Statements of the Week

The honor of being Mister Statement of the Week the most times goes to Mihajlo Markovic, former vice-president of the Serbian Socialist Party (SPS); he's the only one who managed the title three times in 1995.

Second place with two statements goes to Borislav Pelevic, deputy leader and acting president of the Serbian Unity party and , Ratko Markovic, Serbian deputy premier teacher at the university school of law and police academy and Vladislav Jovanovic, former FRY foreign minister.

Last year's winner (four titles) Dragoslav Avramovic had only one statement worthy of the title this year.

 

January

"Mladic and I know each other, we are comrades of war. Our relationship is quite normal, it's a relationship of two professional officers fighting against the physical extinction of their people."

General Momcilo Perisic at a regular meeting of the army chief of staff with editors and journalists.

 

"We plan a long successful marriage and five children."

Svetlana Ceca Velickovic announcing her wedding to Zeljko Raznatovic Arkan (who has seven children from two previous marriages).

 

"In eight centuries of Serbian monetary policy there was no inflation after the battle of Kosovo (1389) and last year during the Avram dinar."

Subtitle in the state edition of Borba.

 

"The so-called free press has brought more suffering to the Serb people than anyone since the battle of Kosovo."

Ratko Markovic, professor and Serbian deputy premier at the 50th anniversary of the Pozarevacke Novine newspaper.

 

February

"We the Serbs from Herzegovina and Serbs from Vojvodina should organize volunteer brigades to help our Russian brothers in Chechnya."

Bozidar Vucurevic, Mayor of Trebinje, during a visit to Novi Sad.

 

"Karadzic is showing visible signs and intentions of ruling Serbia."

Slobodan Jovanovic, chairman of the Socialist Party of Serbia Belgrade city board, at an SPS tribunal in Obrenovac.

 

"Why should Bosnia and Herzegovina be recognized by FR Yugoslavia when Russia and Japan haven't done that."

Radovan Karadzic at a meeting with members of his ruling SDS party in Banja Luka.

 

"America is currently the source of all evil in the world. American pragmatism is similar to fascism."

Aleksandar Popovic, drama writer in Vecernje Novosti on March 9.

 

"There is no country like this one. Here governments don't fall, here the president of the state (Serbia) has no scandal attached to his name, here even the poor have self-respect."

Giovanni Di Stefano, Italian businessman, holder of a Yugoslav passport which lists his address as Tolstojeva 31, next door to President Milosevic.

 

"Our Marija is not getting married."

Mira Markovic, chairman of the JUL (Yugoslav United Left) directorate, on rumors that her daughter is getting married a second time.

 

"Raka, if you start by shooting the Socialists, there'll be no bullets left for this side (opposition)."

Tomislav Nikolic (SRS), replying to Radovan Radovic's (SPS) statement that everyone who steals state property should be shot.

 

"I'm in the best job in the world; I teach at the police academy."

Ratko Markovic, professor of the Belgrade university school of law and Serbian deputy premier.

 

May

"We currently don't have any smarter politician than Slobodan Milosevic. Whether he is doing the smart thing - God help us."

Slavko Lisica, general, once Ratko Mladic's comrade of war.

 

"Serbian politics is being forced into recognizing the independent, satellite states in Bosnia and Croatia. That is as disgusting as swallowing a frog."

Milorad Ekmecic, academic.

 

"We lost Western Slavonia the moment we started treating the Croats as fiends, when we started trading and cooperating, instead of considering the area under their control as hostile."

Momcilo Krajisnik, Speaker of the Bosnian Serb parliament in the Glas Srpski newspaper.

 

"Mira Markovic goes to China while refugees spend weeks in the open; with whose money? Unless she went on a broom, her trip cost a lot."

Aleksandar Taskovic, head of the "Dragisa Misovic" neuropsychiatric clinic.

 

June

"Milosevic said to me: you won't get even a bag of salt from me if you unite with the Bosnian Serb Republic."

Milan Martic, president of the Republic of Serb Krajina.

 

"Karadzic and his people are stupid."

Vladislav Jovanovic, FRY foreign minister in an interview to Rome daily La Republica.

 

"Soros has been outlawed. I welcome the decision by the government and culture ministry who didn't allow the activities of those who work against the interest of Serbia and the Serb people. I am very pleased that I contributed to this."

Professor Dragutin Velickovic, rector of Belgrade university.

 

July

"President Karadzic and I have been speaking only Serbian lately with international representatives, to show that there's been enough Serb concessions."

Nikola Koljevic, Bosnian Serb vice-president.

 

"The fact that our agriculture has stayed on its feet is a unique example in the world."

Radoje Kontic, federal prime minister.

 

"The Bosnian Serbs Army is our greatest achievement in this age."

Vasilije, Bishop of Zvornik and Tuzla.

 

"When I passed through Romania recently, the impression was that the country is a paradise, every foot of it was sown with wheat."

Miljana Baletic, TV reporter.

 

August

"If in every, even the worst evil, there is some good then that is the fact that on a narrower ethnic space, the Serbs will become more compact and homogenous, more capable of defending themselves.

Mihailo Markovic, in Argument weekly.

 

"If the Serbs don't defend Eastern Slavonia, the Croats will attack Vojvodina. Fuck Serbia if Tudjman is going to have coffee in Zemun."
Radmilo Bogdanovic, SPS deputy and former Serbian police minister in Telegraf weekly.

 

September

"Even the meteorologists made sure President Tudjman's arrival is specially good and a nice sunny day arose in Split."

Nada Surjak, Croatian TV reporter, during Tudjman's visit to Split.

 

"Reading Borba, I learned that even in this very difficult situation, one dinar can buy something, mainly at the green market."

Dragoslav Avramovic, National Bank governor, in the state edition of Borba.

 

October

"We shave the heads of deserters who led units according to old Serb customs and give them 25 lashes and tie them to a post in shame."

Borislav Pelevic, vice-president of the Serbian Unity party on re-educating deserters in the RS.

 

"There are some true leftists and honest people there but there are too many mobsters and war profiteers in the leadership."

Mihailo Markovic, SPS vice-president on JUL.

 

"I am seriously considering the possibility of Slobodan Milosevic handing the commander of the Serb volunteer guard Zeljko Raznatovic Arkan over to the Hague tribunal in exchange for the lifting of the sanctions..."

Borislav Pelevic, acting president of the Serbian Unity Party.

 

November

"We will travel the world and spend the money I earn on tour."

Svetlana Ceca Raznatovic, folk singer, asked what she and her husband Arkan will do when they stop what they are doing now.

 

"With you to freedom, with you to the Hague and into history."

The Republic of Srpska press bureau in a letter of support to the state leadership.

 

"We never used illegal means. Especially not in greater measure than they did"

Borisav Jovic on separatists in a radio B 92 interview.

 

"We survived 34 offensives on Serb Sarajevo and the army will defend these people and the city."

Miso Mijatovic, chief of staff of the 1st Ilidza infantry brigade.

 

"From the first bullet fired in Slovenia, the Serb people were constantly withdrawing which, unfortunately, hasn't ended yet."

Aleksandar Despic, president of the Serbian Academy of Arts and Sciences.

 

"In the world federation for researching the future the prevailing opinion is that the future is multiple, in other words, that there are always several possible, more or less probable futures."

Mihailo Markovic.