Following Milosevic's Steps

For one day only, the President, accompanied with his party and the executive family, visited the mineral water plant Knjaz Milos in Arandjelovac, the "exemplary and typical" households in the villages of Ducic and Vracevic (the counties of Mionica and Lajkovac), the "experimental" cooperative farm in Lajkovac and the record-holding surface excavation site Tamnava- The West Field, on the territory of the county Lazarevac. Milosevic met with the producers, peasants and miners. He was welcomed "warmly and cordially" everywhere. True, the President had no confidence even in the citizens of the counties in which the Socialists are absolutely standing on their own ground, so in the name of the workers, peasants and miners he was met by pre-approved party activists and officials, but all of that just contributed to the warmer, more cordial and friendly feelings of both the President and his hosts. That is to say, the President's tour was kept in the top-most party control, and only those who had previously proven their love for the leader and the party could come near him and bow.

President Milosevic started his tour with a statesman's-like appearance in Arandjelovac, from where he sent the message, in front of the lined up workers, that all the efforts of the external and internal factors to destabilize the national regime have been ruined, and in a statesman's-like manner he estimated that this year our country will have the greatest rate of growth in Europe. He gave the further explanation that the rate of growth will be double that of the previous year.

After having presented his plans concerning these rates, the President relaxed a bit and dropped by the peasants for a cup of coffee.

Since the organizer of the President's appearance among his people was Dragan Markovic, who is at once the director of the cooperative farm Lajkovac, the federal representative, the member of the Executive Board of the SPS and the president of the board for agriculture, Milosevic's meetings with the peasants resulted in spontaneous video material on the topic of the party's step into the new century.

The President visited the "typical farming household" of Radovan Babovic in the village Vracevic. There the President talked to the host and his family, and the "heir Ljuba" unexpectedly stood out, the child who on the random question "Who are they?" answered "Slobodan Milosevic and Dragan Markovic", showing that he had successfully assimilated the week's long lecture. The President then casually asked the happy host about how he lives, and he answered that the work is the greatest pleasure. However, the President's host is well known as the typical peasant, since his parents have been in Germany for over twenty years, thanks to which he deals more with car smuggling than with cows and meadows. But, if he does not have results in the fields, Radovan certainly scores in the party. He stood out during the counter-rally in Valjevo, appealing to the opposition leaders and "the people who have strayed away" to stroll along his meadows.

In the village Ducic, the host Ljubivoje Matic expressed enormous "happiness and a great mood" for meeting the comrade President. The President replied with similar sentiments and held a long and cordial conversation with Ljubivoje. The host did not tell his guest that he had accepted the honor of hosting him only after several days of persuasions and after the honor had been refused by the brothers Milivoje and Marko Milosavljevic who wished to continue living in harmony with their neighbors. Ljubivoje said at one point complained that he does not have 18 wagons of wheat for his combine harvester, but then quickly expressed his fear that he had been misunderstood by the President, at which point Milosevic reassured him by saying that he respected openness. Then he said what he had to say into the microphone of the RTS.

After that, the President, accompanied by his first host Dragan Markovic, arrived at the Dragan's "household" - the cooperative farm Lajkovac. Everything was in place at the cooperative household: the police in uniforms and civilian clothes, on the roads and in the ditches, numerous posters of Milosevic on the front of the executive building, lined-up "members of the cooperative" and workers at the cooperative who have not been paid for eight months, all of them with the President's election posters on the cardboard... From the powerful public-address system folk dances stormed. The prepared cameramen of the RTS were there with their cameras and microphones. The director on the spot was the editor of the show Serbia Danas Caslav Radovic Representatives of both sexes in peasant costumes were holding bread. Officials arriving from neighboring counties and from the republic became nervous in anticipation. Then arrived the column of automobiles. The police BMW and two Mercedes' led the parade. Only the Mercedes with the President Milosevic and Markovic drove onto the court of the cooperative. They got out, the wind mercilessly whipping the President's gray hair, and the first member of the cooperative Markovic raised his left fist in victorious greeting. Following etiquette, the President approached two pioneers, a boy and a girl, led by the lady comrade with a bouquet of flowers. Milosevic received the bouqet and set it aside, kissed the girl dressed in a red gown, then the boy dressed by his own free choice, then shook their hands, this time the boy's first, then the girl's. He took the bread...

The lady comrade from the first row, holding his poster, rushed to the President and kissed him, and another one followed. Senta's face looked peaceful. Sipovac, Minic, and the minister coordinator Tomic were all smiling. Markovic raised his left fist again. The President with his company set out to make the rounds of the dairy while the extras remained in their places. Then arrived the "members of the cooperative" from Valjevo, led by the postman Panta who proudly waved the flag, shoulder to shoulder with the "member of the cooperative" Mica Smiljanic, the president of the municipal SUBNOR, clinging to the poster with Milosevic on it and the inscription "Sloba, We Love You"... The organizer arranged the newly arrived "members of the cooperative" in front of the dairy. After they have shouted their souls out upon Milosevic's emerging from the dairy, they were allowed to join the others.

From the stairs of the executive building, Milosevic was addressed by the president of the county Radivoje Nenovic Zelja. He announced that the people of the Kolubara region would step further into the future following the President's policy of peace and his statesmanly vision of the material prosperity of Serbia, of freedom and humanity. In that name, he said, cheers! The President listened to the president Zelja, with his hands on his back. He climbed up to the microphone, not even giving Zelja a look. He replied to the applause by nodding his head. He wished everyone much success in their work and greeted everyone.

Then the President was "urged" to the executive building. Only those with identification cards with their name and number on their chest could go there. The rest of the "members of the cooperative" could not.

Only the proven "members of the cooperative", journalists of the RTS and the Politika's correspondent, who had spent his entire career at the level on which Politika has been in the last few years, could participate in Milosevic's get-together with the members of the cooperative. The President could be addressed only by proven members of the cooperative. Milan Cosic was there from Mionica, the brother of the Minister of Industry Zivota Cosic who had shown the quality of his discussions as a member of the GO SPS and the party's congress; also there, in the name of the party, was Bogosav Bozic from Ub who has been the member of the Executive Board of the RTS during two mandates. The discussion was "fierce". The President agreed that it was a big problem that girls were fleeing from the villages to the cities, but he also noted that this will change once the living conditions in villages improve... Since we were unable to be present at the above-mentioned program "about the recovery of villages", we approached two peasants that were sitting along the cooperative fence, Radovan Marinkovic and Gradimir Markovic from the village Ratkovac. Gradimir says that he is the cousin of Dragan Markovic. "We like to see our Slobodan," they said. Radovan also said that this was the closest he had been to the President in his life, and adds: "It's dear and pleasant for me, I've heard many a clever and noble word." They reckon. "Since the President has come, something must happen. Only God and honest government may save the peasants." And Gradimir? "I have always appreciated and liked him, I am satisfied with his conversation," he replied. And he has shaken hands with the President. What is the President's handshake like? "Let me tell you, I have shaken hands with him, he has the hand, firm, as if my Radovan and me are shaking hands, it was the manly handshake."

While it was still daylight, the President managed to visit the excavation sites of Tamnava, where he in an election-like manner warned the director of electric company Slobodan Babic not to even think of raising the price of elecricity.

In the evening, the President's "home visits" got 27 minutes in the news shows of the RTS. Over the next few days, on various shows, minutes turned into hours.