Emperor, Plantation Owner And Middleman

The meeting of the group of SPS deputies lasted over two hours . President of the Chamber of Citizens and SPS member Jugoslav Kostic, suddenly told the deputies in the great hall that a group of SPS deputies wished to meet and discuss certain issues in order that the session might be more efficient.

Kostic asked the other deputies to allow the Socialists to hold their meeting in that hall because of their number. Asked how long it would take, he answered -- about twenty minutes. As soon as the non-Socialists had left and the doors of the hall closed, leader of the group of deputies Zarija Martinovic said that the debate would not be limited, and that the Chamber of Citizens could continue work later on.

Zarija Martinovic said that the group had been called because a number of deputies believed that after the London Conference it was necessary to assess if the government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had taken stands on matters in accordance with the conclusions of the Chamber of Citizens. Other deputies and other groups of deputies were also asking these questions, said Martinovic.

Recalling that he had been a member of the group for drawing up conclusions on the London Conference, President of the Association of Emigrants Brana Crncevic underscored that Prime Minister Milan Panic had made serious departures, that he had had seperate talks with Croatian President Franjo Tudjman and had agreed to recognize Croatia within Tito's borders, while they would recognize us soon as the international community did so.

"Considering that Panic is following a policy of his own, one whose end we do not know, I fear that Panic will do exactly what he intends to," said Crncevic.

"It is necessary to take a vote of confidence in the government and Panic," added Crncevic and proposed a debate on confidence. The vote would be taken in three days' time, according to the Constitution.

"A vote of no-confidence would mean an occasional slap in the face by the international community, while a vote of confidence would mean that we would be putting the fate of the country and people into his hands, that we are backing a man whose moves we cannot anticipate," claimed Crncevic.

Crncevic criticized Panic for asking President Cosic not to read his speech at the London Conference, and offering to give him ten minutes of his alloted time. This was insulting to the delegation, said Crncevic, adding that Cosic had only been one of its members and Panic's MC.

Panic had also met with leader of the Kosovo Albanians Ibrahim Rugova and promised the opening of the University, which in itself is not too bad, but, what will follow, asked Crncevic.

Crncevic warned that the deputies carried a great responsibility. "We have a majority in Parliament, and I could sign a list of 20 deputies who demand Panic's resignation," said Crncevic, adding, "instead of a national hero we have got a plantation owner who is prepared to sell off everything he considers to be his property."

Mentioning Panic's possible dream of becoming the kind of President such as we have already had, Crncevic said that, with or without Panic, we would not be in a worse position than we already were.

Speaking as a writer, Crncevic said Panic was undescribable. "He himself does not know what he is going to do, with him it is a matter of impulse or commission."

"I cannot be a deputy in Parliament which has been so humiliated by one man," said Crncevic.

According to one deputy, a large number of Socialists did not agree with Panic's programme. We were dejected during that interval (when Panic was being chosen), but it had been agreed that we should vote so, and that we should see what would be done later.

SPS leader Borisav Jovic underscored that it was in the country's interest for the government to have a stable base, and that this was the government we had voted for. The results of the work of the whole delegation and the London Conference need not be negative, they may even be positive (this, according to Jovic needs to be assessed.)

The matter here pertains to a another issue -- to the fact that the Prime Minister we chose and gave a platform to, has made departures, said Jovic. It is an irrefutable fact that Panic offered Croatian President Franjo Tudjman recognition of Croatia within existing borders, which is a betrayal of the Serbian people. Panic asked the delegation to sign a paper to that effect, but this was not done thanks to the fact that the other members of the delegation objected energetically.

"The political issue is important," underscored Jovic, "to destroy with one movement of the pen all that the Serbian people have won".

"I believe that Crncevic is right; I support a debate on a vote of confidence. He must be responsible to Parliament otherwise he will become an Emperor who can do as he pleases here, or we are not the ruling party," said Jovic.

Deputy Oskar Kovac gave additional information on the work of the London Conference and underlined that he would accept every conclusion of the group of deputies. Kovac said that the Conference had been a big show, and that the documents were important -- but that few had seen them. "Only Vlatko Jovanovic and I read them all," said Kovac.

The Conference had been a Conference on Yugoslavia to a very small degree, said Kovac. Yugoslavia was not accepted at the Conference. Cosic and Panic were invited as guests and the others as presidents.

It was a conference devoted to the conflict in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and its positive result was that Bosnia-Herzegovina President Alija Izetbegovic was forced to accept negotiations with the others.

"My impression is," said Kovac "that all the participants from the Yugoslav states have their sponsors who do not believe in leaving negotiations to us, and we could come to an agreement easily, because of economic interests." The Conference tried to be a Conference on Serbia, and this is where President Cosic was really at his best, he insisted that the delegation leave the Conference while that document was in circulation.

The deputy who asked to speak after Kovac urged for Panic's resignation, but asked how that would be interpreted by the world. He criticized Panic for mentioning the incident when a glass was thrown at the previous Parliamentary session, and underscored: "We do not throw glasses at each other in the streets, let alone in Parliament! We are not vandals!" The deputy expressed concern for all that had been achieved in blood so far, at least in the Krajinas.

The next speaker said that all which had been feared before Panic's election had come true: "In 100 days' time he can do even greater harm, unless this evil is stopped. That is why I urge for a vote of confidence and the enumeration of reasons -- beginning with London and ending with the fact that he (Panic) has started finding us guilty of various sins (the plan on ethnic cleansing, whereas there is no ethnic cleansing)."

One of the deputies claimed that he was quite sure that there were sufficient elements for the government to receive a vote of no-confidence, and underlined that Milan Panic would never have been put up as a candidate if he had been asked, considering that there were at least five good candidates for the post in the hall at that very moment.

During the discussion Crncevic said: "I am prepared to sign that he (Panic) will ask for Parliament to be dissolved over the next three days. We have enough time. Let us see if we have enough political will to effect a resignation."

Borisav Jovic asked to speak again and underscored that a country which is not capable of discussing a vote of confidence in the government, is not a country at all.