. and alliance officials said that, despite the
release of three U.S. soldiers in Yugoslav captivity, air attacks
against the country will continue unabated.
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic must fully accept NATO conditions
for a resolution to the civil conflict in Kosovo between separatist
ethnic Albanians and Serbian forces before the alliance halts the
airstrikes, the officials said.
Two U.S. warplanes crash in airstrikes
NATO on Sunday reported that it had lost two U.S. aircraft in its
Kosovo air campaign overnight Saturday.
An F-16 crashed about 18 kilometers (11 miles) east of the Serbian town
of Kozluk early Sunday, NATO spokesman Jamie Shea said. The plane was
returning from a combat mission in Yugoslavia.
"The pilot ejected at around 2:20 a.m. (1200 GMT) this morning, and he
was rescued by NATO forces two hours later," Shea said. "He is safely
back at his operating base, where he is receiving medical attention and
being debriefed on the incident."
Serbian air defense officials said they shot down the F-16, but NATO
military spokesman Col. Konrad Freytag said the jet crashed after
experiencing engine failure. He said the cause of the engine failure
was unknown.
The second plane lost was a Harrier jump jet, which crashed into the
Adriatic Sea while returning to the amphibious assault carrier USS
Kearsarge from a t raining mission. Its pilot was also rescued, Shea
said.
Previously, NATO lost an F-117 stealth fighter, which went down in
Serbia on March 27; and an Apache helicopter, which crashed while
training in Albania last month. Four pilotless "drones" also have been
lost.
NATO admits civilian bus strike
NATO also said early Sunday that one of its attacks hit a civilian bus
crossing a bridge near Luzane, north of Kosovo's capital, Pristina.
NATO says the bridge was "used extensively by the Serb armed forces."
At least 34 people died in the attack, according to Serb news reports
and witnesses.
"The pilot released the weapon, and only after he released the weapon
did the bus come on the bridge," Shea said. "We will continue to do
everything we can to try and avoid those kinds of incidents. We can't
eliminate them altogether."
The bus was sliced in half by the attack and caught fire. Half of it
remained on the bridge, while the other half plunged 13 meters (40
feet) over the edge. The bridge remained standing.
Reporters brought to the scene said they saw bodies and body parts
strewn around the scene.
In Macedonia, an estimated 5,000 refugees streamed across the border
within the past day, officials told CNN.
Macedonia refugee plight worsens
Some refugees have only blankets for living quarters At least 80,000
are squeezed into refugee camps with hopelessly inadequate facilities,
they said. For some of the new arrivals, a piece of plastic is all they
can expect for living quarters, as relief officials are unable to house
nearly half the newcomers.
Macedonian Prime Minister Zupce Georievski, touring a border camp
Sunday, expressed concern that his country had "not received one
dollar" from the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.
Four hundred of the refugees are expected to leave Tuesday to fly to
the United States, which has agreed to temporarily house 20,000
Kosovars during the conflict. They will be processed for several weeks
at Fort Dix, New Jersey.
In Albania, new refugees from Kosovo say Serb police are detaining
women and children, possibly using them to serve as human shields.
One refugee from the border town of Prizen said, "It's totally panicky
in the city. They're taking people as hostages."
Reports of intense KLA, Serb combat
In Southwest Kosovo, there were reports of heavy fighting between
separatist ethnic Albanians and Serbian military forces.
Rebels with the Kosovo Liberation Army have engaged in a major
offensive to open a corridor and unite with other KLA forces farther in
the interior of the province, Turkish journalist Mithat Bereket told
CNN.
The Serbian military answered with heavy artillery and tanks, he said.
Bereket said there were indications that the Serbian army was suffering
from low morale and a high rate of desertions.
He said there were reports that Serbian soldiers were making 15- to
50-year-old Kosovar Albanians set up mines, dig trenches against tanks
and give blood to prepare for a ground offensive.
Correspondents Brent Sadler, Tom Mintier and Jane Arraf contributed to
this report.
---
http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/europe/9905/23/kosovo.01/
23 May 1999
NATO strikes at Yugoslav power plants
BELGRADE, Yugoslavia (CNN) -- NATO bombs put Yugoslavia's largest
coal-burning power plant out of business Sunday, the state-run Tanjug
news agency said.
Tanjug said two rockets hit the Nikola Tesla plant near Obrenovac, 30
kilometers (20 miles) southwest of Belgrade, just before dawn. The
attack caused "additional problems" in supplying the Yugoslav capital
with electricity after attacks early Saturday struck the nearby
Kolubara power plant.
Other NATO targets included armored vehicles and tanks; artillery
positions; parked aircraft; a command post; ammunition and petroleum
storage sites; and communications facilities.
"It was quite an intensive night of air operations," NATO spokesman
Jamie Shea said in Brussels, Belgium.
Overnight, NATO planes flew 652 sorties over Yugoslavia, 301 of them
striking targets. Alliance members vowed to continue the strikes until
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic agrees to their conditions for a
safe return of hundreds of thousands of ethnic Albanians who have fled
their homes in Serbia's Kosovo province.
"The NATO campaign is doing real damage to his military machine," said
British Foreign Office Minister Tony Lloyd. "And NATO is prepared to go
on and on with its air campaign while building up its forces necessary
to take the refugees home in safety."
Lloyd added that NATO was equally committed to the diplomatic search
for peace, "but it must be a peace that gives the people of Kosovo a
secure future."
Ground troop debate continues
The British also continued their push for a willingness to send a
ground force into Kosovo before Milosevic has fully complied with
NATO's demands, which include a complete pullout of Yugoslav and Serb
forces from the region.
Returning from a trip to Washington, British Foreign Secretary Robin
Cook told the British Broadcasting Corp. that NATO must be ready to
"deploy troops in a permissive or a non-permissive environment" --
meaning with or without Milosevic's consent.
Cook also praised signals from Washington that the United States was no
longer categorically rejecting early deployment of ground troops.
In an opinion piece published in Sunday's New York Times, U.S.
President Bill Clinton reiterated NATO's oft-stated view that the air
campaign was working, but said he did "not rule out other military
options."
The U.S. has now joined other NATO allies in calling for a larger
peacekeeping force than originally planned. The alliance is massing
some 28,000 troops along the Macedonian border for the mission, but the
U.S. and others said as many a s 50,000 troops should be ready for
action.
NATO's Shea said that the discussion about ground troops was to be
expected from democracies, but the 19 NATO allies were still unified in
their determination to force Milosevic's hand with an air campaign.
"We are not planning an invasion force for Kosovo," he told CNN on
Sunday. "We still have confidence that our air power ... will force the
Serb forces to withdraw from Kosovo. What we are doing is simply
preparing for a peace implementation force which is going to big enough
and robust enough to move quickly into Kosovo ... and allow the
refugees to go back into their homes."
NATO's Shea said that the discussion about ground troops was to be
expected from democracies, but the 19 NATO allies were still unified in
their determination to force Milosevic's hand with an air campaign.
"We are not planning an invasion force for Kosovo," he told CNN on
Sunday. "We still have confidence that our air power ... will force the
Serb forces to withdraw from Kosovo. What we are doing is simply
preparing for a peace implementation force which is going to big enough
and robust enough to move quickly into Kosovo ... and allow the
refugees to go back into their homes."
Correspondent John Raedler contributed to this report.
---
http://www.freeserbia.net/Documents/Kosovo/Shea2.html
NATO plunges Serbia into darkness in overnight strikes
Jamie Shea Backgrounder in Brussels on 3 May 1999
JAMIE SHEA: Good morning! I am here to give you the quick operational
update in the usual fashion. Let me just point out that the Council is
meeting today at 11 o'clock and that I will be back with SHAPE in the
usual fashion at 3 o'clock for the daily operational briefing on camera.
There is one expression of SACEUR's that I'm sure you've heard on many
previous occasions, he has said: "There are tanks and there are tanks!"
What he means by that is that a tank which is stuck in its tracks
because it has no fuel is far less of a tank and far less of a threat
than one that has fuel and can move and as you know -- and I think
President Milosevic has realised this this morning more than ever
before -- there are also command-and-control systems and
command-and-control systems and if a command-and-control system has no
electricity to turn it on, it is of course wire, metal and plastic and
not a functioning military system and that is what we did in our
operations last night, we went out to deprive the command-and-control
system of its electricity, of its power and to reduce it to wire,
plastic and metal.
Alliance aircraft yesterday evening struck the five main electric yards
that distribute power to the Serb armed forces, the military machine of
President Milosevic, the power which supplies his airfields, his
headquarters, his communication systems, his command-and-control
network and no power means no runway lights, no computers, no secure
communications.
More specifically, NATO aircraft last night struck the transformer
yards of Opranovac (phon), a key electrical distribution station in
western Serbia. We also attacked the transformer yard at Nis in
southern Serbia and this has degraded significantly the command,
control and communications capabilities of the 3rd Yugoslav Army
headquartered in Nis; and we hit the transformer yards also in three
other locations -- Bajinabasta (phon), Dermo and Novi Sad -- as well.
I want you to know -- and I want to stress this -- that NATO forces
took the utmost care to ensure that important civilian facilities like
hospitals had redundant power capabilities and that they had therefore
the back-up transformers to keep their systems running through these
power outages and I believe that you have seen from reports this
morning from Belgrade that that was indeed the case, that those
essential civilian services like hospitals were running.
We regret the inconvenience that power outages have caused to the Serb
people but we have no choice but to continue attacking every element of
the Yugoslav armed forces until such time as President Milosevic
accepts the demands of the international community, those five
unconditional points which we reiterate every day and I just want to
remind you of what those five points are: that Milosevic must stop the
killing, that he must get his troops out of Kosovo, that he must accept
an international military presence with NATO as its core to establish
security inside Kosovo, that he must allow without any restriction or
qualification the return of all refugees and that he must work to build
a permanent political solution based on the Rambouillet peace plan and
we are not asking for anything more but we will not settle for anything
less.
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
QUESTION (ABC NEWS): What's on the Council's agenda for today?
JAMIE SHEA: The Council today will be updating its assessments of the
current situation in Kosovo based on a report by Klaus Naumann, the
Chairman of the Military Committee, particularly reviewing -- as I am
doing with you at the moment the developments on the military scene
over the last 24 hours and in that respect let me stress that, as you
know, the last 72 hours have seen the most intensive period thus far of
NATO air operations bringing us beyond the 14,000 sortie mark since the
operation began on 24th March and with on average over 600 sorties per
night in recent nights so I think that will be the first thing on the
agenda.
Secondly, there will be a review of the current humanitarian situation
which continues to cause us enormous concern -- I will be speaking
about that later at 3 o'clock -- and then obviously NATO ambassadors
will discuss various planning activities following on from the
Washington summit.
QUESTION (CNN): Reaction to the Chirnomyrdin visit to Washington?
JAMIE SHEA: Well obviously we are very pleased that Russia clearly
wants to engage with the NATO countries in the search for a diplomatic
solution to the crisis in Kosovo. It is very encouraging that not only
does Mr. Chirnomyrdin want to be in Washington today to meet President
Clinton but also apparently wants to go on to Paris, to London and
other NATO capitals in the next few days. We have always made it clear
that we want Russia to be our partner in seeking a diplomatic solution
but everybody knows that that diplomatic solution can only be based on
the five principles, principles which are not simply NATO principles,
they have been endorsed by virtually the entire international
community. It is only on that basis that we can create a lasting real
peace for Kosovo, anything less risks purely postponing the crisis to a
later stage. We have seen with President Milosevic last October that
half a cake is as good as no cake because he then slides back and we
find ourselves in an even worse situation that we were in before so we
hope obviously with Russia to build a common position but it has to be
based on the five principles and we will continue to engage Russia in
that respect -- let us obviously see what happens in Washington -- but
I think the fact that we are talking to the Russians so intensively,
that the Russians are engaging so intensively is an encouraging sign
even if we may still have differences in our positions but at least we
are working to narrow those positions but it has to be once again on
the basis of the five core requirements of the international community.
DIMITRI: As a follow-up, is it only bilateral relations with NATO
countries or are there some signs of relations between NATO
headquarters here and the Russians?
JAMIE SHEA: No. This is being done, Dimitri, on a bilateral basis but
obviously the NATO Allies are all heavily engaged in those talks. It's
not simply France or the UK or the United States, you've seen that the
Canadian Foreign Minister, Mr. Axworthy (phon), has been in Moscow; we
know that the Belgian Foreign Minister, Mr. Dereik (phon), is there
today to see Foreign Minister Ivanov; last week, Mr. Papandreou, the
Greek Foreign Minister, was also in Moscow; Mr. Chirnomyrdin was in
Rome last week meeting the Italian government before his trip to
Belgrade so what I want to show you is that it's not simply the larger
NATO countries that are involved in this, all NATO countries almost
without exception are speaking to the Russians trying to engage the
Russians, to seek their support on the five core principles that we
know are the only way to solve this crisis.
JULIE: There were some reports that the ordnance used was a powder that
was dropped on these power plants. I wonder if you could tell us a
little bit about that?
JAMIE SHEA: I am not a military specialist, Julie, and the SHAPE
briefing this afternoon I think will be a bit more detailed on that,
particularly coming from the experts but what we have done is to
demonstrate our ability to shut off the power system whenever we want
and to do it in a way which short-circuits electrical systems without
destroying the basic infrastructure which drives those systems and I
think that shows that first of all, our key objective is not to deprive
the Serb people of their electrical grid but to be able to disrupt and
degrade at will the power that drives the military machine so that it
is shut off for significant periods of time and so that the Yugoslav
Army has to go to enormous trouble to try to restore that power and
that disruption is going to cause a sufficient degree of uncertainty in
their command-and-control systems to give NATO a significant tactical
advantage as well so that shows that we have the technology to achieve
a significant military result in an essential area -- the
command-and-control system -- without having to destroy that basic
infrastructure which of course is what drives the civilian electricity
grid and I think that that will show President Milosevic in a very
significant way just how much we can now shut down the power system as
and when we have to do it.
JOHN: Jamie, doesn't the study of bombardment campaigns like this in
the past show that when targets like power systems and other things
that affect the civilian population are hit, that this actually
increases the support of the civilian population for the regime in
place? It seems to be that there has been a Rubicon crossed here.
JAMIE SHEA: John, obviously we want to spare the inconvenience to the
Serb people but clearly we have to go after the fundamental military
objectives.
One thing that I have noticed -- and I don't know if you have noticed
this too -- but over the last couple of days we haven't seen on our
television screens the outpouring of nationalism that characterised the
early stages of this air campaign, the rock concerts in Belgrade, the
human shields although I wouldn't used that term but they were
described as human shields on the bridges in Belgrade, the expressions
of support seem to have disappeared and I don't believe it is because
people have stopped filming, I think it is because they haven't taken
place. I said the other day that when Vuk Draskovic was still in the
government and tried to organise his so-called "anti-NATO happenings",
they collapsed because virtually nobody showed up and I've seen several
reports -- and these are in the open press, in the presses of different
countries -- over the last few days of people in Belgrade that say that
the mood has changed, that if you like, the euphoria of nationalism is
subsiding, that people are starting to weigh the consequences of the
type of confrontation that Milosevic has embarked them on and they
don't like it and they like it less and less. Even if this is not the
type of organised resistance that we saw in 1996 and 1997, people are
now starting to question where Milosevic is taking them and I think
these signs will grow so I don't share that hypothesis that these
things are going to stir up patriotism, I think quite the contrary,
they are going to increase demands on Milosevic to stop this, to settle
on the reasonable terms of the international community and start
looking after what any leader should be looking after which is not his
own prestige but the interests of his people.
DOUG: Just a follow-up on all of that, Jamie. Surely it is a little bit
disingenuous to say that NATO regrets the inconvenience, surely you
want large areas of the population in the country to get the message?
JAMIE SHEA: We don't want the population to get the message, Doug, I
think they got the message years ago when their standards of living
started plummeting as a result of the misrule of the current
government. No, we want the regime to get the message and I think with
their command-and-control severely disrupted last night and seeing just
how quickly and massively NATO is able to do this, they will have one
more thing to worry about in addition to all of the other things they
have to worry about and maybe they will start worrying a little bit
about how they are going to accept the five key provisions of the
international community. We want to worry the government first and
foremost and I think we did that last night.
---
Copyright CNN 2003 For fair use only/ pour usage équitable seulement .
Remember Iraq, Afghanistan and Yugoslavia
Speaking of Blackouts
www.globalresearch.ca 17 August 2003
The URL of this article is:
http://globalresearch.ca/articles/PRI308A.html
---
Speaking of blackouts.....maybe after experiencing a mere 16 or so
hours without power, people in the Canadian province of Ontario and in
the American states of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York might
think a bit about what it means when we wage war on civilians in other
countries and bomb electrical power plants.
And of course, when a power plant is bombed, the power does not come
back on in 16 hours as it did here. It is out for days, weeks , or
months, along with water treatment and pumping facilities, sewage and
sanitary systems, all food refrigeration and storage, hospitals and
medical facilities and communication and transport that depend on
electricity.
As very brief reminder, here are a few news items from [Iraq
April-August 2003] and May 1999 when we bombed power plants in
Yugoslavia. Remember, but more importantly...think.
Mart (PRIME News Group)
---
THE IMPACTS OF THE ELECTRICITY BLACKOUT IN IRAQ (2003)
The Age, Melbourne, 21 April 03
"Hundreds of people are dying who should not die, simply because there
is a lack of adequate nursing and because basic operations cannot be
performed due to the lack of medicines and electricity. Unless they get
the power and the water back on soon we are facing a disaster," (The
Age, Melbourne, 21 April 03)
Morning Star, 21 April 03
But the lack of electricity means that medicines cannot be refrigerated
and much hospital equipment lies idle. The UN children's fund Unicef
says that piles of rubbish are accumulating at the hospitals and up to
70 per cent of patients at the children's hospital now have diarrhoea.
(Morning Star, 21 april 03)
Department of Defense Press Briefing, 12 August 03
MR. BREMER: The problem of power I have addressed before; I will say it
again. The structural problem in electricity in this country is due to
malfeasance and incompetent economic management by the Ba'athists over
a period of almost 40 years. [It is not related to the bombing] When
the war started, this country had about 4,000 megawatts of generating
capability, but the demand was more than 6,000 megawatts. In other
words, before the war, there was a gap of almost 33, 34 percent, a
deficiency.[i.e. not due to economic sanctions and the 1991 Gulf War]
We are working to restore all of the generating capability in the
country. That means getting it back to 4,000 megawatts. We are running
between 3,3(00) and 3,400 megawatts a day. We will try to get to 4,000
megawatts by the end of September. We are affected by the kind of
sabotage which continues to be conducted against transmission lines and
by the lack of maintenance of these systems for a very long time and
the complete lack of capital investment in the power industry.
So getting to the point where we can provide every Iraqi with the
amount of power that he or she wants is a long-term problem, at least
another year, because you cannot create 2,000 megawatts of power
overnight.
What we are trying to do is, therefore, arrive at a solution which has
-- takes into account everybody's interest, not just the interest of a
few elite Ba'athists or people in the Republican Guard or the killers
of the Fedayeen Saddam, but trying to say to all Iraqis: We will share
all of the power we have, but you have to remember we don't have enough
power for everybody.
So three weeks ago, I instituted a policy of sharing the electricity
around the country, which means that at least you can plan on when the
blackouts will happen. Of course, this depends on not having attacks
against the power industry and not having breakdowns because of poor
maintenance.
On the whole, that system is beginning to work, and parts of the
country now are enjoying more electricity than they ever had before,
because we are able to share it.
But it will take time, and I'm sympathetic with the problem of the
people sleeping on their roofs and not having air conditioning at this
time. We simply have to work at it, and we will. We intend to restore
basic services to every Iraqi man, woman and child here, and we will do
that. (DoD Press Briefing, 12 August 03)
Pensacola News, 14 August 03
Paul Bremer, the chief U.S. administrator in Iraq, told reporters it
will take "staggering" sums - about $30 billion - just to restore
Iraq's electricity and water systems. [contracts to Western energy
companies to be financed on borrowed money]. That comes on top of a
reported $4 billion a month to maintain military forces and operations
there.
"It does leave us with a substantial problem in the next year - as we
have to make these major infrastructure investments - about where we're
going to get the capital," he said. Incredibly, Bremer apparently is
hoping that a lot of the money will come from a conference of "donor
nations" [creditors not donors] scheduled for October. Given the lack
of international support for the U.S. effort so far, it seems more
likely that American taxpayers will be the top "donor."
Meanwhile, the Bush administration is angering both Republicans and
Democrats by refusing to provide even rough estimates of what Congress
will be asked to appropriate next year for Iraq.
Bremer rejected an Arab reporter's assertion that the country was in
chaos, despite the fuel riots in Basra, more attacks on U.S. forces
that left two G.I.s dead, severe shortages of electricity exacerbated
by continuing sabotage, last week's bombing of the Jordanian embassy,
and new reports of accidents or sabotage at oil pipelines that have
resulted in fires, interrupting the flow of oil. (Pensacola News, 14
August 03)
CNN 11 August 03
[Denial that the bombing affected Iraq's Electricity Grid]
Paul Bremer and his people will tell you that they are actually
supplying more electricity now than Saddam's government was before the
invasion.
Ret. General Jay Garner Statement to House Sub-committee on National
Security, FDCH, 18 July 2003
GARNER: As I left, the North and South had as good a water and better
electricity than they ever had because they were getting electricity 24
hours a day. Now, the problem was in Baghdad. Because Baghdad never had
the electrical grid capacity to generate enough electricity for the
city. So that the electricity for Baghdad had to be ported or
transported from the northern grids and the southern grids into Baghdad.
Daily Telegraph, 11 August 03
But the British official in charge of the reconstruction of Iraq has
given warning that it could take at least a year before the country's
infrastructure is repaired and running at pre-war levels.
Andy Bearpark, coalition director of operations and infrastructure,
said that four months after the fall of Baghdad many critical
installations, from telephone networks to sewage treatment plants, are
still a year away from their pre-war standards.
And with temperatures hitting upwards of 122F (50C) he said that
pre-war power supply would not be restored to its former levels for
another couple of months, leaving many Iraqis to swelter in the summer
sun.
"We will be up to pre-war generation of electricity in the next 60 or
so days," said Mr Bearpark, 50, a bluff Rochdale man who has spent his
career directing post-war reconstruction across the globe. "At the
moment the minimum supply is three hours on, three hours off."
But protesters have long grown sceptical of coalition promises,
complaining that provision rarely matches them.
Mr Bearpark has his own complaints, blaming rebuilding delays on the
damage caused by looters, such as the organised gangs that strip pylons
of electricity cables for their copper.
It is up to Gen Freddy Viggers, Britain's deputy to the overall
coalition forces commander in Iraq, US Gen Ricardo Sanchez, to ward off
such criminals. "Our main job is to look after the security threat,"
said Gen Viggers, who liaises with Mr Bearpark to provide military
protection for rebuilding projects. 'We try to protect the pylon lines
but beyond that the military can't do much in terms of civil
reconstruction."
So fragile is Iraq's infrastructure that during a recent crisis, when
one of Iraq's main power stations was offline, the country's entire
electricity supply depended on a 30-mile stretch of cable. Mr Bearpark,
who reports directly to Iraq's US administrator, Paul Bremer, said:
"Freddy was able to put guards along that little section of wire to
prevent complete meltdown."
There are other successes, including the rapid re-equipping of schools
in time for the new school year beginning in September. Other complex
exercises, such as the currency swap that will see Saddam Hussein's
face disappear from banknotes from October, are dwarfed by major
projects.
"For the moment we are pumping raw sewage into the Tigris," Mr Bearpark
said. "Getting Baghdad's two sewage stations back will take 12 months.
Then there's the telecoms. Roughly 50 per cent of the network was taken
out by bombing. To get that all back will take a year."
Los Angeles Times, 11 August 03
The riots, in the city's north, were smaller than Saturday's protests
but more violent, British soldiers said.
"They're shooting at us," said one soldier manning a checkpoint. "It's
the petrol queues. They've been without electricity for four days now."
Many Iraqis are convinced that the U.S.-led occupation forces could
provide electricity and gasoline, if only they made it a priority.
"We have no electricity, no gasoline, no water, no butane, no wood,"
said Aruba Saad, a housewife. "Why don't the Americans do something?
How do they expect us to live? We're not animals."
Near the southern city of Diwaniyah, a U.S. soldier in a convoy died of
heat stress Saturday, Central Command said. Another soldier was found
dead in his quarters of unknown causes.
Sunday's unrest came as two Arab television networks broadcast videos
of masked fighters calling for armed uprisings against occupation
forces.
The Herald, Scotland, 14 August 03
[Iraq Electricity Blackout is Good for Business: The Spoils of War]
Patricia Hewitt, the trade and industry secretary, is understood to
have asked the Ministry of Defence to take a more active role in
support of British companies seeking reconstruction work.
She intervened after an approach from Siemens UK, which was putting
together a bid to help repair Iraq's shattered electricity
infrastructure, but faced stiff competition from America's General
Electric.
It was perhaps the first sign of a real impetus on the part of the UK
government to seriously promote UK business interests in the war-torn
country.
That, coupled with the announcement of Mr Wilson being appointed as
Tony Blair's special envoy to Iraq, and the announcement that British
Airways is resuming flights to Iraq after 13 years, may improve
prospects for UK firms.
They have viewed bidding for contracts in Iraq as a case of history
repeating itself, following military interventions in Kosovo and
Afghanistan.
Colin Adams, director of the British Consultants' Bureau, which
co-ordinated restruction projects in Kosovo, has said British firms
would be "extremely well -placed" for the rebuilding of Afghanistan.
---
THE IMPACTS OF THE ELECTRICITY BLACKOUT IN AFGHANISTAN (2001)
The Guardian, 8 October 2001 Attack on Afghanistan: The bombing begins:
50 cruise missiles fired: 2am news
The US and Britain launched a massive air onslaught on Afghanistan last
night, including 50 cruise missiles and wave after wave of heavy
bombers, in the opening blow of what President George Bush vowed would
be a "sustained, comprehensive and relentless" campaign against Osama
bin Laden and his supporters.
Cruise missile strikes aimed at crippling anti-aircraft defences were
followed by raids by high-altitude and stealth bombers. The sorties
were flown from the Gulf and the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia,
while B-2 long-range stealth bombers flew from the American Midwest and
refuelled in mid-air.
The bombing campaign, nearly a month after the terrorist massacres in
New York and Washington, was aimed at devastating the forces of
Afghanistan's ruling Taliban and the threadbare infrastructure of Bin
Laden's al-Qaida organisation.
The first indication from Afghanistan that the campaign had begun came
when several loud explosions were reported in Kabul and electricity
supplies were cut.
[Media lies: Denial that they bombed electricity grids]: New Republic,
29 October 2003
The insistence on not attacking bridges and electricity grids, the
sluggish and exquisitely calibrated air campaign, the parade of
American diplomats courting the former Afghan king--all testify to the
imperative of keeping the country's infrastructure intact.
---
THE IMPACTS OF THE BLACKOUT IN YUGOSLAVIA (1999)
http://cgi.cnn.com/WORLD/europe/9905/02/kosovo.02/
2 May 1999
Serbia plunges into darkness after NATO raid
BELGRADE, Yugoslavia (CNN) -- NATO air raids struck a series of major
Yugoslav power plants Sunday, knocking out power across Serbia,
including Belgrade, senior Yugoslav officials told CNN Sunday.
NATO bombs damaged a power plant in Kostolac, 25 miles (40 km)
southeast of Belgrade along the Danube River, which supplies
electricity to all subsidiary power plants across Serbia.
An official government source said NATO planes also hit a plant in the
southern city of Nis and another in Obrenovac, about 18 miles (30 km)
west of Belgrade.
State-owned Serbian television, a repeated target of NATO airstrikes,
went off the air around 9:45 p.m. (3:45 p.m. ET), as did all other
television and radio stations.
Yugoslav Minister of Health Leposava Milicevic, speaking with CNN by
phone, said the situation was causing serious problems throughout
Serbia.
Without electricity, water could not be supplied to critical locations
like hospitals, she said.
CNN's Brent Sadler, reporting from the Yugoslav capital, said:
"Belgrade is now in darkness for as far as the eye can see."
While there was heavy anti-aircraft fire in Belgrade, Sadler did not
report any explosions in or around the city center of Yugoslavia's
capital.
NATO renews attacks despite prisoner release
NATO and Pentagon declined to say whether the power plants were
targeted for an attack, and deferred further questions until a Monday
morning briefing.
But earlier Sunday, U.S. and alliance officials said that, despite the
release of three U.S. soldiers in Yugoslav captivity, air attacks
against the country will continue unabated.
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic must fully accept NATO conditions
for a resolution to the civil conflict in Kosovo between separatist
ethnic Albanians and Serbian forces before the alliance halts the
airstrikes, the officials said.
Two U.S. warplanes crash in airstrikes
NATO on Sunday reported that it had lost two U.S. aircraft in its
Kosovo air campaign overnight Saturday.
An F-16 crashed about 18 kilometers (11 miles) east of the Serbian town
of Kozluk early Sunday, NATO spokesman Jamie Shea said. The plane was
returning from a combat mission in Yugoslavia.
"The pilot ejected at around 2:20 a.m. (1200 GMT) this morning, and he
was rescued by NATO forces two hours later," Shea said. "He is safely
back at his operating base, where he is receiving medical attention and
being debriefed on the incident."
Serbian air defense officials said they shot down the F-16, but NATO
military spokesman Col. Konrad Freytag said the jet crashed after
experiencing engine failure. He said the cause of the engine failure
was unknown.
The second plane lost was a Harrier jump jet, which crashed into the
Adriatic Sea while returning to the amphibious assault carrier USS
Kearsarge from a t raining mission. Its pilot was also rescued, Shea
said.
Previously, NATO lost an F-117 stealth fighter, which went down in
Serbia on March 27; and an Apache helicopter, which crashed while
training in Albania last month. Four pilotless "drones" also have been
lost.
NATO admits civilian bus strike
NATO also said early Sunday that one of its attacks hit a civilian bus
crossing a bridge near Luzane, north of Kosovo's capital, Pristina.
NATO says the bridge was "used extensively by the Serb armed forces."
At least 34 people died in the attack, according to Serb news reports
and witnesses.
"The pilot released the weapon, and only after he released the weapon
did the bus come on the bridge," Shea said. "We will continue to do
everything we can to try and avoid those kinds of incidents. We can't
eliminate them altogether."
The bus was sliced in half by the attack and caught fire. Half of it
remained on the bridge, while the other half plunged 13 meters (40
feet) over the edge. The bridge remained standing.
Reporters brought to the scene said they saw bodies and body parts
strewn around the scene.
In Macedonia, an estimated 5,000 refugees streamed across the border
within the past day, officials told CNN.
Macedonia refugee plight worsens
Some refugees have only blankets for living quarters At least 80,000
are squeezed into refugee camps with hopelessly inadequate facilities,
they said. For some of the new arrivals, a piece of plastic is all they
can expect for living quarters, as relief officials are unable to house
nearly half the newcomers.
Macedonian Prime Minister Zupce Georievski, touring a border camp
Sunday, expressed concern that his country had "not received one
dollar" from the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.
Four hundred of the refugees are expected to leave Tuesday to fly to
the United States, which has agreed to temporarily house 20,000
Kosovars during the conflict. They will be processed for several weeks
at Fort Dix, New Jersey.
In Albania, new refugees from Kosovo say Serb police are detaining
women and children, possibly using them to serve as human shields.
One refugee from the border town of Prizen said, "It's totally panicky
in the city. They're taking people as hostages."
Reports of intense KLA, Serb combat
In Southwest Kosovo, there were reports of heavy fighting between
separatist ethnic Albanians and Serbian military forces.
Rebels with the Kosovo Liberation Army have engaged in a major
offensive to open a corridor and unite with other KLA forces farther in
the interior of the province, Turkish journalist Mithat Bereket told
CNN.
The Serbian military answered with heavy artillery and tanks, he said.
Bereket said there were indications that the Serbian army was suffering
from low morale and a high rate of desertions.
He said there were reports that Serbian soldiers were making 15- to
50-year-old Kosovar Albanians set up mines, dig trenches against tanks
and give blood to prepare for a ground offensive.
Correspondents Brent Sadler, Tom Mintier and Jane Arraf contributed to
this report.
---
http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/europe/9905/23/kosovo.01/
23 May 1999
NATO strikes at Yugoslav power plants
BELGRADE, Yugoslavia (CNN) -- NATO bombs put Yugoslavia's largest
coal-burning power plant out of business Sunday, the state-run Tanjug
news agency said.
Tanjug said two rockets hit the Nikola Tesla plant near Obrenovac, 30
kilometers (20 miles) southwest of Belgrade, just before dawn. The
attack caused "additional problems" in supplying the Yugoslav capital
with electricity after attacks early Saturday struck the nearby
Kolubara power plant.
Other NATO targets included armored vehicles and tanks; artillery
positions; parked aircraft; a command post; ammunition and petroleum
storage sites; and communications facilities.
"It was quite an intensive night of air operations," NATO spokesman
Jamie Shea said in Brussels, Belgium.
Overnight, NATO planes flew 652 sorties over Yugoslavia, 301 of them
striking targets. Alliance members vowed to continue the strikes until
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic agrees to their conditions for a
safe return of hundreds of thousands of ethnic Albanians who have fled
their homes in Serbia's Kosovo province.
"The NATO campaign is doing real damage to his military machine," said
British Foreign Office Minister Tony Lloyd. "And NATO is prepared to go
on and on with its air campaign while building up its forces necessary
to take the refugees home in safety."
Lloyd added that NATO was equally committed to the diplomatic search
for peace, "but it must be a peace that gives the people of Kosovo a
secure future."
Ground troop debate continues
The British also continued their push for a willingness to send a
ground force into Kosovo before Milosevic has fully complied with
NATO's demands, which include a complete pullout of Yugoslav and Serb
forces from the region.
Returning from a trip to Washington, British Foreign Secretary Robin
Cook told the British Broadcasting Corp. that NATO must be ready to
"deploy troops in a permissive or a non-permissive environment" --
meaning with or without Milosevic's consent.
Cook also praised signals from Washington that the United States was no
longer categorically rejecting early deployment of ground troops.
In an opinion piece published in Sunday's New York Times, U.S.
President Bill Clinton reiterated NATO's oft-stated view that the air
campaign was working, but said he did "not rule out other military
options."
The U.S. has now joined other NATO allies in calling for a larger
peacekeeping force than originally planned. The alliance is massing
some 28,000 troops along the Macedonian border for the mission, but the
U.S. and others said as many a s 50,000 troops should be ready for
action.
NATO's Shea said that the discussion about ground troops was to be
expected from democracies, but the 19 NATO allies were still unified in
their determination to force Milosevic's hand with an air campaign.
"We are not planning an invasion force for Kosovo," he told CNN on
Sunday. "We still have confidence that our air power ... will force the
Serb forces to withdraw from Kosovo. What we are doing is simply
preparing for a peace implementation force which is going to big enough
and robust enough to move quickly into Kosovo ... and allow the
refugees to go back into their homes."
NATO's Shea said that the discussion about ground troops was to be
expected from democracies, but the 19 NATO allies were still unified in
their determination to force Milosevic's hand with an air campaign.
"We are not planning an invasion force for Kosovo," he told CNN on
Sunday. "We still have confidence that our air power ... will force the
Serb forces to withdraw from Kosovo. What we are doing is simply
preparing for a peace implementation force which is going to big enough
and robust enough to move quickly into Kosovo ... and allow the
refugees to go back into their homes."
Correspondent John Raedler contributed to this report.
---
http://www.freeserbia.net/Documents/Kosovo/Shea2.html
NATO plunges Serbia into darkness in overnight strikes
Jamie Shea Backgrounder in Brussels on 3 May 1999
JAMIE SHEA: Good morning! I am here to give you the quick operational
update in the usual fashion. Let me just point out that the Council is
meeting today at 11 o'clock and that I will be back with SHAPE in the
usual fashion at 3 o'clock for the daily operational briefing on camera.
There is one expression of SACEUR's that I'm sure you've heard on many
previous occasions, he has said: "There are tanks and there are tanks!"
What he means by that is that a tank which is stuck in its tracks
because it has no fuel is far less of a tank and far less of a threat
than one that has fuel and can move and as you know -- and I think
President Milosevic has realised this this morning more than ever
before -- there are also command-and-control systems and
command-and-control systems and if a command-and-control system has no
electricity to turn it on, it is of course wire, metal and plastic and
not a functioning military system and that is what we did in our
operations last night, we went out to deprive the command-and-control
system of its electricity, of its power and to reduce it to wire,
plastic and metal.
Alliance aircraft yesterday evening struck the five main electric yards
that distribute power to the Serb armed forces, the military machine of
President Milosevic, the power which supplies his airfields, his
headquarters, his communication systems, his command-and-control
network and no power means no runway lights, no computers, no secure
communications.
More specifically, NATO aircraft last night struck the transformer
yards of Opranovac (phon), a key electrical distribution station in
western Serbia. We also attacked the transformer yard at Nis in
southern Serbia and this has degraded significantly the command,
control and communications capabilities of the 3rd Yugoslav Army
headquartered in Nis; and we hit the transformer yards also in three
other locations -- Bajinabasta (phon), Dermo and Novi Sad -- as well.
I want you to know -- and I want to stress this -- that NATO forces
took the utmost care to ensure that important civilian facilities like
hospitals had redundant power capabilities and that they had therefore
the back-up transformers to keep their systems running through these
power outages and I believe that you have seen from reports this
morning from Belgrade that that was indeed the case, that those
essential civilian services like hospitals were running.
We regret the inconvenience that power outages have caused to the Serb
people but we have no choice but to continue attacking every element of
the Yugoslav armed forces until such time as President Milosevic
accepts the demands of the international community, those five
unconditional points which we reiterate every day and I just want to
remind you of what those five points are: that Milosevic must stop the
killing, that he must get his troops out of Kosovo, that he must accept
an international military presence with NATO as its core to establish
security inside Kosovo, that he must allow without any restriction or
qualification the return of all refugees and that he must work to build
a permanent political solution based on the Rambouillet peace plan and
we are not asking for anything more but we will not settle for anything
less.
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
QUESTION (ABC NEWS): What's on the Council's agenda for today?
JAMIE SHEA: The Council today will be updating its assessments of the
current situation in Kosovo based on a report by Klaus Naumann, the
Chairman of the Military Committee, particularly reviewing -- as I am
doing with you at the moment the developments on the military scene
over the last 24 hours and in that respect let me stress that, as you
know, the last 72 hours have seen the most intensive period thus far of
NATO air operations bringing us beyond the 14,000 sortie mark since the
operation began on 24th March and with on average over 600 sorties per
night in recent nights so I think that will be the first thing on the
agenda.
Secondly, there will be a review of the current humanitarian situation
which continues to cause us enormous concern -- I will be speaking
about that later at 3 o'clock -- and then obviously NATO ambassadors
will discuss various planning activities following on from the
Washington summit.
QUESTION (CNN): Reaction to the Chirnomyrdin visit to Washington?
JAMIE SHEA: Well obviously we are very pleased that Russia clearly
wants to engage with the NATO countries in the search for a diplomatic
solution to the crisis in Kosovo. It is very encouraging that not only
does Mr. Chirnomyrdin want to be in Washington today to meet President
Clinton but also apparently wants to go on to Paris, to London and
other NATO capitals in the next few days. We have always made it clear
that we want Russia to be our partner in seeking a diplomatic solution
but everybody knows that that diplomatic solution can only be based on
the five principles, principles which are not simply NATO principles,
they have been endorsed by virtually the entire international
community. It is only on that basis that we can create a lasting real
peace for Kosovo, anything less risks purely postponing the crisis to a
later stage. We have seen with President Milosevic last October that
half a cake is as good as no cake because he then slides back and we
find ourselves in an even worse situation that we were in before so we
hope obviously with Russia to build a common position but it has to be
based on the five principles and we will continue to engage Russia in
that respect -- let us obviously see what happens in Washington -- but
I think the fact that we are talking to the Russians so intensively,
that the Russians are engaging so intensively is an encouraging sign
even if we may still have differences in our positions but at least we
are working to narrow those positions but it has to be once again on
the basis of the five core requirements of the international community.
DIMITRI: As a follow-up, is it only bilateral relations with NATO
countries or are there some signs of relations between NATO
headquarters here and the Russians?
JAMIE SHEA: No. This is being done, Dimitri, on a bilateral basis but
obviously the NATO Allies are all heavily engaged in those talks. It's
not simply France or the UK or the United States, you've seen that the
Canadian Foreign Minister, Mr. Axworthy (phon), has been in Moscow; we
know that the Belgian Foreign Minister, Mr. Dereik (phon), is there
today to see Foreign Minister Ivanov; last week, Mr. Papandreou, the
Greek Foreign Minister, was also in Moscow; Mr. Chirnomyrdin was in
Rome last week meeting the Italian government before his trip to
Belgrade so what I want to show you is that it's not simply the larger
NATO countries that are involved in this, all NATO countries almost
without exception are speaking to the Russians trying to engage the
Russians, to seek their support on the five core principles that we
know are the only way to solve this crisis.
JULIE: There were some reports that the ordnance used was a powder that
was dropped on these power plants. I wonder if you could tell us a
little bit about that?
JAMIE SHEA: I am not a military specialist, Julie, and the SHAPE
briefing this afternoon I think will be a bit more detailed on that,
particularly coming from the experts but what we have done is to
demonstrate our ability to shut off the power system whenever we want
and to do it in a way which short-circuits electrical systems without
destroying the basic infrastructure which drives those systems and I
think that shows that first of all, our key objective is not to deprive
the Serb people of their electrical grid but to be able to disrupt and
degrade at will the power that drives the military machine so that it
is shut off for significant periods of time and so that the Yugoslav
Army has to go to enormous trouble to try to restore that power and
that disruption is going to cause a sufficient degree of uncertainty in
their command-and-control systems to give NATO a significant tactical
advantage as well so that shows that we have the technology to achieve
a significant military result in an essential area -- the
command-and-control system -- without having to destroy that basic
infrastructure which of course is what drives the civilian electricity
grid and I think that that will show President Milosevic in a very
significant way just how much we can now shut down the power system as
and when we have to do it.
JOHN: Jamie, doesn't the study of bombardment campaigns like this in
the past show that when targets like power systems and other things
that affect the civilian population are hit, that this actually
increases the support of the civilian population for the regime in
place? It seems to be that there has been a Rubicon crossed here.
JAMIE SHEA: John, obviously we want to spare the inconvenience to the
Serb people but clearly we have to go after the fundamental military
objectives.
One thing that I have noticed -- and I don't know if you have noticed
this too -- but over the last couple of days we haven't seen on our
television screens the outpouring of nationalism that characterised the
early stages of this air campaign, the rock concerts in Belgrade, the
human shields although I wouldn't used that term but they were
described as human shields on the bridges in Belgrade, the expressions
of support seem to have disappeared and I don't believe it is because
people have stopped filming, I think it is because they haven't taken
place. I said the other day that when Vuk Draskovic was still in the
government and tried to organise his so-called "anti-NATO happenings",
they collapsed because virtually nobody showed up and I've seen several
reports -- and these are in the open press, in the presses of different
countries -- over the last few days of people in Belgrade that say that
the mood has changed, that if you like, the euphoria of nationalism is
subsiding, that people are starting to weigh the consequences of the
type of confrontation that Milosevic has embarked them on and they
don't like it and they like it less and less. Even if this is not the
type of organised resistance that we saw in 1996 and 1997, people are
now starting to question where Milosevic is taking them and I think
these signs will grow so I don't share that hypothesis that these
things are going to stir up patriotism, I think quite the contrary,
they are going to increase demands on Milosevic to stop this, to settle
on the reasonable terms of the international community and start
looking after what any leader should be looking after which is not his
own prestige but the interests of his people.
DOUG: Just a follow-up on all of that, Jamie. Surely it is a little bit
disingenuous to say that NATO regrets the inconvenience, surely you
want large areas of the population in the country to get the message?
JAMIE SHEA: We don't want the population to get the message, Doug, I
think they got the message years ago when their standards of living
started plummeting as a result of the misrule of the current
government. No, we want the regime to get the message and I think with
their command-and-control severely disrupted last night and seeing just
how quickly and massively NATO is able to do this, they will have one
more thing to worry about in addition to all of the other things they
have to worry about and maybe they will start worrying a little bit
about how they are going to accept the five key provisions of the
international community. We want to worry the government first and
foremost and I think we did that last night.
---
Copyright CNN 2003 For fair use only/ pour usage équitable seulement .
Milosevic's "trial" (italiano / english)
1. MILOSEVIC'S BIRTHDAY, AUGUST 20th
Compleanno di Milosevic il 20 agosto
2. JOINT STATEMENT OF THE BOARD OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE TO
DEFEND SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC - ICDSM
Comunicato unitario della direzione del Comitato Internazionale per la
Difesa di Slobodan Milosevic
3. SPEECHES AT THE HAGUE, JUNE 28th
Gli interventi alla manifestazione dell'Aia di Velko Valkanov, Klaus
Hartmann, Aldo Bernardini, Jane Kelly, Heather Cottin
=== 1: MILOSEVIC'S BIRTHDAY, AUGUST 20th ===
From: Vladimir Krsljanin
(Italiano)
IL 20 AGOSTO IL PRESIDENTE SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC COMPIE 62 ANNI. SARA'
QUESTO IL SUO TERZO COMPLEANNO TRASCORSO IN PRIGIONE. INVIATE I VOSTRI
AUGURI E MESSAGGI DI SOSTEGNO - CARTOLINE, LETTERE O TELEGRAMMI -
ALL'INDIRIZZO RIPORTATO DI SEGUITO.
(English)
ON AUGUST 20, PRESIDENT SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC WILL BE 62. THIS WILL BE HIS
THIRD BIRTHDAY IN PRISON.
PLEASE SEND YOUR SUPPORT MESSAGES AND BITHDAY GREETINGS AS POST-CARDS,
LETTERS OR CABLES TO THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS:
(Russian)
20-OGO AVGUSTA PREZIDENTU MILOSHEVICHU NAVESHITSYA 62 GODA. EHTO BUDET
EGO TRETIJ DEN' ROZHDENIYA V TYUR'ME.
POZHALUJSTA POSSYLAJTE VIRAZHENIYA PODDERZHKI I POZDRAVLENIYA V FORME
OTKRYTOK, PISEM I TELEGRAMM NA SLEDUYUSHCHIJ ADRES:
(Serbian)
20. AVGUSTA PREDSEDNIK MILOSEVIC CE IMATI 62 GODINE. TO CE BITI NJEGOV
TRECI RODJENDAN U ZATVORU.
POSALJITE SVOJE IZRAZE PODRSKE I CESTITKE U OBLIKU RAZGLEDNICA, PISAMA
I TELEGRAMA NA SLEDECU ADRESU:
PRESIDENT
SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC
UN Detention Unit
Postbus 87810
2508 Den Haag
Pomp Stations Weg 32
The Neteherlands
---
YOUR HELP
The work for the defense of Slobodan Milosevic totally depends on your
donations.
For more details, see: http://www.sloboda.org.yu/finappeal.htm
Send a check to our address:
SLOBODA
Rajiceva 16, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia and Montenegro, Yugoslavia
or transfer your donation to our account using the instructions at:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/pomocdet.htm
=== 2 : ICDSM STATEMENT ===
JOINT STATEMENT OF THE BOARD OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE TO DEFEND
SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC - ICDSM
The Board of ICDSM informs that Jared Israel and Nico Varkevisser are
not members of ICDSM. They left the Committee, its goals and
commitments in May-June 2003 by launching a series of reckless actions
against it and its leading members, even misusing the name of President
Milosevic. Their unauthorized misuse of the title, website and
financial account of ICDSM to promote their fabricated allegations and
distorted facts has to stop immediately, otherwise they should face
moral and legal consequences.
ICDSM remains committed to the struggle to free President Slobodan
Milosevic from his illegal NATO prison and to promote and assist his
battle for truth, freedom and dignity in the interest of the
people. This battle is of the greatest importance for equality and
democracy in the World.
Our engagement will be only to that end.
This is our common and indisputable position.
August 18, 2003
THE BOARD OF ICDSM
---
Traduzione italiana:
COMUNICATO UNITARIO DELLA DIREZIONE DEL COMITATO INTERNAZIONALE PER LA
DIFESA DI SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC - ICDSM
La direzione dell'ICDSM informa che Jared Israel e Nico Varkevisser non
sono membri dell'ICDSM. Essi hanno di fatto abbandonato il Comitato, i
suoi scopi ed i suoi obblighi nel maggio-giugno 2003, allorquando hanno
incominciato a lanciare una serie di attacchi avventati contro di esso
e contro i suoi principali componenti, persino abusando del nome del
presidente Milosevic.
Il loro improprio e non autorizzato uso del nome, del sito web e del
conto finanziario dell'ICDSM allo scopo di promuovere le loro
supposizioni e distorsioni dei fatti deve cessare immediatamente. In
caso contrario essi dovranno sostenerne le conseguenze morali e legali.
L'ICDSM resta impegnato nella lotta per la liberazione del Presidente
Slobodan Milosevic dalla illegale prigionia NATO, e nella assistenza e
promozione della sua battaglia per la verita', la liberta' e la
dignita' nell'interesse della gente. Questa battaglia e' di estrema
importanza per le sorti della eguaglianza e della democrazia nel mondo.
Il nostro impegno sara' solo a questo scopo.
Questa e' la nostra posizione comune ed irrevocabile.
18 Agosto 2003
La direzione dell'ICDSM
=== 3 : SPEECHES AT THE HAGUE, JUNE 28th ===
From "Sloboda", Belgrade
(To see full coverage of the June 28th demonstration at The Hague,
please go to
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/engleski/index-demonstr.html )
---
Speech given by Prof. Dr. Velko Valkanov, Co-Chairman of the ICDSM, at
the protest at The Hague, June 28th, 2003
Dear friends, ladies and gentlemen,
Since two years, former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic is in the
prison at The Hague, not far from here. He is in jail not because he
committed a crime, but on the opposite, because he was fighting against
criminals. He defended the freedom and honor of its people, he defended
the freedom and honor of all people. That’s why we have the right to
say: in prison at The Hague, there is not just president Milosevic, but
freedom itself, human dignity itself.
President Milosevic stands before a tribunal that lacks not only legal
grounds, but moral grounds as well. It was established by people who do
not recognize International Law. Although they committed many crimes
against the human kind, not them but their victims were made
responsible. The United States of America, which is the strongest force
behind the tribunal, is not recognizing the legitimate International
Criminal Court that was formed on basis of the Rome Statute. They are
of the opinion that people from all nations can be put on trial but not
their own citizens, the citizens of the United States. That is the peak
of hypocrisy, the peak of a robbing moral.
Dear friends,
Yesterday, Klaus Hartmann and me visited president Milosevic in prison.
We talked for about two hours. He sends all his regards to you.
We, Klaus Hartmann and myself, are able to tell you that president
Milosevic has a strong spirit. His inquisitors used different means to
break his strength of mind. Those inferior people even organized a
campaign of hatred against his family. But they will be disappointed.
They can kill president Milosevic, but they cannot defeat this great
man.
Dear friends,
Here, in The Hague, two powers are fighting a difficult battle: the
'world-lie' and the 'world-truth'. In that battle, we stand on the side
of the 'world-truth'. We have no right to loose this battle, the battle
of the future of human kind.
I thank you for your attention.
---
Klaus Hartmann, Vice-Chairman of the ICDSM and speaker of the German
section of the ICDSM, before prison in The Hague where Slobodan
Milosevic is imprisoned, June 28, 2003
Friends, citizens:
We are standing here in front of a building that was used by the German
fascists to imprison Dutch anti-fascist and resistance fighters.
Today once again the criminals have locked up their victims, the
representatives of the resistance to the dictatorship of the “New World
Order”.
We direct our solidarity to these political prisoners, who are
imprisoned here illegally.
The so-called Hague Tribunal, which violates International Law, serves
not only to legitimize NATO’s crimes against Yugoslavia, it is also
part of the colonial authority over the Balkans, a part of a network of
custodial authorities and protectorates, that lie over this country
like a leaden net and prevent the people there from rising up to take
their fate in their own hands and themselves determine their fate.
Yesterday I together with Velko Valkanov had the opportunity to hold a
discussion with President Slobodan Milosevic. He made it quite clear
that the charges this false tribunal is bringing are aimed at
solidifying the colonial order in the Balkans:
–The charges of alleged Serbian crimes in Kosovo have the goal of
laying the foundations for the separation of Kosovo from Serbia;
–The charge of alleged genocide in Bosnia has the goal of ending the
existence of the Serb Republic.
Up to now Slobodan Milosevic has managed to repudiate all the
prosecution’s witnesses, to reduce their testimony to nothing. The
latest, occurring in the last few days, was former U.S. Ambassador
Galbraith. And once again a special guardian angel had to come to the
rescue of this witness. It was the so-called “Judge’ May, this
caricature of a neutral figure, who unsuccessfully sought to rescue Mr.
Ambassador as he cut down the time that Slobodan Milosevic had for his
cross-examination.
In her own “half time,” in which prosecution witnesses are brought on
to support the charges, Ms. Del Ponte stands before us fully naked–a
frightful vision!
Slobodan Milosevic’s morale for struggle is unbroken.
Despite this, his joy over the victorious battles in the “court” room
is limited. The situation, he says, is from one point of view comical,
but even so ridiculous and tragic. Always having to deal with these
small-spirited people is no joy.
How much this court-martial fears the second “half time” in which
Slobodan Milosevic calls the witnesses, has been shown by the
prosecution’s already extending twice the time to make its case, now at
least until the beginning of 2004.
At the same time they have piled up Slobo with paper, tons of paper,
almost a half-million DIN A4 pages. To read these papers through he
would need three years, even if he read 400 pages each day.
It is a requirement of minimal fairness that he be provided with time
for an orderly preparation of his defense.
We demand then:
At least a one-year interruption and corresponding release from prison
for an orderly preparation of the defense!
In agreement with our friend and comrade Slobo, I issue a call that we
all concentrate the attention of the International Committee (for the
Defense of Slobodan Milosevic) and all the organizations of Serbs in
the diaspora to place all our weight on the scales to win this demand
for an interruption in the trial and the corresponding release from
prison!
A further protest is directed at the mistreatment and persecution of
his family, against whom a thoroughgoing witch-hunt has been launched.
While the public with the goal of their well known and practiced
deception of the people learns, that the order to arrest apparently has
something to do with a murder investigation, in reality it is either
over battles among youths or that his wife has allegedly used
“connections” to procure an apartment for the babysitter of her
grandchild.
This is the basis for an “International Arrest Order,” an unrepeatable
joke and a scandal, which is aimed only at undermining his strength for
the battle, his will to struggle, in that every visit from Mirjana and
other members of his family should be made impossible.
We raise the strongest protest and demand the withdrawal of this
illegal arrest orders!
Dear friends and comrades!
We are today for the first time in The Hague. But we will come again–we
are not here for the last time.
Yesterday at noon Slobo asked me, how many participants we expected for
our demonstration. I said, we would be happy if a few hundred were
there, because we have to begin, not wait until we are thousands, but
act with as many as we are able to reach. What is important is the
example, what is important is the first step, and I told him that
Aristoteles had already said, “the beginning is more than half of the
whole” - and today we have gone down more than half the road.
Dear friends!
* With the struggle for the freedom of Slobodan Milosevic we
struggle for all our freedom.
* We struggle against the new imperialist re-division of the world,
against neocolonialism, against the New World War Order.
* We struggle for the defense of people rights, for equality, for
independence, for national sovereignty and dignity of all countries.
We are convinced:
They shall not pass!
The slaveholders have never been the victors in history!
The people have the last word!
Thus:
Zivela Jugoslavija! Sloboda za Slobodana!
(Long live Yugoslavia! Freedom for Slobodan!)
Thank you.
---
Speech by Prof. Aldo Bernardini at the Vidovdan demonstration at The
Hague, June 28, 2003
Dear Comrades and Friends,
I bring here my full solidarity and the solidarity of many Italians to
President Slobodan Milosevic and the other Yugoslav people, who are
arbitrarily detained in this country by an illegitimate Tribunal
established by an anti-Charter order of Security Council. I express our
thanks to all who have organized this meeting and to everyone who is
here.
I met President Milosevic in his arbitrary jail two years ago and was
very impressed by his personality, sense of justice, courage, spirit of
resistance. Two considerations, among many others, made a deep
impression on me. Globalisation is imperialism, the imperialism of our
days, since there is no equality for States and peoples and it will be
forced on the world through other wars (as we know at present, a real
prophecy: Afghanistan, Iraq and so on): so President Milosevic is with
full right a forerunner of anti-globalism.
Second: no State would have accepted the U.N. Charter if there would
have been envisaged even implicitly such a mechanism as this Hague
Tribunal.
The United Nations and its Security Council is not a Superstate, a
Supergovernment with authority over individuals and the measures
envisaged in Chapter VII may not include such operations. As a matter
of fact other attempts at or cases of so-called international criminal
justice over individuals are based on treaties between sovereign States
(they pose also problems, but of another kind): only for Yugoslavia and
Rwanda there was an order by Security Council. If this were accepted as
law, as legitimate rules, Security Council could order everything in
front of everyone: a global dictatorship.
I don’t speak of other aspects of the specific action by the illegal
Tribunal, of its refusal to judge the crimes by NATO (who will be
judged, who will pay for the assassination of Yugoslavs?) Of it’s
denial to pay full respect for human rights: the barbaric abduction of
President Milosevic from Belgrade, for ex., and the shameful attitude
to his family, to his wife that cannot even visit President Milosevic
and is threatened with judicial prosecution. Why? This is the most
cruel torture.
So the Hague Tribunal is a Court for the winners, against people who
resist imperialism, who defend their country against imperialistic
divisions and wars. It is a tool not of justice, but of imperialism.
Freedom and justice for Slobodan Milosevic and the other victims, shame
on the instruments of imperialism!
Resurrection for Serbia and Yugoslavia!
Prof. Dott. Aldo Bernardini
Ordinario di Diritto internazionale
Università di Teramo
---
Speech given on June 28, 2003 at The Hague demonstration by June Kelly
of the Committee to Defend Slobodan Milosevic - Ireland
Down with new colonialism!
Abolish the US/NATO Tribunal!
Free Serbia! Free Yugoslavia!
Free Slobodan Milosevic!
The following is a message of Solidarity from the Committee to Defend
Slobodan Milosevic – (Ireland) who have travelled to The Hague for the
Demonstration on 28th June and those members who were unable to attend:
“To the organisers and all attending the International Demonstration
against the NATO “Court” in The Hague, on this, the second anniversary
of the abduction of the former President of Serbia and Yugoslavia, we
extend our warmest best wishes and message of solidarity in the
struggle for TRUTH, JUSTICE and PEACE.
Be assured that our members in Ireland will continue to campaign with
all of our means for the abolition of the US/NATO “Court” and for
the freedom of President Milosevic, other innocent prisoners in The
Hague and for the liberation of all peoples of Serbia and Yugoslavia”.
The writer Phillip K Dick once described the West succinctly as Lies –
Inc.
The campaign against the Serbian people and Slobodan Milosevic in terms
of concentrated levels of lies, irrationality and hysteria has exceeded
anything previously conceived of by propagandists in the service of
Imperialism.
It cannot be said often enough that the media is Licenced to Lie
On behalf of the war profiteers and their minions who are Licensed to
Kill.
Death dealing glamorised by James Bond the creation of nazi sympathiser
Ian Fleming.
The Director of a public relations company in Washington funded to
manufacture lies against the Serbs and Yugoslavia to enlist world wide
support for the barbaric assaults by NATO on the Bosnian Serbs in 1995
and on Yugoslavia in 1999 has said concernedly –
“We may have won the shooting war –If we lose the propaganda war the
consequences will be catastrophic – “
Signs are that this could be about to happen.
In the aftermath to the (criminal and unjust) bombardments of Iraq this
year it must be increasingly obvious even to the politically naïve that
Western nations do not attack other sovereign nations and depose the
leaders of those nations on either ultruistic or humanitarian grounds.
The agenda is McDonaldisation of the universe. Nothing less.
The tragedy is that remarkably few people across the globe
extraordinarily enough perceived the enormity to the Lie propagated
remorselessly by the Deceivers to garner support for the demolition of
what was then Yugoslavia and the ultimate establishment of a puppet
regime to serve the interests of the Imperialists (in Washington).
June Kelly
Coordinator
Committee to Defend Slobodan Milosevic-Ireland
---
Speech given by Heather Cottin
at The Hague demonstration on June 28, 2003
I greet you today with solidarity from the International Action
Center in New York, founded by Ramsey Clark.
This wonderful demonstration shows how important is
international solidarity. We come here today from two continents to
fight for truth and for the liberation of Slobodan Milosevic. We
continue to struggle for the liberation from NATO/US occupation and
oppression.
We are part of a world movement. Because we know that the
illegal US invasion, bombing and occupation of Iraq really began with
US/NATO destabilization, bombing and occupation of Yugoslavia.
My late husband, Sean Gervasi, died in Belgrade seven years ago.
He worked tirelessly in solidarity with the Serbian people and for
Yugoslavia. He wrote, he spoke, he traveled and organized to try to
save that beautiful nation. He said, "The US struggle to force change
on Yugoslavia is driven by . . . tensions between socialism and
capitalism. . . [but also] between independence and recolonization."
Yugoslavia, the Serbian people, and President Slobodan Milosevic
tried to keep their economy, their independence, and to resist
colonization, just as the Iraqi people are doing. This was their crime
against United States hegemony-and they paid dearly.
The International Action Center worked hard in the 1990s to
build solidarity with Yugoslavia. My late husband worked with the IAC
and throughout the Serbian community in North America and in Europe for
the freedom of Yugoslav from western control. Ramsey Clark and members
of the IAC visited Yugoslavia many times, including during the bombing
in 1999. The IAC conducted a peoples' tribunal in New York, finding the
United States guilty of violating international law and of crimes
against peace. We organized a march on Washington in June of 1999.
The IAC published three books on Yugoslavia, “NATO in the
Balkans”, “Liars Poker” by Michel Collon and “Hidden Agenda”, written
after the war on Yugoslavia. We worked with many of the groups
represented here today- the German section of the International
Committee to defend Slobodan Milosevic, the Pasti Foundation, the PTB,
the New Communist Party of the Netherlands and others.
In a recent interview in Junge Welt Ramsey Clark said,
"People who want peace can’t be taken in by propaganda that makes them
think that by [demonizing people] you can find peace and human rights.
You'll find instead war, injustice, and indignity."
It is against war, injustice and indignity that Slobodan
Milosevic and those in solidarity with him stand today.
As the international anti-imperialist movement grows, we see
millions rising up against war and occupation. This means we have work
to do.
Already at a conference last month organized by the
International Act Now to Stop War and End racism (ANSWER) coalition,
the IAC presented a workshop on Yugoslavia. There was standing room
only. People are eager to learn the truth - to see how the war on
Yugoslav was, as Sean Gervasi showed, "The foot in the door." The
people now understand the media lies. They are beginning to understand
U.S. militarism, globalization and imperialism.
The anti-imperialist movement must take up the cause of
president Milosevic, must see how the demonization of the Serbian
people only served the interests of U.S. hegemony. They need to see
NATO as the military arm of globalization and privatization.
Slobodan Milosevic has alone put NATO in the dock! But he is not
alone. We join with him against the illegal NATO court.
Tonight, in New York at the IAC, we are having a meeting in
solidarity with this important demonstration. We are joined against all
illegal wars and the occupation of Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan,
Palestine, and Iraq.
Sloboda means freedom! Yugoslavia!
Heather Cottin
International Action Center
NY, New York, USA
---
SLOBODA urgently needs your donation.
Please find the detailed instructions at:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/pomoc.htm
To join or help this struggle, visit:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/ (Sloboda/Freedom association)
http://www.icdsm.org/ (the international committee to defend Slobodan
Milosevic)
http://www.free-slobo.de/ (German section of ICDSM)
http://www.wpc-in.org/ (world peace council)
http://www.geocities.com/b_antinato/ (Balkan antiNATO center)
1. MILOSEVIC'S BIRTHDAY, AUGUST 20th
Compleanno di Milosevic il 20 agosto
2. JOINT STATEMENT OF THE BOARD OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE TO
DEFEND SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC - ICDSM
Comunicato unitario della direzione del Comitato Internazionale per la
Difesa di Slobodan Milosevic
3. SPEECHES AT THE HAGUE, JUNE 28th
Gli interventi alla manifestazione dell'Aia di Velko Valkanov, Klaus
Hartmann, Aldo Bernardini, Jane Kelly, Heather Cottin
=== 1: MILOSEVIC'S BIRTHDAY, AUGUST 20th ===
From: Vladimir Krsljanin
(Italiano)
IL 20 AGOSTO IL PRESIDENTE SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC COMPIE 62 ANNI. SARA'
QUESTO IL SUO TERZO COMPLEANNO TRASCORSO IN PRIGIONE. INVIATE I VOSTRI
AUGURI E MESSAGGI DI SOSTEGNO - CARTOLINE, LETTERE O TELEGRAMMI -
ALL'INDIRIZZO RIPORTATO DI SEGUITO.
(English)
ON AUGUST 20, PRESIDENT SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC WILL BE 62. THIS WILL BE HIS
THIRD BIRTHDAY IN PRISON.
PLEASE SEND YOUR SUPPORT MESSAGES AND BITHDAY GREETINGS AS POST-CARDS,
LETTERS OR CABLES TO THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS:
(Russian)
20-OGO AVGUSTA PREZIDENTU MILOSHEVICHU NAVESHITSYA 62 GODA. EHTO BUDET
EGO TRETIJ DEN' ROZHDENIYA V TYUR'ME.
POZHALUJSTA POSSYLAJTE VIRAZHENIYA PODDERZHKI I POZDRAVLENIYA V FORME
OTKRYTOK, PISEM I TELEGRAMM NA SLEDUYUSHCHIJ ADRES:
(Serbian)
20. AVGUSTA PREDSEDNIK MILOSEVIC CE IMATI 62 GODINE. TO CE BITI NJEGOV
TRECI RODJENDAN U ZATVORU.
POSALJITE SVOJE IZRAZE PODRSKE I CESTITKE U OBLIKU RAZGLEDNICA, PISAMA
I TELEGRAMA NA SLEDECU ADRESU:
PRESIDENT
SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC
UN Detention Unit
Postbus 87810
2508 Den Haag
Pomp Stations Weg 32
The Neteherlands
---
YOUR HELP
The work for the defense of Slobodan Milosevic totally depends on your
donations.
For more details, see: http://www.sloboda.org.yu/finappeal.htm
Send a check to our address:
SLOBODA
Rajiceva 16, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia and Montenegro, Yugoslavia
or transfer your donation to our account using the instructions at:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/pomocdet.htm
=== 2 : ICDSM STATEMENT ===
JOINT STATEMENT OF THE BOARD OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE TO DEFEND
SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC - ICDSM
The Board of ICDSM informs that Jared Israel and Nico Varkevisser are
not members of ICDSM. They left the Committee, its goals and
commitments in May-June 2003 by launching a series of reckless actions
against it and its leading members, even misusing the name of President
Milosevic. Their unauthorized misuse of the title, website and
financial account of ICDSM to promote their fabricated allegations and
distorted facts has to stop immediately, otherwise they should face
moral and legal consequences.
ICDSM remains committed to the struggle to free President Slobodan
Milosevic from his illegal NATO prison and to promote and assist his
battle for truth, freedom and dignity in the interest of the
people. This battle is of the greatest importance for equality and
democracy in the World.
Our engagement will be only to that end.
This is our common and indisputable position.
August 18, 2003
THE BOARD OF ICDSM
---
Traduzione italiana:
COMUNICATO UNITARIO DELLA DIREZIONE DEL COMITATO INTERNAZIONALE PER LA
DIFESA DI SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC - ICDSM
La direzione dell'ICDSM informa che Jared Israel e Nico Varkevisser non
sono membri dell'ICDSM. Essi hanno di fatto abbandonato il Comitato, i
suoi scopi ed i suoi obblighi nel maggio-giugno 2003, allorquando hanno
incominciato a lanciare una serie di attacchi avventati contro di esso
e contro i suoi principali componenti, persino abusando del nome del
presidente Milosevic.
Il loro improprio e non autorizzato uso del nome, del sito web e del
conto finanziario dell'ICDSM allo scopo di promuovere le loro
supposizioni e distorsioni dei fatti deve cessare immediatamente. In
caso contrario essi dovranno sostenerne le conseguenze morali e legali.
L'ICDSM resta impegnato nella lotta per la liberazione del Presidente
Slobodan Milosevic dalla illegale prigionia NATO, e nella assistenza e
promozione della sua battaglia per la verita', la liberta' e la
dignita' nell'interesse della gente. Questa battaglia e' di estrema
importanza per le sorti della eguaglianza e della democrazia nel mondo.
Il nostro impegno sara' solo a questo scopo.
Questa e' la nostra posizione comune ed irrevocabile.
18 Agosto 2003
La direzione dell'ICDSM
=== 3 : SPEECHES AT THE HAGUE, JUNE 28th ===
From "Sloboda", Belgrade
(To see full coverage of the June 28th demonstration at The Hague,
please go to
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/engleski/index-demonstr.html )
---
Speech given by Prof. Dr. Velko Valkanov, Co-Chairman of the ICDSM, at
the protest at The Hague, June 28th, 2003
Dear friends, ladies and gentlemen,
Since two years, former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic is in the
prison at The Hague, not far from here. He is in jail not because he
committed a crime, but on the opposite, because he was fighting against
criminals. He defended the freedom and honor of its people, he defended
the freedom and honor of all people. That’s why we have the right to
say: in prison at The Hague, there is not just president Milosevic, but
freedom itself, human dignity itself.
President Milosevic stands before a tribunal that lacks not only legal
grounds, but moral grounds as well. It was established by people who do
not recognize International Law. Although they committed many crimes
against the human kind, not them but their victims were made
responsible. The United States of America, which is the strongest force
behind the tribunal, is not recognizing the legitimate International
Criminal Court that was formed on basis of the Rome Statute. They are
of the opinion that people from all nations can be put on trial but not
their own citizens, the citizens of the United States. That is the peak
of hypocrisy, the peak of a robbing moral.
Dear friends,
Yesterday, Klaus Hartmann and me visited president Milosevic in prison.
We talked for about two hours. He sends all his regards to you.
We, Klaus Hartmann and myself, are able to tell you that president
Milosevic has a strong spirit. His inquisitors used different means to
break his strength of mind. Those inferior people even organized a
campaign of hatred against his family. But they will be disappointed.
They can kill president Milosevic, but they cannot defeat this great
man.
Dear friends,
Here, in The Hague, two powers are fighting a difficult battle: the
'world-lie' and the 'world-truth'. In that battle, we stand on the side
of the 'world-truth'. We have no right to loose this battle, the battle
of the future of human kind.
I thank you for your attention.
---
Klaus Hartmann, Vice-Chairman of the ICDSM and speaker of the German
section of the ICDSM, before prison in The Hague where Slobodan
Milosevic is imprisoned, June 28, 2003
Friends, citizens:
We are standing here in front of a building that was used by the German
fascists to imprison Dutch anti-fascist and resistance fighters.
Today once again the criminals have locked up their victims, the
representatives of the resistance to the dictatorship of the “New World
Order”.
We direct our solidarity to these political prisoners, who are
imprisoned here illegally.
The so-called Hague Tribunal, which violates International Law, serves
not only to legitimize NATO’s crimes against Yugoslavia, it is also
part of the colonial authority over the Balkans, a part of a network of
custodial authorities and protectorates, that lie over this country
like a leaden net and prevent the people there from rising up to take
their fate in their own hands and themselves determine their fate.
Yesterday I together with Velko Valkanov had the opportunity to hold a
discussion with President Slobodan Milosevic. He made it quite clear
that the charges this false tribunal is bringing are aimed at
solidifying the colonial order in the Balkans:
–The charges of alleged Serbian crimes in Kosovo have the goal of
laying the foundations for the separation of Kosovo from Serbia;
–The charge of alleged genocide in Bosnia has the goal of ending the
existence of the Serb Republic.
Up to now Slobodan Milosevic has managed to repudiate all the
prosecution’s witnesses, to reduce their testimony to nothing. The
latest, occurring in the last few days, was former U.S. Ambassador
Galbraith. And once again a special guardian angel had to come to the
rescue of this witness. It was the so-called “Judge’ May, this
caricature of a neutral figure, who unsuccessfully sought to rescue Mr.
Ambassador as he cut down the time that Slobodan Milosevic had for his
cross-examination.
In her own “half time,” in which prosecution witnesses are brought on
to support the charges, Ms. Del Ponte stands before us fully naked–a
frightful vision!
Slobodan Milosevic’s morale for struggle is unbroken.
Despite this, his joy over the victorious battles in the “court” room
is limited. The situation, he says, is from one point of view comical,
but even so ridiculous and tragic. Always having to deal with these
small-spirited people is no joy.
How much this court-martial fears the second “half time” in which
Slobodan Milosevic calls the witnesses, has been shown by the
prosecution’s already extending twice the time to make its case, now at
least until the beginning of 2004.
At the same time they have piled up Slobo with paper, tons of paper,
almost a half-million DIN A4 pages. To read these papers through he
would need three years, even if he read 400 pages each day.
It is a requirement of minimal fairness that he be provided with time
for an orderly preparation of his defense.
We demand then:
At least a one-year interruption and corresponding release from prison
for an orderly preparation of the defense!
In agreement with our friend and comrade Slobo, I issue a call that we
all concentrate the attention of the International Committee (for the
Defense of Slobodan Milosevic) and all the organizations of Serbs in
the diaspora to place all our weight on the scales to win this demand
for an interruption in the trial and the corresponding release from
prison!
A further protest is directed at the mistreatment and persecution of
his family, against whom a thoroughgoing witch-hunt has been launched.
While the public with the goal of their well known and practiced
deception of the people learns, that the order to arrest apparently has
something to do with a murder investigation, in reality it is either
over battles among youths or that his wife has allegedly used
“connections” to procure an apartment for the babysitter of her
grandchild.
This is the basis for an “International Arrest Order,” an unrepeatable
joke and a scandal, which is aimed only at undermining his strength for
the battle, his will to struggle, in that every visit from Mirjana and
other members of his family should be made impossible.
We raise the strongest protest and demand the withdrawal of this
illegal arrest orders!
Dear friends and comrades!
We are today for the first time in The Hague. But we will come again–we
are not here for the last time.
Yesterday at noon Slobo asked me, how many participants we expected for
our demonstration. I said, we would be happy if a few hundred were
there, because we have to begin, not wait until we are thousands, but
act with as many as we are able to reach. What is important is the
example, what is important is the first step, and I told him that
Aristoteles had already said, “the beginning is more than half of the
whole” - and today we have gone down more than half the road.
Dear friends!
* With the struggle for the freedom of Slobodan Milosevic we
struggle for all our freedom.
* We struggle against the new imperialist re-division of the world,
against neocolonialism, against the New World War Order.
* We struggle for the defense of people rights, for equality, for
independence, for national sovereignty and dignity of all countries.
We are convinced:
They shall not pass!
The slaveholders have never been the victors in history!
The people have the last word!
Thus:
Zivela Jugoslavija! Sloboda za Slobodana!
(Long live Yugoslavia! Freedom for Slobodan!)
Thank you.
---
Speech by Prof. Aldo Bernardini at the Vidovdan demonstration at The
Hague, June 28, 2003
Dear Comrades and Friends,
I bring here my full solidarity and the solidarity of many Italians to
President Slobodan Milosevic and the other Yugoslav people, who are
arbitrarily detained in this country by an illegitimate Tribunal
established by an anti-Charter order of Security Council. I express our
thanks to all who have organized this meeting and to everyone who is
here.
I met President Milosevic in his arbitrary jail two years ago and was
very impressed by his personality, sense of justice, courage, spirit of
resistance. Two considerations, among many others, made a deep
impression on me. Globalisation is imperialism, the imperialism of our
days, since there is no equality for States and peoples and it will be
forced on the world through other wars (as we know at present, a real
prophecy: Afghanistan, Iraq and so on): so President Milosevic is with
full right a forerunner of anti-globalism.
Second: no State would have accepted the U.N. Charter if there would
have been envisaged even implicitly such a mechanism as this Hague
Tribunal.
The United Nations and its Security Council is not a Superstate, a
Supergovernment with authority over individuals and the measures
envisaged in Chapter VII may not include such operations. As a matter
of fact other attempts at or cases of so-called international criminal
justice over individuals are based on treaties between sovereign States
(they pose also problems, but of another kind): only for Yugoslavia and
Rwanda there was an order by Security Council. If this were accepted as
law, as legitimate rules, Security Council could order everything in
front of everyone: a global dictatorship.
I don’t speak of other aspects of the specific action by the illegal
Tribunal, of its refusal to judge the crimes by NATO (who will be
judged, who will pay for the assassination of Yugoslavs?) Of it’s
denial to pay full respect for human rights: the barbaric abduction of
President Milosevic from Belgrade, for ex., and the shameful attitude
to his family, to his wife that cannot even visit President Milosevic
and is threatened with judicial prosecution. Why? This is the most
cruel torture.
So the Hague Tribunal is a Court for the winners, against people who
resist imperialism, who defend their country against imperialistic
divisions and wars. It is a tool not of justice, but of imperialism.
Freedom and justice for Slobodan Milosevic and the other victims, shame
on the instruments of imperialism!
Resurrection for Serbia and Yugoslavia!
Prof. Dott. Aldo Bernardini
Ordinario di Diritto internazionale
Università di Teramo
---
Speech given on June 28, 2003 at The Hague demonstration by June Kelly
of the Committee to Defend Slobodan Milosevic - Ireland
Down with new colonialism!
Abolish the US/NATO Tribunal!
Free Serbia! Free Yugoslavia!
Free Slobodan Milosevic!
The following is a message of Solidarity from the Committee to Defend
Slobodan Milosevic – (Ireland) who have travelled to The Hague for the
Demonstration on 28th June and those members who were unable to attend:
“To the organisers and all attending the International Demonstration
against the NATO “Court” in The Hague, on this, the second anniversary
of the abduction of the former President of Serbia and Yugoslavia, we
extend our warmest best wishes and message of solidarity in the
struggle for TRUTH, JUSTICE and PEACE.
Be assured that our members in Ireland will continue to campaign with
all of our means for the abolition of the US/NATO “Court” and for
the freedom of President Milosevic, other innocent prisoners in The
Hague and for the liberation of all peoples of Serbia and Yugoslavia”.
The writer Phillip K Dick once described the West succinctly as Lies –
Inc.
The campaign against the Serbian people and Slobodan Milosevic in terms
of concentrated levels of lies, irrationality and hysteria has exceeded
anything previously conceived of by propagandists in the service of
Imperialism.
It cannot be said often enough that the media is Licenced to Lie
On behalf of the war profiteers and their minions who are Licensed to
Kill.
Death dealing glamorised by James Bond the creation of nazi sympathiser
Ian Fleming.
The Director of a public relations company in Washington funded to
manufacture lies against the Serbs and Yugoslavia to enlist world wide
support for the barbaric assaults by NATO on the Bosnian Serbs in 1995
and on Yugoslavia in 1999 has said concernedly –
“We may have won the shooting war –If we lose the propaganda war the
consequences will be catastrophic – “
Signs are that this could be about to happen.
In the aftermath to the (criminal and unjust) bombardments of Iraq this
year it must be increasingly obvious even to the politically naïve that
Western nations do not attack other sovereign nations and depose the
leaders of those nations on either ultruistic or humanitarian grounds.
The agenda is McDonaldisation of the universe. Nothing less.
The tragedy is that remarkably few people across the globe
extraordinarily enough perceived the enormity to the Lie propagated
remorselessly by the Deceivers to garner support for the demolition of
what was then Yugoslavia and the ultimate establishment of a puppet
regime to serve the interests of the Imperialists (in Washington).
June Kelly
Coordinator
Committee to Defend Slobodan Milosevic-Ireland
---
Speech given by Heather Cottin
at The Hague demonstration on June 28, 2003
I greet you today with solidarity from the International Action
Center in New York, founded by Ramsey Clark.
This wonderful demonstration shows how important is
international solidarity. We come here today from two continents to
fight for truth and for the liberation of Slobodan Milosevic. We
continue to struggle for the liberation from NATO/US occupation and
oppression.
We are part of a world movement. Because we know that the
illegal US invasion, bombing and occupation of Iraq really began with
US/NATO destabilization, bombing and occupation of Yugoslavia.
My late husband, Sean Gervasi, died in Belgrade seven years ago.
He worked tirelessly in solidarity with the Serbian people and for
Yugoslavia. He wrote, he spoke, he traveled and organized to try to
save that beautiful nation. He said, "The US struggle to force change
on Yugoslavia is driven by . . . tensions between socialism and
capitalism. . . [but also] between independence and recolonization."
Yugoslavia, the Serbian people, and President Slobodan Milosevic
tried to keep their economy, their independence, and to resist
colonization, just as the Iraqi people are doing. This was their crime
against United States hegemony-and they paid dearly.
The International Action Center worked hard in the 1990s to
build solidarity with Yugoslavia. My late husband worked with the IAC
and throughout the Serbian community in North America and in Europe for
the freedom of Yugoslav from western control. Ramsey Clark and members
of the IAC visited Yugoslavia many times, including during the bombing
in 1999. The IAC conducted a peoples' tribunal in New York, finding the
United States guilty of violating international law and of crimes
against peace. We organized a march on Washington in June of 1999.
The IAC published three books on Yugoslavia, “NATO in the
Balkans”, “Liars Poker” by Michel Collon and “Hidden Agenda”, written
after the war on Yugoslavia. We worked with many of the groups
represented here today- the German section of the International
Committee to defend Slobodan Milosevic, the Pasti Foundation, the PTB,
the New Communist Party of the Netherlands and others.
In a recent interview in Junge Welt Ramsey Clark said,
"People who want peace can’t be taken in by propaganda that makes them
think that by [demonizing people] you can find peace and human rights.
You'll find instead war, injustice, and indignity."
It is against war, injustice and indignity that Slobodan
Milosevic and those in solidarity with him stand today.
As the international anti-imperialist movement grows, we see
millions rising up against war and occupation. This means we have work
to do.
Already at a conference last month organized by the
International Act Now to Stop War and End racism (ANSWER) coalition,
the IAC presented a workshop on Yugoslavia. There was standing room
only. People are eager to learn the truth - to see how the war on
Yugoslav was, as Sean Gervasi showed, "The foot in the door." The
people now understand the media lies. They are beginning to understand
U.S. militarism, globalization and imperialism.
The anti-imperialist movement must take up the cause of
president Milosevic, must see how the demonization of the Serbian
people only served the interests of U.S. hegemony. They need to see
NATO as the military arm of globalization and privatization.
Slobodan Milosevic has alone put NATO in the dock! But he is not
alone. We join with him against the illegal NATO court.
Tonight, in New York at the IAC, we are having a meeting in
solidarity with this important demonstration. We are joined against all
illegal wars and the occupation of Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan,
Palestine, and Iraq.
Sloboda means freedom! Yugoslavia!
Heather Cottin
International Action Center
NY, New York, USA
---
SLOBODA urgently needs your donation.
Please find the detailed instructions at:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/pomoc.htm
To join or help this struggle, visit:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/ (Sloboda/Freedom association)
http://www.icdsm.org/ (the international committee to defend Slobodan
Milosevic)
http://www.free-slobo.de/ (German section of ICDSM)
http://www.wpc-in.org/ (world peace council)
http://www.geocities.com/b_antinato/ (Balkan antiNATO center)
1999 - NATO Aggression against FR Yugoslavia
1. A pattern of agression (The Guardian)
"Iraq was not the first illegal US-led attack on a sovereign state in
recent times. The precedent was set in 1999 in Yugoslavia writes Kate
Hudson"
2. Belgrade regime to drop lawsuits against NATO criminals
3. Russian Court May Try Clinton For War Crimes Against Yugoslavia
=== 1 ===
A pattern of aggression
Iraq was not the first illegal US-led attack on a sovereign state in
recent times. The precedent was set in 1999 in Yugoslavia writes Kate
Hudson
Thursday August 14, 2003
The Guardian <http://www.guardian.co.uk>
The legality of the war against Iraq remains the focus of intense
debate - as is the challenge it poses to the post-second-world-war
order, based on the inviolability of sovereign states. That challenge,
however, is not a new one. The precursor is without doubt Nato's 1999
attack on Yugoslavia, also carried out without UN support. Look again
at how the US and its allies
behaved then, and the pattern is unmistakable.
Yugoslavia was a sovereign state with internationally recognised
borders; an unsolicited intervention in its internal affairs was
excluded by international law. The US-led onslaught was therefore
justified as a humanitarian war - a concept that most international
lawyers regarded as having no legal standing (the Commons foreign
affairs select committee
described it as of "dubious legality"). The attack was also outside
Nato's own remit as a defensive organisation - its mission statement
was later rewritten to allow for such actions.
In Yugoslavia, as in Iraq, the ultimate goal of the aggressor nations
was regime change. In Iraq, the justification for aggression was the
possession of weapons of mass destruction; in Yugoslavia, it was the
prevention of a
humanitarian crisis and genocide in Kosovo. In both cases, the evidence
for such accusations has been lacking: but while this is now widely
accepted in relation to Iraq, the same is not true of Yugoslavia.
In retrospect, it has become ever clearer that the justification for
war was the result of a calculated provocation - and manipulation of
the legitimate grievances of the Kosovan Albanians - in an already
tense situation within the Yugoslav republic of Serbia. The
constitutional status of Kosovo had
been long contested and the case for greater Kosovan Albanian
self-government had been peacefully championed by the Kosovan
politician, Ibrahim Rugova.
In 1996, however, the marginal secessionist group, the Kosovo
Liberation Army, stepped up its violent campaign for Kosovan
independence and launched a series of assassinations of policemen and
civilians in Kosovo, targeting not only Serbs, but also Albanians who
did not support the KLA. The Yugoslav
government branded the KLA a terrorist organisation - a description
also used by US officials. As late as the beginning of 1998, Robert
Gelbard, US special envoy to Bosnia, declared: "The UCK (KLA) is
without any question a
terrorist group."
KLA attacks drew an increasingly heavy military response from Yugoslav
government forces and in the summer of 1998 a concerted offensive
against KLA strongholds began. In contrast to its earlier position, the
US administration now threatened to bomb Yugoslavia unless the
government withdrew its forces from the province, verified by the
Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The US was
now clearly determined to remove Milosevic, who was obstructing
Yugoslavia's integration into the western institutional and economic
framework.
Agreement was reached in October 1998 and 1,000 OSCE observers went to
Kosovo to oversee the withdrawal of government troops. But the KLA used
the pullback to renew armed attacks. In January 1999 an alleged
massacre of 45
Kosovan Albanians by Yugoslav government forces took place at Racak.
Both at the time and subsequently, evidence has been contradictory and
fiercely contested as to whether the Racak victims were civilians or
KLA fighters and whether they died in a firefight or close-range
shootings.
Nevertheless, Racak was seized on by the US to justify acceleration
towards war. In early 1999, the OSCE reported that "the current
security environment in Kosovo is characterised by the disproportionate
use of force by the
Yugoslav authorities in response to persistent attacks and provocations
by the Kosovan Albanian paramilitaries." But when the Rambouillet talks
convened in February 1999, the KLA was accorded the status of national
leader. The Rambouillet text, proposed by the then US secretary of
state,
Madeleine Albright, included a wide range of freedoms and immunities
for Nato forces within Yugoslavia that amounted to an effective
occupation. Even the former US secretary of state, Henry Kissinger,
described it as "a provocation, an excuse to start bombing". The
Yugoslavs refused to sign, so bombing began on March 24 1999.
Despite claims by western leaders that Yugoslav forces were conducting
"genocide" against the Kosovan Albanians, reports of mass killings and
atrocities - such as the supposed concealment of 700 murdered Kosovan
Albanians in the Trepca mines - were often later admitted to be wrong.
Atrocities certainly were carried out by both Serb and KLA forces. But
investigative teams did not find evidence of the scale of dead or
missing claimed at the time, responsibility for which was attributed to
the Yugoslavs. The damage inflicted by US and British bombing,
meanwhile, was considerable, including civilian casualties estimated at
between 1,000 and
5,000 deaths. Nato forces also used depleted uranium weapons - linked
to cancers and birth defects - while Nato bombers destroyed swathes of
Serbia's economic and social infrastructure.
Far from solving a humanitarian crisis, the 79-day bombardment
triggered the flight of hundreds of thousands of Kosovans. Half a
million Kosovan Albanians who had supposedly been internally displaced
turned out not to
have been, and of the 800,000 who had sought refuge or been forced into
neighbouring countries, the UNHCR estimated that 765,000 had already
returned to Kosovo by August of the same year. A more long-lasting
result, however, was that half the Kosovan Serb population -
approximately 100,000 - left Kosovo or was driven out.
So was the war worth it? Notwithstanding the Nato-UN protectorate
established in Kosovo, the territorial integrity of Yugoslavia was no
longer under threat - the Kosovans did not achieve their independence.
Nor has western support for the KLA been mirrored in Kosovan voting
patterns: the party of Rugova, who never backed the violent path,
received a convincing majority in the elections in 2001.
Meanwhile, violence dogs the surviving minority communities, and in
spite of the presence of 40,000 K-For troops and a UN police force, the
Serb and other minorities (such as Roma) have continued to be forced
out. More than 200,000 are now estimated to have left. In the short
term, support for Milosevic actually increased as a result of the war,
and the regime was only changed through a combination of economic
sanctions, elections and heavy western intervention. Such interference
in a country's internal politics does not generally lead to a stable
and peaceful society, as evidenced by the recent assassination of
Serbian prime minister Zoran Djindjic, the most pro-western politician
in the country.
As in Yugoslavia, so in Iraq: illegal aggression justified by spin and
fabrication enables might to prevail and deals a terrible blow to the
framework of international law. As in Yugoslavia, so in Iraq, people's
wellbeing comes a poor second-best to the interests of the world's
self-appointed moral and economic arbiters.
ˇKate Hudson is principal lecturer in Russian and East European
politics at South Bank University, London and author of Breaking the
South Slav Dream: the Rise and Fall of Yugoslavia
=== 2 ===
From "Sloboda", Belgrade, 6.6.2003
"YES, MASA", SAY THE BELGRADE PUPPETS, "WE ARE GUILTY FOR YOUR BOMBING
OF OUR COUNTRY AND KILLING OF OUR CHILDREN"
"The conditions [to join PfP - VK] include continued full cooperation
with The Hague Tribunal and the dropping of the lawsuit brought against
NATO member countries for the 1999 bombing campaign.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of a NATO library at Belgrade’s
Institute for International Police and Economy, [British Ambassador]
Crawford said that the lawsuit filed by the Belgrade government against
members of the western alliance gives a “bizarre tone” to
Serbia-Montenegro’s desire to join the Partnership. "
The Serbian version of Beta news agency dispatch (bellow) contains also
a quote of certain Igor Luksic, present deputy foreign minister of what
is called Serbia-Montenegro. Our translation of that part of Serbian
Beta dispatch:
"Deputy foreign minister of Serbia-Montenegro Igor Luksic have stated
that the state community will officially request the membership to the
Partnership for Peace when the conditions for the admission will be
fulfilled, adding that Serbia-Montenegro will try to reach that "as
soon as possible". According to his words, it is paradoxical to sue the
organization, the member of which you want to become."
B92, June 05, 2003.
NATO Partnership in weeks, provided conditions are met | 15:14 | Beta
BELGRADE -- Thursday -- "Charles Crawford, British Ambassador to
Belgrade, and NATO official George Katsirdakis have today laid down the
conditions for the state union’s accession to NATO’s Partnership for
Peace programme.
The conditions include continued full cooperation with The Hague
Tribunal and the dropping of the lawsuit brought against NATO member
countries for the 1999 bombing campaign.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of a NATO library at Belgrade’s
Institute for International Police and Economy, Crawford said that the
lawsuit filed by the Belgrade government against members of the western
alliance gives a “bizarre tone” to Serbia-Montenegro’s desire to join
the Partnership.
The ambassador noted the about-turn of Serbia-Montenegro officials, who
claimed last year that the army had never protected any war crimes
suspects, although they now claim differently.
Confirming that Britain has agreed to mediate between Serbia-Montenegro
and Euro-Atlantic institutions, Crawford insisted that it was
imperative they know the truth about occurrences in the union.
However, Crawford praised the reform efforts in Serbia-Montenegro,
insisting that they are achieving positive results and that successful
integration into the Partnership for Peace programme would be a clear
message of the state union’s determination to secure peace and
stability in the region.
He added that such a move would also attract foreign investors.
NATO’s Katsirdakis acknowledged Serbia-Montenegro’s success in meeting
a number of requirements for Partnership membership, but insisted that
the case of indicted Hague suspect General Ratko Mladic remained a
major sticking point.
Speaking on behalf of the alliance, Katsirdakis said he was aware that
Serbia-Montenegro has made considerable efforts to meet conditions for
admission to the Partnership, but that the case of Mladic, former
commander of the republic of Srpska Army, was unique and of particular
significance because of his alleged involvement in the 1995 Srebranica
massacre.
However, the NATO official insisted that full membership of the
Partnership could be realised within weeks, provided all conditions are
met.
In the meantime, Serbia-Montenegro is to be granted official observer
status for upcoming activities, although Katsirdakis insisted this
would not affect practical work."
SO, MOST OF THE NATO/HAGUE TERROR IN SERBIA IS ABOUT THE RESPONSIBILITY
OF REAL WAR CRIMINALS AND ABOUT THEIR FEAR.
SLOBODA CALLS FOR ALL KINDS OF OPPOSITION, PROTEST AND INTERNATIONAL
SOLIDARITY TO PREVENT FINAL ATTACK ON OUR FREEDOM AND DIGNITY, AS WELL
AS ON HISTORICAL TRUTH AND INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE.
LETS FREE PRESIDENT SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC, CHAMPION OF THIS STRUGGLE!
LETS FIGHT THE NATO/HAGUE MACHINERY OF DESTRUCTION AND KILLING PEOPLE!
---
MINISTER SAYS SERBIA-MONTENEGRO WILL NOT DROP CHARGES AGAINST NATO
BELGRADE, June 27 (Beta) - Serbia Montenegro Minister of Defense Boris
Tadic said on June 27 that Serbia Montenegro would not drop charges
against NATO before the International Court of Justice in The Hague,
unless Bosnia and Croatia dropped their charges against Serbia
Montenegro.
"We equally perceive all charges before the International Court of
Justice in The Hague," Tadic told journalists, adding that if the
country must drop its charges against NATO, than Bosnia and Herzegovina
and Croatia must drop their charges as well.
He expressed the conviction that the country's suit against NATO for
bombing it in 1999 would not represent an obstacle to membership in
NATO's Partnership for Peace program and Euro Atlantic integration
processes.
It would be good if charges were withrawn, Batic
BANJA LUKA, June 30 (Tanjug) - Serbian Justice Minister Vladan Batic
has said that it would be good, both for the future and friendly
telations, if Bosnia-Herzegovina withrew the charges it had filed with
The Hague tribunal against Serbia and Montenegro for agression and
genocide.
In an interview for the Banja Luka daily Nezavisne Novine, Batic said
that "if that does not happen, then we have to defend ourselves from
the charges and prove an another truth."
"As regards the charges, the Serbian Justice Ministry has prepared
such evidence that will surprise both the domestic and foreign
public," the Serbian misister warned.
TADIC SAYS ALL LAWSUITS SHOULD BE WITHDRAWN SIMULTANEOUSLY
PODGORICA, July 2 (Tanjug) - Serbia-Montenegro Defense Minister Boris
Tadic said in Podgorica late on Tuesday that any withdrawal of a
lawsuit against 19 NATO countries for aggression against our country
was in connection with the lawsuits of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia
against Serbia-Montenegro before the International Court of Justice.
"Our stand is that if some lawsuits are withdrawn, all should be
withdrawn simultaneously. This is a principle that might be
criticized, but at this point we don't have a better instrument for
securing our interests before the International Court of Justice,"
Tadic told the Montenegrin state television. He said he expected that
the international community would put pressure on Croatia and
Bosnia-Herzegovina to give up their lawsuits against
Serbia-Montenegro, like it was putting pressure on Serbia-Montenegro
to give up its lawsuit against NATO member-countries.
Drop NATO charges, says Filipovic | 13:13 -> 18:19 | Dnevnik
BELGRADE -- Friday – Serbia-Montenegro should drop its lawsuit against
the 19 NATO countries that took part in the bombing of Yugoslavia in
1999, the state union’s NATO liaison said today.
“I saw no opportunity for the state to benefit from this
lawsuit. If it’s making problems for us then it’s better that
we give up on it,” said Miroslav Filipovic.
Filipovic claimed that if Serbia-Montenegro dropped the charges against
NATO, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina would drop theirs against Belgrade.
Serbia-Montenegro MP Filipovic participated in a two-day
roundtable this week regarding the reform of the security
sector. Also in attendance were Serbia-Montengro Defence
Minister Boris Tadic and Chief-of-Staff of the state union army
General Branko Krga.
The event, organised by The Club of Madrid, was also attended by Chris
Donnelly, Senior Advisor to the NATO Secretary-General for Central and
Eastern Europe, Narcis Serra, former Spanish vice president and defence
minister, and Jim O'Brien, former US Envoy to the Balkans.
Two conditions for membership
Donnelly said during the discussion that Serbia-Montenegro were guilty
of not letting their voice be heard, urging them to
fight for their rights once members of the western alliance's
Partnership for Peace Programme.
However, Donnelly stressed that two conditions had still to be
met before membership would be granted: the arrest and
extradition of former Republika Srpska commander General Ratko Mladic;
the dropping of the lawsuit the state union have filed against NATO,
seeking compensation for the damage caused by the 1999 bombing campaign.
http://www.b92.net/english/news/index.php?&nav_category=&nav_id
=23559&order=priority&style=headlines
=== 3 ===
Da: Rick Rozoff
Data: Mer 11 Giu 2003 12:07:36 Europe/Rome
Oggetto: [yugoslaviainfo] Russian Court May Try Clinton For War Crimes
Against Yugoslavia
http://www.interfax.ru/
one_news_en.html?lang=EN&tz=0&tz_format=MSK&id_news=5642675
Interfax (Russia) - June 11, 2003
Saratov region intends to try Clinton
-According to the claimants, the former U.S. president
violated five articles of the Russian Criminal Code,
such as "the planning, preparation, launching, or
conducting of an aggressive war" (Article 353), "the
use of banned means and methods of conducting a war"
(Article 356), "genocide" (Article 357), "ecocide"
(Article 358), and "an attack against individuals or
establishments enjoying international protection"
(Article 360). Those found guilty of the crimes
described by these articles could face from 20 years
to life in prison.
SARATOV. June 11 (Interfax) - The Saratov Regional
Court has satisfied an appeal by five Saratov
residents against a ruling handed down earlier by the
Volga District Court, which refused to try former U.S.
President Bill Clinton in Russia for the bombardment
of Yugoslavia in 1999.
Interfax obtained this information from a source in
the regional court.
In late March this year, five Saratov residents,
including a local journalist, the deputy director of
an Orthodox high school, and three members of the
Russian Writers Union, appealed to the Saratov
regional prosecutor's office, demanding that Clinton
be prosecuted for bombing Yugoslavia.
According to the claimants, the former U.S. president
violated five articles of the Russian Criminal Code,
such as "the planning, preparation, launching, or
conducting of an aggressive war" (Article 353), "the
use of banned means and methods of conducting a war"
(Article 356), "genocide" (Article 357), "ecocide"
(Article 358), and "an attack against individuals or
establishments enjoying international protection"
(Article 360). Those found guilty of the crimes
described by these articles could face from 20 years
to life in prison.
The Volga District Court ruled that Clinton cannot be
tried in the Russian Federation. However, the
claimants field an appeal, citing Article 12 of the
Russian Criminal Code, under which a criminal case can
be opened against a foreigner if he or she caused
damage to Russia. In the claimants' view, the U.S. Air
Force, which bombed Yugoslavia, caused significant
damage to Russia, in particular, by destroying Russian
pipelines.
The Saratov Regional Court's board satisfied the
appeal and returned the case to the Volga District
Court for new consideration.
===
1999 - NATO Aggression against FR Yugoslavia
*** WE WILL NEVER STOP ASKING FOR JUSTICE ***
1. A pattern of agression (The Guardian)
"Iraq was not the first illegal US-led attack on a sovereign state in
recent times. The precedent was set in 1999 in Yugoslavia writes Kate
Hudson"
2. Belgrade regime to drop lawsuits against NATO criminals
3. Russian Court May Try Clinton For War Crimes Against Yugoslavia
=== 1 ===
A pattern of aggression
Iraq was not the first illegal US-led attack on a sovereign state in
recent times. The precedent was set in 1999 in Yugoslavia writes Kate
Hudson
Thursday August 14, 2003
The Guardian <http://www.guardian.co.uk>
The legality of the war against Iraq remains the focus of intense
debate - as is the challenge it poses to the post-second-world-war
order, based on the inviolability of sovereign states. That challenge,
however, is not a new one. The precursor is without doubt Nato's 1999
attack on Yugoslavia, also carried out without UN support. Look again
at how the US and its allies
behaved then, and the pattern is unmistakable.
Yugoslavia was a sovereign state with internationally recognised
borders; an unsolicited intervention in its internal affairs was
excluded by international law. The US-led onslaught was therefore
justified as a humanitarian war - a concept that most international
lawyers regarded as having no legal standing (the Commons foreign
affairs select committee
described it as of "dubious legality"). The attack was also outside
Nato's own remit as a defensive organisation - its mission statement
was later rewritten to allow for such actions.
In Yugoslavia, as in Iraq, the ultimate goal of the aggressor nations
was regime change. In Iraq, the justification for aggression was the
possession of weapons of mass destruction; in Yugoslavia, it was the
prevention of a
humanitarian crisis and genocide in Kosovo. In both cases, the evidence
for such accusations has been lacking: but while this is now widely
accepted in relation to Iraq, the same is not true of Yugoslavia.
In retrospect, it has become ever clearer that the justification for
war was the result of a calculated provocation - and manipulation of
the legitimate grievances of the Kosovan Albanians - in an already
tense situation within the Yugoslav republic of Serbia. The
constitutional status of Kosovo had
been long contested and the case for greater Kosovan Albanian
self-government had been peacefully championed by the Kosovan
politician, Ibrahim Rugova.
In 1996, however, the marginal secessionist group, the Kosovo
Liberation Army, stepped up its violent campaign for Kosovan
independence and launched a series of assassinations of policemen and
civilians in Kosovo, targeting not only Serbs, but also Albanians who
did not support the KLA. The Yugoslav
government branded the KLA a terrorist organisation - a description
also used by US officials. As late as the beginning of 1998, Robert
Gelbard, US special envoy to Bosnia, declared: "The UCK (KLA) is
without any question a
terrorist group."
KLA attacks drew an increasingly heavy military response from Yugoslav
government forces and in the summer of 1998 a concerted offensive
against KLA strongholds began. In contrast to its earlier position, the
US administration now threatened to bomb Yugoslavia unless the
government withdrew its forces from the province, verified by the
Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The US was
now clearly determined to remove Milosevic, who was obstructing
Yugoslavia's integration into the western institutional and economic
framework.
Agreement was reached in October 1998 and 1,000 OSCE observers went to
Kosovo to oversee the withdrawal of government troops. But the KLA used
the pullback to renew armed attacks. In January 1999 an alleged
massacre of 45
Kosovan Albanians by Yugoslav government forces took place at Racak.
Both at the time and subsequently, evidence has been contradictory and
fiercely contested as to whether the Racak victims were civilians or
KLA fighters and whether they died in a firefight or close-range
shootings.
Nevertheless, Racak was seized on by the US to justify acceleration
towards war. In early 1999, the OSCE reported that "the current
security environment in Kosovo is characterised by the disproportionate
use of force by the
Yugoslav authorities in response to persistent attacks and provocations
by the Kosovan Albanian paramilitaries." But when the Rambouillet talks
convened in February 1999, the KLA was accorded the status of national
leader. The Rambouillet text, proposed by the then US secretary of
state,
Madeleine Albright, included a wide range of freedoms and immunities
for Nato forces within Yugoslavia that amounted to an effective
occupation. Even the former US secretary of state, Henry Kissinger,
described it as "a provocation, an excuse to start bombing". The
Yugoslavs refused to sign, so bombing began on March 24 1999.
Despite claims by western leaders that Yugoslav forces were conducting
"genocide" against the Kosovan Albanians, reports of mass killings and
atrocities - such as the supposed concealment of 700 murdered Kosovan
Albanians in the Trepca mines - were often later admitted to be wrong.
Atrocities certainly were carried out by both Serb and KLA forces. But
investigative teams did not find evidence of the scale of dead or
missing claimed at the time, responsibility for which was attributed to
the Yugoslavs. The damage inflicted by US and British bombing,
meanwhile, was considerable, including civilian casualties estimated at
between 1,000 and
5,000 deaths. Nato forces also used depleted uranium weapons - linked
to cancers and birth defects - while Nato bombers destroyed swathes of
Serbia's economic and social infrastructure.
Far from solving a humanitarian crisis, the 79-day bombardment
triggered the flight of hundreds of thousands of Kosovans. Half a
million Kosovan Albanians who had supposedly been internally displaced
turned out not to
have been, and of the 800,000 who had sought refuge or been forced into
neighbouring countries, the UNHCR estimated that 765,000 had already
returned to Kosovo by August of the same year. A more long-lasting
result, however, was that half the Kosovan Serb population -
approximately 100,000 - left Kosovo or was driven out.
So was the war worth it? Notwithstanding the Nato-UN protectorate
established in Kosovo, the territorial integrity of Yugoslavia was no
longer under threat - the Kosovans did not achieve their independence.
Nor has western support for the KLA been mirrored in Kosovan voting
patterns: the party of Rugova, who never backed the violent path,
received a convincing majority in the elections in 2001.
Meanwhile, violence dogs the surviving minority communities, and in
spite of the presence of 40,000 K-For troops and a UN police force, the
Serb and other minorities (such as Roma) have continued to be forced
out. More than 200,000 are now estimated to have left. In the short
term, support for Milosevic actually increased as a result of the war,
and the regime was only changed through a combination of economic
sanctions, elections and heavy western intervention. Such interference
in a country's internal politics does not generally lead to a stable
and peaceful society, as evidenced by the recent assassination of
Serbian prime minister Zoran Djindjic, the most pro-western politician
in the country.
As in Yugoslavia, so in Iraq: illegal aggression justified by spin and
fabrication enables might to prevail and deals a terrible blow to the
framework of international law. As in Yugoslavia, so in Iraq, people's
wellbeing comes a poor second-best to the interests of the world's
self-appointed moral and economic arbiters.
ˇKate Hudson is principal lecturer in Russian and East European
politics at South Bank University, London and author of Breaking the
South Slav Dream: the Rise and Fall of Yugoslavia
=== 2 ===
From "Sloboda", Belgrade, 6.6.2003
"YES, MASA", SAY THE BELGRADE PUPPETS, "WE ARE GUILTY FOR YOUR BOMBING
OF OUR COUNTRY AND KILLING OF OUR CHILDREN"
"The conditions [to join PfP - VK] include continued full cooperation
with The Hague Tribunal and the dropping of the lawsuit brought against
NATO member countries for the 1999 bombing campaign.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of a NATO library at Belgrade’s
Institute for International Police and Economy, [British Ambassador]
Crawford said that the lawsuit filed by the Belgrade government against
members of the western alliance gives a “bizarre tone” to
Serbia-Montenegro’s desire to join the Partnership. "
The Serbian version of Beta news agency dispatch (bellow) contains also
a quote of certain Igor Luksic, present deputy foreign minister of what
is called Serbia-Montenegro. Our translation of that part of Serbian
Beta dispatch:
"Deputy foreign minister of Serbia-Montenegro Igor Luksic have stated
that the state community will officially request the membership to the
Partnership for Peace when the conditions for the admission will be
fulfilled, adding that Serbia-Montenegro will try to reach that "as
soon as possible". According to his words, it is paradoxical to sue the
organization, the member of which you want to become."
B92, June 05, 2003.
NATO Partnership in weeks, provided conditions are met | 15:14 | Beta
BELGRADE -- Thursday -- "Charles Crawford, British Ambassador to
Belgrade, and NATO official George Katsirdakis have today laid down the
conditions for the state union’s accession to NATO’s Partnership for
Peace programme.
The conditions include continued full cooperation with The Hague
Tribunal and the dropping of the lawsuit brought against NATO member
countries for the 1999 bombing campaign.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of a NATO library at Belgrade’s
Institute for International Police and Economy, Crawford said that the
lawsuit filed by the Belgrade government against members of the western
alliance gives a “bizarre tone” to Serbia-Montenegro’s desire to join
the Partnership.
The ambassador noted the about-turn of Serbia-Montenegro officials, who
claimed last year that the army had never protected any war crimes
suspects, although they now claim differently.
Confirming that Britain has agreed to mediate between Serbia-Montenegro
and Euro-Atlantic institutions, Crawford insisted that it was
imperative they know the truth about occurrences in the union.
However, Crawford praised the reform efforts in Serbia-Montenegro,
insisting that they are achieving positive results and that successful
integration into the Partnership for Peace programme would be a clear
message of the state union’s determination to secure peace and
stability in the region.
He added that such a move would also attract foreign investors.
NATO’s Katsirdakis acknowledged Serbia-Montenegro’s success in meeting
a number of requirements for Partnership membership, but insisted that
the case of indicted Hague suspect General Ratko Mladic remained a
major sticking point.
Speaking on behalf of the alliance, Katsirdakis said he was aware that
Serbia-Montenegro has made considerable efforts to meet conditions for
admission to the Partnership, but that the case of Mladic, former
commander of the republic of Srpska Army, was unique and of particular
significance because of his alleged involvement in the 1995 Srebranica
massacre.
However, the NATO official insisted that full membership of the
Partnership could be realised within weeks, provided all conditions are
met.
In the meantime, Serbia-Montenegro is to be granted official observer
status for upcoming activities, although Katsirdakis insisted this
would not affect practical work."
SO, MOST OF THE NATO/HAGUE TERROR IN SERBIA IS ABOUT THE RESPONSIBILITY
OF REAL WAR CRIMINALS AND ABOUT THEIR FEAR.
SLOBODA CALLS FOR ALL KINDS OF OPPOSITION, PROTEST AND INTERNATIONAL
SOLIDARITY TO PREVENT FINAL ATTACK ON OUR FREEDOM AND DIGNITY, AS WELL
AS ON HISTORICAL TRUTH AND INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE.
LETS FREE PRESIDENT SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC, CHAMPION OF THIS STRUGGLE!
LETS FIGHT THE NATO/HAGUE MACHINERY OF DESTRUCTION AND KILLING PEOPLE!
---
MINISTER SAYS SERBIA-MONTENEGRO WILL NOT DROP CHARGES AGAINST NATO
BELGRADE, June 27 (Beta) - Serbia Montenegro Minister of Defense Boris
Tadic said on June 27 that Serbia Montenegro would not drop charges
against NATO before the International Court of Justice in The Hague,
unless Bosnia and Croatia dropped their charges against Serbia
Montenegro.
"We equally perceive all charges before the International Court of
Justice in The Hague," Tadic told journalists, adding that if the
country must drop its charges against NATO, than Bosnia and Herzegovina
and Croatia must drop their charges as well.
He expressed the conviction that the country's suit against NATO for
bombing it in 1999 would not represent an obstacle to membership in
NATO's Partnership for Peace program and Euro Atlantic integration
processes.
It would be good if charges were withrawn, Batic
BANJA LUKA, June 30 (Tanjug) - Serbian Justice Minister Vladan Batic
has said that it would be good, both for the future and friendly
telations, if Bosnia-Herzegovina withrew the charges it had filed with
The Hague tribunal against Serbia and Montenegro for agression and
genocide.
In an interview for the Banja Luka daily Nezavisne Novine, Batic said
that "if that does not happen, then we have to defend ourselves from
the charges and prove an another truth."
"As regards the charges, the Serbian Justice Ministry has prepared
such evidence that will surprise both the domestic and foreign
public," the Serbian misister warned.
TADIC SAYS ALL LAWSUITS SHOULD BE WITHDRAWN SIMULTANEOUSLY
PODGORICA, July 2 (Tanjug) - Serbia-Montenegro Defense Minister Boris
Tadic said in Podgorica late on Tuesday that any withdrawal of a
lawsuit against 19 NATO countries for aggression against our country
was in connection with the lawsuits of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia
against Serbia-Montenegro before the International Court of Justice.
"Our stand is that if some lawsuits are withdrawn, all should be
withdrawn simultaneously. This is a principle that might be
criticized, but at this point we don't have a better instrument for
securing our interests before the International Court of Justice,"
Tadic told the Montenegrin state television. He said he expected that
the international community would put pressure on Croatia and
Bosnia-Herzegovina to give up their lawsuits against
Serbia-Montenegro, like it was putting pressure on Serbia-Montenegro
to give up its lawsuit against NATO member-countries.
Drop NATO charges, says Filipovic | 13:13 -> 18:19 | Dnevnik
BELGRADE -- Friday – Serbia-Montenegro should drop its lawsuit against
the 19 NATO countries that took part in the bombing of Yugoslavia in
1999, the state union’s NATO liaison said today.
“I saw no opportunity for the state to benefit from this
lawsuit. If it’s making problems for us then it’s better that
we give up on it,” said Miroslav Filipovic.
Filipovic claimed that if Serbia-Montenegro dropped the charges against
NATO, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina would drop theirs against Belgrade.
Serbia-Montenegro MP Filipovic participated in a two-day
roundtable this week regarding the reform of the security
sector. Also in attendance were Serbia-Montengro Defence
Minister Boris Tadic and Chief-of-Staff of the state union army
General Branko Krga.
The event, organised by The Club of Madrid, was also attended by Chris
Donnelly, Senior Advisor to the NATO Secretary-General for Central and
Eastern Europe, Narcis Serra, former Spanish vice president and defence
minister, and Jim O'Brien, former US Envoy to the Balkans.
Two conditions for membership
Donnelly said during the discussion that Serbia-Montenegro were guilty
of not letting their voice be heard, urging them to
fight for their rights once members of the western alliance's
Partnership for Peace Programme.
However, Donnelly stressed that two conditions had still to be
met before membership would be granted: the arrest and
extradition of former Republika Srpska commander General Ratko Mladic;
the dropping of the lawsuit the state union have filed against NATO,
seeking compensation for the damage caused by the 1999 bombing campaign.
http://www.b92.net/english/news/index.php?&nav_category=&nav_id
=23559&order=priority&style=headlines
=== 3 ===
Da: Rick Rozoff
Data: Mer 11 Giu 2003 12:07:36 Europe/Rome
Oggetto: [yugoslaviainfo] Russian Court May Try Clinton For War Crimes
Against Yugoslavia
http://www.interfax.ru/
one_news_en.html?lang=EN&tz=0&tz_format=MSK&id_news=5642675
Interfax (Russia) - June 11, 2003
Saratov region intends to try Clinton
-According to the claimants, the former U.S. president
violated five articles of the Russian Criminal Code,
such as "the planning, preparation, launching, or
conducting of an aggressive war" (Article 353), "the
use of banned means and methods of conducting a war"
(Article 356), "genocide" (Article 357), "ecocide"
(Article 358), and "an attack against individuals or
establishments enjoying international protection"
(Article 360). Those found guilty of the crimes
described by these articles could face from 20 years
to life in prison.
SARATOV. June 11 (Interfax) - The Saratov Regional
Court has satisfied an appeal by five Saratov
residents against a ruling handed down earlier by the
Volga District Court, which refused to try former U.S.
President Bill Clinton in Russia for the bombardment
of Yugoslavia in 1999.
Interfax obtained this information from a source in
the regional court.
In late March this year, five Saratov residents,
including a local journalist, the deputy director of
an Orthodox high school, and three members of the
Russian Writers Union, appealed to the Saratov
regional prosecutor's office, demanding that Clinton
be prosecuted for bombing Yugoslavia.
According to the claimants, the former U.S. president
violated five articles of the Russian Criminal Code,
such as "the planning, preparation, launching, or
conducting of an aggressive war" (Article 353), "the
use of banned means and methods of conducting a war"
(Article 356), "genocide" (Article 357), "ecocide"
(Article 358), and "an attack against individuals or
establishments enjoying international protection"
(Article 360). Those found guilty of the crimes
described by these articles could face from 20 years
to life in prison.
The Volga District Court ruled that Clinton cannot be
tried in the Russian Federation. However, the
claimants field an appeal, citing Article 12 of the
Russian Criminal Code, under which a criminal case can
be opened against a foreigner if he or she caused
damage to Russia. In the claimants' view, the U.S. Air
Force, which bombed Yugoslavia, caused significant
damage to Russia, in particular, by destroying Russian
pipelines.
The Saratov Regional Court's board satisfied the
appeal and returned the case to the Volga District
Court for new consideration.
===
1999 - NATO Aggression against FR Yugoslavia
*** WE WILL NEVER STOP ASKING FOR JUSTICE ***
Convegno CNJ 16/11/2002
4: Anelli
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/files/CONVEGNOTRIESTE/
trascrizioni.html
---
Trieste / Trst, 16 novembre 2002, Convegno:
"...PASSANDO SEMPRE PER LA JUGOSLAVIA..."
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/files/CONVEGNOTRIESTE/
anelli.html
INTERVENTO DI LINO ANELLI
(CGIL Lombardia)
Il caso Zastava
Parliamo di Zastava ma in realta' la Zastava può essere un buon
pretesto per parlare della Jugoslavia e delle condizioni attuali della
sua classe operaia e dei suoi sindacati, delle politiche economiche con
cui il nuovo potere sta oggi cercando di imporre a questi soggetti
sociali più pesanti livelli di
subordinazione per sostenere le esigenze di quell'interesse conomico e
di mercato che sta oggi occupando, tramite la guerra, quel territorio.
La storia della Zastava, la situazione, le contraddizioni che attorno
al caso Zastava si stanno sviluppando, per certi versi intersecano gran
parte delle cose che avete sentito nelle precedenti comunicazioni.
Perche' la Zastava e' un soggetto sociale, e' uno snodo di diverse
contraddizioni - politiche,
sindacali ed economiche.
Noi cerchiamo di capire come relazionarci con una situazione (la
disgregazione della Jugoslavia) che, come diceva anche l'intervento di
Kapuralin, sembra non avere spiegazione, sembra illogica, anche se
illogica non e', perche' per tutti i processi storici, per tutte le
cose che avvengono esistono delle cause, ed esistono percorsi che ne
hanno determinato lo sviluppo. Non tocca a me sviluppare questa
analisi, già
presente nelle comunicazioni precedenti, e su come l'interesse
occidentale ha lavorato coscientemente per produrre in modo coercitivo
la disgregazione di una esperienza che, per il modello che
rappresentava, non rientrava (era quindi da ostacolo) nel tipo di
egemonia e controllo economico, politico e territoriale a cui
l'Occidente guarda tutt'ora.
Siamo entrati in contatto con la Zastava gia' durante i bombardamenti
mentre in Italia cercava di svilupparsi, con una evidente debolezza
sopratutto dentro ai sindacati, un movimento "contro la guerra".
Debole, perche' in quel momento sono mancate le tradizionali sponde
istituzionali,
politiche e sindacali . E' mancata una opposizione alla guerra da parte
delle forze di sinistra che anzi si sono lasciate immischiare in una
guerra assurda, giustificandola in nome di una "razionalità" e di un
"pragmatismo" con cui in molti hanno creduto di potersi accreditare tra
i patner fiduciari nel nuovo ordine mondiale.
Allora c'era in carica il governo D'Alema, sostenuto anche dai Verdi e
dal PdCI. La preoccupazione principale era difendere il Governo e ciò
ha irrigidito i comportamenti del centro sinistra e degli stessi
sindacati. In difesa del Governo di centro sinistra si sono sprecate le
azioni tese a condizionare lo sviluppo di una critica organizzata alla
guerra. Si è sostenuta una colpevole campagna di disinformazione con
cui si è cercato di
giustificare l'ineluttabilità della guerra, fino a cercare di
criminalizzare l'opinione di chi, non condividendo tutto ciò, cercava
di contrastare questa politica.
E' anche da ciò che si può spiegare la debolezza del movimento contro
la guerra, soprattutto dentro il sindacato, tra i lavoratori. Ha pesato
non poco il controllo, la disinformazione degli apparati sindacali
sostanzialmente organizzati dietro alla posizione della "dolorosa ma
contingente necessita'", che altro non era se non la giustificazione
delle scelte del governo di centro-sinistra. Governo che comunque
"andava sostenuto", che comunque "andava difeso" o perlomeno "compreso"
nella difficile e complicata situazione in cui si trovava.
Quindi un movimento contro la guerra debole, che pero' e' riuscito in
qualche modo a muoversi, anche se non ha avuto la capacita' aggregativa
che invece avrebbe potuto o dovuto avere.
Ecco: noi in quel frangente - subito dopo l'aprile 1999, ossia subito
dopo che i missili Cruise hanno distrutto la fabbrica della Zastava -
abbiamo cominciato a cercare rapporti con questi lavoratori. A dire il
vero ci hanno anche cercato loro. Essi stessi sono stati promotori di
una iniziativa tesa a
cercare la solidarieta' del mondo sindacale europeo, contattando anche
i tedeschi, i francesi, perche' dal mondo del lavoro venisse un
messaggio che manifestasse un chiaro rifiuto della guerra e perlomeno
forme di solidarieta' concrete, capaci di sostenere i lavoratori
jugoslavi in quel difficile impegno che era il dopoguerra e la
necessità di dare risposte ad un rischio di disgregazione sociale a cui
il mondo del lavoro jugoslavo andava incontro.
Accanto all'assurdità della guerra ed alla conoscenza delle sue
immediate conseguenze, il confronto con i lavoratori della Zastava si è
quindi subito spostato anche sul dopoguerra ossia sul fatto che questa
guerra avrebbe avuto sicuramente una azione disgregatrice del tessuto
sociale. Coscienti che senza la sopravvivenza o la difesa di un
soggetto sociale forte, come
potevano essere i lavoratori, il dopoguerra sarebbe stato altrettanto
catastrofico quanto la guerra stessa.
Abbiamo quindi avviato rapporti con questi lavoratori partendo dalla
necessità di produrre una adeguata conoscenza della situazione in modo
da contrastare la forte disinformazione che attorno a questa guerra era
stata costruita, nel tentativo di costruire un percorso di conoscenza e
di comprensione su quanto stava veramente avvenendo. Era questo un
passaggio fondamentale anche per sostenere la proposta di un vasto
impegno solidale del mondo del lavoro italiano verso questi lavoratori.
Siamo quindi partiti dalla fabbrica, dal fatto che questa guerra
umanitaria si era in realtà smascherata per quello che era. Siamo
partiti dai dati sulla distruzione delle fabbriche, delle scuole, delle
strutture sanitarie ecc. ad opera dei bombardamenti della NATO, sulle
centinaia di migliaia di
lavoratori che hanno perduto il loro posto di lavoro, il reddito, ogni
tutela previdenziale, sociale e sanitaria.
Per questo la prima azione decisa assieme è stata quella di organizzare
in tutta Italia una serie di riunioni, di assemblee con i lavoratori
nelle fabbriche, che ha coinvolto diversi territori dal Sud al Nord,
portando in Italia una delegazione di lavoratori della Zastava. Questa
controinformazione, questa loro presenza in Italia e' sicuramente stata
utile perche' ha aperto concretamente delle contraddizioni in quel muro
di gomma che si era formato intorno alla questione della guerra.
Tanto e' vero che diverse strutture sindacali, di fronte ad un
confronto diretto con le contraddizioni e con le problematiche che
questi lavoratori ponevano, hanno messo in discussione un po' da subito
la posizione della "contingente necessita'". Mi riferisco non solo alla
sinistra sindacale, che pur con le sue articolazioni, con le sue
contraddizioni interne, comunque si era espressa contro la guerra, ma
anche alle strutture
sindacali nel loro complesso, soprattutto della Cgil.
E' bene ricordare che la CGIL Lombardia, la CGIL di Brescia in modo
particolare, che non e' una struttura da poco, si e' schierata da
subito contro la guerra. E che sulle varie iniziative di solidarieta'
successive che si sono poi determinate altre strutture della CGIL,
compresa la CGIL di Trieste, hanno avuto occasione di muoversi in
controtendenza rispetto ad una struttura nazionale che - lo posso
assicurare - e' stata
pesantissima all'interno, verso le proprie strutture, contro ed in
polemica con quelle posizioni che considerava cedimenti rispetto ad una
linea nazionale. Voglio solo ricordare che il segretario generale della
CGIL Lombardia, Agostinelli, e' stato dimissionato con la forza dalla
CGIL nazionale, tra le altre cose anche perchè ha immediatamente
criticato le posizioni nazionali sulla guerra, sostenendo e promuovendo
mobilitazioni in questo senso. In una lettera in cui lo si accusava di
inadeguatezza rispetto ai compiti di rappresentanza della linea della
CGIL nazionale in Lombardia gli veniva imputata, oltre la sua posizione
sulla guerra, anche il rapporto diretto che aveva costruito con i
lavoratori della Zastava.
Ciononostante, grazie a queste contraddizioni, e soprattutto grazie
alla coscienza che era importante - durante e dopo la guerra - lavorare
sulla soggettivita' sociale piu' rilevante, quella con la quale i
sindacati avrebbero dovuto confrontarsi direttamente ossia il mondo del
lavoro della Jugoslavia, e' nata quella rete di solidarieta' nella
forma che oggi molti di voi conoscono.
Una struttura di solidarieta' che poggia essenzialmente attorno ad
alcune, poche, strutture sindacali, ed a una rete di delegati di
fabbrica delle RSU che va dal Sud al Nord, con presenze significative
in alcune situazioni importanti. Una rete che poi ha coinvolto, anche
fuori dal mondo del lavoro, altre situazioni, associazioni ecc. Una
rete importante anche dal punto di vista quantitativo: non e' poca cosa
la solidarieta' che si e' riusciti a determinare e che si sta ancora
determinando. Anche se purtroppo, come qualcuno prima ricordava,
benche' essa non sia poca cosa rispetto alle nostre capacita'
operative, resta comunque troppo poca cosa rispetto al bisogno enorme
che esiste in quella situazione.
E' bene ricordare comunque che l'azione di solidarieta' che stiamo
portando avanti non e' di tipo caritatevole. Non consiste nel fatto che
se mi chiedono da bere io gli do da bere, se mi chiedono da mangiare io
gli do da mangiare... Questa rete e' "pensata", e' "ragionante": e'
una iniziativa di solidarieta' che ha come obbiettivo l'intercettazione
di diverse problematiche, le stesse che sono emerse anche nella
discussione di oggi.
Ossia il fatto che oggi in Jugoslavia c'e' bisogno di difendere un
soggetto sociale - la classe operaia e di sostenerla non solo sul
fronte di una lotta per il reddito e per l'occupazione ma anche nel
ruolo che questa può svolgere in difesa della democrazia sociale,
contro l'imbarbarimento istituzionale ed economico che si sta
affermando in quella regione
Per questo, fin dall'inizio abbiamo cercato di allargare i nostri
rapporti al maggior numero di situazioni sindacali della Jugoslavia
Tuttavia, nonostante gli sforzi che abbiamo fatto, ci troviamo ad avere
come unico riferimento sindacale, per questa iniziativa, la Zastava. I
bombardamenti, e quello che e' successo dopo, hanno praticamente
maciullato l'organizzazione sindacale. Quando tu distruggi una fabbrica
distruggi un luogo di organizzazione; quando tu distruggi un
territorio, distruggi i referenti sociali che ci sono su quel
territorio. Praticamente, e' come se avessi svuotato quel territorio.
Non e' un caso che, purtroppo, la nostra iniziativa si sia fermata alla
Zastava: perche' la Zastava, dopo i bombardamenti e nonostante i
bombardamenti, e' stata una delle poche realta' sindacali, tra quelle
colpite dalla guerra, ad aver mantenuto - grazie allo sforzo non
piccolo dei lavoratori e dei loro delegati - una sua propria capacita'
organizzativa sindacale. Pur non avendo lavoratori in fabbrica, la
struttura sindacale si e' sforzata di resistere, anche solo dal punto
di vista formale: quindi ha continuato a funzionare come soggetto di
riferimento per il territorio, per i lavoratori. Continuando comunque a
convocare assemblee, organizzare manifestazioni e, anche se sembra
assurdo a fronte della situazione, anche scioperi.
E grazie al lavoro di solidarieta' di molti lavoratori e fabbriche
italiane, abbiamo contribuito a rendere possibile tutto ciò. Anche
senza la fabbrica, grazie all'organizzazione sindacale Zastava ed alla
solidarietà dei lavoratori italiani, i lavoratori della Zastava hanno
potuto continuare a vivere il loro luogo di lavoro come punto di
incontro, di snodo, anche solo perchè si poteva continuare per lo meno
a distribuire quel poco che c'era da distribuire. Quindi, quando
parliamo di una guerra e degli effetti che questa guerra ha sulla
capacita' di risposta della gente, dei lavoratori, delle persone, dei
soggetti sociali presenti su quel territorio, dobbiamo considerare che
la guerra e' prima di tutto una operazione distruttiva, che non
distrugge solo le vite individuali o le fabbriche o i ponti… ma
distrugge un tessuto sociale, le organizzazioni ed i loro riferimenti,
che mina alla base praticamente le condizioni sociali su cui
preesistevano le rappresentanze, sociali e politiche.
E' bene osservare la situazione anche da questo punto di vista: il
bombardamento della Zastava e' significativo del carattere che questa
guerra ha avuto. Essa non e' stata una guerra "umanitaria", una guerra
di liberazione. E' stata una guerra scientificamente organizzata con
l'obbiettivo di bruciare e distruggere un territorio, di smantellare
qualsiasi rappresentanza sociale, politica, economica, per favorire poi
sostanzialmente l'ingresso di interessi altri, che avrebbero dovuto
prendere in mano questa situazione, e trasformarla, manipolarla secondo
i propri interessi.
Dati certi, esatti, non se ne hanno. Pero', a chi e' andato in
Jugoslavia in questi ultimi tempi e' chiaro come questa guerra
abbia colpito soprattutto infrastrutture, centrali elettriche, scuole,
strade, ferrovie, ospedali, e soprattutto come abbia colpito il tessuto
produttivo. Oggi la Jugoslavia non ha piu' una industria farmaceutica,
non ha piu' una industria pesante, non ha piu' una industria
tecnologicamente in grado di competere; cio' che e' rimasto in piedi e'
la piccola e media industria, destinata a scomparire di fronte alla
distruzione del mercato, alla pesante contrazione dei consumi (dovuta
alla caduta dei redditi da lavoro), alla crisi economica che oggi la
Jugoslavia attraversa.
Quindi è stata una guerra mirata a creare il terreno utile per
realizzare ed affermare quello che, sostanzialmente, era alla base
dell'intervento, cioe' la conquista di una egemonia economica,
politica, territoriale, rispetto ad una zona che era di interesse
strategico per il capitale occidentale. Adesso e' inutile soffermarsi
sulla guerra all'Iraq, sull'interesse dell'Occidente rispetto alla zona
asiatica, perchè è sostanzialmente tutto collegato. Oggi, di fronte
alla crisi con cui il capitale si trova a dover fare i conti, esiste la
necessità da parte del capitale di aumentare la propria pervasività sul
territorio, sulle economie altre, per garantirsi praticamente la
propria sopravvivenza.
Che questo obbiettivo sia stato poi perseguito senza badare alle spese
ed alle conseguenze lo dimostrano anche le altre cose che sono state
dette prima di me. Quando si parla di danni ambientali, nel senso di
crimini di guerra, parliamo di cose che sono sotto gli occhi di tutti e
non si dovrebbe fare fatica a dimostrarle.
Ha ragione Vlaic quando dice che bisognerebbe fare delle indagini
epidemiologiche: ma la NATO e l'Occidente non le faranno mai. Il
governo jugoslavo attuale probabilmente non ha interesse che su queste
cose si indaghi, perchè tutto deve sembrare come tornato alla normalità
rispetto alla confusione precedente.
Ma tutti sanno che non è così. Basta pensare agli effetti ambientali e
sociali dei bombardamenti. Oggi - lo rivela anche una indagine dell'ONU
- metà della popolazione jugoslava (parlo di Serbia) è praticamente
sotto la soglia di povertà e quella che risulterebbe ancora sopra la
soglia di povertà lo è solo grazie agli aiuti economici, alle mance,
alle regalie che le istituzioni possono ancora in parte permettersi di
distribuire grazie a certi aiuti, ad introiti avuti in cambio di certi
atteggiamenti di fedeltà alla NATO e all'Occidente.
Se mancassero anche questi introiti sarebbe un problema dal punto di
vista della stabilità interna. Quando si dice "soglia di poverta'" non
si intendono i 400 euro cui si riferiva prima la compagna di Belgrado,
ma si intendono i 225 euro che l'ONU considera come soglia di povertà;
225 euro praticamente non raggiungibili dalla metà della popolazione.
Ci sono poi situazioni ancora peggiori. Se consideriamo alcune
particolari isole come le cosiddette città operaie - Pancevo,
Kragujevac, Nis, ossia le classiche città nate intorno ad una fabbrica
- il livello di povertà coinvolge tutta la popolazione, perchè i
bombardamenti delle fabbriche hanno fatto mancare l'unica fonte di
reddito. E' come se nella Torino degli anni '50, dove c'era solo la
FIAT, avessero bombardato la FIAT. Avrebbero messo in ginocchio tutta
la città, non solo i lavoratori. La devastazione sociale che è stata
prodotta è di per sè gia' un crimine di guerra.
Ma se poi ragioniamo da un punto di vista ambientale, distruggere una
fabbrica non è come buttare giù una cabina su una spiaggia.
Distruggere una fabbrica vuol dire produrre tutta una serie di
conseguenze a catena. Solamente a Kragujevac la distruzione
della fabbrica ha di fatto causato l'incendio di tutti i depositi di
solventi e di tutti i depositi di olio combustibile e lubrificante che
servivano per la fabbrica. Questo vuol dire che per settimane intere
nella zona di Kragujevac è girato PCB in quantità enorme, è volata
diossina in quantità enorme.
Se poi facciamo l'esempio di Pancevo è tutto ancora più eclatante. Per
spiegare cosa è Pancevo basta dire che è il petrolchimico gemello di
Porto Marghera. In breve a Pancevo c'è la stessa linea del Cloro che
c'è a Marghera!
Se io bombardo Marghera, potete immaginarvi cosa succede. Oggi, quando
a Marghera per il problema di una valvola, di una guarnizione che non
tiene fuoriescono 2 o 3 ppm di roba, scatta l'allarme in laguna, con
interventi di magistrati, blocco delle produzioni eccetera. Ma a
Pancevo è uscito ben altro che non 2 o 3 ppm di roba. Lì hanno
completamente bombardato una fabbrica con tutto quello che c'era dentro
- è uscito TUTTO!
Senza contare gli operai morti sotto il bombardamento. Dalle
informazioni che abbiamo raccolto noi, quasi tutto il turno di
notte di Pancevo ci ha perso la vita. Lavoravano, mica si aspettavano
che li bombardassero: operai che erano sul di lavoro e che non sono
stati neppure avvisati, neanche invitati ad evacuare rispetto ad un
rischio di bombardamento. Nessuno proprio immaginava che qualcuno
avesse in testa di bombardare un petrolchimico come quello di Pancevo -
eppure lo hanno fatto, sapendo perfettamente le conseguenze.
Anche senza indagine epidemiologica (che nessuno si sogna di fare sulla
popolazione di Pancevo), basta andare a vedere un bellissimo lavoro -
penso che molti di voi lo hanno gia' potuto leggere - redatto non dal
medico tal-dei-tali di fama internazionale bensi' da una veterinaria di
Pancevo che, vista l'impossibilita' di fare una indagine epidemiologica
sulla popolazione, ha fatto una cosa semplicissima: ha tenuto sotto
osservazione i piccoli animali domestici per un certo periodo di tempo.
Questi animali, avendo un metabolismo breve,
manifestano prima dell'uomo determinate disfunzioni. Da questa analisi
è venuto fuori che, in misura diversa, tra cani, gatti, agnelli,
pecore, cavalli, già un anno dopo il bombardamento si sono manifestate
- nelle nascite o nei decorsi normali di alcune fasi di crescita -
tutta una serie di problemi che (stando a quello che si puo' presumere)
avranno effetti negli anni anche sugli esseri umani, visto che il tempo
di metabolismo dell'uomo e' diverso (è più lungo) di quello dei piccoli
animali. Un po' quello che e' successo a Seveso, insomma. Cosi' hanno
valutato i rischi che la fuoriuscita di diossina a Seveso avrebbe avuto
sugli umani, e che poi si sono confermati con gli aborti, con le
nascite malformate, successivamente. Anche per Seveso parliamo sempre
di pochi ppm, perche' a Seveso non è uscito neanche mezzo etto di roba.
Seveso non è stata mica bombardata: avevano dimenticato una valvola
aperta per due minuti. A Seveso hanno capito la situazione e i rischi
per la popolazione analizzando i conigli, e hanno scoperto che quello
che nei conigli succedeva dopo sei mesi dalla fuoriuscita si e' poi
riprodotto sugli uomini, in scala e dimensione diversa.
Quindi questa è la situazione. La Zastava dimostra quanto si diceva
prima sulle caratteristiche proprie di questa guerra di aggressione,
che aveva in realtà tutta una serie di motivazioni ben particolari.
Motivazioni così forti dal punto di vista economico e dal punto di
vista egemonico che non si è guardato in faccia a nulla.
Avevano ragione i compagni della Zastava quando dicevano, già sotto le
bombe: "Questi hanno intenzione di vincerla, questa guerra". Però non
si trattava di una occupazione di territori: questi avevano proprio
intenzione di ottenere una resa, la resa sociale, politica, economica
rispetto al programma dell'Occidente.
Il calvario della Zastava
La Zastava era la piu' grande azienda dei Balcani. Prima ancora del
disfacimento della Jugoslavia essa era ovviamente molto più grande di
quanto non sia adesso. Si concentrava sostanzialmente sulla produzione
di camion e di auto per conto e in società con la FIAT. Aveva 36.000
dipendenti. Aveva un mercato garantito dalla Grecia e dagli altri paesi
dell'Est perché, pur non producendo macchine qualitativamente
eccezionali, rappresentava comunque la possibilità
di immettere sui mercati di quei paesi macchine a basso prezzo, ad un
prezzo accessibile, il che poteva garantire la continuità della
produzione nonostante la necessità di una ristrutturazione che comunque
era in discussione anche prima dei bombardamenti.
I bombardamenti l'hanno distrutta completamente. Nelle notti
del 9 e 12 aprile 1999 la bellezza di una quarantina di missili
Cruise l'hanno sventrata, soprattutto nei suoi elementi forti:
il centro di calcolo e progettazione è stato completamente
distrutto - quindi tutta la rete informatica, tutta la memoria
storica della fabbrica; la progettazione è andata praticamente a
pezzi; le linee di produzione delle auto sono state completamente
distrutte, quelle dei camion pure, poi gli uffici.
La devastazione è stata tale da far pensare all'impossibilità di un
qualsiasi tipo di ripresa.
Ovviamente, il bombardamento della fabbrica non ha coinvolto
solo i lavoratori. Quando dico "città operaia" voglio dire che alla
Zastava c'erano 36.000 lavoratori, di cui almeno 22.000 residenti in
città, a Kragujevac.
Se considerate che l'indotto in Kragujevac era rappresentato da altre
40.000 persone, e se considerate che la città ha poco più di 200.000
abitanti, avete presto fatto i conti... Non c'era in tutta Kragujevac
una sola famiglia che non vivesse del lavoro della Zastava. Quindi, il
bombardamento della Zastava è stato visto con ansia da tutta quanta la
popolazione: tanto è vero che, in uno scatto di orgoglio, sotto i
bombardamenti come anche prima dei bombardamenti, molti lavoratori
hanno occupato la fabbrica, quasi pensando, illudendosi,che facendo da
scudi umani il bombardamento sarebbe stato impedito. Il sindacato ha
pure avvisato la NATO con e-mail e fax che in fabbrica c'erano gli
operai che occupavano. Nonostante questo i bombardamenti sono andati
avanti fino alla distruzione completa della fabbrica.
A questa situazione i lavoratori, d'accordo con la direzione dello
stabilimento hanno cercato di dare una prima ed immediata risposta con
l'avvio del lavoro di spostamento delle macerie. E' bene sottolineare
come la direzione Zastava, quella precedente, ancora legata all'assetto
societario precedente, ossia a quello tipico dell'esperienza jugoslava:
non rappresentava più una vera e propria autogestione, perchè era da
tempo che l'autogestione in Jugoslavia era stata ripensata sopratutto
nelle grandi aziende industriali. Permaneva comunque la forte presenza
pubblica, con un evidente interesse pubblico nella gestione della
fabbrica
che aveva nella salvaguardia dell'occupazione uno degli elementi
qualificanti e discriminanti.
In questa situazione, dicevo, i lavoratori della Zastava hanno
iniziato subito, quasi per rabbia, il lavoro di pulizia delle macerie!
E recuperando quel poco che si era riusciti a recuperare dalle macerie
erano riusciti a mettere in moto due linee di produzione che andavano
manualmente - mancando la corrente era impossibile pensare a livelli di
automazione come quelli precedenti. Era un atto simbolico importante.
Con quell'atto loro volevano dire che, nonostante i bombardamenti, la
fabbrica doveva continuare a vivere.
C'è da dire che in quella fase, e soprattutto in quella fase, la
solidarietà dal mondo del lavoro italiano è stata preziosissima:
i lavoratori Zastava manifestavano da un lato l'orgoglio e la
voglia di ricostruire, ma dall'altra parte c'era la paura di non
avere sostegno sufficiente per reggere uno sforzo del genere.
Quando infatti parlo di rimozione delle macerie e di rimessa in
moto delle due linee parlo di una fase in cui i lavoratori non
percepivano reddito, neppure la misera indennità di disoccupazione che
molti di loro ora percepiscono. Era praticamente quasi tutto lavoro
volontario, organizzato, coordinato, diretto in qualche modo
all'obbiettivo di dare ai lavoratori una prospettiva e di evitare
l'emigrazione, di evitare lo sconforto.
Di evitare praticamente che i lavoratori se ne andassero.
Da questo punto di vista diciamo che l'aiuto che è stato chiesto
esplicitamente dai lavoratori della Zastava al mondo del lavoro,
italiano e tedesco soprattutto, in quella fase è consistito in:
"aiutateci a tenere la gente in fabbrica". Quindi: "aiutateci a fare in
modo che la gente, se ha bisogno di qualcosa, si abitui a venire sempre
in fabbrica a vedere cosa su può fare, cosa c'è e cosa non c'è."
In effetti, questa è stata una cosa che ha aiutato psicologicamente, ma
anche materialmente, in primo luogo diverse famiglie; ha aiutato a
sostenere la loro prima reazione, la voglia di ricostruire la fabbrica.
Il problema è che, con il cambio del governo che c'è stato in
Jugoslavia il 5 ottobre 2000, sono venuti meno di colpo quei
pochi ma utili finanziamenti che, nel frattempo, il governo della
Repubblica aveva cominciato a stanziare per la rimessa in moto della
fabbrica. Venendo meno questi investimenti è divenuta palese
l'impossibilità di continuare. Mancavano le materie prime, mancava la
possibilità di completare la rimessa in piedi dei capannoni, e
praticamente tutto si è fermato.
Anche quella simbolica ripresa produttiva ha dovuto sostanzialmente
fermarsi.
C'è da dire che la FIOM ha fatto un tentativo, anche piuttosto
esplicito e pesante, nei confronti della FIAT che era proprietaria del
48% della Zastava, affinchè la FIAT investisse in qualche modo, desse
una mano a rimettere in piedi la situazione. Ma si e' constatato alla
fine l'assoluto disinteresse della FIAT ad investire in quella
direzione, come se avesse già programmato da tempo il suo abbandono di
interessi sulla Zastava. Così si è praticamente bloccato il tentativo
di riaprire la fabbrica, salvo che per due reparti, la fucina e
l'utensileria,
che oggi occupano in totale non più di 1300 lavoratori. Reparti che
però vivacchiano, nel senso che la fucina produce, se ha mercato,
poichè non produce più per la produzione interna della Zastava.
Ma anche l'utensileria, nonostante lo sforzo che hanno fatto, produce
materiale di qualità non competitiva, che può essere destinato a
Bulgaria o Romania, ma che non può di per sé, senza ulteriori
investimenti, rappresentare una soluzione stabile.
Al di là di questi due reparti, che comunque lavoricchiano, in realtà
oggi la fabbrica è ferma. Delle migliaia di lavoratori di cui si diceva
prima solo 17.000, a rotazione, hanno oggi un qualche rapporto con la
produzione, ma per effetto della saltuarietà della loro prestazione il
loro reddito non supera i 120 euro al mese. Se questi lavoratori
rimangono in qualche modo impiegati all'interno dell'attività, altri
9000 sono finiti in esubero - una specie di mobilità lunga come quella
che c'è da noi, una cassa integrazione speciale senza alcun dirito al
reintegro. Allo stato attuale essi percepiscono non più di 50
euro al mese. Di questi 9000 già molti hanno scelto la strada
dell'emigrazione, tanto è vero che oggi risultano iscritti alla lista
solo 7000 lavoratori. Molti hanno firmato per andarsene, in cambio di
un piccolo incentivo, prendendo la strada di altri paesi, in cerca di
altro lavoro. A questi vanno aggiunti gli 8000 lavoratori che sono
stati licenziati, e che non sono quindi neppure in mobilità, e gli 800
lavoratori serbi di Pec in Kosovo che sono stati cacciati e che oggi
sopravvivono grazie alla solidarietà del sindacato Zastava, senza il
quale non saprebbero a chi rivolgersi ne' dove andare a parare.
La svendita
In questa situazione il rapporto tra la rete di solidarietà e il
sindacato Zastava va avanti. Ma se prima il problema era
sostanzialmente come riprendere l'attività della fabbrica, oggi si
tratta piuttosto di sostenere questi lavoratori in una prospettiva
molto più lunga. Sulla Zastava permane - e con il nuovo governo è stato
dichiarato subito - l'interesse a vendere, ossia a non impegnarsi per
una ripresa dell'attività e viceversa a trattare la Zastava come un
supermercato composto da tanti piccoli reparti che possono essere
venduti, ceduti in cambio di poco o di niente. Ma fino ad oggi neanche
questo nuovo
atteggiamento del governo nazionale ha suscitato interesse da parte di
acquisitori stranieri.
Finita la guerra, la Jugoslavia è diventata terra di conquista per
tutta una serie di piccoli truffatori, di piccoli capitalisti che
pensano di andare lì e tirare su palate di soldi approfittando di una
economia in ginocchio e della ricattabilità dei soggetti sociali
(lavoratori in primo luogo) a cui offrire una "occasione" in cambio
però di livelli di subordinazione del lavoro che mai prima questi
lavoratori avevano conosciuto.
Tutta l'attuale amministrazione pubblica jugoslava si è strutturata per
intercettare queste "occasioni", tanto è vero che mai come in questa
ultima fase, credo, tra camere di commercio italiane e amministrazioni
comunali jugoslave si e' sviluppato un fitto rapporto di scambi, di
informazioni, di visite. A noi è capitato spesse volte, essendo lì a
Kragujevac, di vedere - una volta proprio in diretta, in un
telegiornale locale, una intervista a imprenditori veneti che dicevano
pressapoco: "Noi siamo venuti qui oggi perchè vogliamo vedere alcuni
reparti, alcuni capannoni dismessi. Il comune ci ha promesso
mari e monti, noi veniamo qui, investiamo..." Però tutti questi
imprenditori ponevano la stessa questione: noi veniamo, quindi siamo
dei benefattori; e così come stanno le cose ancora non ci basta,
bisogna cambiare le regole... Oltre ai terreni gratis, ai capannoni
gratis, al non pagamento delle tasse per 5 o 10 anni, bisogna che anche
la manodopera sia gratis!
Una vera e propria speculazione che sta investendo soprattutto le
piccole e medie aziende dell'indotto, ormai senza lavoro a causa del
bombardamento della Zastava, sulle quali si intende trasferire
produzioni attualmente fatte in Italia puntando sul costo zero
dell'investimento e sulla disponibilità di avere mano d'opera affamata
a cui imporre qualsiasi condizione di lavoro e retributiva.
Sulla Zastava questo tipo di speculazioni non sono riuscite perchè la
Zastava, a differenza di tutte le altre unità produttive, aveva al suo
interno una forte organizzazione sindacale, che rendeva meno fattibile
la svendita al capitale estero che arrivava e si dichiarava interessato
a quel tipo di soluzione. Operazioni di questo tipo sono invece andate
avanti alla grande altrove. Come diceva prima la compagna di Belgrado,
stanno privatizzando tutto, cioè tutto è vendibile, oggi, in
Jugoslavia. Va giù una immobiliare e si compra appartamenti, case. Va
giù una camera di commercio e concorda l'arrivo di faccendieri che
comprano piccole fabbriche, capannoni
vuoti, tutto quello che è buono, e anche i gioielli di famiglia.
E' notizia di pochi mesi fa che tutta la catena dei cementifici (che
erano una perla dell'economia pubblica jugoslvava) è stata spezzettata
e svenduta a imprenditori francesi e tedeschi che con tutti i problemi
di ricostruzione che ci sono non possono che aspettarsi profitti
allettanti. Adesso si parla anche di privatizzare le miniere.
Una linea, quella di svendere, di privatizzare tutto, che adesso è
arrivata anche alla Zastava Però, per svendere la Zastava bisognava
prima incrinare la sua capacità di tenuta. Voi sapete che per comprare
la Zastava si è fatto avanti ora questo Malcom Briklin, il quale in
realtà, anche se si presenta come un grande imprenditore, non è altro
che un poveraccio, nel senso che si è fatto una fortuna unicamente
mettendo in piedi una
rete di concessionarie in America per vendere auto giapponesi. Ha
tentato due operazioni industriali, una producendo una macchina che
portava il suo nome, che però è fallita subito, e un'altra mettendo in
piedi una compagnia elettrica, che non è sopravvissuta. Briklin si
appoggia su delle banche che hanno la debolezza strutturale ricordata
dalla compagna di Belgrado. Adesso, di colpo, si compra la Zastava,
mettendo lì una barca di soldi che non si sa dove andrà a prendere.
Ha presentato un piano industriale che è a dir poco industriale che è a
dir poco fantasioso, vale a dire: io ti compro e ti prometto l'America
- pur sapendo bene quali difficoltà ci siano a rimettere in piedi la
Zastava.
Questo Briklin promette di assumere 9000 persone nel giro di cinque
anni, di produrre 220.000 auto l'anno, e - notate bene - non punta sul
mercato dei Balcani o sul mercato dei paesi dell'Est, dove quelle
macchine a basso prezzo avrebbero un mercato. Punta piuttosto ad
esportarle in America ed in Europa, intendendo competere con il mercato
dell'usato, nel senso che a quei prezzi e a quelle condizioni in Europa
e in America ormai il mercato dell'usato fornisce materiale
equivalente.
La situazione è paradossale. Per dirla tutta, condividendo il parere
che anche il sindacato metalmeccanici italiano ha espresso, conoscendo
il tizio e parlando anche con quelli della Zastava, più che una
operazione industriale l'arrivo di questo Briklin è la classica
operazione speculativa che punta a comprare a determinate condizioni
per poi manipolarla, rivenderla a pezzi, a suo uso e consumo. E' fuor
di dubbio, vista la sua storia, che Briklin sia molto più interessato
ad acquisire la rete concessionaria della Zastava piuttosto che la
fabbrica di produzione delle auto. Infatti, grazie a quella rete
concessionaria egli può piazzare in tutti i Balcani e nell'Est Europeo
tutto il suo enorme giro di auto usate, di cui già dispone. Grazie al
nome Zastava, alle concessionarie ed
alla rete Zastava di assistenza, egli potra' guadagnare, con risultati
sull'occupazione nulli.
I rapporti tra i sindacati
Ciò che si presenta agli occhi dei lavoratori della Zastava non è
assolutamente confortante. Tanto è vero che il sindacato della Zastava
- almeno il più grosso dei tre sindacati presenti - intende opporsi a
questo piano industriale.
Detto tra noi: quando tu sei impiccato, come fai a dire di no a uno che
viene lì e ti dice che assume 9000 persone. Non ci crede nessuno, ma
ciononostante ci vuole una bella tenuta per opporsi! Comunque, i limiti
di questa operazione sono oggi chiari a tutti.
Un piccolo inciso: noi stiamo sostenendo la tenuta del sindacato della
Zastava anche attraverso l'inserimento dello stesso dentro il Forum
europeo della sinistra sindacale, non tanto perchè questo risolva
qualche problema a loro, ma perchè almeno apporta una visibilità
europea al problema. In questo senso dovevano essere presenti il 7
novembre scorso al Social Forum di Firenze anche due delegati della
Zastava e un esponente del sindacato metalmeccanici nazionale
jugoslavo. Ma l'Ambasciata italiana di Belgrado non ha
concesso per tempo i visti, benche' fossero stati chiesti direttamente
dalla CGIL di Brescia.
Sicuramente c'è stato un intervento negativo da parte dell'Ambasciata
italiana di Belgrado; sicuramente non c'è stata, da parte del Ministero
degli Esteri, alcuna intenzione di forzare la mano, di lasciare che i
visti venissero sbloccati. Ma pare quasi sicuro che lo zampino che ha
portato all'impedimento del rilascio dei visti venga proprio da
Briklin, preoccupato che in occasione del Social Forum qualcuno venisse
in Italia a denunciare la stupidità dell'operazione che il governo
jugoslavo sta mettendo in piedi con lui. Questo solo per la cronaca,
per sottolineare l'importanza delle cose che si stanno discutendo e
decidendo in questi giorni, in questi prossimi mesi, alla Zastava di
Kragujevac.
Altri aspetti della situazione sociale
La capacità di risposta del mondo del lavoro è in larga misura
compromessa, per la situazione difficoltosa in cui oggi i sindacati
jugoslavi si trovano. Dobbiamo considerare che la guerra ha indebolito
la capacità organizzativa della rappresentanza sindacale in Jugoslavia.
Le condizioni della classe operaia sono paurosamente peggiorate,
aumentando la frantumazione di cui prima si parlava. L'embargo prima,
la guerra, l'aumento dei prezzi, la caduta dello stato sociale, il
venire meno di una serie di servizi, l'inflazione, producono una
situazione di sfaldamento della capacità di tenuta della classe operaia
e delle famiglie. Non va dimenticato che anche la situazione dei
pensionati è drammatica, nel senso che le pensioni acquisite di diritto
non vengono pagate ovvero vengono pagate in una misura che non supera i
50 euro al mese e chi va in pensione oggi sa
che non prenderà niente. E chi pensava di andare in pensione tra
due-tre anni sa già che non ci andrà, perchè tutto il sistema
previdenziale è saltato, non c'è più nessuna garanzia da quel punto di
vista.
Le condizioni materiali della classe operaia sono peggiorate, e questo
accelera, aumenta il peso delle difficoltà organizzative da parte del
sindacato.
Ma non bisogna dimenticare un'altra cosa importante, e cioe' che con il
cambio di governo è partito, all'interno della Jugoslavia, un forte
attacco contro la tenuta sindacale attraverso il finanziamento di vere
e proprie operazioni di scissione sindacale, attacco che ha avuto un
certo successo. Grazie ai grandi aiuti economici che sono arrivati
dall'Occidente è stata inventata questa sigla filo-governativa
che si chiama Associazione dei Sindacati Indipendenti, che è entrata
immediatamente in competizione con il sindacato maggioritario
producendo qua e là delle scissioni.
Alla Zastava - badate bene - queste scissioni non sono riuscite.
Alla Zastava ancora alle ultime elezioni il 92-93% dei lavoratori
ha riconfermato la fiducia al sindacato maggioritario; e questo
spiega perchè proprio alla Zastava la tensione sindacale sia arrivata
alle stelle, con pestaggi, pedinamenti, minacce. Non so se vi sia
arrivata all'orecchio voce di alcuni eventi recenti. Il clima si è
notevolmente esasperato verso il Sindaco di Kragujevac, che è un
filo-Dijndijc, che organizza una manifestazione di operai della Zastava
contro il sindacato, e poi si scopre - noi siamo arrivati sul posto due
giorni dopo - che in realtà le "masse dei lavoratori" che hanno
manifestato erano arrivate con i pullman da Belgrado, e di lavoratori
della Zastava non ce n'era quasi nessuno! Oppure i picchettaggi ed i
blocchi delle elezioni dei delegati sindacali, nel senso che quando
sono state aperte le urne questi sindacati indipendenti sono entrati,
hanno impedito che si tenessero le elezioni, secondo l'assunto che i
posti nel sindacato dovevano
essere ripartiti in funzione delle percentuali elettorali che nelle
ultime elezioni politiche i singoli partiti avevano ottenuto: ben
sapendo che se si fosse andati al voto tra i lavoratori essi non
avrebbero preso gran che, rivendicavano una rappresentanza di tipo
politico.
Tutte queste situazioni hanno ulteriormente aggravato il clima
alla Zastava, ma sono anche testimonianza di come il controllo
dei sindacati sia elemento indispensabile, per chi vuole controllare
gli sviluppi politici ed economici del paese nei prossimi mesi.
Anche in questo la Zastava rappresenta un elemento di
controtendenza, perchè proprio nel punto più importante, la'
dove la scissione doveva sortire dei grossi risultati, questi non
si sono prodotti, e questo anche grazie alla capacità di resistenza e
di tenuta della struttura sindacale attuale.
La contro-riforma del mercato del lavoro
E' difficile, in questa situazione di concorrenza sindacale e di
operazioni scissionistiche filo governative, per il sindacato jugoslavo
reggere, oltre allo scontro sulla difesa del posto di lavoro anche
l'offensiva governativa in materia di diritti e di distruzione del
piano normativo in materia di mercato del lavoro.
Una riforma che il governo federale ha già presentato, e che in queste
settimane sta realizzando, con la contrarietà di alcuni sindacati e con
l'assenso di questa Associazione dei Sindacati Indipendenti il cui
segretario generale è addirittura l'attuale Ministro del Lavoro.
Quindi il proponente di questa legge sul lavoro!
Una legge che a noi non suona tanto strana, perchè pur essendo stata
scritta in modo diverso, partendo da una situazione precedente diversa,
è praticamente identica al Libro Bianco ed alla riforma del mercato del
lavoro che stiamo contrastando in Italia.
C'è la riduzione del contatto nazionale di lavoro a mero riferimento
normativo. Praticamente, salta il salario minimo nazionale, si propone
una sorta di sistema a gabbie salariali, legate al territorio ed alla
tipologia industriale - quindi con gabbie e sotto-gabbie. Poi c'e'
l'aumento del lavoro precario, con l'introduzione di un contratto a
termine che, in confronto, la proposta di Maroni è acqua di rose. Ed
inoltre altri punti da non sottovalutare, tra cui uno simbolico, che
dovrebbe far gridare
allo scandalo. Pur di risparmiare, con la scusa che si devono trovare
risorse per il rilancio dell'economia (che pero', come sapete, non
avviene perchè il governo ha demandato il rilancio dell'economia agli
interessi degli speculatori stranieri e non al suo intervento diretto),
è stata ridotta la copertura per la tutela delle lavoratrici incinte;
ed inoltre è stata inserita una norma, che non è proprio uguale alla
nostra sull'articolo 18, ma che
da' sostanzialmente alle aziende la libertà di licenziare senza giusta
causa se la tipologia del lavoratore non corrisponde più alle esigenze
dell'azienda.
Una riforma che punta inoltre, elemento non secondario, alla riduzione
della rappresentatività sindacale. Si chiede che il singolo lavoratore,
se interessato, possa anche firmare contratti di assunzione
individuali, scavalcando quindi la mediazione contrattuale e sindacale.
Voglio dire, per concludere: la questione della Zastava è
significativa, perchè a mio parere apre una discussione che altri hanno
posto in modo diverso qui dentro. Noi siamo convinti tutti che la
situazione in Jugoslavia, così come è, è destinata allo sfacelo perchè
la Jugoslavia è diventata terra
di conquista di speculatori. Non esiste oggi in Jugoslavia una
rappresentanza politica in grado di programmare, di dirigere, di
mantenere, di tutelare al minimo neanche quelli che sono gli interessi
nazionali, neanche quelli della borghesia nazionale. Non c'è nessuna
preoccupazione in questo senso.
Che cosa si può fare? Si può fare molto, sapendo che naturalmente sarà
solo la nascita e la determinazione di condizioni oggettive a favorire
poi uno sbocco piuttosto che un altro. Ma noi come compagni, come
italiani, come vicini, come solidali a un punto di vista che comunque
dentro a quei territori ancora sta lottando per sopravvivere possiamo
lavorare
soprattutto per favorire la tenuta di quello che è l'unico soggetto
sociale che può effettivamente contrastare questi processi.
Questo soggetto sociale è la classe lavoratrice in tutte le sue
articolazioni: lavoro dipendente, disoccupati, pensionati. E quindi,
come già diceva Vlaic stamattina nella sua introduzione e come altri
hanno ricordato, noi dovremo, oltre che ascoltare, fare domande,
chiedere, dovremo saper sviluppare un lavoro capace di una solidarietà
concreta, fortemente indirizzata al sostegno di una lotta di resistenza
che la classe lavoratrice
jugoslava, in completa solitudine sta cercando di fare contro i
tentativi di chi la vorrebbe silenziosa ed asservita al nuovo potere
economico e politico.
Saremo utili ed efficaci se sapremo produrre iniziativa utili a far si
che la classe lavoratrice jugoslava riesca a incidere sulle condizioni
oggettive dentro le quali è oggi costretta a muoversi.
Per esperienza nostra, questo sbocco per noi vuol dire rafforzamento
del peso, del ruolo sociale, della capacità di organizzazione e della
capacità di rappresentanza sociale della classe operaia.
4: Anelli
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/files/CONVEGNOTRIESTE/
trascrizioni.html
---
Trieste / Trst, 16 novembre 2002, Convegno:
"...PASSANDO SEMPRE PER LA JUGOSLAVIA..."
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/files/CONVEGNOTRIESTE/
anelli.html
INTERVENTO DI LINO ANELLI
(CGIL Lombardia)
Il caso Zastava
Parliamo di Zastava ma in realta' la Zastava può essere un buon
pretesto per parlare della Jugoslavia e delle condizioni attuali della
sua classe operaia e dei suoi sindacati, delle politiche economiche con
cui il nuovo potere sta oggi cercando di imporre a questi soggetti
sociali più pesanti livelli di
subordinazione per sostenere le esigenze di quell'interesse conomico e
di mercato che sta oggi occupando, tramite la guerra, quel territorio.
La storia della Zastava, la situazione, le contraddizioni che attorno
al caso Zastava si stanno sviluppando, per certi versi intersecano gran
parte delle cose che avete sentito nelle precedenti comunicazioni.
Perche' la Zastava e' un soggetto sociale, e' uno snodo di diverse
contraddizioni - politiche,
sindacali ed economiche.
Noi cerchiamo di capire come relazionarci con una situazione (la
disgregazione della Jugoslavia) che, come diceva anche l'intervento di
Kapuralin, sembra non avere spiegazione, sembra illogica, anche se
illogica non e', perche' per tutti i processi storici, per tutte le
cose che avvengono esistono delle cause, ed esistono percorsi che ne
hanno determinato lo sviluppo. Non tocca a me sviluppare questa
analisi, già
presente nelle comunicazioni precedenti, e su come l'interesse
occidentale ha lavorato coscientemente per produrre in modo coercitivo
la disgregazione di una esperienza che, per il modello che
rappresentava, non rientrava (era quindi da ostacolo) nel tipo di
egemonia e controllo economico, politico e territoriale a cui
l'Occidente guarda tutt'ora.
Siamo entrati in contatto con la Zastava gia' durante i bombardamenti
mentre in Italia cercava di svilupparsi, con una evidente debolezza
sopratutto dentro ai sindacati, un movimento "contro la guerra".
Debole, perche' in quel momento sono mancate le tradizionali sponde
istituzionali,
politiche e sindacali . E' mancata una opposizione alla guerra da parte
delle forze di sinistra che anzi si sono lasciate immischiare in una
guerra assurda, giustificandola in nome di una "razionalità" e di un
"pragmatismo" con cui in molti hanno creduto di potersi accreditare tra
i patner fiduciari nel nuovo ordine mondiale.
Allora c'era in carica il governo D'Alema, sostenuto anche dai Verdi e
dal PdCI. La preoccupazione principale era difendere il Governo e ciò
ha irrigidito i comportamenti del centro sinistra e degli stessi
sindacati. In difesa del Governo di centro sinistra si sono sprecate le
azioni tese a condizionare lo sviluppo di una critica organizzata alla
guerra. Si è sostenuta una colpevole campagna di disinformazione con
cui si è cercato di
giustificare l'ineluttabilità della guerra, fino a cercare di
criminalizzare l'opinione di chi, non condividendo tutto ciò, cercava
di contrastare questa politica.
E' anche da ciò che si può spiegare la debolezza del movimento contro
la guerra, soprattutto dentro il sindacato, tra i lavoratori. Ha pesato
non poco il controllo, la disinformazione degli apparati sindacali
sostanzialmente organizzati dietro alla posizione della "dolorosa ma
contingente necessita'", che altro non era se non la giustificazione
delle scelte del governo di centro-sinistra. Governo che comunque
"andava sostenuto", che comunque "andava difeso" o perlomeno "compreso"
nella difficile e complicata situazione in cui si trovava.
Quindi un movimento contro la guerra debole, che pero' e' riuscito in
qualche modo a muoversi, anche se non ha avuto la capacita' aggregativa
che invece avrebbe potuto o dovuto avere.
Ecco: noi in quel frangente - subito dopo l'aprile 1999, ossia subito
dopo che i missili Cruise hanno distrutto la fabbrica della Zastava -
abbiamo cominciato a cercare rapporti con questi lavoratori. A dire il
vero ci hanno anche cercato loro. Essi stessi sono stati promotori di
una iniziativa tesa a
cercare la solidarieta' del mondo sindacale europeo, contattando anche
i tedeschi, i francesi, perche' dal mondo del lavoro venisse un
messaggio che manifestasse un chiaro rifiuto della guerra e perlomeno
forme di solidarieta' concrete, capaci di sostenere i lavoratori
jugoslavi in quel difficile impegno che era il dopoguerra e la
necessità di dare risposte ad un rischio di disgregazione sociale a cui
il mondo del lavoro jugoslavo andava incontro.
Accanto all'assurdità della guerra ed alla conoscenza delle sue
immediate conseguenze, il confronto con i lavoratori della Zastava si è
quindi subito spostato anche sul dopoguerra ossia sul fatto che questa
guerra avrebbe avuto sicuramente una azione disgregatrice del tessuto
sociale. Coscienti che senza la sopravvivenza o la difesa di un
soggetto sociale forte, come
potevano essere i lavoratori, il dopoguerra sarebbe stato altrettanto
catastrofico quanto la guerra stessa.
Abbiamo quindi avviato rapporti con questi lavoratori partendo dalla
necessità di produrre una adeguata conoscenza della situazione in modo
da contrastare la forte disinformazione che attorno a questa guerra era
stata costruita, nel tentativo di costruire un percorso di conoscenza e
di comprensione su quanto stava veramente avvenendo. Era questo un
passaggio fondamentale anche per sostenere la proposta di un vasto
impegno solidale del mondo del lavoro italiano verso questi lavoratori.
Siamo quindi partiti dalla fabbrica, dal fatto che questa guerra
umanitaria si era in realtà smascherata per quello che era. Siamo
partiti dai dati sulla distruzione delle fabbriche, delle scuole, delle
strutture sanitarie ecc. ad opera dei bombardamenti della NATO, sulle
centinaia di migliaia di
lavoratori che hanno perduto il loro posto di lavoro, il reddito, ogni
tutela previdenziale, sociale e sanitaria.
Per questo la prima azione decisa assieme è stata quella di organizzare
in tutta Italia una serie di riunioni, di assemblee con i lavoratori
nelle fabbriche, che ha coinvolto diversi territori dal Sud al Nord,
portando in Italia una delegazione di lavoratori della Zastava. Questa
controinformazione, questa loro presenza in Italia e' sicuramente stata
utile perche' ha aperto concretamente delle contraddizioni in quel muro
di gomma che si era formato intorno alla questione della guerra.
Tanto e' vero che diverse strutture sindacali, di fronte ad un
confronto diretto con le contraddizioni e con le problematiche che
questi lavoratori ponevano, hanno messo in discussione un po' da subito
la posizione della "contingente necessita'". Mi riferisco non solo alla
sinistra sindacale, che pur con le sue articolazioni, con le sue
contraddizioni interne, comunque si era espressa contro la guerra, ma
anche alle strutture
sindacali nel loro complesso, soprattutto della Cgil.
E' bene ricordare che la CGIL Lombardia, la CGIL di Brescia in modo
particolare, che non e' una struttura da poco, si e' schierata da
subito contro la guerra. E che sulle varie iniziative di solidarieta'
successive che si sono poi determinate altre strutture della CGIL,
compresa la CGIL di Trieste, hanno avuto occasione di muoversi in
controtendenza rispetto ad una struttura nazionale che - lo posso
assicurare - e' stata
pesantissima all'interno, verso le proprie strutture, contro ed in
polemica con quelle posizioni che considerava cedimenti rispetto ad una
linea nazionale. Voglio solo ricordare che il segretario generale della
CGIL Lombardia, Agostinelli, e' stato dimissionato con la forza dalla
CGIL nazionale, tra le altre cose anche perchè ha immediatamente
criticato le posizioni nazionali sulla guerra, sostenendo e promuovendo
mobilitazioni in questo senso. In una lettera in cui lo si accusava di
inadeguatezza rispetto ai compiti di rappresentanza della linea della
CGIL nazionale in Lombardia gli veniva imputata, oltre la sua posizione
sulla guerra, anche il rapporto diretto che aveva costruito con i
lavoratori della Zastava.
Ciononostante, grazie a queste contraddizioni, e soprattutto grazie
alla coscienza che era importante - durante e dopo la guerra - lavorare
sulla soggettivita' sociale piu' rilevante, quella con la quale i
sindacati avrebbero dovuto confrontarsi direttamente ossia il mondo del
lavoro della Jugoslavia, e' nata quella rete di solidarieta' nella
forma che oggi molti di voi conoscono.
Una struttura di solidarieta' che poggia essenzialmente attorno ad
alcune, poche, strutture sindacali, ed a una rete di delegati di
fabbrica delle RSU che va dal Sud al Nord, con presenze significative
in alcune situazioni importanti. Una rete che poi ha coinvolto, anche
fuori dal mondo del lavoro, altre situazioni, associazioni ecc. Una
rete importante anche dal punto di vista quantitativo: non e' poca cosa
la solidarieta' che si e' riusciti a determinare e che si sta ancora
determinando. Anche se purtroppo, come qualcuno prima ricordava,
benche' essa non sia poca cosa rispetto alle nostre capacita'
operative, resta comunque troppo poca cosa rispetto al bisogno enorme
che esiste in quella situazione.
E' bene ricordare comunque che l'azione di solidarieta' che stiamo
portando avanti non e' di tipo caritatevole. Non consiste nel fatto che
se mi chiedono da bere io gli do da bere, se mi chiedono da mangiare io
gli do da mangiare... Questa rete e' "pensata", e' "ragionante": e'
una iniziativa di solidarieta' che ha come obbiettivo l'intercettazione
di diverse problematiche, le stesse che sono emerse anche nella
discussione di oggi.
Ossia il fatto che oggi in Jugoslavia c'e' bisogno di difendere un
soggetto sociale - la classe operaia e di sostenerla non solo sul
fronte di una lotta per il reddito e per l'occupazione ma anche nel
ruolo che questa può svolgere in difesa della democrazia sociale,
contro l'imbarbarimento istituzionale ed economico che si sta
affermando in quella regione
Per questo, fin dall'inizio abbiamo cercato di allargare i nostri
rapporti al maggior numero di situazioni sindacali della Jugoslavia
Tuttavia, nonostante gli sforzi che abbiamo fatto, ci troviamo ad avere
come unico riferimento sindacale, per questa iniziativa, la Zastava. I
bombardamenti, e quello che e' successo dopo, hanno praticamente
maciullato l'organizzazione sindacale. Quando tu distruggi una fabbrica
distruggi un luogo di organizzazione; quando tu distruggi un
territorio, distruggi i referenti sociali che ci sono su quel
territorio. Praticamente, e' come se avessi svuotato quel territorio.
Non e' un caso che, purtroppo, la nostra iniziativa si sia fermata alla
Zastava: perche' la Zastava, dopo i bombardamenti e nonostante i
bombardamenti, e' stata una delle poche realta' sindacali, tra quelle
colpite dalla guerra, ad aver mantenuto - grazie allo sforzo non
piccolo dei lavoratori e dei loro delegati - una sua propria capacita'
organizzativa sindacale. Pur non avendo lavoratori in fabbrica, la
struttura sindacale si e' sforzata di resistere, anche solo dal punto
di vista formale: quindi ha continuato a funzionare come soggetto di
riferimento per il territorio, per i lavoratori. Continuando comunque a
convocare assemblee, organizzare manifestazioni e, anche se sembra
assurdo a fronte della situazione, anche scioperi.
E grazie al lavoro di solidarieta' di molti lavoratori e fabbriche
italiane, abbiamo contribuito a rendere possibile tutto ciò. Anche
senza la fabbrica, grazie all'organizzazione sindacale Zastava ed alla
solidarietà dei lavoratori italiani, i lavoratori della Zastava hanno
potuto continuare a vivere il loro luogo di lavoro come punto di
incontro, di snodo, anche solo perchè si poteva continuare per lo meno
a distribuire quel poco che c'era da distribuire. Quindi, quando
parliamo di una guerra e degli effetti che questa guerra ha sulla
capacita' di risposta della gente, dei lavoratori, delle persone, dei
soggetti sociali presenti su quel territorio, dobbiamo considerare che
la guerra e' prima di tutto una operazione distruttiva, che non
distrugge solo le vite individuali o le fabbriche o i ponti… ma
distrugge un tessuto sociale, le organizzazioni ed i loro riferimenti,
che mina alla base praticamente le condizioni sociali su cui
preesistevano le rappresentanze, sociali e politiche.
E' bene osservare la situazione anche da questo punto di vista: il
bombardamento della Zastava e' significativo del carattere che questa
guerra ha avuto. Essa non e' stata una guerra "umanitaria", una guerra
di liberazione. E' stata una guerra scientificamente organizzata con
l'obbiettivo di bruciare e distruggere un territorio, di smantellare
qualsiasi rappresentanza sociale, politica, economica, per favorire poi
sostanzialmente l'ingresso di interessi altri, che avrebbero dovuto
prendere in mano questa situazione, e trasformarla, manipolarla secondo
i propri interessi.
Dati certi, esatti, non se ne hanno. Pero', a chi e' andato in
Jugoslavia in questi ultimi tempi e' chiaro come questa guerra
abbia colpito soprattutto infrastrutture, centrali elettriche, scuole,
strade, ferrovie, ospedali, e soprattutto come abbia colpito il tessuto
produttivo. Oggi la Jugoslavia non ha piu' una industria farmaceutica,
non ha piu' una industria pesante, non ha piu' una industria
tecnologicamente in grado di competere; cio' che e' rimasto in piedi e'
la piccola e media industria, destinata a scomparire di fronte alla
distruzione del mercato, alla pesante contrazione dei consumi (dovuta
alla caduta dei redditi da lavoro), alla crisi economica che oggi la
Jugoslavia attraversa.
Quindi è stata una guerra mirata a creare il terreno utile per
realizzare ed affermare quello che, sostanzialmente, era alla base
dell'intervento, cioe' la conquista di una egemonia economica,
politica, territoriale, rispetto ad una zona che era di interesse
strategico per il capitale occidentale. Adesso e' inutile soffermarsi
sulla guerra all'Iraq, sull'interesse dell'Occidente rispetto alla zona
asiatica, perchè è sostanzialmente tutto collegato. Oggi, di fronte
alla crisi con cui il capitale si trova a dover fare i conti, esiste la
necessità da parte del capitale di aumentare la propria pervasività sul
territorio, sulle economie altre, per garantirsi praticamente la
propria sopravvivenza.
Che questo obbiettivo sia stato poi perseguito senza badare alle spese
ed alle conseguenze lo dimostrano anche le altre cose che sono state
dette prima di me. Quando si parla di danni ambientali, nel senso di
crimini di guerra, parliamo di cose che sono sotto gli occhi di tutti e
non si dovrebbe fare fatica a dimostrarle.
Ha ragione Vlaic quando dice che bisognerebbe fare delle indagini
epidemiologiche: ma la NATO e l'Occidente non le faranno mai. Il
governo jugoslavo attuale probabilmente non ha interesse che su queste
cose si indaghi, perchè tutto deve sembrare come tornato alla normalità
rispetto alla confusione precedente.
Ma tutti sanno che non è così. Basta pensare agli effetti ambientali e
sociali dei bombardamenti. Oggi - lo rivela anche una indagine dell'ONU
- metà della popolazione jugoslava (parlo di Serbia) è praticamente
sotto la soglia di povertà e quella che risulterebbe ancora sopra la
soglia di povertà lo è solo grazie agli aiuti economici, alle mance,
alle regalie che le istituzioni possono ancora in parte permettersi di
distribuire grazie a certi aiuti, ad introiti avuti in cambio di certi
atteggiamenti di fedeltà alla NATO e all'Occidente.
Se mancassero anche questi introiti sarebbe un problema dal punto di
vista della stabilità interna. Quando si dice "soglia di poverta'" non
si intendono i 400 euro cui si riferiva prima la compagna di Belgrado,
ma si intendono i 225 euro che l'ONU considera come soglia di povertà;
225 euro praticamente non raggiungibili dalla metà della popolazione.
Ci sono poi situazioni ancora peggiori. Se consideriamo alcune
particolari isole come le cosiddette città operaie - Pancevo,
Kragujevac, Nis, ossia le classiche città nate intorno ad una fabbrica
- il livello di povertà coinvolge tutta la popolazione, perchè i
bombardamenti delle fabbriche hanno fatto mancare l'unica fonte di
reddito. E' come se nella Torino degli anni '50, dove c'era solo la
FIAT, avessero bombardato la FIAT. Avrebbero messo in ginocchio tutta
la città, non solo i lavoratori. La devastazione sociale che è stata
prodotta è di per sè gia' un crimine di guerra.
Ma se poi ragioniamo da un punto di vista ambientale, distruggere una
fabbrica non è come buttare giù una cabina su una spiaggia.
Distruggere una fabbrica vuol dire produrre tutta una serie di
conseguenze a catena. Solamente a Kragujevac la distruzione
della fabbrica ha di fatto causato l'incendio di tutti i depositi di
solventi e di tutti i depositi di olio combustibile e lubrificante che
servivano per la fabbrica. Questo vuol dire che per settimane intere
nella zona di Kragujevac è girato PCB in quantità enorme, è volata
diossina in quantità enorme.
Se poi facciamo l'esempio di Pancevo è tutto ancora più eclatante. Per
spiegare cosa è Pancevo basta dire che è il petrolchimico gemello di
Porto Marghera. In breve a Pancevo c'è la stessa linea del Cloro che
c'è a Marghera!
Se io bombardo Marghera, potete immaginarvi cosa succede. Oggi, quando
a Marghera per il problema di una valvola, di una guarnizione che non
tiene fuoriescono 2 o 3 ppm di roba, scatta l'allarme in laguna, con
interventi di magistrati, blocco delle produzioni eccetera. Ma a
Pancevo è uscito ben altro che non 2 o 3 ppm di roba. Lì hanno
completamente bombardato una fabbrica con tutto quello che c'era dentro
- è uscito TUTTO!
Senza contare gli operai morti sotto il bombardamento. Dalle
informazioni che abbiamo raccolto noi, quasi tutto il turno di
notte di Pancevo ci ha perso la vita. Lavoravano, mica si aspettavano
che li bombardassero: operai che erano sul di lavoro e che non sono
stati neppure avvisati, neanche invitati ad evacuare rispetto ad un
rischio di bombardamento. Nessuno proprio immaginava che qualcuno
avesse in testa di bombardare un petrolchimico come quello di Pancevo -
eppure lo hanno fatto, sapendo perfettamente le conseguenze.
Anche senza indagine epidemiologica (che nessuno si sogna di fare sulla
popolazione di Pancevo), basta andare a vedere un bellissimo lavoro -
penso che molti di voi lo hanno gia' potuto leggere - redatto non dal
medico tal-dei-tali di fama internazionale bensi' da una veterinaria di
Pancevo che, vista l'impossibilita' di fare una indagine epidemiologica
sulla popolazione, ha fatto una cosa semplicissima: ha tenuto sotto
osservazione i piccoli animali domestici per un certo periodo di tempo.
Questi animali, avendo un metabolismo breve,
manifestano prima dell'uomo determinate disfunzioni. Da questa analisi
è venuto fuori che, in misura diversa, tra cani, gatti, agnelli,
pecore, cavalli, già un anno dopo il bombardamento si sono manifestate
- nelle nascite o nei decorsi normali di alcune fasi di crescita -
tutta una serie di problemi che (stando a quello che si puo' presumere)
avranno effetti negli anni anche sugli esseri umani, visto che il tempo
di metabolismo dell'uomo e' diverso (è più lungo) di quello dei piccoli
animali. Un po' quello che e' successo a Seveso, insomma. Cosi' hanno
valutato i rischi che la fuoriuscita di diossina a Seveso avrebbe avuto
sugli umani, e che poi si sono confermati con gli aborti, con le
nascite malformate, successivamente. Anche per Seveso parliamo sempre
di pochi ppm, perche' a Seveso non è uscito neanche mezzo etto di roba.
Seveso non è stata mica bombardata: avevano dimenticato una valvola
aperta per due minuti. A Seveso hanno capito la situazione e i rischi
per la popolazione analizzando i conigli, e hanno scoperto che quello
che nei conigli succedeva dopo sei mesi dalla fuoriuscita si e' poi
riprodotto sugli uomini, in scala e dimensione diversa.
Quindi questa è la situazione. La Zastava dimostra quanto si diceva
prima sulle caratteristiche proprie di questa guerra di aggressione,
che aveva in realtà tutta una serie di motivazioni ben particolari.
Motivazioni così forti dal punto di vista economico e dal punto di
vista egemonico che non si è guardato in faccia a nulla.
Avevano ragione i compagni della Zastava quando dicevano, già sotto le
bombe: "Questi hanno intenzione di vincerla, questa guerra". Però non
si trattava di una occupazione di territori: questi avevano proprio
intenzione di ottenere una resa, la resa sociale, politica, economica
rispetto al programma dell'Occidente.
Il calvario della Zastava
La Zastava era la piu' grande azienda dei Balcani. Prima ancora del
disfacimento della Jugoslavia essa era ovviamente molto più grande di
quanto non sia adesso. Si concentrava sostanzialmente sulla produzione
di camion e di auto per conto e in società con la FIAT. Aveva 36.000
dipendenti. Aveva un mercato garantito dalla Grecia e dagli altri paesi
dell'Est perché, pur non producendo macchine qualitativamente
eccezionali, rappresentava comunque la possibilità
di immettere sui mercati di quei paesi macchine a basso prezzo, ad un
prezzo accessibile, il che poteva garantire la continuità della
produzione nonostante la necessità di una ristrutturazione che comunque
era in discussione anche prima dei bombardamenti.
I bombardamenti l'hanno distrutta completamente. Nelle notti
del 9 e 12 aprile 1999 la bellezza di una quarantina di missili
Cruise l'hanno sventrata, soprattutto nei suoi elementi forti:
il centro di calcolo e progettazione è stato completamente
distrutto - quindi tutta la rete informatica, tutta la memoria
storica della fabbrica; la progettazione è andata praticamente a
pezzi; le linee di produzione delle auto sono state completamente
distrutte, quelle dei camion pure, poi gli uffici.
La devastazione è stata tale da far pensare all'impossibilità di un
qualsiasi tipo di ripresa.
Ovviamente, il bombardamento della fabbrica non ha coinvolto
solo i lavoratori. Quando dico "città operaia" voglio dire che alla
Zastava c'erano 36.000 lavoratori, di cui almeno 22.000 residenti in
città, a Kragujevac.
Se considerate che l'indotto in Kragujevac era rappresentato da altre
40.000 persone, e se considerate che la città ha poco più di 200.000
abitanti, avete presto fatto i conti... Non c'era in tutta Kragujevac
una sola famiglia che non vivesse del lavoro della Zastava. Quindi, il
bombardamento della Zastava è stato visto con ansia da tutta quanta la
popolazione: tanto è vero che, in uno scatto di orgoglio, sotto i
bombardamenti come anche prima dei bombardamenti, molti lavoratori
hanno occupato la fabbrica, quasi pensando, illudendosi,che facendo da
scudi umani il bombardamento sarebbe stato impedito. Il sindacato ha
pure avvisato la NATO con e-mail e fax che in fabbrica c'erano gli
operai che occupavano. Nonostante questo i bombardamenti sono andati
avanti fino alla distruzione completa della fabbrica.
A questa situazione i lavoratori, d'accordo con la direzione dello
stabilimento hanno cercato di dare una prima ed immediata risposta con
l'avvio del lavoro di spostamento delle macerie. E' bene sottolineare
come la direzione Zastava, quella precedente, ancora legata all'assetto
societario precedente, ossia a quello tipico dell'esperienza jugoslava:
non rappresentava più una vera e propria autogestione, perchè era da
tempo che l'autogestione in Jugoslavia era stata ripensata sopratutto
nelle grandi aziende industriali. Permaneva comunque la forte presenza
pubblica, con un evidente interesse pubblico nella gestione della
fabbrica
che aveva nella salvaguardia dell'occupazione uno degli elementi
qualificanti e discriminanti.
In questa situazione, dicevo, i lavoratori della Zastava hanno
iniziato subito, quasi per rabbia, il lavoro di pulizia delle macerie!
E recuperando quel poco che si era riusciti a recuperare dalle macerie
erano riusciti a mettere in moto due linee di produzione che andavano
manualmente - mancando la corrente era impossibile pensare a livelli di
automazione come quelli precedenti. Era un atto simbolico importante.
Con quell'atto loro volevano dire che, nonostante i bombardamenti, la
fabbrica doveva continuare a vivere.
C'è da dire che in quella fase, e soprattutto in quella fase, la
solidarietà dal mondo del lavoro italiano è stata preziosissima:
i lavoratori Zastava manifestavano da un lato l'orgoglio e la
voglia di ricostruire, ma dall'altra parte c'era la paura di non
avere sostegno sufficiente per reggere uno sforzo del genere.
Quando infatti parlo di rimozione delle macerie e di rimessa in
moto delle due linee parlo di una fase in cui i lavoratori non
percepivano reddito, neppure la misera indennità di disoccupazione che
molti di loro ora percepiscono. Era praticamente quasi tutto lavoro
volontario, organizzato, coordinato, diretto in qualche modo
all'obbiettivo di dare ai lavoratori una prospettiva e di evitare
l'emigrazione, di evitare lo sconforto.
Di evitare praticamente che i lavoratori se ne andassero.
Da questo punto di vista diciamo che l'aiuto che è stato chiesto
esplicitamente dai lavoratori della Zastava al mondo del lavoro,
italiano e tedesco soprattutto, in quella fase è consistito in:
"aiutateci a tenere la gente in fabbrica". Quindi: "aiutateci a fare in
modo che la gente, se ha bisogno di qualcosa, si abitui a venire sempre
in fabbrica a vedere cosa su può fare, cosa c'è e cosa non c'è."
In effetti, questa è stata una cosa che ha aiutato psicologicamente, ma
anche materialmente, in primo luogo diverse famiglie; ha aiutato a
sostenere la loro prima reazione, la voglia di ricostruire la fabbrica.
Il problema è che, con il cambio del governo che c'è stato in
Jugoslavia il 5 ottobre 2000, sono venuti meno di colpo quei
pochi ma utili finanziamenti che, nel frattempo, il governo della
Repubblica aveva cominciato a stanziare per la rimessa in moto della
fabbrica. Venendo meno questi investimenti è divenuta palese
l'impossibilità di continuare. Mancavano le materie prime, mancava la
possibilità di completare la rimessa in piedi dei capannoni, e
praticamente tutto si è fermato.
Anche quella simbolica ripresa produttiva ha dovuto sostanzialmente
fermarsi.
C'è da dire che la FIOM ha fatto un tentativo, anche piuttosto
esplicito e pesante, nei confronti della FIAT che era proprietaria del
48% della Zastava, affinchè la FIAT investisse in qualche modo, desse
una mano a rimettere in piedi la situazione. Ma si e' constatato alla
fine l'assoluto disinteresse della FIAT ad investire in quella
direzione, come se avesse già programmato da tempo il suo abbandono di
interessi sulla Zastava. Così si è praticamente bloccato il tentativo
di riaprire la fabbrica, salvo che per due reparti, la fucina e
l'utensileria,
che oggi occupano in totale non più di 1300 lavoratori. Reparti che
però vivacchiano, nel senso che la fucina produce, se ha mercato,
poichè non produce più per la produzione interna della Zastava.
Ma anche l'utensileria, nonostante lo sforzo che hanno fatto, produce
materiale di qualità non competitiva, che può essere destinato a
Bulgaria o Romania, ma che non può di per sé, senza ulteriori
investimenti, rappresentare una soluzione stabile.
Al di là di questi due reparti, che comunque lavoricchiano, in realtà
oggi la fabbrica è ferma. Delle migliaia di lavoratori di cui si diceva
prima solo 17.000, a rotazione, hanno oggi un qualche rapporto con la
produzione, ma per effetto della saltuarietà della loro prestazione il
loro reddito non supera i 120 euro al mese. Se questi lavoratori
rimangono in qualche modo impiegati all'interno dell'attività, altri
9000 sono finiti in esubero - una specie di mobilità lunga come quella
che c'è da noi, una cassa integrazione speciale senza alcun dirito al
reintegro. Allo stato attuale essi percepiscono non più di 50
euro al mese. Di questi 9000 già molti hanno scelto la strada
dell'emigrazione, tanto è vero che oggi risultano iscritti alla lista
solo 7000 lavoratori. Molti hanno firmato per andarsene, in cambio di
un piccolo incentivo, prendendo la strada di altri paesi, in cerca di
altro lavoro. A questi vanno aggiunti gli 8000 lavoratori che sono
stati licenziati, e che non sono quindi neppure in mobilità, e gli 800
lavoratori serbi di Pec in Kosovo che sono stati cacciati e che oggi
sopravvivono grazie alla solidarietà del sindacato Zastava, senza il
quale non saprebbero a chi rivolgersi ne' dove andare a parare.
La svendita
In questa situazione il rapporto tra la rete di solidarietà e il
sindacato Zastava va avanti. Ma se prima il problema era
sostanzialmente come riprendere l'attività della fabbrica, oggi si
tratta piuttosto di sostenere questi lavoratori in una prospettiva
molto più lunga. Sulla Zastava permane - e con il nuovo governo è stato
dichiarato subito - l'interesse a vendere, ossia a non impegnarsi per
una ripresa dell'attività e viceversa a trattare la Zastava come un
supermercato composto da tanti piccoli reparti che possono essere
venduti, ceduti in cambio di poco o di niente. Ma fino ad oggi neanche
questo nuovo
atteggiamento del governo nazionale ha suscitato interesse da parte di
acquisitori stranieri.
Finita la guerra, la Jugoslavia è diventata terra di conquista per
tutta una serie di piccoli truffatori, di piccoli capitalisti che
pensano di andare lì e tirare su palate di soldi approfittando di una
economia in ginocchio e della ricattabilità dei soggetti sociali
(lavoratori in primo luogo) a cui offrire una "occasione" in cambio
però di livelli di subordinazione del lavoro che mai prima questi
lavoratori avevano conosciuto.
Tutta l'attuale amministrazione pubblica jugoslava si è strutturata per
intercettare queste "occasioni", tanto è vero che mai come in questa
ultima fase, credo, tra camere di commercio italiane e amministrazioni
comunali jugoslave si e' sviluppato un fitto rapporto di scambi, di
informazioni, di visite. A noi è capitato spesse volte, essendo lì a
Kragujevac, di vedere - una volta proprio in diretta, in un
telegiornale locale, una intervista a imprenditori veneti che dicevano
pressapoco: "Noi siamo venuti qui oggi perchè vogliamo vedere alcuni
reparti, alcuni capannoni dismessi. Il comune ci ha promesso
mari e monti, noi veniamo qui, investiamo..." Però tutti questi
imprenditori ponevano la stessa questione: noi veniamo, quindi siamo
dei benefattori; e così come stanno le cose ancora non ci basta,
bisogna cambiare le regole... Oltre ai terreni gratis, ai capannoni
gratis, al non pagamento delle tasse per 5 o 10 anni, bisogna che anche
la manodopera sia gratis!
Una vera e propria speculazione che sta investendo soprattutto le
piccole e medie aziende dell'indotto, ormai senza lavoro a causa del
bombardamento della Zastava, sulle quali si intende trasferire
produzioni attualmente fatte in Italia puntando sul costo zero
dell'investimento e sulla disponibilità di avere mano d'opera affamata
a cui imporre qualsiasi condizione di lavoro e retributiva.
Sulla Zastava questo tipo di speculazioni non sono riuscite perchè la
Zastava, a differenza di tutte le altre unità produttive, aveva al suo
interno una forte organizzazione sindacale, che rendeva meno fattibile
la svendita al capitale estero che arrivava e si dichiarava interessato
a quel tipo di soluzione. Operazioni di questo tipo sono invece andate
avanti alla grande altrove. Come diceva prima la compagna di Belgrado,
stanno privatizzando tutto, cioè tutto è vendibile, oggi, in
Jugoslavia. Va giù una immobiliare e si compra appartamenti, case. Va
giù una camera di commercio e concorda l'arrivo di faccendieri che
comprano piccole fabbriche, capannoni
vuoti, tutto quello che è buono, e anche i gioielli di famiglia.
E' notizia di pochi mesi fa che tutta la catena dei cementifici (che
erano una perla dell'economia pubblica jugoslvava) è stata spezzettata
e svenduta a imprenditori francesi e tedeschi che con tutti i problemi
di ricostruzione che ci sono non possono che aspettarsi profitti
allettanti. Adesso si parla anche di privatizzare le miniere.
Una linea, quella di svendere, di privatizzare tutto, che adesso è
arrivata anche alla Zastava Però, per svendere la Zastava bisognava
prima incrinare la sua capacità di tenuta. Voi sapete che per comprare
la Zastava si è fatto avanti ora questo Malcom Briklin, il quale in
realtà, anche se si presenta come un grande imprenditore, non è altro
che un poveraccio, nel senso che si è fatto una fortuna unicamente
mettendo in piedi una
rete di concessionarie in America per vendere auto giapponesi. Ha
tentato due operazioni industriali, una producendo una macchina che
portava il suo nome, che però è fallita subito, e un'altra mettendo in
piedi una compagnia elettrica, che non è sopravvissuta. Briklin si
appoggia su delle banche che hanno la debolezza strutturale ricordata
dalla compagna di Belgrado. Adesso, di colpo, si compra la Zastava,
mettendo lì una barca di soldi che non si sa dove andrà a prendere.
Ha presentato un piano industriale che è a dir poco industriale che è a
dir poco fantasioso, vale a dire: io ti compro e ti prometto l'America
- pur sapendo bene quali difficoltà ci siano a rimettere in piedi la
Zastava.
Questo Briklin promette di assumere 9000 persone nel giro di cinque
anni, di produrre 220.000 auto l'anno, e - notate bene - non punta sul
mercato dei Balcani o sul mercato dei paesi dell'Est, dove quelle
macchine a basso prezzo avrebbero un mercato. Punta piuttosto ad
esportarle in America ed in Europa, intendendo competere con il mercato
dell'usato, nel senso che a quei prezzi e a quelle condizioni in Europa
e in America ormai il mercato dell'usato fornisce materiale
equivalente.
La situazione è paradossale. Per dirla tutta, condividendo il parere
che anche il sindacato metalmeccanici italiano ha espresso, conoscendo
il tizio e parlando anche con quelli della Zastava, più che una
operazione industriale l'arrivo di questo Briklin è la classica
operazione speculativa che punta a comprare a determinate condizioni
per poi manipolarla, rivenderla a pezzi, a suo uso e consumo. E' fuor
di dubbio, vista la sua storia, che Briklin sia molto più interessato
ad acquisire la rete concessionaria della Zastava piuttosto che la
fabbrica di produzione delle auto. Infatti, grazie a quella rete
concessionaria egli può piazzare in tutti i Balcani e nell'Est Europeo
tutto il suo enorme giro di auto usate, di cui già dispone. Grazie al
nome Zastava, alle concessionarie ed
alla rete Zastava di assistenza, egli potra' guadagnare, con risultati
sull'occupazione nulli.
I rapporti tra i sindacati
Ciò che si presenta agli occhi dei lavoratori della Zastava non è
assolutamente confortante. Tanto è vero che il sindacato della Zastava
- almeno il più grosso dei tre sindacati presenti - intende opporsi a
questo piano industriale.
Detto tra noi: quando tu sei impiccato, come fai a dire di no a uno che
viene lì e ti dice che assume 9000 persone. Non ci crede nessuno, ma
ciononostante ci vuole una bella tenuta per opporsi! Comunque, i limiti
di questa operazione sono oggi chiari a tutti.
Un piccolo inciso: noi stiamo sostenendo la tenuta del sindacato della
Zastava anche attraverso l'inserimento dello stesso dentro il Forum
europeo della sinistra sindacale, non tanto perchè questo risolva
qualche problema a loro, ma perchè almeno apporta una visibilità
europea al problema. In questo senso dovevano essere presenti il 7
novembre scorso al Social Forum di Firenze anche due delegati della
Zastava e un esponente del sindacato metalmeccanici nazionale
jugoslavo. Ma l'Ambasciata italiana di Belgrado non ha
concesso per tempo i visti, benche' fossero stati chiesti direttamente
dalla CGIL di Brescia.
Sicuramente c'è stato un intervento negativo da parte dell'Ambasciata
italiana di Belgrado; sicuramente non c'è stata, da parte del Ministero
degli Esteri, alcuna intenzione di forzare la mano, di lasciare che i
visti venissero sbloccati. Ma pare quasi sicuro che lo zampino che ha
portato all'impedimento del rilascio dei visti venga proprio da
Briklin, preoccupato che in occasione del Social Forum qualcuno venisse
in Italia a denunciare la stupidità dell'operazione che il governo
jugoslavo sta mettendo in piedi con lui. Questo solo per la cronaca,
per sottolineare l'importanza delle cose che si stanno discutendo e
decidendo in questi giorni, in questi prossimi mesi, alla Zastava di
Kragujevac.
Altri aspetti della situazione sociale
La capacità di risposta del mondo del lavoro è in larga misura
compromessa, per la situazione difficoltosa in cui oggi i sindacati
jugoslavi si trovano. Dobbiamo considerare che la guerra ha indebolito
la capacità organizzativa della rappresentanza sindacale in Jugoslavia.
Le condizioni della classe operaia sono paurosamente peggiorate,
aumentando la frantumazione di cui prima si parlava. L'embargo prima,
la guerra, l'aumento dei prezzi, la caduta dello stato sociale, il
venire meno di una serie di servizi, l'inflazione, producono una
situazione di sfaldamento della capacità di tenuta della classe operaia
e delle famiglie. Non va dimenticato che anche la situazione dei
pensionati è drammatica, nel senso che le pensioni acquisite di diritto
non vengono pagate ovvero vengono pagate in una misura che non supera i
50 euro al mese e chi va in pensione oggi sa
che non prenderà niente. E chi pensava di andare in pensione tra
due-tre anni sa già che non ci andrà, perchè tutto il sistema
previdenziale è saltato, non c'è più nessuna garanzia da quel punto di
vista.
Le condizioni materiali della classe operaia sono peggiorate, e questo
accelera, aumenta il peso delle difficoltà organizzative da parte del
sindacato.
Ma non bisogna dimenticare un'altra cosa importante, e cioe' che con il
cambio di governo è partito, all'interno della Jugoslavia, un forte
attacco contro la tenuta sindacale attraverso il finanziamento di vere
e proprie operazioni di scissione sindacale, attacco che ha avuto un
certo successo. Grazie ai grandi aiuti economici che sono arrivati
dall'Occidente è stata inventata questa sigla filo-governativa
che si chiama Associazione dei Sindacati Indipendenti, che è entrata
immediatamente in competizione con il sindacato maggioritario
producendo qua e là delle scissioni.
Alla Zastava - badate bene - queste scissioni non sono riuscite.
Alla Zastava ancora alle ultime elezioni il 92-93% dei lavoratori
ha riconfermato la fiducia al sindacato maggioritario; e questo
spiega perchè proprio alla Zastava la tensione sindacale sia arrivata
alle stelle, con pestaggi, pedinamenti, minacce. Non so se vi sia
arrivata all'orecchio voce di alcuni eventi recenti. Il clima si è
notevolmente esasperato verso il Sindaco di Kragujevac, che è un
filo-Dijndijc, che organizza una manifestazione di operai della Zastava
contro il sindacato, e poi si scopre - noi siamo arrivati sul posto due
giorni dopo - che in realtà le "masse dei lavoratori" che hanno
manifestato erano arrivate con i pullman da Belgrado, e di lavoratori
della Zastava non ce n'era quasi nessuno! Oppure i picchettaggi ed i
blocchi delle elezioni dei delegati sindacali, nel senso che quando
sono state aperte le urne questi sindacati indipendenti sono entrati,
hanno impedito che si tenessero le elezioni, secondo l'assunto che i
posti nel sindacato dovevano
essere ripartiti in funzione delle percentuali elettorali che nelle
ultime elezioni politiche i singoli partiti avevano ottenuto: ben
sapendo che se si fosse andati al voto tra i lavoratori essi non
avrebbero preso gran che, rivendicavano una rappresentanza di tipo
politico.
Tutte queste situazioni hanno ulteriormente aggravato il clima
alla Zastava, ma sono anche testimonianza di come il controllo
dei sindacati sia elemento indispensabile, per chi vuole controllare
gli sviluppi politici ed economici del paese nei prossimi mesi.
Anche in questo la Zastava rappresenta un elemento di
controtendenza, perchè proprio nel punto più importante, la'
dove la scissione doveva sortire dei grossi risultati, questi non
si sono prodotti, e questo anche grazie alla capacità di resistenza e
di tenuta della struttura sindacale attuale.
La contro-riforma del mercato del lavoro
E' difficile, in questa situazione di concorrenza sindacale e di
operazioni scissionistiche filo governative, per il sindacato jugoslavo
reggere, oltre allo scontro sulla difesa del posto di lavoro anche
l'offensiva governativa in materia di diritti e di distruzione del
piano normativo in materia di mercato del lavoro.
Una riforma che il governo federale ha già presentato, e che in queste
settimane sta realizzando, con la contrarietà di alcuni sindacati e con
l'assenso di questa Associazione dei Sindacati Indipendenti il cui
segretario generale è addirittura l'attuale Ministro del Lavoro.
Quindi il proponente di questa legge sul lavoro!
Una legge che a noi non suona tanto strana, perchè pur essendo stata
scritta in modo diverso, partendo da una situazione precedente diversa,
è praticamente identica al Libro Bianco ed alla riforma del mercato del
lavoro che stiamo contrastando in Italia.
C'è la riduzione del contatto nazionale di lavoro a mero riferimento
normativo. Praticamente, salta il salario minimo nazionale, si propone
una sorta di sistema a gabbie salariali, legate al territorio ed alla
tipologia industriale - quindi con gabbie e sotto-gabbie. Poi c'e'
l'aumento del lavoro precario, con l'introduzione di un contratto a
termine che, in confronto, la proposta di Maroni è acqua di rose. Ed
inoltre altri punti da non sottovalutare, tra cui uno simbolico, che
dovrebbe far gridare
allo scandalo. Pur di risparmiare, con la scusa che si devono trovare
risorse per il rilancio dell'economia (che pero', come sapete, non
avviene perchè il governo ha demandato il rilancio dell'economia agli
interessi degli speculatori stranieri e non al suo intervento diretto),
è stata ridotta la copertura per la tutela delle lavoratrici incinte;
ed inoltre è stata inserita una norma, che non è proprio uguale alla
nostra sull'articolo 18, ma che
da' sostanzialmente alle aziende la libertà di licenziare senza giusta
causa se la tipologia del lavoratore non corrisponde più alle esigenze
dell'azienda.
Una riforma che punta inoltre, elemento non secondario, alla riduzione
della rappresentatività sindacale. Si chiede che il singolo lavoratore,
se interessato, possa anche firmare contratti di assunzione
individuali, scavalcando quindi la mediazione contrattuale e sindacale.
Voglio dire, per concludere: la questione della Zastava è
significativa, perchè a mio parere apre una discussione che altri hanno
posto in modo diverso qui dentro. Noi siamo convinti tutti che la
situazione in Jugoslavia, così come è, è destinata allo sfacelo perchè
la Jugoslavia è diventata terra
di conquista di speculatori. Non esiste oggi in Jugoslavia una
rappresentanza politica in grado di programmare, di dirigere, di
mantenere, di tutelare al minimo neanche quelli che sono gli interessi
nazionali, neanche quelli della borghesia nazionale. Non c'è nessuna
preoccupazione in questo senso.
Che cosa si può fare? Si può fare molto, sapendo che naturalmente sarà
solo la nascita e la determinazione di condizioni oggettive a favorire
poi uno sbocco piuttosto che un altro. Ma noi come compagni, come
italiani, come vicini, come solidali a un punto di vista che comunque
dentro a quei territori ancora sta lottando per sopravvivere possiamo
lavorare
soprattutto per favorire la tenuta di quello che è l'unico soggetto
sociale che può effettivamente contrastare questi processi.
Questo soggetto sociale è la classe lavoratrice in tutte le sue
articolazioni: lavoro dipendente, disoccupati, pensionati. E quindi,
come già diceva Vlaic stamattina nella sua introduzione e come altri
hanno ricordato, noi dovremo, oltre che ascoltare, fare domande,
chiedere, dovremo saper sviluppare un lavoro capace di una solidarietà
concreta, fortemente indirizzata al sostegno di una lotta di resistenza
che la classe lavoratrice
jugoslava, in completa solitudine sta cercando di fare contro i
tentativi di chi la vorrebbe silenziosa ed asservita al nuovo potere
economico e politico.
Saremo utili ed efficaci se sapremo produrre iniziativa utili a far si
che la classe lavoratrice jugoslava riesca a incidere sulle condizioni
oggettive dentro le quali è oggi costretta a muoversi.
Per esperienza nostra, questo sbocco per noi vuol dire rafforzamento
del peso, del ruolo sociale, della capacità di organizzazione e della
capacità di rappresentanza sociale della classe operaia.
Miroje Vucinic,17-godisnjak iz Crne Gore, koji se nalazio na lijecenju
od leukemije u bolnici "S. Camillo" u Rimu, preminuo je jutros, 13.
augusta oko 4,30.
Porodici Vucinic, iskreno saucesce. Ivan
Miroje non c'è la fatta.
Miroje Vucinic, il ragazzo diciasettenne di Montenegro, che si curava
di leucemia al "San Camillo" di Roma, è morto questa mattina, 13 agosto
verso le ore 4,30.
Alla famiglia Vucinic condoglianze da tutto il Coordinamento. Ivan.
Nello stesso ospedale si trovano Marko Milanovic, 12 anni, proveniente
dalla Serbia e Lazar Popovic, 4 anni, dal Montenegro.
Rinoviamo l'appello del 7 luglio promosso da "Un ponte per..." e dal
Coordinamento Nazionale per la Jugoslavia, a sostegno di queste
famiglie. Ivan
od leukemije u bolnici "S. Camillo" u Rimu, preminuo je jutros, 13.
augusta oko 4,30.
Porodici Vucinic, iskreno saucesce. Ivan
Miroje non c'è la fatta.
Miroje Vucinic, il ragazzo diciasettenne di Montenegro, che si curava
di leucemia al "San Camillo" di Roma, è morto questa mattina, 13 agosto
verso le ore 4,30.
Alla famiglia Vucinic condoglianze da tutto il Coordinamento. Ivan.
Nello stesso ospedale si trovano Marko Milanovic, 12 anni, proveniente
dalla Serbia e Lazar Popovic, 4 anni, dal Montenegro.
Rinoviamo l'appello del 7 luglio promosso da "Un ponte per..." e dal
Coordinamento Nazionale per la Jugoslavia, a sostegno di queste
famiglie. Ivan
SUL PROCESSO DI UNIONE TRA RUSSIA E BIELORUSSIA
Intervento di V.N. Zakharcenko, primo segretario del CC del Partito
Comunista di Bielorussia, al primo “Congresso dei popoli dello stato
unitario di Belarus e Russia
http://www.kprf.ru/library/zine/13727.shtml
21 giugno 2003
Stimati compagni! Cari amici!
A nome della delegazione bielorussa desidero portare a tutti i
partecipanti al congresso il caloroso saluto dei sostenitori bielorussi
dello Stato unitario.
Della nostra delegazione fanno parte i rappresentanti delle più
autorevoli organizzazioni sociali di massa della repubblica. Quali la
Federazione dei sindacati di Belarus, l’Unione della gioventù
repubblicana bielorussa, l’Unione bielorussa degli ufficiali, l’Unione
bielorussa dei veterani della guerra in Afghanistan, l’Unione
bielorussa delle donne, il Comitato “slavo bielorusso”, l’Associazione
dei cosacchi in Bielorussia, il Comitato sociale repubblicano
bielorusso, la “Camera delle associazioni sociali”. Nella delegazione
ci sono venti deputati della Camera dei rappresentanti e membri del
Consiglio dell’Assemblea nazionale della Repubblica di Belarus, che
sono anche deputati dell’Assemblea parlamentare dell’Unione di Belarus
e Russia o del gruppo parlamentare “Deputato del popolo” del parlamento
della Bielorussia.
Una parte significativa dei partecipanti è rappresentata da membri del
Partito Comunista di Bielorussia, che è promotore e organizzatore del
congresso sul territorio della repubblica.
Penso che anche il solo elenco delle organizzazioni, che hanno delegato
propri rappresentanti al nostro odierno forum, dimostri eloquentemente
quale significato venga attribuito dall’opinione pubblica patriottica
bielorussa alla questione relativa alla creazione dello Stato unitario
di Belarus e Russia.
Come già nel passato essa guarda al proprio futuro solo attraverso il
prisma dell’unità. E ciò non sorprende affatto. Fin dai tempi antichi
lo sviluppo storico dei nostri popoli è lo sviluppo di fratelli di
sangue che vivono fianco a fianco. Insieme abbiamo attraversato anni
difficilissimi, insieme abbiamo condiviso la gioia, insieme abbiamo
edificato una casa comune.
La storia recente ha rafforzato ancora di più l’affetto reciproco.
Solo l’unità ha permesso ai nostri popoli di resistere nella sanguinosa
lotta con il fascismo negli anni della Grande Guerra Patriottica. E
solo il sostegno fraterno ha fornito la possibilità di creare il
sistema economico e le infrastrutture sociali della Bielorussia dopo il
passaggio dell’invasione nemica.
Oggi sempre meno ci si ricorda delle conseguenze della guerra e del
costo delle distruzioni operate dagli occupanti fascisti. Che sono
state tremende. In Bielorussia sono stati inceneriti e distrutti dai
fascisti 209 città e centri regionali su 270, annientati 9200 villaggi
e più di 10000 imprese. Gli invasori tedeschi hanno trasferito fuori
dalla repubblica il 90% delle attrezzature. In complesso la
Bielorussia, negli anni della guerra, ha perso il 50% della ricchezza
nazionale.
Ancora più terribili sono state le perdite umane. Negli anni
dell’occupazione sono morti 2,2 milioni di nostri concittadini e più di
380 mila sono stati deportati in Germania. E occorre tener conto che,
prima della guerra, la popolazione era di 9 milioni di abitanti.
Per lunghi decenni il popolo bielorusso non sarebbe stato in grado di
curare le ferite più gravi inferte dalla guerra, se non fosse
intervenuto il sostegno fraterno delle repubbliche sovietiche e, prima
di tutto, della Federazione Russa.
Ecco la ragione per cui nel referendum del marzo 1991, di fronte al
quesito relativo al mantenimento dell’URSS, il 90% dei cittadini della
Bielorussia abbia affermato: l’Unione Sovietica deve vivere. Ecco
perché nel referendum nazionale del 14 maggio 1995 il popolo di Belarus
ha ratificato in modo schiacciante la ferma aspirazione all’unità con
la Russia. Tale convinzione si mantiene anche oggi.
Quando il 26 maggio 1995, ponendo fine al processo di separazione, nel
villaggio bielorusso di Recka, venivano simbolicamente rimossi i
segnali di confine e, in seguito, quando il 2 aprile 1996 dai
presidenti dei nostri stati veniva siglato il trattato che avviava la
formazione della Comunità di Belarus e Russia, a molti cittadini da
ambedue le parti della frontiera, sembrò che la verità storica fosse
stata ristabilita, che l’unità si fosse realizzata.
Ed effettivamente, in tempi brevi, è stata formata e ha cominciato a
funzionare l’Assemblea parlamentare. Dopo un anno dalla firma
dell’accordo sulla creazione della Comunità, questa è stata trasformata
in Unione con l’acquisizione di nuovi poteri speciali. Sono stati
formati i Comitati doganale e frontaliero e il Comitato per le
questioni della sicurezza. E’ stato anche redatto un bilancio
dell’unione. Sulla base di tale bilancio si è dato avvio al lavoro
congiunto di imprese, istituzioni e organizzazioni di ambedue gli stati
con programmi nell’industria, nell’agricoltura, nella scienza, nel
settore della difesa e nella sfera sociale.
Nel dicembre 1999 si è passati ad una nuova tappa dell’unificazione,
perfezionata dalla sigla del Trattato sulla creazione di uno Stato
unitario e dal varo del Programma di azione della Federazione Russa e
della Repubblica di Belarus per la messa in pratica del trattato.
Come risultato si sono rafforzati i processi di integrazione, prima di
tutto nell’economia. L’anno scorso, ad esempio, l’interscambio tra
Russia e Bielorussia ammontava a 11 miliardi di dollari, dietro solo
all’interscambio tra Russia e Germania (14 miliardi di dollari), e
prima di quello tra Russia e Cina (10 miliardi di dollari) e tra Russia
e Ucraina (4,7 miliardi di dollari).
Il processo di integrazione dei complessi energetico e dei combustibili
dei nostri stati, a parere degli specialisti, ha raggiunto il 95% ,
quello della costruzione di macchinari l’85%. Interagiscono
strettamente – fattore importantissimo – le imprese russe e bielorusse
dell’industria automobilistica, settore che in una qualche misura
rappresenta l’indicatore del potenziale industriale degli stati.
Nell’industria automobilistica si sta realizzando il programma
“Diesel”, per un ammontare di circa 37 miliardi di rubli russi. Sono in
funzione programmi per la produzione comune e la ricerca
nell’elettronica, nell’ingegneria genetica, nell’esplorazione del cosmo.
Ma gli ultimi sette anni hanno dimostrato che la strada
dell’unificazione è significativamente più lunga e complicata di quanto
non si potesse prevedere. Come si è venuto chiarendo col passare del
tempo, i processi obiettivi di integrazione nell’economia e nella sfera
sociale non costituiscono ancora la garanzia che la strutturazione
organizzativa di un’unica formazione statale abbia vita facile.
A cominciare dal 2001, la costruzione statale unitaria ha incontrato
degli ostacoli ed è entrata in una fase che presenta elementi di
pericolo.
La principale causa di questo fenomeno va ricercata nella presenza, sia
in Russia che in Bielorussia, di gruppi sociali, per i quali la
creazione di uno Stato unitario costituisce un serio ostacolo alla
realizzazione dei propri egoistici interessi privati.
Sia sul versante della Russia che su quello della Bielorussia
intervengono in tale ruolo gli elementi della destra radicale che
rappresentano il grande capitale, orientati verso l’Occidente,
sostenuti dall’Occidente, ai quali conviene, di conseguenza, la
sottomissione dei nostri popoli agli interessi dell’Occidente. Il loro
slogan era e rimane: “Divide et impera”.
In Bielorussia, nonostante l’enorme sostegno politico, psicologico e
finanziario ai radicali di destra locali da parte degli Stati Uniti
d’America e degli stati europei occidentali dipendenti dagli USA, gli
sforzi tesi a frenare l’integrazione non sono ancora riusciti a
strappare risultati significativi. Ciò è attribuibile, in linea di
massima, da un lato alla ragionevole posizione del popolo della
repubblica e, dall’altro, al gigantesco lavoro assolto dal presidente
della Belarus Aleksandr Grigorjevic Lukashenko e dalle organizzazioni
patriottiche che lo sostengono nel contrastare gli attuali oppositori e
alla tenacia dimostrata dal presidente nella realizzazione degli
obiettivi prefissati.
Nella Federazione Russa, a nostro parere, le strutture radicali di
destra filoccidentali, essendo una forza importante dello schieramento
politico, esercitano un’influenza molto negativa. I sostenitori dello
Stato unitario in Bielorussia capiscono che, nel momento in cui si sta
formando la nuova struttura statale, occorre anche vincere la scontata
resistenza degli USA e dell’Unione Europea.
Profilandosi, dopo il dissolvimento dell’URSS, condizioni estremamente
favorevoli per l’affermazione di un “mondo unipolare”, USA e UE non
desiderano certamente avere concorrenti nell’arena mondiale come il
nuovo Stato unitario di Belarus e Russia, e ancor meno una più poderosa
costruzione statale, che potrebbe avere origine da questa unione. Con
diversi pretesti, le strutture statali degli Stati Uniti d’America e
dei loro satelliti hanno organizzato il boicottaggio dello stato
bielorusso. Senza alcun giustificato motivo essi hanno proclamato la
non legittimità del massimo organo legislativo del paese. E’ in atto,
attraverso i mezzi di comunicazione della maggior parte degli stati
vicini e dei paesi di orientamento filoamericano in altre regioni del
pianeta, una forsennata campagna antibielorussa. Si esercita una
pressione politica sulla dirigenza della Belarus anche attraverso la
proibizione dei visti d’ingresso nei cosiddetti paesi del “mondo
libero”.
Malgrado tutte queste difficoltà, secondo la maggior parte degli indici
di sviluppo economico e della qualità della vita, la Repubblica di
Belarus supera i suoi vicini delle repubbliche ex sovietiche. E ciò è
stato ottenuto grazie esclusivamente ai propri sforzi.
Nella fase attuale di formazione dello Stato unitario ha rappresentato
un passaggio fondamentale il varo dell’atto giuridico, che dà forma
alla nuova struttura statale, che definisce conformemente al Trattato
l’equilibrio nelle relazioni tra i soggetti statali esistenti e le
nascenti strutture sopranazionali del potere e dell’amministrazione, in
materia di sovranità e parità di diritti.
Le ultime riunioni della commissione, creata dai due stati per
l’elaborazione di questo documento, hanno messo in evidenza che esso è
stato ormai definito nei suoi tratti essenziali. Si attende l’esame da
parte dei capi di Stato.
Il Partito Comunista di Bielorussia ritiene che l’attuale situazione
richieda l’attiva espressione della volontà dei popoli in merito alla
costruzione dello Stato unitario. Non c’è dubbio che essi si
pronunceranno a favore del processo di unione. Ne sono testimonianza le
innumerevoli inchieste sociologiche, condotte sia in Bielorussia che in
Russia.
Ma è ancora indispensabile l’organizzazione dell’appoggio dell’opinione
pubblica al processo di creazione dello Stato unitario da parte dei
movimenti e delle istituzioni sociali. Ciò costituirà il fattore
propulsivo in grado di spingere i capi di stato dei nostri paesi a
superare definitivamente ogni ostacolo politico e ad assumere la
decisione di sottoporre a referendum l’Atto costitutivo dello Stato
unitario.
Proponiamo che il nostro odierno congresso dia l’avvio alla campagna di
sostegno da parte delle forze patriottiche alla costruzione statale
unitaria. E’ necessario che la campagna prosegua su tutto il territorio
dello Stato unitario. E’ necessario che l’inizio delle azioni di massa
coincida con il settimo anniversario del “Giorno dell’unificazione” dei
popoli di Belarus e Russia. Un ulteriore sviluppo di tali azioni
potrebbe registrarsi nel corso delle iniziative dedicate al ricordo
della liberazione delle nostre città e regioni dall’occupazione dei
fascisti tedeschi, e delle altre ricorrenze commemorative.
Tali approccio non solo costituisce uno stimolo per le strutture
statali affinché portino a compimento le procedure riguardanti l’Atto
costituzionale ma permette di creare condizioni favorevoli allo
svolgimento del referendum e, in seguito, anche delle elezioni del
parlamento dell’Unione.
E’ chiaro che in tutte le prossime fasi della formazione della base
giuridica delle strutture del potere e della gestione dello Stato
unitario, l’attivismo dell’opinione pubblica continuerà a rappresentare
il fattore decisivo, in grado di influenzare l’esito finale.
Perciò non appare superfluo pensare già da oggi a quali forme il
coordinamento del movimento sociale dovrà assumere nell’ambito della
nascente formazione statale unitaria.
Non si possono avere dubbi sul fatto che il coordinamento delle nostre
azioni rappresenti una necessità vitale. Con il varo dell’Atto
costituzionale dello Stato unitario di Belarus e Russia e, in seguito,
con l’elezione del supremo organo legislativo dell’unione, i processi
di interazione dei soggetti che vi saranno coinvolti subiranno
un’accelerazione. E si può prevedere che, nello sviluppo di tali
processi, possano manifestarsi anche momenti di difficoltà, legati ai
cambiamenti dei rapporti sociali in tutte le sfere della vita civile
dei nostri popoli.
Già ora emergono preoccupazioni in merito ai possibili tentativi dei
rappresentanti del grande capitale della Russia di avviare l’assalto
alle aziende dei settori trainanti in Bielorussia, con lo scopo di
prenderne possesso, senza dover operare alcun investimento. A quali
conseguenze portino tali azioni, si può osservare chiaramente in alcune
regioni della Federazione Russa. Nella Federazione Russa stessa è in
corso un seria lotta per il trasferimento alla proprietà privata del
sistema energetico. Le conseguenze di un simile passo sono prevedibili,
come è successo con la privatizzazione delle ferrovie della Repubblica
di Polonia. Lo scorporo del sistema ferroviario e la subordinazione
agli interessi privati ha arrecato una drastica riduzione delle sue
potenzialità. Il risultato è stato, ad esempio, che, alla frontiera tra
Polonia e Bielorussia, nella regione di Brest sono state ammassate 1200
cisterne ferroviarie contenenti gas liquefatto proveniente dalla
Russia. Altre 1700 cisterne si trovano nella sola stazione di Brest.
Tenendo conto della minaccia alla città, derivante dallo stazionamento
di un carico altamente esplosivo, le ferrovie bielorusse hanno bloccato
l’ingresso delle altre spedizioni di gas liquefatto russo. Le perdite
apportate sono risultate ingentissime. Se un fatto simile dovesse
accadere anche con il sistema energetico, ci troveremmo di fronte ad
una questione di vita o di morte per i nostri cittadini.
Anche tutti questi problemi potrebbero richiedere azioni coordinate su
vasta scala.
E non bisogna dimenticare neppure l’importanza dei fattori esterni.
Quando gli interessi dei magnati degli Stati Uniti sono stati
disturbati da Milosevic e dalla Jugoslavia, quest’ultima è stata
bombardata e Milosevic è stato giudicato colpevole di delitti commessi
dagli USA. Quando si è manifestata l’esigenza di accelerare i tempi del
trasporto del petrolio dall’Asia Centrale, attraverso l’Afghanistan,
fino al mare, si è messo sotto tiro il regime dei talebani, fino ad
allora coltivato, e si è imposto all’Afghanistan un nuovo ordine con la
forza militare e del terrore.
Oggi si cerca di trovare una via d’uscita dall’incombente crisi interna
agli stessi USA e, più in generale, a tutto l’Occidente, attraverso il
controllo del petrolio iracheno. E per far questo, si è inventato il
pretesto che fosse necessario liberare l’Iraq dalle armi di distruzione
di massa. I metodi usati per la “liberazione” erano già stati
sperimentati in Jugoslavia, in Afghanistan e in molti altri paesi. Con
l’ausilio della forza militare. Nessuno è in grado di garantire se, tra
qualche tempo, la stessa sorte non toccherà alla Bielorussia o alla
Russia.
Una settimana fa i mezzi di informazione di massa hanno comunicato che
il ministro della difesa americano ha dichiarato la propria intenzione
di dislocare basi aeree della NATO nella Repubblica di Polonia. Nelle
immediate vicinanze della Repubblica di Belarus.
Il pericolo è reale. E, come per la situazione in Iraq, è possibile
contrastarlo solo con l’unione delle nostre forze.
A tal proposito, occorre ancora una volta sottolineare la necessità
della formazione e del rafforzamento di un grande movimento sociale
nell’ambito del sorgente Stato unitario di Russia e Belarus.
Confidiamo nel successo dell’azione intrapresa. Battiamoci con forza
per l’unione di Belarus e Russia, per l’unità dei nostri popoli, per il
benessere e la prosperità comune.
Ce la faremo!
Traduzione dal russo
di Mauro Gemma
Intervento di V.N. Zakharcenko, primo segretario del CC del Partito
Comunista di Bielorussia, al primo “Congresso dei popoli dello stato
unitario di Belarus e Russia
http://www.kprf.ru/library/zine/13727.shtml
21 giugno 2003
Stimati compagni! Cari amici!
A nome della delegazione bielorussa desidero portare a tutti i
partecipanti al congresso il caloroso saluto dei sostenitori bielorussi
dello Stato unitario.
Della nostra delegazione fanno parte i rappresentanti delle più
autorevoli organizzazioni sociali di massa della repubblica. Quali la
Federazione dei sindacati di Belarus, l’Unione della gioventù
repubblicana bielorussa, l’Unione bielorussa degli ufficiali, l’Unione
bielorussa dei veterani della guerra in Afghanistan, l’Unione
bielorussa delle donne, il Comitato “slavo bielorusso”, l’Associazione
dei cosacchi in Bielorussia, il Comitato sociale repubblicano
bielorusso, la “Camera delle associazioni sociali”. Nella delegazione
ci sono venti deputati della Camera dei rappresentanti e membri del
Consiglio dell’Assemblea nazionale della Repubblica di Belarus, che
sono anche deputati dell’Assemblea parlamentare dell’Unione di Belarus
e Russia o del gruppo parlamentare “Deputato del popolo” del parlamento
della Bielorussia.
Una parte significativa dei partecipanti è rappresentata da membri del
Partito Comunista di Bielorussia, che è promotore e organizzatore del
congresso sul territorio della repubblica.
Penso che anche il solo elenco delle organizzazioni, che hanno delegato
propri rappresentanti al nostro odierno forum, dimostri eloquentemente
quale significato venga attribuito dall’opinione pubblica patriottica
bielorussa alla questione relativa alla creazione dello Stato unitario
di Belarus e Russia.
Come già nel passato essa guarda al proprio futuro solo attraverso il
prisma dell’unità. E ciò non sorprende affatto. Fin dai tempi antichi
lo sviluppo storico dei nostri popoli è lo sviluppo di fratelli di
sangue che vivono fianco a fianco. Insieme abbiamo attraversato anni
difficilissimi, insieme abbiamo condiviso la gioia, insieme abbiamo
edificato una casa comune.
La storia recente ha rafforzato ancora di più l’affetto reciproco.
Solo l’unità ha permesso ai nostri popoli di resistere nella sanguinosa
lotta con il fascismo negli anni della Grande Guerra Patriottica. E
solo il sostegno fraterno ha fornito la possibilità di creare il
sistema economico e le infrastrutture sociali della Bielorussia dopo il
passaggio dell’invasione nemica.
Oggi sempre meno ci si ricorda delle conseguenze della guerra e del
costo delle distruzioni operate dagli occupanti fascisti. Che sono
state tremende. In Bielorussia sono stati inceneriti e distrutti dai
fascisti 209 città e centri regionali su 270, annientati 9200 villaggi
e più di 10000 imprese. Gli invasori tedeschi hanno trasferito fuori
dalla repubblica il 90% delle attrezzature. In complesso la
Bielorussia, negli anni della guerra, ha perso il 50% della ricchezza
nazionale.
Ancora più terribili sono state le perdite umane. Negli anni
dell’occupazione sono morti 2,2 milioni di nostri concittadini e più di
380 mila sono stati deportati in Germania. E occorre tener conto che,
prima della guerra, la popolazione era di 9 milioni di abitanti.
Per lunghi decenni il popolo bielorusso non sarebbe stato in grado di
curare le ferite più gravi inferte dalla guerra, se non fosse
intervenuto il sostegno fraterno delle repubbliche sovietiche e, prima
di tutto, della Federazione Russa.
Ecco la ragione per cui nel referendum del marzo 1991, di fronte al
quesito relativo al mantenimento dell’URSS, il 90% dei cittadini della
Bielorussia abbia affermato: l’Unione Sovietica deve vivere. Ecco
perché nel referendum nazionale del 14 maggio 1995 il popolo di Belarus
ha ratificato in modo schiacciante la ferma aspirazione all’unità con
la Russia. Tale convinzione si mantiene anche oggi.
Quando il 26 maggio 1995, ponendo fine al processo di separazione, nel
villaggio bielorusso di Recka, venivano simbolicamente rimossi i
segnali di confine e, in seguito, quando il 2 aprile 1996 dai
presidenti dei nostri stati veniva siglato il trattato che avviava la
formazione della Comunità di Belarus e Russia, a molti cittadini da
ambedue le parti della frontiera, sembrò che la verità storica fosse
stata ristabilita, che l’unità si fosse realizzata.
Ed effettivamente, in tempi brevi, è stata formata e ha cominciato a
funzionare l’Assemblea parlamentare. Dopo un anno dalla firma
dell’accordo sulla creazione della Comunità, questa è stata trasformata
in Unione con l’acquisizione di nuovi poteri speciali. Sono stati
formati i Comitati doganale e frontaliero e il Comitato per le
questioni della sicurezza. E’ stato anche redatto un bilancio
dell’unione. Sulla base di tale bilancio si è dato avvio al lavoro
congiunto di imprese, istituzioni e organizzazioni di ambedue gli stati
con programmi nell’industria, nell’agricoltura, nella scienza, nel
settore della difesa e nella sfera sociale.
Nel dicembre 1999 si è passati ad una nuova tappa dell’unificazione,
perfezionata dalla sigla del Trattato sulla creazione di uno Stato
unitario e dal varo del Programma di azione della Federazione Russa e
della Repubblica di Belarus per la messa in pratica del trattato.
Come risultato si sono rafforzati i processi di integrazione, prima di
tutto nell’economia. L’anno scorso, ad esempio, l’interscambio tra
Russia e Bielorussia ammontava a 11 miliardi di dollari, dietro solo
all’interscambio tra Russia e Germania (14 miliardi di dollari), e
prima di quello tra Russia e Cina (10 miliardi di dollari) e tra Russia
e Ucraina (4,7 miliardi di dollari).
Il processo di integrazione dei complessi energetico e dei combustibili
dei nostri stati, a parere degli specialisti, ha raggiunto il 95% ,
quello della costruzione di macchinari l’85%. Interagiscono
strettamente – fattore importantissimo – le imprese russe e bielorusse
dell’industria automobilistica, settore che in una qualche misura
rappresenta l’indicatore del potenziale industriale degli stati.
Nell’industria automobilistica si sta realizzando il programma
“Diesel”, per un ammontare di circa 37 miliardi di rubli russi. Sono in
funzione programmi per la produzione comune e la ricerca
nell’elettronica, nell’ingegneria genetica, nell’esplorazione del cosmo.
Ma gli ultimi sette anni hanno dimostrato che la strada
dell’unificazione è significativamente più lunga e complicata di quanto
non si potesse prevedere. Come si è venuto chiarendo col passare del
tempo, i processi obiettivi di integrazione nell’economia e nella sfera
sociale non costituiscono ancora la garanzia che la strutturazione
organizzativa di un’unica formazione statale abbia vita facile.
A cominciare dal 2001, la costruzione statale unitaria ha incontrato
degli ostacoli ed è entrata in una fase che presenta elementi di
pericolo.
La principale causa di questo fenomeno va ricercata nella presenza, sia
in Russia che in Bielorussia, di gruppi sociali, per i quali la
creazione di uno Stato unitario costituisce un serio ostacolo alla
realizzazione dei propri egoistici interessi privati.
Sia sul versante della Russia che su quello della Bielorussia
intervengono in tale ruolo gli elementi della destra radicale che
rappresentano il grande capitale, orientati verso l’Occidente,
sostenuti dall’Occidente, ai quali conviene, di conseguenza, la
sottomissione dei nostri popoli agli interessi dell’Occidente. Il loro
slogan era e rimane: “Divide et impera”.
In Bielorussia, nonostante l’enorme sostegno politico, psicologico e
finanziario ai radicali di destra locali da parte degli Stati Uniti
d’America e degli stati europei occidentali dipendenti dagli USA, gli
sforzi tesi a frenare l’integrazione non sono ancora riusciti a
strappare risultati significativi. Ciò è attribuibile, in linea di
massima, da un lato alla ragionevole posizione del popolo della
repubblica e, dall’altro, al gigantesco lavoro assolto dal presidente
della Belarus Aleksandr Grigorjevic Lukashenko e dalle organizzazioni
patriottiche che lo sostengono nel contrastare gli attuali oppositori e
alla tenacia dimostrata dal presidente nella realizzazione degli
obiettivi prefissati.
Nella Federazione Russa, a nostro parere, le strutture radicali di
destra filoccidentali, essendo una forza importante dello schieramento
politico, esercitano un’influenza molto negativa. I sostenitori dello
Stato unitario in Bielorussia capiscono che, nel momento in cui si sta
formando la nuova struttura statale, occorre anche vincere la scontata
resistenza degli USA e dell’Unione Europea.
Profilandosi, dopo il dissolvimento dell’URSS, condizioni estremamente
favorevoli per l’affermazione di un “mondo unipolare”, USA e UE non
desiderano certamente avere concorrenti nell’arena mondiale come il
nuovo Stato unitario di Belarus e Russia, e ancor meno una più poderosa
costruzione statale, che potrebbe avere origine da questa unione. Con
diversi pretesti, le strutture statali degli Stati Uniti d’America e
dei loro satelliti hanno organizzato il boicottaggio dello stato
bielorusso. Senza alcun giustificato motivo essi hanno proclamato la
non legittimità del massimo organo legislativo del paese. E’ in atto,
attraverso i mezzi di comunicazione della maggior parte degli stati
vicini e dei paesi di orientamento filoamericano in altre regioni del
pianeta, una forsennata campagna antibielorussa. Si esercita una
pressione politica sulla dirigenza della Belarus anche attraverso la
proibizione dei visti d’ingresso nei cosiddetti paesi del “mondo
libero”.
Malgrado tutte queste difficoltà, secondo la maggior parte degli indici
di sviluppo economico e della qualità della vita, la Repubblica di
Belarus supera i suoi vicini delle repubbliche ex sovietiche. E ciò è
stato ottenuto grazie esclusivamente ai propri sforzi.
Nella fase attuale di formazione dello Stato unitario ha rappresentato
un passaggio fondamentale il varo dell’atto giuridico, che dà forma
alla nuova struttura statale, che definisce conformemente al Trattato
l’equilibrio nelle relazioni tra i soggetti statali esistenti e le
nascenti strutture sopranazionali del potere e dell’amministrazione, in
materia di sovranità e parità di diritti.
Le ultime riunioni della commissione, creata dai due stati per
l’elaborazione di questo documento, hanno messo in evidenza che esso è
stato ormai definito nei suoi tratti essenziali. Si attende l’esame da
parte dei capi di Stato.
Il Partito Comunista di Bielorussia ritiene che l’attuale situazione
richieda l’attiva espressione della volontà dei popoli in merito alla
costruzione dello Stato unitario. Non c’è dubbio che essi si
pronunceranno a favore del processo di unione. Ne sono testimonianza le
innumerevoli inchieste sociologiche, condotte sia in Bielorussia che in
Russia.
Ma è ancora indispensabile l’organizzazione dell’appoggio dell’opinione
pubblica al processo di creazione dello Stato unitario da parte dei
movimenti e delle istituzioni sociali. Ciò costituirà il fattore
propulsivo in grado di spingere i capi di stato dei nostri paesi a
superare definitivamente ogni ostacolo politico e ad assumere la
decisione di sottoporre a referendum l’Atto costitutivo dello Stato
unitario.
Proponiamo che il nostro odierno congresso dia l’avvio alla campagna di
sostegno da parte delle forze patriottiche alla costruzione statale
unitaria. E’ necessario che la campagna prosegua su tutto il territorio
dello Stato unitario. E’ necessario che l’inizio delle azioni di massa
coincida con il settimo anniversario del “Giorno dell’unificazione” dei
popoli di Belarus e Russia. Un ulteriore sviluppo di tali azioni
potrebbe registrarsi nel corso delle iniziative dedicate al ricordo
della liberazione delle nostre città e regioni dall’occupazione dei
fascisti tedeschi, e delle altre ricorrenze commemorative.
Tali approccio non solo costituisce uno stimolo per le strutture
statali affinché portino a compimento le procedure riguardanti l’Atto
costituzionale ma permette di creare condizioni favorevoli allo
svolgimento del referendum e, in seguito, anche delle elezioni del
parlamento dell’Unione.
E’ chiaro che in tutte le prossime fasi della formazione della base
giuridica delle strutture del potere e della gestione dello Stato
unitario, l’attivismo dell’opinione pubblica continuerà a rappresentare
il fattore decisivo, in grado di influenzare l’esito finale.
Perciò non appare superfluo pensare già da oggi a quali forme il
coordinamento del movimento sociale dovrà assumere nell’ambito della
nascente formazione statale unitaria.
Non si possono avere dubbi sul fatto che il coordinamento delle nostre
azioni rappresenti una necessità vitale. Con il varo dell’Atto
costituzionale dello Stato unitario di Belarus e Russia e, in seguito,
con l’elezione del supremo organo legislativo dell’unione, i processi
di interazione dei soggetti che vi saranno coinvolti subiranno
un’accelerazione. E si può prevedere che, nello sviluppo di tali
processi, possano manifestarsi anche momenti di difficoltà, legati ai
cambiamenti dei rapporti sociali in tutte le sfere della vita civile
dei nostri popoli.
Già ora emergono preoccupazioni in merito ai possibili tentativi dei
rappresentanti del grande capitale della Russia di avviare l’assalto
alle aziende dei settori trainanti in Bielorussia, con lo scopo di
prenderne possesso, senza dover operare alcun investimento. A quali
conseguenze portino tali azioni, si può osservare chiaramente in alcune
regioni della Federazione Russa. Nella Federazione Russa stessa è in
corso un seria lotta per il trasferimento alla proprietà privata del
sistema energetico. Le conseguenze di un simile passo sono prevedibili,
come è successo con la privatizzazione delle ferrovie della Repubblica
di Polonia. Lo scorporo del sistema ferroviario e la subordinazione
agli interessi privati ha arrecato una drastica riduzione delle sue
potenzialità. Il risultato è stato, ad esempio, che, alla frontiera tra
Polonia e Bielorussia, nella regione di Brest sono state ammassate 1200
cisterne ferroviarie contenenti gas liquefatto proveniente dalla
Russia. Altre 1700 cisterne si trovano nella sola stazione di Brest.
Tenendo conto della minaccia alla città, derivante dallo stazionamento
di un carico altamente esplosivo, le ferrovie bielorusse hanno bloccato
l’ingresso delle altre spedizioni di gas liquefatto russo. Le perdite
apportate sono risultate ingentissime. Se un fatto simile dovesse
accadere anche con il sistema energetico, ci troveremmo di fronte ad
una questione di vita o di morte per i nostri cittadini.
Anche tutti questi problemi potrebbero richiedere azioni coordinate su
vasta scala.
E non bisogna dimenticare neppure l’importanza dei fattori esterni.
Quando gli interessi dei magnati degli Stati Uniti sono stati
disturbati da Milosevic e dalla Jugoslavia, quest’ultima è stata
bombardata e Milosevic è stato giudicato colpevole di delitti commessi
dagli USA. Quando si è manifestata l’esigenza di accelerare i tempi del
trasporto del petrolio dall’Asia Centrale, attraverso l’Afghanistan,
fino al mare, si è messo sotto tiro il regime dei talebani, fino ad
allora coltivato, e si è imposto all’Afghanistan un nuovo ordine con la
forza militare e del terrore.
Oggi si cerca di trovare una via d’uscita dall’incombente crisi interna
agli stessi USA e, più in generale, a tutto l’Occidente, attraverso il
controllo del petrolio iracheno. E per far questo, si è inventato il
pretesto che fosse necessario liberare l’Iraq dalle armi di distruzione
di massa. I metodi usati per la “liberazione” erano già stati
sperimentati in Jugoslavia, in Afghanistan e in molti altri paesi. Con
l’ausilio della forza militare. Nessuno è in grado di garantire se, tra
qualche tempo, la stessa sorte non toccherà alla Bielorussia o alla
Russia.
Una settimana fa i mezzi di informazione di massa hanno comunicato che
il ministro della difesa americano ha dichiarato la propria intenzione
di dislocare basi aeree della NATO nella Repubblica di Polonia. Nelle
immediate vicinanze della Repubblica di Belarus.
Il pericolo è reale. E, come per la situazione in Iraq, è possibile
contrastarlo solo con l’unione delle nostre forze.
A tal proposito, occorre ancora una volta sottolineare la necessità
della formazione e del rafforzamento di un grande movimento sociale
nell’ambito del sorgente Stato unitario di Russia e Belarus.
Confidiamo nel successo dell’azione intrapresa. Battiamoci con forza
per l’unione di Belarus e Russia, per l’unità dei nostri popoli, per il
benessere e la prosperità comune.
Ce la faremo!
Traduzione dal russo
di Mauro Gemma
"Sud" u Hagu
1. ISTINA - NAJVECI PROTIVNIK REZIMA
Saopstenje za javnost udruzenje "Sloboda"
2. "TESKO NAM JE DA MILOSEVICU DOKAZEMO GENOCID"
rekla je Karla "Krudelija" Del Ponte
=== 1 ===
Da: "Vladimir Krsljanin"
Data: Gio 7 Ago 2003 14:15:09 Europe/Rome
Oggetto: Sloboda: ISTINA - NAJVECI PROTIVNIK REZIMA
ISTINA - NAJVECI PROTIVNIK REZIMA
Saopstenje za javnost
Udruzenje «Sloboda» - Jugoslovenski komitet za oslobodjenje
Slobodana Milosevica najostrije osudjuje pokusaj rezima da
zloupotrebom pravosudnih organa i providnim manevrima u vezi sa tzv.
ispitivanjem Predsednika Slobodana Milosevica u Hagu «povrati u zivot»
svoju laznu i sramnu kampanju protiv Predsednika Milosevica i njegove
porodice.
Predsednik Milosevic je u Hagu jasno rekao da trazi da o svim
izmisljenim optuzbama bude javno ispitan. Cak je i haski tribunal bio
spreman da javno ispitivanje omoguci i obezbedio je za to svoju najvecu
sudnicu.
Ali najveci protivnik izdajnickog rezima u Beogradu je istina.
Znajuci da istina moze da ih srusi, beogradski puleni Medlin Olbrajt i
Karle del Ponte zabranili su da narod cuje istinu iz usta Slobodana
Milosevica.
Predsednik Milosevic je u Hagu takodje zatrazio da se sprovede istraga
o kriminalnoj povezanosti Karlinog laznog tuzilastva i rezima u
Beogradu.
Mozda svi mehanizmi njihove saradnje nisu poznati, ali poznate su
kriminalne posledice:
- javna kampanja medijskih uvreda i lazi sa ciljem da se
Predsednik Milosevic razdvoji od supruge i porodice - nesto sto kao
metod pamtimo samo od turskih i fasistickih okupatora;
- gusenje politickih sloboda i masovno krsenje ljudskih prava u
Srbiji.
Takodje, poznat je i zajednicki cilj marionetskog rezima i njegovih
haskih poslodavaca: zaustaviti pobedonosnu bitku Slobodana Milosevica
za istinu i ogroman politicki uticaj koji ta bitka ima na narod u
Srbiji.
Slobodan Milosevic, Udruzenje «Sloboda» i narod u Srbiji nikada nece
dozvoliti da se njihov cilj ostvari.
Udruzenje «Sloboda» poziva sve casne ljude u zemlji i svetu da ustanu
protiv necasnih i nezakonitih napada na Slobodana Milosevica i na
slobodu i buducnost svih nas.
Beograd, 6. avgusta 2003. g.
UDRUZENJE «SLOBODA»
SLOBODA urgently needs your donation.
Please find the detailed instructions at:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/pomoc.htm
To join or help this struggle, visit:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/ (Sloboda/Freedom association)
http://www.icdsm.org/ (the international committee to defend Slobodan
Milosevic)
http://www.free-slobo.de/ (German section of ICDSM)
http://www.wpc-in.org/ (world peace council)
http://www.geocities.com/b_antinato/ (Balkan antiNATO center)
=== 2 ===
I "Krudelia" del Ponte rece istinu!
"Tesko nam je da Milosevicu dokazemo genocid" - Zato sto ga nema!
"Ekspres" Beograd, 29 juli 2003., prevedeno iz "Die Weltwocha"
br. 32/03:
http://weltwoche.ch/ressort_bericht.asp?asset_id=5538&category_id=60
"Ekspres", tel. 00381-11-3373236, faks 3373356
Za ovaj tekst vidi i e.mail Jugo-info "Processo" od 8.8.03:
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/message/2704
DVE KNEDLE U GRLU, I DJINDJICEVA SLIKA NA ZIDU (isecci)
Odmah desno, kraj plavih vrata kancelarije Karle del Ponte na Haskom
tribunalu, visi velika poternica sanatpisom "Nagrada do 5 miliona
dolara" (znaci moze dobiti i "figu" ako je "do", N.o.) i tri velike
fotografije - S. Milosevica, R. Karadzica i R. Mladica. Miloseviceva
fotografija je sa ociglednom neobuzdanom odlucnoscu precrtana hemijskom
olovkom, a sve dok to ne bude mogla da ucini i sa preostale dve
fotografije, 57-godisnja Karla del Ponte ne namerava da napusti svoju
kancelariju glavnog tuzioca Tribunala OUN.
"Radujem se svakom hapsenju, ali jos uvek cekam 17 ljudi, od toga
dvojicu krupnih - Karadzica i Mladica. Radost mi je polovicna".
"Karadzica stiti citavo stanovnistvo, za njih je on heroj. Niko ga ne
bi izrucio. To, dakle, mora da ucini SFOR, NATO. A najjaca vojna sila
na svetu to ne uspeva. To je zaista zapanjujuce. Iz staba krene 150
vojnika sa oklopnim vozilima i helikopterima da uhapse Karadzica, on to
dozna u roku od pet minuta i nestane".
"Mi pokusavamo da u nesto sugeriramo, ali vojnici naravno to nece. Kada
bismo mogli da posaljemo u bivsu Jugoslaviju da hapsi ove ljude, bilo
bi drugacije. Ali, jedno je sigurno: vrata ovog tribunala ne mogu da se
zatvore pre nego sto obojica (Karadzic i Mladic, N.o.) ne budu ovde."
Sta je sa Mladicem? "On je u Srbiji i stite ga delovi vojske."...
"Srpski ministar inostranih poslova kaze: "Ako Mladica stiti vojska, ja
ne mogu da ga uhapsim, jer ce u suprotnom doci do sukoba izmedju vojske
i policije. Kada nakon toga odem do vojnog nacelnika,on kaze: Mi nemamo
mandat da ga trazimo ili hapsimo, to mora da uradi policija".
"Da bi uhvatio Mladica, Djindjic je morao da reorganizuje vojsku i
policiju. Dve nedelje pre smrti rekao mi je da je to sada moguce. Ali
nakon sto mi je ispricao o svojim planovima, rekao mi je: Ubice me".
Za "Veltwoche" Cirih, M. Beglinger i B. Odenal
1. ISTINA - NAJVECI PROTIVNIK REZIMA
Saopstenje za javnost udruzenje "Sloboda"
2. "TESKO NAM JE DA MILOSEVICU DOKAZEMO GENOCID"
rekla je Karla "Krudelija" Del Ponte
=== 1 ===
Da: "Vladimir Krsljanin"
Data: Gio 7 Ago 2003 14:15:09 Europe/Rome
Oggetto: Sloboda: ISTINA - NAJVECI PROTIVNIK REZIMA
ISTINA - NAJVECI PROTIVNIK REZIMA
Saopstenje za javnost
Udruzenje «Sloboda» - Jugoslovenski komitet za oslobodjenje
Slobodana Milosevica najostrije osudjuje pokusaj rezima da
zloupotrebom pravosudnih organa i providnim manevrima u vezi sa tzv.
ispitivanjem Predsednika Slobodana Milosevica u Hagu «povrati u zivot»
svoju laznu i sramnu kampanju protiv Predsednika Milosevica i njegove
porodice.
Predsednik Milosevic je u Hagu jasno rekao da trazi da o svim
izmisljenim optuzbama bude javno ispitan. Cak je i haski tribunal bio
spreman da javno ispitivanje omoguci i obezbedio je za to svoju najvecu
sudnicu.
Ali najveci protivnik izdajnickog rezima u Beogradu je istina.
Znajuci da istina moze da ih srusi, beogradski puleni Medlin Olbrajt i
Karle del Ponte zabranili su da narod cuje istinu iz usta Slobodana
Milosevica.
Predsednik Milosevic je u Hagu takodje zatrazio da se sprovede istraga
o kriminalnoj povezanosti Karlinog laznog tuzilastva i rezima u
Beogradu.
Mozda svi mehanizmi njihove saradnje nisu poznati, ali poznate su
kriminalne posledice:
- javna kampanja medijskih uvreda i lazi sa ciljem da se
Predsednik Milosevic razdvoji od supruge i porodice - nesto sto kao
metod pamtimo samo od turskih i fasistickih okupatora;
- gusenje politickih sloboda i masovno krsenje ljudskih prava u
Srbiji.
Takodje, poznat je i zajednicki cilj marionetskog rezima i njegovih
haskih poslodavaca: zaustaviti pobedonosnu bitku Slobodana Milosevica
za istinu i ogroman politicki uticaj koji ta bitka ima na narod u
Srbiji.
Slobodan Milosevic, Udruzenje «Sloboda» i narod u Srbiji nikada nece
dozvoliti da se njihov cilj ostvari.
Udruzenje «Sloboda» poziva sve casne ljude u zemlji i svetu da ustanu
protiv necasnih i nezakonitih napada na Slobodana Milosevica i na
slobodu i buducnost svih nas.
Beograd, 6. avgusta 2003. g.
UDRUZENJE «SLOBODA»
SLOBODA urgently needs your donation.
Please find the detailed instructions at:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/pomoc.htm
To join or help this struggle, visit:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/ (Sloboda/Freedom association)
http://www.icdsm.org/ (the international committee to defend Slobodan
Milosevic)
http://www.free-slobo.de/ (German section of ICDSM)
http://www.wpc-in.org/ (world peace council)
http://www.geocities.com/b_antinato/ (Balkan antiNATO center)
=== 2 ===
I "Krudelia" del Ponte rece istinu!
"Tesko nam je da Milosevicu dokazemo genocid" - Zato sto ga nema!
"Ekspres" Beograd, 29 juli 2003., prevedeno iz "Die Weltwocha"
br. 32/03:
http://weltwoche.ch/ressort_bericht.asp?asset_id=5538&category_id=60
"Ekspres", tel. 00381-11-3373236, faks 3373356
Za ovaj tekst vidi i e.mail Jugo-info "Processo" od 8.8.03:
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/message/2704
DVE KNEDLE U GRLU, I DJINDJICEVA SLIKA NA ZIDU (isecci)
Odmah desno, kraj plavih vrata kancelarije Karle del Ponte na Haskom
tribunalu, visi velika poternica sanatpisom "Nagrada do 5 miliona
dolara" (znaci moze dobiti i "figu" ako je "do", N.o.) i tri velike
fotografije - S. Milosevica, R. Karadzica i R. Mladica. Miloseviceva
fotografija je sa ociglednom neobuzdanom odlucnoscu precrtana hemijskom
olovkom, a sve dok to ne bude mogla da ucini i sa preostale dve
fotografije, 57-godisnja Karla del Ponte ne namerava da napusti svoju
kancelariju glavnog tuzioca Tribunala OUN.
"Radujem se svakom hapsenju, ali jos uvek cekam 17 ljudi, od toga
dvojicu krupnih - Karadzica i Mladica. Radost mi je polovicna".
"Karadzica stiti citavo stanovnistvo, za njih je on heroj. Niko ga ne
bi izrucio. To, dakle, mora da ucini SFOR, NATO. A najjaca vojna sila
na svetu to ne uspeva. To je zaista zapanjujuce. Iz staba krene 150
vojnika sa oklopnim vozilima i helikopterima da uhapse Karadzica, on to
dozna u roku od pet minuta i nestane".
"Mi pokusavamo da u nesto sugeriramo, ali vojnici naravno to nece. Kada
bismo mogli da posaljemo u bivsu Jugoslaviju da hapsi ove ljude, bilo
bi drugacije. Ali, jedno je sigurno: vrata ovog tribunala ne mogu da se
zatvore pre nego sto obojica (Karadzic i Mladic, N.o.) ne budu ovde."
Sta je sa Mladicem? "On je u Srbiji i stite ga delovi vojske."...
"Srpski ministar inostranih poslova kaze: "Ako Mladica stiti vojska, ja
ne mogu da ga uhapsim, jer ce u suprotnom doci do sukoba izmedju vojske
i policije. Kada nakon toga odem do vojnog nacelnika,on kaze: Mi nemamo
mandat da ga trazimo ili hapsimo, to mora da uradi policija".
"Da bi uhvatio Mladica, Djindjic je morao da reorganizuje vojsku i
policiju. Dve nedelje pre smrti rekao mi je da je to sada moguce. Ali
nakon sto mi je ispricao o svojim planovima, rekao mi je: Ubice me".
Za "Veltwoche" Cirih, M. Beglinger i B. Odenal
Il terrorismo "buono" / 2 (english)
1. Guantanamo: Australian Al-Qaeda Militant Ex 'Freedom Fighter' In
Kosovo, Kashmir (July 2003)
2. Bin Laden’s Balkan Connections (Scott Taylor, December 2001)
=== 1 ===
Da: Rick Rozoff
Data: Mar 8 Lug 2003 18:47:08 Europe/Rome
A: Ova adresa el. pošte je zaštićena od spambotova. Omogućite JavaScript da biste je videli.
Oggetto: [yugoslaviainfo] Guantanamo: Australian Al-Qaeda Militant Ex
'Freedom Fighter' In Kosovo, Kashmir
http://www.ptd.net/webnews/wed/bs/Qaustralia-attacks-us.RnsH_Dl8.html
[Note: The second feature, below, is from a
transparently Ustashe Internet site [see:
http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/home/index.cfm?CFID=345918&CFTOKEN=99319605]
and is only reproduced because it says more than it
intends to, both about David Hicks' involvement in
Kosovo and the Indian state of Kashmir and about the
close - inseparable - ties between the neo-Ustashe in
Croatia and the so-called Kosovo Liberation Army in
Serbia.]
Australian held by US military was trained by
al-Qaeda, PM reveals
SYDNEY, July 8 (AFP) - Australian-born Taliban fighter
David Hicks, who is now in US military detention, has
admitted training with the al-Qaeda terrorist network,
Prime Minister John Howard revealed for the first time
Tuesday.
Howard's disclosure came as US lawyers protested that
Hicks will not receive a fair trial by a US military
tribunal because he is being denied proper access to
legal representation.
The 27-year-old former Adelaide poultry process worker
has been held by the US military at Guantanamo Bay,
Cuba, since he was captured fighting with the Taliban
by US forces in Afghanistan in November, 2001.
Hicks' lawyers have conceded he was a Taliban fighter
but denied persistent allegations he had links to
al-Qaeda.
But Howard said the government was satisfied that
Hicks would receive a fair trial and that he was
linked to al-Qaeda.
"What is not an allegation, because the man in
question has admitted it, is that he trained with
al-Qaeda," Howard told ABC radio when asked about
Hicks.
Howard said the government had lengthy discussions
with US officials about the case and was satisfied
that Hicks would receive a fair hearing, that the
presumption of innocence would prevail and that there
would be access to lawyers.
One of Hicks' Adelaide-based lawyers, Frank Camatta,
said he was shocked by the prime minister's comments.
"It's a total surprise to us," he said.
"We have no basis to understand that to be the case.
Maybe the prime minister has had access to briefings
from the security services.
"We would have been very pleased to have been told
that, rather than hear it through the media. Why he
would say that without at least letting the family
know is disappointing."
Hicks was named by the US administration last week as
one of an initial group of six detainees eligible to
be tried by a US military tribunal, although no date
has been set for a hearing and no charge has yet been
laid.
His family has appointed a civilian legal team,
although his lawyers say he is being denied the usual
confidentiality between lawyer and client, which is a
basic tenet of legal representation, and without which
they say it would be virtually impossible for him to
receive a fair trial.
Hicks' US-based lawyer Joseph Margulies said there was
scant chance of a fair trial.
"They would never countenance these kinds of
proceedings in an Australian court," Margulies told
ABC radio.
"One of the real problems with the tribunal is that it
is not transparent. We may never shed light on that
dark corner."
US National Association of Criminal Defence Lawyers
(NACDL) president Lawrence Goldman said the military
court was likely to be biased because the judges, who
would probably be senior officers would find it
difficult to acquit someone whom the president of the
United States has recommended for trial.
"I would not walk into these trials as a defence
lawyer with the confidence that my client would get a
fair shake," he said.
Al-Qaeda expert Rohan Gunaratna, who has written
extensively about Osama bin Laden's terrorist network
and who initially described Hicks as a "small fry" in
the terror organisation, now believes he was more than
a foot soldier.
"There is more recent information to indicate that he
has undergone more advanced and more specialised
training," Gunaratna told The Australian newspaper.
---
http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/news/index.cfm?fuseaction=showItem&newsID=13
Croatian Forces International Volunteers Association
CFIVA News
KOSOVO VOLUNTEER LINKED TO AL-QAEDA
Thursday, August 1, 2002
David Hicks training with the UCK prior to joining the
Taliban
-The details of his service in Kosova [sic] come to us
direct from the UCK and are as follows:
He joined a group of the UCK circa February 1999. He
was accommodated at one of three UCK training camps in
the Tropolje area in Albania for six weeks. He was
moved to another UCK training camp as a prospective
instructor after he made exaggerated claims about
being in the Australian Army.
-[H]e was placed on active duty near the border town
of Kukes with 139 Brigade, commanded by Radimas
Beshim.
-He was demobilised in June 1999, went back to the
Albanian capital Tirana where the UCK purchased an
aeroplane ticket for the Islamic Republic of Iran (via
Germany) at Hicks’ own request.
-He returned to Australia in late 1999 and claimed to
have been through six weeks training, boasted he had
been in the trenches, killed a few Serbs....
-The Australian government says he...went to Pakistan
and trained with the militant Islamic group
Lashkar-i-Taiba who are fighting in the Kashmir region
against the Indian Army. This group is believed to
have links with Al-Qa’eda and Osama Bin Laden.
-[H]icks has been blacklisted by CFIVA for bringing
the international volunteer movement [sic] in Kosova
into disrepute.
More On Terrorist Suspect Hicks - On 1st August the
Australian ex-volunteer failed to obtain a trial.
American judges ruled that because he was being held
at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, United States civilian courts
had no jurisdiction. He therefore remains indefinitely
detained without trial.
The case of Hicks is already being widely mis-reported
as international journalists studiously avoid checking
their information with other sources. Under the
ridiculous label "Soldier of Fortune," CNN state that
Hicks converted to Islam whilst fighting with the UCK
in "Bosnia" (huh??) and mis-labelled a grainy
photograph of Hicks taken in Albania in 1999 as being
in "Bosnia." We can categorically state that Hicks
never served in BiH.
He surrendered to Northern Alliance forces in
Afghanistan on 9th December 2001 near the Tora Bora
caves complex used by Al-Qa’eda. He has no criminal
record nor was he involved in any military activity
prior to Kosova. In early 1999 he approached Channel 7
wanting to sell a story about fighting as a mercenary
in South Africa or Afghanistan.
The details of his service in Kosova comes to us
direct from the UCK and are as follows:
He joined a group of the UCK circa February 1999. He
was accommodated at one of three UCK training camps in
the Tropolje area in Albania for six weeks. He was
moved to another UCK training camp as a prospective
instructor after he made exaggerated claims about
being in the Australian Army. He had no previous
military experience whatsoever. It soon became
apparent these assertions were false and his claims
were widely dismissed by the UCK. Nevertheless he was
placed on active duty near the border town of Kukes
with 139 Brigade, commanded by Radimas Beshim. His
incompetence soon came to notice and he was relegated
to a training camp away from the border. He was given
a second chance and rejoined the brigade in Kukes but
still couldn’t manage (remember, the UCK itself was a
largely untrained citizen army) so he was relegated
again to a training camp and effectively kept out of
the way. After NATO troops entered Kosova Hicks did
not accompany any UCK units into the province. He was
demobilised in June 1999, went back to the Albanian
capital Tirana where the UCK purchased an aeroplane
ticket for the Islamic Republic of Iran (via Germany)
at Hicks’ own request. The Kosovan authorities have
heard nothing from him since. He was in Albania for no
more than 14-16 weeks and never entered Kosova.
Hicks was not a mercenary. He was legally recruited
into a legitimate armed force and at all times abided
by the terms and conditions of the Geneva Conventions.
CFIVA can confirm that Hicks was never paid more than
that of a private soldier of the UCK, if at all.
Note: It was usual for the UCK to reward its
international volunteers with their passage home, as a
gesture of thanks.
He returned to Australia in late 1999 and claimed to
have been through six weeks training, boasted he had
been in the trenches, killed a few Serbs and had seen
a few of his comrades killed. The last two points are
a mild exaggeration but have neither been proven or
disproved.
Upon his return to Australia (not Bosnia)he converted
to Islam and took the name Mohammed Dawood. He was
attending a mosque several times a week but in
November 1999 spoke of going to Pakistan to increase
his knowledge of Islam. Within a week or two he had
left the country.
The Australian government says he then went to
Pakistan and trained with the militant Islamic group
Lashkar-i-Taiba who are fighting in the Kashmir region
against the Indian Army. This group is believed to
have links with Al-Qa’eda and Osama Bin Laden.
The Americans say he entered Afghanistan in late 2000
and undertook "extensive" training with Al-Qa’eda. He
telephoned his family on September 28th to say he was
fighting for the Taliban.
After his capture, he was handed over to US Special
Forces and transferred via the USS Peleliu to the
detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Two other
white Australians are also being held there. The US
say they will hand him over to the Australian
authorities if it can be promised that Hicks will be
dealt with severely. He could be charged with treason
and murder if he is connected to the WTC attacks in
New York on September 11th. He could also be charged
under the Foreign Incursions Act, which carries a 14
year sentence for “hostile activities in foreign
countries.” Needless to say Serb websites have been
doing overtime on this one.
Apparently Hicks has now hoodwinked gullible
interrogators into believing he was a "relatively
senior member of Al-Qaeda." true to form, Hicks
completely fails to comprehend the seriousness of his
situation. Nobody of course has bothered to check
Hicks' past with the Kosovan authorities. Regardless
of whether he is found guilty of the charges levelled
against him, Hicks has been blacklisted by CFIVA for
bringing the international volunteer movement in
Kosova into disrepute.
The Secretary
=== 2 ===
The Ottawa Citizen // Saturday Oserver// Dec. 15, 2001
Page B3
Bin Laden’s Balkan Connections
Dateline: Skopje, Macedonia
By Scott Taylor
With the swift collapse of the Taliban regime, the U.S.-led military
campaign in Afghanistan has been reduced to an Osama bin Laden manhunt
cum mop-up of the Al-Qaeda network. As U.S. jets pound the cave
entrances around
Tora Bora, Special Forces teams are closing in on the last redoubts of
Taliban fanatics. Following the quick success in Afghanistan, President
George Bush has already warned Americans to prepare for a "wider war"
aimed at punishing those nations which "harbour terrorism." Although
there was no
proven link between Iraq and the anthrax scare, in recent speeches Bush
has repeatedly singled out Saddam Hussein as "an enemy of the U.S."
Similar ominous threats have been levelled at the governments of Sudan,
Libya, Syria and the leaders of Palestinian extremist groups.
While it is believed that Saudi-born Osama bin Laden remains surrounded
in Afghanistan, U.S. Intelligence agencies cannot be sure of his exact
whereabouts. What is known is that his extensive Al-Qaeda terrorist
organisation still has operating cells around the world.
As the U.S. dragnet is cast ever wider, it can only be a matter of time
before the counter-terrorist effort revisits the Balkans. Over the past
decade, Mujahadeen fighters – and in particular, bin Laden’s followers
– have practised their brutal brand of terror in Croatia, Bosnia,
Kosovo and are currently believed to be participating in Macedonia’s
civil unrest.
On 20 November, while the Taliban was still offering organised
resistance and extremists from around the world were volunteering to
join their ranks, Pakistani police apprehended five of these Muslim
"fighters" carrying Macedonian passports at the Afghan border.
For Macedonian Intelligence officials, these arrests were only further
proof that Mujahadeen formed the veteran core of the ethnic Albanian
guerrilla army known as the UCK. Since March of this year, the UCK have
mounted a very successful military offensive against Macedonian
security forces. By the time that a shaky peace plan was brokered in
September, the UCK controlled nearly 30 per cent of Macedonian
territory. Originally inexperienced and ill-equipped to fight a
guerrilla war, the Macedonian security forces have maintained since the
outbreak of hostilities that up to 120 Mujahadeen were active in the
UCK ranks.
Nikola, a senior director with Macedonian Intelligence, confirmed that
following the 11 September terrorist attacks, his agency has "supplied
a substantive dossier to the CIA," outlining bin Laden’s Balkan
activities.
The information forwarded to the CIA included eyewitness accounts
offered by Macedonian civilians who had been held hostage by
Mujahadeen, along with incriminating photographs and videos, which
security forces captured from the UCK-Albanian guerrillas.
Macedonian Minister of Interior Ljubo Boskovski is anxious for his
police forces to return into the areas presently controlled by the
Albanian guerrillas in order to uncover additional evidence. Since 13
November, Macedonian security forces have been conducting an exhumation
at a mass grave outside the ethnic Albanian village of Trebos. To date,
the police have unearthed the bodies of six Macedonians, from a total
of 21 civilians who have disappeared following UCK attacks.
Intelligence officer Nikola believes it was Mujahadeen fighters who
perpetrated the Trebos massacre "because of the manner in which the
bodies were cut up and scattered."
Nikola also suspects that Mujahadeen fanatics perpetrated a brutal
ambush against security forces last April. In this incident, eight
policemen were shot outside the village of Vejce, their bodies
viciously dismembered to provide the victors with grisly trophies. The
Macedonian authorities are not the only ones to affix the blame for the
Vejce ambush on the Mujahadeen.
During the summer offensive around Tetovo, Albanian guerrillas eagerly
admitted they had gained combat experience in previous conflicts.
Twenty-three-year old Commander "Jimmy" claimed he was a veteran of
Chechnya and Kosovo, while "Snake" Arifaq bragged of service in Bosnia
and displayed a scar he received during the fighting in Croatia. Both
of these Albanians
acknowledged the involvement of Arab/Afghan "volunteers" in training
members of the UCK. As for the Vejce incident, Commander Jimmy said
such an atrocity could "only have been committed by the Foreigners
[Mujahadeen serving in the
UCK] because Albanians do not cut up bodies."
Once the UCK insurrection began in March, the Macedonian government
hastily acquired a fleet of six Ukrainian helicopter gunships to
provide their troops with tactical air support. "Shortly after that,
our pilots reported being tracked by sophisticated [U.S.-made] Stinger
[anti-aircraft] missiles," said Nikola. "It is the information [of
Macedonian Intelligence] that the UCK received these Stingers from
their Mujahadeen connections in Afghanistan."
American advisors and covert military aid have also contributed to the
UCK’s combat effectiveness, but since 11 September the Macedonians have
noted a shift in U.S. foreign policy. "The CIA have been much more
receptive to our reports about the Al-Qaeda," said Nikola.
"Particularly after they
discovered that one of the suicide hijackers had been active in both
Kosovo and Macedonia."
Given their common goal of neutralising Albanian terrorists, Macedonian
police have been working closely with their Yugoslavian counterparts.
More importantly, as part of the U.S.-led global initiative to combat
terror, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has been reinstated to the
ranks of Interpol – after a ten-year banishment. As a result,
Intelligence Officers from the
Yugoslavian Army have been able to supply their international
colleagues with a wealth of information outlining Mujahadeen activity
in Bosnia and Kosovo. Yugoslav Intelligence believes that at least 50
of the 150 Mujahadeen that fought in Kosovo are still active members of
the UCK.
Even without this Yugoslav co-operation, Interpol was already tracking
the Al-Qaeda’s Balkan activities. On 23 October this year, Interpol
released a preliminary report outlining bin Laden’s personal links to
the Albanian Mafia. In this report, Interpol alleges that a senior
Al-Qaeda lieutenant had been the commander of an elite UCK unit in
Kosovo during the fighting in 1999.
While U.S. President Bill Clinton’s regime was the driving force to
garner NATO support for the UCK, numerous media reports clearly show
that the CIA were well aware of bin Laden’s Albanian links prior to
NATO’s commitment in Kosovo.
On 17 January 1999 the international press was filled with news of an
alleged massacre of 45 Albanian Kosovars in the village of Racak.
Clinton seized upon this particular incident (later disproved, by UN
pathologists, to have been an Albanian hoax) to proclaim that the West
could no longer overlook "Serbian atrocities." With Clinton’s
statement, NATO was
irrevocably launched on the path towards its confrontation with
Yugoslavia.
Although lost in the U.S. media hype, Greek media outlets that same day
were detailing the Taliban’s widespread entry into Albania at the
invitation of ex-President Sali Berisa and former head of Intelligence
Bashkim Gazidede.
According to The Tribune, an Athens daily newspaper, Albanian security
official Fatos Klozi confirmed that "bin Laden was one of those who had
organised and sent groups to fight in Kosovo. There were Egyptians,
Saudis, Algerians, Tunisians, Sudanese and Kuwaitis from different
organisations
among the [UCK] mercenaries."
Ten days later, on 27 January 1999, the Arab-language news service Al
Hayat reported that an Albanian commander in Kosovo, code-named
"Monia," was directly connected to Osama bin Laden. The Al Hayat piece
also proudly proclaimed that "at least 100 Muslim Mujahadeen" were
serving with Monia’s force in Kosovo.
The Washington Post reported in August 1998 that the CIA were not only
aware of bin Laden’s association with the Albanian regime, but that
U.S. operatives had been "prominent" in the arrest of four Al-Qaeda
agents in Tirana. At that time, U.S. State Department officials even
speculated that
the bombings of their embassies in Kenya and Tanzania might have been
bin Laden’s revenge for the Tirana arrests.
The Al-Qaeda suspects detained by the CIA in Albania had been operating
the Islamic Revival Foundation, "a charitable organisation that
official sources say provided a useful cover for the [suspects] efforts
on behalf of bin Laden," reported the Post.
In February 1998, the U.S. State Department had removed the UCK from
their list of terrorist organisations. However later that same year,
the CIA and their Albanian SHIK intelligence counterparts co-operated
to successfully shut down a Mujahadeen Jihad cell operating in
conjunction with the
Albanians inside Kosovo.
Some of the most revealing links surfaced in December 1998 when
Al-Qaeda agent Claude Sheik Abdel-Kader was arrested in Tirana for the
murder of his Albanian translator. During his trial, Abdel-Kader
confessed to being a senior commander in bin Laden’s network, and
claimed he had recruited a force of some 300 Mujahadeen to fight in
Kosovo. European media covering the trial reported Abdul-Kader’s
revelation that Osama bin Laden – although a wanted terrorist –
travelled freely to Tirana in 1994 and 1998 to meet with senior
Albanian officials. Abdel-Kader also confessed that when the Albanian
regime of Sali Berisa collapsed into anarchy in 1997, state armouries
and government offices were looted. Many of the 10,000 heavy weapons
and 100,000 passports that went missing conveniently fell into the
hands of the Al-Qaeda.
Osama bin Laden – stripped of his Saudi citizenship in 1994 – is
alleged to have retained the Bosnian passport he was issued in Vienna
in 1993. The granting of official travel documents to bin Laden was
first reported 24 September 1999 by Dani, a Bosnian Muslim weekly
newspaper. The rationale
behind bestowing citizenship on a wanted terrorist was that Bosnian
President Alija Izetbegovic had been thankful for the Mujahadeen’s
contribution in his quest for a Balkan "fundamentalist Islamic
Republic."
It was also reported by Dani that Al-Qaeda terrorist Mehrez Aodouni had
been arrested in Istanbul while carrying a Bosnian passport. Like bin
Laden, his citizenship had been granted "because he was a member of the
Bosnia-Herzegovina Army."
Canadian soldiers serving with the United Nations Protection Force
(UNPROFOR) were among the first to report the presence of Mujahadeen in
the ranks of the Bosnian Muslims as early as 1992.
The Asian Wall Street Journal reported that, in 1993, bin Laden had
appointed Al Zawahiri, the Al-Qaeda’s second-in-command, to direct all
his operations in the Balkans.
While no exact numbers exist, it is estimated that between 1500 and
3500 Arab volunteers participated in the Bosnian civil war. Their main
area of operation was in the region of Zenica, with most Mujahadeen
serving in the 7th Brigade of General Sakib Mahmuljin’s 3rd Corps,
nicknamed "the
Guerrillas." Identified by red and green "Rambo" bandannas emblazoned
with the crest "our road is Jihad," this unit earned a reputation for
criminal brutality.
On 27 June 1993, the Sunday Times reported that even Bosnian Muslim
officers had reservations about the Mujahadeen volunteers. Colonel
Stjepan Siber, then-Deputy Commander of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Army,
admitted to the Times that "It was a mistake to let [the Mujahadeen] in
here… They commit most of the atrocities and work against the interests
of the Muslim people. They have been killing, looting and stealing."
According to reports, it was the Mujahadeen who were serving with
General Nasir Oric in the Muslim enclave of Srebrenica who committed
some of the most barbaric atrocities of the war. Beheadings of Serbian
civilians were commonplace, and in some villages the Mujahadeen would
dynamite homes with
the inhabitants trapped inside.
No attempt was made to hide such atrocities. In fact, General Oric
would often address media at the site of the massacres. On one such
occasion, while standing in front of Mujahadeen brandishing human head
trophies, Oric pointed to a flaming ruin and proudly said to reporters,
"We blew those Serbs to the moon."
Alija Izetbegovic was also proud to display the fighting prowess of his
Mujahadeen volunteers. Following a successful attack against Serbian
positions around Vozuce on 10 September 1995, the Bosnian President
held a televised medal presentation parade. The Mujahadeen had provided
the
vanguard of the assault force, and were awarded 11 decorations for
valour, including the Golden Crescent, Bosnia’s highest honour.
Yugoslav Intelligence estimates that over 1500 Bosnian citizenships
were granted to Mujahadeen/Al-Qaeda fighters following the Dayton Peace
Accord in 1995. Most of those soldiers are believed to have settled in
the Zenica region.
According to Miroslav Lazanski, author of the new book Osama bin Laden
Against America, Al-Qaeda still maintain two operational bases in
Bosnia. One of these contains only the best fighters and was commanded
by an Algerian, Abu Al Mali.
Following the 11 September attacks, FBI and CIA agents uncovered
evidence that two of the suicide hijackers had originated from this
Bosnian camp. Abu Mali was subsequently arrested while travelling in
Istanbul on a Bosnian passport.
It is evident from recent events that the U.S. military is also well
aware of the continued Mujahadeen presence in the Balkans. General
Myers visited NATO troops stationed in Bosnia in late November to warn
them against a possible Al-Qaeda retaliation attack. In addition, on 4
December, the White
House added two Albanian terrorist groups operating in Macedonia and
Kosovo to their list of outlawed organisations.
President George Bush’s campaign against bin Laden’s terrorists would
appear to have come full circle to confront the Clinton
administration’s dubious Balkan legacy.
1. Guantanamo: Australian Al-Qaeda Militant Ex 'Freedom Fighter' In
Kosovo, Kashmir (July 2003)
2. Bin Laden’s Balkan Connections (Scott Taylor, December 2001)
=== 1 ===
Da: Rick Rozoff
Data: Mar 8 Lug 2003 18:47:08 Europe/Rome
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Oggetto: [yugoslaviainfo] Guantanamo: Australian Al-Qaeda Militant Ex
'Freedom Fighter' In Kosovo, Kashmir
http://www.ptd.net/webnews/wed/bs/Qaustralia-attacks-us.RnsH_Dl8.html
[Note: The second feature, below, is from a
transparently Ustashe Internet site [see:
http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/home/index.cfm?CFID=345918&CFTOKEN=99319605]
and is only reproduced because it says more than it
intends to, both about David Hicks' involvement in
Kosovo and the Indian state of Kashmir and about the
close - inseparable - ties between the neo-Ustashe in
Croatia and the so-called Kosovo Liberation Army in
Serbia.]
Australian held by US military was trained by
al-Qaeda, PM reveals
SYDNEY, July 8 (AFP) - Australian-born Taliban fighter
David Hicks, who is now in US military detention, has
admitted training with the al-Qaeda terrorist network,
Prime Minister John Howard revealed for the first time
Tuesday.
Howard's disclosure came as US lawyers protested that
Hicks will not receive a fair trial by a US military
tribunal because he is being denied proper access to
legal representation.
The 27-year-old former Adelaide poultry process worker
has been held by the US military at Guantanamo Bay,
Cuba, since he was captured fighting with the Taliban
by US forces in Afghanistan in November, 2001.
Hicks' lawyers have conceded he was a Taliban fighter
but denied persistent allegations he had links to
al-Qaeda.
But Howard said the government was satisfied that
Hicks would receive a fair trial and that he was
linked to al-Qaeda.
"What is not an allegation, because the man in
question has admitted it, is that he trained with
al-Qaeda," Howard told ABC radio when asked about
Hicks.
Howard said the government had lengthy discussions
with US officials about the case and was satisfied
that Hicks would receive a fair hearing, that the
presumption of innocence would prevail and that there
would be access to lawyers.
One of Hicks' Adelaide-based lawyers, Frank Camatta,
said he was shocked by the prime minister's comments.
"It's a total surprise to us," he said.
"We have no basis to understand that to be the case.
Maybe the prime minister has had access to briefings
from the security services.
"We would have been very pleased to have been told
that, rather than hear it through the media. Why he
would say that without at least letting the family
know is disappointing."
Hicks was named by the US administration last week as
one of an initial group of six detainees eligible to
be tried by a US military tribunal, although no date
has been set for a hearing and no charge has yet been
laid.
His family has appointed a civilian legal team,
although his lawyers say he is being denied the usual
confidentiality between lawyer and client, which is a
basic tenet of legal representation, and without which
they say it would be virtually impossible for him to
receive a fair trial.
Hicks' US-based lawyer Joseph Margulies said there was
scant chance of a fair trial.
"They would never countenance these kinds of
proceedings in an Australian court," Margulies told
ABC radio.
"One of the real problems with the tribunal is that it
is not transparent. We may never shed light on that
dark corner."
US National Association of Criminal Defence Lawyers
(NACDL) president Lawrence Goldman said the military
court was likely to be biased because the judges, who
would probably be senior officers would find it
difficult to acquit someone whom the president of the
United States has recommended for trial.
"I would not walk into these trials as a defence
lawyer with the confidence that my client would get a
fair shake," he said.
Al-Qaeda expert Rohan Gunaratna, who has written
extensively about Osama bin Laden's terrorist network
and who initially described Hicks as a "small fry" in
the terror organisation, now believes he was more than
a foot soldier.
"There is more recent information to indicate that he
has undergone more advanced and more specialised
training," Gunaratna told The Australian newspaper.
---
http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/news/index.cfm?fuseaction=showItem&newsID=13
Croatian Forces International Volunteers Association
CFIVA News
KOSOVO VOLUNTEER LINKED TO AL-QAEDA
Thursday, August 1, 2002
David Hicks training with the UCK prior to joining the
Taliban
-The details of his service in Kosova [sic] come to us
direct from the UCK and are as follows:
He joined a group of the UCK circa February 1999. He
was accommodated at one of three UCK training camps in
the Tropolje area in Albania for six weeks. He was
moved to another UCK training camp as a prospective
instructor after he made exaggerated claims about
being in the Australian Army.
-[H]e was placed on active duty near the border town
of Kukes with 139 Brigade, commanded by Radimas
Beshim.
-He was demobilised in June 1999, went back to the
Albanian capital Tirana where the UCK purchased an
aeroplane ticket for the Islamic Republic of Iran (via
Germany) at Hicks’ own request.
-He returned to Australia in late 1999 and claimed to
have been through six weeks training, boasted he had
been in the trenches, killed a few Serbs....
-The Australian government says he...went to Pakistan
and trained with the militant Islamic group
Lashkar-i-Taiba who are fighting in the Kashmir region
against the Indian Army. This group is believed to
have links with Al-Qa’eda and Osama Bin Laden.
-[H]icks has been blacklisted by CFIVA for bringing
the international volunteer movement [sic] in Kosova
into disrepute.
More On Terrorist Suspect Hicks - On 1st August the
Australian ex-volunteer failed to obtain a trial.
American judges ruled that because he was being held
at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, United States civilian courts
had no jurisdiction. He therefore remains indefinitely
detained without trial.
The case of Hicks is already being widely mis-reported
as international journalists studiously avoid checking
their information with other sources. Under the
ridiculous label "Soldier of Fortune," CNN state that
Hicks converted to Islam whilst fighting with the UCK
in "Bosnia" (huh??) and mis-labelled a grainy
photograph of Hicks taken in Albania in 1999 as being
in "Bosnia." We can categorically state that Hicks
never served in BiH.
He surrendered to Northern Alliance forces in
Afghanistan on 9th December 2001 near the Tora Bora
caves complex used by Al-Qa’eda. He has no criminal
record nor was he involved in any military activity
prior to Kosova. In early 1999 he approached Channel 7
wanting to sell a story about fighting as a mercenary
in South Africa or Afghanistan.
The details of his service in Kosova comes to us
direct from the UCK and are as follows:
He joined a group of the UCK circa February 1999. He
was accommodated at one of three UCK training camps in
the Tropolje area in Albania for six weeks. He was
moved to another UCK training camp as a prospective
instructor after he made exaggerated claims about
being in the Australian Army. He had no previous
military experience whatsoever. It soon became
apparent these assertions were false and his claims
were widely dismissed by the UCK. Nevertheless he was
placed on active duty near the border town of Kukes
with 139 Brigade, commanded by Radimas Beshim. His
incompetence soon came to notice and he was relegated
to a training camp away from the border. He was given
a second chance and rejoined the brigade in Kukes but
still couldn’t manage (remember, the UCK itself was a
largely untrained citizen army) so he was relegated
again to a training camp and effectively kept out of
the way. After NATO troops entered Kosova Hicks did
not accompany any UCK units into the province. He was
demobilised in June 1999, went back to the Albanian
capital Tirana where the UCK purchased an aeroplane
ticket for the Islamic Republic of Iran (via Germany)
at Hicks’ own request. The Kosovan authorities have
heard nothing from him since. He was in Albania for no
more than 14-16 weeks and never entered Kosova.
Hicks was not a mercenary. He was legally recruited
into a legitimate armed force and at all times abided
by the terms and conditions of the Geneva Conventions.
CFIVA can confirm that Hicks was never paid more than
that of a private soldier of the UCK, if at all.
Note: It was usual for the UCK to reward its
international volunteers with their passage home, as a
gesture of thanks.
He returned to Australia in late 1999 and claimed to
have been through six weeks training, boasted he had
been in the trenches, killed a few Serbs and had seen
a few of his comrades killed. The last two points are
a mild exaggeration but have neither been proven or
disproved.
Upon his return to Australia (not Bosnia)he converted
to Islam and took the name Mohammed Dawood. He was
attending a mosque several times a week but in
November 1999 spoke of going to Pakistan to increase
his knowledge of Islam. Within a week or two he had
left the country.
The Australian government says he then went to
Pakistan and trained with the militant Islamic group
Lashkar-i-Taiba who are fighting in the Kashmir region
against the Indian Army. This group is believed to
have links with Al-Qa’eda and Osama Bin Laden.
The Americans say he entered Afghanistan in late 2000
and undertook "extensive" training with Al-Qa’eda. He
telephoned his family on September 28th to say he was
fighting for the Taliban.
After his capture, he was handed over to US Special
Forces and transferred via the USS Peleliu to the
detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Two other
white Australians are also being held there. The US
say they will hand him over to the Australian
authorities if it can be promised that Hicks will be
dealt with severely. He could be charged with treason
and murder if he is connected to the WTC attacks in
New York on September 11th. He could also be charged
under the Foreign Incursions Act, which carries a 14
year sentence for “hostile activities in foreign
countries.” Needless to say Serb websites have been
doing overtime on this one.
Apparently Hicks has now hoodwinked gullible
interrogators into believing he was a "relatively
senior member of Al-Qaeda." true to form, Hicks
completely fails to comprehend the seriousness of his
situation. Nobody of course has bothered to check
Hicks' past with the Kosovan authorities. Regardless
of whether he is found guilty of the charges levelled
against him, Hicks has been blacklisted by CFIVA for
bringing the international volunteer movement in
Kosova into disrepute.
The Secretary
=== 2 ===
The Ottawa Citizen // Saturday Oserver// Dec. 15, 2001
Page B3
Bin Laden’s Balkan Connections
Dateline: Skopje, Macedonia
By Scott Taylor
With the swift collapse of the Taliban regime, the U.S.-led military
campaign in Afghanistan has been reduced to an Osama bin Laden manhunt
cum mop-up of the Al-Qaeda network. As U.S. jets pound the cave
entrances around
Tora Bora, Special Forces teams are closing in on the last redoubts of
Taliban fanatics. Following the quick success in Afghanistan, President
George Bush has already warned Americans to prepare for a "wider war"
aimed at punishing those nations which "harbour terrorism." Although
there was no
proven link between Iraq and the anthrax scare, in recent speeches Bush
has repeatedly singled out Saddam Hussein as "an enemy of the U.S."
Similar ominous threats have been levelled at the governments of Sudan,
Libya, Syria and the leaders of Palestinian extremist groups.
While it is believed that Saudi-born Osama bin Laden remains surrounded
in Afghanistan, U.S. Intelligence agencies cannot be sure of his exact
whereabouts. What is known is that his extensive Al-Qaeda terrorist
organisation still has operating cells around the world.
As the U.S. dragnet is cast ever wider, it can only be a matter of time
before the counter-terrorist effort revisits the Balkans. Over the past
decade, Mujahadeen fighters – and in particular, bin Laden’s followers
– have practised their brutal brand of terror in Croatia, Bosnia,
Kosovo and are currently believed to be participating in Macedonia’s
civil unrest.
On 20 November, while the Taliban was still offering organised
resistance and extremists from around the world were volunteering to
join their ranks, Pakistani police apprehended five of these Muslim
"fighters" carrying Macedonian passports at the Afghan border.
For Macedonian Intelligence officials, these arrests were only further
proof that Mujahadeen formed the veteran core of the ethnic Albanian
guerrilla army known as the UCK. Since March of this year, the UCK have
mounted a very successful military offensive against Macedonian
security forces. By the time that a shaky peace plan was brokered in
September, the UCK controlled nearly 30 per cent of Macedonian
territory. Originally inexperienced and ill-equipped to fight a
guerrilla war, the Macedonian security forces have maintained since the
outbreak of hostilities that up to 120 Mujahadeen were active in the
UCK ranks.
Nikola, a senior director with Macedonian Intelligence, confirmed that
following the 11 September terrorist attacks, his agency has "supplied
a substantive dossier to the CIA," outlining bin Laden’s Balkan
activities.
The information forwarded to the CIA included eyewitness accounts
offered by Macedonian civilians who had been held hostage by
Mujahadeen, along with incriminating photographs and videos, which
security forces captured from the UCK-Albanian guerrillas.
Macedonian Minister of Interior Ljubo Boskovski is anxious for his
police forces to return into the areas presently controlled by the
Albanian guerrillas in order to uncover additional evidence. Since 13
November, Macedonian security forces have been conducting an exhumation
at a mass grave outside the ethnic Albanian village of Trebos. To date,
the police have unearthed the bodies of six Macedonians, from a total
of 21 civilians who have disappeared following UCK attacks.
Intelligence officer Nikola believes it was Mujahadeen fighters who
perpetrated the Trebos massacre "because of the manner in which the
bodies were cut up and scattered."
Nikola also suspects that Mujahadeen fanatics perpetrated a brutal
ambush against security forces last April. In this incident, eight
policemen were shot outside the village of Vejce, their bodies
viciously dismembered to provide the victors with grisly trophies. The
Macedonian authorities are not the only ones to affix the blame for the
Vejce ambush on the Mujahadeen.
During the summer offensive around Tetovo, Albanian guerrillas eagerly
admitted they had gained combat experience in previous conflicts.
Twenty-three-year old Commander "Jimmy" claimed he was a veteran of
Chechnya and Kosovo, while "Snake" Arifaq bragged of service in Bosnia
and displayed a scar he received during the fighting in Croatia. Both
of these Albanians
acknowledged the involvement of Arab/Afghan "volunteers" in training
members of the UCK. As for the Vejce incident, Commander Jimmy said
such an atrocity could "only have been committed by the Foreigners
[Mujahadeen serving in the
UCK] because Albanians do not cut up bodies."
Once the UCK insurrection began in March, the Macedonian government
hastily acquired a fleet of six Ukrainian helicopter gunships to
provide their troops with tactical air support. "Shortly after that,
our pilots reported being tracked by sophisticated [U.S.-made] Stinger
[anti-aircraft] missiles," said Nikola. "It is the information [of
Macedonian Intelligence] that the UCK received these Stingers from
their Mujahadeen connections in Afghanistan."
American advisors and covert military aid have also contributed to the
UCK’s combat effectiveness, but since 11 September the Macedonians have
noted a shift in U.S. foreign policy. "The CIA have been much more
receptive to our reports about the Al-Qaeda," said Nikola.
"Particularly after they
discovered that one of the suicide hijackers had been active in both
Kosovo and Macedonia."
Given their common goal of neutralising Albanian terrorists, Macedonian
police have been working closely with their Yugoslavian counterparts.
More importantly, as part of the U.S.-led global initiative to combat
terror, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has been reinstated to the
ranks of Interpol – after a ten-year banishment. As a result,
Intelligence Officers from the
Yugoslavian Army have been able to supply their international
colleagues with a wealth of information outlining Mujahadeen activity
in Bosnia and Kosovo. Yugoslav Intelligence believes that at least 50
of the 150 Mujahadeen that fought in Kosovo are still active members of
the UCK.
Even without this Yugoslav co-operation, Interpol was already tracking
the Al-Qaeda’s Balkan activities. On 23 October this year, Interpol
released a preliminary report outlining bin Laden’s personal links to
the Albanian Mafia. In this report, Interpol alleges that a senior
Al-Qaeda lieutenant had been the commander of an elite UCK unit in
Kosovo during the fighting in 1999.
While U.S. President Bill Clinton’s regime was the driving force to
garner NATO support for the UCK, numerous media reports clearly show
that the CIA were well aware of bin Laden’s Albanian links prior to
NATO’s commitment in Kosovo.
On 17 January 1999 the international press was filled with news of an
alleged massacre of 45 Albanian Kosovars in the village of Racak.
Clinton seized upon this particular incident (later disproved, by UN
pathologists, to have been an Albanian hoax) to proclaim that the West
could no longer overlook "Serbian atrocities." With Clinton’s
statement, NATO was
irrevocably launched on the path towards its confrontation with
Yugoslavia.
Although lost in the U.S. media hype, Greek media outlets that same day
were detailing the Taliban’s widespread entry into Albania at the
invitation of ex-President Sali Berisa and former head of Intelligence
Bashkim Gazidede.
According to The Tribune, an Athens daily newspaper, Albanian security
official Fatos Klozi confirmed that "bin Laden was one of those who had
organised and sent groups to fight in Kosovo. There were Egyptians,
Saudis, Algerians, Tunisians, Sudanese and Kuwaitis from different
organisations
among the [UCK] mercenaries."
Ten days later, on 27 January 1999, the Arab-language news service Al
Hayat reported that an Albanian commander in Kosovo, code-named
"Monia," was directly connected to Osama bin Laden. The Al Hayat piece
also proudly proclaimed that "at least 100 Muslim Mujahadeen" were
serving with Monia’s force in Kosovo.
The Washington Post reported in August 1998 that the CIA were not only
aware of bin Laden’s association with the Albanian regime, but that
U.S. operatives had been "prominent" in the arrest of four Al-Qaeda
agents in Tirana. At that time, U.S. State Department officials even
speculated that
the bombings of their embassies in Kenya and Tanzania might have been
bin Laden’s revenge for the Tirana arrests.
The Al-Qaeda suspects detained by the CIA in Albania had been operating
the Islamic Revival Foundation, "a charitable organisation that
official sources say provided a useful cover for the [suspects] efforts
on behalf of bin Laden," reported the Post.
In February 1998, the U.S. State Department had removed the UCK from
their list of terrorist organisations. However later that same year,
the CIA and their Albanian SHIK intelligence counterparts co-operated
to successfully shut down a Mujahadeen Jihad cell operating in
conjunction with the
Albanians inside Kosovo.
Some of the most revealing links surfaced in December 1998 when
Al-Qaeda agent Claude Sheik Abdel-Kader was arrested in Tirana for the
murder of his Albanian translator. During his trial, Abdel-Kader
confessed to being a senior commander in bin Laden’s network, and
claimed he had recruited a force of some 300 Mujahadeen to fight in
Kosovo. European media covering the trial reported Abdul-Kader’s
revelation that Osama bin Laden – although a wanted terrorist –
travelled freely to Tirana in 1994 and 1998 to meet with senior
Albanian officials. Abdel-Kader also confessed that when the Albanian
regime of Sali Berisa collapsed into anarchy in 1997, state armouries
and government offices were looted. Many of the 10,000 heavy weapons
and 100,000 passports that went missing conveniently fell into the
hands of the Al-Qaeda.
Osama bin Laden – stripped of his Saudi citizenship in 1994 – is
alleged to have retained the Bosnian passport he was issued in Vienna
in 1993. The granting of official travel documents to bin Laden was
first reported 24 September 1999 by Dani, a Bosnian Muslim weekly
newspaper. The rationale
behind bestowing citizenship on a wanted terrorist was that Bosnian
President Alija Izetbegovic had been thankful for the Mujahadeen’s
contribution in his quest for a Balkan "fundamentalist Islamic
Republic."
It was also reported by Dani that Al-Qaeda terrorist Mehrez Aodouni had
been arrested in Istanbul while carrying a Bosnian passport. Like bin
Laden, his citizenship had been granted "because he was a member of the
Bosnia-Herzegovina Army."
Canadian soldiers serving with the United Nations Protection Force
(UNPROFOR) were among the first to report the presence of Mujahadeen in
the ranks of the Bosnian Muslims as early as 1992.
The Asian Wall Street Journal reported that, in 1993, bin Laden had
appointed Al Zawahiri, the Al-Qaeda’s second-in-command, to direct all
his operations in the Balkans.
While no exact numbers exist, it is estimated that between 1500 and
3500 Arab volunteers participated in the Bosnian civil war. Their main
area of operation was in the region of Zenica, with most Mujahadeen
serving in the 7th Brigade of General Sakib Mahmuljin’s 3rd Corps,
nicknamed "the
Guerrillas." Identified by red and green "Rambo" bandannas emblazoned
with the crest "our road is Jihad," this unit earned a reputation for
criminal brutality.
On 27 June 1993, the Sunday Times reported that even Bosnian Muslim
officers had reservations about the Mujahadeen volunteers. Colonel
Stjepan Siber, then-Deputy Commander of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Army,
admitted to the Times that "It was a mistake to let [the Mujahadeen] in
here… They commit most of the atrocities and work against the interests
of the Muslim people. They have been killing, looting and stealing."
According to reports, it was the Mujahadeen who were serving with
General Nasir Oric in the Muslim enclave of Srebrenica who committed
some of the most barbaric atrocities of the war. Beheadings of Serbian
civilians were commonplace, and in some villages the Mujahadeen would
dynamite homes with
the inhabitants trapped inside.
No attempt was made to hide such atrocities. In fact, General Oric
would often address media at the site of the massacres. On one such
occasion, while standing in front of Mujahadeen brandishing human head
trophies, Oric pointed to a flaming ruin and proudly said to reporters,
"We blew those Serbs to the moon."
Alija Izetbegovic was also proud to display the fighting prowess of his
Mujahadeen volunteers. Following a successful attack against Serbian
positions around Vozuce on 10 September 1995, the Bosnian President
held a televised medal presentation parade. The Mujahadeen had provided
the
vanguard of the assault force, and were awarded 11 decorations for
valour, including the Golden Crescent, Bosnia’s highest honour.
Yugoslav Intelligence estimates that over 1500 Bosnian citizenships
were granted to Mujahadeen/Al-Qaeda fighters following the Dayton Peace
Accord in 1995. Most of those soldiers are believed to have settled in
the Zenica region.
According to Miroslav Lazanski, author of the new book Osama bin Laden
Against America, Al-Qaeda still maintain two operational bases in
Bosnia. One of these contains only the best fighters and was commanded
by an Algerian, Abu Al Mali.
Following the 11 September attacks, FBI and CIA agents uncovered
evidence that two of the suicide hijackers had originated from this
Bosnian camp. Abu Mali was subsequently arrested while travelling in
Istanbul on a Bosnian passport.
It is evident from recent events that the U.S. military is also well
aware of the continued Mujahadeen presence in the Balkans. General
Myers visited NATO troops stationed in Bosnia in late November to warn
them against a possible Al-Qaeda retaliation attack. In addition, on 4
December, the White
House added two Albanian terrorist groups operating in Macedonia and
Kosovo to their list of outlawed organisations.
President George Bush’s campaign against bin Laden’s terrorists would
appear to have come full circle to confront the Clinton
administration’s dubious Balkan legacy.
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2003/aug2003/asyl-a08_prn.shtml
World Socialist Web Site www.wsws.org
WSWS : News & Analysis : Europe : Germany
Germany: Fewer asylum-seekers and more deportations
By Martin Kreickenbaum
8 August 2003
On July 13, the German Interior Ministry presented asylum statistics
for the first six months of 2003. According to these figures, only
26,452 people sought asylum in Germany in this period. This represents
a 27 percent decrease compared to the same period last year, and is 24
percent less than the second half of 2002.
The number of asylum-seekers also fell drastically last year in
comparison with 2001. Since the month-on-month trend is also down, the
number of asylum-seekers coming to Germany in 2003 looks set to fall to
its lowest level since 1985.
The percentage of those asylum-seekers who were recognised as suffering
political persecution and granted asylum remained at the markedly low
level of the previous year. Altogether, 48,045 asylum decisions were
taken by the Federal Office for the Recognition of Foreign Refugees.
However, in only approximately 2,000 cases were the applications for
asylum regarded as justified or the applicants granted limited
protection from deportation on political or humanitarian grounds. This
represents a recognition rate of just 4.2 percent.
In 2001, almost a quarter of those seeking refuge in Germany were at
least granted temporary protection. In the mid-1980s, with around the
same number of asylum applications as today, almost 30 percent of
applications were granted asylum.
This alarming development, which is celebrated as a success by the
German government, is a direct consequence of its policy of rejecting
refugees. The Social Democratic Party-Green Party coalition in Berlin
has intensified the inhumane policy of its conservative predecessors,
and in only five years has cut the number of asylum-seekers by around
nearly two thirds. It retained the conservatives’ “safe third country”
rule, the most restrictive in Europe, the concept of “safe countries of
origin,” the excluding of civil war refugees from the asylum process.
It also instigated the quartering of refugees near their homeland,
making it increasingly impossible for those needing protection to lodge
an asylum application in Germany.
If, despite these obstacles, asylum-seekers nevertheless manage to make
it to Germany, they face further deterrents. These include the legally
dubious rapid deportation proceedings at airports and the setting of
welfare support for asylum-seekers 30 percent below the standard rate,
while simultaneously prohibiting them from working.
The dramatic decrease in the numbers of asylum-seekers and those
granted asylum has nothing to do with an improved security situation
worldwide, and this is demonstrated by what is taking place in the main
countries of origin of most refugees. These include states like Turkey,
China and Iran, which are continually reprimanded (by the German
government, amongst others) for their offences against human rights and
the use of torture.
Although Turkey has since replaced Iraq as the country of origin for
the majority of those seeking asylum in Germany, nearly 12 percent of
asylum-seekers still come from Iraq, whose population is suffering from
the brutal occupation regime under American and British troops. The
situation facing the population has catastrophically worsened since the
beginning of the war. The US-British forces confront a guerrilla war
involving widespread popular resistance. The response of the occupying
powers has been to increasingly resort to arbitrary arrests. Amnesty
International has documented serious cases of human rights violations,
including the use of torture by the American and British occupiers.
It is worth noting that nearly 25 percent of refugees originate from
countries that have been dragged into war at the hands of NATO (or the
changing coalitions under US control). Aside from Iraq, these include
Serbia, Montenegro and Afghanistan. Official political rhetoric praises
these wars as efforts to liberate people from dictatorial regimes and
establish “democracy” and “liberty,” but the numbers of refugees
fleeing from these same countries paint another picture: one oppressive
regime is replaced by another. Moreover, the wars are accompanied by a
dramatic economic decline. In the resulting desolate social situation
minorities rapidly become scapegoats, the target of discrimination and
violence; the circumstances facing Roma peoples in Serbia and
Montenegro are just one example.
A German Foreign Ministry report last year noted: “The situation facing
minorities in the FRY [Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, now Serbia and
Montenegro] does not meet...international standards by a long chalk.”
However, the proportion of refugees from Serbia and Montenegro who are
granted asylum is just 0.1 percent. And although there are already
hundreds of thousands of internal refugees in the former Yugoslavia,
and more who are returning to a life of poverty and desperation, the
German government concluded an agreement with Yugoslavia in November
2002 whereby all refugees, bar a few exceptions, are forced to return.
Deportation policy continues
The result of Germany’s deportation policy was clearly shown in a June
23 report in the Frankfurter Rundschau. A Roma family, who had lived 12
years in Syke, in Lower Saxony, was taken at night by the police and
deported to Belgrade. There they live with thousands of other refugees
in misery in the illegal settlement of Deponia. Dominated by huts made
from cardboard and corrugated sheeting, there are neither proper roads
nor adequate water or electricity services. Since there is no work,
they scour the garbage containers coming from Belgrade for bottles,
bread and paper. The children are sent to beg on the streets of the
Serbian metropolis.
Green Party politician Claudia Roth, the German government’s human
rights spokesperson, visited Belgrade in order to gain a first-hand
picture of the situation confronting refugees deported there. She
maintains that a continuation of the deportation policy is inhumane and
cannot be justified politically. But these hypocritical words were
intended for the press corps accompanying her visit rather than for her
government coalition partners, since Berlin continues its policy of
deporting people, even into crisis areas.
The German federal and state interior ministers have encouraged the
authorities to carry out ever more arbitrary and illegal actions, in
order ensure deportations.
On June 26, the deportation of 64 refugees from Düsseldorf to Kosovo
failed. Members of minorities such as Roma, Ashkali or Egyptians can
only be deported after the UN Interim Administration in Kosovo (UNMIK)
has examined each individual case. In addition, a detailed list of the
refugees being deported has to be submitted to UNMIK beforehand. This
is what was missing on June 26, as the German authorities clearly tried
to illegally deport members of minorities.
As the airplane neared Kosovo, UNMIK refused it landing permission. The
flight was swiftly rerouted to Podgorica in Montenegro, in order to
then take the deportees by bus to Kosovo. Since UNMIK also rejected
this approach, the refugees were finally flown back to Düsseldorf. They
had to endure nearly 10 hours of intense heat in an airplane hangar,
whose windows and doors were firmly locked, and were refused food the
entire time.
In the course of this incident, the Kosovo co-coordinator of the UNHCR,
Karsten Luethke, declared that the German government was continually
deporting refugees to Kosovo who did not originate from the province.
In June, a mother and her seven children were deported to Turkey. The
family’s door was battered down in the early morning hours and the
eight people shipped by airplane to Istanbul, without being able to
contact a lawyer or even to take some basic luggage.
The deportation was illegal not only because they were refused a legal
hearing. The mother and her children were deported to Turkey despite
being Lebanese Kurds, who had fled the civil war in Lebanon years ago.
The claim by the authorities that this was a Turkish family is purely
capricious and was a blatant excuse to accelerate the deportation of
unwanted refugees.
Moreover, in contravention of both German and international law, the
family was torn apart, since the father was excluded from the
deportation. German authorities then cynically declared that he could
seek to reunite the family by travelling to Turkey.
On July 15, in the course of a failed deportation of a Congolese man,
Raphael Botoba, it came to light that despite the escalating violence
in the Congo—and the participation of Germany in a military
intervention there—further refugees were being deported to the central
African state. According to parliamentary state secretary Fritz Rudolf,
the government is not considering a ban on deportations to the Congo at
this time.
According to the twisted logic of the German government, military
intervention by the imperialist powers leads automatically to an
improvement in the human rights situation. This argument has been used
successively in the former Yugoslavia, in Afghanistan and in Iraq,
where following military interventions the proportion of refugees
granted asylum sank in each case as forced deportations increased. It
will not be any different in the Congo.
The government does not even attempt to hide the duplicity of its own
arguments. While it justifies its participation in a military
intervention with reference to the increasing violence in the Congo,
deportations are pushed through mercilessly, citing the relatively safe
situation in the capital. The Congolese churches and international
human rights organisations point out that “safe survival is hardly
possible” for those returning.
Berlin’s ever more ruthless deportation policy is not only directed
against refugees in Germany. The government is setting a clear sign of
what can be expected by potential refuges should they ever get to
Germany. The drastic fall in the numbers of those granted asylum
clearly shows that refugees should no longer expect protection from
persecution should they make it to German soil. Instead, they face a
life under miserable social conditions, with strongly curtailed
democratic rights, and under constant fear of deportation to a country
where even more intolerable conditions predominate.
Copyright 1998-2003
World Socialist Web Site
All rights reserved
World Socialist Web Site www.wsws.org
WSWS : News & Analysis : Europe : Germany
Germany: Fewer asylum-seekers and more deportations
By Martin Kreickenbaum
8 August 2003
On July 13, the German Interior Ministry presented asylum statistics
for the first six months of 2003. According to these figures, only
26,452 people sought asylum in Germany in this period. This represents
a 27 percent decrease compared to the same period last year, and is 24
percent less than the second half of 2002.
The number of asylum-seekers also fell drastically last year in
comparison with 2001. Since the month-on-month trend is also down, the
number of asylum-seekers coming to Germany in 2003 looks set to fall to
its lowest level since 1985.
The percentage of those asylum-seekers who were recognised as suffering
political persecution and granted asylum remained at the markedly low
level of the previous year. Altogether, 48,045 asylum decisions were
taken by the Federal Office for the Recognition of Foreign Refugees.
However, in only approximately 2,000 cases were the applications for
asylum regarded as justified or the applicants granted limited
protection from deportation on political or humanitarian grounds. This
represents a recognition rate of just 4.2 percent.
In 2001, almost a quarter of those seeking refuge in Germany were at
least granted temporary protection. In the mid-1980s, with around the
same number of asylum applications as today, almost 30 percent of
applications were granted asylum.
This alarming development, which is celebrated as a success by the
German government, is a direct consequence of its policy of rejecting
refugees. The Social Democratic Party-Green Party coalition in Berlin
has intensified the inhumane policy of its conservative predecessors,
and in only five years has cut the number of asylum-seekers by around
nearly two thirds. It retained the conservatives’ “safe third country”
rule, the most restrictive in Europe, the concept of “safe countries of
origin,” the excluding of civil war refugees from the asylum process.
It also instigated the quartering of refugees near their homeland,
making it increasingly impossible for those needing protection to lodge
an asylum application in Germany.
If, despite these obstacles, asylum-seekers nevertheless manage to make
it to Germany, they face further deterrents. These include the legally
dubious rapid deportation proceedings at airports and the setting of
welfare support for asylum-seekers 30 percent below the standard rate,
while simultaneously prohibiting them from working.
The dramatic decrease in the numbers of asylum-seekers and those
granted asylum has nothing to do with an improved security situation
worldwide, and this is demonstrated by what is taking place in the main
countries of origin of most refugees. These include states like Turkey,
China and Iran, which are continually reprimanded (by the German
government, amongst others) for their offences against human rights and
the use of torture.
Although Turkey has since replaced Iraq as the country of origin for
the majority of those seeking asylum in Germany, nearly 12 percent of
asylum-seekers still come from Iraq, whose population is suffering from
the brutal occupation regime under American and British troops. The
situation facing the population has catastrophically worsened since the
beginning of the war. The US-British forces confront a guerrilla war
involving widespread popular resistance. The response of the occupying
powers has been to increasingly resort to arbitrary arrests. Amnesty
International has documented serious cases of human rights violations,
including the use of torture by the American and British occupiers.
It is worth noting that nearly 25 percent of refugees originate from
countries that have been dragged into war at the hands of NATO (or the
changing coalitions under US control). Aside from Iraq, these include
Serbia, Montenegro and Afghanistan. Official political rhetoric praises
these wars as efforts to liberate people from dictatorial regimes and
establish “democracy” and “liberty,” but the numbers of refugees
fleeing from these same countries paint another picture: one oppressive
regime is replaced by another. Moreover, the wars are accompanied by a
dramatic economic decline. In the resulting desolate social situation
minorities rapidly become scapegoats, the target of discrimination and
violence; the circumstances facing Roma peoples in Serbia and
Montenegro are just one example.
A German Foreign Ministry report last year noted: “The situation facing
minorities in the FRY [Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, now Serbia and
Montenegro] does not meet...international standards by a long chalk.”
However, the proportion of refugees from Serbia and Montenegro who are
granted asylum is just 0.1 percent. And although there are already
hundreds of thousands of internal refugees in the former Yugoslavia,
and more who are returning to a life of poverty and desperation, the
German government concluded an agreement with Yugoslavia in November
2002 whereby all refugees, bar a few exceptions, are forced to return.
Deportation policy continues
The result of Germany’s deportation policy was clearly shown in a June
23 report in the Frankfurter Rundschau. A Roma family, who had lived 12
years in Syke, in Lower Saxony, was taken at night by the police and
deported to Belgrade. There they live with thousands of other refugees
in misery in the illegal settlement of Deponia. Dominated by huts made
from cardboard and corrugated sheeting, there are neither proper roads
nor adequate water or electricity services. Since there is no work,
they scour the garbage containers coming from Belgrade for bottles,
bread and paper. The children are sent to beg on the streets of the
Serbian metropolis.
Green Party politician Claudia Roth, the German government’s human
rights spokesperson, visited Belgrade in order to gain a first-hand
picture of the situation confronting refugees deported there. She
maintains that a continuation of the deportation policy is inhumane and
cannot be justified politically. But these hypocritical words were
intended for the press corps accompanying her visit rather than for her
government coalition partners, since Berlin continues its policy of
deporting people, even into crisis areas.
The German federal and state interior ministers have encouraged the
authorities to carry out ever more arbitrary and illegal actions, in
order ensure deportations.
On June 26, the deportation of 64 refugees from Düsseldorf to Kosovo
failed. Members of minorities such as Roma, Ashkali or Egyptians can
only be deported after the UN Interim Administration in Kosovo (UNMIK)
has examined each individual case. In addition, a detailed list of the
refugees being deported has to be submitted to UNMIK beforehand. This
is what was missing on June 26, as the German authorities clearly tried
to illegally deport members of minorities.
As the airplane neared Kosovo, UNMIK refused it landing permission. The
flight was swiftly rerouted to Podgorica in Montenegro, in order to
then take the deportees by bus to Kosovo. Since UNMIK also rejected
this approach, the refugees were finally flown back to Düsseldorf. They
had to endure nearly 10 hours of intense heat in an airplane hangar,
whose windows and doors were firmly locked, and were refused food the
entire time.
In the course of this incident, the Kosovo co-coordinator of the UNHCR,
Karsten Luethke, declared that the German government was continually
deporting refugees to Kosovo who did not originate from the province.
In June, a mother and her seven children were deported to Turkey. The
family’s door was battered down in the early morning hours and the
eight people shipped by airplane to Istanbul, without being able to
contact a lawyer or even to take some basic luggage.
The deportation was illegal not only because they were refused a legal
hearing. The mother and her children were deported to Turkey despite
being Lebanese Kurds, who had fled the civil war in Lebanon years ago.
The claim by the authorities that this was a Turkish family is purely
capricious and was a blatant excuse to accelerate the deportation of
unwanted refugees.
Moreover, in contravention of both German and international law, the
family was torn apart, since the father was excluded from the
deportation. German authorities then cynically declared that he could
seek to reunite the family by travelling to Turkey.
On July 15, in the course of a failed deportation of a Congolese man,
Raphael Botoba, it came to light that despite the escalating violence
in the Congo—and the participation of Germany in a military
intervention there—further refugees were being deported to the central
African state. According to parliamentary state secretary Fritz Rudolf,
the government is not considering a ban on deportations to the Congo at
this time.
According to the twisted logic of the German government, military
intervention by the imperialist powers leads automatically to an
improvement in the human rights situation. This argument has been used
successively in the former Yugoslavia, in Afghanistan and in Iraq,
where following military interventions the proportion of refugees
granted asylum sank in each case as forced deportations increased. It
will not be any different in the Congo.
The government does not even attempt to hide the duplicity of its own
arguments. While it justifies its participation in a military
intervention with reference to the increasing violence in the Congo,
deportations are pushed through mercilessly, citing the relatively safe
situation in the capital. The Congolese churches and international
human rights organisations point out that “safe survival is hardly
possible” for those returning.
Berlin’s ever more ruthless deportation policy is not only directed
against refugees in Germany. The government is setting a clear sign of
what can be expected by potential refuges should they ever get to
Germany. The drastic fall in the numbers of those granted asylum
clearly shows that refugees should no longer expect protection from
persecution should they make it to German soil. Instead, they face a
life under miserable social conditions, with strongly curtailed
democratic rights, and under constant fear of deportation to a country
where even more intolerable conditions predominate.
Copyright 1998-2003
World Socialist Web Site
All rights reserved
Convegno CNJ 16/11/2002
3: Kapuralin
[ Ovaj Referat Kapularin Vladimira
(SRP - Socijalisticka Radnicka Partija Hrvatske -, Pula):
"Socijalna i Ekonomska Situacija u Bivsim
Jugoslovenskim Republikama - slucaj HRVATSKE"
moze se procitati i na srpskohrvatskom:
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/message/2376 ]
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/files/CONVEGNOTRIESTE/
trascrizioni.html
---
Trieste / Trst, 16 novembre 2002, Convegno:
"...PASSANDO SEMPRE PER LA JUGOSLAVIA..."
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/files/CONVEGNOTRIESTE/
kapuralin.html
INTERVENTO DI VLADIMIR KAPURALIN
(Partito Socialista Operaio - SRP -, Pola)
La situazione socio-economica nella ex-Jugoslavia:
il caso della Croazia
La Jugoslavia, formatasi durante la lotta contro il nazismo negli anni
successivi alla fine della II Guerra Mondiale, ha saputo ricostruire
l'intero Paese e la sua economia, distrutta in guerra, grazie
all'applicazione dell'intera popolazione.
Secondo le analisi degli esperti stranieri, per un lungo periodo essa
era in testa ai paesi con il piu' alto tasso di sviluppo.
I cantieri navali erano al terzo posto nella classifica mondiale e le
imprese edili e di ingegneria ottenevano appalti in tutto il mondo.
Il Paese prosperava anche nella scienza e nella cultura, e
l'autogestione, accompagnata dalla quasi assenza di disoccupazione,
con allo stesso tempo una grande sicurezza sul piano sociale,
permetteva un'esistenza dignitosa alla
popolazione.
A tutto questo contribuiva la politica del non-allineamento e della
sovranità ed indipendenza, anche grazie ad un esercito forte e ben
equipaggiato che garantiva ai cittadini sicurezza, libertà ed
indipendenza dai fattori esterni. Tutto questo con un debito estero di
18 miliardi di dollari, ovvero poco più di 800 dollari pro-capite.
Anche se non esisteva il sistema pluripartitico, e solo il 10% della
popolazione faceva parte del partito al potere, la maggior parte della
popolazione era leale al paese. La parte dei cittadini che voleva
ottenere di piu' era emigrata per ragioni
economiche, senza rompere i legami con la patria. C'e' da dire che era
emigrata anche quella parte di popolazione che faceva parte dei
perdenti della seconda Guerra Mondiale.
A loro si sono affiancati all'estero anche quelli che si consideravano
nemici del socialismo autogestito, e insieme avevano pianificato e
svolto azioni terroristiche contro la Jugoslavia, spesso ricevendo un
aiuto logistico dai Paesi che li ospitavano.
Alla fine degli anni 80 e 90 iniziano i processi che cambiano
radicalmente la situazione politica. Dopo il crollo del muro di
Berlino, i centri del potere capitalista rappresentati dalla Banca
Mondiale, dal Fondo Monetario Internazionale e dall'Organizzazione
Mondiale per il Commercio, guidati dai
sette Paesi piu' sviluppati del mondo, con l'aiuto logistico degli USA
e della NATO iniziano a realizzare il progetto lungamente preparato:
la distruzione dei regimi socialisti dell'Europa Orientale.
Su questa loro strada si e' trovata anche la Jugoslavia.
Nel processo - diretto dall'estero ed effettuato dalle forze interne -
si arriva alla secessione della Slovenia e della Croazia, seguite per
effetto domino dalla Bosnia e dalla Macedonia. Bisogna sottolineare
pero' che i centri di potere non avevano come scopo principale la
distruzione della Jugoslavia, bensi' quella del suo regime socialista
e autogestito - cosa che era impossibile realizzare senza
distruggere il Paese.
Questa battaglia era facilitata dal fatto che le destre nazionaliste
riuscirono a convincere la popolazione del fatto che con il capitalismo
non avrebbero perso nessuno dei diritti acquisiti, bensi' ne avrebbero
guadagnati di nuovi.
In senso economico, la distruzione della Jugoslavia significava la fine
dell'esistenza del mercato comune che per decenni aveva stabilito e
regolato i percorsi delle merci, accompagnato dalla libera circolazione
degli uomini e delle idee.
Per la Croazia questo ha significato la perdita improvvisa di oltre il
50% dei suoi beni, che prima della secessione venivano scambiati sul
mercato ex-jugoslavo, il quale non e' stato sostituito da alcun altro
mercato.
Il conflitto armato, in seguito alla secessione, ha avuto come
conseguenza la distruzione materiale delle infrastrutture
dell'economia e l'interruzione del flusso turistico dall'interno e
dall'estero, il che ha portato alla sparizione di questo ramo vitale
dell'economia.
Cosi' si e' creata la prima ondata di disoccupazione e l'abbassamento
dello standard di vita. La seguente ondata e' consistita
nell'interruzione dell'economia socialista e nell'introduzione del
capitalismo nella sua forma peggiore: l'accumulazione primordiale del
capitale.
Le imprese esangui non potevano competere di pari passo con i soggetti
capitalistici nella corsa al mercato. I neo-proprietari, diventati tali
per "meriti" politici, non avevano ne' interesse ne' volonta' e nemmeno
conoscenze per sviluppare la produzione; si limitavano a sfruttare la
materia prima.
Il passo successivo consisteva nella svendita anarchica, agli
stranieri, di tutto quanto aveva un valore, e questo come conseguenza
ha avuto nuove perdite di posti di lavoro e abbassamento dello standard
medio; anche perche' agli investitori stranieri interessava solamente
il mercato ed i beni, non lo sviluppo.
Cosi' [in Croazia] il 94% del potenziale finanziario e' diventato
proprieta' delle banche estere. E' rimasta soltanto la Banca Nazionale
che e' un istituto di emissione monetaria. Sono state vendute le
telecomunicazioni, gran parte delle case giornalistiche, gli hotels e
gli impianti turistici, molte fabbriche.
Da vendere ci sono rimaste ancora l'industria farmaceutica, quella
energetica, gli istitutti di assicurazione ed il latifondo agricolo.
Svendendo ogni giorno ogni potenziale di valore - i cosiddetti
"gioielli di famiglia" - lo Stato troppo costoso e spendaccione cerca
di ottenere i finanziamenti per mantenersi: pero' questo si e' mostrato
insufficiente.
Parallelamente e' cresciuto anche il debito estero, che e' arrivato
alla cifra di 14 miliardi di dollari, vale a dire 3.000 dollari
pro-capite, ossia il 60% del PIL - e per pagare gli interessi serve un
miliardo di dollari l'anno.
Vulnerabile com'e', la Croazia e' diventata la destinazione prediletta
per disfarsi degli equipaggiamenti industriali e bellici obsoleti e
nocivi, e poi anche il poligono per l'addestramento gratuito degli
eserciti.
Negli ultimi 12 anni la Croazia e' retrocessa in tutti i campi; si
stima che abbia perduto 700.000 posti di lavoro; la disoccupazione e'
di 400.000 unita' (la piu' grande in Europa) [in effetti essa e' oggi
superata perlomeno dalla Serbia di Djindjic, che sfiora un milione di
disoccupati; ndCRJ] ovvero
il 20% della popolazione attiva.
A titolo comparativo, la Germania un anno prima dell'ascesa di Hitler
al potere aveva il 20% di disoccupati. E' caratteristico per il paese
che una parte degli operai non viene pagata per mesi o addirittura per
un anno intero. Questa categoria in un certo momento era arrivata alla
cifra di 150.000 persone.
Si stima che durante il conflitto e dopo di quello sono state distrutte
o incendiate 50.000 case. Interi paesi sono scomparsi dalla faccia
della terra. Sono stati cacciati via 250.000 serbi. Intere province
sono rimaste deserte.
Si stima che circa 100.000 giovani altamente scolarizzati siano
emigrati, soprattutto per sfuggire a una guerra che non volevano e
all'assenza di una prospettiva di vita. E' irreale aspettarsi che
questi giovani all'apice della forza produttiva ritornino.
Secondo i dati del 1998, ogni cittadino croato disponeva di 25 kune al
giorno da usare per i consumi, il che corrispondeva a meno di 4 dollari.
E' cosa nota che si considera al di sotto della soglia di poverta' chi
disponga di meno di 5 dollari al giorno.
Le condizioni di vita in Istria e sul Litorale, dunque in regioni
relativamente vicine all'Italia, hanno determinato la nascita di una
specifica categoria sociale: le donne, di varia eta', di diverse
professioni, spesso anche molto istruite, molte con una salute
precaria, che hanno adottato una soluzione sui generis per la
sopravvivenza propria e della propria famiglia, ossia il cercare lavoro
oltre frontiera [in Italia], assistendo gente anziana e/o facendo i
lavori piu' umili. Si ritiene che siano circa
10.000 le donne di tale categoria. Vogliamo ricordare il fatto che
anche le nostre madri si guadagnavano da vivere in questo modo tra le
due guerre mondiali, nelle regioni occupate dagli italiani; la
differenza e' che perlomeno rimanevano a lavorare a casa, mentre quelle
odierne devono separarsi dalle loro famiglie. Cio' ha lasciato segni
inequivocabili nella sfera emotiva e vitale di ogni individuo. In
queste persone si
alternano sentimenti di delusione, apatia, rabbia, impotenza,
riluttanza, rassegnazione. Sono ovvie le conseguenze sullo stato di
salute di queste persone. Non ultima l'abbreviarsi della longevita' dei
cittadini croati negli ultimi dodici anni.
La Croazia e' oggi deindustrializzata. Mancano gli investimenti,
eccetto quelli per la ricostruzione delle strade e delle chiese.
La sanita' e' ridotta ai minimi termini ed e' accessibile solo a chi
puo' permettersela pagando. Anche l'istruzione e' scesa di livello. Uno
dei problemi principali consiste nel revisionismo storico: la storia
viene adattata alle esigenze nazionaliste, il che avra' conseguenze a
lungo termine nella formazione delle nuove generazioni. Un esempio e'
dato dall'accettazione di una netta iconografia ustascia. Quello che ci
deve preoccupare particolarmente e' l'aumentato uso di stupefacenti tra
i giovani in risposta alla mancanza di prospettive per il futuro. Ne
consegue anche una corruzione dilagante tra le istituzioni in vario
modo coinvolte nello spaccio di narcotici.
La Chiesa e' aggressivamente presente in ogni ambito della societa', a
cominciare dagli asili nido.
Il sistema giuridico e' paralizzato dall'onnipresenza di persone
corrotte e dai bisogni del nazionalismo imperante. In particolar modo
cio' e' evidente nel modo in cui vengono trattati i crimini compiuti
dalla parte croata durante e dopo gli scontri bellici.
Per la Croazia e' rischioso il gioco attuato dal suo governo nei
confronti della comunita' internazionale, in particolare con il
Tribunale dell'Aia. La Croazia cerca di sottrarsi arrogantemente alla
collaborazione con la Comunita' Internazionale, ai tentativi di questa
di processare i crimini
commessi. In questo modo essa si accosta alla destra piu' retrograda,
nazionalista, portando il Paese al limite delle sanzioni e
dell'isolamento internazionale.
La domanda che ci si pone e': quali sono le possibili soluzioni di
questa situazione quasi irrisolvibile?
Se partiamo da una constatazione reale, e cioe' dal fatto che
l'economia croata non dispone in questo momento di prodotti che possano
competere sul sofisticato mercato occidentale, mentre potrebbe offrirne
a quello dell'Est, se ne ricava che essa dovrebbe, senza sentirsene
frustrata, accettare questa possibilita'. Questo significa che dovrebbe
stabilire relazioni diverse d'integrazione, s'intende con le
ex-repubbliche jugoslave , nonche' relazioni piu' ampie con quei paesi
dove essa era un tempo presente, il che, secondo le valutazione del
dott. Branko Horvat, comprenderebbe un territorio di 150 milioni di
consumatori. In ambito economico, tanto interno quanto esterno, questo
territorio si denomina "Balkanska unija" (Unione balcanica).
Per far cio' dobbiamo immediatamente fermare l'ulteriore svendita del
patrimonio nazionale che porta alla distruzione dell'economia del
Paese. Laddove e' possibile bisogna restituire all'autogestione da
parte degli operai cio' che e' stato loro sottratto e creare le
condizioni per il rinnovamento della proprieta' collettiva e
dell'autogestione. Bisogna lavorare sulla ricostruzione usando tutte le
nostre risorse intellettive e
utilizzando appieno il potenziale umano di cui disponiamo.
Questo processo non e' facile ma ogni minuto perso lo rende solo piu'
difficile. In mancanza di capitali si potrebbe iniziare da un utilizzo
migliore delle risorse agricole di cui gia' disponiamo. I risultati si
raccolgono gia' dopo un solo anno, e lo stesso vale per il turismo,
naturalmente nel limite di quanto non e' stato ancora svenduto.
3: Kapuralin
[ Ovaj Referat Kapularin Vladimira
(SRP - Socijalisticka Radnicka Partija Hrvatske -, Pula):
"Socijalna i Ekonomska Situacija u Bivsim
Jugoslovenskim Republikama - slucaj HRVATSKE"
moze se procitati i na srpskohrvatskom:
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/message/2376 ]
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/files/CONVEGNOTRIESTE/
trascrizioni.html
---
Trieste / Trst, 16 novembre 2002, Convegno:
"...PASSANDO SEMPRE PER LA JUGOSLAVIA..."
http://it.groups.yahoo.com/group/crj-mailinglist/files/CONVEGNOTRIESTE/
kapuralin.html
INTERVENTO DI VLADIMIR KAPURALIN
(Partito Socialista Operaio - SRP -, Pola)
La situazione socio-economica nella ex-Jugoslavia:
il caso della Croazia
La Jugoslavia, formatasi durante la lotta contro il nazismo negli anni
successivi alla fine della II Guerra Mondiale, ha saputo ricostruire
l'intero Paese e la sua economia, distrutta in guerra, grazie
all'applicazione dell'intera popolazione.
Secondo le analisi degli esperti stranieri, per un lungo periodo essa
era in testa ai paesi con il piu' alto tasso di sviluppo.
I cantieri navali erano al terzo posto nella classifica mondiale e le
imprese edili e di ingegneria ottenevano appalti in tutto il mondo.
Il Paese prosperava anche nella scienza e nella cultura, e
l'autogestione, accompagnata dalla quasi assenza di disoccupazione,
con allo stesso tempo una grande sicurezza sul piano sociale,
permetteva un'esistenza dignitosa alla
popolazione.
A tutto questo contribuiva la politica del non-allineamento e della
sovranità ed indipendenza, anche grazie ad un esercito forte e ben
equipaggiato che garantiva ai cittadini sicurezza, libertà ed
indipendenza dai fattori esterni. Tutto questo con un debito estero di
18 miliardi di dollari, ovvero poco più di 800 dollari pro-capite.
Anche se non esisteva il sistema pluripartitico, e solo il 10% della
popolazione faceva parte del partito al potere, la maggior parte della
popolazione era leale al paese. La parte dei cittadini che voleva
ottenere di piu' era emigrata per ragioni
economiche, senza rompere i legami con la patria. C'e' da dire che era
emigrata anche quella parte di popolazione che faceva parte dei
perdenti della seconda Guerra Mondiale.
A loro si sono affiancati all'estero anche quelli che si consideravano
nemici del socialismo autogestito, e insieme avevano pianificato e
svolto azioni terroristiche contro la Jugoslavia, spesso ricevendo un
aiuto logistico dai Paesi che li ospitavano.
Alla fine degli anni 80 e 90 iniziano i processi che cambiano
radicalmente la situazione politica. Dopo il crollo del muro di
Berlino, i centri del potere capitalista rappresentati dalla Banca
Mondiale, dal Fondo Monetario Internazionale e dall'Organizzazione
Mondiale per il Commercio, guidati dai
sette Paesi piu' sviluppati del mondo, con l'aiuto logistico degli USA
e della NATO iniziano a realizzare il progetto lungamente preparato:
la distruzione dei regimi socialisti dell'Europa Orientale.
Su questa loro strada si e' trovata anche la Jugoslavia.
Nel processo - diretto dall'estero ed effettuato dalle forze interne -
si arriva alla secessione della Slovenia e della Croazia, seguite per
effetto domino dalla Bosnia e dalla Macedonia. Bisogna sottolineare
pero' che i centri di potere non avevano come scopo principale la
distruzione della Jugoslavia, bensi' quella del suo regime socialista
e autogestito - cosa che era impossibile realizzare senza
distruggere il Paese.
Questa battaglia era facilitata dal fatto che le destre nazionaliste
riuscirono a convincere la popolazione del fatto che con il capitalismo
non avrebbero perso nessuno dei diritti acquisiti, bensi' ne avrebbero
guadagnati di nuovi.
In senso economico, la distruzione della Jugoslavia significava la fine
dell'esistenza del mercato comune che per decenni aveva stabilito e
regolato i percorsi delle merci, accompagnato dalla libera circolazione
degli uomini e delle idee.
Per la Croazia questo ha significato la perdita improvvisa di oltre il
50% dei suoi beni, che prima della secessione venivano scambiati sul
mercato ex-jugoslavo, il quale non e' stato sostituito da alcun altro
mercato.
Il conflitto armato, in seguito alla secessione, ha avuto come
conseguenza la distruzione materiale delle infrastrutture
dell'economia e l'interruzione del flusso turistico dall'interno e
dall'estero, il che ha portato alla sparizione di questo ramo vitale
dell'economia.
Cosi' si e' creata la prima ondata di disoccupazione e l'abbassamento
dello standard di vita. La seguente ondata e' consistita
nell'interruzione dell'economia socialista e nell'introduzione del
capitalismo nella sua forma peggiore: l'accumulazione primordiale del
capitale.
Le imprese esangui non potevano competere di pari passo con i soggetti
capitalistici nella corsa al mercato. I neo-proprietari, diventati tali
per "meriti" politici, non avevano ne' interesse ne' volonta' e nemmeno
conoscenze per sviluppare la produzione; si limitavano a sfruttare la
materia prima.
Il passo successivo consisteva nella svendita anarchica, agli
stranieri, di tutto quanto aveva un valore, e questo come conseguenza
ha avuto nuove perdite di posti di lavoro e abbassamento dello standard
medio; anche perche' agli investitori stranieri interessava solamente
il mercato ed i beni, non lo sviluppo.
Cosi' [in Croazia] il 94% del potenziale finanziario e' diventato
proprieta' delle banche estere. E' rimasta soltanto la Banca Nazionale
che e' un istituto di emissione monetaria. Sono state vendute le
telecomunicazioni, gran parte delle case giornalistiche, gli hotels e
gli impianti turistici, molte fabbriche.
Da vendere ci sono rimaste ancora l'industria farmaceutica, quella
energetica, gli istitutti di assicurazione ed il latifondo agricolo.
Svendendo ogni giorno ogni potenziale di valore - i cosiddetti
"gioielli di famiglia" - lo Stato troppo costoso e spendaccione cerca
di ottenere i finanziamenti per mantenersi: pero' questo si e' mostrato
insufficiente.
Parallelamente e' cresciuto anche il debito estero, che e' arrivato
alla cifra di 14 miliardi di dollari, vale a dire 3.000 dollari
pro-capite, ossia il 60% del PIL - e per pagare gli interessi serve un
miliardo di dollari l'anno.
Vulnerabile com'e', la Croazia e' diventata la destinazione prediletta
per disfarsi degli equipaggiamenti industriali e bellici obsoleti e
nocivi, e poi anche il poligono per l'addestramento gratuito degli
eserciti.
Negli ultimi 12 anni la Croazia e' retrocessa in tutti i campi; si
stima che abbia perduto 700.000 posti di lavoro; la disoccupazione e'
di 400.000 unita' (la piu' grande in Europa) [in effetti essa e' oggi
superata perlomeno dalla Serbia di Djindjic, che sfiora un milione di
disoccupati; ndCRJ] ovvero
il 20% della popolazione attiva.
A titolo comparativo, la Germania un anno prima dell'ascesa di Hitler
al potere aveva il 20% di disoccupati. E' caratteristico per il paese
che una parte degli operai non viene pagata per mesi o addirittura per
un anno intero. Questa categoria in un certo momento era arrivata alla
cifra di 150.000 persone.
Si stima che durante il conflitto e dopo di quello sono state distrutte
o incendiate 50.000 case. Interi paesi sono scomparsi dalla faccia
della terra. Sono stati cacciati via 250.000 serbi. Intere province
sono rimaste deserte.
Si stima che circa 100.000 giovani altamente scolarizzati siano
emigrati, soprattutto per sfuggire a una guerra che non volevano e
all'assenza di una prospettiva di vita. E' irreale aspettarsi che
questi giovani all'apice della forza produttiva ritornino.
Secondo i dati del 1998, ogni cittadino croato disponeva di 25 kune al
giorno da usare per i consumi, il che corrispondeva a meno di 4 dollari.
E' cosa nota che si considera al di sotto della soglia di poverta' chi
disponga di meno di 5 dollari al giorno.
Le condizioni di vita in Istria e sul Litorale, dunque in regioni
relativamente vicine all'Italia, hanno determinato la nascita di una
specifica categoria sociale: le donne, di varia eta', di diverse
professioni, spesso anche molto istruite, molte con una salute
precaria, che hanno adottato una soluzione sui generis per la
sopravvivenza propria e della propria famiglia, ossia il cercare lavoro
oltre frontiera [in Italia], assistendo gente anziana e/o facendo i
lavori piu' umili. Si ritiene che siano circa
10.000 le donne di tale categoria. Vogliamo ricordare il fatto che
anche le nostre madri si guadagnavano da vivere in questo modo tra le
due guerre mondiali, nelle regioni occupate dagli italiani; la
differenza e' che perlomeno rimanevano a lavorare a casa, mentre quelle
odierne devono separarsi dalle loro famiglie. Cio' ha lasciato segni
inequivocabili nella sfera emotiva e vitale di ogni individuo. In
queste persone si
alternano sentimenti di delusione, apatia, rabbia, impotenza,
riluttanza, rassegnazione. Sono ovvie le conseguenze sullo stato di
salute di queste persone. Non ultima l'abbreviarsi della longevita' dei
cittadini croati negli ultimi dodici anni.
La Croazia e' oggi deindustrializzata. Mancano gli investimenti,
eccetto quelli per la ricostruzione delle strade e delle chiese.
La sanita' e' ridotta ai minimi termini ed e' accessibile solo a chi
puo' permettersela pagando. Anche l'istruzione e' scesa di livello. Uno
dei problemi principali consiste nel revisionismo storico: la storia
viene adattata alle esigenze nazionaliste, il che avra' conseguenze a
lungo termine nella formazione delle nuove generazioni. Un esempio e'
dato dall'accettazione di una netta iconografia ustascia. Quello che ci
deve preoccupare particolarmente e' l'aumentato uso di stupefacenti tra
i giovani in risposta alla mancanza di prospettive per il futuro. Ne
consegue anche una corruzione dilagante tra le istituzioni in vario
modo coinvolte nello spaccio di narcotici.
La Chiesa e' aggressivamente presente in ogni ambito della societa', a
cominciare dagli asili nido.
Il sistema giuridico e' paralizzato dall'onnipresenza di persone
corrotte e dai bisogni del nazionalismo imperante. In particolar modo
cio' e' evidente nel modo in cui vengono trattati i crimini compiuti
dalla parte croata durante e dopo gli scontri bellici.
Per la Croazia e' rischioso il gioco attuato dal suo governo nei
confronti della comunita' internazionale, in particolare con il
Tribunale dell'Aia. La Croazia cerca di sottrarsi arrogantemente alla
collaborazione con la Comunita' Internazionale, ai tentativi di questa
di processare i crimini
commessi. In questo modo essa si accosta alla destra piu' retrograda,
nazionalista, portando il Paese al limite delle sanzioni e
dell'isolamento internazionale.
La domanda che ci si pone e': quali sono le possibili soluzioni di
questa situazione quasi irrisolvibile?
Se partiamo da una constatazione reale, e cioe' dal fatto che
l'economia croata non dispone in questo momento di prodotti che possano
competere sul sofisticato mercato occidentale, mentre potrebbe offrirne
a quello dell'Est, se ne ricava che essa dovrebbe, senza sentirsene
frustrata, accettare questa possibilita'. Questo significa che dovrebbe
stabilire relazioni diverse d'integrazione, s'intende con le
ex-repubbliche jugoslave , nonche' relazioni piu' ampie con quei paesi
dove essa era un tempo presente, il che, secondo le valutazione del
dott. Branko Horvat, comprenderebbe un territorio di 150 milioni di
consumatori. In ambito economico, tanto interno quanto esterno, questo
territorio si denomina "Balkanska unija" (Unione balcanica).
Per far cio' dobbiamo immediatamente fermare l'ulteriore svendita del
patrimonio nazionale che porta alla distruzione dell'economia del
Paese. Laddove e' possibile bisogna restituire all'autogestione da
parte degli operai cio' che e' stato loro sottratto e creare le
condizioni per il rinnovamento della proprieta' collettiva e
dell'autogestione. Bisogna lavorare sulla ricostruzione usando tutte le
nostre risorse intellettive e
utilizzando appieno il potenziale umano di cui disponiamo.
Questo processo non e' facile ma ogni minuto perso lo rende solo piu'
difficile. In mancanza di capitali si potrebbe iniziare da un utilizzo
migliore delle risorse agricole di cui gia' disponiamo. I risultati si
raccolgono gia' dopo un solo anno, e lo stesso vale per il turismo,
naturalmente nel limite di quanto non e' stato ancora svenduto.
Il terrorismo "buono" (english / italiano)
1: MUJAHEDDIN A ZENICA E DINTORNI
A. 7th Bosnian Muslim Brigade, based in Zenica - the international
Islamic mercenary force known as the mujahedeen
+ interesting LINKS
B. Bosnia Seen as Hospitable Base and Sanctuary for Terrorists (Los
Angeles Times)
NOTA:
Sul quotidiano Vecernji List di Zagabria del 3/8/2003 e' scritto che i
due attentatori che con il Boeing si sono schiantati contro il
Pentagono l'11 Settembre, nel 1995 combattevano in Bosnia-Erzegovina. I
loro nomi sarebbero Khalid Al-Mihdhar e Nawaf Al-Hasmir.
Non sappiamo se questi due personaggi si siano veramente schiantati sul
Pentagono. Quello che invece e' assodato e' che militanti islamisti di
svariata provenienza hanno combattuto in Bosnia, al fianco di
Izetbegovic, Clinton ed Adriano Sofri, come e' ben spiegato nei due
articoli che seguono. (IS)
=== A ===
http://www.balkanpeace.org/temp/tmp13.html
7th Bosnian Muslim Brigade, based in Zenica - the international Islamic
mercenary force known as the mujahedeen
(photo)
Alija Izetbegovic with members of 7th Brigade
"... The first and foremost of such conclusions is surely the one on
the incompatibility of Islam and non-Islamic systems. There can be no
peace or coexistence between the "Islamic faith" and non- Islamic
societies and political institutions. ... Islam clearly excludes the
right and possibility of activity of any strange ideology on its own
turf. Therefore, there is no question of any laicistic principles, and
the state should be an expression and should support the moral concepts
of the religion. ..." page 22 "The Islamic Declaration" book ("Islamska
deklaracija"), written by Mr. Alija Izetbegovic, Bosnian Muslim leader.
In preparing the ground for the conflicts between Bosnian Cristians
(Croats and Serbs) and Bosnian Muslims, residents of different Arab
countries who in the B&H had recognized the elements and challenge of
“a holy war” - jihad. Coming from different Arab countries, most of
them were from Yemen, Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia and Afghanistan, and
bringing with them experience from a war from some of the Islamic
trouble spots.
Mujahedin, or «holy warriors», is a generic term for Muslim volunteers
fighting in the former Yugoslavia. Many Mujahedin originate from Muslim
countries outside the former Yugoslavia. It was reported that the
Mujahedin began arriving in BiH as early as June 1992. (Tom Post & Joel
Brand, «Help from the Holy Warriors», Newsweek, 5 October 1992, at 52).
Reports on the number of Mujahedin forces operating in BiH vary, but it
is unlikely that the Mujahedin forces have made a significant military
contribution to the BiH Government's war effort (Christopher Lockwood,
«Muslim Nations Offer Troops», Daily Telegraph, 14 July 1993, at 14.
According to Lockwood, Muslim nations depended on Western logistical
support to deliver troops to BiH. He concludes that the same logistical
troubles which kept the Muslim troops promised in July of 1993 from
joining UN forces in the UN declared «safe havens» also limited the
number of Muslim volunteers in the BiH armed forces. He states that the
number of Mujahedin in BiH never exceeded three or four hundred. See
also Mohamed Sid-Ahmad, «Muslim World Between Two Fires», War Report,
January 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 63744. However, the Belgrade Daily,
Vecernje Novosti, reported that as many as 30,000 Mujahedin were
operating in BiH. «Other Reports in Brief: Muslims from Abroad Settling
in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgrade Daily Claims», BBC, Summary of
World Broadcasts, 19 September 1992. )
The Mujahedin forces came from several Muslim states and many of them
were veterans of the Afghan war. (Andrew Hogg, «Arabs Join in Bosnia
Battle», Sunday Times, 30 August 1992)
Reports submitted to the Commission of Experts alleged that the
Mujahedin have been responsible for the mutilation and killing of
civilians, rape, looting, the destruction of property, and the
expulsion of non-Muslim populations. The deputy commander of the BiH
Army, Colonel Stjepan Siber, has said, «it was a mistake to let them
[the Mujahedin] here . . . They commit most of the atrocities and work
against the interests of the Muslim people. They have been killing,
looting and stealing.» Andrew Hogg, «Terror Trail of the Mujahedin»,
Sunday Times, 27 June 1993.
Several reports indicate that the Mujahedin were placed under the
command of the BiH Army.(See «Some 400 Mujahedin Volunteers Fighting
with Bosnian Muslims», Agence France Presse, 22 September 1992; Andrew
Hogg, «Arabs Join in Bosnia Battle», Sunday Times, 30 August 1992; see
also Charles McLoed, ECMM, «Report on Inter-Ethnic Violence in Vitez,
Busovaca and Zenica», April 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 20178- 20546, at
20207; Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 9, 4 October
1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 36434-36438, at 36435; US Department of State,
1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62648, 62724, 62730, and 62756)
The Mujahedin forces were closely associated with the 5th Corps, the
6th and 7th Zenica Brigades, the 7th Travnik Brigade, and the 45th
Muslim Brigade which belongs to the 6th Corps in Konjic of the Army of
BiH (US Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at
62648; see also Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 9, 4
October 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 36434-36438, at 36435; «Continuing Clashes
in Northwestern Enclave Reported from Both Sides», BBC, Summary of
World Broadcasts, 14 December 1993.)
They also allegedly fought alongside the Muslim Police, the Krajiska
Brigade from Travnik, units of Kosovo Muslims, Albanian soldiers, and
paramilitary groups such as the «Green Legion» and the «Black
Swans».(Charles McLoed, ECMM, Report on Inter-Ethnic Violence in Vitez,
Busovaca and Zenica, April 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 20178-20546, at 20207;
Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 9, 4 October 1993,
IHRLI Doc. No. 36434-36438, at 36435; US Department of State, 1993,
IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62648, 62724, 62730, and 62756.)
Reports also indicate that the Mujahedin had the support of President
Izetbegovic and his government. *57 This was demonstrated in the Bihac
pocket, where the Mujahedin joined BiH forces loyal to Izetbegovic.
Together, these forces battled separatist forces who entered into a
separate peace treaty with Bosnian Serbs («Continuing Clashes in
Northwestern Enclave Reported form Both Sides», BBC, Summary of World
Broadcasts, 14 December 1993)
In Zenica, between 31 August and 2 September 1992, 250 Mujahedin troops
allegedly come to BiH from Turkey, Qatar, Bahrain and Iran. These
troops worked alongside the Green Legion and HOS paramilitary groups
stationed in Zenica. The Mujahedin allegedly also operated a camp at
Arnauti.(Charles McLeod, ECMM, Report on Inter-Ethnic Violence in
Vitez, Buscovaca and Zenica, April 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 29043-29131, at
29064; Biljaja Plavsic, Republic of Serbia Presidency, To Serbs All
Over the World, 30 September 1992, IHRLI Doc. No. 48072- 48093, at
48081)
It was reported that a unit of the Mujahedin, called the «Guerilla»,
participated in the 16 April 1993 attack on Vitez and attempted to
exchange 10 HVO hostages for foreign prisoners held in HVO prisons. (US
Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62629; see
also Charles McLeod, ECMM, Report on Inter-Ethnic Violence in Vitez,
Busovaca and Zenica, April 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 29043-29131, at 29072
(attack on Vitez).
The Croatian Ministry of Defence is reported to have provided
information about an event occurring in June 1993 -- a joint
BiH/Mujahedin unit reportedly attacked Travnik, allegedly forcing 4,000
Croatian civilians and military personnel out of the town. (US
Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62650. Media
reports however claim that Croats left Travnik voluntarily. The
incident was investigated by an organization, which reported that the
forceful eviction did not take place)
The Mujahedin allegedly fought alongside the 6th Muslim Brigade from
Zenica and the Krajiska Brigade from Travnik. Witnesses stated that
they saw Mujahedin operating in small patrols ahead of the approaching
BiH troops.
According to HVO intelligence, Mujahedin forces arrived in Travnik
sometime before June 1993 and came from Algeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan
and Iran. The Mujahedin trained at a camp at Mehurici, where they were
allegedly financed and equipped by a man named Abdulah, the owner of
the «Palma» video store in Travnik. Once in town, the Mujahedin were
linked to the Seventh Brigade of the BiH Army, and were reportedly
assembled into units of 10 to 15 men, and moved about on regular
patrols. The Mujahedin created tension in Travnik in the days prior to
the attack on 3 June. One witness stated that the Mujahedin directed
their actions towards the HVO personnel in town. They allegedly
demonstrated, shouted slogans and fired their rifles in the air.
Mujahedin allegedly participated in the attack on Maljine in Novi
Travnik on 8 June 1993, killing 20 to 30 HVO members and transporting
Croatian women and children to the training centre at
Mehurici.(Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 1, 9 August
1993)
In Konjic, the Mujahedin were part of a 100 member force stationed at
Liscioi and led by Haso Hakalovic. The unit was assembled in February
1993 and included some Kosovo Muslims and members of the Black Swans
from the Igman mountain region. (US Department of State, 1993, IHRLI
Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62756)
Allegedly, Mujahedin troops killed and expelled villagers, and looted
and burned homes, when they moved against the Jablanica- Konjic area.
The Mujahedin troops and members of the Black Swans reportedly
conducted occasional raids without members of BiH forces. (at IHRLI
Doc. No. 62752 and 62756. The village of Vrci was attacked on 25 May,
and the village of Radesine was attacked on 10 June. See also Tadeusz
Mazowiecki, Fifth Periodic Report on the Situation of Human Rights in
the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia, U.N. Doc. E/CN.4/1994/47, 17
November 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 52399-52435, at 52405 (alleging that the
Mujahedin were involved in attacks at Kopjari on 21 October, Doljani on
27 and 28 June, and Maljane on 8 June). UN Special Rapporteur
Mazowiecki claims that corpses of Mujahedin victims displayed evidence
of protracted cruelty and mutilation. )
Reportedly, the Mujahedin volunteers arrived in Konjic in small groups.
It was reported that they were from Afghanistan and that they claimed
to be students. They were allegedly armed with Hekleri automatic
weapons and former JNA equipment. Some Mujahedin were reportedly former
students with no military experience.
Mujahedin forces were present in Mostar since early June 1993. They
were reportedly stationed in the Santica neighbourhood on the
Muslim/HVO front, where they manned bunkers, usually in groups of six
or seven, armed with 7.62 millimetre semi-automatic weapons,
machine-guns, and Zolja anti-tank weapons. They were billeted in a
building they shared with the Muslim military police on the east bank
of the Neretva River. The Mujahedin forces apparently left Mostar on 15
August. (US Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at
62742 and 62677. For more details on the location of the Neretva living
quarters, see Id. at 62739)
FRY reported that the Mujahedin began operations near Teslic in July
and August of 1992. Troops from Saudi Arabia allegedly killed three
Serbian Territorial Defence members and placed the victims' severed
heads on poles near the «Tesanj turret». (Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia, Second Report Submitted to the Commission of Experts, 1993,
IHRLI Doc. No. 28401-29019, at 28533)
Beheadings of Serbs by Mujahedin forces have also been reported in
other areas.
The Mujahedin were also alleged to be part of the forces that invaded
the village of Trusina near Foca on 15 April 1993. According to the
report, attackers wore white ribbons on their arms and fought beside
Albanian Muslim troops. Twenty-two civilians reportedly died in the
attack. (US Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at
62648; Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 9, 4 October
1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 36434-36438, at 36435)
The Mujahedin allegedly performed crude circumcisions upon Serbian
police forces, who were later treated by an American surgeon at the
Kosevo hospital in Sarajevo. (Letter dated 7 December 1992 from the
Deputy Representative of the US to U.N. Secretary-General, U.N. Doc.
S/24918, 8 December 1992, IHRLI Doc. No. 3160-3177, at 3173; Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia, Second Report Submitted to the Commission of
Experts, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 28401-29019, at 28566)
(photo)
This photograph was seized from Saudi Arabian fighters captured in Crni
Vrh near Teslic, Bosnia. A Muslim solder displays the severed head of
Blagoje Blagojevic, a Serb from the village of Jasenovo near Teslic.
(photo)
The severed heads of three Serbs (identified as Blagoje Blagojevic,
Nenad Petkovic, and Brana Djuric) beheaded by Muslim fighters. This
picture was seized from Saudi Arabian solders captured near Teslic in
Bosnia.
LINKS:
7th Brigade, loyal Islamic force
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/timbeat4.htm
Director of the U.S. Congress' Task Force on Terrorism and
Unconventional warfare: "Some Call It Peace"
http://members.tripod.com/Balkania/resources/geostrategy/
bodansky_peace/bp_part1.html
7th Muslim "Liberation" Brigade
http://www.wargamer.com/sp/military/bih/armija/foreign.asp
Washington Post - Iranians Form Terror Force in Bosnia
http://impact.users.netlink.co.uk/namir/sreport.htm
Bosnia losing the pluralistic character
http://www.bosnet.org/archive/bosnet.w3archive/9501/msg00252.html
No future for Muslims in Europe unless they have a state of their own
http://www.amber.ucsf.edu/homes/ross/public_html/bosnia_/mus.txt
US Senate Document; Clinton-Approved Iranian Arms Transfers Help Turn
Bosnia into Militant Islamic Base
http://www.senate.gov/~rpc/releases/1997/iran.htm
A BOSNIAN VILLAGE'S TERRORIST
http://www.mfa.gov.yu/Aktuelno/BIVSE/BiH/wpost11032000_e.html
The Second Coming of Alija Izetbegovic
http://www.balkanpeace.org/our/our05.shtml
Selling the Bosnian Myth to America: Part I-Buyer Beware
http://reagan.com/HotTopics.main/HotMike/document-12.11.2000.3.html
Army suspects munitions manufactured for Bosnian army
http://archive.nandotimes.com/newsroom/nt/0204yugfff.html
Similarity - The 13th Waffen-Gebirgs Division der SS Handschar
http://www.wssob.com/013divhnd.html
Jihad - the "Holly War"
http://blaskic.croat.net/jihad.htm
=== B ===
The Los Angeles Times
October 7, 2001
Bosnia Seen as Hospitable Base and Sanctuary for Terrorists
By CRAIG PYES, JOSH MEYER and WILLIAM C. REMPEL , Times Staff Writers
ZENICA, Bosnia-Herzegovina -- Hundreds of foreign Islamic extremists
who became Bosnian citizens after battling Serbian and Croatian forces
present a potential terrorist threat to Europe and the United States,
according to a classified U.S. State Department report and interviews
with international military and intelligence sources.
The extremists include hard-core terrorists, some with ties to Osama
bin Laden, protected by militant elements of the former Sarajevo
government. Bosnia-Herzegovina is "a staging area and safe haven" for
terrorists, said a former senior State Department official.
The secret report, prepared late last year for the Clinton
administration, warned of problem passport-holders in Bosnia in numbers
that "shocked everyone," the former official said. The White House
leaned on Bosnia and its then-president, Alija Izetbegovic, to do
something about the matter, "but nothing happened," he said.
Although no evidence connects any Bosnian group to the suicide
hijacking attacks of Sept. 11 blamed on Bin Laden, U.S. and European
officials are increasingly concerned about the scope and reach of Bin
Laden networks in the West and the proximity of Bosnia-based terrorists
to the heart of Europe.
A number of the extremists "would travel with impunity and conduct,
plan and stage terrorist acts with impunity while hiding behind their
Bosnian passports," the former official said.
In several instances, terrorists with links to Bosnia have launched
actions against Western targets:
* An Algerian with Bosnian citizenship, described by a U.S. official as
"a junior Osama bin Laden," tried to help smuggle explosives in 1998 to
an Egyptian terrorist group plotting to destroy U.S. military
installations in Germany. The shipment included military C-4 plastic
explosives and blasting caps, the former U.S. official said. The CIA
intercepted the shipment, foiling the attack.
* Another North African with Bosnian citizenship belonged to a
terrorist cell in Montreal that conspired in the failed millennium plot
to bomb Los Angeles International Airport.
* One of Bin Laden's top lieutenants--a Palestinian linked to major
terrorist plots in Jordan, France and the United States--had operatives
in Bosnia and was issued a Bosnian passport, according to U.S.
officials.
After the foiled plot against American bases in Germany, the U.S.
suspended without public explanation a military aid program to Bosnia
in 1999 in an attempt to force the deportation of the Algerian leader
of the group, Abdelkader Mokhtari, also known as Abu el Maali.
Finally, after the U.S. went a step further and threatened to stop all
economic aid, Izetbegovic agreed to deport El Maali. But the Algerian
was back in Bosnia within a year. Two months ago, he was reported to be
moving in and out of the country freely. He is now thought to be in
Afghanistan with the leadership of Bin Laden's Al Qaeda group,
according to a senior official for the NATO-led peacekeeping force,
SFOR, in Bosnia.
President Clinton's secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, personally
appealed to Izetbegovic to oust suspected terrorists or rescind their
Bosnian passports.
The effort by top State Department aides continued through the last
days of the administration. "It wasn't just one meeting, it was 10 to
12, with orders directly from the White House," said a former State
Department official.
Izetbegovic declined the appeals, several sources said, apparently out
of loyalty to the fighters who had come to his country's rescue. The
president argued that many had married Bosnian women, had taken up
farming and were legal citizens.
"The point we kept making to Izetbegovic was that if the day comes we
find out that these people are connected to some terrible terrorist
incident, that's the day the entire U.S.-Bosnia relationship will
change from friends to adversaries," the former State Department
official said.
Senior U.S. and SFOR officials believe that some hard-line members of
Izetbegovic's political party gave direct support, through their
control of the Foreign Ministry and local passport operations, to
foreign Islamic extremists with ties to Bin Laden.
Although Izetbegovic stepped down in October 2000, many hard-liners
remain in Bosnia's bureaucracy, and they are suspected of operating
their own rogue intelligence service that protects Islamic extremists,
military and intelligence sources said.
Last week, Bosnia's new interior minister, citing "trustworthy
intelligence sources," said scores of Bin Laden associates may be
trying to flee Afghanistan ahead of anticipated U.S. military reprisals
for the Sept. 11 attacks, seeking refuge among militant sympathizers in
Bosnia. The minister, Mohammed Besic, vowed to intercept any who try to
enter the country.
U.S. and SFOR officials acknowledge that the new coalition government
in Sarajevo has become much more responsive to fighting terrorism. A
senior State Department official lauded Sarajevo this year for "working
with the international community" in trying to clamp down on suspected
terrorists.
Since Sept. 11, Bosnia has launched an audit of passports and mounted a
more intensive crackdown on naturalized citizens who are wanted by
foreign law enforcement agencies. After years of inaction, several
international fugitives have been arrested this year and extradited.
Western Interests in Balkans May Be at Risk
Bosnia has a large Muslim population, most of whom do not practice a
strict form of Islam.
A senior State Department official cautioned that "a lot of people's
interests are served by hyping the terrorism problem in the Balkans,"
referring to anti-Muslim sentiment among other ethnic groups there.
But, he added, "that is not to say there are not bad people who would
exploit the weaknesses in the government and the lax security and use
[Bosnia] as a place to hide."
To date, Western interests in the Balkans have not been terrorist
targets. However, a senior peacekeeping official in Bosnia said local
police report that "there are plans to attack the Western interests
here in Bosnia after any future retaliatory strikes in Afghanistan. We
don't have anything to confirm it."
Bosnia has traditionally served as "an R&R [rest and recreation]
destination" for members of Bin Laden's organization and other
extremists, according to U.S. officials and the peacekeeping force.
"They come to Bosnia to chill out, because so many other places are too
hot for them," said a former State Department official active in
counter-terrorism.
They also use Bosnian passports to travel worldwide without drawing the
kind of scrutiny that those who hold Middle Eastern or North African
documents might attract, officials said. Bosnian passports are
particularly valuable for ease of travel to other Muslim countries
where no visa requirement is imposed on Bosnians.
Under the Izetbegovic government, the immigration system was so
unregulated that Bin Laden allies "would get boxes of blank passports
and just print them up themselves," the former State Department
official said.
A military official said that "for the right amount of money, you can
get a Bosnian passport even though it's the first time you've stepped
foot into Bosnia."
Among those who Western intelligence sources say was granted Bosnian
citizenship and passports was Abu Zubeida, one of Bin Laden's top
lieutenants. Zubeida, a Palestinian from the Gaza Strip, was in charge
of contacts with other Islamic terrorist networks and controlled
admissions to terrorist training camps in Afghanistan. He arranged
training for unsuccessful millennium bomb plots in Canada and Jordan
and a recently foiled suicide attack on the U.S. Embassy in Paris,
according to court records and investigative reports.
Zubeida also asked LAX bomb plot figure Ahmed Ressam to get blank
Canadian passports that would allow other terrorists to infiltrate the
United States, according to testimony from Ressam, who was convicted in
the bomb plot and is cooperating with investigators.
Another terrorist with Bosnian credentials is Karim Said Atmani, a
Moroccan who was Ressam's roommate in Montreal and who was in the group
that plotted to bomb LAX, according to testimony. The Bosnian
government arrested him in April, and Atmani was extradited to France,
where he awaits sentencing on terrorism charges.
Beginning in 1992, as many as 4,000 volunteers from throughout North
Africa, the Middle East and Europe came to Bosnia to fight Serbian and
Croatian nationalists on behalf of fellow Muslims. They are known as
the moujahedeen. A military analyst called them "pretty good fighters
and certainly ruthless."
"I think the Muslims wouldn't have survived without this" help, Richard
Holbrooke, the United States' former chief Balkans peace negotiator,
said in a recent interview. At the time, U.N. peacekeepers were proving
ineffective at protecting Bosnian civilians, and an arms embargo
diminished Bosnia's fighting capabilities.
But Holbrooke called the arrival of the moujahedeen "a pact with the
devil" from which Bosnia still is recovering.
The foreign moujahedeen units were disbanded and required to leave the
Balkans under the terms of the 1995 Dayton, Ohio, peace accord. But
many stayed--about 400, according to official Bosnian estimates.
Although the State Department report suggested that the number could be
higher, a senior SFOR official said allied military intelligence
estimated that no more than 200 foreign-born militants actually live in
Bosnia, of which closer to 30 represent a hard-core group with direct
links to terrorism.
"These are the bad guys--the ones you have to worry about," the
official said.
But he also said that "hundreds of other" Islamic extremists with and
without Bosnian passports "come in and out" and that Bosnia remains a
center for Al Qaeda recruiting and logistics support.
Bin Laden Reportedly Financed Recruits
A U.S. counter-terrorism official confirmed that "several hundred"
former moujahedeen remain in Bosnia. "Are they a threat? Absolutely.
Are we all over them? Absolutely," he said.
The fighters were organized as an all-moujahedeen unit called El
Moujahed. It was headquartered in Zenica in an abandoned hillside
factory, a compound with a hospital and prayer hall.
Bin Laden financed small convoys of recruits from the Arab world
through his businesses in Sudan, according to Mideast intelligence
reports. Other support and recruits for El Moujahed came, at least in
part, through Islamic organizations in Milan, Italy, and Istanbul,
Turkey, that European investigators later linked to trafficking in
passports and weapons for terrorists.
A series of national security and criminal investigations across Europe
have since identified the El Moujahed unit in court filings as the
"common cradle" from which an international terrorist network grew and
ultimately stretched from the Middle East to Canada.
Abu el Maali, its leader during the Bosnian war, remains an enigmatic
figure, charismatic and popular within the moujahedeen but barely known
outside. He briefly appeared in a propaganda video on El Moujahed
during the war, but his face was digitally removed before distribution.
French court documents say El Maali now is the leader of terrorist
cells in Bosnia, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Court testimony, confidential police records and interviews with
European intelligence officials show how El Maali marshaled recruits
from the West and Muslim countries to assemble the infrastructure of
what would become a terrorist organization.
Two French converts to Islam, both in their mid-20s, were among the
early volunteers for El Maali's ranks in the Bosnian war. Christophe
Caze, a medical school dropout, and Lionel Dumont joined El Moujahed to
provide humanitarian services. But once assigned to the moujahedeen
unit in Zenica, they immediately "plunged into violence," an associate
told French police.
A French judicial official said their eventual passage to terrorism was
strongly influenced by El Maali, with whom they became close. El Maali
"exerted a lot of influence on the fighters . . . which led them to
commit these violent actions under the cover of Islam," the magistrate
said.
The converts emerged as leaders, rendering impassioned exhortations to
younger volunteers to defend Islam "by all means," according to court
records. They also began setting up a clandestine network in France,
creating multiple identities, encoding phone lists and recruiting
followers they could call into action later. Court records say that
Caze, working as a medic, recruited future terrorists among the wounded
he treated.
At the war's end, U.S. officials focused on state-sponsored terrorism
and worried about getting Iranian fighters back to Iran. Less clear
were the implications of loosely allied extremist groups and
individuals.
Looking back, peace negotiator Holbrooke blamed imprecise and "sloppy
intelligence" for failing to distinguish which Muslim groups posed a
threat to the United States. It turned out that Iranian fighters went
home. Many of El Maali's trained warriors did not.
Spasm of Violence Hits Northern France
In Bosnia, most of the violence stopped with the peace accord in 1995.
But in January 1996, it broke out again--on the streets of northern
France.
A puzzling crime wave swept the area around Roubaix, a gritty,
Muslim-majority town near the Belgian border. Small groups of men began
holding up stores and drivers. They brandished machine guns and wore
hoods and carnival masks. Two people were killed.
On March 28, just before a Group of 7 summit of leading industrial
nations that would bring top ministers to Lille, police discovered a
stolen car abandoned in front of the police station. It was parked
askew. And it contained a bomb packed into three gas cylinders rigged
to devastate everything within 600 feet. It was disarmed.
The next night, a special tactical squad surrounded a house at 59 Rue
Henri Carette in Roubaix that had been linked to the booby-trapped car.
Police fired thousands of rounds into the building. The house erupted
in flames because of munitions inside, police said later. Four charred
bodies were recovered.
Two men fled the barrage and inferno. At a police roadblock just inside
Belgium, another furious gun battle erupted. One of the men was killed,
and his accomplice was wounded.
In the getaway car, police found rocket launchers, automatic weapons,
large amounts of ammunition and grenades. They also recovered an
electronic organizer containing coded telephone contacts, nearly a
dozen of them in Bosnia. The dead ringleader was identified as
Christophe Caze, the young medic who went to fight in Bosnia.
French authorities, confused about the motives for the spasm of gang
violence, considered it a new phenomenon, calling it "gangster
terrorism." Their investigation uncovered what may have been the first
terrorism cell exported from Bosnia.
After an investigation of the surviving associate, Caze's electronic
organizer and other evidence recovered by French police, the robbery
gang was identified as nine militants who attended a local mosque. Most
of them had undergone military training at the El Moujahed compound in
Bosnia.
The armed robberies were a radical form of fund-raising by Caze and his
associates to benefit their "Muslim brothers in Algeria." Their
high-powered weapons were smuggled home from the Bosnian war.
Caze's organizer was described by one official as "the address book of
the professional terrorist." It contained phone contacts in England,
Italy, France and Canada, as well as direct lines to El Maali's Zenica
headquarters. It led French authorities to trace travels and phone
records and to set up electronic surveillance.
French counter-terrorism officials soon realized they had stumbled upon
more than a band of gangsters. Five years before the sophisticated
terrorist assault on the U.S., the French were starting to uncover
loosely linked violent networks spreading into several countries, all
tied together by a common thread: Bosnia.
One of the phone numbers in the dead terrorist's organizer led to a
suspect in Canada: Fateh Kamel, 41, who ran a small trinkets shop in
Montreal.
French authorities say Canada rejected their initial request to
investigate Kamel, calling the dapper Algerian "just a businessman."
But Kamel also was a confidant of El Maali. He spoke frequently to the
Bosnia moujahedeen chief over his wife's cell phone. Kamel had gone to
Bosnia early in the war, suffered a shrapnel wound in one leg and been
treated at the El Moujahed hospital by Caze, the young medic.
Kamel first came to the attention of European intelligence officials in
1994, when Italian agents tracking suspected terrorists stumbled upon
him recruiting fighters in Milan for El Maali's brigade.
After the Dayton accord, French police say, Kamel became deeply
involved in terrorist logistics. He was "the principal activist of an
international network determined to plan assassinations and to procure
arms and passports for terrorist acts all over the world," according to
a French court document.
In 1996, an Italian surveillance team recorded Kamel discussing a
terrorist attack and taped him declaring: "I do not fear death . . .
because the jihad is the jihad, and to kill is easy for me."
During the same period, Kamel assisted other North African extremists
relocating to Canada, exploiting the country's lax immigration laws and
Quebec's eagerness for French-speaking immigrants such as Algerians.
According to French investigators, Kamel was the leader of a terrorist
cell in Montreal. Other members included Ressam, Atmani and a third
roommate, Mustafa Labsi.
Like Kamel, Atmani had served in Bosnia and was close to El Maali. A
U.S. law enforcement official described Atmani as a "crazy warrior with
a nose so broken and twisted that he could sniff around corners."
Later, authorities believe, the three roommates went to Afghanistan
together to train for a terrorist attack on the United States. They
returned to the West after learning that their target would be Los
Angeles International Airport. The conspiracy was interrupted when
Atmani was deported from Canada to Bosnia.
When Ressam, traveling alone, was captured at the border with
explosives in his rental car, U.S. officials tried to track down his
former roommate Atmani. Authorities had information that he was
traveling between Sarajevo and Istanbul, but Bosnian officials denied
even that Atmani had been deported there. Investigators later learned
that Atmani had been issued a new Bosnian passport six months earlier.
Atmani was part of the hard-core terrorist group noted in the secret
State Department report. He remained beyond the reach of international
extradition until this year, when he was arrested and turned over to
France by Bosnia's new coalition government. He awaits sentencing on
terrorism charges.
Kamel, the alleged ringleader of the group, was arrested in Jordan and
was extradited to France, where he is in prison on a terrorism
conviction. Ressam and Labsi also have been jailed. All of the members
of the former Montreal cell have been convicted of being operatives in
a terrorist network that originated in Bosnia.
James Steinberg, deputy national security advisor in the Clinton
administration, said that although the U.S. works closely with
countries in the Balkans to deal with "the problem of these cells," the
very nature of secret terrorist organizations confounds those efforts.
"It's one thing to [arrest] the people you know [are terrorists], but
then the others . . . bury themselves even deeper," he said.
1: MUJAHEDDIN A ZENICA E DINTORNI
A. 7th Bosnian Muslim Brigade, based in Zenica - the international
Islamic mercenary force known as the mujahedeen
+ interesting LINKS
B. Bosnia Seen as Hospitable Base and Sanctuary for Terrorists (Los
Angeles Times)
NOTA:
Sul quotidiano Vecernji List di Zagabria del 3/8/2003 e' scritto che i
due attentatori che con il Boeing si sono schiantati contro il
Pentagono l'11 Settembre, nel 1995 combattevano in Bosnia-Erzegovina. I
loro nomi sarebbero Khalid Al-Mihdhar e Nawaf Al-Hasmir.
Non sappiamo se questi due personaggi si siano veramente schiantati sul
Pentagono. Quello che invece e' assodato e' che militanti islamisti di
svariata provenienza hanno combattuto in Bosnia, al fianco di
Izetbegovic, Clinton ed Adriano Sofri, come e' ben spiegato nei due
articoli che seguono. (IS)
=== A ===
http://www.balkanpeace.org/temp/tmp13.html
7th Bosnian Muslim Brigade, based in Zenica - the international Islamic
mercenary force known as the mujahedeen
(photo)
Alija Izetbegovic with members of 7th Brigade
"... The first and foremost of such conclusions is surely the one on
the incompatibility of Islam and non-Islamic systems. There can be no
peace or coexistence between the "Islamic faith" and non- Islamic
societies and political institutions. ... Islam clearly excludes the
right and possibility of activity of any strange ideology on its own
turf. Therefore, there is no question of any laicistic principles, and
the state should be an expression and should support the moral concepts
of the religion. ..." page 22 "The Islamic Declaration" book ("Islamska
deklaracija"), written by Mr. Alija Izetbegovic, Bosnian Muslim leader.
In preparing the ground for the conflicts between Bosnian Cristians
(Croats and Serbs) and Bosnian Muslims, residents of different Arab
countries who in the B&H had recognized the elements and challenge of
“a holy war” - jihad. Coming from different Arab countries, most of
them were from Yemen, Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia and Afghanistan, and
bringing with them experience from a war from some of the Islamic
trouble spots.
Mujahedin, or «holy warriors», is a generic term for Muslim volunteers
fighting in the former Yugoslavia. Many Mujahedin originate from Muslim
countries outside the former Yugoslavia. It was reported that the
Mujahedin began arriving in BiH as early as June 1992. (Tom Post & Joel
Brand, «Help from the Holy Warriors», Newsweek, 5 October 1992, at 52).
Reports on the number of Mujahedin forces operating in BiH vary, but it
is unlikely that the Mujahedin forces have made a significant military
contribution to the BiH Government's war effort (Christopher Lockwood,
«Muslim Nations Offer Troops», Daily Telegraph, 14 July 1993, at 14.
According to Lockwood, Muslim nations depended on Western logistical
support to deliver troops to BiH. He concludes that the same logistical
troubles which kept the Muslim troops promised in July of 1993 from
joining UN forces in the UN declared «safe havens» also limited the
number of Muslim volunteers in the BiH armed forces. He states that the
number of Mujahedin in BiH never exceeded three or four hundred. See
also Mohamed Sid-Ahmad, «Muslim World Between Two Fires», War Report,
January 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 63744. However, the Belgrade Daily,
Vecernje Novosti, reported that as many as 30,000 Mujahedin were
operating in BiH. «Other Reports in Brief: Muslims from Abroad Settling
in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgrade Daily Claims», BBC, Summary of
World Broadcasts, 19 September 1992. )
The Mujahedin forces came from several Muslim states and many of them
were veterans of the Afghan war. (Andrew Hogg, «Arabs Join in Bosnia
Battle», Sunday Times, 30 August 1992)
Reports submitted to the Commission of Experts alleged that the
Mujahedin have been responsible for the mutilation and killing of
civilians, rape, looting, the destruction of property, and the
expulsion of non-Muslim populations. The deputy commander of the BiH
Army, Colonel Stjepan Siber, has said, «it was a mistake to let them
[the Mujahedin] here . . . They commit most of the atrocities and work
against the interests of the Muslim people. They have been killing,
looting and stealing.» Andrew Hogg, «Terror Trail of the Mujahedin»,
Sunday Times, 27 June 1993.
Several reports indicate that the Mujahedin were placed under the
command of the BiH Army.(See «Some 400 Mujahedin Volunteers Fighting
with Bosnian Muslims», Agence France Presse, 22 September 1992; Andrew
Hogg, «Arabs Join in Bosnia Battle», Sunday Times, 30 August 1992; see
also Charles McLoed, ECMM, «Report on Inter-Ethnic Violence in Vitez,
Busovaca and Zenica», April 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 20178- 20546, at
20207; Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 9, 4 October
1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 36434-36438, at 36435; US Department of State,
1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62648, 62724, 62730, and 62756)
The Mujahedin forces were closely associated with the 5th Corps, the
6th and 7th Zenica Brigades, the 7th Travnik Brigade, and the 45th
Muslim Brigade which belongs to the 6th Corps in Konjic of the Army of
BiH (US Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at
62648; see also Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 9, 4
October 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 36434-36438, at 36435; «Continuing Clashes
in Northwestern Enclave Reported from Both Sides», BBC, Summary of
World Broadcasts, 14 December 1993.)
They also allegedly fought alongside the Muslim Police, the Krajiska
Brigade from Travnik, units of Kosovo Muslims, Albanian soldiers, and
paramilitary groups such as the «Green Legion» and the «Black
Swans».(Charles McLoed, ECMM, Report on Inter-Ethnic Violence in Vitez,
Busovaca and Zenica, April 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 20178-20546, at 20207;
Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 9, 4 October 1993,
IHRLI Doc. No. 36434-36438, at 36435; US Department of State, 1993,
IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62648, 62724, 62730, and 62756.)
Reports also indicate that the Mujahedin had the support of President
Izetbegovic and his government. *57 This was demonstrated in the Bihac
pocket, where the Mujahedin joined BiH forces loyal to Izetbegovic.
Together, these forces battled separatist forces who entered into a
separate peace treaty with Bosnian Serbs («Continuing Clashes in
Northwestern Enclave Reported form Both Sides», BBC, Summary of World
Broadcasts, 14 December 1993)
In Zenica, between 31 August and 2 September 1992, 250 Mujahedin troops
allegedly come to BiH from Turkey, Qatar, Bahrain and Iran. These
troops worked alongside the Green Legion and HOS paramilitary groups
stationed in Zenica. The Mujahedin allegedly also operated a camp at
Arnauti.(Charles McLeod, ECMM, Report on Inter-Ethnic Violence in
Vitez, Buscovaca and Zenica, April 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 29043-29131, at
29064; Biljaja Plavsic, Republic of Serbia Presidency, To Serbs All
Over the World, 30 September 1992, IHRLI Doc. No. 48072- 48093, at
48081)
It was reported that a unit of the Mujahedin, called the «Guerilla»,
participated in the 16 April 1993 attack on Vitez and attempted to
exchange 10 HVO hostages for foreign prisoners held in HVO prisons. (US
Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62629; see
also Charles McLeod, ECMM, Report on Inter-Ethnic Violence in Vitez,
Busovaca and Zenica, April 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 29043-29131, at 29072
(attack on Vitez).
The Croatian Ministry of Defence is reported to have provided
information about an event occurring in June 1993 -- a joint
BiH/Mujahedin unit reportedly attacked Travnik, allegedly forcing 4,000
Croatian civilians and military personnel out of the town. (US
Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62650. Media
reports however claim that Croats left Travnik voluntarily. The
incident was investigated by an organization, which reported that the
forceful eviction did not take place)
The Mujahedin allegedly fought alongside the 6th Muslim Brigade from
Zenica and the Krajiska Brigade from Travnik. Witnesses stated that
they saw Mujahedin operating in small patrols ahead of the approaching
BiH troops.
According to HVO intelligence, Mujahedin forces arrived in Travnik
sometime before June 1993 and came from Algeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan
and Iran. The Mujahedin trained at a camp at Mehurici, where they were
allegedly financed and equipped by a man named Abdulah, the owner of
the «Palma» video store in Travnik. Once in town, the Mujahedin were
linked to the Seventh Brigade of the BiH Army, and were reportedly
assembled into units of 10 to 15 men, and moved about on regular
patrols. The Mujahedin created tension in Travnik in the days prior to
the attack on 3 June. One witness stated that the Mujahedin directed
their actions towards the HVO personnel in town. They allegedly
demonstrated, shouted slogans and fired their rifles in the air.
Mujahedin allegedly participated in the attack on Maljine in Novi
Travnik on 8 June 1993, killing 20 to 30 HVO members and transporting
Croatian women and children to the training centre at
Mehurici.(Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 1, 9 August
1993)
In Konjic, the Mujahedin were part of a 100 member force stationed at
Liscioi and led by Haso Hakalovic. The unit was assembled in February
1993 and included some Kosovo Muslims and members of the Black Swans
from the Igman mountain region. (US Department of State, 1993, IHRLI
Doc. No. 62612-62877, at 62756)
Allegedly, Mujahedin troops killed and expelled villagers, and looted
and burned homes, when they moved against the Jablanica- Konjic area.
The Mujahedin troops and members of the Black Swans reportedly
conducted occasional raids without members of BiH forces. (at IHRLI
Doc. No. 62752 and 62756. The village of Vrci was attacked on 25 May,
and the village of Radesine was attacked on 10 June. See also Tadeusz
Mazowiecki, Fifth Periodic Report on the Situation of Human Rights in
the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia, U.N. Doc. E/CN.4/1994/47, 17
November 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 52399-52435, at 52405 (alleging that the
Mujahedin were involved in attacks at Kopjari on 21 October, Doljani on
27 and 28 June, and Maljane on 8 June). UN Special Rapporteur
Mazowiecki claims that corpses of Mujahedin victims displayed evidence
of protracted cruelty and mutilation. )
Reportedly, the Mujahedin volunteers arrived in Konjic in small groups.
It was reported that they were from Afghanistan and that they claimed
to be students. They were allegedly armed with Hekleri automatic
weapons and former JNA equipment. Some Mujahedin were reportedly former
students with no military experience.
Mujahedin forces were present in Mostar since early June 1993. They
were reportedly stationed in the Santica neighbourhood on the
Muslim/HVO front, where they manned bunkers, usually in groups of six
or seven, armed with 7.62 millimetre semi-automatic weapons,
machine-guns, and Zolja anti-tank weapons. They were billeted in a
building they shared with the Muslim military police on the east bank
of the Neretva River. The Mujahedin forces apparently left Mostar on 15
August. (US Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at
62742 and 62677. For more details on the location of the Neretva living
quarters, see Id. at 62739)
FRY reported that the Mujahedin began operations near Teslic in July
and August of 1992. Troops from Saudi Arabia allegedly killed three
Serbian Territorial Defence members and placed the victims' severed
heads on poles near the «Tesanj turret». (Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia, Second Report Submitted to the Commission of Experts, 1993,
IHRLI Doc. No. 28401-29019, at 28533)
Beheadings of Serbs by Mujahedin forces have also been reported in
other areas.
The Mujahedin were also alleged to be part of the forces that invaded
the village of Trusina near Foca on 15 April 1993. According to the
report, attackers wore white ribbons on their arms and fought beside
Albanian Muslim troops. Twenty-two civilians reportedly died in the
attack. (US Department of State, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 62612-62877, at
62648; Croatian Information Centre, Weekly Bulletin, No. 9, 4 October
1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 36434-36438, at 36435)
The Mujahedin allegedly performed crude circumcisions upon Serbian
police forces, who were later treated by an American surgeon at the
Kosevo hospital in Sarajevo. (Letter dated 7 December 1992 from the
Deputy Representative of the US to U.N. Secretary-General, U.N. Doc.
S/24918, 8 December 1992, IHRLI Doc. No. 3160-3177, at 3173; Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia, Second Report Submitted to the Commission of
Experts, 1993, IHRLI Doc. No. 28401-29019, at 28566)
(photo)
This photograph was seized from Saudi Arabian fighters captured in Crni
Vrh near Teslic, Bosnia. A Muslim solder displays the severed head of
Blagoje Blagojevic, a Serb from the village of Jasenovo near Teslic.
(photo)
The severed heads of three Serbs (identified as Blagoje Blagojevic,
Nenad Petkovic, and Brana Djuric) beheaded by Muslim fighters. This
picture was seized from Saudi Arabian solders captured near Teslic in
Bosnia.
LINKS:
7th Brigade, loyal Islamic force
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/timbeat4.htm
Director of the U.S. Congress' Task Force on Terrorism and
Unconventional warfare: "Some Call It Peace"
http://members.tripod.com/Balkania/resources/geostrategy/
bodansky_peace/bp_part1.html
7th Muslim "Liberation" Brigade
http://www.wargamer.com/sp/military/bih/armija/foreign.asp
Washington Post - Iranians Form Terror Force in Bosnia
http://impact.users.netlink.co.uk/namir/sreport.htm
Bosnia losing the pluralistic character
http://www.bosnet.org/archive/bosnet.w3archive/9501/msg00252.html
No future for Muslims in Europe unless they have a state of their own
http://www.amber.ucsf.edu/homes/ross/public_html/bosnia_/mus.txt
US Senate Document; Clinton-Approved Iranian Arms Transfers Help Turn
Bosnia into Militant Islamic Base
http://www.senate.gov/~rpc/releases/1997/iran.htm
A BOSNIAN VILLAGE'S TERRORIST
http://www.mfa.gov.yu/Aktuelno/BIVSE/BiH/wpost11032000_e.html
The Second Coming of Alija Izetbegovic
http://www.balkanpeace.org/our/our05.shtml
Selling the Bosnian Myth to America: Part I-Buyer Beware
http://reagan.com/HotTopics.main/HotMike/document-12.11.2000.3.html
Army suspects munitions manufactured for Bosnian army
http://archive.nandotimes.com/newsroom/nt/0204yugfff.html
Similarity - The 13th Waffen-Gebirgs Division der SS Handschar
http://www.wssob.com/013divhnd.html
Jihad - the "Holly War"
http://blaskic.croat.net/jihad.htm
=== B ===
The Los Angeles Times
October 7, 2001
Bosnia Seen as Hospitable Base and Sanctuary for Terrorists
By CRAIG PYES, JOSH MEYER and WILLIAM C. REMPEL , Times Staff Writers
ZENICA, Bosnia-Herzegovina -- Hundreds of foreign Islamic extremists
who became Bosnian citizens after battling Serbian and Croatian forces
present a potential terrorist threat to Europe and the United States,
according to a classified U.S. State Department report and interviews
with international military and intelligence sources.
The extremists include hard-core terrorists, some with ties to Osama
bin Laden, protected by militant elements of the former Sarajevo
government. Bosnia-Herzegovina is "a staging area and safe haven" for
terrorists, said a former senior State Department official.
The secret report, prepared late last year for the Clinton
administration, warned of problem passport-holders in Bosnia in numbers
that "shocked everyone," the former official said. The White House
leaned on Bosnia and its then-president, Alija Izetbegovic, to do
something about the matter, "but nothing happened," he said.
Although no evidence connects any Bosnian group to the suicide
hijacking attacks of Sept. 11 blamed on Bin Laden, U.S. and European
officials are increasingly concerned about the scope and reach of Bin
Laden networks in the West and the proximity of Bosnia-based terrorists
to the heart of Europe.
A number of the extremists "would travel with impunity and conduct,
plan and stage terrorist acts with impunity while hiding behind their
Bosnian passports," the former official said.
In several instances, terrorists with links to Bosnia have launched
actions against Western targets:
* An Algerian with Bosnian citizenship, described by a U.S. official as
"a junior Osama bin Laden," tried to help smuggle explosives in 1998 to
an Egyptian terrorist group plotting to destroy U.S. military
installations in Germany. The shipment included military C-4 plastic
explosives and blasting caps, the former U.S. official said. The CIA
intercepted the shipment, foiling the attack.
* Another North African with Bosnian citizenship belonged to a
terrorist cell in Montreal that conspired in the failed millennium plot
to bomb Los Angeles International Airport.
* One of Bin Laden's top lieutenants--a Palestinian linked to major
terrorist plots in Jordan, France and the United States--had operatives
in Bosnia and was issued a Bosnian passport, according to U.S.
officials.
After the foiled plot against American bases in Germany, the U.S.
suspended without public explanation a military aid program to Bosnia
in 1999 in an attempt to force the deportation of the Algerian leader
of the group, Abdelkader Mokhtari, also known as Abu el Maali.
Finally, after the U.S. went a step further and threatened to stop all
economic aid, Izetbegovic agreed to deport El Maali. But the Algerian
was back in Bosnia within a year. Two months ago, he was reported to be
moving in and out of the country freely. He is now thought to be in
Afghanistan with the leadership of Bin Laden's Al Qaeda group,
according to a senior official for the NATO-led peacekeeping force,
SFOR, in Bosnia.
President Clinton's secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, personally
appealed to Izetbegovic to oust suspected terrorists or rescind their
Bosnian passports.
The effort by top State Department aides continued through the last
days of the administration. "It wasn't just one meeting, it was 10 to
12, with orders directly from the White House," said a former State
Department official.
Izetbegovic declined the appeals, several sources said, apparently out
of loyalty to the fighters who had come to his country's rescue. The
president argued that many had married Bosnian women, had taken up
farming and were legal citizens.
"The point we kept making to Izetbegovic was that if the day comes we
find out that these people are connected to some terrible terrorist
incident, that's the day the entire U.S.-Bosnia relationship will
change from friends to adversaries," the former State Department
official said.
Senior U.S. and SFOR officials believe that some hard-line members of
Izetbegovic's political party gave direct support, through their
control of the Foreign Ministry and local passport operations, to
foreign Islamic extremists with ties to Bin Laden.
Although Izetbegovic stepped down in October 2000, many hard-liners
remain in Bosnia's bureaucracy, and they are suspected of operating
their own rogue intelligence service that protects Islamic extremists,
military and intelligence sources said.
Last week, Bosnia's new interior minister, citing "trustworthy
intelligence sources," said scores of Bin Laden associates may be
trying to flee Afghanistan ahead of anticipated U.S. military reprisals
for the Sept. 11 attacks, seeking refuge among militant sympathizers in
Bosnia. The minister, Mohammed Besic, vowed to intercept any who try to
enter the country.
U.S. and SFOR officials acknowledge that the new coalition government
in Sarajevo has become much more responsive to fighting terrorism. A
senior State Department official lauded Sarajevo this year for "working
with the international community" in trying to clamp down on suspected
terrorists.
Since Sept. 11, Bosnia has launched an audit of passports and mounted a
more intensive crackdown on naturalized citizens who are wanted by
foreign law enforcement agencies. After years of inaction, several
international fugitives have been arrested this year and extradited.
Western Interests in Balkans May Be at Risk
Bosnia has a large Muslim population, most of whom do not practice a
strict form of Islam.
A senior State Department official cautioned that "a lot of people's
interests are served by hyping the terrorism problem in the Balkans,"
referring to anti-Muslim sentiment among other ethnic groups there.
But, he added, "that is not to say there are not bad people who would
exploit the weaknesses in the government and the lax security and use
[Bosnia] as a place to hide."
To date, Western interests in the Balkans have not been terrorist
targets. However, a senior peacekeeping official in Bosnia said local
police report that "there are plans to attack the Western interests
here in Bosnia after any future retaliatory strikes in Afghanistan. We
don't have anything to confirm it."
Bosnia has traditionally served as "an R&R [rest and recreation]
destination" for members of Bin Laden's organization and other
extremists, according to U.S. officials and the peacekeeping force.
"They come to Bosnia to chill out, because so many other places are too
hot for them," said a former State Department official active in
counter-terrorism.
They also use Bosnian passports to travel worldwide without drawing the
kind of scrutiny that those who hold Middle Eastern or North African
documents might attract, officials said. Bosnian passports are
particularly valuable for ease of travel to other Muslim countries
where no visa requirement is imposed on Bosnians.
Under the Izetbegovic government, the immigration system was so
unregulated that Bin Laden allies "would get boxes of blank passports
and just print them up themselves," the former State Department
official said.
A military official said that "for the right amount of money, you can
get a Bosnian passport even though it's the first time you've stepped
foot into Bosnia."
Among those who Western intelligence sources say was granted Bosnian
citizenship and passports was Abu Zubeida, one of Bin Laden's top
lieutenants. Zubeida, a Palestinian from the Gaza Strip, was in charge
of contacts with other Islamic terrorist networks and controlled
admissions to terrorist training camps in Afghanistan. He arranged
training for unsuccessful millennium bomb plots in Canada and Jordan
and a recently foiled suicide attack on the U.S. Embassy in Paris,
according to court records and investigative reports.
Zubeida also asked LAX bomb plot figure Ahmed Ressam to get blank
Canadian passports that would allow other terrorists to infiltrate the
United States, according to testimony from Ressam, who was convicted in
the bomb plot and is cooperating with investigators.
Another terrorist with Bosnian credentials is Karim Said Atmani, a
Moroccan who was Ressam's roommate in Montreal and who was in the group
that plotted to bomb LAX, according to testimony. The Bosnian
government arrested him in April, and Atmani was extradited to France,
where he awaits sentencing on terrorism charges.
Beginning in 1992, as many as 4,000 volunteers from throughout North
Africa, the Middle East and Europe came to Bosnia to fight Serbian and
Croatian nationalists on behalf of fellow Muslims. They are known as
the moujahedeen. A military analyst called them "pretty good fighters
and certainly ruthless."
"I think the Muslims wouldn't have survived without this" help, Richard
Holbrooke, the United States' former chief Balkans peace negotiator,
said in a recent interview. At the time, U.N. peacekeepers were proving
ineffective at protecting Bosnian civilians, and an arms embargo
diminished Bosnia's fighting capabilities.
But Holbrooke called the arrival of the moujahedeen "a pact with the
devil" from which Bosnia still is recovering.
The foreign moujahedeen units were disbanded and required to leave the
Balkans under the terms of the 1995 Dayton, Ohio, peace accord. But
many stayed--about 400, according to official Bosnian estimates.
Although the State Department report suggested that the number could be
higher, a senior SFOR official said allied military intelligence
estimated that no more than 200 foreign-born militants actually live in
Bosnia, of which closer to 30 represent a hard-core group with direct
links to terrorism.
"These are the bad guys--the ones you have to worry about," the
official said.
But he also said that "hundreds of other" Islamic extremists with and
without Bosnian passports "come in and out" and that Bosnia remains a
center for Al Qaeda recruiting and logistics support.
Bin Laden Reportedly Financed Recruits
A U.S. counter-terrorism official confirmed that "several hundred"
former moujahedeen remain in Bosnia. "Are they a threat? Absolutely.
Are we all over them? Absolutely," he said.
The fighters were organized as an all-moujahedeen unit called El
Moujahed. It was headquartered in Zenica in an abandoned hillside
factory, a compound with a hospital and prayer hall.
Bin Laden financed small convoys of recruits from the Arab world
through his businesses in Sudan, according to Mideast intelligence
reports. Other support and recruits for El Moujahed came, at least in
part, through Islamic organizations in Milan, Italy, and Istanbul,
Turkey, that European investigators later linked to trafficking in
passports and weapons for terrorists.
A series of national security and criminal investigations across Europe
have since identified the El Moujahed unit in court filings as the
"common cradle" from which an international terrorist network grew and
ultimately stretched from the Middle East to Canada.
Abu el Maali, its leader during the Bosnian war, remains an enigmatic
figure, charismatic and popular within the moujahedeen but barely known
outside. He briefly appeared in a propaganda video on El Moujahed
during the war, but his face was digitally removed before distribution.
French court documents say El Maali now is the leader of terrorist
cells in Bosnia, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Court testimony, confidential police records and interviews with
European intelligence officials show how El Maali marshaled recruits
from the West and Muslim countries to assemble the infrastructure of
what would become a terrorist organization.
Two French converts to Islam, both in their mid-20s, were among the
early volunteers for El Maali's ranks in the Bosnian war. Christophe
Caze, a medical school dropout, and Lionel Dumont joined El Moujahed to
provide humanitarian services. But once assigned to the moujahedeen
unit in Zenica, they immediately "plunged into violence," an associate
told French police.
A French judicial official said their eventual passage to terrorism was
strongly influenced by El Maali, with whom they became close. El Maali
"exerted a lot of influence on the fighters . . . which led them to
commit these violent actions under the cover of Islam," the magistrate
said.
The converts emerged as leaders, rendering impassioned exhortations to
younger volunteers to defend Islam "by all means," according to court
records. They also began setting up a clandestine network in France,
creating multiple identities, encoding phone lists and recruiting
followers they could call into action later. Court records say that
Caze, working as a medic, recruited future terrorists among the wounded
he treated.
At the war's end, U.S. officials focused on state-sponsored terrorism
and worried about getting Iranian fighters back to Iran. Less clear
were the implications of loosely allied extremist groups and
individuals.
Looking back, peace negotiator Holbrooke blamed imprecise and "sloppy
intelligence" for failing to distinguish which Muslim groups posed a
threat to the United States. It turned out that Iranian fighters went
home. Many of El Maali's trained warriors did not.
Spasm of Violence Hits Northern France
In Bosnia, most of the violence stopped with the peace accord in 1995.
But in January 1996, it broke out again--on the streets of northern
France.
A puzzling crime wave swept the area around Roubaix, a gritty,
Muslim-majority town near the Belgian border. Small groups of men began
holding up stores and drivers. They brandished machine guns and wore
hoods and carnival masks. Two people were killed.
On March 28, just before a Group of 7 summit of leading industrial
nations that would bring top ministers to Lille, police discovered a
stolen car abandoned in front of the police station. It was parked
askew. And it contained a bomb packed into three gas cylinders rigged
to devastate everything within 600 feet. It was disarmed.
The next night, a special tactical squad surrounded a house at 59 Rue
Henri Carette in Roubaix that had been linked to the booby-trapped car.
Police fired thousands of rounds into the building. The house erupted
in flames because of munitions inside, police said later. Four charred
bodies were recovered.
Two men fled the barrage and inferno. At a police roadblock just inside
Belgium, another furious gun battle erupted. One of the men was killed,
and his accomplice was wounded.
In the getaway car, police found rocket launchers, automatic weapons,
large amounts of ammunition and grenades. They also recovered an
electronic organizer containing coded telephone contacts, nearly a
dozen of them in Bosnia. The dead ringleader was identified as
Christophe Caze, the young medic who went to fight in Bosnia.
French authorities, confused about the motives for the spasm of gang
violence, considered it a new phenomenon, calling it "gangster
terrorism." Their investigation uncovered what may have been the first
terrorism cell exported from Bosnia.
After an investigation of the surviving associate, Caze's electronic
organizer and other evidence recovered by French police, the robbery
gang was identified as nine militants who attended a local mosque. Most
of them had undergone military training at the El Moujahed compound in
Bosnia.
The armed robberies were a radical form of fund-raising by Caze and his
associates to benefit their "Muslim brothers in Algeria." Their
high-powered weapons were smuggled home from the Bosnian war.
Caze's organizer was described by one official as "the address book of
the professional terrorist." It contained phone contacts in England,
Italy, France and Canada, as well as direct lines to El Maali's Zenica
headquarters. It led French authorities to trace travels and phone
records and to set up electronic surveillance.
French counter-terrorism officials soon realized they had stumbled upon
more than a band of gangsters. Five years before the sophisticated
terrorist assault on the U.S., the French were starting to uncover
loosely linked violent networks spreading into several countries, all
tied together by a common thread: Bosnia.
One of the phone numbers in the dead terrorist's organizer led to a
suspect in Canada: Fateh Kamel, 41, who ran a small trinkets shop in
Montreal.
French authorities say Canada rejected their initial request to
investigate Kamel, calling the dapper Algerian "just a businessman."
But Kamel also was a confidant of El Maali. He spoke frequently to the
Bosnia moujahedeen chief over his wife's cell phone. Kamel had gone to
Bosnia early in the war, suffered a shrapnel wound in one leg and been
treated at the El Moujahed hospital by Caze, the young medic.
Kamel first came to the attention of European intelligence officials in
1994, when Italian agents tracking suspected terrorists stumbled upon
him recruiting fighters in Milan for El Maali's brigade.
After the Dayton accord, French police say, Kamel became deeply
involved in terrorist logistics. He was "the principal activist of an
international network determined to plan assassinations and to procure
arms and passports for terrorist acts all over the world," according to
a French court document.
In 1996, an Italian surveillance team recorded Kamel discussing a
terrorist attack and taped him declaring: "I do not fear death . . .
because the jihad is the jihad, and to kill is easy for me."
During the same period, Kamel assisted other North African extremists
relocating to Canada, exploiting the country's lax immigration laws and
Quebec's eagerness for French-speaking immigrants such as Algerians.
According to French investigators, Kamel was the leader of a terrorist
cell in Montreal. Other members included Ressam, Atmani and a third
roommate, Mustafa Labsi.
Like Kamel, Atmani had served in Bosnia and was close to El Maali. A
U.S. law enforcement official described Atmani as a "crazy warrior with
a nose so broken and twisted that he could sniff around corners."
Later, authorities believe, the three roommates went to Afghanistan
together to train for a terrorist attack on the United States. They
returned to the West after learning that their target would be Los
Angeles International Airport. The conspiracy was interrupted when
Atmani was deported from Canada to Bosnia.
When Ressam, traveling alone, was captured at the border with
explosives in his rental car, U.S. officials tried to track down his
former roommate Atmani. Authorities had information that he was
traveling between Sarajevo and Istanbul, but Bosnian officials denied
even that Atmani had been deported there. Investigators later learned
that Atmani had been issued a new Bosnian passport six months earlier.
Atmani was part of the hard-core terrorist group noted in the secret
State Department report. He remained beyond the reach of international
extradition until this year, when he was arrested and turned over to
France by Bosnia's new coalition government. He awaits sentencing on
terrorism charges.
Kamel, the alleged ringleader of the group, was arrested in Jordan and
was extradited to France, where he is in prison on a terrorism
conviction. Ressam and Labsi also have been jailed. All of the members
of the former Montreal cell have been convicted of being operatives in
a terrorist network that originated in Bosnia.
James Steinberg, deputy national security advisor in the Clinton
administration, said that although the U.S. works closely with
countries in the Balkans to deal with "the problem of these cells," the
very nature of secret terrorist organizations confounds those efforts.
"It's one thing to [arrest] the people you know [are terrorists], but
then the others . . . bury themselves even deeper," he said.
Südosteuropa: Presse unter deutscher Kontrolle
GERMAN PRESS BUYS POLITICAL POWER IN THE EAST
Berichte auf deutsch aus http://www.german-foreign-policy.com
A synopsis in english from: http://www.freenations.freeuk.com
=== DEUTSCH ===
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1055887200.php
18.06.2003
Südosteuropa: Presse unter deutscher Kontrolle
ESSEN - Die Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (WAZ) baut ihre
Vorherrschaft auf den Pressemärkten Südosteuropas aus. Durch eine Reihe
von Übernahmen - zuletzt in Ungarn - will der Konzern dort seine
,,maßgebliche Position" durchsetzen.
Der WAZ-Konzern - bereits jetzt der dominierende Zeitungsverlag in
Südosteuropa - beherrscht große Teile der Zeitungsmärkte in Rumänien
und Bulgarien, besitzt die führenden Zeitungen in Serbien und
Montenegro und hält wichtige Beteiligungen in Ungarn und Kroatien. In
den letzten Jahren hat das deutsche Unternehmen durch den Aufkauf
zahlreicher renommierter Zeitungen in Südosteuropa, darunter die
traditionsreiche Belgrader ,,Politika" oder die Bukarester ,,Romania
Libera", von sich reden gemacht. Der Konzern will nach eigenen Angaben
in allen Ländern Südosteuropas eine ,,maßgebliche Position" auf den
Zeitungsmärkten erreichen.
Schritt für Schritt
Erst im März hat die WAZ 50 Prozent der Anteile an der führenden
montenegrinischen Zeitung ,,Vijesti" gekauft. Im Mai wurde bekannt,
dass der Konzern sich um die Übernahme der drei führenden Zeitungen in
Mazedonien bemüht - unterstützt vom Ex-Außenminister und Botschafter in
Deutschland, Srgan Kerim, der als Berater angeheuert wurde. Auch in
Serbien wird intensiv über den Kauf einer weiteren Zeitung in Novi Sad
in der Provinz Vojvodina verhandelt.
In Ungarn steht die WAZ in Konkurrenz zum Bertelsmann-Konzern, der mit
dem Tochterunternehmen Gruner + Jahr den dortigen Markt beherrscht.1)
Der WAZ-Konzern besitzt dort derzeit fünf regionale Tageszeitungen.
Diese Position wird jetzt weiter ausgebaut: Der Essener Konzern hat 75
Prozent der Anteile an dem ungarischen Verlag HVG Rt. in Budapest
gekauft, der das führende ungarische Wochenmagazin ,,Heti
Vilaggazdasag" herausgibt.
Quellen:
WAZ kauft 50 Prozent der Anteile der führenden Zeitung Montenegros;
Deutsche Welle Monitor Ost-/Südosteuropa 18.03.2003
WAZ-Gruppe expandiert auf dem Balkan; Financial Times Deutschland
15.05.2003
WAZ kauft ungarisches Wirtschaftsmagazin; Handelsblatt 13.06.2003
---
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1055023200.php
08.06.2003
Berlin droht Belgrad
SMEDEREVO - Das Auswärtige Amt setzt die serbische Regierung massiv
unter Druck, um den Verkauf eines Stahlwerkes an ein US-Unternehmen zu
verhindern. Der deutsche Botschafter in Belgrad drohte in einer
offiziellen Note mit schweren wirtschaftlichen und rechtlichen
Konsequenzen, wenn die Entscheidung nicht rückgängig gemacht werde.
Anlass der Berliner Drohgebärden ist der Verkauf des traditionsreichen
serbischen Eisen- und Stahlwerks Sartid an U.S. Steel Kosice
(Slowakei), eine Tochtergesellschaft des US-Stahlgiganten U.S. Steel,
die mit dem Erwerb von Sartid ihre Marktposition in Ost- und
Südosteuropa ausbaut. Auch deutsche Konzerne waren an dem bedeutendsten
serbischen Stahlproduzenten interessiert.
Der Berliner Botschafter in Belgrad hat die serbische Regierung jetzt
aufgefordert, die Entscheidung zum Verkauf von Sartid rückgängig zu
machen, da die potentiellen deutschen Investoren ,,rechtswidrig"
benachteiligt worden seien. Wenn dies nicht geschehe, könnten deutsche
Unternehmen ihre Investitionen und ihr Engagement in der Staatenunion
einstellen. Deutschland verfügt als stärkster Wirtschaftspartner von
,,Serbien und Montenegro" (früher: Jugoslawien) über großen Einfluss im
Land1), der deutsche WAZ-Konzern hat eine führende Stellung auf dem
jugoslawischen Medienmarkt inne2) und kann daher maßgeblich in
öffentliche Debatten eingreifen.
Der deutsche Botschafter gab darüber hinaus bekannt, deutsche
Unternehmer würden ihre Ansprüche auf Sartid vor dem Internationalen
Schiedsgericht in Wien durchzusetzen versuchen.
Quelle:
Deutscher Botschafter in Belgrad übt nach Verkauf von Eisenwerk an
US-Firma scharfe Kritik an serbischer Regierung - Serbischer
Wirtschaftsminister betont Rechtmäßigkeit des Verkaufs; Deutsche Welle
Monitor Ost-/Südosteuropa 04.06.2003
---
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1029500348.php
16.08.2002
,,Deutscher Blitzkrieg" auf dem Pressemarkt
ESSEN - Die Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (WAZ), eines der größten
deutschen Medienunternehmen, expandiert seit Jahren insbesondere in
Südosteuropa. Dort ist es nun dem Vorwurf ausgesetzt, in einzelnen
Staaten der Region Meinungsmonopole zusammenzukaufen und Konkurrenten
mit ihrer wirtschaftlichen Macht an die Wand zu drücken.
Quasi-Monopole auf dem Pressemarkt
Der WAZ-Konzern besitzt allein 22 Zeitungen und 50 Zeitschriften und
gehört mit einem Umsatz von rund 1,9 Milliarden Euro im Jahr 2001 zu
den größten deutschen Medienunternehmen. Bereits seit Mitte der 1980er
Jahre hält die WAZ-Gruppe in Österreich unter anderem eine
50-prozentige Beteiligung an der größten Boulevardzeitung des Landes,
der ,,Neuen Kronen Zeitung". 1992 begann die WAZ mit dem Aufkauf von
Regionalzeitungen in Ungarn, inzwischen gehört dem Konzern die größte
Zeitungsgruppe des Landes1). Seit 1996 kaufte sich die Mediengruppe in
Bulgarien ein, wo sie inzwischen eine marktbeherrschende Stellung hat
wie nirgendwo sonst. Die WAZ gibt dort die auflagenstärkste
Tageszeitung, die größte politische Wochenzeitung, die auflagenstärkste
Frauenzeitung und die einzige Abendzeitung heraus und kontrolliert,
gemessen an der Auflage, 80 Prozent der bulgarischen Tagespresse. ,,Die
WAZ hat den bulgarischen Print-Medien-Markt monopolisiert", hieß es in
einer Stellungnahme der bulgarischen Anti-Trust-Kommission.
Auch in Kroatien und Rumänien2) gehört die WAZ-Gruppe inzwischen zu den
Marktführern. Durch eine 20-Millionen-Euro-Einlage erreichte die
WAZ-Gruppe 1998 eine 50-prozentige Beteiligung an der kroatischen
Europapress Holding (EPH), die Eigentümerin zahlreicher Tages- und
Wochenzeitungen sowie eines umfangreichen Vertriebsnetzes ist. Mit
mittlerweile 70 Prozent der kroatischen Zeitungen hat der WAZ-Konzern
auch in Kroatien ein Quasi-Monopol auf dem Pressemarkt.
Mitte Oktober 2001 unterzeichnete der WAZ-Konzern mit dem Belgrader
Verlag Politika AD einen Vertrag zur Übernahme von 50 Prozent des
Presseunternehmens3). Die WAZ bringt 25 Millionen Euro in das Joint
Venture ein, Politika AD nur 1.000 Euro. Politika AD gilt als der
traditions- und erfolgreichste Medienkonzern auf dem Balkan. In
Jugoslawien verfügt das Unternehmen über 3 Tageszeitungen und 14
Magazine sowie Druckereien und den Auslieferungsservice und betreibt
einen Rundfunksender. Die gleichnamige Zeitschrift des im Jahre 1904
gegründeten Traditionsverlags gilt als wichtigstes Sprachrohr der
jugoslawischen Regierung. Ende Juli kaufte sich der Konzern Berichten
zufolge für 10 Millionen Euro auch bei der führenden Zeitung der
Provinz Vojvodina ein. Auch in Jugoslawien übt damit die WAZ de facto
die Medienkontrolle aus. Weitere Verhandlungen zu Übernahmen in
Montenegro und Bosnien stehen kurz vor dem Abschluss.
,,Die Deutschen kommen"
Insgesamt besitzt der WAZ-Konzern heute durch direkte oder
verschachtelte Beteiligungen 23 Zeitungen, 38 Zeitschriften und 10
Anzeigenblätter in Tschechien4), Ungarn, Rumänien, Bulgarien, Kroatien
und Jugoslawien. Der neue WAZ-Geschäftsführer Hombach versucht, die
Übernahmen als Wohltaten darstellen: ,,Nicht wir klopfen dort an die
Türen und sagen, nun sind wir da und möchten uns für weitere Titel
interessieren, sondern die Titel fragen bei uns an. Denn sie wissen,
das wir ein guter Partner sind. Wir sichern die technischen und auch
die ökonomischen Voraussetzungen, damit Publizistik in diesen jungen
Demokratien möglich ist."
Kritiker in den betroffenen Ländern sehen das anders: Der WAZ-Gruppe
wird vorgeworfen, sie versuche Meinungsmonopole zusammenzukaufen und
Konkurrenten mit ihrer wirtschaftlichen Macht an die Wand zu drücken.
Vertreter der regionalen Presse zeigen sich über die beherrschende
Stellung der WAZ empört: Durch die Monopolisierung des Werbemarktes
werde der Regionalpresse die Haupteinnahmequelle entzogen. ,,Die
Deutschen kommen", alarmierte das jugoslawische Magazin ,,NIN" seine
Leser. Der Vorsitzende der bulgarischen Vereinigung der
Zeitungsverleger trat mit einer Stellungnahme unter dem Titel
,,Deutscher Blitzkrieg ruiniert die bulgarische Presse" an die
Öffentlichkeit.
1) In Ungarn steht die WAZ in Konkurrenz zum Bertelsmann-Konzern, der
mit dem Tochterunternehmen Gruner+Jahr den dortigen Markt beherrscht
(s. Deutsche Pressekonzerne in Osteuropa ,,räumen auf")
2) Dort wiederum gemeinsam mit Gruner+Jahr, die durch die mehrheitliche
Übernahme des Bukarester Pressehauses Expres u.a. über die
überregionale Boulevardzeitung Evenimentul zilei (EZ) verfügt, mit
130.000 Exemplaren täglich eine der auflagenstärksten Tageszeitungen
Rumäniens.
3) Der EU-Koordinator des Stabilitätspaktes für Südosteuropa, Bodo
Hombach, hatte dem Konzern die Tore des jugoslawischen Medienmarktes
geöffnet und wechselte anschließend als Geschäftsführer zur WAZ (s.
Hombach eröffnet der Westdeutschen Allgemeinen Zeitung den Medienmarkt
in Jugoslawien)
4) Die tschechische Regierung beklagte bereits, die Zeitungen des
eigenen Landes, die sich ,,in deutscher Hand" befänden, berichteten
zunehmend einseitig über die Auseinandersetzungen um die
,,Benes-Dekrete". Drei der überregionalen Zeitungen befinden sich im
Besitz deutscher Verlage (s. Tschechische Regierung wehrt sich gegen
deutsche Medien-Dominanz)
Quellen:
Ganz wie bei Orwell. Nach Ungarn und Österreich ist die Verlagsgruppe
WAZ nun auch in Bulgarien auf dem Vormarsch; M, Zeitschrift der IG
Medien, 08.08.1997
Medienmacht auf dem Balkan; 2-sat Kulturzeit 21.06.2002
Komischer Kochtopf; Der Spiegel 12.08.2002
Sensible Märkte - Die deutsche Mediengruppe WAZ kauft immer mehr
Zeitungen in Südosteuropa; Deutsche Welle Monitor Ost-/Südosteuropa
14.08.2002
---
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1014073200.php
19.02.2002
Hombach eröffnet der Westdeutschen Allgemeinen Zeitung den Medienmarkt
in Jugoslawien
ESSEN - Kurz bevor Bodo Hombach Ende des Jahres 2001 seinen Posten als
EU-Koordinator des Stabilitätspaktes für Südosteuropa verließ und als
Geschäftsführer zur Westdeutschen Allgemeinen Zeitung (WAZ) wechselte,
öffnete er seinem künftigen Arbeitgeber die Tore des jugoslawischen
Medienmarktes.
Mitte Oktober 2001 unterzeichnete der WAZ-Konzern mit dem Belgrader
Verlag Politika AD einen Vertrag zur Gründung einer gemeinsamen
Gesellschaft. Hombach hatte die Kontakte zwischen der WAZ und Politika
vorbereitet. Die gleichnamige Zeitschrift des im Jahre 1904 gegründeten
serbischen Traditionsverlags galt jahrelang als wichtigstes Sprachrohr
der jugoslawischen Regierung unter Slobodan Milosevic. Das heute hoch
verschuldete Presseunternehmen verlegt in Jugoslawien drei
Tageszeitungen, 14 Magazine und betreibt einen Rundfunksender. Die
WAZ-Mediengruppe ist bereits mit 25 Zeitungen und 50 Zeitschriften in
sechs anderen osteuropäischen Ländern vertreten.
---
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1005433200.php
11.11.2001
Deutsche Pressekonzerne in Osteuropa "räumen auf"
HAMBURG (Eigener Bericht) - Bertelsmann, größter europäischer
Medienkonzern, ordnet seinen Osteuropa-Besitz neu, um in das ungarische
TV-Geschäft einzusteigen. Mit mehreren Beteiligungen an ungarischen
Tageszeitungen (Nepszabadsag/Delmagyarorszag/Deelvilag), die von dem
Tochterunternehmen Gruner+Jahr gehalten werden, ist Bertelsmann in
Ungarn Monopolist.
Da die ungarische Regierung wegen der beabsichtigten TV-Expansion
Bedenken geltend macht, plant Bertelsmann eine Rochade. Die
osteuropäischen Zeitungsbeteiligungen (u.a. auch in Rumänien und
Tschechien) sollen in einer Holding zusammengefasst werden. Darin wäre
Bertelsmann (gemeinsam mit dem Schweizer Ringier-Verlag) als
bescheidener Anteilseigner weniger auffällig. Die Kaschierung der
deutschen Monopolstellung würde einen widerstandslosen Einstieg in das
ungarische TV-Geschäft erlauben.
Bertelsmann beherrscht nicht nur den osteuropäischen Zeitungsmarkt,
sondern gehört zugleich in Österreich, Frankreich, Spanien,
Großbritannien und den USA zu den führenden Branchenunternehmen. Die
nordamerikanischen Konzern-Aktivitäten werden gegenwärtig ausgeweitet.
Gehörten bereits bisher Publikationen wie Family Circle, Rosie,
Parents, Child, Fitness, American Homestyle, YM, Inc. oder Fast Company
zum ertragreichen Bertelsmann-Besitz, so sollen diese Aquisitionen
jetzt ergänzt werden.
,,Hitlers bester Lieferant"
Bertelsmann wird in den USA einer aggressiven Geschäftspolitik
beschuldigt. Die dortigen Bertelsmann-Druckereibetriebe kontrollieren
die Herstellung von rund 500 Magazinen mit Netto-Verkäufen in Höhe von
monatlich 300 Millionen US Dollar.
Bertelsmann legte seine Konzern-Fundamente in der NS-Zeit und verdiente
an der nationalsozialistischen Kriegspolitik. Das Haus darf als
,,Hitlers bester Lieferant" bezeichnet werden. Heute beschäftigt
Bertelsmann weltweit 70.000 Mitarbeiter und erzielt rund 40 Milliarden
DM (20 Milliarden Euro) Umsatz.
,,Deutscher Blitzkrieg"
Neben Bertelsmann sind auch andere deutsche Pressekonzerne weltweit
tätig. Dazu gehört die Kirch-Gruppe (1998 Nr. 8 in der Weltrangliste,
kooperiert mit der italienischen Berlusconi-Gruppe), die Axel Springer
AG (Nr. 28) und die Zeitungsgruppe WAZ (Nr. 41).
Die deutsche Presseexpansion (Tschechische Republik: Blesk, Slowakische
Republik: Novy Cas) sei ,,brutal und heimtückisch", sagt der
bulgarische Journalist und ehemalige Vorsitzende der bulgarischen
Vereinigung der Zeitungsverleger, Valeri Naidenow. Das Auftraten der
deutschen Konzerne erinnere an einen ,,Blitzkrieg". Über die Folgen der
deutschen Medienexpansion prophezeite die bulgarische Zeitung Novinar
ihren Lesern: ,,Du wirst denken, wie es dir die deutschen Zeitungen
befehlen".
Quellen:
Gruner + Jahr räumen in Ungarn auf, Die Welt 11.11.2001
Deutsche Verlage auf Osteuropa-Trip; ,,M" (Zeitschrift der IG Medien)
8-9/1997
=== ENGLISH ===
http://www.freenations.freeuk.com/news-2003-07-23.html
GERMAN PRESS BUYS POLITICAL POWER IN THE EAST
Translated from german-foreign-policy.com and commentated by Rodney
Atkinson
Dateline: 23rd July 2003
INTRODUCTION: In the normal course of international investment the
expansion of German firms abroad would be no different from the same
activities by British or American or French corporations. However much
depends on the political history of the relationships between the
investing and the recipient nation and in what sectors the investment
is taking place.
In the case of German industry today as it invests in Poland, The Czech
Republic, Austria, Yugoslavia and elsewhere in Eastern Europe the
political history is one of bloody conquest and exploitation by Germany
and the industrial sectors which are being targeted are those highly
political areas of newspapers and the electronic media. We already have
examples – especially in Yugoslavia and The Czech Republic – of the
pressure put on local editors by their German owners to report national
and above all "European" affairs in a light favourable to German
interests. For instance the editor of the Czech regional newspaper
"Svoboda" received a letter from his German owner during the Yugoslav
war (21st April 1999) which warned him not to report so favourably the
activities of the Serbs "(your comments) exceeded tolerability…not to
mention your evaluation of other hideous acts perpetrated by Milosevic
- you do not devote due attention to them. I shall not repeat my
challenges of 14th and 20th April…I expect from you a less one-sided
approach…With friendly(!) greetings Matthias Roscher". The full wording
of the letter is in my possession and will appear in the next edition
of Fascist Europe Rising.
The following translation of a report from our journalist friends in
Germany shows how the above is undoubtedly being replicated elsewhere.
German press groups are expanding further into East and Southern
Europe, especially into Poland. The German Springer Verlag (owner of
the lurid tabloid Bildzeitung which recently stoked the German-Italian
crisis with an advert for "blonde nationalistic……Germans" whom the
paper would send on holiday to Italy!) already the second biggest
newspaper publisher seeks to double its circulation. The German press
expansion – not surprisingly - reminds the Polish media of the German
colonisation and the occupation of Western Poland by Prussia.
The Axel Springer Organisation the largest German newspaper group seeks
through expansion abroad to improve its prospects in the harsh
competitive world of the German printing business. Up to now only 16%
of its turnover comes from abroad (2002 - 2.78billion Euro) and wants
to double this in the next few years. The competitors, German
Publishers Bauer, Gruner und Jahr, the WAZ Group and Burda have been
expanding into other countries in recent years and have achieved almost
50% of their turnover from abroad.
Springer seeks to achieve the goal of having 30% of its turnover from
abroad by large acquisitions and the founding of new newspapers. About
half of the 32 purchases and new businesses of the last two years have
been abroad. Emphasis has been put in Western Europe on France, Spain,
and Switzerland and in Eastern Europe on Poland, Czech republic,
Rumania and Hungary – where Springer is the leader in the newspaper
market. They also have their eye on the Asian markets: "We are at
present considering market entry in Russia and China and will be active
there probably in the next two years" the publisher declared.
A New Colonisation of Poland?
Spinger’s expansion in Poland started in 1994 and the company is now
the second biggest newspaper publisher in the country and the owner of
16 publications including the successful economic magazine Profit.
Since the successful introduction of "Newsweek Polska" in 2001,
Springer Polska is now the market leader in news magazine.
The next step is a new polish daily newspaper. At the moment there is
only one tabloid on the Polish market – Super Express – half of which
belongs to the Swedish Bonnier group. With a new tabloid Springer wants
to double his Polish turnover. But there is competition. Agora, the
publisher of the largest Polish newspaper "Gazeta Wyborcza" is working
on its own tabloid which is due to appear at the end of August.
The Polish press is mostly dominated by German publishers. By far the
largest, with 28 titles and a total circulation of about 10 million, is
Bauer. Passau (now dominant in the Czech market) took over the Polish
titles of the French Group Hersant and is the largest publisher of
regional newspapers. This dominant position is facing growing
criticism. At the end of last year (2002) the economically liberal and
Europe-friendly weekly magazine WPROST described, on its front page,
with the heading Drang nach Osten, the German press take-over as a new
colonisation. In some regions of Poland the Germans were so prominent
in the newspaper market that it already resembled the Prussian
occupation of Western Poland
GERMAN PRESS BUYS POLITICAL POWER IN THE EAST
Berichte auf deutsch aus http://www.german-foreign-policy.com
A synopsis in english from: http://www.freenations.freeuk.com
=== DEUTSCH ===
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1055887200.php
18.06.2003
Südosteuropa: Presse unter deutscher Kontrolle
ESSEN - Die Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (WAZ) baut ihre
Vorherrschaft auf den Pressemärkten Südosteuropas aus. Durch eine Reihe
von Übernahmen - zuletzt in Ungarn - will der Konzern dort seine
,,maßgebliche Position" durchsetzen.
Der WAZ-Konzern - bereits jetzt der dominierende Zeitungsverlag in
Südosteuropa - beherrscht große Teile der Zeitungsmärkte in Rumänien
und Bulgarien, besitzt die führenden Zeitungen in Serbien und
Montenegro und hält wichtige Beteiligungen in Ungarn und Kroatien. In
den letzten Jahren hat das deutsche Unternehmen durch den Aufkauf
zahlreicher renommierter Zeitungen in Südosteuropa, darunter die
traditionsreiche Belgrader ,,Politika" oder die Bukarester ,,Romania
Libera", von sich reden gemacht. Der Konzern will nach eigenen Angaben
in allen Ländern Südosteuropas eine ,,maßgebliche Position" auf den
Zeitungsmärkten erreichen.
Schritt für Schritt
Erst im März hat die WAZ 50 Prozent der Anteile an der führenden
montenegrinischen Zeitung ,,Vijesti" gekauft. Im Mai wurde bekannt,
dass der Konzern sich um die Übernahme der drei führenden Zeitungen in
Mazedonien bemüht - unterstützt vom Ex-Außenminister und Botschafter in
Deutschland, Srgan Kerim, der als Berater angeheuert wurde. Auch in
Serbien wird intensiv über den Kauf einer weiteren Zeitung in Novi Sad
in der Provinz Vojvodina verhandelt.
In Ungarn steht die WAZ in Konkurrenz zum Bertelsmann-Konzern, der mit
dem Tochterunternehmen Gruner + Jahr den dortigen Markt beherrscht.1)
Der WAZ-Konzern besitzt dort derzeit fünf regionale Tageszeitungen.
Diese Position wird jetzt weiter ausgebaut: Der Essener Konzern hat 75
Prozent der Anteile an dem ungarischen Verlag HVG Rt. in Budapest
gekauft, der das führende ungarische Wochenmagazin ,,Heti
Vilaggazdasag" herausgibt.
Quellen:
WAZ kauft 50 Prozent der Anteile der führenden Zeitung Montenegros;
Deutsche Welle Monitor Ost-/Südosteuropa 18.03.2003
WAZ-Gruppe expandiert auf dem Balkan; Financial Times Deutschland
15.05.2003
WAZ kauft ungarisches Wirtschaftsmagazin; Handelsblatt 13.06.2003
---
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1055023200.php
08.06.2003
Berlin droht Belgrad
SMEDEREVO - Das Auswärtige Amt setzt die serbische Regierung massiv
unter Druck, um den Verkauf eines Stahlwerkes an ein US-Unternehmen zu
verhindern. Der deutsche Botschafter in Belgrad drohte in einer
offiziellen Note mit schweren wirtschaftlichen und rechtlichen
Konsequenzen, wenn die Entscheidung nicht rückgängig gemacht werde.
Anlass der Berliner Drohgebärden ist der Verkauf des traditionsreichen
serbischen Eisen- und Stahlwerks Sartid an U.S. Steel Kosice
(Slowakei), eine Tochtergesellschaft des US-Stahlgiganten U.S. Steel,
die mit dem Erwerb von Sartid ihre Marktposition in Ost- und
Südosteuropa ausbaut. Auch deutsche Konzerne waren an dem bedeutendsten
serbischen Stahlproduzenten interessiert.
Der Berliner Botschafter in Belgrad hat die serbische Regierung jetzt
aufgefordert, die Entscheidung zum Verkauf von Sartid rückgängig zu
machen, da die potentiellen deutschen Investoren ,,rechtswidrig"
benachteiligt worden seien. Wenn dies nicht geschehe, könnten deutsche
Unternehmen ihre Investitionen und ihr Engagement in der Staatenunion
einstellen. Deutschland verfügt als stärkster Wirtschaftspartner von
,,Serbien und Montenegro" (früher: Jugoslawien) über großen Einfluss im
Land1), der deutsche WAZ-Konzern hat eine führende Stellung auf dem
jugoslawischen Medienmarkt inne2) und kann daher maßgeblich in
öffentliche Debatten eingreifen.
Der deutsche Botschafter gab darüber hinaus bekannt, deutsche
Unternehmer würden ihre Ansprüche auf Sartid vor dem Internationalen
Schiedsgericht in Wien durchzusetzen versuchen.
Quelle:
Deutscher Botschafter in Belgrad übt nach Verkauf von Eisenwerk an
US-Firma scharfe Kritik an serbischer Regierung - Serbischer
Wirtschaftsminister betont Rechtmäßigkeit des Verkaufs; Deutsche Welle
Monitor Ost-/Südosteuropa 04.06.2003
---
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1029500348.php
16.08.2002
,,Deutscher Blitzkrieg" auf dem Pressemarkt
ESSEN - Die Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung (WAZ), eines der größten
deutschen Medienunternehmen, expandiert seit Jahren insbesondere in
Südosteuropa. Dort ist es nun dem Vorwurf ausgesetzt, in einzelnen
Staaten der Region Meinungsmonopole zusammenzukaufen und Konkurrenten
mit ihrer wirtschaftlichen Macht an die Wand zu drücken.
Quasi-Monopole auf dem Pressemarkt
Der WAZ-Konzern besitzt allein 22 Zeitungen und 50 Zeitschriften und
gehört mit einem Umsatz von rund 1,9 Milliarden Euro im Jahr 2001 zu
den größten deutschen Medienunternehmen. Bereits seit Mitte der 1980er
Jahre hält die WAZ-Gruppe in Österreich unter anderem eine
50-prozentige Beteiligung an der größten Boulevardzeitung des Landes,
der ,,Neuen Kronen Zeitung". 1992 begann die WAZ mit dem Aufkauf von
Regionalzeitungen in Ungarn, inzwischen gehört dem Konzern die größte
Zeitungsgruppe des Landes1). Seit 1996 kaufte sich die Mediengruppe in
Bulgarien ein, wo sie inzwischen eine marktbeherrschende Stellung hat
wie nirgendwo sonst. Die WAZ gibt dort die auflagenstärkste
Tageszeitung, die größte politische Wochenzeitung, die auflagenstärkste
Frauenzeitung und die einzige Abendzeitung heraus und kontrolliert,
gemessen an der Auflage, 80 Prozent der bulgarischen Tagespresse. ,,Die
WAZ hat den bulgarischen Print-Medien-Markt monopolisiert", hieß es in
einer Stellungnahme der bulgarischen Anti-Trust-Kommission.
Auch in Kroatien und Rumänien2) gehört die WAZ-Gruppe inzwischen zu den
Marktführern. Durch eine 20-Millionen-Euro-Einlage erreichte die
WAZ-Gruppe 1998 eine 50-prozentige Beteiligung an der kroatischen
Europapress Holding (EPH), die Eigentümerin zahlreicher Tages- und
Wochenzeitungen sowie eines umfangreichen Vertriebsnetzes ist. Mit
mittlerweile 70 Prozent der kroatischen Zeitungen hat der WAZ-Konzern
auch in Kroatien ein Quasi-Monopol auf dem Pressemarkt.
Mitte Oktober 2001 unterzeichnete der WAZ-Konzern mit dem Belgrader
Verlag Politika AD einen Vertrag zur Übernahme von 50 Prozent des
Presseunternehmens3). Die WAZ bringt 25 Millionen Euro in das Joint
Venture ein, Politika AD nur 1.000 Euro. Politika AD gilt als der
traditions- und erfolgreichste Medienkonzern auf dem Balkan. In
Jugoslawien verfügt das Unternehmen über 3 Tageszeitungen und 14
Magazine sowie Druckereien und den Auslieferungsservice und betreibt
einen Rundfunksender. Die gleichnamige Zeitschrift des im Jahre 1904
gegründeten Traditionsverlags gilt als wichtigstes Sprachrohr der
jugoslawischen Regierung. Ende Juli kaufte sich der Konzern Berichten
zufolge für 10 Millionen Euro auch bei der führenden Zeitung der
Provinz Vojvodina ein. Auch in Jugoslawien übt damit die WAZ de facto
die Medienkontrolle aus. Weitere Verhandlungen zu Übernahmen in
Montenegro und Bosnien stehen kurz vor dem Abschluss.
,,Die Deutschen kommen"
Insgesamt besitzt der WAZ-Konzern heute durch direkte oder
verschachtelte Beteiligungen 23 Zeitungen, 38 Zeitschriften und 10
Anzeigenblätter in Tschechien4), Ungarn, Rumänien, Bulgarien, Kroatien
und Jugoslawien. Der neue WAZ-Geschäftsführer Hombach versucht, die
Übernahmen als Wohltaten darstellen: ,,Nicht wir klopfen dort an die
Türen und sagen, nun sind wir da und möchten uns für weitere Titel
interessieren, sondern die Titel fragen bei uns an. Denn sie wissen,
das wir ein guter Partner sind. Wir sichern die technischen und auch
die ökonomischen Voraussetzungen, damit Publizistik in diesen jungen
Demokratien möglich ist."
Kritiker in den betroffenen Ländern sehen das anders: Der WAZ-Gruppe
wird vorgeworfen, sie versuche Meinungsmonopole zusammenzukaufen und
Konkurrenten mit ihrer wirtschaftlichen Macht an die Wand zu drücken.
Vertreter der regionalen Presse zeigen sich über die beherrschende
Stellung der WAZ empört: Durch die Monopolisierung des Werbemarktes
werde der Regionalpresse die Haupteinnahmequelle entzogen. ,,Die
Deutschen kommen", alarmierte das jugoslawische Magazin ,,NIN" seine
Leser. Der Vorsitzende der bulgarischen Vereinigung der
Zeitungsverleger trat mit einer Stellungnahme unter dem Titel
,,Deutscher Blitzkrieg ruiniert die bulgarische Presse" an die
Öffentlichkeit.
1) In Ungarn steht die WAZ in Konkurrenz zum Bertelsmann-Konzern, der
mit dem Tochterunternehmen Gruner+Jahr den dortigen Markt beherrscht
(s. Deutsche Pressekonzerne in Osteuropa ,,räumen auf")
2) Dort wiederum gemeinsam mit Gruner+Jahr, die durch die mehrheitliche
Übernahme des Bukarester Pressehauses Expres u.a. über die
überregionale Boulevardzeitung Evenimentul zilei (EZ) verfügt, mit
130.000 Exemplaren täglich eine der auflagenstärksten Tageszeitungen
Rumäniens.
3) Der EU-Koordinator des Stabilitätspaktes für Südosteuropa, Bodo
Hombach, hatte dem Konzern die Tore des jugoslawischen Medienmarktes
geöffnet und wechselte anschließend als Geschäftsführer zur WAZ (s.
Hombach eröffnet der Westdeutschen Allgemeinen Zeitung den Medienmarkt
in Jugoslawien)
4) Die tschechische Regierung beklagte bereits, die Zeitungen des
eigenen Landes, die sich ,,in deutscher Hand" befänden, berichteten
zunehmend einseitig über die Auseinandersetzungen um die
,,Benes-Dekrete". Drei der überregionalen Zeitungen befinden sich im
Besitz deutscher Verlage (s. Tschechische Regierung wehrt sich gegen
deutsche Medien-Dominanz)
Quellen:
Ganz wie bei Orwell. Nach Ungarn und Österreich ist die Verlagsgruppe
WAZ nun auch in Bulgarien auf dem Vormarsch; M, Zeitschrift der IG
Medien, 08.08.1997
Medienmacht auf dem Balkan; 2-sat Kulturzeit 21.06.2002
Komischer Kochtopf; Der Spiegel 12.08.2002
Sensible Märkte - Die deutsche Mediengruppe WAZ kauft immer mehr
Zeitungen in Südosteuropa; Deutsche Welle Monitor Ost-/Südosteuropa
14.08.2002
---
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1014073200.php
19.02.2002
Hombach eröffnet der Westdeutschen Allgemeinen Zeitung den Medienmarkt
in Jugoslawien
ESSEN - Kurz bevor Bodo Hombach Ende des Jahres 2001 seinen Posten als
EU-Koordinator des Stabilitätspaktes für Südosteuropa verließ und als
Geschäftsführer zur Westdeutschen Allgemeinen Zeitung (WAZ) wechselte,
öffnete er seinem künftigen Arbeitgeber die Tore des jugoslawischen
Medienmarktes.
Mitte Oktober 2001 unterzeichnete der WAZ-Konzern mit dem Belgrader
Verlag Politika AD einen Vertrag zur Gründung einer gemeinsamen
Gesellschaft. Hombach hatte die Kontakte zwischen der WAZ und Politika
vorbereitet. Die gleichnamige Zeitschrift des im Jahre 1904 gegründeten
serbischen Traditionsverlags galt jahrelang als wichtigstes Sprachrohr
der jugoslawischen Regierung unter Slobodan Milosevic. Das heute hoch
verschuldete Presseunternehmen verlegt in Jugoslawien drei
Tageszeitungen, 14 Magazine und betreibt einen Rundfunksender. Die
WAZ-Mediengruppe ist bereits mit 25 Zeitungen und 50 Zeitschriften in
sechs anderen osteuropäischen Ländern vertreten.
---
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/news/article/1005433200.php
11.11.2001
Deutsche Pressekonzerne in Osteuropa "räumen auf"
HAMBURG (Eigener Bericht) - Bertelsmann, größter europäischer
Medienkonzern, ordnet seinen Osteuropa-Besitz neu, um in das ungarische
TV-Geschäft einzusteigen. Mit mehreren Beteiligungen an ungarischen
Tageszeitungen (Nepszabadsag/Delmagyarorszag/Deelvilag), die von dem
Tochterunternehmen Gruner+Jahr gehalten werden, ist Bertelsmann in
Ungarn Monopolist.
Da die ungarische Regierung wegen der beabsichtigten TV-Expansion
Bedenken geltend macht, plant Bertelsmann eine Rochade. Die
osteuropäischen Zeitungsbeteiligungen (u.a. auch in Rumänien und
Tschechien) sollen in einer Holding zusammengefasst werden. Darin wäre
Bertelsmann (gemeinsam mit dem Schweizer Ringier-Verlag) als
bescheidener Anteilseigner weniger auffällig. Die Kaschierung der
deutschen Monopolstellung würde einen widerstandslosen Einstieg in das
ungarische TV-Geschäft erlauben.
Bertelsmann beherrscht nicht nur den osteuropäischen Zeitungsmarkt,
sondern gehört zugleich in Österreich, Frankreich, Spanien,
Großbritannien und den USA zu den führenden Branchenunternehmen. Die
nordamerikanischen Konzern-Aktivitäten werden gegenwärtig ausgeweitet.
Gehörten bereits bisher Publikationen wie Family Circle, Rosie,
Parents, Child, Fitness, American Homestyle, YM, Inc. oder Fast Company
zum ertragreichen Bertelsmann-Besitz, so sollen diese Aquisitionen
jetzt ergänzt werden.
,,Hitlers bester Lieferant"
Bertelsmann wird in den USA einer aggressiven Geschäftspolitik
beschuldigt. Die dortigen Bertelsmann-Druckereibetriebe kontrollieren
die Herstellung von rund 500 Magazinen mit Netto-Verkäufen in Höhe von
monatlich 300 Millionen US Dollar.
Bertelsmann legte seine Konzern-Fundamente in der NS-Zeit und verdiente
an der nationalsozialistischen Kriegspolitik. Das Haus darf als
,,Hitlers bester Lieferant" bezeichnet werden. Heute beschäftigt
Bertelsmann weltweit 70.000 Mitarbeiter und erzielt rund 40 Milliarden
DM (20 Milliarden Euro) Umsatz.
,,Deutscher Blitzkrieg"
Neben Bertelsmann sind auch andere deutsche Pressekonzerne weltweit
tätig. Dazu gehört die Kirch-Gruppe (1998 Nr. 8 in der Weltrangliste,
kooperiert mit der italienischen Berlusconi-Gruppe), die Axel Springer
AG (Nr. 28) und die Zeitungsgruppe WAZ (Nr. 41).
Die deutsche Presseexpansion (Tschechische Republik: Blesk, Slowakische
Republik: Novy Cas) sei ,,brutal und heimtückisch", sagt der
bulgarische Journalist und ehemalige Vorsitzende der bulgarischen
Vereinigung der Zeitungsverleger, Valeri Naidenow. Das Auftraten der
deutschen Konzerne erinnere an einen ,,Blitzkrieg". Über die Folgen der
deutschen Medienexpansion prophezeite die bulgarische Zeitung Novinar
ihren Lesern: ,,Du wirst denken, wie es dir die deutschen Zeitungen
befehlen".
Quellen:
Gruner + Jahr räumen in Ungarn auf, Die Welt 11.11.2001
Deutsche Verlage auf Osteuropa-Trip; ,,M" (Zeitschrift der IG Medien)
8-9/1997
=== ENGLISH ===
http://www.freenations.freeuk.com/news-2003-07-23.html
GERMAN PRESS BUYS POLITICAL POWER IN THE EAST
Translated from german-foreign-policy.com and commentated by Rodney
Atkinson
Dateline: 23rd July 2003
INTRODUCTION: In the normal course of international investment the
expansion of German firms abroad would be no different from the same
activities by British or American or French corporations. However much
depends on the political history of the relationships between the
investing and the recipient nation and in what sectors the investment
is taking place.
In the case of German industry today as it invests in Poland, The Czech
Republic, Austria, Yugoslavia and elsewhere in Eastern Europe the
political history is one of bloody conquest and exploitation by Germany
and the industrial sectors which are being targeted are those highly
political areas of newspapers and the electronic media. We already have
examples – especially in Yugoslavia and The Czech Republic – of the
pressure put on local editors by their German owners to report national
and above all "European" affairs in a light favourable to German
interests. For instance the editor of the Czech regional newspaper
"Svoboda" received a letter from his German owner during the Yugoslav
war (21st April 1999) which warned him not to report so favourably the
activities of the Serbs "(your comments) exceeded tolerability…not to
mention your evaluation of other hideous acts perpetrated by Milosevic
- you do not devote due attention to them. I shall not repeat my
challenges of 14th and 20th April…I expect from you a less one-sided
approach…With friendly(!) greetings Matthias Roscher". The full wording
of the letter is in my possession and will appear in the next edition
of Fascist Europe Rising.
The following translation of a report from our journalist friends in
Germany shows how the above is undoubtedly being replicated elsewhere.
German press groups are expanding further into East and Southern
Europe, especially into Poland. The German Springer Verlag (owner of
the lurid tabloid Bildzeitung which recently stoked the German-Italian
crisis with an advert for "blonde nationalistic……Germans" whom the
paper would send on holiday to Italy!) already the second biggest
newspaper publisher seeks to double its circulation. The German press
expansion – not surprisingly - reminds the Polish media of the German
colonisation and the occupation of Western Poland by Prussia.
The Axel Springer Organisation the largest German newspaper group seeks
through expansion abroad to improve its prospects in the harsh
competitive world of the German printing business. Up to now only 16%
of its turnover comes from abroad (2002 - 2.78billion Euro) and wants
to double this in the next few years. The competitors, German
Publishers Bauer, Gruner und Jahr, the WAZ Group and Burda have been
expanding into other countries in recent years and have achieved almost
50% of their turnover from abroad.
Springer seeks to achieve the goal of having 30% of its turnover from
abroad by large acquisitions and the founding of new newspapers. About
half of the 32 purchases and new businesses of the last two years have
been abroad. Emphasis has been put in Western Europe on France, Spain,
and Switzerland and in Eastern Europe on Poland, Czech republic,
Rumania and Hungary – where Springer is the leader in the newspaper
market. They also have their eye on the Asian markets: "We are at
present considering market entry in Russia and China and will be active
there probably in the next two years" the publisher declared.
A New Colonisation of Poland?
Spinger’s expansion in Poland started in 1994 and the company is now
the second biggest newspaper publisher in the country and the owner of
16 publications including the successful economic magazine Profit.
Since the successful introduction of "Newsweek Polska" in 2001,
Springer Polska is now the market leader in news magazine.
The next step is a new polish daily newspaper. At the moment there is
only one tabloid on the Polish market – Super Express – half of which
belongs to the Swedish Bonnier group. With a new tabloid Springer wants
to double his Polish turnover. But there is competition. Agora, the
publisher of the largest Polish newspaper "Gazeta Wyborcza" is working
on its own tabloid which is due to appear at the end of August.
The Polish press is mostly dominated by German publishers. By far the
largest, with 28 titles and a total circulation of about 10 million, is
Bauer. Passau (now dominant in the Czech market) took over the Polish
titles of the French Group Hersant and is the largest publisher of
regional newspapers. This dominant position is facing growing
criticism. At the end of last year (2002) the economically liberal and
Europe-friendly weekly magazine WPROST described, on its front page,
with the heading Drang nach Osten, the German press take-over as a new
colonisation. In some regions of Poland the Germans were so prominent
in the newspaper market that it already resembled the Prussian
occupation of Western Poland
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