End of a Flight

For two weeks the surface of the water on Lake Skadar, in the zone of the border crossing Bozaj, has been covered by a huge stain of spilled crude oil. Ana Misurovic, the Minister of Ecology in the Montenegrin Government, in her statement for Vreme says, "that a stain has been registered, which most probably is a result of a crude oil spillage. The Republic Head Water Inspector has been informed of this, as has the Board of the National Park of Lake Skadar, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP), but so far the identity of the polluter is not known". However, it is a well known fact that none of the above mentioned bodies has issued an official statement on this major ecological catastrophe. Perhaps specifically owing to the fact that the biggest responsibility lies within the Montenegrin Government and the inflictor who is under their protection. The Montena Faks agency from Podgorica has, as early as September 27, announced that a tanker had sunk with "a cargo of about 30 tons of bitumen or cargo oil". That information had allegedly surprised all authorities. Certain members of state bodies have, in all respect, protested because it could be deduced out of the announcement that information of a sunken tanker had been officially confirmed. They required that it be precisely stated that officially only a stain be confirmed. An investigation is being carried out.

BALJUSKE: By a Decision of the government, a few floodgates have been built for pouring smuggled oil which arrives in the waters of Lake Skadar from Albania. Until recently, the spotlessly clean water in this branch (with concrete border buoys between Montenegro and Albania down its middle) is now covered by a huge stain which is destroying its plant and animal life. The first thing that strikes us is the disappearance of lake birds, primarily coots or, as they are called locally, baljuski, which used to cover the water zone along the coast. One local resident has spoken of birds going up the hill. They could not fly because their wings were covered in crude oil, and were seeking salvation in the underbrush fleeing up the stone hill. They were struck down on the road by various vehicles which transport oil and gasoline from Albania.

Nearby to where we are standing, a run down coot lies on the pavement with clear traces of crude oil. In our field of vision we count fifteen of them. We cast a stone to the coastal shrubs - and silence. Not a living creature, while a sharp smell of oil derivatives pervades the vicinity. Even the parking lot is abundantly coated with oil. Immediately we understand the reason for it: we are literally driven off the parking lot by three Albanian Mercedes and a truck with Novi Sad registration plates which was following them. Hurriedly, the reservoir corks are unscrewed, canisters and hoses are taken out and slowly the process of pouring begins with little heed for spillage to the surrounding land.

OIL AND FLOUR: Only a couple of hundred meters from the above mentioned spot lies the Bozaj border crossing. Some fifty meters preceding the border ramp we come upon a restaurant, and some ten trucks on the parking lot. Almost parallel to the ramp an improvised wharf with two parked trucks on it. One of them full of flour in packages of 50 kilograms each, the other full of the well-known Niksicko Beer. The flour is being quickly unloaded into boats by Albanians who have just arrived and who hurriedly move away - in a matter of minutes they are already in the territory of their waters. Another boat arrives full of cardboard boxes of the above mentioned beer which passes hands and is loaded onto the truck from which bottles full of beer slide off into the boat. All work is done hurriedly, since the improvised wharf is too small for the amount of goods loaded here.

Followed by the suspicious glances of the "businessmen", being either ex-policemen or people close to the ruling circles, we examine the loads on the trucks bearing Niksic, Titograd, Cetinje, Beograd, Novi Sad and other registration plates. A truck driver of the just unloaded truck of flour (Niksic registration plates) approaches us and inquires as to the whereabouts of the boss who is to return his identity card and papers. Immediately, a stylish young man whose body has been shaped by martial arts training comes up to him, telling him in a soothing voice that the boss will shortly appear and suggesting that he should refrain from conversing with strangers.

Two policemen stand in front of the restaurant along with two customs officials and a few businessmen who are from time to time called inside by the owner for telephone calls. It immediately becomes apparent that the customs officials and policemen are solely interested in the goods that cross the regular border. Nobody controls the people who arrive by boats, nor motor-boats which cross the border line every minute. It would seem that the parties separated by a ramp have reached a previous agreement and have established a new border crossing regime. Only the chosen can perform business on this spot. Every day flour, sugar, cigarettes, cooking oil, beer, household appliances are exchanged for oil. Cigarettes which arrive from Macedonia make a detour, enter Albania, only to return with a much higher price. We try to unravel the mystery by inquiring why Albania imports flour when it can be bought on the world market for a much lower price. "We give four kilograms for a liter of oil, and by ways of various turnovers we come out with a calculation which works for both parties", an ex-"businessman" says convincingly, yet he does not wish to uncover whether the flour comes directly from Serbia or is leaked from the Montenegrin commodity reserves. He also refuses to explain why domestic sugar goes into Albania, when it is a common fact that Albanian sugar was sold on the Podgorica market all summer long.

Vreme's journalist acquires information from the Ministry of Ecology that a boat has been engaged to scout the lake and investigate for any traces of a sunken tanker. A member of the sunken tanker's crew however says that the accident occurred on September 26 at the moment when a police motor-boat raced by at full speed, causing strong waves. The tanker was not full, and the waves rocked it, causing the fluid crude oil to overturn the tanker and dive into the waters bow down. There were no casualties. Another extremely reliable source says that a second tanker arrived shortly afterwards and tried to yank out the sunken one, but also found itself on the bottom of the lake. That same evening, according to this source, reinforcement came and both tankers were towed into base. In their wake lay a huge amount of spilled crude oil.

Only a few days preceding this catastrophe, Montenegro celebrated the fourth year of its proclamation as an ecological state. On that occasion, Dragan Milic, the Minister of Tourism announced that "9.7 percent of Montenegro's territory is under special ecological surveillance, which makes our state one of the most successful in the world". Ana Misurovic, the Minister of Ecology, claimed that there were no crude oil or oil derivative stains "in the lake waters and bioindicators, but only in the mud and even that in small doses". The Director of the National Parks, Ristan Stijepovic, stated that the lake self-protects itself from pollutants because the water changes two and a half times per year. On the anniversary of the ecological state, young ecologists were also loud, announcing a battle for nature's dignity. However, no voice has been heard from them now, perhaps because they do not listen to or read independent media.