Authorities and Opposition in the Interior

Leaders of Serbia's largest opposition parties have eventually been forced to cooperate. And that was done by the ruling party. But what is happening in the interior, where the Socialists are preparing programmes of development until 2000, intending to take us all solemnly into their 21st century? Developments there are much more complex than those in the capital. Every town has its unique characteristics, its tiny coalitions and its own Socialists who in most cases show big aminosity towards the others.

One of the rules on the political stages in the interior is that the local leaders, like their superiors in the capital, are irreplacable. Another common denominator is that there has been a number of purges among the Socialists, that the SPO has the biggest active membership and that the Radicals enjoy stronger support in towns along the Drina river. Furthermore, members of Djindjic's Democratic Party are not really leaving the party as the television would like to report, and Kostunica's Democratic Party of Serbia still has support among the electorate...In brief, unification of the opposition stands a good chance since the idea was present among the parties and their voters even before anything was formally done in this respect.

But thanks to discord in the opposition ranks, the Socialists have appointed an emergency administration in Topola and Mionica, while in Mali Zvornik the Radicals simply sold their seats in the local assembly for jobs. The new administrators in Mionica and Topola, whose main task was to prepare local elections in the shortest time possible, have been engaged in that job for over a year.

Most of the towns in Serbia have had a tradition of broader opposition coalitions, but they have always been burdened by personal animosity or friendships between the protagonists on the local political scene. In Cacak, deputies from five oposition parties and their eleven colleagues from other towns celebrated the New Year's eve at a joint party, but in Valjevo Vuk Draskovic delivered a speech on the Christmans eve only to spread confusion among the mebers of his own and other parties. How? By showing understanding for the participation in Dusan Mihajlovic's power, despite the Valjevo audience's strong dissociation from Mihajlovic's New Democracy. This has cost Draskovic's SPO many supporters in Valjevo and a possible unification of the opposition in the western Serbian town was further obstructed by the local Democratic Alliance coalition, which strongly dislikes the SPO.

Quite different and a bit surprising is the political picture of multi-ethnic Subotica. Ever since the deputies from the Democratic Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians, headed by Andras Agoston, moved to the Union of Vojvodina Hungarians of mayor Jozef Kasa, the Socialists and nine Agoston's deputies have been trying to topple Kasa. Local Socialists's behavior towards their opponents have been consistent and courageous, which is to say - according to instructions from the top.

Secretary of the SPS in Kraljevo Mitar Mitrovic says the opposition in the central Serbian town is completely marginalised, while the SPS leader in Valjevo states publicly that they have no problems with other parties. "We hardly have any relations with them whatsoever," says Stanko Jesic.

If that is so, why could'n we go on like this to the 21st century. Pensions are low and so are salaries, schoolchildren are on holiday until January 22 and so are industrial giants; there are shortages of medicaments, milk and even bread - but we can bravely march towards the new millennium all the same. On the other hand, success is being produced in all fields: from the agriculture to culture to sports. Prosperity is everywhere you look. The period under sanctions was not in vain, we have used it to readily "catch up" with the fact that we have been in Europe for a long time. All our loss-running factories have become successful and profitable. They even work in three shifts and are overflooded with export offers, which they will be able to accept after some favourable credits and interests. SPS leader in Vranje Zoran Knezevic says that by year 2000, his town will have modern railway and a first-league sports team.

But despite all this success, will there be enough place for everyone in the 21st century? The answer, although indirect, lies in an analysis of the vote for a voluntary contribution in Valjevo, made by president of the local Civic Alliance branch Predrag Savic. Figures of the vote in May, which was like that in December conducted in a door-to-door poll, showed that 5,533 citizens did not vote in May - which stands in an interesting relation to the figure of 5,789 people who said "no" in the December vote. Savic says that their names were simply removed from the list. There were 14,000 invalid ballots in the first vote, and 12,000 in the second. Savic says that ballots with "no" to the voluntary contribution were declared invalid. So, if you are against - you'll be made invisible or "invalid."

Last year, votes on voluntary contributions were organised in many towns in Serbia. The method was the same as in Valjevo - which means that all the lists might have been rearranged in the same way. Analysts believe that the main purpose of the votes was to "update" the lists of voters.

Svetlana Velmar-Jankovic Awarded NIN's Best Novel Prize

The book "The Bottomless" (Bezdno) by Svetlana Velmar-Jankovic was nonchalantly put on a table in NIN's editorial office only a few minutes before a news conference was held there to announce the winner of NIN's prize for the best novel in 1995. Rumour that Velmar-Jankovic is the winner has quickly spread among the gathered reporters and skillful cameramen zoomed the cover page of the Vreme Knjige edition even before NIN's jury read out the author's name. Jury president Petar Pijanovic confirmed the obvious by saying: "The Bottomless is the best novel in the Serbian language, published in 1995."

The jury (including also Stojan Vujic, Mihajlo Pantic, Tihomir Brajovic and Gojko Bozovic) said Svetlana Velmar-Jankovic's novel has "revitalised in the Serbian literary tradition a deep-rooted perception of the novel as an epic form which integrally covers the topics of history and life...But it also demonstrates sensitivity to a poetic modernisation of the classic literary form.

"Respecting the laws of Chronos and following the marks carved into the time, her characters-narrators revive the spirit of the past, they ponder their era from inside and write their deep human drama on this script."

This novel won the votes of four members of the jury. The fifth member, Mihajlo Pantic, said his favourite was "The Northern Wall" (Severni Zid) by Dragan Velikic ( published also by Vreme Knjige), which was one of the four short-listed books. The other two are "The Snowman" (Snezni covek) by David Albahari, published also by Vreme Knjige, and "The Queen of Joy" (Kraljica zabave) by Danilo Nikolic in Nolit's edition.

Montenegro and Herzegovina: High Voltage

"What is a talk on your side about the possibility of Herzegovina becoming part of Montenegro," a secretary of the mayor of a Herzegovina town asked Vreme's journalist. Similar questions can be heard in Montenegro as well and they are mainly a result of the Montenegin authorities' efforts to help Herzegovina as much and as quickly as they can. On January 8, a group of 90 businessmen from Herzegovina visited Podgorica. They met with the Montenegrin prime minister and his cabinet, the president of the republic's chamber of commerce and directors of major companies. The result of the visit was a large number of concrete deals. This was followed by a visit to Nevesinje by President Momir Bulatovic; Montenegrin deputy prime minister Zoran Zizic travelled to Gacko and a number of other ministers visited other towns in Herzegovina to deliver the first contingent of aid, gathered in a massive action, called "The people and government of Montenegro to Serb Herzegovina."

Rumours from the beginning of this text have been strongly dismissed by a senior Montenegrin official, who told Vreme that "any form of unification, incorporation or natural integration of Herzegovina in Montenegro (as originally advocated by President Bulatovic) is out of the question."

Montenegro's conspicuous generosity is linked to the extension of the UN troops' mandate on Prevlaka, according to the official. Access to the sea for the Herzegovina Serbs is no longer mentioned and Montenegrin officials keep on convincing the public that the issue of Prevlaka will be solved at everyone's satisfaction. The UN Security Council resolution, extending the peacekeepers' mandate under the three-plus-three formula, will buy Croatia the time to gather its strength and fulfil its obligations, the same source said.

Montenergo's obligation has been to pacify the Herzegovians who are facing a disastrous economic situation. Montenegro agreed to buy 360 tonnes of tobacco from Herzegovina, reopen a poultry farm in Ljubinje, reactivate the mines and transport ores to Montenegro and Serbia, supply spare parts and reopen saw-mills whose products will be shipped via the port of Bar. The steel works of Niksic will supply raw materials for metal processing plants in Herzegovina, Montenegro's electric power company will overhaul a termo-electric plant in Gacko. All this is followed by capital projects: relocating the equipment taken from Famos factory in Vogosca near Sarajevo, restarting a project of a hydro-electric power plant Buk Bijela on the Drina, and construction of "Upper Horizon" tunnel over Risan in Boka bay, where a power plant is to be built...