Issue 102 - September 6, 1993

For those citizens who do not belong among war profiteers, smugglers and other satellites of the authorities, the dilemma remains as to what defeat would have been like, if this what victory brings us

That part of the former Yugoslavia which is not officially at war, at where no single shell has landed, is literally devastated. The havoc wrought by the international community's sanctions in various fields of life together with the disastrous policy followed by the domestic authorities (which pushed us into the doldrums of civilization a long time before sanctions were introduced), and their consequences for future generations can sometimes be literally compared to areas following a nuclear disaster. Such a situation does not leave much hope

Opposition leader Vuk Draskovic, who showed the greatest populist strength and energy, a combination of ethnic vigor and impulsive vacillating which nearly cost him his life, has returned to the political scene

Upon his arrival from Greece, Serbian Renewal Movement (SPO) leader Vuk Draskovic opened his political season on September 1. Draskovic, now vigorous and well again (after sustaining injuries after the June 1 demonstrations), seems a bit more restrained than before. He seems to be preparing for new trips abroad and leaves the impression that he believes no political topic is worth being discussed besides the Bosnian war.

Over the last few days Vojislav Kostunica, the leader of the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) demanded several times that a number of current and former ministers of the Serbian socialist governments who own private companies be announced. Kostunica agreed to talk to VREME about the reasons for making such a demand and about possible ways of 'installing order' on the Serbian political scene. We first asked him if he could sketch a portrait of an average Serbian politician today.

A piece of good news comes from the south: Ljubomir Frckovski, the Minister of Interior Affairs of the Former Yugoslav Republic Macedonia, and Borivoje Ristic, the leader of the Democratic Party of Serbs in Macedonia, signed a document on the position of Serbs in this state.

``The Constitution offers the Serbs proportional participation in decision making up to the level of executive bodies and in the compostion of police and legislature in all areas where they are majority population, which is a broad autonomy,'' Josip Manolic, the President of the District Council of the Croatian Parliament and the President of the Board for normalising of Croat Serb relations told VREME

Together with homosexuals, lesbians, AIDS victims, the mentally retarded and immigrants from the South, Serbs rank among those with whom the Slovene youth do not want to have anything to do with