Prevlaka

"We are convinced that Croatia will not withdraw UNPROFOR's mandate and that it won't happen that Prevlaka (peninsula between Croatia and Montenegro, a subject of contention since the 1991 war), as some Croatian officials are saying, will be taken over by Croatian soldiers or policemen. We hope that the question of Prevlaka will be resolved favorably for us, at the green table, and if things happen the way some persons in Croatia are saying, then anything is possible in the Prevlaka zone".

VREME asked a ranking Montenegrin official if a statement made by member of the Executive Committee of the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists Dragan Djurovic, on Radio-Herzeg Novi, was the official stand. Djurovic had said: "It is our stand that the question of Prevlaka should be resolved to the advantage of Montenegro and Yugoslavia", and that "a diplomatic and peaceful solution will continue to be urged", but "if a military solution takes the place of a political one, and if our territory is endangered, then I must say that the competent republican and federal organs and the Yugoslav Army as a whole, and within the framework of their competencies, will be in control of the situation".

Since the army withdrew from the Dubrovnik front under the Vance-Owen plan and Prevlaka was taken over by international peace monitors, the federal state leadership, and especially Montenegrin President Momir Bulatovic have been optimistic, saying that "a gentlemen's agreement had been reached over Prevlaka".

Various state sources on both sides leaked information on an optimal solution to the border problem, a solution which would contribute to the reevaluation of the resources of the Dubrovnik and Boka Kotorska rivieras. The most frequently mentioned thesis concerned the demilitarization and gradual orientation of the entire region into a single tourist complex, so that according to experts, neither side would lose out.

The stand of the Z-4 plan on "respecting internal AVNOJ (WWII communist-partisan parliament) - regulated borders of the former Yugoslavia as state borders", has divided the Montenegrin political scene into those who claim that a demarcation at Prevlaka is of vital importance for Montenegro and those who believe that Prevlaka is not worth fighting over.

Serb Radical Party members from Herzeg Novi called on the Yugoslav Army to intervene before March 31 and take over Prevlaka. The Montenegrin National Party claims that Bulatovic's "gentlemen's agreement" is a washout and called on him to inform the public about everything.

Vice-president of the Liberal Alliance Miodrag Vukmanovic said, in a statement to VREME, that his party upheld the internal borders of the former Yugoslavia as state borders, and claimed that a "renewal of clashes on the Montenegrin-Croatian border would be a catastrophe and insanity".

Vice-president of the Social Democratic Party Mihailo Vujosevic told VREME that "Prevlaka will continue to fire the hearts of Serb Nazis in Montenegro, and that all the carriers of such a policy are pushing us into aggression which has nothing to do with civilization". "It could happen", said Vujosevic, "if the plan requires the definite sinking of Montenegro, that incidents and war could be provoked in the region, something that two hegemonistic regimes will be responsible for - the one in Belgrade and the one in Zagreb".

The Hunt

Semi-automatic an automatic gunfire can be heard in the forest and around the man-made lakes of the Niksic municipality, said hunters who have complained to the Podgorica-based daily Pobjeda. Wild ducks and geese which rest on the man-made lakes Slivlje, Slano and Krupac are being shot with automatic weapons, endangering both wildlife and people. The Niksic Hunting Society is at a loss to explain this sudden phenomenon (in and out of season) of some 4,000 poachers, and said that their society had only 460 registered members, even though there were 1,500 three years ago. Game-wardens are trying to prevent poaching, but claim that without police help there won't be any results, because the poachers threaten them with guns.

And while the public is alarmed that dynamite and deep sea mines are used for fishing, many are wondering where the weapons come from, especially since the police have carried out several actions and confiscated weapons. Another question is: how did the police manage to find and arrest so many people in Northern Montenegro, mostly Muslims, who had buried their weapons, but can't do the same in Niksic where gunfire is heard daily.

Seselj On the Road Again

After spending four months in jail, Serbian Radical Party (SRS) leader Vojislav Seselj is out among the Serbs again. His supporters met him shouting "Vojo", "Vojo (a convenient abbreviation - it includes his name and title of Chetnik Voivoda). Seselj greeted them with: "I wish to remind you that Slobodan Milosevic is President of Serbia, ("Boo!"), a communist bandit ("That's right!...")... Serbia knows that Slobodan Milosevic is the main criminal in the country!"

Are the claims about the President defamatory or not? If they are not defamatory to the President personally, or the institution of President of the Republic, are they insulting to the citizenship? The media's glaring restraint in face of such an apparently attractive subject can be interpreted in many ways: 1. Seselj's statement is so absurd that it can only be treated with contempt, i.e. a dignified silence; 2. it is so absurd that it has no place in the news (it says nothing new about the speaker? it says nothing new about the President?!); 3. the matter concerns blasphemy which should not be printed: the fewer traces of heresy, the less harm to the dogma?...

Alkalis

"Some women have increased vaginal acidity which is incompatible with low-resistance sperm cells with the male chromosome 'combination'. That is why it would be a good idea to make the vaginal environment alkaline". This the essence of an article: "A Sure Way To Begetting A Son" published in the January issue of the Republic of Srpska glossy family magazine Intima".

Using the latest achievements in genetics and astrology, the anonymous author helps inform readers how to beget a male child, because "it is necessary to respect the fact that it is important to have a son HERE and NOW".

According to Intima women will rule the world when there is a shortage of women, but until then, it is necessary "to adapt and bear male children." If you wish to avoid the risk of having a baby girl, read the article. It is a unique hotchpotch of astrology, anthropology ("The wish for offspring is determined by a longing for eternity..."), ethnology ("when the successor is born, especially if it is a MALE child, the whole family heaves a sigh of relief"), and chemistry which hasn't been surpassed to this very day (Dear future mothers, wash yourselves with a mild solution - one teaspoonful of soda bicarbonate in a quarter of a liter of water...").

First in Europe

The Federation of International Basketball Associations (FIBA) magazine has proclaimed Yugoslav basketball player Predrag Danilovic "Best Player in 1994", said Reuters. Danilovic (25) plays for the Bologna club, and was voted third best player in 1993. He succeed last year's winner Lithuanian Arvidas Sabonis who is second this year. Sabonis plays for the Madrid-based club Real. Another Yugoslav, Zeljko Obradovic was voted "Coach of the Year". Obradovic trains the Huventuda Club from Badalona (Spain). He won the European Championship in April 1994 with the club he was training at the time. In 1992 he won the European Championship with the Belgrade-based Partizan. Obradovic currently trains Real. The list of best players and coaches was drawn up by 16 leading European coaches and 25 sports journalists from 22 European countries.