Discontinuance of legal proceedings

The information that everybody had waited for arrived - naturally - via Belgrade Television, just before the TV News programme. Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic had decided to discontinue legal proceedings against Vuk and Danica Draskovic. A statement issued by the Serbian President's cabinet starting with: "an ugly picture of Serbia", "being disgraced by the opposition", "punishment measures of genocide", "persecution", "dead infants" etc., says that "neither Vuk Draskovic nor his responsibility" (for injuries sustained by the police), "does not deserve" what is happening to it, so that "I believe that it is necessary to discontinue legal proceedings".

An additional reason for this obviously unwilling show of mercy, says that Vuk Draskovic "wrote to my wife from jail". The President also says that it wouldn't be nice to let Vuk go without Danica, as they are devoted to each other.

The overall style of this arrogant decree is insulting; as if Vuk had beaten up Slobodan, who was now forgiving him, but who wouldn't have done so if Mira (his wife) hadn't asked him to. Thus ended the first phase of this summer's political crisis. The second phase is about to start. Will Vuk and Danica Draskovic surprise Slobodan Milosevic and Mirjana Markovic the same way they "surprised" them?

Excerpt from a statement by the Committee of the democratic public for the freeing of Vuk Draskovic and the defence of political freedoms

"After a month and a half of police, medical and judicial abuse of Vuk and Danica Draskovic, Slobodan Milosevic has capitulated. By signing the decree discontinuing legal proceedings against Vuk and Danica Draskovic, the Serbian President is defeated both as a man and a power-holder. He walked into his own trap. Vuk Draskovic's personal courage and sacrifice and pressure from the domestic and world democratic public have forced him to do something that goes against all his political instincts. His mercy, and reasons for it, speak of his powerlessness."