Paint Job

It is difficult, at first glance, to bring together an advertisement published on 21 April in the daily "Politika" with the "C-market" (supermarket chain) new-old advertizing campaign seen on TV these days.

The ad offers dyes for dyeing Rumanian petrol so that it looks like Shell original (red) and "Greek Super" (green). No one is concerned over the carburetors, pumps, membranes, links and other engine parts which are ruined by the "enriched petrol" and "improved sales".

On the other hand, "C-market" started showing some old spots (in which a likeable fatty lists day after day what can be bought in their supermarkets, and in the end grows a very long beard) when it became obvious to the last pensioner that the slogan "Our prices are going down" (in which the same fatty offers his neighbor a helmet) was no longer true.

In order to improve sales, the advertisement with the beard was put on the program again.

Benefits

In late March this year, the Belgrade City Assembly decided that all Belgrade citizens over 70 could travel free of charge with the public transport companies - GSB, "Lasta" and the Pancevo Autotransport Company. But, since the Pancevo municipality didn't adopt a similar decision, the Pancevo firm is not obliged to drive its citizens free of charge. This is how it happened that an elderly gentleman with a Belgrade ID card got a free ticket on the regular ATP Pancevo-Belgrade line while a 70-year-old from Pancevo had to pay for it.

Apology

The clerk working in the ads section of the Podgorica-based paper "Pobjeda" nearly suffered a heart attack last Saturday when several policemen and Ratko Djokic burst into her office. The police demanded that the clerk identify Djokic, i.e. to say if he had ordered and paid an obituary for the distinguished citizen Milos Bojovic. "Pobjeda" had published numerous obituaries to Bojovic, a much loved and proven socio-political worker who will be remembered by many generations of young people not just in Podgorica, but the whole of Montenegro. The obituary in question said "A final farewell to a dear friend" and it was signed Ratko Djokic and family.

The next day "Pobjeda" carried the following message: We have been asked by the Bojovic family to state that they have no family or friendly relations with the person in question, and that it has been established subsequently that the text was brought to the advertising department by a person who didn't give his real identity. "We apologize to the Bojovic family", said the Advertizing Department at the end of the message.

No one however, apologized to Ratko Djokic. But the whole mix-up wouldn't have occurred if the son of the deceased Bojovic wasn't the head of State Security in Montenegro and Ratko Djokic didn't have the reputation he does. Mr. Djokic is involved in important affairs and is one of the more influential nouveau businessmen. He owns a legal petrol station for pouring smuggled petrol on the banks of lake Skadar. It was built with the Montenegrin Government's approval. There are stories that he has strong connections with the service headed by Bojovic's son, who obviously didn't want the fact advertized. It turned out that Djokic hadn't paid for the obituary, and that some people don't respect the death of a man who had nothing to do with Djokic or the Service headed by Bojovic Jr.

Monopoly

When the Montenegrin Ministry of Energy Supply committee for the approval of radio frequencies announced a competition for the temporary rental of frequencies, it turned out that the Belgrade-based "Braca Karic" Company was going to lease all available frequencies. In its offer the "Braca Karic" Company quoted prices which were 50% higher than the auctioned ones, but said later that it was prepared to pay 10% more than the highest bid. Concretely, "Braca Karic" offered a 15,100 dinar monthly compensation for the TV channel in Podgorica. The Podgorica-based firm "Blue Moon" offered 20,100 dinars, but this doesn't mean that it will get the channel, because it is up to the committee to decide and take into consideration "Braca Karic's" alternative offer.

And even though jurists say that something like this is impossible, "Braca Karic" competitors are pessimistic as to the outcome, bearing in mind the results of an earlier competition, when only TV Palma was given broadcasting permission - even though it was the only TV station which didn't fulfill the competition requirements. "Braca Karic" didn't bother about the requirements either, because they didn't submit separate plans for each frequency and TV channel, even though this is one of the conditions of the competition. In spite of this, the committee took them into consideration, and they seem to have turned out to be the favorites. It remains to be seen if "Braca Karic" will manage to win a monopoly on Montenegrin frequencies, i.e. if the requirements of the public competition will be honored.

Albanian Denial

The police in Shkoder denied allegations in a note sent to Albanian President Sali Berisha by the Federal Foreign Ministry and Montenegrin President Momir Bulatovic. Claims that Montenegrins and Serbs in Vraka are being mistreated are denied, i.e. that their land is being confiscated and given to Albanians. The matter concerns something else: under Enver Hoxha's regime land was expropriated from private owners and handed over to farm cooperatives. Some received much poorer land for the fertile land which was taken from them. In the meantime the law on returning land to private owners was adopted and some tried to keep that which they had received in exchange, i.e., to double their estates by taking the earlier confiscated fertile land. This is not possible under the law.

Expensive Season

The hotel-tourist firm "Budvanska Rivijera" has published prices for this year's tourist season, which compared to last year's are two-three times higher. In the 10 July - 31 August period half-board in a two-bed room in "B" category hotels will cost 102 dinars, while one-bed rooms will cost 143 dinars. In "A" category hotels half-board for two-bed rooms will cost 175 dinars, and 180 for one-bed rooms. In the most exclusive objects on Sveti Stefan and Milocer half-board will cost between 240 and 315 dinars, or much more, like in the famous Villa 118 which will cost 1,500 dinars daily. In the early season and the post season prices are 25%-40% lower, and agency services are 15%-50% lower. Hotel managements in Budva have said that the prices aren't fixed, and will follow the dinar-DEM exchange rate.

An Anonymous Explosion

Italian state RAI television carried an exhaustive report on an Italian fishing boat which exploded on 21 April in the vicinity of the Montenegrin cost, in which all five crew members lost their lives. According to the RAI report, the fishing boat "Francesco Padre" from Molfetto (Italy) near Bari, transported arms, ammunition and explosives. The ship exploded 18 kilometers out of Bar harbor. Montena fax says that in its report RAI repeated claims of very extensive smuggling activities in arms, drugs, oil, cigarettes and alcohol between the Italian and Montenegrin coasts carried out by fishing boats and speedboats. Montena fax adds that no official information on the explosion which was heard in Bar has been made, even though it took place in Montenegrin territorial waters.

Days Of Pain And Pride

The promotion of photographer Goranka Matic's photo album "Days Of Pain And Pride" was held in the Graphic Collective Gallery on April 26. The album contains 36 postcards showing Belgrade shop windows which Goranka photographed from 5 to 8 May 1980. This was the period when the country was in mourning for President Tito.