CorD Magazine No.25

Aleksandar Alekseyev

Oliver Roegl

Mike Ahern

Adhering to Principle

Success Story

The White Book Brand March 2006

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Issue No.25

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March 2006

Director: Ana Isaković a.novcic@cma.co.yu Editor: Mark Pullen m.pullen@cma.co.yu

SCG's defence system has been in a highly unenviable position for quite some time. It is indebted, technologically dilapidated and persistently accused of harbouring Ratko Mladić, the most wanted war crimes suspect. With all this in mind, CorD speaks to SCG Defence Minister Zoran Stanković

Editorial Contributors: Milovan Jauković, Ratko Femić, Ivan Radak, Ivica Petrović, Žarka Radoja, Sonja Ćirić, Vera Čomić Photo: Jelena Mandić, Stanislav Milojković, FoNet, Tanjug, Beta Deputy Art Editor & Illustrations: Marija Popović m.popovic@cma.co.yu Production Manager: Zlatko Popović, z.popovic@cma.co.yu Translators: Miloš Milosavljević, Dejan Zubac, Milica Kuburu-Jovanović, Marija Petrović

14 ADHERING TO PRINCIPLE Russian President Vladimir Putin's proposal for a "universal" solution to the problem of Kosovo' status, which directly contradicts the stances of certain influential Western officials, has caused an avalanche of different interpretations, comments and estimations on what this statement actually implied

Subscription: Tanja Bogdanović t.bogdanovic@cma.co.yu

EXPENSIVE TOY

General Manager: Ivan Novčić i.novcic@cma.co.yu

The fate of Serbia's first mobile phone operator has been sealed once and for all. Representatives of the state and the Austrian investors who became the new co-owners of Mobtel have agreed to wind the company down and build a new one out of the remains, which will then be sold, with the revenue going to the two founding parties

Sales Manager: Gordan Žakula, g.zakula@cma.co.yu Suzana Orlović, s.orlovic@cma.co.yu Biserka Terzić, b.terzic@cma.co.yu Office Manager: Ivana Petković i.petkovic@cma.co.yu Printing: Politika AD CorD is published by CMA (Consulting & Marketing Agency), Kneginje Zorke 11a, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia & Montenegro.Phone: +(381 11) 30 87 335, 30 87 066, 244 72 70 Facsimile: +(381 11) 2456 564 E-mail: cordeditorial@cma.co.yu ISSN no.: 1451-7833 All rights reserved © CMA 2004/2005

CorD | March 2006

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H.E. Tadashi Nagai, Ambassador of Japan in Belgrade

Project Manager: Anica Divac, a.divac@cma.co.yu

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H.E. Aleksandar Alekseyev, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to SCG

Art Director: Milena Matović m.matovic@cma.co.yu

32 HISTORY OF CO-OPERATION I don't like to criticise my friends in Serbia & Montenegro, but one of the problems with their mentality is that they always think they're right and they make spot decisions without properly thinking them over

Mike Ahern, FIC President

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THE WHITE BOOK BRAND

This month sees the release of the Foreign Investors Council's 2006 White Book and, as the FIC White Book enters its fourth year, CorD speaks to FIC President and PriceWaterhouseCoopers partner Mike Ahern about the evolution of the book, transition development in Serbia and the economic prospects of the country

COMIC STRIP: STATE ENEMY

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Comic art first emerged in Serbia in the second half of the 19th century in comic periodicals and calendars for children as a more developed form of caricature. Its growth and evolution stagnated as a result of the early 20th century's Balkan Wars and World War I.

TOO DEEP FOR TEARS

94 This Month, CorD presents the first instalment of the final part of Timothy Byford's trilogy, Pigs Do Not Eat Banana Skins

52 YEAR OF TESLA The Serbian Government is set to mark the 150th anniversary of the birth of world-famous scientist Nikola Tesla.

However, the decision to stage the Year of Tesla was made at the very last moment. Speaking to CorD this month, Serbian Mining and Energy Minister, Radomir Naumov, admitted: "Jubilees dedicated to Tesla deserve several years' preparation but, considering our mentality, we always remember at the last moment".

LAND OF FESTIVALS

64 Since the end of the 'dark days' of the pre2000 regime, the number of annual festivals, carnivals, galas and fairs has skyrocketed throughout Serbia. From the renewals of renowned international festivals, to the creation of those celebrating various aspects of the local tradition, festival culture in Serbia has begun to take on a life of its own

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Comment

Speaking Freely In the preface to his Treatise of Human Nature, 18th century Scottish philosopher David Hume cites the Roman historian Tacitus, noting: "It is a rare and happy time when you can think what you like and say what you think" t is hard to believe that the Serbian political elite, especially its governing part, have not heard of Hume and Tacitus, but judging by what they do, or don't do, the impression is that the connotations of Milovan Jauković, foreign affairs editor, this citation do not apply in Serbia, at least Belgrade daily Danas not fully. Perhaps the Serbian paraphrasing of that quote could be: it is neither a rare nor happy time, but our politicians certainly say what they like, even if they don't say what they think.

The first contribution to the non-Hume spirit is, undoubtedly, ICTY co-operation. During her recent 14th visit to Belgrade, in her usual furious, discourteous style, ICTY chief prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, delivered slaps in all directions and threatened to request that the EU halt negotiations with SCG if full co-operation is not forthcoming. When the Serbian side insisted that co-operation will be implemented, del Ponte sharply replied that she is not interested in implementation, but in results. The prosecutor's warning was followed by similar admonishments from the EU's Ollie Rehn and Jose Manuel Barroso; warnings that the EU's patience is wearing thin, as opposed to the usual finger wagging from Brussels.

Instead of relaying this potential disaster to the public, the Government opted to simply assure the public that they have not been officially informed that negotiations on the Stabilisation and Association Agreement could really be stopped. DSS spokesman, Andreja Mladenovic, said: "We are convinced that co-operation with The Hague will not be an obstacle on the path to joining the EU and we do not expect The Hague Tribunal to be a barrier for signing the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, which we expect to happen in November".

Oops! Should we really be nurturing illusions? This concerns a dangerously mistaken thesis and confirmation that Serbian politicians most often say what they like for the sake of daily political needs. Or was it buying time so that PM Vojislav Koštunica could find room to manoeuvre in his arrest of fugutive General Ratko Mladić, should he fail to find him a place in his voluntary surrender strategy?

A similar scandal arose after the Supreme Defence Council's recent session. According to information leaked to the public, the Military Security Agency's (VBA) report, which the Council declared a military secret, indisputably established that Mladić had been periodically residing in military objects until mid-2002, and that the SCG Army and the Republic of Srpska

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Army had been guarding him for some considerable time: all this at a time when domestic officials persistently claimed that they had no clue where Mladić was!

It is all reminiscent of the boy who cried 'wolf'.

The second contribution is Kosovo, the holy grail of Serbian nationalists. British Foreign Office official Tom Sawyer's February statement was, according to Civil Alliance of Serbia president Vesna Pešić, "a gift from God to the leaders of the defenders of Serbian interests to revert from the current rational and articulated approach to the semi-hysterical discourse of defending Kosovo."

The Serbian Radicals again tried to confuse the public with unreal, dangerous, headache-inducing stories. Acting Radical president, Tomislav Nikolić, proposed a plan to declare Kosovo an 'occupied zone' if the province receives independence: and those who take such a primitive, futile notion seriously believe that Serbia is actually prepared to go back to war with the world's leading powers.

It is hard to believe that the Serbian political elite, especially its governing part, have not heard of Hume and Tacitus, but the impression is that the connotations of this citation do not apply in Serbia The Radical proposal is, of course, pure political populist promotion and will prove irrelevant to the negotiating process. What is particularly worrying, though, is the unclear position of PM Koštunica regarding SRS's militant cries, presented by Nikolić as being made under mutual agreement with Koštunica. Neither the Government nor the Prime Minister has publicly reacted. Judging by general statements and the comments of those close to the PM, it is safe to conclude that this was not a matter of a DSS-SRS platform, but it seems that nationalist democrats agreed that the Radicals should come out with such a rigid position, while they will delay revealing their own position until they ascertain the effects. The value of such a provocative statement can only have any usefulness when forming pre-election positions.

The stimulus of pseudo-patriotic passions, even tacit ones, and the euphemistic reaction of the democratic political parties does not benefit anybody but its authors. Serbia does not have time to spare for such nonsense, nor can it wait any longer for its politicians to start saying what they really think. •

Interview

Return to the World Interview

SCG's defence system has been in a highly unenviable position for quite some time. It is indebted, technologically dilapidated and persistently accused of harbouring Ratko Mladić, the most wanted war crimes suspect. With all this in mind, CorD speaks to SCG Defence Minister Zoran Stanković

By Ratko Femić; Photo: Stanislav Milojković

ommenting on the first 100 days of his term in office, Stanković told attendees of a recent press conference that military intelligence has come up with the names of more than 50 individuals who at some point had contact with General Mladić. But the public was told that Mladić had not visited any army facilities since June 2002.

Stanković, a judicial medicine expert and former head of the army's medical academy (VMA), had a specific relationship with Mladić during the war years and even performed the autopsy on the General's daughter after she committed suicide. He never made any attempt to keep that relationship secret, but claims that he hasn't seen Mladić since 1999.

Although Stanković's relationship with Mladić has been labelled as an undesirable blot on his biography, he was able to shed some light on the roles of individuals within the army in aiding war crimes suspects. As one of the most prominent world experts on war crimes issues, he became a United Nations expert in 1995 and testified

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in several war crimes trials before The Hague Tribunal.

After performing autopsies on hundreds of bodies in the war-torn former Yugoslavia in 1993, he said there was no such thing as a "clean or humane war." Shortly afterwards, he said: "Digging over graves is not being done for the benefit of political parties, the authorities or the opposition. Unveiling crimes is a national interest no matter who the culprits are."

Speaking to CorD, Stanković says: "the public has never been given a full explanation that a war crime cannot become outdated, though some other felonies can.

Our country is in a difficult position, isolated from international institutions. It is the duty of every citizen to take the pressure off the country's authorities. We are being held hostage by a handful of people. This is reality and not demagogy. Someone should have already said who in our system, apart from several political parties, is opposed to co-operation with The Hague Tribunal. I've spoken to politicians from the East and the West and they all agree that we must fulfil all our commitments to The Hague Tribunal in order to step into the international community with both feet".

Interview ICTY spokeswoman Florance Artmann claims Ratko Mladić is in Serbia and that he is being harboured by the people who should arrest him. Should the state security service conduct a search through its ranks in the same way that the military intelligence service has?

After a number of interpretations of the army's role in harbouring war crimes suspects, I was forced to ask the military intelligence service (VBA) to make a report on the role of army staff in aiding and sheltering war crimes suspects and submit the report to the Supreme Defence Council (VSO). We have revealed the identity of those who broke the law on co-operation with The Hague Tribunal in conducting their activities. I will not comment on whether state security structures should do the same, but the army has now got a document of that kind.

If your ministry or department includes individuals engaged in illegal activities, you must take objective responsibility even if you were not aware of the situation. The public obviously doesn’t realise that...

The VBA activities did not end with the submitting of their report to the VSO. Rather, the VBA is following up on other leads gathered during the investigation and working on more issues relevant to the fulfilment of the country's commitments.

Military leaders have claimed several times before that Ratko Mladić is not in Serbia, but it turned out that he was here until June 2002 and this has led to public distrust in official statements placing him elsewhere.

Yes, but we have made a report that established the role of some individuals who claimed whether or not Mladić was

RESPECTING DECISIONS Commenting on the Montenegrin referendum and the risk it poses, Stanković told CorD: "No matter how harmless it looks, some people could abuse the process. However, we must respect the will of Montenegro's citizens and we will act accordingly. We will not change that position at any cost. This process is similar to a divorce.

When you want a divorce, you go to a court of law that verifies the divorce because the marriage has failed, the partners go their separate ways and the problem is resolved peacefully. A number of Montenegro's citizens feel they are not doing well for themselves in the State Union of Serbia & Montenegro, so it is their legitimate right to leave that union. No one has the right to interfere with that. The issue could trigger certain instability, but the army will play a stabilising role by not interfering with either the referendum process or the decision to be made by Montenegro's citizens.

The SCG Army: short on equipment, big on reforms in the region. The VBA must carry on speedily and diligently with its activities within its competences and say: 'we have information that [Mladić] is in Serbia', 'we don't have that information' or 'we don't know where he is.' If they uncover his whereabouts in Serbia or abroad within a deadline I can't specify at this point in time, it would be a job well done.

If, however, they say that they are unable to gather information on where war crimes suspects are hiding, my next step will be to tell them: 'Thank you gentlemen, you've had enough time to do a job that you haven't done, you will be relieved of your duties and others will replace you!' If the replacements are also unable to make any forward progress, I will come out and say that we have failed to put together a team capable of accomplishing the task. That would mean I would have to step down too after failing to do my job. The end result of such a development would leave us rooted to square one, isolated from international institutions and slowly but surely overtaken by all countries that used to be far less advanced.

But the VBA is not the only structure to be held accountable for the current state of affairs. The army is not the only mechanism of force in the country capable of harbouring Mladić. Shouldn't the Interior Minister and the state security chief say that too and follow the same course of action?

Everyone is responsible for themselves and their own departments. Hence I can speak only for the Defence Ministry. There is no question that Mladić left the army facilities in the course of 2002. The roles of some individuals after that period have also been certified, but within state structures and civil rather than military facilities.

Co-operation between military intelligence, the state security service and the interior ministry was not ideal at the time, but all the barriers have been removed in the meantime and we hope that a concerted effort will bear fruit.

Has there been an inquiry into the role of current military intelligence chief Svetko Kovač, who held a senior rank within the Army General Staff security structure at the time Mladić was harboured inside military facilities and was probably in the position to know whether Ratko Mladić was being sheltered by the army?

The report includes that information, but I cannot reveal in public the names of individuals who have been checked. I came out with my own name, mentioned in the VBA report, because I have been linked to Mladić for a long time due to my relationship with him - a relationship that I

CorD | March 2006

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Interview

Around 250 participants from 45 countries attended the conference. It is the world's biggest gathering of its kind and was attended by representatives of the world's leading countries. We were invited to be in the company of the world's greatest powers. It was important for us to be there and we sat in the same row as the Russian delegation. Behind us were chairs for the representatives of some countries, but no tables. It is of utmost importance for us to return to the international community. We have to fit into some activities, but we have to give rather than just demand. That implies taking part in peace missions and other international activities in which we will have a responsibility of our own. We have 1,700 officers who entered a contest for participating in peace missions.

Stanković never hid relationship with Mladić

fulfilling The Hague-related commitments would bring Serbia into the Partnership for Peace, meaning it would also steer us into the Euro-Atlantic integration process

Did he?

He explained his role in the entire process to me and offered a brief explanation to the Supreme Defence Council, after which we saw absolutely no reason not to keep him in charge of the operation we are talking about; whether someone will show up with some more information later remains to be seen. That applies to people mentioned in the report too, because this doesn't necessarily mean they should be held responsible. Some of them just followed orders from their superiors.

So what do our western partners expect us to do apart from fulfilling The Hague-related commitments?

Co-operation with The Hague Tribunal is the crucial problem. They also inquired about the army's position on the referendum in Montenegro, the Kosovo talks and the situation in southern Serbia. We presented very clearly our stance expressing the determination to resolve problems in a civilised manner by political means, and they then told us that fulfilling The Haguerelated commitments would bring Serbia into the Partnership for Peace, meaning it would also steer us into the Euro-Atlantic integration process. We must climb that mountain in order to join NATO and the European Union in the upcoming period.

Interview

never tried to conceal. I have no hard feelings about that course of action because it will remain noted and I don't want anyone who reads the report to say: 'He ordered all that and his relations with Mladić never came up.' All of us who performed very responsible duties and are still doing so are subject to inquiries and evaluations. I told Svetko Kovač to explain and evaluate his role in the entire affair.

Does the report mention the role of state security structures in the network of individuals aiding war crimes suspects?

There are such details. I am talking about civilians the investigation has reached.

Are they politicians?

There is a principle of objective and subjective responsibility. Objective responsibility implies you are responsible even if you may not have known something; if your ministry or department includes individuals engaged in illegal activity, you must take objective responsibility even if you were not aware of the situation. The public obviously doesn't realise that facts gathered by police can be used during the investigation, but are invalid in a court of law until the court takes control of the proceedings.

You attended the recent Munich conference on security. What level of interest did Serbia & Montenegro draw?

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The fact is that we can only dream about Euro-Atlantic integrations without a closure of The Hague chapter. Are you able to say, The Hague issue aside, how close we are to the Partnership for Peace or admission to NATO? Whether or not people like it, we are the central Balkan country. We have been told this in many meetings with the defence ministers of other countries. We have good contacts and co-operation with the defence ministers of some NATO countries. It has been made very clear in these contacts what the conditions for joining EuroAtlantic structured are.

Who would the most significant partners be in our efforts to join Euro-Atlantic integrations?

The situation we are in and our need to return to the international community makes it vital for us to co-operate fully with everyone under acceptable conditions. We must co-operate as intensely as we can with the United States and we are about to sign several agreements with the country. Our partners include Partnership for Peace member-countries, those from the Far East, and literally all countries that will help us overcome the crisis we are going through. We have focused on military diplomacy, participation in international processes and signing agreements, as such course of action will guarantee our inclusion in international institutions and open the doors to a better future.

Interview some more borders in Europe and the rest of the world? I have unreserved confidence in the negotiating team and I hope that all relevant political structures will support them.

Defence system reforms are well underway and every minister has played a part since it started. You said, however, that the defence ministry has set up a committee to review your predecessor's decisions.

What has the committee established and what acts have been rescinded?

At the beginning of my term in office, we encountered massive scandals, which rocked the army and resulted in the dismissal of many senior defence ministry officials.

Hence, a team has been set up to analyse the verification of all decisions passed from 1st July last year onwards.

Among them are the acts pertaining to the contract on buying military equipment form the Mile Dragić company, renting a satellite, giving apartments to staff, renaming property, buying some technical equipment and so on. The departments in charge analysed whether these acts were passed in accordance with the law, whether they were justified and if they should be reconsidered. We did reconsider some of them, primarily those pertaining to granting construction sites and renaming property. Some of these acts are still being analysed and a most appropriate solution is being sought. The reforms did get underway but some things haven't been done properly because an act called The Strategic Defence review, needed to verify and outline the reforms, hasn't been adopted yet.

How much would a further defence system reform cost?

I think we could make ends meet with five billion euros, bearing in mind how obsolete our system is. •

Interview

Army will support competent state bodies

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The public has been rocked by recent statements from some politicians that occupation should be declared in the event of Kosovo gaining independence.

How is the army supposed to react in that case?

The army will react in line with a decision made by competent state bodies in charge. Serbia has adopted a platform for the Kosovo talks and a negotiating team has been selected, so let's wait for the outcome of those talks controlled by the international community.

I see no reason to stir up passionate reactions so much in advance that later put the country in a more difficult negotiating position.

Whether or not people like it, we are the central Balkan country. We have been told this in many meetings with the defence ministers of other countries. We have good contacts and co-operation with the defence ministers of some NATO countries I hope the international community will observe global international principles. I hope everyone is aware that Kosovo is a territory we have had strong emotional ties to for many centuries. Saying it is not Serbia's territory and that it should be given to someone else would be completely unprincipled. If that is to be the criteria, will it be used to re-draw

ESSENTIAL DOWNSIZING "According to standards accepted by countries taking part in Euro-Atlantic integrations, the number of troops should be 0.4% of a country's overall population. In our case, that would mean about 30,000. The number of our troops depends on the resources at our disposal and standards more than anything else. If we were to apply NATO standards, we would have only a few thousand troops because we can't afford more. That's our reality and feasibility at the moment. The army budget cannot exceed half a billion euros because we have made an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stipulating that 2.4% of the Gross National Income can be allocated for the military. Such is the IMF policy that we can have a million troops if we can support them from our budget. But if we spend more than the budget provides for, there will be no more credits or favourable financial arrangements.

Interview

Adhering to Principle Russian President Vladimir Putin's proposal for a "universal" solution to the problem of Kosovo's status, which directly contradicts the stances of certain influential Western officials, has caused an avalanche of different interpretations, comments and estimates on what this statement actually implied

H.E. Aleksandar Alekseyev, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Serbia & Montenegro

By Milovan Jauković; Photo: Stanislav Milojković

iews on Putin's proposal range from interpretations that the Russian President had warned the members of the Contact Group not to play with fire and that when he says Kosovo he is actually talking about the Caucasus, to those of a more local provenience claiming that "the big Russian brother" has finally stood up in defence of the tiny and hapless Serbia.

More confusion was added by British Foreign Office Political Director John Sawyers, who allegedly made known a Contact Group decision to make Kosovo independent, which created an impression that the Kosovo negotiations would be over before they even began.

All this speculation prompted CorD to interview H.E. Aleksandar Alekseyev, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Serbia & Montenegro.

Interview

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Has the Contact Group genuinely made a decision about the final status of Kosovo, as could be interpreted from statements made by representatives of some member-countries?

The Contact Group has not reached any decision on the issue of Kosovo's final status. This problem has to be dealt with during the upcoming negotiations and it has to be a decision made by the two negotiating parties Belgrade and PriĹĄtina. The solution has to be a compromise and will also have to conform to international law and UN Security Council Resolution 1244.

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What is the meaning of Russian President Vladimir Putin's statement that the solution for Kosovo must not be unique, but universal; based on generally accepted principles and international law?

This is a matter of principle that does not just pertain to Kosovo. It means that the solutions to crises should be based on the same general mechanisms and norms that apply equally to everyone, and if certain problems are dealt with using some other approaches that differ from these general principles, it would mean that double standards had been applied. As experience has shown, the use of double standards always results in complications.

International legal norms for conflict resolution exist and they should be used precisely for this purpose.

Who was this warning primarily addressed to? To U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Rosemary DiCarlo, who said that a unique situation had arisen in Kosovo because of the violent break-up of the former Yugoslavia, or to partners in the Contact Group who are more often heard encouraging a solution that would give Kosovo conditional independence?

Interview I must point out first that we are not talking about any ordinary case or any specific warning. This was only a confirmation of our principled line of policy in regulating crises, including the crisis in Kosovo.

There are some interpretations claiming that President Putin is primarily concerned with defending Russian interests on the territory of the former Soviet Union. Is this correct?

The interests of the Russian Federation on the territory of the former Soviet Union are clearly marked. We need stability, confident and prosperous neighbouring states with the capacity to become reliable partners for our country. We believe that respecting the general principles we have previously mentioned the technical aspect of finding solutions which secure those interests that the Russian Federation has set out to achieve.

If a section of the international community comes through with the idea of Kosovo as a unique case, will Russia analogously implement this kind of scenario to conflicts in the post-Soviet arena?

I would prefer not to make those kinds of comments. The problem in Kosovo has to be solved in the spirit of opportunities and principles we have at our disposal, and they have to be applied when dealing

The Contact Group has not made any decision on the issue of Kosovo's final status. This problem has to be dealt with during the upcoming negotiations and it has to be a decision made by the two negotiating parties - Belgrade and Priština with other conflicts as well. I must reiterate once more, therefore, that this is a matter of the principle of Russian diplomacy and foreign policy. This principle was defined during the French Revolution and asserts that all citizens are equal before the law. If I may be given the liberty to interpret this maxim, then I should also say that we should have an equality of principles across different crises.

Russia has stood behind this latest statement coming from the Contact Group, which is often interpreted as Moscow's unwillingness to confront their partners over Kosovo or oppose a Western drive for independence at any cost?

I believe the authors of such statements are looking for sparks of sensationalism in the press. The documents issued by the Contact Group are drafted by consensus, which must also apply to the case at hand. In other words, a consensus has been struck with the Russian Federation, which has had a constructive role within the Contact Group.

The role of our diplomacy is not to confront anyone, but rather to seek out a solution to a problem that is worrisome to both us and our partners in the Contact Group.

I can assure you that activities within the Group are proceeding normally and I must point out that the mission of those working in the Contact Group is to find a solution that will be acceptable to everyone engaged in

this problem. The situation can only deteriorate if disputes and internal strife arise.

Balkan analysts from America and Britain believe that the Contact Group's stance that the solution must be acceptable to the people of Kosovo implies that a decision has already been made and that Kosovo will be granted conditional independence. Does this mean that the upcoming negotiations are only meant to satisfy the need for protocol, or to persuade or force Serbia to accept such a solution?

Any decision about the status of the province has to be acceptable to both Belgrade and Priština.

Accordingly, the solution has to be acceptable to the people of Kosovo and the people of Serbia. All the members of the Contact Group and those people with whom we converse in Belgrade and Priština are absolutely behind the idea of preserving a multi-ethnic society in Kosovo, so when we speak of its people, we do not just speak of one ethnic community, but rather all of the ethnic communities that comprise the population of the province.

As for the negotiations, it would be pretty bad if they boiled down to accommodating formalities.

This view is confirmed by our insistence that the negotiations have to produce a compromise solution acceptable to all, which means that it will not be an imposed solution. I've had to emphasise on several occasions that although an imposed solution sometimes seems like a handy measure, in the long run it cannot endure. Our starting point is that the solution must not only be acceptable to Priština and Belgrade, but also contribute to the stability of the whole region in the long-term.

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Interview The Albanian community in Kosovo will not accept anything short of independence and it has the support of an important part of the international community, so the impression is that the negotiations between Belgrade and Priština will not address the issue of Kosovo’s status, but only the status of Serbs living in Kosovo?

Negotiations have to determine the status of Kosovo, but not just that. Conditions have to be created for a normal and safe existence of all nonAlbanian ethnic communities. Certain mechanisms will have to be installed to secure their political and property rights. My impression is that these problems are mutually complementary and not exclusionary. Looking at things from this perspective, the status of Kosovo has to provide a solution for the issues we addressed just now and, at the same time, the process of dealing with these issues will have an impact on the status process.

Is the position of certain Western officials not simply that Serbia must pay or be punished for the exploits of Milošević's regime in Kosovo by losing the province, just an excuse to advance the idea that Serbia should be subject to rules that are different from the principles of international law?

Russian diplomacy adheres to the principle of not commenting on statements made by individuals. As

Any decision about the status of the province has to be acceptable to both Belgrade and Priština. Accordingly, the solution has to be acceptable to the people of Kosovo and the people of Serbia

Interview

for the views of Russian diplomacy, we believe that the solution for the final status of Kosovo has to be looked for within the framework of international law, because I have never seen a process of crisis management with a goal to punish a whole country or people for the mistakes committed by individual politicians.

Moscow resolutely insists that Resolution 1244 has to be the framework for a future status solution for Kosovo. What is the main reason for this belief?

Russian diplomacy views Resolution 1244 as the most important document and the basis for a solution in Kosovo.

There is no other foundation of this magnitude and this is not just our opinion. If you carefully go through the Contact

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HOLIDAY GREETINGS While this interview was taking place, Russian diplomats were celebrating their profession's holiday - the Day of the Diplomatic Official.

"I will use this opportunity to wish a happy holiday to all of my colleagues working in the Balkans with the common goal of helping to create a peaceful, predictable and prosperous Balkan region", said Ambassador Alekseyev

H.E. Aleksandar Alekseyev, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Serbia & Montenegro Group’s statement from the last meeting at ministerial level, you will notice that Resolution 1244 is mentioned. This is very important.

Russia has opposed a notion within the Contact Group to set firm time limits for the negotiations.

What has motivated this position?

Russian diplomacy finds it of the utmost importance to find solutions to the issues we have mentioned as soon as possible, though there is no doubt that they will be very hard to come by. A lot of effort and creativity will have to be invested in finding solutions that will accommodate these principles. Many different possibilities will have to be considered, in light of the impact they could have on the midterm and long-term prospects of development in the region.

All this will require time, which is why we believe that talks should not end until acceptable and adequate solutions are found. The most recent statement by the Contact Group notes that every possible effort will be made to end the negotiations in 2006. The Russian delegation agrees with this, but if solutions are not found then it would not be a tragedy for talks to continue. This is why I must emphasise that the quality of the results is the highest priority.

President Putin recently launched an initiative for an international conference that would provide binding assurances of the sanctity of borders. Did he, perhaps, have in mind the prospects of Kosovo?

President Putin's initiative has not lost a bit of its relevance. The idea was to organise an international conference that would adopt a legally-binding document, which would confirm the existing administrative borders in the Balkans. The plan would be to make all the borders in the Balkans impervious. As we can see, the principle of universality works here as well. •

Politics

Negotiating Compromise

Politics

On the eve of the commencement of final status negotiations for the breakaway Southern Serbian province of Kosovo, Serbian President Boris Tadić travelled to New York to address the United Nations Security Council. This month CorD brings you the unabridged text of Tadić's speech, as well as reactions from international attendees of the meeting

By CorD; Photo: CorD Archives

"I am honoured to address the United Nations Security Council in order to express Serbia's view of the situation in Kosovo-Metohija after the latest UN Secretary General's report on the UN mission in the province.

"I am also glad to see that a legitimate representative of the Albanian people in Kosovo-Metohija is a part of Mr. Petersen's delegation, but I also wish to warn that it would be very precarious to qualify his presence here today as being prejudicial to the outcome of the status talks that have just started.

"Two and a half months ago, political talks on

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Kosovo-Metohija's future status formally began under the auspices of the United Nations. The Security Council and other relevant international institutions then made it clear that Kosovo-Metohija's interim administration bodies and UNMIK must act far more quickly and efficiently to see to it that the required standards are met as the talks progress. Not meeting these standards will deny the guaranteed rights and freedoms and economic recovery, as well as a European future for Kosovo-Metohija's inhabitants.

The failure to achieve them will also deal a severe blow to the prospects of reaching agreement in the talks on the province's future status.

Politics "Serbia & Montenegro (SCG) has shown its readiness to seek an amicable solution to the Kosovo problem by accepting the Security Council's position that the talks should go ahead, although the required standards have fallen well short of being fulfilled.

"In seeking a political compromise, Serbia remains unambiguously committed to the basic principles and norms of international law, primarily those concerning the sovereignty and territorial integrity of internationally recognised states. My country's position is not only in accord with the principles and practice defining international relations, it is in full accord with all UN documents pertaining to Kosovo-Methoija, notably UN Security Council Resolution 1244.

"The UN Secretary General's report, relating to the second half of last year, clearly states that meeting the required standards in Kosovo-Metohija is too slow, although some positive results have been achieved, and specifies that the process is either late or stagnating.

The situation has dire consequences for the province's entire population, but its Serbs are undoubtedly the most affected group. Not only are the Serbs most affected by the ongoing persecution and discrimination, the crux of the problem lies in gross injustice the Serbs have suffered since June 1999 and the vast majority of these hardships have not been rectified to this day. Around 60 per cent of Kosovo-Metohija's overall population has

"The Priština authorities discriminate against the Serbs in providing electricity and have exerted more pressure recently by depriving them of basic information and communication with the rest of the world…even if certain progress has been made, it is not essential progress if it doesn't concern the burning problems experienced by Serb enclaves…" been driven out; they still live as internally displaced persons in central Serbia, anxiously waiting to return to their homes once the conditions for this have been created. All the province's towns, except northern Mitrovica, were ethnically cleansed at the expense of the Serbs in 1999, and this hasn't changed even though it is hard to imagine a multi-ethnic Kosovo-Metohija with no Serbs in Priština, Prizren or Peć. Even if certain progress has been made somewhere in meeting the required standards, it is not essential progress if it doesn't concern the burning issue of enabling displaced persons to return to their homes.

"One group of Serbs who have stayed in KosovoMetohija, in spite of all the hardships, are going through life in the northern part of the province, namely in several predominantly Serb-populated municipalities. Others, dispersed south of the River Ibar in large and small enclaves, are exposed to systematic pressure and discrimination. Serb-populated enclaves are still in a very difficult situation as regards personal safety and freedom of movement. Unemployment and poverty in these enclaves flourish unabatedly, while general living conditions are far from normal. The Priština authorities discriminate against the Serbs in providing electricity and have exerted more pressure recently by depriving them

PresidentTadić: Priština acting discriminatively against Serbs of basic information and communication with the rest of the world. Priština has blocked access to Belgrade's Telecom network legally operating in Kosovo-Metohija, and has cut off Serb television programmes running in the province's north. Let me use the same words once again: even if certain progress has been made in meeting the required standards somewhere, it is not essential progress if it doesn't concern the burning problems experienced by Serb enclaves in Kosovo-Metohija.

"Hence, Serbia and the province's Serbs are quite understandably following the talks on KosovoMetohija's future status with as much anxiety as hope.

We hope that Kosovo-Metohija's current position unsatisfactory for the Serbs, the Albanians and the international community - will, through negotiations, give way to a more durable, stable and just solution.

However, we also fear that the talks may be undermined by imposing independence for KosovoMetohija, a groundless course of action in terms of international law that would cause political instability in the Balkans. In addressing this forum, I wish to outline openly Serbia's position on both options - the advantages of an amicable compromise and the perils of a unilaterally imposed solution.

"The Contact Group itself warned recently that the Kosovo issue must not be approached with disregard for the general principles of international law, as that would set a dangerous precedent in the Balkans and other parts of the world. Legal and political principles on which international order rests cannot apply for only one set of nations and be overlooked when it comes to others. This is a lesson Serbia has learned from the burdensome legacy of the 1990s, but it applies to others too. Guided by the ideals of democracy, the Serbian people showed they learned that lesson when they toppled the Slobodan Milošević regime through peaceful demonstrations in October 2000. Saying that independ-

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Politics

obvious already. Rather than seeing the position of the Kosovo-Metohija Serbs as proof that the Kosovo Albanian political elite is not truly committed to a multi-ethnic society, it is often suggested that Serbia should accept Kosovo-Metohija's independence in exchange for a better position of the Serb community in the province. The Serbs are therein asked to accept Kosovo-Metohija's independence in order to have their basic human rights and freedoms recognised. I find this way of thinking completely alien. It is alien to democratic Serbia too, and I am certain that it contradicts the democratic values of the modern world. Serbs in Kosovo-Metohija, like people in any other part of the world, are naturally entitled to personal safety and freedom, the protection of their national and cultural identity, freedom of expression and political activities, religious freedom and the safety of their property. They must be given these rights because doing so would fulfil the fundamental commitments guaranteed by the province's international administration and consequently the UN organisation itself, as provided by UN Security Council Resolution 1244. These rights are not and cannot be up for trade between Belgrade and PriĹĄtina. Freedom, justice and democracy are values every human being is entitled to, and must never be subject to a political auction of any kind.

Politics

ence claims are generally unacceptable regarding internationally recognised states, while maintaining that Kosovo Albanians are entitled to that claim, means not only disregarding international law, but also the political consequences of such a one-sided course of action that would, as such, be imposed on Serbia & Montenegro. Hence, most countries in the region are rightly worried and sometimes openly opposed to the possibility of Kosovo-Metohija's secession.

"Independence for Kosovo would result in a unilateral change of internationally recognised borders in the Balkans, which would in turn destabilise the region and trace the path to rekindling conflicts from the past. Albania is the only country supporting the demand of its KosovoMetohija compatriots to secede from Serbia and SCG. "Seeing Kosovo as an example and a unique case, regardless of how many supporters the idea may have drawn, is politically short-sighted and dangerous. If Kosovo Albanians are to be given independence, why should it be denied to ethnic groups in other countries demanding it just as passionately and vociferously? In that sense, it is true that the 'Kosovo case' is more important than Kosovo itself: the solution for KosovoMetohija will bear a huge significance for the Balkans and European security in general.

"The world's system of democratic values knows no measure for the gravity of the Kosovo Albanians' demand for independence, which is principally denied to unilateral demands for secession. If Kosovo were nonetheless to become independent, it would unfortunately encourage secessionists throughout the world and be an argument for their cause.

"The grave consequences of frequent sympathy for demands to grant Kosovo independence are all too

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"Saying that independence claims are generally unacceptable regarding internationally recognised states, while maintaining that Kosovo Albanians are entitled to that claim, means not only disregarding international law, but also the political consequences of such a one-sided course of action‌" "The first round talks on Kosovo-Metohija's future status are to be held in less than a week. The Vienna meeting will focus on decentralisation of power in the province, seen by the Belgrade authorities and the Kosovo-Metohija Serbs as a realistic method to restore normal living conditions for the province's Serbs and allow the internally displaced persons to return to their homes. The Albanian side's position on the issue will in my opinion show what should be expected in the latter stages of the talks on Kosovo-Metohija's future status.

"It is crucial for the latter stages to go ahead through direct talks between the Serb and the Albanian side, in the presence of international mediators, as it should herald a political compromise between two seemingly irreconcilable options. It is not an easy task, but it is the best way to test the political maturity and democratic principles of those at the negotiating table. As regards Kosovo-Metohija's future status, Belgrade has outlined its political platform and there is no reason for me to repeat it here. However, I do wish to underline a few issues crucial for the western Balkans' joint future and its European perspective. First, the political compromise offered by Belgrade envisages a peaceful solution to the last major conflict on the territory of the former Yugoslavia, with no unilateral change of internationally

Politics

recognised borders or consequent political instability.

Second, it gives broad autonomy to Albanians in Kosovo-Metohija that will make them independent of Belgrade in most daily issues, under condition that they grant the same kind of autonomy to the province's Serbs. Third, an amicable solution reached in such a way would be based on international guarantees and could be re-negotiated after a certain period, let's say 20 years. Fourth, the process of co-operation between Serbia & Montenegro (including Kosovo-Metohija) and the EU would continue through appropriate mechanisms of association. The specific details of this solution, that would breathe new life into it and turn it into a principle of establishing the rule of law and multi-ethnic coexistence in Kosovo-Metohija, can only surface in direct negotiations between the two sides.

"Democratic Serbia is ready for such negotiations and will do everything to see to it that they succeed, protecting its legitimate interests and observing the legitimate interests of others in the process. If everyone behaves in this manner during the talks, I am convinced that they will reach a successful conclusion and, thus, turn a fresh page in the long and predominantly conflict-riddled history of Serb-Albanian relations. The new page will also represent an important step for the Balkans in its political, economic and cultural association with the rest of Europe: a goal Serbia is trying to achieve as much as other countries in this part of the world." ----- Boris Tadić, New York, 14th February 2006

"It is crucial for the latter stages to go ahead through direct talks between the Serb and the Albanian side, in the presence of international mediators, as it should herald a political compromise between two seemingly irreconcilable options."

Tadić's speech prompted a number of international representatives to voice varying opinions. The Serbian President was supported by Russian ambassador to the UN, Andrei Denisov, who warned that granting Kosovo independence could influence the resolution of other conflicts. Denisov's comment follows a statement by his president, Vladimir Putin, who has been quoted as saying that if Kosova wins independence, then proMoscow breakaway provinces, such as Abkhazia and South Ossetia in Georgia, would be justified in seeking independence as well.

Also speaking to reporters after the meeting, Kosovo PM Bajram Kosumi rejected Tadić's suggestion to delay the decision on Kosovo's status some 20 years as "unacceptable". "I believe that this is the appropriate moment to bring an end to the Kosovo question," said Kosumi.

U.S. Ambassador to the UN, John Bolton, rejected the notion that the Kosovo case should be handled according to universal norms. Bolton insisted that Kosovo is "a very special case" due to the disintegration of Yugoslavia, ethnic cleansing, and the fact that it has been under UNMIK administration for so long. "We must be realistic about possible outcomes…and any status outcome must be acceptable to the people of Kosovo."

Agreeing with Bolton's comment on acceptability, French Ambassador to the UN, Jean-Marc de la Sabliere said: "the final status would have to be acceptable to the population of Kosovo".

Perhaps most tellingly, Ambassador Adam Thomson, Deputy Permanent Representative of the UK Mission to the UN, insisted that some would say independence was the only option for the breakaway province that would bring peace and security to the region. However, Thomson warned, the Kosovo Government must demonstrate to the international community and the Security Council that it was genuinely interested in a multi-ethnic Kosovo.

On the whole, Security Council members expressed their dissatisfaction with Kosovo's development and reform effort. Greece's UN Ambassador, Adamantios Vassilakis, summed up the general feeling when he said: "Understandably, the overall impression one comes away with is one of disappointment."

Also addressing the Security Council, UNMIK Chief Soren Jessen-Petersen concluded that "the majority in Kosovo, who suffered so much as a minority themselves in the past, has a right to expect that their aspirations will be met when Kosovo's status is decided.

The minorities, who have in turn suffered revenge and isolation, have a right to expect that their concerns will be just as seriously heard and addressed".

Talks on Kosovo's final status are now underway, but Petersen warned reporters that it remains crucial for the province's local administration to achieve the key standards set out by the international community: "The message is clear, said the UNMIK chief, "the sooner and the faster that we institute implemented standards in Kosovo, the sooner we will have a decision on the status in Kosovo". •

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Diplomacy

Barroso's Balkan Dash European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso made his first tour of the Balkans in February. Accompanied

by EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn, meetings were held and speeches given in Zagreb, Belgrade, Priština, Tirana and Sarajevo

By CorD; Photo: Stanislav Milojković

uring the EU officials' short visit to the SCG capital, they managed to find time to make an appearance in the SCG parliament and meet State Union President Svetozar Marović, Montenegrin leaders - President Filip Vujanović and PM Milo Đukanović, SCG Parliament Speaker Zoran Šami and Deputy Serbian PM Miroljub Labus.

Barroso and Rehn's whirlwind tour of the Western Balkans was aimed at confirming the European integration perspective of the region as a whole, and encouraging the necessary political and economic reform.

Addressing the issue of SCG's accession process, Barroso said he was very pleased with the first round of negotiations between the EU and SCG over the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA). The Portuguese diplomat said that he appreciated the expertise and dedication of SCG delegations, saying: "I am confident that if we continue the talks in such a positive spirit, we can bring them to a close this autumn". He emphasised, though, that this would depend on whether key reforms are carried out and the required level of co-operation with the ICTY is achieved.

Saying that the SAA could not be signed unless Belgrade removes the obstacle presented by its failure to meet its Hague Tribunal obligations, Barroso said: "What is at stake is the credibility of the rule of law and the democratic foundations of this society.

Nobody should allow those who are indicted for crimes to steal this part of Europe's future."

Diplomacy

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Barroso addresses the SCG Parliament Though the decision to alter visa regimes falls under the jurisdiction of EU member-states, the European Commission is dutybound to voice their opinion on this matter. As such, Barroso said: "We are now preparing a proposal to loosen the EU visa regime for students, academics and businessmen". He added that the issue was of crucial importance and that a more lax visa regime would be a powerful stimulant for countries in the region to beef-up their reform process.

"If we want a better approach in relation to greater freedom in the mobility of people and labour, then a greater effort has to be exerted to curb organised crime and corruption. Some countries in the region will be awarded with these privileges sooner and some later", said the EC President.

Diplomacy

Barroso also expressed concern over slow implementation of standards in Kosovo and said that decentralisation and the protection of minorities would be of key importance for resolving the status of the province. However, he insisted that the EU supported a lasting solution that would uphold a stable, genuinely multiethnic and democratic Kosovo.

"The issues of status and standards are interlinked and I am anxious over the latest report of UN Secretary General Kofi Anan, which says that the implementation of standards is moving too slow," Barroso said.

According to the EC President, a clear dedication to achieving the goals of decentralisation, protection of minorities, return of refugees, participation of all communities in government, protection of the cultural and religious heritage of the region is required"

by Priština. He explained that these goals were of crucial importance for the future status of Kosovo and if the future of Kosovo was to be in Europe.

Barroso warned that Kosovo would have to face many challenges this year and whatever solution is found for the status of the province, its future lay in Europe. "We support the process of finding a solution for Kosovo's future status and the activities of UN special envoy Martti Ahtisaari.

We are also dedicated to finding a lasting solution that will uphold a stable, democratic and truly multiethnic Kosovo in which all communities can live together at peace," Barroso said, inviting both Albanians and Serbs to act constructively towards achieving this goal.

Barroso: "I am confident that you will face up to the challenges that lie ahead of you with success; that you will deal with all the obstacles in order to bring a close to negotiations in the process of association and accession" Addressing MPs in the SCG Parliament, Barroso praised the efforts of Serbia & Montenegro in joining the European Union and underlined that this would probably prove the decisive year for SCG and the whole Balkan region.

"I am confident that you will face up to the challenges that lie ahead of you with success; that you will deal with all the obstacles in order to bring a close to negotiations in the process of association and accession", Barroso said.

The EC President did not fail, however, to repeat that co-operation with The Hague was the foundation for all future political negotiations and the fate of the country: "No one should have to be a hostage to people who refuse to abide by international law and no one should have to forego a future in Europe because of these people. We are prepared to help you as much as possible so that you can successfully bring this process to a close".

Rehn and Barroso in Belgrade Addressing the issue of the State Union's existence, Barroso said that Montenegro obviously wanted a referendum, but that the legitimacy of this referendum would hinge on the way it unfolds in practice: "The European Union is fully aware of the ties that exist between the peoples of Serbia and Montenegro. Regardless of the final outcome of a referendum that might take place, good relations have to remain in their aftermath".

Referring to good neighbourly relations, Barroso reminded that regional co-operation was one of the priorities that Brussels had set before South-East Europe. "Since yours is a relatively small region with a correspondingly small market, it is necessary that your economies co-operate. South-East Europe must have a common market economy".

The head of the European Commission also stressed that all countries had benefited from the European Union thus far, in terms of their economic perspective. The Portuguese diplomat drew a comparison between the right-wing dictatorship that had ruled over Portugal until 1974 and the dictatorship that was recently in power here. "Portugal is not the only country that was ruled by a dictatorship. Spain, Greece and all the countries that entered the EU a year and a half ago have gone through a similar experience. Looking back at those times, I have to notice big differences in comparison to present-day lifestyles", Barroso concluded in his address to SCG Parliamentarians.

Making his own public address, Enlargement Commissioner Rehn spoke of the need to form a

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Diplomacy

Radicals demonstrate opposition to the ICTY as Barroso speaks in the SCG Parliament

Diplomacy

regional free trade zone by year's end. He said that by then the European Commission would try to improve the financial requisites for approximating the Western Balkans to European structures and that they would soon start negotiations, first with Macedonia and then with other states in the region, on concessions for EU's visa regime towards these countries.

Rehn told reporters that the European Union wanted to sign the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with SCG by year's end, regardless of the outcome of the Montenegrin independence plebiscite. The European Commission has taken a twin-track approach and will do everything to minimise a possible negative impact of the referendum on the process leading to the conclusion of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement. He said that negotiations with SCG would continue both in the event that it remains a single country or two constitutuent republics, with a goal to have the agreement signed by the end of the year.

"Signing the agreement essentially depends on SCG's readiness to achieve full co-operation with The Hague Tribunal, to make progress in reforms and to bring the technical negotiations over the Stabilisation and Association Agreement to a successful close," concluded Rehn.

Barroso said that the Balkans could find the experience of Portugal, his home country, valuable and instructive.

Portugal managed to overcome the ailments of dictatorship and difficult economic, social and political hardships, and emerge as a modern state and EU member. He pointed out that when freedom, democracy and tolerance take a foothold, the stage is set for

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development and progress, since the environment is receptive to trade, investment and social welfare.

"If you asked me before the revolution in 1974 whether this was possible, I would have said that it was not."

"I sincerely believe that the experience of my country and my personal experience, bearing in mind that we went through a dictatorship and a turbulent revolution, as well as a difficult transition period, and that we are now a full-fledged and modern democracy, can be of exceptional use to the countries of the Balkan region," Barroso said.

He added that whether it is left-wing or rightwing, a dictatorship was always a dictatorship. "You have gone through difficult experiences in the Western Balkans and some of them have continued into the present. What I can tell you with an open heart is that all these things go together. If freedom, democracy and tolerance find a foothold in your country, progress will inevitably follow sooner or later, because it is then that you have stable conditions for trade, investments, social development and welfare. The wants and needs of Serbs, Croats, Macedonians and Albanians are the same as those of Germans, French, Italians or Portuguese - this is to live at peace, in freedom and have good health care, education for their children, stable employment for themselves and their children".

Rehn: "Signing the agreement essentially depends on SCG's readiness to achieve full cooperation with The Hague Tribunal, to make progress in reforms and to bring the technical negotiations over the Stabilisation and Association Agreement to a successful close."

"The challenges that the Western Balkans has had to face in the recent past have been very difficult, but they are possible to overcome. We have seen this happen in Europe. If you asked me in early 1974 if Portugal could become a member of the European Union I would have said that it was entirely impossible".

Barroso cited the examples of Spain, Greece and the countries in Eastern Europe that until recently lived under single-party regimes, without liberties, and today are all fairing well and are developing.

"This is because they first had a perspective to enter the European Union before they became full members", he explained.

Upon return from the region, Olli Rehn was set to brief EU foreign ministers on SCG's level of co-operation with the ICTY, which, Barroso said, "would have a crucial bearing on possible consequences for the SAA talks." However, with Serbian authorities seemingly poised to arrest fugitive General Ratko Mladi?ć as CorD goes to print, the result of Rehn's assessment remains in the balance. •

Economics

Expensive Toy The fate of Serbia's first mobile phone operator has been sealed once and for all. Representatives of the state and the Austrian investors who became the new co-owners of Mobtel have agreed to wind the company down and build a new one out of the remains. Mobtel’s successor will then be sold, with the revenue going to the two founding parties

By Ivan Radak; Photo: Stanislav Milojković; CorD archives

he sale of Mobtel's successor, which has already planned for the first half of 2006, will bring an end to a saga that has been filling newspaper inches and TV shows for the past 12 years and has been a perfect portrayal of an entire era; a story of how a family earned its wealth in a manner that is all so common to the post-communist countries of South-Eastern and Eastern Europe.

In the early '90s the then government decided to develop mobile telephony in Serbia, chosing American company CGI as their partner. But CGI were out of the picture pretty quickly, due to international sanctions, and the void was soon filled by Bogoljub Karić's BK Company.

Karić took it upon himself to import equipment worth $65million for the new company. He also chipped in a million more in cash and received 51% of the ownership and a 20-year monopoly for providing services.

Experts would say that the venture got off on the wrong foot to begin with. Karić entered the new company as a foreign partner because his firm, Sistem Braća Karić - BK Trejd, was registered in Russia (after several years it turned out that it was not registered at all).

Regulations at the time stipulated that a foreign company could not have majority ownership over a firm operating in telecommunications. Moreover, the Founding Contract cites at least three different names of the foreign partner. The state had no problem with all of this, however, and Mobtel was born. During the 12 years it stayed in business, a great deal of controversy surrounded Mobtel. In a highly profitable branch of industry, the company allegedly failed to record profits at year's end several times; the state never received a penny of the profits and many of the deals that were

Economics

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Bogoljub Karić, business tycoon, political leader, fugitive closed have been subsequently reviewed and deemed as 'damaging' by experts.

Mobtel sponsored many TV shows, CD editions and books featuring the Karić family. It leased offices that were never built, purchased apartments, rented cars at rates more expensive than purchasing prices, hired consulting services, etc. A glaring fact is that Mobtel dealt only with companies that were part of Karić's Astra Group, and it now seems that their sole purpose was to channel funds out of Mobtel onto Karić's accounts at the expense of the other partner - the State.

Karić is not in the country anymore and speculation is rife that he may never return, since Russia is his safe haven from the law at home. Police have issued a warrant for his arrest and are investigating all the machinations he and his three brothers might have been part of, while tax authorities have already filed charges against the Karićs. Three state officials, appointed as state trustees by Zoran Đinđić's govern-

Economics ment to ensure that Mobtel paid extra profit tax dues, have also been jailed, accused of approving dubious contracts during their mandates.

Public opinion is that the entire affair is politically tinged, particularly since the man in question has attracted a large portion of the electorate with his political party - the Force of Serbia Movement (PSS) - and started to seriously threaten the government's parliamentary majority. Many who share this opinion add that the authorities had know about these irregularities years before inquiries began.

Slobodan Šoškić, Karić's defence attorney: "The whole atmosphere surrounding Mobtel indicated that everything was clear and that the only thing left to do was execute what was already laid out in writing. On the contrary, nothing is clear in this case."

One of Karić's last-ditch attempts to defend Mobtel was a complaint filed before the Arbitration Court of the International Chamber of Commerce in Zurich, where he tried to prove that he was indeed the majority owner of Mobtel. Serbia's state-owned PTT (Postal, Telegram and Telephone authority) responded with charges of their own and the process was almost brought to the point of a verdict before the Serbian Government and the Austrians apparently struck a deal that will settle the matter out of court.

MOBTEL CONTRACTS The media always dangle the celebrated report by the tax authorities for 2003 and 2004 as an illustration of bad management at Mobtel. According to the report, Mobtel sponsored the Serbian version of TV quiz "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" with 162 million dinars, sitcom "Jelena" with 210 million dinars, the Karic Fund with 14 million and FK Zemun with 10 million dinars. The D & D duet (music) was paid 172 million dinars, Marijana Karić's 'cook' received 12 million dinars and rental of a Family Tourist vehicle cost 209 million dinars.

Tax inspectors also determined that Bogoljub Karić earned 2.6 million euros at Mobtel during that time, while Sreten Karić's salaries earned him a total of 1.3 million euros. Zoran and Dragomir Karić were paid 1.7 million euros by comapny Astra simit.

The biggest assistance in uncovering irregularities in Mobtel's operations was provided by Due Diligence, a Viennese law firm that conducted an investigation in 2005 for Mobilkom. On more than 300 pages, the report lists almost all the contracts that Mobtel made.

Slobodan Šoškić, tasked with defending Karić In the last days of 2005, the Serbian Government revoked Mobtel's license as a result of a suspicious contract with Kosovo-based mobile operator Mobikos that allegedly provided them with Mobtel's licence for that part of Serbia illegally. Since then, anybody who has had anything to do with Mobtel has been subject to inquiry. Bogoljub Karić was also questioned during the first round of inquiries by the tax authorities, but he left the country the same day with the excuse that he needed to gather required documentation. When his brother Sreten Karić failed to respond to a summons by investigative authorities, his lawyers justified his absence with illness. However, if the Karić family does not respond to new summonses or fails to pay stateimposed taxes, they could very well have their considerable wealth in real-estate seized by the government.

A recent report has revealed that the Karić family owns 12 houses, 34 apartments, 13 plots of land and three garages in Belgrade alone, occupying a total area of 37,000m2 and valued at around €60 million.

Director of the Directorate for Strategy, Development and Marketing at PTT, Željko Ivanji, says that the company had lost €700 million due to bad business, which has been stated in the criminal charges filed against unidentified persons.

"We had no records or documentation when we came to PTT in 2004. There were no records of Mobtel's Steering Board meetings at the company's legal department, because Board members were not intended to get any. The decisions to pay out dividends came from the heavens, so to speak. Our representative told us he was not obliged to brief PTT's Steering Board with reports

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Economics

Željko Ivanji, Director of PTT's Directorate for Strategy, Development and Marketing

Economics

from Mobtel's Board meetings. However, he confirmed that important decisions were not made there anyway: "A more detailed look at the Founding Contract poses the question of what exactly was under the Steering Board's jurisdiction. Nevertheless, we filed charges against people from Mobtel and PTT employees."

Ivanji says he is certain that organised crime was at play in Mobtel, and that further confirmation for such claims lie in the behaviour of the Commercial Court in Belgrade.

"I cannot believe that the court has not allowed us, as one of the co-owners, to enter the company and exercise our ownership rights. Amongst other things, after 11 years a decision was made to correct a typing error in the name of the foreign partner.

What follows logically is the question of why the other party has sued us before the Arbitration Court in Zurich under the name Sistem Braća Karić - BK Trejd and not BK Trejd LLC (their name after the correction had been made). The decision to correct the name was made in September 2004 and we filed a complaint that the other party must have received…

At the court they first justified the halt in procedures by claiming staff shortages and then with claims that diplomatic mail sometimes took six months to reach the recipient. However, Mobtel's lawyers waived the decision in Zurich five days after we were informed that it was on its way to Russia. We played a small trick by addressing the letter to two recipients - the companies Sistem Braća Karić and BK Trejd LLC, to see if anyone would actually receive the mail. A confirmation of receipt returned with two signatures by the same person on behalf of both companies made within a few hours of each other."

Talking about the import of equipment for Mobtel, Ivanji warns that this was only one of the cases where irregularities were detected. He said the equipment was delivered through Russia, but the papers arrived

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through the Jusiko company from Cyprus, which inflated the invoices along the way.

"In place of the original invoices from Ericsson came those issued by Karić's company. This is what has created grounds for the police to pursue Karić.

The transport through Russia was justified with sanctions, while at the Arbitration Court in Zurich their witness, Mohammed MuljHadza, explained that the 12 million dollars not accounted for in the records were given to the Russian mafia to secure safe passages through Russian territory. In our lawsuit we have stated that Mobtel received a quantitatively lesser amount of equipment, while part of it was never recorded by customs authorities and had either ended up somewhere outside the borders of the country or was handed over to another company, probably BK Telecom. Morevoer, the founding capital of one million dollars was never forthcoming.

"We also said that Mobtel had paid $1.5million for a share in BK Engineering without the approval of the Steering Board. I just cannot believe that the directors could decide on their own to sign bad contracts for a company from the BK system. Obviously there was solicitation to commit a criminal offence at stake."

According to Ivanji, the police probed PTT's

In a highly profitable branch of industry, Mobtel allegedly failed to record profits at year's end several times; the state never received a penny of the profits and many of the deals that were closed have been subsequently reviewed and deemed as 'damaging' by experts Steering Board for the first time at the end of 2001, after being so directed by the tax authorities under the supervision of Aleksandar Radović, who was sure that Karić had never invested the amount that stood in the Founding Contract. Ivanji says that the police asked the PTT leadership to officially launch a procedure so that they could get on with their part of the job.

"Prime Minister Đinđić obviously intended to set things straight here. But, as it happened, we had more documentation for the period from 1997 to 1999 than from 2000 to 2004. No one from PTT inquired about the decisions to pay out dividends until we came upon certain documents....What worries me is why, aside from charging the extra profit tax, the authorities did not probe matters that indicated there were other serious criminal offences."

Ivanji says PTT and the state were determined to flush the entire case out into the open and that he was not concerned with comments alleging a political witch-hunt.

"He sold the company and launched a political party to wash his hands, because we did not permit him to continue conducting his affairs in the way he had got used to. I am worried, however, that the Karić's were permitted to leave the country in the first place. I believe that they will be brought to justice, because it is quite obvious that we are dealing with serious criminal offences. I am confident that Bogoljub Karić's involvement in these affairs is evident. We must not forget, however, that he did not

Economics

Mobtel’s New Belgrade HQ

Economics

even have the authority to sign the founding contract for Mobtel. This was a foul business from the very beginning, involving both officials from the state and from Mobtel. These procedures will remind us of a company that has been one of the biggest scams in Serbian history. The struggle against Karić is a civilisational battle for Serbia. It is the struggle of a civil Serbia against a primitive Serbia that tried to uphold its own machinations as a clone of Slobodan Milošević's system."

Bogoljub Karić's legal representative, Slobodan Šoškić, claims that his client will return, adding that his flight was the result of "a fierce campaign and pressure on the courts". He said that Karić's arrest would have brought him into a position where he would have found it hard to defend himself, especially if he was to remain in custody for several months.

"The whole atmosphere created around Mobtel indicated that everything was clear and that the only thing left to do was execute what was already laid out in writing. On the contrary, nothing is clear in this case. Without a doubt, there is a lot of political clout here. We are constantly fed the idea that whichever spot you choose to prod you will find it putrefied with serious criminal offences. That is why I cannot advise Karić to return home." Šoškić believes that the State Prosecutor deliberately refused to launch one trial that would unify all the charges, but has rather chosen to file a sequence of requests for investigations in order to keep the suspects under lock and key indefinitely. According to his own findings, the Prosecution has dropped some of the charges. Šoškić also noted that tax inspectors said while questioning Karić that he had €22million of income that he failed to report to the tax authorities. Šoškić pointed out that the money did not come from profits, but from loans that Karić had received from certain foreign companies, part of which he had already repaid.

"I can't see anything wrong in part of the money allocated for importing equipment being given to the mafia, since there was no possibility of legally transporting goods [because of sanctions] and an import

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of that size would entail a vast amount of additional expenses.

"The whole story around Mobtel started in 2001, but PTT did not take the opportunity to intervene and say that the other party had failed to do everything it was obliged to do. There is no such document indicating this. They did not make any remarks, but went straight to the Court of Arbitration in Zurich. The case before the court was close to a final verdict and, as it looked as if Karić would emerge victorious, the state resorted to illegally revoking his license."

Karić's defence attorney insisted that former Mobtel Genral Director Patrick Harpur was willing to come and testify, but expects that he will almost certainly be placed under arrest. Harpur is being held responsible for closing the deal with Mobikos, as well as for the contract that leased 7,000m2 of office space in Belgrade's Zvezdara District that had never been put into effect.

"I am very confident that we shall emerge from this phase of criminal proceedings with many people, if not all of them, acquitted. The storm will pass, but by then Mobtel and many of Karić's companies will not exist anymore. Those who were politically motivated will be happy with the results, while Karić will have sustained considerable financial damage and his party will be unable to take part

Karić is not in the country anymore and speculation is rife that he may never return, since Russia is his safe haven from the law at home.

Police have issued a warrant for his arrest and are investigating all the machinations he and his three brothers might have been part of in political life," says Šoškić.

It is quite certain that Mobtel will be dismantled.

Since PTT Serbia purchased Mobtel's outstanding debts towards two Austrian banks, the state will own the majority stake in the company. However, the existing company will be dismantled and the equipment transferred to the new company. The state will own an 80% share in this new company. Another motive for shutting down the old company is to liberate it from contracts with companies from the Astra Group. The revenue from Mobtel's business operations are currently channelled into a special account in the Treasury and will be included in the liquid assets of the company that are meant to settle debts towards both owners. The new company will be sold with its licence for mobile telephony services at a price that is expected to fall between 700 and 900 million euros. Some of the revenue will go to the co-owners, PTT Serbia and the Austrian investors, who are desperate to salvage the cash they gave Karić for the purchase of BK Trejd.

Although they have never publicly shown the contract for the purchase of BK Trejd, estimates are that the share in Mobtel cost them €250million. The leader of the consortium, Martin Schlaff, said that Karić has been paid a little over €100million to date. •

DEL PONTE & REHN APPLY PRESSURE Speaking in Belgrade in early February, ICTY Chief Prosecutor, Carle del Ponte, threatened to ask the EU to suspend SCG's Stabilisation and Association Agreement talks if the country's authorities fail to grant the Tribunal access to key documents and fail to hand over General Ratko Mladić and the other six fugitive ICTY indictees that are deemed as being the responsibility of the SCG Government.

Speaking to SCG Defence Minister Zoran Stanković, the Hague prosecutor noted that no indictees had been transferred since April 2005 and that tangible co-operation must be forthcoming.

Later in February, senior EU official Ollie Rehn gave added weight to del Ponte's earlier statements by reiterating at a press conference in Brussels that meeting Hague-related obligations are key to completing SCG's negotiations on a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU. A week after Rehn's statement, Bosnia's Republika Srpska special police forces launched a one-day operation to locate fugitive war crimes suspects.

Despite no arrests being made, director of the force and leader of the operation, Dragomir Andan, insisted that the search had led to the uncovering of information that could prove vital to the eventual capture of fugitives, and also demonstrated the readiness of the Republika Srpska's Interior Ministry to find those indicted by the ICTY. Also commenting from Brussels on SCG's ICTY cooperation, EC Chairman Jose Manuel Barroso said that SCG's failure to co-operate with the tribunal "is jeopardizing the important progress made in the stabilisation and association negotiations."

Barroso's comment came a day before his arrival in Belgrade as part of an EU delegation that included Rehn.•

The new law will see special protection given to witnesses, victims, defendants, judges, and family members deemed to have been endangered as a result of court proceedings.

Police will use safe houses both in the country and the wider region and can even change the identities and physical appearances of those protected under the programme.

Ambassador Polt commended the Serbian Government for adopting and implementing the new law, noting that the establishing of the solid rule of law is the foundation of every democracy and that witness protection is a crucial factor in the fight against organised crime.

The U.S. assistance is to be realised through the U.S. Justice Department's Permanent Legal Advisor's programme and the U.S. Marshal's Service. • OSCE PLAN LONG-TERM PRESENCE Speaking in Pristina in mid-February, Karel De Gucht, chairman of the OSCE and Belgian foreign minister, announced that the organisation would maintain a long-term presence in Kosovo and be heavily involved in the process of decentralisation and the implementation of standards.

According to news agency BETA, De Gucht said: "I believe that, after the status issue is resolved, the OSCE's role will focus on implementing decentralisation, but also international standards, so that progress in Kosovo can go as swiftly as possible".

While in Pristina, De Gucht also met with UNMIK deputy chief Larry Rossin, members of the Kosovo Assembly Presidency and Kosovo-Serb representatives. •

Bulletin

BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN

PODGORICA SNUBS EU DEMANDS EU Montenegrin Referendum Envoy Miroslav Lajčak’s message that the EU was insisting the republic's independence referendum would only be valid if 55% of registered voters supported the 'yes' camp was rebuffed by Montenegrin President Filip Vujanović in February.

According to an official statement released by the Montenegrin President's office: "During the meeting with Lajčak, Vujanović stressed that this rule has not been applied so far, because it does not respect the equal value of a vote, which is one of the basic human rights and also the basic principle of equality in democratic expression, according to which a minority cannot be turned into a majority".• U.S. TO HELP PROTECT WITNESSES February saw the signing of an agreement between Serbian Interior Minister Dragan Jočić and U.S. Ambassador Michael Polt on U.S. assistance to Serbia's newly established witness protection programme.

The law establishing the programme took affect on 1st January this year, and the U.S. assistance of $75,000, plus a team of experts to train police officers tasked with protecting witnesses, will allow the Interior Ministry to fully implement the programme.

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History of Co-operation Interview

When it comes to Belgrade, ambassador of Japan in Belgrade, H.E. Tadashi Nagai, is one of the most experienced international diplomats. Indeed, he had collectively spent some 14 years in the country before even beginning his latest tenure. Now, though, Ambassador Nagai has the unenviable task of carrying on the successful work of his predecessor

By Mark Pullen; Photo: Jelena Mandić

his month we spoke to the head of Japan's diplomatic mission to Belgrade about humanitarian projects, culture, and trade and industry relations; and, of course, the ambassador's unparalleled personal knowledge of the former Yugoslavia.

T

Few foreigners can boast such vast experience of Belgrade and the former Yugoslavia as you. How would you summarise the d/evolution of the country?

That's a very tough question to answer. I first came here in 1968 and was a student for three years, though I was already working for our foreign ministry. Then I spent another four years as something of an apprentice in the embassy, before going back to Japan for five years, where I worked on the Yugoslav Desk. Then I came back from 1980 to 1983. At that time, following Tito's death, the main concern was, in fact, what would happen next. But during

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those three years nothing drastic happened, though many people were worried about what might happen after ten years. However, I didn't see that part and by the time I came back in 1998 the changes had already taken place. So that very important period is missing in my own history and has a strong affect on my knowledge. I'm very sorry that I wasn't here during that difficult period of collapse.

So, the diplomatic community, particularly those who'd learned the language and understood the culture, saw the potential break-up coming as soon as Tito died?

Some of them did. I was rather hopeful at that time, I must admit. Though somewhere in my mind I was afraid of what might happen in time.

You studied in both Belgrade and Zagreb. Did you sense a difference in the atmospheres of the two cities?

Yes. I was in Zagreb in 1970. What I saw then was a sign of the potential nationalism of the former Yugoslav

republics. What happened in 1990 almost happened in 1970 [see Hrvatsko proljeće - Croatian Spring]. There was a kind of euphoria when they sang the national anthem of Croatia alongside the national anthem of Yugoslavia. But, of course, Tito put a stop to it and all the leaders were expelled or jailed. So it seemed that calmness and order had been restored. But I had already seen the potential power of nationalism in the then Yugoslavia.

Do you think the fact that the Croatians removed all the signposts for Belgrade is telling, considering that one can still see signs for Zagreb all over Belgrade?

I noticed immediately after Croatia gained independence that their attitudes had changed. Back at the start of the troubles we all thought that Serbians were much more nationalistic than Croatians, and much more eager to create a pan-Serb state by overcoming the entire territory. But it seems that this was not exactly right.

Having studied Yugoslavia's self-management economic system, would you say that it was the very nature of the system itself that led to the country's economic, and ultimately social, collapse of the 1980s?

It could be said that the system was one of the reasons. But the collapse was caused by many elements.

Moving on to formal relations, Japan has contributed significantly to the humanitarian effort in SCG with a number of key donations and assistance programmes. What further efforts in this domain are underway or in the pipeline?

All in all, we have so far contributed almost $200million in donations to SCG, including some grant aid, such as 93 buses for Belgrade City, medical equipment for Clinical Centres etc., and grassroots grant aid mainly for medical equipment for health centres and education system.

Now SCG is heading towards the EU. The Government of Japan will positively support such efforts and it is vital to nurture sound economic relations by stimulating private sector investment between the two countries.

To respond to such a shift in the prospects of the econ-

HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE Japan commenced its humanitarian mission to SCG in 1998 and has funded a wide range of projects, providing aid and grassroots support throughout the state union, unilaterally or in collaboration with such agencies as the UNHCR. - Emergency aid (Fertilizer & UNHCR): - Humanitarian aid (via UNHCR): - Grant aid (non-project type): - Public transport rejuvenation (93 buses): - Rehabilitation of Bajna BaĹĄta power plant: - Medical equipment for clinical centres: - General Grant Aid (Belgrade water system) - 81 Grassroots Human Security Projects:

$10million $10million $12.5million $15.2million $11.09million $11.4million $6.7million $4.4million

Total Debt Relief Measures to date: $104.33million Japan has also provided SCG with numerous experts in a wide range of fields, from water quality management to hospital financial management, investment promotion to aid co-ordination, tourism promotion, etc. Moreover, Japan has funded a number of development studies in the country and is continuing to fund grassroots projects, particularly for the health and education sectors.

H.E. Tadashi Nagai, Ambassador of Japan in Belgrade omy of Serbia & Montenegro, the assistance extended by the Government of Japan has been altering itself from humanitarian/reconstruction aid into technical co-operation; such as dispatching Japanese experts and inviting SCG nationals to Japan for professional training.

The Technical Co-operation Agreement, signed last November, marks this important shift of priority into technical co-operation...

How would you characterise commercial bilateral trade and industry relations between Japan and SCG? There's not too much to say in this area because our trade relations are pretty unbalanced, i.e. we export to Serbia & Montenegro much more than we buy. Indeed, according to the figures of the SCG Statistics Bureau, the country imported $151million worth of products from Japan in 2004. During the same period, SCG exported to Japan goods worth only $1.1million, which is almost negligible from the perspective of our international trade statistics.

Do you think the Japanese business community is aware of SCG and the potential here?

That's another sensitive issue. As you know, I've been here since 1968, on and off, and at one time we had all our major trading companies operating in Belgrade. At that time our business community certainly had an excellent appreciation of the then Yugoslavia, including, of course, Serbia and Montenegro. But now, after all the conflicts and the change of the country's name, it lost its familiarity in Japan and still carries the image of a conflict country...

Now we are trying to change this image and I'm telling all my people in Serbia & Montenegro that they should try harder to change the image of their country.

The country needs to re-brand itself again. When they changed the name from Yugoslavia, many people - myself included - thought it was a mistake.

I don't like to criticise my friends in Serbia & Montenegro, but one of the problems with their mentality is that they always think they're right and they make spot decisions without properly thinking them over. In Japan, especially in the private sector, we would have first sat down and calculated how much such a decision would cost. In this country, I'm afraid, they still don't employ such a way of thinking.

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Interview themselves to Japanese methods. This in itself is improving the overall efficiency of the factory.

This is, I think, a good example, though I would add that the co-operation of the SCG Government is absolutely necessary in order to help remedy the problems the company's management are still complaining about, such as inconsistent or unstable electricity supplies; and sudden power cuts that disrupt operations.

Following minister Dinkic's visit, and with the positive example of DIADO leading the way, do you know of any other Japanese companies planning FDI projects in SCG? As far as I know, one Japanese company is interested in the privatisation process of the tobacco industry in Vojvodina. The company in question is Japan Tobacco International.

That's the only concrete example I know of for now, though I am expecting some of the big trading companies, Sogo Shosha - which has almost become part of the international English dictionary - to open an office here.

Interview

SCG Ambassador in Tokyo, Mr. Filipov, is very active in promoting Serbia & Montenegro in Japan. For example, he organised a study tour for tourism related professionals: he sent 15 Japanese tourism professionals to Serbia & Montenegro to see what the country has to offer Japanese tourists. We have also been trying to promote this country as a destination for Japanese tourists...

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You say that the aim is to establish the image of Serbia as a safe country, open for investment. Would the next step, then, be for the Japanese Government to re-establish its JETRO office in Belgrade?

Before we talk about JETRO, I would like to note that the Serbian and Montenegrin governments are exerting efforts to improve their image. From the Serbian side, Finance Minister Dinkić visited Japan and organised three seminars on the SCG market in Japan. I think this should help, because they had quite a healthy turnout among business people interested in investing in this market. I think they should continue to stage similar events...

As far as the reopening of JETRO is concerned, we would be glad to see that and will push for it. However, it is not so easy to re-open the office. This kind of thing is very often a 'chicken and egg' factor. JETRO would say 'when we have some more interests here, then we'll reopen'. While here, the SCG Government want to see the JETRO office opened in order to first attract the Japanese investors. I think the SCG Government should be more proactive in attracting and inviting them.

One often finds that countries lacking significant investment can encourage their businesses through positive existing examples. As such, are the management of DAIDO Metal's Kotor subsidiary [established in 2001] satisfied with conditions in the coastal republic?

Yes they are. I met their representatives two weeks ago when I visited Montenegro and had very interesting talks with them. They had major problems in the beginning because they had to assume the company's existing negative assets and also had to confront the socialist mentality.

But they overcame the problems and the company is now working very well, producing parts for the motor industry, the quality of which is recognised by Japanese companies like Toyota and Honda. So, they are now very happy and the example of DAIDO shows that when Japanese professionals work with local workers, those workers try to adapt

The healthy state of cultural relations between Japan and SCG was demonstrated recently by the staging of the Month of Japanese Culture (Oct/Nov 2005) in Belgrade and Novi Sad. Are plans afoot to stage other similar events or even a reciprocal presentation of SCG culture in Japan?

I don't like to criticise my friends in Serbia & Montenegro, but one of the problems with their mentality is that they always think they're right and they make spot decisions without properly thinking them over We started the 'Month of Japanese Culture' event two years ago and we intend to ensure it continues. We are already planning this year's event, which will probably be staged in October-November again.

Our cultural events aren't confined only to autumn, and rather take place throughout the year. In May, we are planning to hold a Japanese tourism fair, on the occasion of Japan hosting Basketball and Volleyball World Cup. We are expecting quite a few concerts using Japanese traditional musical instruments this year. At the end of February, for instance, young, talented group 'ZAN' performed two successful concerts in Serbia, playing the 'Sou' and 'Shakuhachi'. In mid-March, the professional KOTO group is coming, and at the beginning of July we expect GOCOO to impress Belgrade with TAIKOs, Japanese drums...

In terms of reciprocal events, the National Museum in Belgrade is exhibiting a collection of its most valuable works around Japan this year.

Academic relations between SCG and Japan include a scholarship system for post-graduate students wishing to further their studies in Japan. Has there been much interest in these projects?

Academic relations are one of our priorities and the scholarship students are perhaps the most important… Usually we recommend two or three faculty or post-graduate students, or even high school pupils, to Japan. What I think is important for the future of our project, considering the considerable interest here in learning the Japanese language, would be the establishing of a project to send a Serbian professor from here to Japan to learn how to teach Japanese. •

Interview

Success Story Raiffeisen Bank stands out as one of the greatest success stories of post-2000 Serbia. But, according to Managing Board Chairman Oliver Roegl, Raiffeisen's success story is matched by the success of the entire banking sector in the country, which he largely attributes to the "courageous efforts of the National Bank of Serbia". Nevertheless, he notes, "this is a market that's just starting to develop and compete, and exporters, SMEs, micro businesses, etc., are being artificially burdened with additional costs."

Interview

By M. Pullen; Photo: Jelena Mandić

s the first foreign bank to enter Serbia after the 5th October changes, Austria's Raiffeisen Bank, which has been expanding into Central and Eastern Europe for the past 15 years, has gone from strength to strength, growing organically to become what Oliver Roegl describes as "the actual leader on this market".

Explaining that the key indicator of a bank's position is market share, Roegl argues that his bank leads the way in Serbia because "when you look at the market share in corporate lending and retail lending, we are the market leader, and have been so since 2004…and in 2005 we managed not only to maintain that leading position, but to extend it."

Roegl, a fluent Serbian speaker and experienced banker in emerging markets - having served his bank over the past 15 years in departments handling the emerging markets of Russia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Latin America, Africa, etc. - arrived in Belgrade as early as October 2000 to assess the feasibility of Raiffeisen's entry.

A

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Following his positive appraisal, Raiffeisen formally entered the then FR Yugoslavia market on 1st January 2001 and Roegl has been helping to spearhead the bank's unrivalled development ever since.

Expressing his sense of pride, Roegl says: "This project feels like my baby, because we started the bank from scratch five years ago by using a completely different approach." As such, "something that might be a pain in the neck sometimes is not so here because it's something that we created… All that we have achieved gives our team a real sense of pride. Our achievements are plain to see."

Restoring public trust in the country's postMilošević banking sector has been one of the greatest challenges facing the country's financial authorities.

With the public having suffered greatly as a result of corrupt and incompetent financial institutions, it has been imperative that confidence be restored in the system. However, Roegl is of the opinion that a sterling job has been done by the authorities: "The first credit for winning back public trust in the banking sector must go to the National Bank. Their actions were the key perquisite to this process. Even as

Interview the best commercial bank, you cannot turn around a banking environment: this is something that is defined by the financial environment, mainly by banking supervision - in this case that means the national bank.

Very courageous steps were taken by the then National Bank of Yugoslavia, now the National Bank of Serbia; steps in the right direction, which may have been heavily criticised but ultimately proved to be the right steps to cleanse the environment and provide the basis for today's development; development that is a genuine success story compared to other countries.

"In some countries, some banks collapse or stand on the verge of collapse even ten years after banking restructuring has taken place. Here, the banking sector on the whole is much safer than it was just three years ago, when a single bankruptcy could have dragged down the banking sector quite substantially. Now this likelihood is very small indeed."

Continuing to comment on the efforts of the NBS, Roegl says: "the National Bank of Serbia has proved to be one of the most professional reformers over the past four years. I completely understand the environment they find themselves in right now, but we can clearly see the clean-up operation they have performed over those four years. Cleaning that mess has been an amazing job. Compared to other countries in transition, Serbia undoubtedly has one of the best banking structures, and has implemented one of the best bank restructuring policies. No old, crumbling banks have been artificially

"Very courageous steps were taken by the National Bank of Serbia; steps in the right direction, which may have been heavily criticised but ultimately proved to be the right steps to cleanse the environment and provide the basis for today's development‌" kept alive; there are no ‘walking-dead’ banks dragged on indefinitely at massive cost to the taxpayer, which has happened in other countries. Here, the National Bank performed a very quick clean - four banks eliminated, other banks reformed and restructured efficiently, with political and corporate links severed and bad loans sorted out."

Nonetheless, Roegl notes, Serbia still has a rigid, restrictive monetary policy that is proving a real challenge for all financial organisations operating in the country. Still, he is realistic and understanding, though fearful of the ramifications of further price hikes: "Tough monetary policy is something that you have to take as a fact of life in transition countries. As a commercial bank, we cannot influence the National Bank's policy. Of course, banks have to react to measures implemented by State institutions, a consequence of which is interest rates - if you greatly increase the price of funding this is passed on to consumers.

"Last year's influx of competition countered this trend and, thus, part of the increase was compensated for by the competition." But, he continues, "meanwhile the margins, particularly on the corporate side, in many cases are already at the break-even level so that any further interest rate hike on the corporate or SME

Oliver Roegl, Managing Board Chairman, Raiffeisenbank Beograd side would have to be passed on to the sector. This would be a pity.

"I understand that the state is influenced by IMF pressure, but of course it's not the first country to have suffered in this way and I think it's very much the local monetary authority that needs to decide what is best for the country at this very specific phase. This is not a decision that one can outsource. It has to be made locally," says Roegl.

Accusing Serbia's authorities of "mirroring, or almost copying, measures adopted in other countries, particularly Croatia", Roegl implies that the state is perhaps attempting to run before it has learned to walk by overburdening the sector with regulations that it is not yet able to cope with.

Using neighbouring Croatia as an example, Roegl says that the copying of their laws comes "despite the fact that Croatia is in a very different phase of development. In terms of credit development alone, Croatia is some ten years ahead of us. As such, the industry there had much more time to develop before restrictive measures were introduced. In our case, two years ago we were criticised for not lending enough to the corporate and retail sectors, even though we were the most active lender. Now we, and other commercials banks, are receiving the message that we're lending too much: in a very short period of time we've gone from too little to too much and, in my opinion, neither is the case."

Again expressing his appreciation of circumstances, Roegl says: "I fully understand that the government has been forced to take certain restrictive measures in view of the situation. Nobody appreciates inflation and everybody understands that it cannot exceed certain bench-

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Interview

Roegl: Proud of the Raiffeisen team effort

Interview

marks. I understand that growth rates must be kept in check with salary levels and overall increases in consumer lending should be watched carefully. But this is a market that's just starting to develop and compete, and exporters, SMEs, micro businesses, etc., are being artificially burdened with additional costs. This is something that should be considered through some sort of dialogue or industrial policy talks."

Admitting that whatever measures the state and the NBS choose to implement will, ultimately, be accepted by the commercial banking sector, Roegl warns only that such measures must be fair: "In the end, if certain measures are taken they are okay as long as they're not discriminatory. They must apply to all banks and no one bank should be allowed to increase only 20 per cent while another is allowed to increase 50 per cent."

2005 saw the arrival in Serbia of a number of foreign banks through privatisation, and Roegl says that "only time will tell if the truly massive prices paid by foreign banks in Serbia last year were worthwhile".

Roegl says that the fact that major privatisations in the banking sector did not happen until 2005 actually helped Raiffeisen prosper organically in Serbia.

He also notes that avoiding purchasing any bank helped the bank steer clear of the associated friction.

He says: "Most of our fellow foreign competitors entered the market by purchasing domestic banks.

That always causes friction and sees different banking cultures clash. This is something we did not have to go through because we grew organically here, which is undoubtedly one of our strengths. And, as long as we are in a position to outgrow the market organically, we will not purchase any banks here, though we have done so elsewhere, such as Russia, Ukraine, Albania, Bosnia, Slovenia, etc.

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"Here, our organic growth was actually helped by the fact that the major privatisations didn't occur prior to 2005. If they'd have taken place earlier we may not have had the time to grow so fully. Serbia is actually the only country where we have managed to become the number one bank without purchasing any other bank.

Nonetheless, it didn't come easy and we have been forced to constantly push forward."

It is for these reasons that, despite the added new competition, Raiffeisen's managing board chairman believes that the bank will manage to maintain, and even build upon, its leading position, and that it will do so by adhering to the same factors that have proved successful to date: "We didn't become the leaders by chance. We became the leaders because we had a specific credence that helped us very much and will continue to help us. This, first and foremost, relates to our customer-orientated approach‌we are constantly working on providing new products and services for customers and shortening processing times."

One of the bank's greatest advantages over fellow foreign competitors is its strong brand recognition, which Roegl says is "thanks largely to the fact that many Serbs travel to Austria regularly and recognise Raiffeisen easily, and a large Serbian Diaspora community live in Serbia. As such, if one compares our brand awareness in Serbia to our brand awareness in Russia, for instance, one will see that it took us quite some time to achieve brand awareness in the latter,

"In the end, if certain measures are taken they are okay as long as they're not discriminatory.

They must apply to all banks and no one bank should be allowed to increase only 20 per cent while another is allowed to increase 50 per cent." while it took no time at all in the former. Russia had nothing like a Diaspora in Austria and any foreign bank was just another foreign bank; every image had to be built from scratch. This was not necessary in the former Yugoslavia or neighbouring countries."

Foreign investors in Serbia have often been accused of becoming 'Balkanised', by adopting their operating procedures and personnel-hiring policies to suit the tendencies of the region, but Roegl says this is largely a 'myth' and has certainly not been the case with Raiffeisen: "we never hire staff "preko veze" (via connections)," Roegl says, "and, in the end, it is our staff that ensures our success. From the very staff we have managed to attract what I would call the cream of the crop of local banking specialists. Since we were the first foreign bank that came here after the changes, we managed to get very good staff which we have only built on. Every member of management staff was handpicked and, before being hired, the final interview was conducted by a responsible top manager and, in many cases, by me personally. This is a time-consuming process, but it ensures that we have only the best staff." •

Interview

The White Book Brand Interview

This month sees the release of the Foreign Investors Council's 2006 White Book and, as the FIC White Book enters its fourth year, CorD speaks to FIC President and PriceWaterhouseCoopers partner Mike Ahern about the evolution of the book, transition development in Serbia and the economic prospects of the country CorD; Photo: Jelena Mandić

ike Ahern has spent over three years getting to know Serbia and the situation in the country, and his personal familiarisation with the nation has been mirrored by that of the White Book, as Ahern admits: "Back in 2003 literally just a handful of us were involved in the first edition of the White Book. To some extent we were 'taking some liberties' in compiling the book, because clearly we didn't have expertise in all the areas and were rounding up things in areas that we knew about, but for which we lacked a great depth of expertise. Really, what you've seen over the three-and-a-half years is a huge improvement in the quality and breadth of coverage: now all the chapters are written by people who have expertise in their sectors."

The White Book has not only evolved in terms of its more accurate, in-depth coverage of specific areas, it has also developed into a genuine brand in its own right; a stand-

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CorD | March 2006

alone guide that is utilised by great numbers of foreign investors, journalists, consultants, diplomats et al. This, says Ahern, "is incredibly encouraging and means that the effort that goes into preparing the book is indeed worthwhile‌" Still, the quest to create an ever-more practical publication continues, and the fine-tuning required to

The truth of the matter is that Serbia has been bypassed in the last 14 years. Thus, I see their entrepreneurial mindset as an impediment that brings with it a degree of both pride and arrogance improve the Book yet more is at the forefront of Ahern's thinking: "in terms of modifications, we are still working on the need for recommendations to be simple and achievable in the relative short run. It actually isn't practical to think about 2010 or 2012. We really need to focus our attention on near-term issues and be very sim-

Interview ple and direct in what we say so that, ultimately, we can measure the results…

"We are now definitely trying to be more consequential in terms of what we're doing. In September last year we staged an event called a 'reality check', which was basically a closed meeting with the senior economic ministers in the government. A week in advance we put to them a dozen or so questions, giving them time to prepare their responses. Then we had a meeting involving them and our members, but without the press. That worked very well. We are again planning to have two or three of these 'reality checks' throughout the year and, thus, that is one of the methods we'll be using to be consequential in terms of the White Book."

Co-operation with the government is crucial to the work of the FIC and, although Ahern was complimentary of the current government and many of the steps it has taken, he did find general fault with Serbian politicians, saying: "I am critical of the politicians to the extent that they haven't taken opportunities to close down certain issues such as The Hague Tribunal, which shouldn't still be on the agenda at this point in time, and the making of heroes out of some people who are not heroes by any criteria…

He continued: "Serbs tend to respond more to sticks than to carrots, which is disappointing. An appropriate

"Serbs tend to respond more to sticks than to carrots, which is disappointing. An appropriate phrase coined by former U.S. Ambassador William Montgomery is that "Serbs never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity"." phrase coined by former U.S. Ambassador William Montgomery is that "Serbs never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity"."

Speaking about being consequential in terms of the work of the White Book, would you say that the 2005 edition had succeeded in encouraging the government to make changes?

It's always going to be a mixed reaction. Some of the issues are listened to, some are not. For example, on environmental issues I think we see there is definite progress being made in some areas…I think, also, the National Bank tends to be responsive. However, the Labour Law has been a running sore for us for the past 18 months. So, ultimately, it's pluses and minuses.

The issues of the problematic labour law and competition legislation were recently discussed at a meeting involving the FIC, ERT (European Roundtable of Industrialists) and relevant government representatives. How did those talks go and how would you assess taxation levels in Serbia?

The way the tax system works here is that there's no special dispensation for any enterprise or individual entrepreneur, depending on the size of the business in question.

Ultimately, tax rates here are low and they're competitive. I think part of the problem is a mentality problem: people got into the habit of actually not paying taxes: there was, and to a certain extent there still is, a trend of money being paid under counters or not always completely disclosed. So, I think it is about this need to change the mentality of not paying tax to having to pay tax. So, I would argue that tax rates are not high.

Interestingly, Minister Dinkić [Serbian Finance Minister] said recently that 2007 will see the introduction of a new per-

Mike Ahern, FIC President sonal income tax law, and probably amendments to social security, which are going to lower employment costs - payroll related taxes…Clearly, what lies behind his thinking is to say 'we want to make Serbia a competitive economy in terms of using our labour force'. That's very sensible.

Nonetheless, for us to have a low-cost labour force we need a friendly labour law.

What is it specifically about the Labour Law that the FIC objects to?

The word I'd use is its 'inflexibility'; it tends to be very prescriptive, and strange, arbitrary measures are introduced. For example, there's a 0.4% per annum mandatory adjustment required for a person's years of experience. I would simply argue that the salaries we receive are paid on the basis of our capabilities, experience, responsibilities, etc. Thus, that's not something you need to be mandating through a labour law.

Another example is that, the way things stand at the moment, in the month you take your annual leave the salary for paid leave is based on the average remuneration received over the previous three months. Thus, if you've had a bonus in one of those three months you're paid more than you would be if you took your leave following three months of regular salary payments.

We're also seeing people spending enormous amounts of time simply juggling costs and payments - taking things from one pocket and putting them into another. So the law is administratively burdensome and is also causing unnecessary friction between employers and employees, because an employee naturally questions whether their employer is being manipulative. In most instances that's not the case, but the doubt and the friction are real.

We saw Slobodan Lalović [Serbian Minister of Labour, Employment and Social Policy] last week, and I got the impression that he is becoming more amenable to change.

But we'll have to wait and see.

The Serbian Government recently set its 2006 FDI target at $2billion. Is this realistic?

My response on FDI predictions is always to highlight the importance of seperating privatisation receipts from Greenfield investment. Whether or not two billion is achievable is going to depend largely on the amount of money they get from the privatisation of the remaining banks - I imagine Vojvođanska will get a good price - and also on the price of the two refineries.

At the end of the day, however, what we need to be measuring and assessing ourselves on more critically is Greenfield

CorD | March 2006

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Interview

ly one of the more well developed FICs within Southeast Europe, though Romania is ahead of us and I plan to travel to Bucharest this year to see what they’re doing in order to step up our activities.

At the same time, we play a very important role in supporting smaller FIC organisations, in Albania, Macedonia, etc., in order to pass on our expertise and to assist in their development.

Regardless of the very real regional co-operation as a network, at the end of the day the focus for each of us has to be on our own countries. That's why our members want us to exist and that's what we're here to deliver on.

Remaining on the regional issue, the EC has begun promoting the notion of forming an SEE Free Trade Area to replace CEFTA, which has received broad support from the governments of the region - except Croatia's. Do you support the idea and do you feel the time is right?

I'm a very strong proponent of the idea. The network of 31 FTAs has been a great step in the right direction, but in the end you do still have 31 of them as opposed to, potentially, one all-embracing FTA. I think this puts appropriate pressure on the Balkan nations to trade more with each other as a preparatory step to actually being part of the EU. Thus, it's absolutely the right thing to do. I also hope that this facilitating of free trade will encourage neighbours to work together more and encourage mobility of people. This is because another issue of importance going into the EU is that there are going to be fewer restrictions on the movement of people.

Mike Ahern: “Greenfield investment is crucial to growth”

Interview

investment. There's been a dearth of Greenfield investment, which the government is acknowledging. We, collectively and as a country, need to be going out and targeting specific investors who we believe would find Serbia attractive. This, for example, may be people who would to fit into ball-packaging supply chains: more breweries, etc. But we need to remain very focused on where the potential competitive advantages are…

Another thing that we don't pay enough attention to here is talking to existing investors. All OECD studies show that the highest amount of further investment actually comes from companies who are already in the country. I believe the Government has to pay a lot more attention to talking to those companies about what's going on and what would make them reinvest money. Drawing parallels with a PriceWaterhouseCoopers situation, I would say that it's far easier for us to win work from existing clients than to go out and target new clients.

Do you think the Government is proactive enough in enhancing its image internationally?

In short, no. I would never underestimate the difficulty of the task, but I think the country needs a very clear programme - involving the government, the private sector, the media, and organisations such as the FIC - to ensure that there are continuous events and media coverage and a constant, year-round stream of good news messages about Serbia being delivered to the outside world.

What level of co-operation does the FIC enjoy with similar organisations in the region and beyond; is there a regional strategy?

We enjoy good co-operation with FICs in other countries, and last year we actually had three comprehensive 'network meetings' - Skopje in April; the ministerial summit in Sofia in June; then another regional meeting in December in Vienna.

What is clear is that, firstly, as FIC Serbia we are certain-

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Finally, you were in Poland at a critical time for the country's reform process. How would you compare the two countries' transitions to a market economy?

All OECD studies show that the highest amount of further investment actually comes from companies who are already in the country. I believe the Government has to pay a lot more attention to talking to those companies…

A couple of things really stand out, but these sorts of comparisons usually come down to people. I always feel that people in Serbia clearly do not have to deal with the legacy of 50 years of Soviet communism, which definitely plays on mentality. So here you see a far more entrepreneurial mindset that undoubtedly gives Serbia an advantage, in that the process of change is less onerous. However, at the same time, because of that entrepreneurial mindset, people are more inclined not to accept what outsiders are recommending. There seems to be more resistance, which can be disadvantageous…

I actually tire of people saying to me "Serbia was strong in 1990, etc." I accept that that may well be true, but it's not doing Serbia any favours in today's world, which is a completely different place.

The truth of the matter is that Serbia has been bypassed in the last 14 years. Thus, I see their mindset as an impediment that brings with it a degree of both pride and arrogance.

Young people in both Poland and Serbia are similar, though I think that young people worldwide are fairly freethinking in this information age. However, in Poland I always got the impression that young colleagues were going home to parents whose mentalities were formed in the old eastern-bloc. This is not the same here.

Finally, whether you were from Poland or you're from Serbia, you have to take your medicine - this comes back to the war criminals and the like. The sooner you get on and take the medicine, the better for all. And if you refuse to take your medicine it will catch up with you. •

New Current Account Proves a Hit After analysing the needs and problems facing citizens, Banca Intesa Belgrade has decided to offer its retail clients a new quality product - the Intesa Hit current account. By justifying its position as market leader, Intesa is adding to its existing offer with several useful options that represent innovations on the Serbian market.

The Hit account is also available to other groups of citizens, such as freelancers, artists and the so-called free professions, who have been unable to benefit from certain banking options to date.

In the frame of this product, Intesa has established an offer for them too; and all this in the recognisable Banca Intesa Belgrade manner - attainability to everybody and a maximally simplified procedure, which facilitates clients' day-to-day business with the bank. By opening the Intesa Hit current account, clients acquire additional advantages of being able to take out loans and utilise other Banca Intesa services.

With Intesa, refusals are a thing of the past. There are no complicated procedures and no guarantors are needed to

BMW Invites You to TAKE 5 BMW Diplomatic Sales invites you to TAKE 5 and create your own great deal on the following model range: 5 Series Saloon, 5 Series Touring and X5.

It is BMW's pleasure to present you the 2006 Sales Promotion, which starts with immediate effect for ordering before 31st October 2006 and for delivery and registration in 2006.

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open an Intesa Hit current account. The account can be opened by anyone who has a regular monthly influx of funds, no matter whether or not they are employed. As regards documentation, all you need is an identity card and, depending on your employment status - for employees and pensioners - confirmation of the transfer of a regular salary or pension and, for those with income but without permanent employment - a simple deposit is all that's required.

Services included with the Hit account include the Euro more option, which offers the possibility of exchanging dinars into euros on a monthly basis with the most favourable exchange rate.

Hit current account holders receive a MasterCard, an automatic overdraft option, SMS information on deposits made and - per request - balance information and funds available per card, as well as an emailed statement.

Intesa's Hit clients can also utilise on-line e-banking options to manage their finances and set up standing orders.

As an added bonus, Intesa Hit current account holders also receive additional health insurance from Delta Insurance as a gift from the bank.

These are the hits you simply must have! •

TAKE 5 is applicable to Diplomats, embassy fleet cars and members of International Organisations.

In order to TAKE 5, all you have to do is order one of the aforementioned models and, in addition to the special price that you already receive, BMW will pay for options up to the value of â‚Ź2,500 - on your behalf.

You are more than welcome to contact your nearest BMW importer for a test drive.

Delta Aiming for London Stock Market At its annual meeting with business partners, held in Belgrade at the beginning of February, the Delta M Company announced its new challenging plans to become the leader in the region.

The Delta M Group is a member of Delta Holding, which employs a total of 15,800 people and plans a total turnover of €1.4billion this year.

According to Delta M Group general director, Ivana Veselinović, this company was the biggest domestic investor in 2005 with €220million.

This year Delta M is planning to invest €206million, €81million of which will be directed to the development of retail trade (Maxi, Pekabeta and Tempo), 50 million in constructing shopping centres, 15 million in agriculture, 40 million in new projects and 20 million in acquisitions.

Veselinović announced that the building of Delta's first shopping mall - an 80,000m2 complex in New Belgrade's Block 67, will get underway as early as March. The group's biggest shopping centre will be built beside Belgrade's Autokomanda on a site measuring 200,000m2. Construction will start in 2007.

In the next three years, Delta M plans to build a total of 800,000m2 of business premises, investing €605million.

According to director Veselinović, the company's first task, which is already attainable, is taking over the position of the regional leader, and the next task will be the company’s launch on London's prestigious Stock Market. •

The Audi Q7 Unveiled Audi has unveiled the vehicle which represents the best product in the SUV segment. The Audi Q7 cleverly combines sport design with versatility and experience in technology with the luxury of premium class vehicles.

The Q7 stands out on the road with its performance and dynamic of driving a sports car. The vehicle does not hide its qualities, and its technology offers what it promises - on any road and under any conditions. The Audi Q7 with SUV performance- from the creator of the Quattro.

The Audi Q7 sets new trends with its design itself. The characteristic dynamism is reflected in the wide bend of the roof line and specially raised surface of the body in relation to the windscreen. The typical Audi form is the line of the back section and the dynamic line which defines the side sections. The option of two contrasting colours creates an exceptionally eyecatching look.

5,086 mm in length and with an axle distance of exactly 3,002 mm (width 1,983 mm, height 1,737 mm), the Audi Q7 is undeniably the number one sports vehicle. Its users enjoy its incomparably large space and new dimensions of versatility: 28 possibilities for adjusting seats and loading possibilities. Up to 7 passengers can be seated in three lines of seats. If is used as 5-seater vehicle, with a loading space of 775L, it is the best in its class!

We offer Audi Q7 buyers a choice of two strong engines: the new 4.2 l V8 engine with FSI and the 3.0 TDI. The gear transmission for both engines is a 6-gear Tiptonic.

The Audi Q7 is equipped with four-wheel-drive as standard. Its Torsen differential transfers the power to all four wheels, on and off the road, achieving maximum acceleration and stability - the main pre-condition for the optimal dynamic of driving and safety.

This concept of driving has been clearly defined in the last 25 years and is characterised by the fact that over two million production series have run and innumerable victories in various races and rallies have been secured.

The Audi Q7 also boasts the new MMI operational concept as standard.

The large number of new assistance systems, which have been introduced as standard for the first time, can be ordered according to wish: side assist with radar technology for manoeuvring in narrow streets and a supplemented parking system with optical/acoustic control and rear view camera. •

CorD | March 2006

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R-Class in Belgrade

DaimlerChrysler SCG d.o.o. presented the new Mercedes-Benz RClass in Serbia & Montenegro for the first time ever on St. Valentine's Day. With this novel vehicle concept, Mercedes-Benz has reinforced its standing as a pioneer and trendsetter among carmakers.

That is because the R-Class, the Grand Sports Tourer, defines a new market sector with exciting potential.

The fascinating aspect of this car concept is its versatility. It combines the dynamism of a sports sedan with the spaciousness of an SUV; the flexibility of a station wagon and the capability of an off-roader. Thus the amalgamation of new ideas has produced a unique and incomparable vehicle category.

Some years ago, after discovering what customers want, observing social trends and acting accordingly, MercedesBenz's future analysts and product planners came upon the idea of developing an innovative car concept reflecting a new type of lifestyle - the desire for relaxation, comfort, enjoyment and aesthetics, but also for freedom of travel and safety. This equates to individual quality and enjoyment of life. People want to feel good - and that includes in their car. And they want to share that experience with their family and friends.

To put it another, fresher way, the younger generation want to be different - and travel differently. They are demanding a new form of automobile transport, and new formats. The Mercedes-Benz response to those demands is the sports tourer concept, which forms the basis for a new family of models - the R-Class, the Grand Sports Tourer, and the B-Class of Compact Sport Tourer.

Through the expertise of its engineers, the creativity of its designers and know-how of its products planners, this trendsetter among car manufacturers has been able to develop this unique vehicle type.

The R-Class is a car for long journeys, for safe and relaxed travelling with family, friends or colleagues. That is why Mercedes-Benz worked with a large format design from the outset and developed a vehicle that offers six passengers a new dimension of comfort - space as a pleasurable experience now available on the Serbia &Montenegro market. •

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CorD | March 2006

One Package, Four Loans Vojvođanska banka a.d.

Novi Sad has launched its all new Family PLUS Package of products and services, which includes a free of charge Visa Electron card and Visa Credit and Dina Credit cards issued without deposit, annual fee and account-keeping fee.

In addition to credit cards, holders of the package can take advantage of two more loan models: a two-year overdraft and €500 mini cash loan without deposit or participation, granted for a period of 12 months with 12% annual interest rate (EIR 16.38% p.a.). The package also includes the opening and maintaining of a free of charge current account, free statement of account by post or e-mail, direct debit bill payment, SMS account balance and 20% discount on safe deposit box rental.

All these services have been grouped into a single package to help our clients manage their funds in the easiest and most efficient way.

Visa and Dina Credit cards are the most practical means of making cash-free payments. The domestic Dina Credit card splits the transaction into monthly instalments - transactions up to 5,000 dinars are repaid in three monthly instalments; transactions from 5,001 to 10,000 dinars in six monthly instalments, while transactions exceeding 10,000 dinars are repaid in 12 monthly instalments.

Even citizens who do not have a current account with Vojvodjanska banka or a regular monthly income can own a Dina Credit card.

The Visa Credit Card can be used both in the country and abroad. Transactions made abroad are repaid in two equal monthly instalments, while transactions made in the country are repaid in accordance with a predetermined repayment percentage - 10% or 15% of the spent credit amount (minimum 1,000 dinars).

The interest on the utilised part of the credit via Visa or Dina Credit card is 1.8% per month, without currency clause. •

XXL Cash Loans Big Solutions for Big Plans Humanitarian Action Aids Crash Victims

For the first time on the local market, Raiffeisenbank offers a non-specific purpose cash loan in amounts ranging up to €50,000, with mortgage guarantee and a repayment period of up to 15 years. The loans require no down payment, deposit or guarantors, have very competitive interest rates and it is possible to index the loan either in euros or in Swiss francs.

The loan collateral is a mortgage. The client may mortgage the real estate being bought with the loan, or some other real estate that can be owned by parents, relatives, friends…

Creditworthiness is established on the basis of 50% of the applicant's total income, and there is the possibility to include a co-debtor (spouse, parent, relative, etc.) in order to enhance creditworthiness.

Raiffeisenbank is the country's top retail bank according to total loan portfolio, number of credit cards issued and payment cards transaction volume. In the previous year, Raiffeisenbank more than doubled the number of clients from 145,000 at the end of 2004, to 300,000 at the end of 2005. From €137million in newly approved credits just in 2005, the total retail loan portfolio grew to €253.3million.

Retail deposits grew by €123.5million, so the total collected retail deposits today amount to 410 million euros.

In the course of 2005, a total of 1,459 mortgage loans were approved, amounting to €42.28million. Of all the banks that signed the subvention programme for mortgage loans, the greatest number of loans (a total of 370) were realised through Raiffeisenbank.

Raiffeisenbank is the leading bank in Serbia & Montenegro as regards the number of issued credit cards, as well as the volume of transactions performed. In 2005, Raiffeisenbank issued 75,000 revolving credit cards, while the total number of Visa cards issued was 230,000. Raiffeisenbank's clients perform more than 30% of all payment card transactions made in Serbia & Montenegro.

The prerequisite for the further development of business activities is the expansion of the bank's branch network. In 2005, the number of branches increased to 44, and in 2006 the bank plans to open an additional 20 branches. •

Responding to the recent tragedy in the country's coastal republic, telecommunications operator Telekom Srbija has established two humanitarian hotlines to allow citizens to help.

By calling 0900 300 300 or sending an SMS to 064 6652, donations of 30 dinars or 25 dinars respectively (excluding VAT) will be automatically sent to the fund to aid the victims, survivors and families of those who suffered, and continue to suffer, as a result of the rail accident in Bioce near Podgorica.

Telekom Srbija thanks you for supporting this crucial humanitarian action. •

CorD | March 2006

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Rotarian Spirit The global goodwill tradition of Rotarians is being continued right here in Serbia by the Belgrade International Rotary Club. Under the guidance of Club president Hans Hageman, the Belgrade International Rotary Club is helping to bring education to Zemun's Roma community, whilst also managing to further the reputation of Serbian wine!

By Željko Popivoda; Photo: Jelena Mandić

ver a century has passed since the first Rotary Club (Chicago 1905) was formed with the simple aim of creating a friendly spirit among professional like-minded people of different backgrounds and vocations. Rotary - so called because of the early practice of rotating meeting locations among members' offices - soon began to expand both in terms of membership and mission, when Rotarians sought to promote the notion that professional people should serve communities in need and society as a whole, while fostering friendships and promoting corporate awareness.

Rotary has developed in accord with its twofold objectives of fostering friendships and serving the society at large and today an estimated 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 31,000 Rotary clubs located in 166 countries.

Society

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CorD | March 2006

ROTARY INTERNATIONAL'S 4-WAY TEST Of the things we think, say or do 1. Is it the TRUTH? 2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?

3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS? 4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?

The Rotary movement first found its way to Serbia as far back as 1927, with the first club - Rotary Club Beograd - formed in 1928. Despite numerous setbacks resulting from the universal and regional troubles of the 20th century, the Rotarian tradition has managed to survive and, indeed, prosper in the country and today there are some 25 Rotary clubs spanning the length and breadth of the State Union, from Subotica to Budva. However, only one of those clubs operates in English: the Belgrade International Rotary Club, which officially came into being in June 2004.

Rotary has steadily developed in accord with its twofold objectives of fostering friendships and serving the society at large and today an estimated 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 31,000 Rotary clubs located in 166 countries Speaking to CorD this month, incumbent president of the club, Hans Hageman, said that one of the simplest advantages of the club is that it "provides an opportunity to break out of normal diplomatic circles and meet with ordinary Serbs and other foreigners who aren't the 'same old faces' of diplomatic receptions".

CorD was lucky enough to attend a regular luncheon of the Rotary Club in February and sample the truly friendly, open atmosphere of this intimate club.

Society Members of the Club, which has a 40-60 foreign domestic ratio, hail from a wide range of vocational fields, including the diplomatic corps, legal and financial spheres, media and entertainment sectors, etc.

The luncheon began, as is tradition, with the reading of Rotary's 4-way test - a 24-word code of ethics for employees to follow in their business and professional lives [see box 1]. The pleasant atmosphere and candid, light-hearted nature of the conversations emanating from the small dining room reflected the Rotarian spirit of friendliness.

This luncheon also demonstrated the social service aspect of Rotary, as it saw the culmination of the Club's latest community support action and the ceremonial presentation of the funds raised.

The action in question saw the club select and purchase a large amount of Serbian wine produced from the unique, domestic prokupac grape. The wine was then given a special Rotary Club label, repackaged in a stylish, distinctive box and offered for a marked-up resale price to companies preparing to buy annual gifts for their clients, staff and partners.

The concerted efforts of the volunteer makeshift salesmen of the Rotary Club saw sales of some 800 bottles of wine and the raising of a net total of €3,000.

ROTARIAN DECLARATION As a Rotarian engaged in a business or profession, I am expected to: 1. Consider my vocation to be another opportunity to serve; 2. Be faithful to the letter and to the spirit of the ethical codes of my vocation, to the laws of my country, and to the moral standards of my community; 3. Do all in my power to dignify my vocation and to promote the highest ethical standards in my chosen vocation; 4. Be fair to my employer, employees, associates, competitors, customers, the public and all those with whom I have business or professional relations; 5. Recognise the honour and respect due to all occupations which are useful to society; 6. Offer my vocational talents: to provide opportunities for young people, to work for the relief of the special needs of others, and to improve the quality of life in my community; 7. Adhere to honesty in my advertising and in all representations to the public concerning my business or profession; 8. Neither seek from nor grant to a fellow Rotarian a privilege or advantage not normally accorded others in a business or professional relationship.

Belgrade International Rotary Club president Hans Hageman and Jovanka Stojić, Director of the Branko Pešić School The Club's search for a worthy cause led them to the UNHCR and their project to further the education of Roma children at Zemun's Branko Pešić Primary School.

The project, led by the UNHCR and implemented by local NGO MicroFins, is aimed at teaching trade skills to Roma youth otherwise destined to spend their days sifting through rubbish for recyclable materials. This academic year, the trade courses will see young Roma boys become qualified bakers and young Roma girls become qualified hairdressers. This invaluable project, realised MicroFins under the guidance of director Braco Saša Dimitrovski, will see the educating of around 60

Hans Hageman: one of the simplest advantages of the club is that it "provides an opportunity to break out of normal diplomatic circles and meet with ordinary Serbs and other foreigners who aren't the 'same old faces' of diplomatic receptions" youths annually, and the Rotary contribution alone has facilitated the educating of a further 10 children, as well as the providing of replacement equipment for the regular UNHCR programme.

Upon completion of their full training, the young Roma graduates will be assisted in the setting up of their own businesses, if they so desire, with the approval of microcredits.

Belgrade is awash with business clubs of all shapes and sizes, but few of them conduct their affairs with such a positive, open spirit, nor such a strong social conscience, as the Belgrade International Rotary Club. Perhaps the club itself, and the Rotarian ideals it adheres to, can serve as an example to all those hoping to bring greater success and understanding to the people of Serbia. •

CorD | March 2006

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Society - trends

You Bet! Trends

"You can bet on it! Let's bet on it! Let's bet that your team will lose! I bet your party won't get into Parliament after the next elections! Will you put your money where your mouth is?!" Even if you spent just a few days in Serbia, it is certain that you would hear one of those sentences. Betting is a sort of national folklore, and in some way has become more a part of everyday communication than a genuine passion for gambling

By Ivica Petrović; Photo: Jelena Mandić

n Serbia, when it comes to gambling, it is enough, for instance, to be careless enough to support certain claims or your opinion (don't we all do that) in ordinary conversation to find yourself in a maelstrom of offers to bet; try, just as an experiment, to rank all the national football or basketball squads or, even better, the political parties, and sit back and wait to see the reactions. The value of the bet is completely unimportant, sometimes it will be lunch or dinner, a small amount of money or some other trivial item, but the majority of those who make such suggestions simply see this as enriching social life!

The obsession with betting on every kind of political, sporting, cultural or social viewpoint achieved such

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scope that Serbia very quickly experienced an institutional betting boom. During the last decade of the 20th century the state monopoly on betting was repealed and, therefore, overnight, in addition to the state Lottery, Tombola, Bingo and Sport Prognosis, which had been the only ways to place bets for years, private bookies started to shoot up. It didn’t take a great deal to get started - deserted pensioners' clubs, local community centres, former laundry rooms or damp cellars, bankrupt local corner shops, a couple of cheap television sets and the business could start.

Betting mania has in fact spread so widely around Serbia that these days it is almost impossible to ascertain the exact number of bookmaking establishments and private casinos. Official figures are set at 1,000 official private bookies, but unofficial estimates claim that at least anoth-

Society - trends er 500 work without licences. Further estimates say that every week at least one million people walk down to some betting shop in order to test one of their "winning combinations". There are no rules, the age and payment span is very wide: people of all ages and social stratums bet, ranging from pupils to successful businessmen to housewives.

Oddly enough, the motivation is not always money.

Rather, with the notable exceptions of professional gamblers, gambling addicts and profiteer gamblers, the reasons for betting boil down to an innocent hobby and the need to kill idle time. However, as the phenomenon has grown, similar to the poverty in the country, the number of those who make a living, or try to, by betting in betting shops has also increased. The majority of visitors to bookies, almost 95% of them, go for so-called small stakes between 30 and 100 euros, but there are also serious players who stake several thousand euros at a time.

These 'big hitters' carefully follow the odds in betting shop chains, have first hand information and are far from amateurs. The passionate players will certainly not disclose how much they win or lose, but the majority will, however, admit that their losses are greater than their gains. Passionate gamblers will say that they mostly lose, but that the feeling when they win is indescribable.

If you ask sociologists, they will tell you that one of the dominating reasons for the boom in bookies and betting is the growth of poverty in the country. The impoverishment of Serbia was followed by the breakdown of the former Yugoslavia, but also by the collapse of domestic football; as the domestic football premiership became uninter-

Betting mania has in fact spread so widely around Serbia that these days it is almost impossible to ascertain the exact number of bookmaker establishments and private casinos. esting, because it became predictable, regardless of the failure of the national football squad and the boring domestic league, the nation did not want to give up on football. Private bookies appeared at the right time for a nation where everybody wanted to be the national squad manager, or at least thought that they knew much more about football than any football expert. If they could earn some cash from their knowledge about the German or English league, than even better. Visitors to bookies admit that the English and the Germans are the easiest to predict, but that does not mean that their knowledge of other leagues is lacking; they will tell you that the English should, however, be avoided because they are unpredictable, especially Liverpool; while Barcelona is the most predictable, Arsenal plays only for goals, the French and Germans are mad, Portugal is easiest to guess‌ You will have difficulty finding anyone amongst them who knows who is the presiding country in the EU or who is the German Chancellor, but on the other side they will surprise you with their knowledge of geography: every one of them knows very well that Airdrie is in Scotland, Guimares in Portugal and Fredrikstad in Norway.

The passion over politics presents the greatest competition to sporting events, as it is now possible to bet on election results. However, apart from guessing who will win the elections, in order to break the monotony,

International football betting: aiding geographic knowledge sometimes it is possible to bet on who is going to win the local Idol contest or who will win the Eurovision Song Contest. However, betting on the election results is a new phenomenon, which is an excellent supplement to political passions that provoke the great splits in families and often ensure that family celebrations often end in tears and breaks in "diplomatic relations".

The election results themselves present an ideal field for betting lovers. The unstable political scene, large number of political parties and frequent elections resulting from such a state, created a situation where it was only a matter of time when money would be staked on the estimations of the political results. On one side that is not bad, because instead of verbal persuasion with friends and family, you can check your authoritative knowledge of the political situation in the nearby betting shop. The only problem with this kind of betting is that the apparent new elections are postponed, thus it is completely uninteresting to bet only once every four years!

In spite of the warning on one of the betting web pages, which says that betting includes risks and that you risk the loss of money and psychological disturbances, this has not dissuaded people in Serbia from betting. The hardcore players will tell you with philosophical composure that transition does not present any less of a health hazard than gambling; their view of gambling is that with a bit of luck, knowledge of combinations and following the sport, you can avoid getting up early and going to work in a tiring, menial job that brings you no more than ₏150 a month. The times of economic crisis in Serbia have caused the new social phenomena of searching for shortcuts. A society in which it is becoming increasingly easy to become a loser has brought about the conditions where young people most often do not see any perspective in honest work, which means that their future occupation can only be that of a criminal or that of the melancholic character in a tracksuit and cheep trainers, who stares hypnotically at the latest results of the Spanish Primera on the TV screen. •

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Culture

Year of Tesla The Serbian Government is set to mark the 150th anniversary of the birth of worldfamous scientist Nikola Tesla. However, the decision to stage the Year of Tesla was made at the very last moment. Speaking to CorD this month, Serbian Mining and Energy Minister, Radomir Naumov, admitted: "Jubilees dedicated to Tesla deserve several years' preparation but, considering our mentality, we always remember at the last moment"

By Miloš Mitrović; Photo: Stanislav Milojković & CorD Archives ikola Tesla is one of the world's most celebrated scientists and is certainly worthy of a major salutation. And this year due respect is being paid to this Yugoslav innovator. But this is by no means the first time Tesla's life and works have been celebrated: the first event dedicated to Nikola Tesla was held in 1936, the same year that the famous scientist gave permission for the establishing of the Nikola Tesla Institute.

Current Serbian Mining and Energy Minister, Radomir Naumov, who began his working life at the Tesla Institute in 1969 and headed the Institute from 1992 to 1999, explains: "It somehow happened that all my life I was directly or indirectly attached to Tesla. As such, the initiative to declare 2006 the year of Nikola Tesla came from the Mining and Energy Ministry, as well as from the Science and Environment Ministry".

Insisting that foresighted preparedness is not the most common Serbian virtue, Naumov says: "Jubilees dedicated to Tesla deserve several years' preparation, but we always remember at the last moment…I think we initiated

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this at the last moment. Everybody talks, everybody says 'we should', 'we will do it', but this should be organised so that the manifestation can be managed over the course of the whole year".

The central event of this year's celebration will be the 'main academy', to be held in the Sava Centre on Tesla's birthday, 10th July. "For that event artists with commendable aesthetic and ethical values will be engaged. Many guests are expected, both from within the country and abroad - particularly from the European Union," says Naumov.

The second most important event will be a convention at the Serbian Academy of Science and Arts (SANU), from 18th to 20th October. "Preparations for this event are moving right along. The experts and organisational committees have been established and invitations have been sent to those authors whose works will illustrate Nikola Tesla's contribution to the development of current civilisation", emphasises the Minister.

Numerous events will be held nationwide celebrating Tesla's work, including the introduction of the magnetic

Culture induction unit that carries Tesla's name and the evolution of electrical energy in the 21st century.

The domestic Science Research Organisation will perform secondary school presentations of its work in the field of electrical energy production; literary and art contests will be staged and lectures dedicated to Tesla and his work will be presented to pupils of three age levels.

Academies and conventions are being organised. They are set to involve schools named after Tesla in Serbia, Montenegro and the Republic of Srpska. The programme includes quizzes about Tesla's work, a drama text competition, a review of the scientific and technically creative work of young people; seminars for teachers in the Petnica Research Station, the municipal exhibition of pupils' work from the field of electronic and electrical engineering, etc.

Various publications about Tesla's patents, with basic data and photo descriptions, are being prepared, as are photo albums about Tesla and his inventions in words and

The central event of this year's celebration will be the 'main academy', to be held in the Sava Centre on Tesla's birthday, 10th July…Many guests are expected, both from within the country and abroad particularly from the European Union pictures; special monographs about Tesla, with supplements from institutions named after him. New editions of speeches made by significant speakers in previous jubilees dedicated to Tesla and monographs of previous jubilees dedicated to Tesla in Matica Srpska in Novi Sad will also be published.

"An exceptionally significant exhibition will be organised in SANU's Gallery, and a permanent exhibition will

An exhibit of the Nikola Tesla Museum

Radomir Naumov: Serbian Energy Minister, Year of Tesla Co-ordinator be introduced from 1st September. Simultaneously, an exhibition in the Science and Technical Gallery will also be opened, exhibiting models of Tesla's inventions with photos, drawings, texts, clothes and archived material of the Nikola Tesla Museum, which is protected by the World Cultural Heritage Organisation," says Naumov.

Connections have been established with Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, as well as various Tesla organisations, such as the New York-based Tesla Memorial Society. "We are considering the possibility of presenting the international Tesla award, which is awarded by the famous IEEE - America's biggest association of electrical and electronic engineers, in Belgrade this year," says Naumov.

The Tesla Memorial Society, which is in charge of the jubilee’s U.S. programme, is set to create a documentary film and organise several exhibitions.

According to Naumov, the decision to organise the Tesla jubilee at such a late juncture was in no way a result of Croatia's decision to organise its own celebration of Tesla's life. Naumov says: "Prime Minister Koštunica had been consistently asking whether we were working on this or not and, on his initiative, myself and Science and Environment Minister, Aleksandar Popović, submitted a request to establish a Government Council to mark this jubilee. A delegation from the Croatian national SIGRE committee and large electrical international networks were coming here. They wanted the Nikola Tesla Museum to assist with the exhibition in Smiljan, and requested a joint event. However, obviously, we did not 'match'. They will probably organise a scientific summit in Zagreb on a slightly smaller scale. Co-operation will involve us visiting the village of Smiljan, where Tesla was born, and visiting his house. Elektroprivreda Srbije will donate bells to the church in the Croatian village, which was looted and remains without bells".

Naumov has assumed a co-ordinating role for the jubilee year. According to the Minister, financial plans for the celebration predict that larger amounts needed for the celebration be provided from donors, while smaller needs will be met by the state budget. Naumov did not want to divulge the total costs because "it has not been verified by the jubilee committee".

"For a manifestation of this type, the financing is fully acceptable. Tesla deserves that. The Mining and Energy Ministry put aside a small amount for certain technical expenses last year," says Naumov.

Belgrade's Nikola Tesla Museum will be a veritable hive of activity during the jubilee. According to the Museum's director, Vladimir Jelenković, the museum will be the main resource for all sections of the state and city jubilee commit-

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Nikola Tesla: legendary Serbian-American Physicist, Inventor and Mechanical and Electrical Engineer

Plans are also afoot to design a special web page dedicated to Tesla. "With the help of Telekom Srbija and the McCann-Erickson agency, we intend to design a web page which will live intensively this year. The graphic design is already being done, and what we are facing is the establishment of an editorial team to supervise and plan what is happening. The page should be updated on a daily basis, because otherwise it would not serve any purpose. The web page would be the basic source of information about Nikola Tesla for everybody in the world", explains Jelenković.

Naumov adds that an invitation to join in the promotion of the Year of Tesla has been sent to Larry Page, co-founder of Google and a well-known admirer of Tesla's work.

Speaking about the need to protect Tesla's name and reputation and control which organisations, bodies and companies can use the famous Serbian scientists' name, Naumov says: "Ten years ago, the Nikola Tesla Society, of which I am currently vice president, raised the issue of the protection of Tesla's name… We were in contact with the Bureau for Intellectual Property, but it turned out that they could not protect his name. It would be good if we could adopt certain regulations regarding this problem this year.

"The Nikola Tesla Society was established in Belgrade's Public Transport Company while he was alive, which did not make any sense. Without exaggeration, not just anything - an agricultural company, for instance, should be able to carry Tesla's name…", insists Naumov, recalling that Tesla was mistakenly associated with the Czech Republic for many years simply because they had a company called Tesla. •

tees. "That is understandable, because the museum is a unique institution, not only in the national, but also in the international frame. Tesla's entire inheritance, the archives and everything connected with Tesla's correspondences, patents, his scientific research work and even his personal possessions are preserved in this museum", emphasises Jelenković.

"The museum is the only place where it is possible to perceive Tesla's whole life and the chain of inventions which marked not only the 19th century, when he developed

The domestic Science Research Organisation will perform senior school presentations of its work in the field of electrical energy production; literary and art contests will be staged and lectures dedicated to Tesla and his work will be presented to pupils of three age levels

Culture

his most important projects, but also everything that was invented as a result of them", emphasises Jelenković.

"The museum will be the main source of exhibits for the exhibition in the SANU Gallery, due to take place between September and November. This will be a multimedia event, and the biggest exhibition ever with a large number of photos and displays, i.e. replicas which have never been made before; offering the chance to see the luxury of Tesla's whole opus", says Jelenković.

Jelenković has been inundated with ideas, requests and offers from various marketing agencies and individuals who are, he illustrated, 'excellent': "One of those is the idea of famous composer Ksenija Zečević to perform an oratory dedicated to Tesla, the basis of which would by Petar Brakus' 'Tesla - the man from Olympus'. Brakus' book was written in the '90s, but is still awaiting its realisation. There are some ideas about fashion shows dedicated to the jubilee, with models dressed in sophisticatedly designed retro style clothing", says Jelenković.

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TESLA OPERA American Terry O'Reilly is currently co-operating with Belgrade's National Theatre to produce an opera dedicated to Tesla, set to be performed on Tesla's birthday of 10th July.

"O'Reilly is set to produce and direct the opera, while the composer should also come from America", says Vladimir Jelenković(pictured above). "It is nice that Americans understand that this is a good place to realise such thing in honour of somebody who was an American citizen and a Serb by national origin, but, ultimately, a man who belonged to the whole world."

BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN

Senior Kosovo Serb leaders Oliver Ivanović and Randjel Njokić met the EU's Olli Rehn and Jose Manual Barroso in the breakaway Southern Serbian province on 17th February.

Speaking after the meeting, Ivanović said that Rehn and Barroso had explained the EU's desire to see status talks begin with discussions of the everyday lives of Kosovo's citizens, decentralisation, security and the IDP issues. Only then would talks move on to the complex issue of the political and legal quandaries relating to the final status decision.

Ivanović added that the EU officials had requested that Serbs take part in the work of the province's institutions in order to fully democratise Kosovo's administration and help demonstrate that standards are being implemented. ĐUKANOVIĆ WOULD ACCEPT JOINT STATE Montenegrin PM Milo Đukanović insisted in February that if the republic's referendum failed the citizens of Montenegro will accept life in the joint state in accordance with the definition of a federal, Unitarian state because "the current institutional arrangement would be impossible".

"There is no doubt that it will be impossible for us to use the euro and Serbia the dinar in a centralised and functional state union", Đukanović told Montenegrin Television, adding that it would also be impossible to have two separate tax systems or two different customs systems and foreign policy regimes.

"Even in the political functions of that state, sovereignty would be transferred to a joint level, as would defence, foreign security, foreign policy and the other functions," Đukanović stressed.

JOVIČEVIĆ: NEW PRESSURES AHEAD Svetozar Jovičević, President of the Managerial Board of Montenegro's Group for Changes (GZP), has warned that failure to secure independence in the province's upcoming referendum would lead to mounting domestic and international pressure to significantly strengthen the organisms of the Serbia & Montenegro State Union.

Speaking to Montenegrin news agency MINA, Jovičević said that, in the event of a negative outcome, the Republic's institutions would face irresistible pressure to reform towards a unitary state.

However, he warned, even if the current opposition gained power they would not be ready to move Montenegro towards the inevitable singular state with Serbia.

Jovičević expressed his concern over the interior stability of Montenegro should a majority vote for

independence and find themselves denied sovereignty due to externally imposed referendum regulations.

The GZP leader pondered: "How would the majority feel in such an instance; would it result in permanent stability for Montenegro? Nobody is thinking about that, not even opposition leaders - the majority of whom are currently focused only on the referendum and ways to stop it from being held or ensure it fails". He stressed that stability could only be achieved through fair and correct conditions.

Turning to the EU's '55%' proposal for the republic's independence referendum, Jovičević said that the government would "hardly accept those recommendations, primarily because they are unprincipled and favour the other side from the beginning. For reasons of principle, acceptance of such an option could hardly be justified".

TADIĆ REMAINS DS LEADER Serbian President Boris Tadić was re-elected leader of the Democratic Party at the party congress in mid-February.

Speaking after his successful reelection, Tadić presented his ideas for establishing a civil forum within DS and urged party members to sharpen their political skills. He also said that the party, currently in opposition, would give priority to fighting corruption within local administration.

Earlier the same day (18th February), Tadić and Macedonian PM Vlado Bučkovski made a joint call for the resumption of a dialogue between the two countries' Orthodox churches to bring an end to the ongoing dispute relating to the independence of the Macedonian Orthodox Church.

EU WILL REFUSE A RETHINK Following Montenegrin news agency reports claiming that representative's of the republic's government were attempting to convince EU officials to accept a compromise, EU Envoy for the Montenegrin Referendum, Miroslav Lajčak, announced that the Union will not alter their proposal that 55 per cent of those voting must give their support to independence in order for the referendum to pass.

Dismissing outright the possibility of lowering the percentage he'd earlier announced on behalf of the EU, Lajčak insisted: "I don't think, I know, that all 25 ministers of the EU will support the proposal that has already been accepted by EU ambassadors."

According to Montenegrin news agency MINA, unnamed government sources have been exerting efforts to convince the EU to recognise Montenegro's independence even if the proposal is backed by a percent or two less than the 55% called for by the Union.

Bulletin

KOSOVO SERBS HOST EU OFFICALS

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Society - Art

Comic Strip: State Enemy

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One of the greatest cultural catastrophes to hit Belgrade occurred on 6th April 1941, when the National Library burned to the ground during a Luftwaffe bombing raid. Among the multitude of literary and artistic treasures lost to the world forever on that tragic day was a comprehensive collection of comic strips from the first 'golden age' of the art By Žarka Radoja; Photo: Jelena Mandić

n the chaotic fight to save the priceless works in the 1941 inferno, not much attention was paid to the comic books strewn around the place, perhaps because the art form was never really taken seriously and had already been subjected to numerous censorships and bans.

Comic strip art has been periodically outlawed in Serbia since the 1930s, and even publishers of this art form on the fringes have lost count of how many times comic publications have been subjected to state censorship over the course of the past century.

Speaking to CorD this month, historian and comic art collector Zdravko Župan explains: "Comics have always been on the sidelines as an art form, despite being authored by a number of prominent writers and illustrators. Because they were declared as being detrimental to the young generations, comics were outlawed in the

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countries of the Eastern Bloc, including our own, until we parted company with the Soviet Union in 1948. The authorities held the same views in Nazi Germany.

Goebbels' well known statement was 'Superman is a Jew!' Several years later in Yugoslavia, there were huge debates over the legendary comic book hero Flash Gordon, who was dubbed 'The Hero of the new mythology of the capitalist order' by his detractors".

Comic art first emerged in Serbia in the second half of the 19th century in comic periodicals and calendars for children. The art form was then classed as a more developed form of caricature. Its growth and evolution stagnated as a result of the early 20th century's Balkan Wars and World War I. As such, it wasn't until the 1930s that the first golden age of Serbian comic art dawned.

"Comic books were brought to Serbia, just as everything else - from architecture to ballet - by Russian immigrants; an aristocracy that arrived with volumes of encyclopaedias stacked in their minds. Indeed, the trail-

Society - Art woman and bore her family name, managed to keep afloat until 1941. This was the first golden age of Serbian comic art. However, it was riddled with various forms of censorship, justified by claims that went as far as to suggest that some characters in Mika the Mouse resembled members of royalty", says Župan with a sarcastic smile.

The comic was in fact Disney's Mickey Mouse as the Monarch of Medioka, published in 1937, and it was the first case of comic-art censorship in Serbia.

The state censor had been reading through the pages of Politika when it struck him that perhaps there was some similarity between Walt Disney's comic and events at the Yugoslav Royal Court: at that time rumours were circulating that nobleman Pavle Karađorđević was planning to seize the throne from his

Controversal Comics

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Zdravko Župan,

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blazers of Serbian comic art were Russians: Đorđe Lobačev, Sergej Solovjev, Konstantin Kuznjecov, Nikola Navojev, Ivan Šenšin, Aleksije Ranher, Sebastijan Lehner, Đuka Jovanović, Moma Marković and many others. The first comic art publication in Serbia was the children's magazine Veseli četvrtak (Happy Thursday), launched on 7th January 1932", Župan says.

Comics entered mainstream newspapers via the children's section, which was introduced for the first time by the biggest Serbian newspaper company, Politika, in 1930. Dailies Vreme and Pravda soon followed suit.

On 21st October 1934, Politika daily published six strips of Detective X-9, by Alexander Raymond and Dashiell Hammet, on one whole page - just six months

Comic art first emerged in Serbia in the second half of the 19th century, in comic periodicals and calendars for children, as a more developed form of caricature. Its growth and evolution stagnated as a result of the early 20th century's Balkan Wars and World War I after the strip had made its debut in the U.S. The comic was a sensation that had been announced days earlier as the latest wonder of modern times with slogans such as "a novel broken down into episodes that takes only two minutes per day to read", "Less to read and more to look at", "Your own home cinema".

The new genre urgently needed a name and it was one of Politika's editors, Dušan Timotijević, who was swiftest to react. In the spring of 1935, the first specialised comic-art magazines appeared in Serbia - Strip and Illustrated Film.

"Although they all went out of print pretty quickly, Mika Miš (Mika the Mouse), by Aleksandar J. Ivković, a Russian immigrant who was married to a Serbian

he issue of controversial comic strips hit the world's headlines recently after Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published a Kurt Westergaard sketch depicting the Islamic Prophet Mohammed as a terrorist (CorD is opting not to publish the offensive cartoon). Several European newspapers also chose to publish the strip and others in Jyllands-Posten's Mohammed series, which led to death threats and even rioting in parts of the Islamic world, and the subsequent suspensions and sackings of editors choosing to run with the sketch.

According to an apologetic Jyllands-Posten statement: "the cartoons were not intended to be offensive, nor were they at variance with Danish law, but they have indisputably offended many Muslims, for which we apologise."

Though many European newspapers later apologised for publishing the Mohammed cartoons, Hamburg-based Die Walt responded (according to CNSNews.com) by noting that: "The protests from Muslims would be taken more seriously if they came across as less hypocritical"… "No protests greeted the depiction by Syrian television of rabbis as cannibals."

Controversial and even racist comic strips are more common than one might imagine. U.S. newspapers often run such politically-tinged strips as Doonesbury, Boondocks, and Mallard Fillmore; it is the norm for the Islamic press to regularly publish anti-Semitic and antiIsrael cartoons, and mainstream European and North American press often publish strips that could be deemed as going well beyond the boundaries of offensiveness.

So, why did this specific strip cause such controversy? Perhaps, despite Western claims of universal secularism, it is due to the fact that mainstream European publications often turndown offers to publish strips depicting Christian figures, including Christ, in compromising situations.

Nevertheless, Jyllands-Posten is not such a newspaper and the Mohammed cartoons were actually published as part of a series of animations which included works satirising Christians and Jews and even one cartoon showing the Star of David in the shape of a bomb. •

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Society - Art nephew, the juvenile King Petar. It was for this reason that State censor's banned the publication of three episodes in the first three days of December and another episode on 5th December.

A newsman who dared to report to the world about this incident, Hubert Harrison (New York Times and Reuters correspondent), was immediately expelled from Belgrade. Walt Disney was informed about this event and promptly sent Politika a personal telegram expressing with mild irony his regrets that the Serbian newspaper was put out by his comics.

The same comic strip was outlawed two decades later because of negative connotations attached to certain Communist officials. By the late 1960s, a licensed edition entitled Mikijev zabavnik (Mickey's Entertainer) hit the stands and urged Walt Disney to send another telegram to Belgrade, this time with sincere congratulations and hopes that the magazine would become a part of the childhood days of every child in the country.

Tragically, almost all the pioneers of Serbian comic art were destined for a wretched fate. Some died just ahead of World War II and others were exiled for allegedly "collaborating with the enemy". Župan explains: "the situation changed in the world and just as it was once deemed that children who did not have the fortune to read comic books missed a wonderful aspect of childhood, after the war comics were abominated at every level of the state".

Comic art in Serbia later enjoyed two more golden eras, one in the early 1970s and the other in the mid '80s. It was then that the circulation of an edition published by Dečije novine (Children's Newspapers), Mirko and Slavko, about two little partisans and their adventures during World War II,

as the birth of cinema was erroneously heralded as the death of the theatre, perhaps those who now predict that video games are ringing the death toll for the comic book will also be proven wrong reached 100,000 copies, while Politikin zabavnik (Politika's Entertainer) clocked up a quarter of a million copies.

With the collapse of the former Yugoslavia, enthusiasm for comic art waned in Serbia, along with enthusiasm for almost all genuine art, while the readership simply rejected the new variations to the old editions and themes.

The Serbian public is well acquainted with the fate of the comic book edition of Alan Ford in Serbian. Prior to the wars of the 1990s, Ford was published in Croatian and became very popular. However, the older generation of readers did not accept the new translations, while the younger ones were not even aware that they existed on the news stands.

Although comic-art has been all but forgotten during the past 15 years in Serbia, times are again changing for the better. Several enthusiasts who managed to keep the art alive over recent decades are finally achieving success. The hero of this endeavour has been Saša Rakezić, better known by his pen name of Aleksandar Zograf.

Rakezić began publishing domestic comics just prior to the war. However, he was forced to turn abroad to find publishers when the war years saw the media dominated by shocking accounts of the civil war raging across the former Yugoslavia.

Saša Rakezić, aka Aleksandar Zograf, Rakezić explains: "this was a catastrophe in its own right, because most of the magazines that published comic strips and books went out of print in the 1990s.

There were two options for illustrators: to stop illustrating or to start publishing abroad. Therefore, I was compelled to change course and turn to the foreign market.

The situation was terrible here, but it also allowed me to discover the comic art scene in America and Europe, since I had to keep pace with the trends over there".

Rakezić's comics are still published in several foreign dailies. He was one of the first comic art illustrators from Europe to publish works in the Halta Graphics Book from Seattle, while Belgrade weekly Vreme decided to dedicate two whole pages for his illustrated stories. Rakezić's latest exhibition, entitled Pencil and Needle, was launched at the Ozone Gallery in Belgrade on 31st January.

Many of the generations that grew up on comic book culture have long since left Serbia, while today's youth tend to spend their time engrossed in the world of cartoon films and video games. These facts have led to the further demise of the art.

However, as the birth of cinema was erroneously heralded as the death of the theatre, and the growth of television mistakenly viewed as the replacement for radio, perhaps those who now predict that computers and video games are ringing the death toll for the comic book will also be proven wrong.

Indeed, several Serbian dailies have returned comic strips to their pages and a growing number of students at the Faculty of Applied Arts are choosing this genre for their graduation project. Thus, hope remains that it will survive and flourish once again. Who knows, maybe its very rarity will finally convince people to accept it as an art form. •

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Priceless Stock The National Museum in Belgrade is currently undergoing major reconstruction and, as such, many of its most valuable works of art have been placed in storage in the Museum's warehousing facility. Nevertheless, Belgrade's showpiece museum continues to work successfully, organising important exhibitions in the vast museum's atrium, staging touring exhibitions abroad and welcoming many visitors through its turnstiles

By Sonja Ćirić; Photo: Jelena Mandić & Courtesy of the National Museum

he general public have been unable to access the permanent exhibition of Belgrade's National Museum for two years, as the institution's centrepiece works have been packed away in storage. The mass project to stow away these works was instigated after it was discovered that the microclimate of the gallery halls did not meet the required preservation standards of national treasures. A project to reconstruct and adapt the entire building ensued and the classic works in the possession of the National are only expected to return to the walls and display cabinets of the central Belgrade museum in 2010.

Still, despite the exhibit halls being completely devoid of works, the museum remains fit to bursting with visitors. In a concerted effort to continue operating in spite of the recon-

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struction work, the management and curators of the National continue to organise major exhibitions in the museum's atrium and at other museums and galleries across the world. The success of the endeavour is irrefutable: 80,000 art lovers spent hours queuing to see 17 French impressionism pieces during the ten-day "Impressive - from Corot to Picasso" exhibition; 7,000 people visited the exhibition of Miroslav's Gospel; pieces belonging to the museum formed a striking part of the New York Metropolitan's "Byzantium: Strength and Power" exhibition, while the Belgrade National Museum has also staged guest exhibitions in Bari, Bologna, Klagenfurt, Moscow, Tokyo, Vienna…to name but a few.

Since the beginning of 2006, the National's atrium has hosted two exhibitions of exceptional artistic importance:

Culture - Art "The Classics of Italian Art - from Paolo Veneziano to Francesco Guardi" and the Louvre's touring exhibition "In touch with the Classics".

Prior to its arrival in Belgrade, the "Classics of Italian Art" exhibition toured Italy and Finland, allowing art lovers to see some of the masterpieces of Paolo Veneziano, Paolo di Giovanni Fei, Spinelo Aretino, Victor Carpaco's St. Roko and St. Sebastian, Lorenzo di Credi's Judith and Holofernes, Jacopo Robusti Tintoretto's Mother of God with Child and the Senator, and works of Bernardo Strozzi, Francesco Guardi and Giovanni Antonio 'Canaletto' Canal, amongst others.

The Louvre's "In Touch with the Classics" exhibition opened in Belgrade this February and will remain in the SCG capital until April. This priceless exhibition marks the first guest appearance in Belgrade of the famous Paris museum.

Since the beginning of 2006, the National's atrium has hosted two exhibitions of exceptional artistic importance: "The Classics of Italian Art - from Paolo Veneziano to Francesco Guardi" and the Louvre's touring exhibition "In touch with the Classics" Just like all other Louvre Tactile Gallery exhibitions, In Touch with the Classics was intended and adapted for those with disabilities. It consists of the Louvre's copies of large classical sculptures, three-dimensional displays which the public can also experience by touching. As such, the blind will be able to fully enjoy these classic works of art for the first time, and the arrangement (a greater distance between the exhibits than usual) and the height of the exhibits at eye level will also enable those in wheelchairs to see them. This exhibiting method suits children too: for the first time they will be able to see the sculptures and touch, for instance, Milo's Venus and Marco Aurelius's horseman statue.

The National Museum expects this exhibition to be just the beginning of their collaboration with the Louvre.

From last September until August this year, the Belgrade National Museum's "Unknown Story about Modern Art" exhibition will tour seven museums in Japan, allowing residents of, and visitors to, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Miyazaki, Tokyo, Kochi, Niigata and Kanazawa to see 123 works originating from the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. This huge touring exhibition includes the works of such European greats as Barbizonian JeanBaptiste Camille Corot, impressionists, PierreAuguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt, Kamil Pissaro, Paul Cezanne; post-impressionists Paul Seignac, Paul

Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec; symbolists Gustave Moreau and Odilon Redon; Les Nabis artists Pierre Bonnard and Edouard Vuillard; fauvists Maurice de Vlaminck, Andre Derain and Henri Matisse.

One of the many highlights of the exhibition is Pablo Picasso's Head of a Woman, from the period of his analytic cubism. As a pendant to this, the exhibition also includes Cubist Robert Delaunay's painting, the Runners, which represents the classical interpretation of cubism's positions.

The National Museum preserves over 400,000 pieces of priceless art. The National's collection of foreign art alone includes over 1,100 paintings and sculptures from European schools, dating from the 14th to the 20th centuries.

In addition to the aforementioned exhibits, pieces worthy of special note include Peter Paul Rubens' Diana's Return from the Chase, Rembrandt's graphic, Ecce Homo, Bruegel the Elder's A Vase of Flowers, as well as paintings by Kandinsky, Maurice de Vlaminck, Piet Mondrian, et al.

The collection of Serbian painters of the 18th and 19th century include works of Uroš Predić, Paja Jovanović, Đorđe Krstić, Đura Jakšić, Katarina Ivanović, Mina Karadžić, Stevan Todorović..., and, from the 20th century, Ivan Meštrović, Risto Stijović, Nadežda Petrović, Jovan Bijelić, Petar Dobrović, Sava Šumanović, Zoran Petrović, Milo Milunović, Petar Lubarda, Milena Pavlović-Barili...

The most attractive ancient and Medieval pieces in the possession of the National include deities from Lepenski Vir, statuette of deity in carriage from the Bronze Age, the CorD | March 2006

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famous golden mask from Trebeniste (circa 6BC),

Culture - Art

Constantine the Great's portrait from the 4th century AD, Theodora's ring from the 14th century, King Radoslav's coin from the 13th century…

This entire national treasure is kept in a building which was built in 1903, the former Hipotekarna Bank. The National Museum's collection originates from the collection of Prince Pavle Karađorđević. Prince Pavle obtained the title of Master of Arts from Oxford University. He was one of the most famous private collectors in Europe in his day. The Prince Pavle Museum was gifted to the Novi Dvor (New Palace) following a decision of Aleksandar Karađorđević.

During the first ten days following the opening of the museum in January 1936, 20,000 people entered its doors. By the outbreak of the Second World War, the Museum had organised six international exhibitions; over 8,000 people saw 109 pieces from the Modern French Art exhibition and the works of Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian and Boticcelli were presented at the ‘Italian Portraits through the Centuries’ exhibition.

The National Museum has been housed in the current building since 1952. Incidentally, the Trg Republik (Republic Square) building was used as the Headquarters of

The National Museum preserves over 400,000 pieces of priceless art. The National's collection of foreign art alone includes over 1,100 paintings and sculptures from European schools, dating from the 14th to the 20th centuries Germany's occupying army during the Second World War, and allied bombing in 1944 saw the building almost completely obliterated, with only the ground floor surviving.

Apart from the post-WWII reconstruction, the only other time the building has been renovated was during the '60's.

Thanks to that reconstruction, the museum became the most modern in this area. But this is no longer the case. Everything has changed: the number of museum pieces has tripled, preservation and exhibiting standards have changed and we should not forget the consequences which the last four decades have had on the building since its last reconstruction.

During analysis of the condition of the building - conducted to determine the needs of reconstruction - it was discovered that some of the electro installations date back to 1903, from the time the building was built, and that the original water and drainage pipes are also still in use. During the 60's, at the time of the previous reconstruction, engineers did not even think about the ventilation and air condition systems, and after that such changes were impossible because of the old electro installations. It came to light that the roof was designed in such a way that the rain was flooding the back yard, thus leaving the museum walls damp. Even the storage areas, currently the safest part of the building, do not meet regulations. Some of them are orientated towards the street,

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and the water and sewerage systems go through the floors and ceilings, which is in breach of contemporary criteria for the preservation of museum objects. However, the National's stores are currently the only places in the museum with a stable micro climate; the only places where the temperature, light and humidity will not damage the treasures which have been entrusted to the museum for safekeeping and study.

The reconstruction project for the National Museum was presented last May. Around 13,000 square metres will be utilised, making the exhibition area twice the size of the existing space - almost the entire building will be designated for the public.

Apart from the exhibition area, only storage areas set aside for pieces of exceptional value and the most essential offices will remain in the building. The whole infrastructure will be changed, the building will be equipped with the latest technological and security equipment and the concept of the permanent exhibition will also be changed.

This fundamental change is linked to the relatively new notion that public visitors to museums and galleries are not necessarily knowledgeable about art. Thus, works of art are to be accompanied by explanations of the context, period and circumstances appropriate to them. This adheres to the modern principal that museums must play an educational role.

The reconstruction will cost a total of around €20million. Building work is expected to commence next year and the first visitors to see the fully renovated building are expected to be welcomed through the doors on National Museum Day, 10th May, 2010. •

BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN...BULLETIN BALKAN FTA PROPOSED

RIO TINTO CONCESSION APPROVED

An all encompassing Free Trade Area for the Western Balkans has been proposed by the European Commission. However, the idea of the zone - which would include Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia & Montenegro - has been opposed by leaders in Zagreb, who insist that it could lead to the revival of the former Yugoslavia, only with Slovenia being replaced by Albania.

The forming of the new regional FTA was championed in the region during February by senior EU officials Ollie Rehn (EU Enlargement Commissioner) and Jose Manuel Barosso (EC Chairman), during their whirlwind tour of the Western Balkans.

Responding to Croatian fears, Rehn described the possibility that the zone would endanger sovereignty and potentially lead to the rebirth of Yugoslavia as 'nonsense'.

The 31 bilateral trade agreements that have already been signed between the countries of the region have been deemed insufficient, partly because they have not been fully implemented.

The Western Balkan FTA would also replace the existing CEFTA, which currently includes Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania and is set to become obsolete when Bulgaria and Romania join the EU on 1st January 2007.

The Serbian Energy and Mining Ministry has approved an exploration and exploitation concession to multinational mining and resources group Rio Tinto.

The contract, signed on 16th February by Serbian Energy and Mining Minister Radomir Naumov and Rio Tinto Commercial Director Adam Parr, will see borate mined at the Jarandol Basin, near Baljevac on the river Ibar. It is estimated that more than 700 jobs will be created for local workers .

Naumov told press that the indirect benefits for domestic industry will also be significant, as refined boric acid is predominantly used in the ceramic and glass industry, isolation material production, agriculture and washing detergent production.

The estimated amount of borate ore deposits total nearly 7.5 million tonnes, said Naumov, adding that exploration should begin in approximately four months and could last for up to 25 years.

According to Naumov, the contract also envisages construction of the mine and state-of-the-art facilities for production of refined boric acid powder, with a capacity of 30,000 to 100,000 tonnes a year.

The project is worth a total of €140 million.

Commending the Serbian Government, Mr. Parr said that Serbia has created a positive investment climate in the past four years. He added that Rio Tinto will be sure to avoid causing environmental damage, as demonstrated by their intention to invest €20million in geological research in Serbia and draft a feasibility study. •

Following his February talks with Hungarian Transport and Economy Minister, János Kóka, Serbian Economy Minister, Predrag Bubalo, announced that Hungarian companies are extremely interested in participating in Serbia's ongoing privatisation process.

Hungarian oil and gas company MOL has already expressed an interest in the privatisation of Vojvodina's petroleum refineries.

During his official visit to Budapest, Bubalo attended the official opening ceremony for the Serbia & Montenegro Business Council in Hungary, as well as meeting several senior Hungarian officials to discuss bilateral trade and the two countries' experiences of privatisation.

Earlier in February, Hungary's State Financial Supervisory Authority approved OTP Bank's purchase of an 89.39% stake in Serbia's Niška Banka.

The acquisition, which is set to cost OTP €14.21million, marks OTP's first purchase in Serbia, though the bank has already made major regional moves with acquisitions in Slovakia, Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia.

According to official statistics, Niška Banka has a 0.7% share of Serbia's banking market, boasting 80,000 clients and 24 branches.

SERBIAN MARZIPAN WORLDWIDE Serbian confectionery producer, Arex Marzipan, is fast gaining a reputation as one of Europe's best sweet makers, and is well on its way to becoming Europe's best confectioner in the niche market of marzipan.

Though marzipan is not traditionally consumed in Serbia, Arex has managed to break in to the markets of France, Belgium, Germany and Holland; and is poised to begin exporting its product onto the lucrative U.S. market, having successfully presented Arex Marzipan at last year's Fancy Food Show in New York. The company even exported a one-off load of three tonnes of marzipan to Africa.

Speaking at a press conference in Belgrade during February, Arex owner and general director, Nebojša Mišić, explained that Arex's Osečina factory near Valjevo has been fully renovated and is currently the third largest marzipan factory in Europe.

Mišić added that 2006 is to see the presenting of Serbian marzipan at food and trade shows in Dubai (Gulf Food Fair) and Tokyo (Fudex). •

Bulletin

HUNGARY EYES SERBIAN PRIVATISATION

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Culture

The birth of the new political era in Serbia has also spawned a new festive culture. And, as those who opposed Milošević's regime politically have risen to become the country's rulers, so those who opposed the regime socially, by organising impromptu high-spirited protests throughout the '90s, have risen to become the event organisers of post-Milošević Serbia

Land of Festivals Society

By Vera Čomić; Photo: CorD Archives

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erbians have long been renowned for their party attitude. Thus it should come as no surprise that since the end of the 'dark days' of the pre-2000 regime, the number of annual festivals, carnivals, galas and fairs has skyrocketed throughout Serbia. From the renewals of renowned international festivals, to the creation of those celebrating various aspects of local tradition, festival culture in Serbia has begun to take on a life of its own.

Indeed, over the course of the past four months alone, Serbia's towns and cities have played host to more than forty festivals - celebrating music, film, theatre, food & drink, ethnicity, youth, etc. - many of which are rightly deemed as being of an international calibre. Even the most avid carnival fan would have found it all but impossible to fit all these events into his schedule...and the year has barely begun! Still to come are some the country's biggest and most famous festivals.

One of those which is sure to be topping the 'must do' lists of many is Novi Sad's EXIT Festival, an international four-day music fest (this year from 6th to 9th July) that British weekly, The Observer, recently named as 'one of

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the best music festivals in the world', recommending it as the perfect substitute for the traditional Glastonbury event, which has been cancelled in 2006. The article goes on to quote Annie Mac of BBC Radio One, who points out that the "setting is spectacular, the line up massive and the people completely inspiring. It's a truly special festival."

International EXIT performers to date have included the likes of Iggy Pop, Massive Attack, Fatboy Slim, Moloko, Kosheen, Cypress Hill, Tricky, Apocalyptica, Garbage, Slayer, and the White Stripes; and confirmation has come that this year's EXIT will be opened by none other than British chart toppers Franz Ferdinand.

EXIT's creators could not be more proud of both the achievements and the roots of the festival: "It all began prior to the first democratic elections, when, for 100 days and nights, we counted down the days of the Milošević regime through music, dancing, partying, concerts of the greatest Serbian bands at the time, graffiti painting, theatre performances, podiums, movies and other normal activities. The 100th day concert took place on 22nd September 2000, only two days prior to the presidential elections, with the message 'Gotovo je' ('It's over') in front of around 20,000 people. EXIT is the symbol for Serbia's EXIT from the decade of mindlessness," explains their site.

Society Another major international music festival, Echo, also takes place in the summer at Lido beach on Belgrade's Great War Island. Just like EXIT, Echo lasts for several days, has an open-air concept, an impressive list of performers, and various 'underground' sounds and all night venues.

And the musical summer doesn't stop there. August sees the staging of Belgrade's now traditional Beer Fest, scheduled for its fourth year from 16th to 21st August. The Beer Fest concept is, of course, based on Munich's Oktoberfest, to which Serbs have given their own slant.

Through numerous concerts and other musical performances and sporting programmes, the unique Kalemegdan Fortress setting, and free entrance (attendees pay only for beer, and that at reduced prices), the Belgrade Beer Fest is well on its way to achieving its goal of 'spreading tolerance, open borders, the politics of peace in this region, as well as the urban spirit of the new generations'. It would seem that that goal is now closer than ever, as only a little more than a month ago the Belgrade Beer Fest was recommended by British daily The Independent.

One of its chief organisers, Dejan Grastić, commented on this important commendation for B92: "When one works long and hard, it is possible to successfully alter the image of Serbia. [For 2006] we expect a significant number of tourists from all across Europe, and we'll give everything we've got in order for this year's festival to be the best yet."

Other international music festivals in Belgrade alone include February's Guitar Art Festival, an international event that includes competition by category, workshops and concerts, which took place over five days last month; for fifteen days in October, the Sava Centar and various theatre houses across Belgrade are home to the Belgrade Music

Over the course of the past four months alone, Serbia's towns and cities have played host to more than forty festivals... Even the most avid carnival fan would have found it all but impossible to fit all these events into his schedule...and the year has barely begun!

Festivities (BEMUS), an international music fest featuring ensembles and soloists performing classical and world music along with contemporary pieces; the 3rd International Harpsichord Festival, which took place in November 2005 over an eight-day period, is also set to return this year.

The local festival scene is far from lagging behind.

February offered the Extreme Serbian Metal Fest, a humanitarian concert for children being treated at the Oncology Institute. In December, the annual Serbia & Montenegro Radio Festival, the first of its kind for SCG, took place at the Sava Centar; the University of Music Arts organised Festival Koma shortly afterwards, at which seventeen students of the University presented their own compositions over a two-day period; May features a Harp Festival, whereas the Flute Always and Everywhere Festival runs from August to September and features concerts, instrument exhibitions, workshops and other attractions.

Belgrade may appear to be hogging the scene, but that's why Novi Sad hosts a major Jazz Festival in November.

While the number of music fests is certainly astounding, lovers of film and theatre need not feel neglected. The 34th Annual Belgrade International Film Fest, better known as FEST, takes place from 24th February to 5th March. FEST presents the critical artistic accomplishments of film industries from around the world. This year's FEST was opened by famous Serbian director Emir Kusturica, and

Local festivals, such as the GuÄ?a Trumpet Fest, draw crowds from far and wide the film Broken Flowers, directed by Jim Jarmusch and featuring Bill Murray, Jeffrey Wright, Sharon Stone, Frances Conroy, and Jessica Lange. Alongside numerous screenings from North America, Europe and the rest of the world, FEST was also graced with guests from the international film community, such as Danish-born French actress Ana Karina and German director Wim Wenders.

In the last week of March, documentary film enthusiasts will be able to partake in the Belgrade Festival of Documentary and Short Film, where the films are grouped by genre (documentary, short, animated and experimental) and compete against one another in different categories. From 9th to 24th December, 2005, Novi Sad hosted the Euro-In Film Festival - a festival of European and professional independent films. Novi Sad also staged the Kids Fest: Izbor, a children's film festival with participants from Chile, France, Spain and the UK. The 7th International Student Film Festival was also held in Belgrade in 2005, presenting the cinematic achievements of domestic and foreign students through film and script. The Indian Film Festival and Israeli Film Festival were also held in Belgrade, while the Italian Film Festival was held in both Belgrade and Novi Sad. In November last year, the 14th International Ethnological Film Festival took place, showcasing films from Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Greece, India, Iran, Macedonia, Romania, Russia, Serbia & Montenegro, Slovakia, and Switzerland.

On 10th March 2006, the 7th International Archaeological Film Festival: between cultures and continents, will begin. It celebrates the 175 years of research performed by the German Archaeological Institute, and is thus dedicated to one of the most important research institutions in the world.

Among film festivals of a slightly different nature are the Alternative Film/Video Festival and the Human Rights Film Festival. While the former is a festival featuring new films and videos of artists from the former Yugoslavia, the latter is of an international nature and includes works from Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, France, Germany, Israel, Korea, Peru, Poland, the UK, the U.S. and elsewhere.

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Culture

Serbia’s music festivals attract massive audiences Since the year 2000, Canada and Australia have begun to annually host The Serbian Film Festival, where the latest Serbian films are presented and are always well received. As part of the concept, Serbian actors and directors attend the festival to discuss their films with the audience. This festival has raised awareness and created a growing interest in the tradition and culture of Serbia.

Serbia is also host to a variety of other festivals. The first Belgrade Queer Fest in December 2005 proved such a success that its founders are planning to organise a major festival in May 2006, with a three-day prelude that will include discussion, films and cultural exchanges. Queer Belgrade is a collective that works on constant event planning, with a goal to develop the radical queer politics and culture in Belgrade. Discussions centre on equality and beyond, feminism, anti-fascism, anti-racism, sexual divergence and freedom.

The 34th Annual Belgrade International Film Festival, better known as FEST, takes place from 24th February to 5th March. FEST presents the critical artistic accomplishments of film industries from around the world

Society

Pančevo hosted the Arttech Festival of Digital Arts in November, while during the same month the Yugoslav Theatre Festival took place in Užice, while Belgrade hosted the Puppet Theatre Festival.

September's Belgrade International Theatre Festival (BITEF) is an international festivity of theatrics. It promotes new trends of both the domestic scene and international theatre through its celebratory and competitive nature.

Another multi-disciplinary international festival takes place in Belgrade during the months of July and August and is aptly named the Belgrade Summer Festival (BELEF). Here, theatre, dance, music and visual arts all come together and are presented at various theatres and on the streets and squares of Belgrade.

July sees the international Monodrama and Pantomime Festival, a competitive event held in the Pinocchio Puppet Theatre. For children, the city of Belgrade founded the International Meeting of Children of Europe: Joy of Europe, an event in which children from across European come together to socialise, create art, play and perform music. It takes place in October at the Children's Cultural Centre of Belgrade, Sava Centar, Ada Ciganlija and numerous galleries.

Sremska Mitrovica, Vojvodina, hosts the International Folk Festival, better known as the 'Srem Folk Fest', which takes place every year in the first half of August and is an inter-

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national festival celebrating folklore culture of the international community. The aim of the festival is the promotion and preservation of cultures and traditions of all peoples around the world through song, dance, music, and folk costumes.

This February, Vršac hosted its first wine fest, Vinofest, in celebration of St. Tifun and Dionysius. This one-day fest is of both a competitive and retail nature and includes an artistic programme, interesting lectures connected to wine and an award ceremony for the best wines in all categories.

These festivals by no means represent the full spectrum of the festival culture in Serbia, and this fact alone indicates the rapid cultural growth in post-Milošević Serbia. Just as Petrarch's Dark Ages did not merely cease as a result of one particular event - but slowly waned as the Renaissance spirit began to take hold, until it became so prominent that people could refer to themselves as Renaissance men without a thought - so the Serbian modern/democratic Renaissance has just begun.

Much has yet to be done before the Serbs realise their Renaissance to the full extent, but a sure fire signal must be the fading of the darkness and its accompanying oppression.

The largely international and co-operative nature of the festivals, the celebration of cultures and traditions, and the willingness alone of both the Serbs and the international community, tell much more about the path Serbia is treading than any number of words. •

MORE ON FESTIVALS Want to find out more about Serbia's myriad festivals and fairs? Why not visit some of the sites listed here. www.dob.co.yu; www.kczr.co.yu; www.gaf.co.yu; www.queeruption.org/queerbeograd; www.fest.org.yu; www.narodnimuzej.org.yu; www.kinoteka.org.yu; www.rex.b92.net; www.alternativefilmvideo.org; www.kcns.org.yu; www.savacentar.com; www.fsf.org.yu; www.kcb.org.yu; www.arttech.co.yu; www.exitfest.org; www.belgradebeerfest.com; www.sremfolkfest.org.yu; www.radios.co.yu/festival

Diplomacy

left to right - H.E. Barend van der Heijden, Royal Netherlands Ambassador in Belgrade, Dutch Foreign Minister, Bernard R. Bott, and Serbian International Economic Relations Minister, Milan Parivodić

Bot in Belgrade etherlands Foreign Minister, Bernard R. Bott, was in Belgrade on 20th February for a day of intensive meetings with senior officials of the country. The visit included the signing of an economic development assistance agreement, worth €3million, and a series of top level talks with Serbian PM Vojislav Koštunica, Serbian President Boris Tadić, SCG Foreign Minister Vuk Drašković, Deputy Serbian PM Miroljub Labus and Serbian International Economic Relations Minister Milan Parivodić.

The Memorandum on Economic Co-operation between the two countries, signed by Bot and Parivodić, is part

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of the Dutch programme of co-operation with countries of central and south-eastern Europe (PSO), which, amongst other things, aims to encourage development of small and medium-sized enterprises in Serbia.

Describing the signing of the Memorandum as a step forward both technically and as an expression of trust in Serbia's continued economic development, Bot explained that this programime has seen the Netherlands Government support modernisation and production development in 30 Serbian companies over the past five years. •

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CULTURE NEWS OSCAR NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED The American Film Academy will present its prestigious awards for the 78th time in Los Angeles on 5th March. As is tradition, the Oscar nominees were published at the end of January and Belgrade film distribution company, Taramount, announced that the majority of the nominated films are included in their calendar for this year.

Steven Spielberg's Munich, which had its Belgrade premiere on 7th February, was nominated in as many as four categories Best Direction, Film Editing, Best Film and Best Adapted Screenplay. Those films which have also been nominated for best film along with Munich are on this year's Fest repertoire. The films in question are Brokeback Mountain, Capote, Cache and Good Night, and Good Luck.

Romantic drama Pride and Prejudice, which attracted sizeable audiences in Belgrade's cinemas during February, has received nominations in the categories of Best Actress in a Leading Role - Keira Knightley, Screenplay, Costume and Score.

King Kong, directed by Peter Jackson, has been nominated for best screenplay, Sound Editing, Sound Design, and Visual Effects, while War of the Worlds has been nominated in the same categories, with the exception of best screenplay.

The Chronicles of Narnia - the Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, another spectacular that has been seen in Belgrade's cinemas, has also been nominated for Best Visual Effects, Sound Design and Make-Up. Apart from Keira Knightley, other actresses who have been nominated for this year's Best Actress award star in films which have yet to reach Belgrade's cinemas. Dame Judy Dench has been nominated for her role in Mrs. Henderson Presents, Felicity Huffman for Transamerica, Charlize Theron for North Country and Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line.

Actors nominated in the category of Best Actor in a Leading Role are Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote, Terence Howard for Hustle and Flow, Heath Ledger for Brokeback Mountain, Joaquin Phoenix for Walk the Line and David Strathairn for his role in Good Night, and Good Luck. •

With Iceland being given centre stage for the event, presentations were made of documentary films, Screaming Masterpiece (about the phenomena of the Icelandic music scene), In the Shoes of the Dragon (about the phenomena of the beauty of Icelandic women), Love is in the Air (about the Icelandic theatre company which performs Shakespeare's plays in the English language in London), featuring Icelandic singer Björk’s (pictured) album Medúlla.

The Nordic Panorama was held in the Dvorana Kulturni Centar and Dom Kulture Studentski Grad. The whole manifestation was supported by the Finnish, Danish, Swedish and Norwegian Embassies in Belgrade. • 200 YEARS OF STERIJA Numerous cultural events and science seminars dedicated to great writer Jovan Sterija Popović will be held during 2006 to mark the 200th anniversary of his birth.

Representatives of the Serbian Academy of Science and Arts, Matica Srpska from Novi Sad, the Serbian Museum of Theatrical Art, Sterja's Scene, Belgrade's Philology Faculty, the Vršac Assembly and the Vršac Literary Municipality are all involved in the organising committee.

A major scientific gathering with the participation of writers, critics, theatre experts, theatre directors and art historians is planned to take place, as is as a major exhibition in Belgrade's SANU Gallery, which is set to bring Sterja's work closer to the public.

Jovan Sterija Popović (1806-1856) was one the most significant and most eminent writers of his era. He showed his abilities in all fields of literature at that time - he was a novelist and comedy writer who also wrote tragedies and literary critical essays, as well as dealing with philological issues.

The premiere of his comedy, Rodoljupci, was held in his hometown of Vršac at the end of February; the cultural-tourist manifestation, Sterija's Spring, will take place in March and festivals Sterija's Work, Sterija's Days and Vršac's Autumn Theatre will be staged in May, August and October respectively. • BOSNIAN WINS GOLDEN BEAR

DAVID ALBAHARI TRANSLATED INTO FRENCH AGAIN David Albahari's novel Svetski putnik (World Traveller) was recently published in French by Galimar, the biggest French publishing house. The novel was translated by Gojko Lukić and Gabriel Jakuli.

Albahari is Serbia's most translated contemporary writer and Svetski putnik is the fourth of his novels that Galimar has chosen to publish.

The Bait, Gec and Majer, and the Snow Man were previously published by the French publishing house, while the publishing rights for Unusual Stories were recently purchased. The exclusive publisher of David Albahari's books and representative of his authorship rights, Stubovi Kulture, are negotiating with Gilmar concerning the publishing of his new novel, the Leeches, in French.

In the 1990s, the translations of Albahari's novels, Short Book and the Cink, were also published in France. •

NORDIC PANORAMA IN BELGRADE The selection of the best short and documentary films from Sweden, Denmark, Iceland and Finland from last year, the Nordic Panorama, was held in Belgrade during February under the organisation of the Balkankult Foundation.

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February's 56th Berlin Film Festival saw Bosnian director Jasmila Žbanić win the Golden Bear for her debut film Grbavica. Belgrade actress, Mirjana Karanović, played the main role in this moving drama about a Bosnian Muslim woman raped by Bosnian Serb soldiers during the war and the relationship with the daughter born as a result of the rape - Luna Mijović stars in the role of the daughter.

President of the Berlin jury this year was famous actress Charlotte Rampling. Upon receiving the award, Žbanić stated that it is "a great European disgrace that Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić, who are responsible for the rape, murders and expulsions of people, have not yet been arrested".

Grbavica also won the award from the Ecumenical Jury and the Peace Film Price. The festival Grand Prix was shared equally by two films: Danish film, A Soap, directed by Pernille Fischer Christensen, and Offside, directed by Iranian director Jafar Panahi. A Soap is the story of an unusual relationship between a woman who has just broken off a long-term love affair and a transvestite, while the Iranian film is the story of everyday events in Teheran and deals with the status of women in Iran.

The Film Festival in Berlin lasted ten days and gathered the most important names from European and world film, as well as numerous young creators whose time is yet to come. •

CULTURE CALENDAR March FEST- 34th BELGRADE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Dates: From 24th February to 5th March Venues: SAVA CENTRE, BELGRADE CULTURAL CENTRE, DOM OMLADINE and THE YUGOSLAV CINEMATIC MUSEUM Programme:SAVA CENTRE Opening 24th February, 7.30pm BROKEN FLOWERS Directed by Jim Jarmusch Cast: Bill Murray, Jeffrey Wright, Sharon Stone, Jessica Lange Opening 24th February, 10pm BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN Directed by Ang Lee Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Heath Ledger, Michelle Williams Saturday, 25th February, 12pm BROKEN FLOWERS Saturday, 25th February, 2.30pm BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN Saturday, 25th February, 5pm JARHEAD Directed by Sam Mendes Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Chris Cooper, Jamie Foxx Saturday, 25th February, 7.30pm CACHE Directed by Michael Haneke Cast: Daniel Auteuil, Juliette Binoche, Marice Benichou Saturday, 25th February, 10pm GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK Directed by George Clooney Cast: David Strathaim, Robert Downey Jr., Patricia Clarkson, Ray Wise Sunday, 26th February, 12pm CACHE Sunday, 26th February, 2.30pm GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK

Sunday, 26th February, 10pm CAPOTE Directed by Bennett Miller Cast: Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Clifton Collins Monday, 27th February, 12pm MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS Monday, 27th February, 2.30pm CAPOTE Monday, 27th February, 5pm LOVE Directed by Vladan Nikolić Cast: Sergej Trifunović, Geno Lechner, Peter Gevisser, Dider Flamand Monday, 27th February, 7.30pm THE THREE BURIALS OF MELQUIADES ESTRADA Directed by Tommy Lee Jones Cast: Tommy Lee Jones, Barry Pepper, Melissa Leo Monday, 27th February, 10pm WALK THE LINE Directed by James Mangold Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Reese Witherspoon Tuesday, 28th February, 12pm THE THREE BURIALS OF MELQUIADES ESTRADA Tuesday, 28th February, 2.30pm WALK THE LINE Tuesday, 28th February, 5pm ŠTO JE MUŠKARAC BEZ BRKOVA? (WHAT IS A MAN WITHOUT A MUSTACHE?) Directed by Hrvoje Hribar Cast: Zrinka Cvitešić, Leon Lučev, Ivo Gregurević, Jelena Lopatić Tuesday, 28th February, 10pm LAST DAYS Directed by Gus van Sant, Cast: Michael Pitt, Lukas Haas, Asia Argento, Scott Green

Sunday, 26th February, 5pm TIDELAND Directed by Terry Gilliam Cast: Jodelle Ferland, Jeff Bridges, Jennifer Tilly, Janet McTeer Sunday, 26th February, 7.30pm MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS Directed by Stephen Frears Cast: Dame Judi Dench, Bob Hoskins, Kelly Reilly

Wednesday, 1st March, 12pm MANDERLAY Directed by Lars von Trier Cast: Bryce Dallas, Isaach de Bankole, Danny Glover, Willem Dafoe Wednesday, 1st March, 2.30pm LAST DAYS Wednesday, 1st March, 5pm APORIA - WORLD PREMIERE Directed by Aris Movsesijan Cast: Marko Baćović, Sergej Trifunović, Boris Komnenić, Jasmina Ivanišević-Večanski Wednesday, 1st March, 7.30pm U-CARMEN eKHAYELITSHA Directed by Mark Donford-May Cast: Pauline Malefane, Lungelwa Blou, Andile Tshoni CorD | March 2006

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CULTURAL CALENDAR March Wednesday, 1st March, 10pm THE CONSTANT GARDENER Directed by Fernando Meirelles Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz, Bill Nighy, Pete Postlethwaite Thursday, 2nd February, 12pm U-CARMEN eKHAYELITSHA Thursday, 2nd February, 2.30pm THE CONSTANT GARDENER Thursday, 2nd February, 5pm VOKSNE MENNESKER Directed by Dagur Kári Cast: Jakob Cedergren, Nicolas Bro, Tilly Scott Pedersen Thursday, 2nd February, 7.30pm ZUI HAO DE SHI GUANG (TIME FOR LOVE) Directed by Hou Hsiao-Hsien Cast: Shu Qi, Chang Chen, Mei-Fang, Di-Mei Thursday, 2nd February, 10pm TIAN BIAN YI DUO YUN (CAPRICIOUS CLOUD) Directed by Tsai Ming-Liang Cast: Lee Kang-sheng, Cheng Shiang-chyi, Lu Yi-Ching, Yang Kuei-mei Friday, 3rd March, 12pm ZUI HAO DE SHI GUIANG (TIME FOR LOVE) Friday, 3rd March, 2.30pm TIAN BIAN YI DUO YUN (CAPRICIOUS CLOUD) Friday, 3rd March, 5pm CROSSING THE BRIDGE: THE SOUND OF ISTANBUL Directed by Fatih Akin Documentary Friday, 3rd March, 7.30pm WHERE THE TRUTH LIES Directed by Atom Egoyan Cast: Kevin Bacon, Colin Firth, Alison Lohman, Sonja Bennett Friday, 3rd March, 10pm MLAD I ZDRAV KAO RUŽA (YOUNG AND HEALTHY AS A ROSE) Directed by Jovan Jovanović Cast: Dragan Nikolić, Aleksandar Gavrić, Danilo Bata Stojković, Marija Baksa Saturday, 4th March, 12pm WHERE THE TRUTH LIES Saturday, 4th March, 2.30pm MLAD I ZDRAV KAO RUŽA (YOUNG AND HEALTHY AS A ROSE) Saturday, 4th March, 5pm FREE ZONE Directed by Amos Gitai Cast: Natalie Portman, Hana Laszlo, Aki Avni, Hiam Abbass

that he truly loves in Venice.

However, despite his persistence, she is not bowled over by the great lovers affections.

NANNY MCPHEE Direction: Kirk Jones Starring: Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Angela Lansbury Plot: Nanny McPhee comes to the house of widower Braun. Using her power, she manages to place seven little 'brats' under control, and even wins their affections. What is her secret?

BASIC INSTINCTRISK ADDITION Direction: Michael Caton-Jones Starring: Sharon Stone, David Morrissey, Charlotte Rampling Plot: As in the original, novelist Catherine Tramell (Stone) is once again in trouble with the law, and Scotland Yard appoints psychiatrist Dr. Andrew Glass (Morrissey) to evaluate her. However, like Detective Nick Curran before him, Glass is entranced by Tramell and lured into a seductive game.

THE PINK PANTHER Direction: Shawn Levy Starring: Steve Martin, Kevin Kline, Jean Reno, Beyoncé Knowles, Jason Statham Plot: This prequel to the famous comedy stars Steve Martin as the bungling inspector Jacques Clouseau and Kevin Kline as Chief Inspector Dreyfus.

POPULAR / CONTEMPORARY MUSIC CONCERTS KAOFONIC TRIBE, DOM OMLADINE, 3rd MARCH, 9pm This 'tribe', from the Bourgogne region of France consists of eight musicians playing African drums and other instruments bass, flute, etc. to which they fuse vocals and chorus parts.

FILM - March premieres (excluding FEST) SIMPLE MINDS, SAVA CENTAR, 7th MARCH CASANOVA Direction: Lasse Hallstrom Starring: Heath Ledger, Jeremy Irons, Lavren Colian, Oliver Platt, Sienna Miller.

Plot: For the first time in his life, legendary seducer Casanova meets a women

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This famous Glaswegian group, formed at the end of the 1970s, became widely popular with albums `New Golden Dream`(1982.), `Sparkle in the Rain`(1984) and `Once Upon a Time`(1985). Their biggest hit remains 'Don`t you (Forget about me)`.

Tickets already on sale! Prices: 1,600, 1,800 and 2,000 dinars.

CULTURAL CALENDAR March LOU REED, SAVA CENTAR, 15th MARCH Lou Reed, former frontman of influential New York group The Velvet Underground, has been performing solo for some 30 years, though this will be his first trip to Belgrade.

Tickets already on sale! Prices: 1,600, 1,800 and 2,000 dinars.

SAYAG JAZZ MACHINE, DOM OMLADINE, 25th MARCH, 9pm This 5-year-old French group plays a very distinct style of jazz. For their second album, Anachronic, they mixed machine sound with classical instruments - piano, guitar, flute, trumpet, saxophone, accordion… An interesting mixture will emanate from the Dom Omladine stage and an additional surprise will be provided in the form of special scenery effects.

CLASSICAL MUSIC CONCERTS BELGRADE PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA Monographic concerts Friday, 3rd March Conductor: Uroš Lajović Soloist: Markos Fink, bass Programme:W.A. Mozart- Die Maurerfreude, K 471 W.A. Mozart Mauerische Trauermusic k 477 Requiem k 626 Choir Obilic Association Krsmanovic The Great Anniversaries Friday, 10th March Conductor: Peter Vronsky Soloist: Janne Thomsen, floute Programme:Dejan Despic- Symphony no. 1 W.A. Mozart- Flute concerto D major k 314 W.A. Mozart- Symphony in C major k 551 Hommage a Hans Swarowsky Friday, 17th March Conductor: Manfred Huss Soloist: Sandra Tratnigg, soprano Programme:L.V. Beethoven, Symphony no.4 op. 60 B, Flat major R. Strauss, Metamorphosen L.V. Beethoven `Egmont`- incidental music, op.84 ILIJA MILOŠAVLJEVIĆ KOLARAC FOUNDATION Thursday, 2nd March, 8.30pm Teofilović Brothers Thursday, 9th March, 8pm Symphonic Orchestra RTB Conductor: Stanko Jovanović Soloist: Marija Đukić Programme:-

R. Maksimović, Beethoven, Frank Saturday, 11th March, 8pm Arkadij Vovodos, piano Programme- Schubert, List Sunday, 12th March, 8pm Jazz Orchestra RTB Wednesday, 15th March, 8pm Music school "Stanković" Saturday, 18th March, 8pm Symphonic Orchestra FMU Conductor: Bojan Suđić Sunday, 19th March, 8pm Music school "Vojislav Vučković" Wednesday, 22nd March, 6pm Opening of the 36th International Competition of Youth Music Competition runs daily from 23rd to 31st March Friday, 31st March, 8pm Cycle - Instrument Masters Soloists from Moscow Jurij Basmet- viola ART EXHIBITIONS Haos Gallery, Cara Lazara 12 Evgenija Demnievska- "Hibridi"(Hybrids) Tuesday, 14th March to Friday, 14th April Macedonian artist Evgenija Demnievska has been a resident of Paris since 1981. She has seen her works exhibited in museums and galleries the world over.

Her ‘Hybrids’ exhibition covers the subjects of men, space and signs, and she employs a mixture of ink, brush, photography and acrylics.

French Cultural Centre, Zmaj Jovina 11 Africa - Art and meaning Opening Monday, 20th March, 8pm This exhibition presents the works of Narcisa Knežević-Šijan, director of the Belgrade Museum of African Art FRANCOPHONIA As is tradition, this March will see the celebrating of Francophone Day in Belgrade. However, this is not merely a single day. Rather, the entire month of March will see celebrations of the French language spoken by 170 million people worldwide - and French culture.

Events will culminate in a main celebration to be held in New Belgrade's Sava Centar on 24th March, when Francophone Night will be held.

Prior to the finale, many events will make up the March celebrations, including language programmes at the Faculties of Philology (18th March) and a 'Meet France' competition (Faculty of Philosophy, 18th March, 2pm). Later in March, Genevabased art group Labisku's will perform their Francophone version of the Wizard of Oz (Belgrade Drama Theatre, 26th March, 11am). •

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Tourism

Tourism

Equestrian Breaks

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This month, CorD and the Tourist Organisation of Serbia are recommending that you visit Serbia’s famous horse farms - Zobnatica, Karađorđevo, Kelebija or Ljubicevo. Familiarise yourself with horse-breeding and the history of horse racing here, and enjoy the peace and tranquility of the farms' pleasant atmosphere. he Vojvodina district of Bečej, lying slightly north of central Vojvodina, comprises the picturesque ancient town of Bečej, as well as Bačko Gradište, Bačko Petrovo Selo, Mileševo (Drljan), Poljanice and Radičević. The district offers good road, rail and river links with the rest of Serbia and is a popular tourist destination.

A significant resource of Bečej, a town that dates back more than 900 years, are the reserves of thermal waters, utilised since 1904 in the town’s bathhouse, known today as Jodna Banja (Iodine Spa).

T

Bečej boasts numerous monuments of cultural and historical significance, among which are the centrally located Serbian Orthodox and Catholic churches.

The Byzantine-style Orthodox Church was constructed in 1858 and is distinctive thanks to its collection of 63 icons, all works of renowned painter Uroš Predić.

The Catholic Church gained its current naive shape in 1830. It has two altar paintings by the famous Hungarian painter, Tan Mora, who was born in Bečej in 1828.

Tourism Close to Bečej town (around 12km) lies the popular class B Fantast hotel of Dunđerski Castle, built in the 1920s by famous local land-owner Bogdan Dunđerski, in accordance with elegant French and classic neo-gothic styles, and later converted into a hotel retreat.

Dunđerski Castle and its adjoining frescoadorned chapel form part of the Bečej agriculturalindustrial complex, and the famous horse farm located there is also open to visiting tourists.

The farm has 80 English thoroughbred horses for galloping races and half-thoroughbred Holstein horses for hurdle sports. As a result of detailed genetic research and thoroughbred breeding, English thoroughbreds with excellent potential have been bred for galloping sports, which achieve noticeable results at the region’s hippodromes.

Vojvodina’s Bačka Topola borough lies 32km from Subotica, 40km from Senta and Bečej, 45km from Sombor and 69km from Novi Sad. Zobnatica, the oasis of life, is located in the heart of Bačka beside the main motorway - the old route of the E-75international road.

Nowadays Zobnatica has developed into a tourist recreational centre visited by over 35,000 tourists a year. It is famous for its horse farm, which has a thoroughbred horse-breeding tradition that has lasted over 200 years. Guests are offered tourist riding for adults and children, with or without training, and can also take advantage of the riding school, riding on the roads of Zobnatica, carriage riding and hunting coach riding… The horse farm has a hippodrome with a manege. Next to the hippodrome is the Carda Restaurant, with 40 seats inside and 360 covered seats outside.

Zobnatica has a hunting area of 2,537 hectares where roebuck, pheasant, rabbit, wild duck and quail can be hunted.

Dunđerski Castle, Fantast Hotel, Bečej District

Accommodation The Jadran Hotel*** has 20 modern double rooms and 3 apartments.

The hotel has a trim cabinet, sauna and automated bowling alley.

To visit Horse Breeding Museum (unique in Europe)

Blacksmith Museum Art Gallery Information ZOBNATICA HORSE FARM Tel: 024 715 842 url: www.zobnatica.co.yu Bačka Topola Tourist Organisation Director, LASLO KOCAN Tel: 063/717-45-04

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Visitors to the Karađorđevo horse farm can enjoy riding in the countryside, pony trap riding; as well as visiting the Bač fortress and Bođani monastery, or picnicking in Vranjak centre.

Information KARAĐORĐEVO HORSE FARM Tel: 021 765 018 / 745 806 Bačka Palanka Tourist Organisation Tel: 021/741-644 Fax: 021/745-933 POŽAREVAC - LJUBICEVO

Tourism

The Ljubicevo horse farm is reminiscent of the Obrenović dynasty and its connection to Požarevac. Knjaz (Duke) Miloš was elected the ruler of Serbia in 1859 for the second time and returned to Serbia from exile - first to Požarevac and then to Belgrade, where he retook power. During the next year, 1860, he gave the Morava estate, on the banks of the Morava River, as a gift to the state for the purpose of creating a horse farm. Later, in 1866, after the death of Knjaz Miloš and his wife Ljubica, their son, Knez Mihajlo, renamed this estate Ljubicevo, after his mother. Since then this horse farm has played a significant role in equestrian sport in Serbia and Yugoslavia.

The Ljubicevo horse farm, one of the oldest in Serbia, is well known for its good selection of horses and its quality breeding, thus horses from this farm are welcomed at all important races and horse

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BAČKA PALANKA - KARAĐORĐEVO Karađorđevo is situated in the south-western part of Bačka, 50km from Novi Sad. The Karađorđevo institute was established in 1885 as an official estate of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, part of the famous Hungarian horse farm, Mezchegues. Because of the rare species of flora and fauna, part of Karađorđevo is protected as a Special Nature Reserve.

Thanks to the dense oak and willow forests of the area, which are home to large numbers of large and small game of high trophy value, the hunting area of Karađorđevo attracts many sport hunters. The most represented hunting game are dear, wild boar, roe dear, pheasant, rabbit, wild goose and wild duck.

For many years the Karađorđevo hunting area was dominated by the organised hunting of pheasants, which resulted in the establishment of the Vranjak pheasant farm, which is one of the most modern in Serbia.

Apart from hunting, guests are offered the opportunity to visit the famous horse farm and accompanying museum.

Popular pony & trap rides in the Vojvodina countryside shows in the country. The farm’s trophy hall tells us a great deal about the successes Ljubicevo has achieved in competitions both within the country and abroad. Many horse farms in Serbia bought the descendants of trophy stallions and mares from Ljubicevo, through which they hoped to attain the quality which this farm has already achieved.

Along with the horse farm, Ljubicevo has its own agricultural property and represents great potential for equestrian sport, tourism and agriculture.

The Ljubicevo horse farm has remained the home of equestrian sport in Požarevac, and its influence and importance exceeds the local character in many elements.

information about the horse farm’s points of specific interets, such as a unique stable with a glass wall offering a view over the restaurant, a stable with mares, mares with foals on the pasture, the fiacre museum, parade carriages, etc.

This programme can be completed with a coach ride to the four-star restaurant "Majur", situated in a lively environment 500 metres away. Visitors can stroll the park and forest, or enjoy a drive in a stagecoach or four-horse-carriage, which will, for a short time, take one back three hundred years.

There is a horse riding school at the horse farm for members of the club. Due to an increasing interest in horse riding, the school is also open on weekdays.•

Information LJUBICEVO HORSE FARM Tel: 012 285 105 / 285 110

Information Kelebija Riding School Bookings: 024 789 063 Prices:Novice riding school: 200din. per lesson Field riding: 300din. per lesson Field riding (experienced riders): 500din. per lesson Note: a riding lesson lasts 50 minutes Contact The Kelebija Horse Farm E-mail: ergela@intersped-dd.com url: www.intersped-dd.com

SUBOTICA - KELEBIJA On the border between Serbia and Hungary, 11km from Subotica, a few hundred metres from the border crossing, lies the Kelebija tourist horse farm, which offers excellent holiday opportunities.

This modern farm was built in 1993 and its first race horses originate from the horse farms of the former Yugoslavia: Lipice, Đakovo, Vučjak and Lipik.

Currently, the farm boasts 65 Lipizzaner breeds and, with the help of a tourist guide, you can find

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Serbian Education and Sport Minister, Slobodan Vuksanović, presents gifts to pre-school children in the Duško Radović Theatre on Saint Sava’s Day

Goran Pitić, Vice President of the Foreign Investors Council and President of Societe Generale Bank’s Board of Directors (3rd from left), addresses media at an FIC press conference announcing the upcoming release of the 2006 White Book

Central Belgrade’s Hotel Balkan, which has been completely renovated, pictured during its ceremonial re-opening on 16th February

Officials of the Serbian Government and the National Library are joined by 2nd Secretary of the Netherlands Embassy, Arthur Kibbelaar, (second from right) at a press conference to promote new book Strahote Rata U Srbiji (Fear of War in Serbia )

NEWLY ACCREDITED: H.E. H.E. Anatoliy Oliynyk The recently accredited Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to SCG was born on 8th February 1950 in Vinnylsia, Ukraine. After Graduating from Kiev State University in 1981 with an M.A. in International Law and International Relations, he immediately joined the diplomatic service. Oliynyk's selected previous postings of note include serving as First Secretary of the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the UN (1989 to '92), Consul General of Ukraine in Chicago ('92 to '95) and Chief of the Civil Affairs Regional office UNTAES (‘97 to ‘98). From March 1998 to January 2003, Ambassador Oliynyk served as part of the UNMIBH, first holding the post of Civil Affairs Co-ordinator in the regions of Doboj, Sarajevo and Brčko District, then becoming Systems Analyses Civil Affairs Advisor of the UNMIBH. Oliynyk gained his first full ambassadorship in 2004 when he became Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Republic of Iraq.

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Austrian Ambassador Gerhard Jandl, French Ambassador Hugues Pernet and Jacqueline Bassa-Mazzoni, Director of the French Cultural Centre, pictured on 13th February discussing the cultural goals set out by Austria during its presidency of the EU H.E. Seyed Morteza Mir Heydari, Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to SCG, welcomes the Serbian Radical Party’s Tomislav Nikolić to the Iranian Embassy’s National Day Reception at Villa Jelena on 13th February

Members of the public enjoy works of Serbian Spaininspired artists from the first half of the 20th century at Belgrade’s Cervantes Institute at the opening of exhibition “Spain - A Sideways Glance” on 9th February

Dr. Slobodan Ivanović, owner of private medical clinic ‘Klinika Anlave’ (left) shakes hands with actor Goran Sultanović at a 27th January reception held at Belgrade’s Intercontinental Hotel to mark the clinic’s 14th birthday and the 11th anniversary of the creation of the Anlave Foundation.

NEWLY ACCREDITED: H.E. Miroslav Luci Born in Tomaž on 31st January 1946, the newly accredited ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia to Serbia & Montenegro graduated from Ljubljana's Medical Faculty in 1972. Luci, who is a keen sporting hunter, joined the Social Democratic Party of Slovenia in 1991 and served two terms as Mayor of the city of Pruj between 1994 and 2002. In 1996 he became a member of the Slovenian Parliament, where he served as vice-president of the Parliamentary Committee for International Relations and member of the committees for local self governance, labour, family, health and social issues, as well as being a member of the Committee tasked with securing Slovenia's EU membership. Following his party's victory at Slovenia's 2004 general elections, Luci was appointed Secretary of State within the Prime Minister's Cabinet, responsible for co-operation between the government and the parliament.

He held this post until being given his first diplomatic post in Belgrade.

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Art lovers enjoy an exhibition of classic Italian art at Belgrade’s National Museum on 7th February Actress Maja Mandžuka takes her place at a Media Centre press conference to deny starring in a pornographic film.

She also accused Serbian daily Kurir of publishing fake images of her

Serbian PM Vojislav Koštunica pictured laying a wreath in the Church of St. Đorđe on the Day of Serbian Nationhood (15th February)

G17 Plus President Miroljub Labus (Deputy Serbian PM) and party vice-president Mlađen Dinkić (Serbian Finance Minister) cut the cake to mark the completion of Serbia’s IMF Arrangement at G17 Plus’s HQ on 7th February

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Mourners gather to pay their respects to the victims of Montenegro’s worst ever rail crash in Bioče, near Podgorica, which left over 40 dead and around 200 injured.

Ambassador of the Russian Federation in Belgrade, H.E. Aleksandar Alekseyev, chats with Japanese Ambassador to SCG, H.E. Tadashi Nagai, at a 14th February Reception marking Russia’s Day of the Diplomat

Members of the Kosovo Protection Corps act as pallbearers at the funeral of Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova, who finally lost his battle against lung cancer in late January

Ambassador of France to SCG, H.E. Hugues Pernet, honours Jacqueline Bassa-Mazzoni, Counsellor for Cultural Affairs and Co-operation with the French Embassy and Director of the French Cultural Centre, at a French Embassy reception on 13th February

SCG President Svetozar Marović and Montenegrin President Filip Vujanović take a moment to consult at a meeting of the SCG Supreme Defence Council in Belgrade’s Federal Parliament

French Ambassador Hugues Pernet shakes hands with Serbian Jusitice Minister Zoran Sojković, marking an agreement of understanding signed between France and Serbia on 27th January

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Shopping

Techno Talk Primare SPA21 Primare's amp does indeed look as expensive in real life as it does here. Thankfully though, it also sounds bloody expensive, dispatching cinematic effects with aplomb. Equally at home with Batman Begins-style noise-fests and dialogue-heavy art house flicks Price: €2,900 URL: www.primaresystems.com

Canon MVX200i A camcorder perfect for sharing your pix with family and friends: a motion JPEG recording function allows you to record onto a memory card to download to computer. It can also be connected to a PictBridge printer for photographs without a PC. Smart Price: €480 URL: www.canon.co.uk

Nokia 7380 This new Nokia is the veritable Holy Trinity of metrosexual fashion phones. The 7380 is the flagship model of the new L'Amour Collection, which all come with little fashion tags to make them look like the designer accessories they truly are. The 7380 boasts a 2MP camera and an MP3 player, so you can at least get some use out of it, even if it sucks as a phone Price: €500 URL: www.nokia.com

Gizmondo The Giz has had a troubled time of late, with two company bigwigs resigning amid allegations of criminality, and the announcement of version two even before version one had been launched in the U.S. Nevertheless, EA’s two new games for the console – FIFA and SSX – give gamers some hope, as does the CoPilot sat-nav package Price: €190 URL: www.gizmondo.com

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Shopping

Mission Elegante e82 These sleek and slender 'Elegantes' don't just sound great - thanks to their five 110mm Parami-S drive units and curved construction - they also look pretty spectacular too, particularly now they're available in a host of different colours Price: €4,300 URL: www.mission.co.uk

Dell Inspiron XPS M170

Terratec Cinergy Hybrid-T XS Have you bought a sub-notebook skinnier than a fingernail and discovered it provides nothing in the way of entertainment? Fear not. Use your spare USB slot and plug in the new Cinergy, which packs terrestrial analogue and digital TV reception into its tiny frame, though it requires a mini aerial for decent reception

The finest gaming laptop ever created just got better. The 17-inch XPS powers along with an up-rated 2.26GHz Pentium M, 2GB of RAM and a 100GB hard drive. It isn't the most portable machine, but it's the most powerful desktop replacement we've seen Price: €2,230 URL: www.dell.co.uk

Price: €190 URL: www.terratec.com

O2 XDA Exec More sub notebook than smartphone, the 3G Exec sports a full QWERTY keyboard, 128MB of RAM and a lightning-fast 520MHz ARM processor. As if that wasn't enough to have you slavering for one, it also has Bluetooth 1.2 and, oh yes, Wi-Fi. Give! Now! Price: €600 URL: www.02.co.uk

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Shopping Epson Stylus Photo R2400 Do your printed digital photos look like dotty approximations of the beautiful scenes you've shot? They won't with this chap: 5760dpi resolution (over a third that of the average human eye), the ability to print up to A3+ sizes and new Ultrachrome K3 ink all make for a glorious rendering Price: €735 URL: www.epson.com

Sony NW-HD5 This is the most affordable Denon home cinema ever. Fabulous picture quality and strong specs are coupled with decent sound quality from tiny satellite speakers - just what you'd expect from Denon. A classy system with no obvious weaknesses.

Price: €565 URL: www.denon.co.jp

Sony NW-HD5 The slimline PS2 aces its fat predecessor by cramming in an infrared receiver and Ethernet port for DVD playback and online scrapes.

Though the PS3's coming in spring next year, there are still plenty of grade A games coming out for the current PlayStation Price: €150 URL: www.sony.com

HP hx4700 Despite the humdrum and slightly chunky design, this is one mean power-packed 'mutha' of a palmtop. The processor's super fast, the screen's hi-res and you get both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The touchpad navigation at the bottom is dead cool, too Price: €250 URL: www.sony.com

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Shopping

Seiko Spring Drive According to Seiko, its new Spring Drive watches are the only existing watches with a second hand that moves with a truly smooth glide.

Seiko claim that the sweep hands of rivals Rolex, Tag, etc., actually have a very subtle ticking motion that’s too subtle for the human eye to notice.

The Spring Drive mechanism also makes this time piece very accurate, which it should be for the price Price: €3,000 URL: www.seiko.com

Pioneer PDP-436XDE Pioneer is still standing very firmly by the plasma tree, looking smug. The 436 replaces last year's 435, in one of the better TV naming conventions, and includes Freeview and twin HDMI ports… on an external tuner box. Still, the picture's gorgeous Price: €3,300 URL: www.pioneer.co.uk

Pioneer SE-DIR800C Surround-sound headphones sound like a gimmick, but just try these and you'll be a convert. Their super-light form makes film marathons workable, decoding includes Dolby Pro Logic II and action flicks excel with the forceful output.

Price: €330 URL: www.pioneer.co.uk

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Cuisine

Hans Hageman (left) is Counsellor and Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of the Netherlands in Belgrade.

Sverre Johan Kvale is Minister Counsellor and Deputy Head of Mission at the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Belgrade.

The Balzak

Highly Recommended by‌ Sverre Johan Kvale and Hans Hageman

------------------------Photo by Jelena Mandić

id-February and the rain is coming down in buckets. Even drivers of big gas guzzling cars might start believing in climate change, freak weather and a farewell to White Christmases, for on this particular mid-February night in Belgrade the very few traces of winter are being washed away. But this in no way stops two middleweight, middle-aged gentlemen with receding hairlines from venturing out into the rain, believing this to be a perfect night for a bit of good food and a piece of lively conversation. And what better place to meet than at The Balzak, a restaurant - wine bar named after the father of the French realistic novel and the writer of the "Human Comedy", a formidable achievement of creative writing.

M

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Located not too far from Kalemegdan and the zoo, The Balzak should not be difficult to find. The restaurant is fairly small, but roomy enough not to give anybody a claustrophobic feeling. For those of the guests wanting a bit of privacy there is the balcony with a few tables offering an ideal location for a romantic tete-a-tete or a more businesslike political discussion; a place well suited for middle-aged diplomats trying to solve the problems of this world accompanied by good wine and good food.

For one thing is certain: both the food and the wine are well above average. Helped by a friendly, competent waiter with a very good command of English, we were given the grand tour of the menu, which, by the way, is not too long, but has a clearly more "continental" flair than what we normally find in restaurants in Belgrade,

Belgrade Directory

Theatres, Venues & Museums

THEATRES & VENUES • ATELJE 212, Svetogorska 21, tel. 324-7342 • BELGRADE DRAMA THEATRE, Milesevska 64a, tel. 2423-686 • BELGRADE PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA, Studentski trg 11, tel. 3282 977 • BITEF THEATRE, Skver Mire Trailovic 1, tel. 3220-608 • DADOV, Djure Salaja 6/I, tel. 3243-643 • DAH THEATRE, Humska 12, tel. 2441-680 • ISTER THEATRE, Koste Glavinica 7A, tel. 650-757 • JUGOSLAV DRAMA THEATRE, Kralja Milana 50, tel. 644-447 • KPGT, Radnicka 3, tel. 3055-082, 3055-070 • NATIONAL THEATRE (Opera, Ballet, Theatre Plays), Francuska 3, tel. 620-946 • MADLENIANUM OPERA & THEATRE, Zemun, Glavna 32, tel. 316-25-33 • THEATRE ON TERAZIJA, Trg Nikole Pasica 3, tel. 3245-677, 410-099 • SCENA RADOVIC, Aberdareva 1, tel. 323-8817 • SLAVIJA THEATRE, Svetog Save 18, tel. 436-995 • THEATRE ‘T’, Bulevar kralja Aleksandra 77a, tel. 403-570 • THEATRE BOJAN STUPICA, Kralja Milana 50, tel. 644-447 • THEATRE KULT, Bulevar kralja Aleksandra, 77a, tel. 242-860 • ZVEZDARA THEATRE, Milana Rakica 38, tel. 2419-664 CHILDREN’S THEATRES • BOSKO BUHA, Trg Republike 3, tel. 632-855 • MALO POZORISTE DUSKO RADOVIC, Aberdareva 1, tel. 323-20-72 • POZORISTANCE PUZ, Bozidara Adzije 21, tel. 2449-464 • POZORISTE LUTAKA PINOKIO, Karadjordjeva 9, tel. 2691-715 • THEATRE RODA, Pozeska 83a, tel. 545-260 CINEMAS • AKADEMIJA 28, Nemanjina 28, tel. 3611-645 • BALKAN, Brace Jerkovica 16, tel. 3343-491 • DOM OMLADINE, Makedonska 22, tel. 324-8202 • DOM SINDIKATA, Trg Nikole Pasica 5, tel. 323-4849 • 20. OKTOBAR, Balkanska 2, tel. 687-182 • DVORANA KULTURNOG CENTRA, Kolarceva 6, tel. 2621-174 • FONTANA, Pariske komune 13, tel. 602-397 • JADRAN, Trg Nikole Pasica, tel. 624-057 • JUGOSLAVIJA, Bulevar Mihaila Pupina bb, tel. 2676-484 • KOZARA, Terazije 25, tel. 323-5648 • MALA MORAVA, Spasicev pasaz, tel. 623-198 • MALI ODEON, Kneza Milosa 14-16, tel. 643-280 • MILLENNIUM, Knez Mihailova 19, tel. 2623-365 • MUZEJ KINOTEKE, Kosovska 11, tel. 324-8250 • ODEON, Narodnog fronta 45, tel. 643-355 • PALAS SUMADIJA, Turgenjevljeva 5, tel. 555-465 • RODA, Pozeska 83a, tel. 545-260 • SAVA CENTAR, Milentija Popovica 9, tel. 311-4851 • TUCKWOOD CINEPLEX, Knez Milosa 7, tel. 3229-912 • VUK, Bul. Kralja Aleksandra 77a, tel. 2424-860 • ZVEZDA, Terazije 40, tel. 687-320

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CULTURAL CENTRES • BRITISH COUNCIL, Terazije 8, tel. 3023-800 • CENTRE FOR CULTURAL DECONTAMINATION, Bircaninova 21, tel. 681-422 • CERVANTES INSTITUTE, Cika Ljubina 19, tel. 3034 182 • DOM OMLADINA, Makedonska 22, tel. 3220-127 • DOM VOJSKE JUGOSLAVIJE, Brace Jugovica 19, tel. 323-99-71 • FRENCH CULTURAL CENTRE, Zmaj Jovina 11, tel. 3023-600 • GERMAN CULTURAL CENTRE, Knez Mihailova 50, tel. 2622-823 • ITALIAN CULTURAL CENTRE, Njegoseva 47/III, tel. 244-23-12, 444-72-17 • BELGRADE CULTURAL CENTRE, Knez Mihailova 6/1, tel. 621-469 • INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL CENTRE - JUBIN, Terazije 26, tel. 687-836, fax. 687-760 • RUSSIAN CULTURAL CENTRE, Narodnog fronta 33, tel. 642-178, 688-300 • REX, Jevrejska 16, tel. 3284-534 • STUDENTS CULTURAL CENTRE, Kralja Milana 48, tel. 659-277 • STUDENTSKI GRAD CULTURAL CENTRE, Bulevar AVNOJ-a 179, tel. 2691-442 • FOUNDATION OF ILIJA M. KOLARAC, Studentski trg 5, tel. 630-550 • GUARNERIUS, Dzordza Vasingtona 12, tel. 33-46-807 EXHIBITION GALLERIES • GALLERY OF THE SERBIAN ACADEMY OF ARTS & SCIENCES, Knez Mihailova 35, tel. 334-2400 • BELGRADE GALLERY, Andricev Venac 12, tel. 323-8789 • BAZALT GALLERY, Lazarevacki drum 7, tel. 553-689 • PAVILJON CVIJETA ZUZORIC, Mali Kalemegdan, tel. 2621-585 • DOMA OMLADINE GALLERY, Makedonska 22, tel. 3248-202, ext. 25 • THE GREAT GALLERY OF STUDENTSKI GRAD, Bulevar AVNOJ-a 179, tel. 2691-442 • GALLERY OF THE FACULTY OF PORTRAIT ART, Knez Mihailova 53, tel. 635-952 • FRESCO GALLERY, Cara Urosa 20, tel. 2621-491 • GALLERY OF THE GRAPHICAL COLLECTIVE, Obilicev venac 27, tel. 627-785 • GALLERY CHAOS, Cara Lazara 12, tel. 627-497 • GALLERY OF THE BELGRADE CULTURAL CENTRE, Knez Mihailova 6, tel. 2622-926 • JUGOSLOVENSKA GALERIJA UMETNICKIH DELA, Andricev venac 4, tel. 3238-789; Dositejeva 1, tel. 627-135 • GALERIJA-LEGAT MILICE ZORIC I RODOLJUBA COLAKOVICA, Rodoljuba Colakovica 13, tel. 663-173 • GALERIJA-LEGAT PAJE JOVANOVICA, Kralja Milana 21, tel. 3340-176 • GALERIJA-PETRA DOBROVICA, Kralja Petra 36, tel. 2622-163 • SANU GALLERY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, Djure Jaksica 2, tel. 3283-490 • GALLERY PROGRESS, Knez Mihailova 22, tel. 182-626 • GALLERY OF THE NATURE MUSEUM, Mali Kalemegdan 5, tel. 328-4317 • MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART, Pariska 14, tel. 630-940 • GALLERY STARA KAPETANIJA, Zemun, Kej oslobodjenja 8, tel. 612-023 • GALLERY SULUJ, Terazije 26/II, tel. 685-780 • GALLERY 73, Pozeska 83a, tel. 557-142 • GALLERY ULUS, Knez Mihailova 37, tel. 2621-954 • GALLERY OF THE YUGOSLAV ARMY, Brace Jugovica 19, tel. 323-47-12 • GALLERY ZADUZBINE ILIJE M. KOLARCA, Studentski Trg 5, tel. 185-794 • ZEPTER GALLERY, Kralja Petra I no.32, tel. 328-1414

MUSEUMS CULTURAL&HISTORICAL MUSEUMS: • VUK AND DOSITEJ MUSEUM, Gospodar Jevremova 21, tel. 625-161 • ETNOGRAPHIC MUSEUM- Studentski trg 13, tel. 328-1888 • SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH, Kralja Petra 5, tel. 3282-595 • NATIONAL MUSEUM, Trg Republike 1a, tel. 624-322, 438-886 • MUSEUM OF PEDAGOGY, Uzun Mirkova 14, tel. 627-538 • THE MANSION OF DUCHESS LJUBICA, Kneza Sime Markovica 8, tel. 638-264 • THE MANSION OF DUKE MILOSH, Rakovicki put 2, tel. 660-422 • DJURA JAKSIC HOUSE, Skadarska 34, tel. 324-7334 • MANAK’S HOUSE, Gavrila Principa 5, tel. 633-335

AMSJ road assistance

987

Ambulance

94

Police Emergency

92

Fire Department

93

Belgrade Bus Station

636-299

Belgrade Airport

601-555

HISTORICAL MUSEUMS:

Wake-up calls

9811

• MILITARY MUSEUM, Kalemegdan, tel. 3344-408 • BELGRADE FORTRESS MUSEUM, Kalemegdan bb, 631-766 • YUGOSLAV HISTORICAL MUSEUM, Trg Nikole Pasica 11, • MUSEUM OF BANJICA’S CAMP, Veljka Lukica-Kurjaka 33, tel. 669-690 • JEWISH HISTORICAL MUSEUM, Kralja Petra 71, tel. 2622-634 • SERBIAN HISTORICAL MUSEUM, Nemanjina 24/VII, tel. 3674-057

Humanitarian line

9862

MEMORIAL MUSEUMS: • MEMORIAL MUSEUM JOVAN CVIJIC, Jelene Cvetkovic 5, tel. 3223-126 • NIKOLA TESLA MUSEUM, Krunska 51, tel. 2433-886 • MEMORIAL MUSEUM TOMA ROSANDIC, Vasilija Gacese 3, tel. 651-434 • IVO ANDRIC MUSEUM, Andricev Venac 12, tel. 323-8397

JAT ticket reservations Long distance calls (international)

901

Phone line malfunction

977

Information Exact time Information - directory inquiries Telegrams by telephone Medical Centre Emergency Room Dr. Ristić Clinic, Narodnih heroja 38 Weather forecast Central Train Station Chemists,"1. maj", Kralja Milana 9

CITY MUSEUMS: • BELGRADE CITY MUSEUM, Zmaj Jovina 1, tel. 630-825 • ZEMUN CITY MUSEUM, Glavna 9, tel. 617-752 TECHNICAL MUSEUMS: • YUGOSLAV AERONAUTICS MUSEUM, Belgrade Airport, tel. 670-992 • RAILWAY MUSEUM, Nemanjina 6, tel. 361-0334 • AUTOMOBILE MUSEUM, Majke Jevrosime 30, tel. 3241-566 • SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY MUSEUM, Djure Jaksica 9, tel. 187-360, 3281-479 • ELECTRICAL INDUSTRY MUSEUM, Skenderbegova 51, tel. 630-285 • POSTAL MUSEUM, Majke Jevrosime 13, tel. 3210-325 • ARCHITECTURE MUSEUM, Djure Jaksica 9, tel. 187-360, 3281-479

Chemists, "Prima 1", "Sv. Sava"

• MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, Njegoseva 51, tel. 344-2149, 344-2568 • MUSEUM OF SERBIAN MEDICINE, Dzordza Vasingtona 19, tel. 3245-149

9812 95 988 96 3618-444 2693-282, 2697-808 9823 629-400 324-05-33 361-10-88, 361-09-99

Chemists, "Sv. Sava", Nemanjina 2

643-170

Chemists, "Zemun", Glavna 34

618-582

Alfa taxi

244-11-13

Alo taxi

3564-555, 063/252-002

Beogradski taxi Beotaxi

9801, 064-12-88-000 970

Ekonomik taxi

397-33-27

EURO TAXI (Lux taxi)

334-47-47

Gold taxi

329-18-18

Lux taxi

328-44-44

Maxis taxi NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUMS:

311-2123

581-111, 9804

Naxi taxi

215-76-68

NBA taxi

318-57-77

Pink taxi

9803, 488-99-77

Plavi taxi (Čukarički)

ART MUSEUMS

Taxi Bell

• AFRICAN ART MUSEUM, Andre Nikolica 14, tel. 651-654 • THEATRE MUSEUM, Gospdar Jevremova 19, tel. 626-630 • CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM, Usce, tel. 311-5713 • DESIGN MUSEUM, Vuka Karadzica 18, tel. 626-494 • CINEMA MUSEUM, Kosovska 11, tel. 324-8250

Zeleni taxi Žuti taxi Inbaco taxi

3-555-999 9808 323-36-66, 324-25-55 9802 3077 000

CorD | March 2006

91

Quotes...Quotes...Quotes...

Sawers Statement Amended After being quoted as saying that the Contact Group has all but decided Kosovo will be granted independence, John Sawers, Political Director of the British Foreign Office, told Belgrade's B92 that "the British view is that there are certain unique characteristics to Kosovo - its history, the conflict, the ethic cleansing, the UN resolutions, which make it a unique case. Every case has to be addressed on its merits. In international law there are principles of territorial integrity and there are principles of self-determination.

These two principles, which are often seen as being in conflict with one another, have to be applied in particular instances, and the particular histories of those territories have to be taken fully into account. That is what is happening in Kosovo."

Prosecutor Shocked by Haradinaj's Return After slamming Belgrade for failing to co-operate with The Hague, ICTY Chief Prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, turned her attention to UNMIK, criticising the UN mission for also failing to co-operate with the tribunal. She was also critical of the fact that Hague defendant and former Kosovo PM Ramush Haradinaj was back on the province’s political stage, despite being on remand pending trial. "Haradinaj is politically active again, and I am bewildered by the international support he is receiving. It seems that peace in Kosovo can only exist with Haradinaj there.

That is unacceptable. The problem is that the trial must begin as soon as possible, and we need to receive evidence because some of our witnesses have been threatened."

PM Addresses the Nation Speaking at the celebration of Serbian Statehood Day and the anniversary of the First Serbian Uprising on 15th February, Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica said: "In order to defend persistently and unanimously Serbia's state

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and national interests and succeed in defending them, it is very important that today, where Kosovo-Metohija is concerned, Serbia actually advocates and defends universal principles and values on which peace and stability of not only the region, but of the entire modern world, rest.

And that is what gives us the right to request that all democratic states respect universal principles when it comes to Kosovo as well, the same principles which all countries refer to when their own issues are concerned."

Belgrade More Lenient than Brussels Advisor to Serbian PM Koštunica, Aleksandar Simić, said in February that Serbia will not recognise the legitimacy of the upcoming Montenegrin independence referendum if less than 50 per cent, plus one, of the total number of registered voters support independence.

Simić said: "If it does not go that way, that act will be illegal and illegitimate, and Serbia will not accept it. That is the stance of the Government, colleagues of the Government and Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica." A day later, (15th February), Miroslav Lajčak, EU Envoy for the Montenegrin Referendum, said that the EU will accept a successful referendum in Montenegro only if at least 55 per cent of registered voters show their support.

Mladić: the Invisible Man Following Carla del Ponte's issuing of an end of February deadline for the arrest and transfer of ICTY fugitive General Ratko Mladić, Serbian Interior Minister Dragan Jočić said that the search for the former leader of the Republika Srpska Army is ongoing: "The Security Information Agency, police and military are working, searching, surrounding, and gathering information. To repeat that which I have been repeating, a man can hide in Serbia, and prove very hard for the government to find. Simply, we are not talking about an average person, but rather a soldier with specific logistics who has been at war all his life."

Quotes...Quotes...Quotes...

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Kosovo Independence: a Done Deal?

Speaking to German newspaper Der Spiegel ahead of the commencement of final status talks on Kosovo, UN Envoy to the province, Martti Ahtisaari, implied that independence for the province was all but certain. The UN Envoy said that "the international community has decided that the present status cannot be further maintained… At its London meeting, the Contact Group agreed that it is up to the people of Kosovo to decide what the future of Kosovo will look like. Ninety percent of the population consists of Albanians, so you can guess what they will decide".

Russia Will Back Independence Insisting to Serbian daily Večernje Novosti that Kosovo will definitely become independent either this year or next, Nicholas White, Director of the International Crisis Group for Europe, said that all members of the Contact Group, Russia included, believe that granting Kosovo conditional independence is the only solution. "At the end of last year, the taboo on Kosovo independence was broken in Paris, because everyone was talking about independence before the Russian officials, who did not have any arguments to counter the proposal. Even earlier, diplomatic sources in Moscow gave signals that Russia would accept conditional independence. On the other side, Russia has clearly made Serbia aware that they will not use their veto at the United Nations Security Council meeting," said White.

Mladić Not Arrested Commenting on speculative reports that ICTY fugitive General Ratko Mladić had been apprehended near Belgrade on 21st February, Srđan Đurić, Head of the Serbian government's Media Relations Office, said: "This is manipulation that harms as well as hinders the Serbian government's efforts to bring cooperation with the Hague tribunal to a close". Đurić added that there were no activities regarding Mladić's arrest on the agenda and that spreading such disinformation causes severe damage to Serbia. •

Dear Editor, We note that in the February issue of CorD ("Copper Fever") you state that Rio Tinto has filed a complaint to the Serbian Government regarding its selection process during the recent Coka Kuruga concession tender.

While disappointed that we were not selected, we made no such complaint. In fact, Rio Tinto is on record applauding the tender process as being open and transparent. Rio Tinto has worked hard to establish a working relationship with the Serbian Government based upon mutual trust and respect. The statements contained in your article undermine Rio Tinto's efforts in this regard and damage our reputation in the process.

Please print a retraction to this effect as soon as practicable.

Regards, Nenad Grubin, Rio Tinto Exploration.

CorD says:Due to the imprecise formulation of the sentence in question, Rio Tinto was erroneously included among those who were unhappy with the tender procedure.

The first clause of the sentence acknowledges which companies submitted the offer, while the second clause was intended to state that some of those who submitted offers had subsequently made complaints.

As such, CorD hereby retracts the aforementioned statement and apologises for any misunderstanding or damage caused.

CORRECTIONS 1.) Clarification: following the publishing of CorD's article "We'll resolve Mobtel" [CorD 24, page 26], Serbian Economy Minister Predrag Bubalo chose to clarify his position on two issues regarding the Mobtel case.

Firstly, he said that the documentation regarding Mobtel's business was managed by people from Mobtel with the full co-operation of staff from PTT (Serbian Postal, Telegram and Telephone Authority). Secondly, Bubalo said that Srđan Blagojević, former PTT general manager, is a member of the party leadership of Bogoljub Karić's PSS party and that some other former PTT employees are also members of PSS. 2.) In the January issue of CorD [CorD 23] the article "Financing Cultural Regeneration" [p.61] the Swiss Cultural Programme Serbia & Montenegro was described as a non-state foundation. The Programme is actually a state foundation, founded by The Art Council of Switzerland (Pro Helvetia) and The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), which is part of Switzerland's Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.

CorD apologises for any confusion caused.

CorD | March 2006

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TOO DEEP FOR TEARS - Part three of the trilogy:

1st Instalment

PIGS DO NOT EAT BANNANA SKINS 'Too Deep for Tears', the third part of Timothy Byford’s trilogy, covers the final twenty years of Andrew Beresford's life, but rather than being written from Andrew’s perspective, it is written by his third wife, Slavica Kralj, and starts not with the time Andrew spent teaching in an International School, but with his funeral in his home town of Elmsbridge...

Timotthy Byfford

Serialisation

"Dust to dust, ashes to the ducks."

Peter's attempt to inject some humour into the proceedings failed miserably. The only one to laugh was Peter. God, it was pathetic. As if they had never known him. Sipping their halves of bitter and their gin & tonics and talking about anything but Andrew. At least Andrew was being disposed of as he had wanted - his ashes shaken into the river Avon from the garden of his favourite Elmsbridge pub, The George. They would then travel through the countryside of his childhood towards the English - oh, so English - Channel and from there, Andrew Beresford would traverse the seven seas. No passport, no visas - as free as a sardine.

Not only would he do what he had not succeeded in doing during his life - travel round the world, he would become an integral part of that world; part of Gaia.

"I've enjoyed living so much, I want to enjoy dying.

No passing away peacefully in my sleep for me - I want to be told: 'We can't operate - the cancer's spreading. I give you six months at the most.' Six months! Six months to reflect on my life and to revel in the process of dying…"

But it was not to be. Cancer passed him by. Instead he was roasted to death in a fire in a seedy pornographic cinema club near King's Cross Station. Good for him!

A bizarre end to a delightfully bizarre human being.

Peter identified his brother; what remained of him.

There was no beard left and very little of his paunch.

They had started to worry about him when he failed to turn up at the farm after the last bus from Salchester reached Elmsbridge without him. The bed and breakfast where he had been staying in London confirmed that he had paid up and left after breakfast that morning. The following morning they contacted the police, who by mid-afternoon had confirmed that nobody of Andrew's description had been either arrested or admitted into any of the London hospitals.

Both Heathrow and Gatwick confirmed that no Andrew Beresford had passed through their departure lounges. Of course, if they had telephoned me in Belgrade, I could have told them he had been in the cinema club. Andrew and I had no secrets. He regularly went to the pornographic cinema in Belgrade and related to me in detail what went on in the back row.

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Andrew had phoned me in the afternoon and told me with a twinkle in his voice that he was on his way to King's Cross. He always went there when he was in London. He said that although the films were bad the audience was more entertaining than in Belgrade. But the last thing they wanted to do was telephone me.

They had seen how hysterical I could become the first time I visited Blackthorn Farm and Andrew fell off the ladder while he was cleaning the upstairs windows.

He always cleaned the windows when he visited his birthplace. He said it reminded him of his happy childhood, when he was paid tuppence per window for cleaning them, but I think he was subconsciously trying to wash away painful memories.

Andrew's fate was not discovered until the following morning, when Peter read a report in the Daily Telegraph about the fire in the King's Cross cinema club. Club! Anyone could get in simply by signing the 'visitors' book' and giving a fictitious name and address. The owner of the 'club', who also sold the tickets and played the poor-quality videos, had naturally been arrested. It was discovered that the fire exit had been kept locked, as men had been opening it to let friends in without paying. Hence, when a man who had been thrown out for drinking alcohol on the premises returned and threw a hastily manufactured Molotov cocktail on the stairs, and it was discovered that the solitary fire extinguisher was jammed, the fifteen connoisseurs of 'erotica' trapped inside the tiny cinema were left with no option but to enjoy the last few frames of bouncing breasts and pumping pricks before the video screen melted and they themselves became 'hot stuff'.

The club owner was able to describe some of his 'middle-aged to elderly' patrons - the more regular ones - and one of them, who had been to the cinema three days in succession, was in his fifties, bald, with a white beard and a paunch. He had signed himself in as Julian King of 33 Orchard Road, Manchester. Julian King! Andrew called me Julia as neither of us liked the name Slavica and we both liked Julia Roberts. And my

maiden name Kralj is the Serbian for King. At least Andrew had been more original than the six John Smiths who had fried with him. Peter telephoned the King's Cross police and they suggested he visited the police mortuary. Yes, it could be Andrew, the height was right, and so was the shape of the skull. It was the teeth that tied up the loose ends. The gold filling from the days when the state paid for dental treatment, and the gold substitute crown from more recent days when the state permitted people to contribute to the cost of dental treatment. I refused to allow them to remove the gold filling before Andrew was re-cremated. If he had been robbed of the beard he had worn for over forty years, the beard that symbolised strength and virility, let him at least leave this earth with the symbol of wisdom and durability still in his jaws.

"Can I get you another beer, Slavika?"

Suddenly I realised I was the only one left gazing at the crystal-clear, swift-flowing, trout-infested waters of the Elmsbridge Avon, now blessed with Andrew's gold-enriched ashes. I, the parasite of the family, who had seduced Andrew and destroyed his blissfully happy, ideal, twenty-nine year marriage to Masha. They were very polite towards me, I give them that, but the only member of the family who truly loved me was Andrew's father, Thomas. He was ninety-one, white-haired and stooping and he called me Slavika because, although the others called me Slavitsa, he knew it was written Slavica and to him 'c' before 'a' in English was always pronounced 'k'. Perhaps Thomas was even in love with me.

He liked it when I snuggled up next to him and rested my cheek on his shoulder and when I kissed him goodnight and said 'Sleep well, dear Grandpa'. He behaved as if no woman had ever done such things to him before. From what Andrew

I refused to allow them to remove the gold filling before Andrew was re-cremated. If he had been robbed of the beard he had worn for over forty years, let him at least leave this earth with the symbol of wisdom and durability still in his jaws. had told me about his parents, perhaps no woman ever had.

Andrew's mother Elizabeth had died eight years earlier and since that day Thomas had kept a fresh rose in a small crystal vase next to a picture of her when she was young. Andrew said he did it to make up for the lack of attention he had paid her during the fifty-three years of their marriage, but I could not believe that this pearl of an old man, this poet, this child of nature, was incapable of true, spiritual love. Anyway, now I had lost Andrew I took comfort in the fact that Thomas loved me; just a little.

"No, thank you, Grandpa. No more …"

No more. And by a sleep to say we end the heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks … I had contemplated suicide when Masha phoned me to tell me that Andrew had died. Just think - they told Masha first. She lived a few hundred metres from me in Belgrade, but had steadfastly refused to meet me - and now she had to tell me that Andrew had been burnt to death. Perhaps she enjoyed telling me. Perhaps that's why I decided to live. Out of Serbian 'inat'. I would show them. Slavica Kralj - sorry, Julia King - would show them that she was not just a common post office clerk who had stolen Masha's husband by opening her eight-year younger and immeasurably fresher - and longer - legs to him and swallowing him whole.

Julia King was writing a novel. She had not yet thought of a title, but it was about a history teacher called Paul.

And no, Paul was not Andrew. I may not have married until I was forty-seven, but I know enough about men to get inside the skin of one. I admit I cannot know precisely what it feels like to have an erection, any more than an ornithologist can know precisely how a nightingale feels while it is pouring forth its soul abroad in such an ecstasy, but I've studied the behaviour of enough males of the species to realise that they are far simpler and more predictable beings than we are. And they are never simpler or more predictable than when they have an erection.

Not that I've had all that much experience of erections. My parents brought me up to look upon men as lascivious opportunists whose self-respect depended on the number of conquests they had made. They were quite justified in taking this attitude as my father was himself such a mortal and my mother lived with one. From the age of sixteen I had experienced the pressure of many an erect penis against my thigh when kissing secret boyfriends goodnight, but it was not until I was twenty-one that I actually saw one, and I was nearly twentythree when I said farewell to my by then much despised virginity. Since that memorable event (memorable only because it took place in a car park, bending backwards over the bonnet of a Lada) I have had four relationships lasting more than a year. To these I can add a few short flings and a handful of one-night-stands. But the list of men I have known and loved and not slept with is infinitely longer and far more meaningful to me. And Grandpa was now one of these. No danger of an erect penis against my thigh when I kissed him goodnight.

"The first mention of a bridge on this spot was in 1268, Slavika, but this bridge was probably built in the fourteenth century. It's made of local sandstone…"

"It's so beautiful, so graceful, so elegant…"

Here, where the Hampshire Avon is joined by three meandering brooks from the downland, stands a great clean-cut stone bridge with seven sweeping arches. On the right bank of the river, starting from the bridge itself, lies the centre of the town, with its supermarket, pubs, butcher's shop, baker's shop, candlestick maker's shop and diverse other shops.

Square brick houses with tidy, closely-mown gardens line the main road that leads to Salchester. On the other side of the bridge, along the left bank, stretches the recreation ground with its swings and slides, and the sports field with a wooden pavilion that overlooks the road to Bourneford. Thus the bridge on the Avon unites the two parts of the SalchesterBourneford road…

With apologies to Ivo Andrić, (but why should Ivo Andrić have a monopoly on bridges?) this bridge had been standing for nearly two hundred years when the Turks built the bridge on the Drina in 1571. My novel starts by a river. By the river Sava, at its mouth, where it joins the Danube at Belgrade, though I am careful not to name it. The important thing is that it is a river - the passage of life. My novel could just as well start by the river Avon at Elmsbridge. Yes, I would write an English story and dedicate it to the memory of Andrew Beresford.

To be continued - as the farewell to Andrew at the George develops, Slavica learns a number of things about her husband's life during the previous twenty years that she knows very little about and decides to investigate them. Thus, the third part of the trilogy works its way backwards from Andrew's death to Andrew at 40... •

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Notes From The Big Plum Pat Anđelković is a native of the U.S. and long-term resident of Belgrade.

She is currently writing an off-beat, cultural guide to the Serbs entitled "Notes from the Big Plum". here's a joke that goes like this: Two professors, one Muscovite, one Parisian, were to exchange posts for a year. By some twist of fate, both accidentally got off their planes in Belgrade and took a taxi to town. They both gazed at the city.

Pat Anđelković "Ah, how beautiful," exclaimed the Independent Authoress Russian. "This must be Paris!"

"Oh, how horrible," cried the Parisian. "This must be Moscow!"

And so it goes. I first heard that joke in 1977 when I arrived here after several years in Paris. I am still surprised that after twenty-nine years working and raising a family in this country, even though Belgrade is now a different place, I still feel a bit like the Parisian when I return from the West, and like the Russian when I've come back from a trip further East. Yugoslavia was, and Serbia still is indeed "something in between."

Before I came to live here, I did absolutely nothing to prepare myself for a major life change. I hardly knew who Tito was. Nobody, except for my future husband, prepped me on what to expect in my new country. Like most Serbs I've come to know, innocently and conveniently, and without truly any malice intended, he left out a few "little details" he'd thought were not important. They were! In writing this column, I hope to impart some of my living and learning experiences to you so you'll get the most out of your stay, however long it may be.

In recent years, the Serbs have got more than their fair share of bad press. I hope my writings will deflate the image of the xenophobic, nationalistic, surly, uncouth, inhospitable Serb, and contribute in some small way to the demise of Serb-bashing.

Remember that the wise traveller or long-term resident of any country should realise that most conflicts come from expecting the "foreign" country to be just like home. It isn't and won't be, otherwise it wouldn't be foreign! Don't expect what you're used to. You'll be setting yourself up for disappointment. We often go to the expense of immunizing our bodies against various diseases before a trip, but few of us take the time (which costs nothing) to prepare our

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minds for adjusting to a new culture. Like aspirin works for headaches, frustration and anger can be relieved by adequate preparation.

Remember also that you can make your stay, long or short, a two-way learning experience. Automatically in learning about a new country and people, you will find yourself already making comparisons and contrasts (notice I didn't say "passing judgment"), and if you're open and honest, you'll come away having learned more about yourself.

That's probably the most important part, for although you may not spend years and years with the Serbs (unless you're like me and marry one), you're going to live with yourself for the rest of your life. Might as well get acquainted.

Remember when your mother told you to count to ten before getting angry? It works. While counting, remind yourself:"I will not pass judgments.

In recent years, the Serbs have got more than their share of bad press. I hope my writings will deflate the image of the xenophobic, nationalistic, surly, uncouth, inhospitable Serb "I'll try not to take anything personally, even though I think it may be!

"If it is personal, did I do something to provoke the situation?

"I will make an attempt to understand the person I'm dealing with.

"There is a bright side to every encounter.

"I will discover things about myself.

"Every new experience is a step toward adapting.

And, of course, the Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

I've entitled my column "Notes from the Big Plum," since those lovely little bluish-purple fruits are the basis for not only jam and other sweet desserts, but for šlivovica, which in turn is used across the board as a panacea for celebrations, melancholy, the flu, and well, keep reading this column!• NOTE: Pat Anđelković's 'Notes From the Big Plum' are protected by copyright law

Feature

Exploring Socialist Paradise David Murphy, Visiting Professor at the Medical Faculty of Belgrade University

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infamous gypsy club. The place was packed, so whilst we waited for a table we were ushered into the "VIP room" and seated next to a sink full of dishes and a washing machine. The beer and rakija flowed, and our superannuated waiter regaled us with tales of his friendship with former UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali. As night became morning, we drifted into the main bar and joined in the exuberant revelry punters and musicians mingling together in a raucous, ribald, good-natured shindig.

By sunrise I was smitten. I have since travelled to Belgrade more times than I can remember. I have taken great pleasure in discovering a gloomy, brooding city of Tom Waits fans that, at the same time, exudes spirit and life, beauty and freedom, and can eat, drink and be merry like no other. I have made many friends, and have been embraced by the warmth of a traditional but unfussy family. My work here, with researchers at the Medical Faculty of Belgrade University, has flourished.

That world-class scholarship has survived, despite war and adversity, is a tribute to the tenacity, resilience and dedication of Belgrade's scientists. It is my privi-

My Life in Belgrade

he JAT flight from London was almost empty, and the entire aircraft was a smoking section.

After a few beers, which flowed freely in those days, the passengers - predominantly males of the Serbian Diaspora - became affable to the point of impudence when it came to extremely personal questions regarding my personal and professional motives.

The taxi driver was similarly friendly and inquisitive, but that still did not stop him from demanding €40 for the transfer from Surčin. We compromised at €30. To be fair to Belgrade's taxi drivers, I would like to point out that, in my subsequent experience, and with the exception of some that prey on their victims at the airport or outside the major hotels, I have found them to be amongst the most honest in Europe.

But I digress. Arriving at my hotel room, I peered out of the fifth floor window, and, through the dank mist that enveloped the city, I could observe a Socialist Paradise (translation - New Belgrade), and beyond that, the Collateral Damage (translation - wanton destruction) inflicted by Tony's latest Humanitarian Intervention (translation - imperialist adventure). What the hell was I doing in this cold, grey dismal place?

She was beautiful, poised, elegant, very tall, and she smoked. I was lured by the dangerously feminine way that she held her cigarette, and by the wicked wit, the sharp intelligence, the indomitable strength and the uniquely dark sense of humour. I was hopelessly addicted, and have remained so to this day, even though we have both recently given up smoking.

We dined at Kafana Kod Dače. I drank šljivovica from a little glass flask, and was introduced to Mujo, Haso and Fata. After a few more flasks of rakija, just as I was starting to believe that I might actually understand the Belgrade sense of humour, the starters arrived. But čvarci is not at all funny. I have never found boiled, compressed pig fat remotely funny. But then, I have failed to be amused by tripe in the past, but the škembići was amazing. And who would have thought that sarma - minced meat with rice wrapped in salted cabbage leaves - would be so delicious?

We drove to Ada Ciganlija and parked in a muddy clearing. We groped past derelict warehouses then stumbled down steep, worn steps towards the river. On either side were gaudily illuminated floating pleasure palaces pumping out techno beats, but we crossed a rickety pontoon bridge to a small, ramshackle boat with no electricity (Toma had neglected to pay the bill).

This was, of course, Crni Panteri (Black Panthers), the

I have taken great pleasure in discovering a gloomy, brooding city of Tom Waits fans that, at the same time, exudes spirit and life, beauty and freedom, and can eat, drink and be merry like no other

lege to be able to collaborate with them. That younger Serbian scientists have maintained their enthusiasm, energy and productivity over the past ten years is a tribute to their tenacity.

I have also discovered that Belgrade is blessed by many sophisticated restaurants serving superb cosmopolitan cuisine, and countless uber-cool bars and clubs that rival any city on the planet. But it is that first night of Balkan exuberance and romance that for me epitomises the unique soul of this city.

As a freeborn Englishman, who has despaired as the traditional liberties of his country have been insidiously eroded, I have my doubts regarding the wisdom of the EU membership so desperately craved by Belgrade's elite. But I guess that it is inevitable, and will bring tangible, and much needed, material benefit.

But please, do just one little thing for me; the Belgrade spirit has survived and thrived despite tyranny and bombs; don't now allow the bureaucrats of the Brussels Empire to regulate your soul to death. •

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