Trasversale verde / ZeTra
1. SERBIA: SERBS LEAVING SANDZAK
(IWPR No. 353, July 26, 2002)
2. At danger point
Interview with Dusan Janjic, Chairman of the Forum for Ethnic
Relations - Vecernje Novosti, September 29, 2002
3. French diplomacy keeps dealing with separatist leader
(Tanjug Nov. 28, 2002)
4. "Bosniaks" (i.e. slav muslims extremist leaderships) in Sandzak
region seek "recognition" (i.e. secession)
(Links to pro-separatist propaganda by Radio Free Europe, November 2002)
5. AUGUST 2003: TENSION RISES
Various links and dispatches
=== 1 ===
IWPR'S BALKAN CRISIS REPORT, No. 353, July 26, 2002
SERBIA: SERBS LEAVING SANDZAK
Departure of Serbs from Sandzak believed to be triggered by policies of
Bosniak nationalists
By IWPR staff in London
Serbs are beginning to leave the predominantly Muslim Sandzak region of
south-west Serbia after losing public sector jobs, local Serb
representatives say.
Some Serbs estimate that around 1,000 members of the community in the
largest town in the region, Novi Pazar, have left over the last couple
of years. New For Sale signs appear on Serb homes and land throughout
the region almost daily.
More departures could have serious implications for the stability of
the country, with some predicting a possible nationalist Serb backlash.
The exodus is believed to have been prompted by the predominantly
Muslim Party of Democratic Action, SDA, which has dismissed Serb
managers in state companies and local authorities since coming to power
two years ago.
Federal Minister for National and Ethnic Communities Rasim Ljajic, who
leads the moderate Bosniak Coalition for Sandzak, told IWPR that "th
reasons for Serb departures are economic but one certainly shouldn't
overlook other reasons linked to the actions of the SDA."
Head of the Serbian Radical Party, SRS, municipal committee Milan
Veselinovic is more blunt, "The extremist statements and actions of the
SDA have resulted in a situation in which over 70 Serb houses in the
very centre of Novi Pazar have been sold in the past two years. There
the Serb proportion of the population has dropped from 22 to around 17
per cent."
The SDA led by Sulejman Ugljanin has long called for Sandzak to be made
a republic and in the past prominent party members have also talked of
secession from Serbia and annexation to Bosnia.
Widely-publicised statements made by Ugljanin in the 1990s include "the
Muslims are well-armed, they just lack tanks" (Globus, October 1992)
and "Sandzak would become a new, Muslim autonomous region in Serbia
that will even secede" (Novosti, November 1990).
This was a period when convoys of Bosniaks - which is how local Muslims
describe themselves - were fleeing Sandzak for Sarajevo or Turkey,
fearing that the war in neighbouring Bosnia would spread and they would
be targeted by the Milosevic regime.
However, while there is no longer public talk of a republic,
Milosevic's fall in 2000 and a general change in Belgrade's policy
direction does not appear to have done much to alter SDA thinking.
In June this year, a public statement from a session of the regional
executive body the Bosniak National Council of Sandzak, which has close
links with the SDA, said, "There are no reasons for us to ingratiate
ourselves either to Belgrade or Podgorica, or the international
community because Sandzak must be a separate territorial unit".
Participants at the session also declared that they must not give up on
an illegal referendum held in 1991, in which a clear majority voted for
autonomy.
Serb directors in Novi Pazar to lose their jobs include the head of the
town's culture centre Dusan Raicevic; Raco Vuckovic of the Toplane
heating company; Elektroras director Mile Cvetic; and Miroljub
Djokanovic, director of the firm, Vojin Popovic.
In turn, appointments to local government at the end of 2000 saw
Ugljanin's personal secretary Vasvija Gusinac become mayor of Sandzak,
his brother, Sadik, head of the executive committee and driver, Nedzib
Hodzic, deputy major.
The only Serb in authority, municipal secretary Milijan Belic "is just
for decor and the local Serbs do not recognise him as their
representative," said Radenko Jokovic, head of the United Peoples
Party, SNS, in the Raska district.
Like Ljajic, the head of the Liberal Bosniak Organisation, Kasim
Zoranic, said the major motivation behind the Serb withdrawal was
economic, "The price of real-estate in Novi Pazar is three times higher
than that in other parts of Serbia."
An apartment in Novi Pazar costs approximately 750 euros per square
metre compared with 400 euros in the central Serbian cities of Kraljevo
and Kragujevac.
A Serb who had shifted from Novi Pazar to Kragujevac, and who insisted
on anonymity, agreed that there was a range of motives for Serb
departures.
"There was always some tension felt at work. There was no open
pressure but one could feel insecurity and some kind of fear in the
air. Maybe more a feeling of uncertainty of what could happen and what
the Novi Pazar authorities could do," he said.
"On the other hand the difference in the price of a flat sold in Novi
Pazar and one bought in Kragujevac is quite alluring especially for
those who are in a difficult financial situation."
Whatever lies behind the Serb departures, SDA-ruled local authorities
are showing no interest.
Assistant to the head of the Novi Pazar municipal executive committee
Kimeta Ramovic recently told a Sandzak news agency that they had
neither information nor any comment on the migration.
That local Serbs have lost the backing they enjoyed during Milosevic's
rule has been made clear by the fact that the current Serbian
leadership has not held a single meeting with them since they came to
power.
Such complacency is astonishing as there's a danger that if more Serbs
leave Sandzak, Bosniak nationalists could press for their demands for
autonomy provoking another Balkan crisis.
---
Balkan Crisis Report is supported by the Department for International
Development, the European Commission, the Swedish International
Development and Cooperation Agency, The Netherlands Ministry for
Foreign Affairs, and other funders. IWPR also acknowledges general
support from the Ford Foundation. For more
infos: www.iwpr.net
=== 2 ===
Subject: [yugoslaviainfo] Raska/Sandzak: At Danger Point
Date: Thu, 17 Oct 2002 19:20:08 -0500 (CDT)
From: Predrag Tosic
To: yugoslaviainfo <Ova adresa el. pošte je zaštićena od spambotova. Omogućite JavaScript da biste je videli.>
[ Raska (pronounced 'Rashka') or Sandzak (pronounced 'Sanjak') is a
region where Serbia and Montenegro meet;
most of Raska's municipalities are on Serbia's side of the border, i.e.
in south-west Serbia. This region traditionally rural,
underdeveloped and ethnically mixed.
Some experts predict it may be the next trouble spot. 'Vecernje
Novosti', a Belgrade daily, published an interview with Dusan Janjic,
an expert on inter-ethnic relation RE.: the current
situations and prospects for the future of the Raska region. The term
'Bosniak' herewith pertains to Slavic Muslims, who speak Serbian or
Serbo-Croatian, and inhabit both south-eastern Serbia and northern
Montenegro; most of this people identify themselves closely with the
Bosnian Muslims, hence the name
(which has not been universally adopted). ]
Vecernje Novosti - September 29, 2002
AT DANGER POINT
Interview with Dusan Janjic, Chairman of
the Forum for Ethnic Relations, by Jelena Jovovic
The promenades and the coffee shops in Sandzak will soon be divided
and it all will happen faster than it did in Bosnia. The first armed
incidents will break out -- political murders. If the authorities do
nothing, Sandzak will flare up in a year.
Dusan Janjic, chairman of the Forum for Ethnic Relations, recently
publicly raised this alarming warning. We asked him to explain his
prediction in more detail for Novosti.
Here is his answer:
"To a great extent, Sandzak today is noting an illegal economy,
organized crime (still on a moderate scale so far), and an extremely
powerful linkage among people in so-called small businesses along the
Novi Pazar-Kosmet-Macedonia-Istanbul axis, inherited from the Milosevic
regime. Within this
mosaic, the major impact of the war environment, the sanctions, and the
flow of big money from abroad have created ideal conditions for the
clash of two extreme ideologies -- Bosniak and Serbian extremism. The
first is on the rise, the second is in decline. Fortunately, that
clash has not yet had bloody consequences, but it is showing a tendency
toward escalation.
Janjic thinks that the previous government consciously encouraged
that situation, but also controlled it with the help of State Security
and the narrow interests of various political elites. That lasted
until 5 October 2000. The DOS victory did not resolve the problem of
a disrupted and dangerous Sandzak and it is still far from resolved.
What Is Government Waiting for?
[Jovovic] Who is responsible for this situation?
[Janjic] Everyone -- especially those whose job it is -- knows that
organized crime has created both political and financial power. The
narrow groups that control enormous amounts of money are getting very
rich. Unfortunately, the republic government did not react seriously
to that problem. Neither is there any control over the flow of money
today. However, there is also no adequate control over weapons,
smuggling, prostitution. . .
[Jovovic] From where, and how, is money reaching Sandzak?
[Janjic] The network of international non-governmental and
humanitarian organizations in this region is very dense. There are
more of them per capita in Novi Pazar than in much larger Belgrade.
Most of them are from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and
the Emirates. . . They appear as para-institutions for the
financing of Bosniak parties and institutions. The Serbian Government
has not done what it should have done here. But it should have
publicly presented information on how much, from where, for what
purpose, and to what addresses money is
reaching Sandzak from non-governmental and humanitarian organizations.
The recent incident at a handball match and the fight after the triumph
of our basketball team in Indianapolis are a serious indicator of a
crisis in Sandzak that can only take on dangerous
dimensions in the next round. Even after these events, the Serbian
Government, unfortunately, has not adopted adequate measures.
Conflict Among Bosniaks
[Jovovic] Which and what kind of measures?
[Janjic] I think that the current situation could still be resolved
through political means. The next crisis will certainly be deeper,
and then everything could escalate. There is also conflict within the
Bosniak community. Sulejman Ugljanin's
and Rasim Ljajic's factions are fighting for domination. Both are
focusing on the status of Sandzak in Serbia, as well as the position of
this region in Yugoslavia -- that is, the future statehood union of
Serbia and Montenegro. That issue is
legitimate, but it has been opened in a mistaken way. In addition,
the solution of a future statehood union absolutely does not suit the
financially stronger groups, primarily
because of unified customs and control over goods and money. Besides
that, Rozaje, Plav, Bijelo Polje -- where there are tensions between
Bosniaks and Albanians -- are also
hot points.
[Jovovic] How might the presidential election in Serbia be
reflected in the circumstances in Sandzak?
[Janjic] The outcome of the presidential election in Serbia could
be the first danger point, and the results of the parliamentary
elections in Montenegro could also influence the
situation here. It is not difficult to guess for whom the members of
ethnic communities in Sandzak will vote. It is more difficult to say
what the state of Serbia will do in this region after Tuesday, when,
perhaps, the new president of Serbia will be known.
Ugljanin Overlooked
"Sandzak has no Hamas or Serbian Eagles, no notorious State
Security from the previous region, and does not even have Milosevic or
the influence of Vojislav Seselj," said Janjic. "But it does have at
least three conditions for a political crisis,
and even violence. Serbia has not imposed serious governmental,
political, and economic reforms here and it is has not dealt fairly
with Ugljanin. It is inexplicable and very problematic how Ugljanin,
as the leader of an important Bosniak political force, was overlooked
in the distribution of
authority in Serbia and bypassed in the parliament and the government.
Then there is the local government here.
Although numerous humanitarian organizations have their missions here,
the local government does not have money to revive and build, but it
does have the mechanisms to adopt statutes, to introduce the Bosniak
language, and to change the flag. In addition to that, nobody must
allow the Serbian community to be punished today because it was formerly
instrumentalized by Milosevic.
=== 3 ===
French ambassador to Yugoslavia meets with Ugljanin
NOVI PAZAR, Nov 28 (Tanjug) - Bosniac National Council of Sandzak
(BNVS) leader Suleiman Ugljanin and French Ambassador to Yugoslavia
Gabriel Keller said on Thursday that the success of the Serbian
presidential elections would contribute to the development of
democratic institutions,
stabilization of the political situation and the continuation of the
democratic reforms. BNSV said in a statement that Ugljanin and Keller
also discussed the position of the Serbian government towards local
self-rule in the Sandzak municipalities, the Constitutional Charter,
problems in the implementation of the minority law and the Dec 8
presidential elections.
=== 4 ===
*** Bosniaks in Sandzak region seek recognition: Part 1
A movement is afoot among Bosniaks in Serbia's ethnically mixed Sandzak
region to hold an internationally supervised referendum on the area's
status. This comes amid occasional violent clashes between Bosniaks and
Serbs and heightened attention from the international community. This
is the first of a two-part report.
Novi Pazar, Serbia; 28 November 2002
by Jolyon Naegele / Radio Free Europe
http://www.rferl.org/nca/features/2002/11/28112002155832.asp
*** Sandzak's Bosniaks Search For Identity: Part 2
Sandzak is a restive, multiethnic mountainous region straddling
Serbia's mountainous border with Montenegro and wedged between Bosnia
and Kosovo. Sandzak managed to escape the five wars over the past 11
years elsewhere in ex-Yugoslavia. In this second of a two-part series
on the region, RFE/RL examines how questions of ethnic, linguistic, and
religious identity shape Sandzak and its relations with Sarajevo and
Belgrade.
Novi Pazar, Serbia; 29 November 2002
by Jolyon Naegele / Radio Free Europe
http://www.rferl.org/nca/features/2002/11/29112002174948.asp
=== 5 ===
*** Novi Pazar media fail to honor day of mourning
Following the terrorist attack on Serb children in the village of
Gorazdevac by Albanian terrorists, which shocked both domestic and
global public, the government of the Republic of Serbia decided to
proclaim August 15, 2003 an official day of mourning in Serbia.
However, in Novi Pazar some local media failed to honor the decree of
the government of Serbia and are broadcasting their normal programming
including popular and folk music.
Raska District Human Rights Committee
Public communiqué no. 26-08 2003, August 15, 2003
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/decani/message/76594
*** New nationalistic provocations in Novi Pazar
A new incident occurred today in Novi Pazar. At the Novi Pazar-Rad
football match fans of the Novi Pazar team shouted slogans clearly and
directly supporting the act of terrorism by Albanian terrorists a few
days ago. The fans shouted "Hashim Thaci," "KLA, KLA", "Kill the Serb,
kill the Serb," "Independent Kosovo", "This is Turkey," "We will not
give you Kosovo" and many other abusive slogans and songs.
Raska District Human Rights Committee
Public communiqué no. 27-08 2003, August 16, 2003
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/decani/message/76606
---
http://www.b92.net/english/news/index.php?nav_id=24246&style=headlines
B92, August 17, 2003
Border authorities attacked, policeman slightly wounded
NOVI PAZAR -- Sunday -- A policeman suffered minor
injuries last night when an explosion occurred at the
Mehov Krs control and security station close to Novi
Pazar, near the Serbian border with Montenegro.
Speaking to Radio B92, a Novi Pazar Medical Centre
employee said that policeman Boban Stasevic sustained
just scratches to the chest and has been discharged.
Also speaking to B92, Novi Pazar District Court's
investigative judge Milomir Jovicevic said: "Around
10:00 p.m. a person, or persons, threw explosives,
probably homemade bombs, at the police booth.
"After hurling the bombs, the attackers fled in an
unknown direction, leaving the police and customs
booths obviously damaged. Security workers, policemen
and customs officers responded with gunfire and an
investigation has now begun. It is not known who the
attackers are".
http://www.tanjug.co.yu/
EYug.htm#No%20results%20yet%20of%20investigation%20on%20explosion%20at%2
0boundary%20between%20Serbia,%20Montenegro
Tanjug, August 18, 2003
No results yet of investigation on explosion at
boundary between Serbia, Montenegro
20:32 NOVI PAZAR , Aug 18 (Tanjug) - The authorities
have not yet made public any results of the
investigation of the explosion of three bombs Saturday
evening at Mehov Krs, on the boundary between Serbia
and Montenegro.
Police officer Boban Stasevic, who was injured in the
explosion, has been released from hospital, but has
given no statements to the media.
1. SERBIA: SERBS LEAVING SANDZAK
(IWPR No. 353, July 26, 2002)
2. At danger point
Interview with Dusan Janjic, Chairman of the Forum for Ethnic
Relations - Vecernje Novosti, September 29, 2002
3. French diplomacy keeps dealing with separatist leader
(Tanjug Nov. 28, 2002)
4. "Bosniaks" (i.e. slav muslims extremist leaderships) in Sandzak
region seek "recognition" (i.e. secession)
(Links to pro-separatist propaganda by Radio Free Europe, November 2002)
5. AUGUST 2003: TENSION RISES
Various links and dispatches
=== 1 ===
IWPR'S BALKAN CRISIS REPORT, No. 353, July 26, 2002
SERBIA: SERBS LEAVING SANDZAK
Departure of Serbs from Sandzak believed to be triggered by policies of
Bosniak nationalists
By IWPR staff in London
Serbs are beginning to leave the predominantly Muslim Sandzak region of
south-west Serbia after losing public sector jobs, local Serb
representatives say.
Some Serbs estimate that around 1,000 members of the community in the
largest town in the region, Novi Pazar, have left over the last couple
of years. New For Sale signs appear on Serb homes and land throughout
the region almost daily.
More departures could have serious implications for the stability of
the country, with some predicting a possible nationalist Serb backlash.
The exodus is believed to have been prompted by the predominantly
Muslim Party of Democratic Action, SDA, which has dismissed Serb
managers in state companies and local authorities since coming to power
two years ago.
Federal Minister for National and Ethnic Communities Rasim Ljajic, who
leads the moderate Bosniak Coalition for Sandzak, told IWPR that "th
reasons for Serb departures are economic but one certainly shouldn't
overlook other reasons linked to the actions of the SDA."
Head of the Serbian Radical Party, SRS, municipal committee Milan
Veselinovic is more blunt, "The extremist statements and actions of the
SDA have resulted in a situation in which over 70 Serb houses in the
very centre of Novi Pazar have been sold in the past two years. There
the Serb proportion of the population has dropped from 22 to around 17
per cent."
The SDA led by Sulejman Ugljanin has long called for Sandzak to be made
a republic and in the past prominent party members have also talked of
secession from Serbia and annexation to Bosnia.
Widely-publicised statements made by Ugljanin in the 1990s include "the
Muslims are well-armed, they just lack tanks" (Globus, October 1992)
and "Sandzak would become a new, Muslim autonomous region in Serbia
that will even secede" (Novosti, November 1990).
This was a period when convoys of Bosniaks - which is how local Muslims
describe themselves - were fleeing Sandzak for Sarajevo or Turkey,
fearing that the war in neighbouring Bosnia would spread and they would
be targeted by the Milosevic regime.
However, while there is no longer public talk of a republic,
Milosevic's fall in 2000 and a general change in Belgrade's policy
direction does not appear to have done much to alter SDA thinking.
In June this year, a public statement from a session of the regional
executive body the Bosniak National Council of Sandzak, which has close
links with the SDA, said, "There are no reasons for us to ingratiate
ourselves either to Belgrade or Podgorica, or the international
community because Sandzak must be a separate territorial unit".
Participants at the session also declared that they must not give up on
an illegal referendum held in 1991, in which a clear majority voted for
autonomy.
Serb directors in Novi Pazar to lose their jobs include the head of the
town's culture centre Dusan Raicevic; Raco Vuckovic of the Toplane
heating company; Elektroras director Mile Cvetic; and Miroljub
Djokanovic, director of the firm, Vojin Popovic.
In turn, appointments to local government at the end of 2000 saw
Ugljanin's personal secretary Vasvija Gusinac become mayor of Sandzak,
his brother, Sadik, head of the executive committee and driver, Nedzib
Hodzic, deputy major.
The only Serb in authority, municipal secretary Milijan Belic "is just
for decor and the local Serbs do not recognise him as their
representative," said Radenko Jokovic, head of the United Peoples
Party, SNS, in the Raska district.
Like Ljajic, the head of the Liberal Bosniak Organisation, Kasim
Zoranic, said the major motivation behind the Serb withdrawal was
economic, "The price of real-estate in Novi Pazar is three times higher
than that in other parts of Serbia."
An apartment in Novi Pazar costs approximately 750 euros per square
metre compared with 400 euros in the central Serbian cities of Kraljevo
and Kragujevac.
A Serb who had shifted from Novi Pazar to Kragujevac, and who insisted
on anonymity, agreed that there was a range of motives for Serb
departures.
"There was always some tension felt at work. There was no open
pressure but one could feel insecurity and some kind of fear in the
air. Maybe more a feeling of uncertainty of what could happen and what
the Novi Pazar authorities could do," he said.
"On the other hand the difference in the price of a flat sold in Novi
Pazar and one bought in Kragujevac is quite alluring especially for
those who are in a difficult financial situation."
Whatever lies behind the Serb departures, SDA-ruled local authorities
are showing no interest.
Assistant to the head of the Novi Pazar municipal executive committee
Kimeta Ramovic recently told a Sandzak news agency that they had
neither information nor any comment on the migration.
That local Serbs have lost the backing they enjoyed during Milosevic's
rule has been made clear by the fact that the current Serbian
leadership has not held a single meeting with them since they came to
power.
Such complacency is astonishing as there's a danger that if more Serbs
leave Sandzak, Bosniak nationalists could press for their demands for
autonomy provoking another Balkan crisis.
---
Balkan Crisis Report is supported by the Department for International
Development, the European Commission, the Swedish International
Development and Cooperation Agency, The Netherlands Ministry for
Foreign Affairs, and other funders. IWPR also acknowledges general
support from the Ford Foundation. For more
infos: www.iwpr.net
=== 2 ===
Subject: [yugoslaviainfo] Raska/Sandzak: At Danger Point
Date: Thu, 17 Oct 2002 19:20:08 -0500 (CDT)
From: Predrag Tosic
To: yugoslaviainfo <Ova adresa el. pošte je zaštićena od spambotova. Omogućite JavaScript da biste je videli.>
[ Raska (pronounced 'Rashka') or Sandzak (pronounced 'Sanjak') is a
region where Serbia and Montenegro meet;
most of Raska's municipalities are on Serbia's side of the border, i.e.
in south-west Serbia. This region traditionally rural,
underdeveloped and ethnically mixed.
Some experts predict it may be the next trouble spot. 'Vecernje
Novosti', a Belgrade daily, published an interview with Dusan Janjic,
an expert on inter-ethnic relation RE.: the current
situations and prospects for the future of the Raska region. The term
'Bosniak' herewith pertains to Slavic Muslims, who speak Serbian or
Serbo-Croatian, and inhabit both south-eastern Serbia and northern
Montenegro; most of this people identify themselves closely with the
Bosnian Muslims, hence the name
(which has not been universally adopted). ]
Vecernje Novosti - September 29, 2002
AT DANGER POINT
Interview with Dusan Janjic, Chairman of
the Forum for Ethnic Relations, by Jelena Jovovic
The promenades and the coffee shops in Sandzak will soon be divided
and it all will happen faster than it did in Bosnia. The first armed
incidents will break out -- political murders. If the authorities do
nothing, Sandzak will flare up in a year.
Dusan Janjic, chairman of the Forum for Ethnic Relations, recently
publicly raised this alarming warning. We asked him to explain his
prediction in more detail for Novosti.
Here is his answer:
"To a great extent, Sandzak today is noting an illegal economy,
organized crime (still on a moderate scale so far), and an extremely
powerful linkage among people in so-called small businesses along the
Novi Pazar-Kosmet-Macedonia-Istanbul axis, inherited from the Milosevic
regime. Within this
mosaic, the major impact of the war environment, the sanctions, and the
flow of big money from abroad have created ideal conditions for the
clash of two extreme ideologies -- Bosniak and Serbian extremism. The
first is on the rise, the second is in decline. Fortunately, that
clash has not yet had bloody consequences, but it is showing a tendency
toward escalation.
Janjic thinks that the previous government consciously encouraged
that situation, but also controlled it with the help of State Security
and the narrow interests of various political elites. That lasted
until 5 October 2000. The DOS victory did not resolve the problem of
a disrupted and dangerous Sandzak and it is still far from resolved.
What Is Government Waiting for?
[Jovovic] Who is responsible for this situation?
[Janjic] Everyone -- especially those whose job it is -- knows that
organized crime has created both political and financial power. The
narrow groups that control enormous amounts of money are getting very
rich. Unfortunately, the republic government did not react seriously
to that problem. Neither is there any control over the flow of money
today. However, there is also no adequate control over weapons,
smuggling, prostitution. . .
[Jovovic] From where, and how, is money reaching Sandzak?
[Janjic] The network of international non-governmental and
humanitarian organizations in this region is very dense. There are
more of them per capita in Novi Pazar than in much larger Belgrade.
Most of them are from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and
the Emirates. . . They appear as para-institutions for the
financing of Bosniak parties and institutions. The Serbian Government
has not done what it should have done here. But it should have
publicly presented information on how much, from where, for what
purpose, and to what addresses money is
reaching Sandzak from non-governmental and humanitarian organizations.
The recent incident at a handball match and the fight after the triumph
of our basketball team in Indianapolis are a serious indicator of a
crisis in Sandzak that can only take on dangerous
dimensions in the next round. Even after these events, the Serbian
Government, unfortunately, has not adopted adequate measures.
Conflict Among Bosniaks
[Jovovic] Which and what kind of measures?
[Janjic] I think that the current situation could still be resolved
through political means. The next crisis will certainly be deeper,
and then everything could escalate. There is also conflict within the
Bosniak community. Sulejman Ugljanin's
and Rasim Ljajic's factions are fighting for domination. Both are
focusing on the status of Sandzak in Serbia, as well as the position of
this region in Yugoslavia -- that is, the future statehood union of
Serbia and Montenegro. That issue is
legitimate, but it has been opened in a mistaken way. In addition,
the solution of a future statehood union absolutely does not suit the
financially stronger groups, primarily
because of unified customs and control over goods and money. Besides
that, Rozaje, Plav, Bijelo Polje -- where there are tensions between
Bosniaks and Albanians -- are also
hot points.
[Jovovic] How might the presidential election in Serbia be
reflected in the circumstances in Sandzak?
[Janjic] The outcome of the presidential election in Serbia could
be the first danger point, and the results of the parliamentary
elections in Montenegro could also influence the
situation here. It is not difficult to guess for whom the members of
ethnic communities in Sandzak will vote. It is more difficult to say
what the state of Serbia will do in this region after Tuesday, when,
perhaps, the new president of Serbia will be known.
Ugljanin Overlooked
"Sandzak has no Hamas or Serbian Eagles, no notorious State
Security from the previous region, and does not even have Milosevic or
the influence of Vojislav Seselj," said Janjic. "But it does have at
least three conditions for a political crisis,
and even violence. Serbia has not imposed serious governmental,
political, and economic reforms here and it is has not dealt fairly
with Ugljanin. It is inexplicable and very problematic how Ugljanin,
as the leader of an important Bosniak political force, was overlooked
in the distribution of
authority in Serbia and bypassed in the parliament and the government.
Then there is the local government here.
Although numerous humanitarian organizations have their missions here,
the local government does not have money to revive and build, but it
does have the mechanisms to adopt statutes, to introduce the Bosniak
language, and to change the flag. In addition to that, nobody must
allow the Serbian community to be punished today because it was formerly
instrumentalized by Milosevic.
=== 3 ===
French ambassador to Yugoslavia meets with Ugljanin
NOVI PAZAR, Nov 28 (Tanjug) - Bosniac National Council of Sandzak
(BNVS) leader Suleiman Ugljanin and French Ambassador to Yugoslavia
Gabriel Keller said on Thursday that the success of the Serbian
presidential elections would contribute to the development of
democratic institutions,
stabilization of the political situation and the continuation of the
democratic reforms. BNSV said in a statement that Ugljanin and Keller
also discussed the position of the Serbian government towards local
self-rule in the Sandzak municipalities, the Constitutional Charter,
problems in the implementation of the minority law and the Dec 8
presidential elections.
=== 4 ===
*** Bosniaks in Sandzak region seek recognition: Part 1
A movement is afoot among Bosniaks in Serbia's ethnically mixed Sandzak
region to hold an internationally supervised referendum on the area's
status. This comes amid occasional violent clashes between Bosniaks and
Serbs and heightened attention from the international community. This
is the first of a two-part report.
Novi Pazar, Serbia; 28 November 2002
by Jolyon Naegele / Radio Free Europe
http://www.rferl.org/nca/features/2002/11/28112002155832.asp
*** Sandzak's Bosniaks Search For Identity: Part 2
Sandzak is a restive, multiethnic mountainous region straddling
Serbia's mountainous border with Montenegro and wedged between Bosnia
and Kosovo. Sandzak managed to escape the five wars over the past 11
years elsewhere in ex-Yugoslavia. In this second of a two-part series
on the region, RFE/RL examines how questions of ethnic, linguistic, and
religious identity shape Sandzak and its relations with Sarajevo and
Belgrade.
Novi Pazar, Serbia; 29 November 2002
by Jolyon Naegele / Radio Free Europe
http://www.rferl.org/nca/features/2002/11/29112002174948.asp
=== 5 ===
*** Novi Pazar media fail to honor day of mourning
Following the terrorist attack on Serb children in the village of
Gorazdevac by Albanian terrorists, which shocked both domestic and
global public, the government of the Republic of Serbia decided to
proclaim August 15, 2003 an official day of mourning in Serbia.
However, in Novi Pazar some local media failed to honor the decree of
the government of Serbia and are broadcasting their normal programming
including popular and folk music.
Raska District Human Rights Committee
Public communiqué no. 26-08 2003, August 15, 2003
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/decani/message/76594
*** New nationalistic provocations in Novi Pazar
A new incident occurred today in Novi Pazar. At the Novi Pazar-Rad
football match fans of the Novi Pazar team shouted slogans clearly and
directly supporting the act of terrorism by Albanian terrorists a few
days ago. The fans shouted "Hashim Thaci," "KLA, KLA", "Kill the Serb,
kill the Serb," "Independent Kosovo", "This is Turkey," "We will not
give you Kosovo" and many other abusive slogans and songs.
Raska District Human Rights Committee
Public communiqué no. 27-08 2003, August 16, 2003
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/decani/message/76606
---
http://www.b92.net/english/news/index.php?nav_id=24246&style=headlines
B92, August 17, 2003
Border authorities attacked, policeman slightly wounded
NOVI PAZAR -- Sunday -- A policeman suffered minor
injuries last night when an explosion occurred at the
Mehov Krs control and security station close to Novi
Pazar, near the Serbian border with Montenegro.
Speaking to Radio B92, a Novi Pazar Medical Centre
employee said that policeman Boban Stasevic sustained
just scratches to the chest and has been discharged.
Also speaking to B92, Novi Pazar District Court's
investigative judge Milomir Jovicevic said: "Around
10:00 p.m. a person, or persons, threw explosives,
probably homemade bombs, at the police booth.
"After hurling the bombs, the attackers fled in an
unknown direction, leaving the police and customs
booths obviously damaged. Security workers, policemen
and customs officers responded with gunfire and an
investigation has now begun. It is not known who the
attackers are".
http://www.tanjug.co.yu/
EYug.htm#No%20results%20yet%20of%20investigation%20on%20explosion%20at%2
0boundary%20between%20Serbia,%20Montenegro
Tanjug, August 18, 2003
No results yet of investigation on explosion at
boundary between Serbia, Montenegro
20:32 NOVI PAZAR , Aug 18 (Tanjug) - The authorities
have not yet made public any results of the
investigation of the explosion of three bombs Saturday
evening at Mehov Krs, on the boundary between Serbia
and Montenegro.
Police officer Boban Stasevic, who was injured in the
explosion, has been released from hospital, but has
given no statements to the media.