LOCAL PRESS

Stefanovic, Guterres: Single response to refugee crisis (Tanjug)

Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres have agreed that a single, coordinated, pan-European response to the refugee crisis is necessary. Stefanovic thanked for the financial and technical assistance to date and participation of the UNHCR in Serbia in enhancing the national asylum system, adding that drafting of a new law on asylum is under way, the Interior Ministry released in a statement.

Guterres commended the Serbian government and the Interior Ministry for improving the process of admission and registration of refugees, the statement adds.

Dacic to attend UNSC session on Kosovo, UNMIK on Thursday (Tanjug)

A session of the UN Security Council will be held in New York on Thursday to discuss a report by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on the operation of UNMIK at which Serbia will be represented by First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic.

The UN Security Council will consider a report covering the period from July 16 to October 15, 2015, reads a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. On this occasion, Dacic will present Serbia’s assessment with a view to the current situation in Kosovo and Metohija and the UNMIK operation.

Selakovic: We have a plan if others close borders (RTS)

Serbian Justice Minister Nikola Selakovic has told Radio and Television of Serbia (RTS) after the session of the Coordination Bureau for Security Services that the Bureau has completely prepared operative plans in case Germany, Austria and Slovenia close their state borders. He said that the state knew very well what to do and what it needed to do. “We will not surround the state with barbed wire and various fences and walls,” said Selakovic. He says that at the session they analyzed the state of security and stability in Serbia, as well as possible reactions and all protection measures in case of potential terrorist acts. He pointed out that the Bureau passed a conclusion for authorized security services, especially intelligence services, to step up drastically their activities and to ensure, in cooperation with judicial bodies, all measures necessary for establishing full operative control towards protecting the people and property in Serbia. The second conclusion is to define all target groups that may be perpetrators or helpers of offences with consequences for many people in Serbia. Selakovic says the third conclusion is the necessity to eradicate any form of religious fanaticism of militant character. The Minister noted that it was decided to establish close cooperation with all the intelligence and counter-intelligence services of friendly countries. He points out that the Bureau urges citizens to have high tolerance and understanding towards the competent authorities in establishing security measures in the coming days considering the events and officials that will be arriving in Serbia.

Djuric announces investments and fairer distribution of money for Kosovo Serbs (RTS)

The Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric visited today Orahovac, Velika Hoca and the monastery in the village of Zociste. The remaining Serbs in Orahovac, several hundred of them, said they were fighting for elementary living conditions and existence. Djuric told them that there will be a fairer distribution of funds from the Serbian budget so abuses would be removed and money would go to those who really need it. He also announced investments in the following year.  “As of 1 January we will introduce a plan for stimulating investments of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija. I can tell you, without going into details, that businessmen from other parts of the county will be stimulated with certain funds to come here and do business,” said Djuric. He explained that this was better than giving the money to some local people who wish to do business since businessmen from other parts of the country have greater access to the market and more experience and possibilities to initiate something positive.

Ambassador Li: Serbia pursuing wise foreign policy (Beta)

Chinese Ambassador to Serbia Li Manchang has said he respects and supports the efforts of Serbia to become an EU member. “Serbia is located in Europe. As the ambassador of China I respect and support the choice of your government and people that the future of Serbia is in the EU. When Serbia becomes an EU member, China will have the best friend in the union,” Li has been quoted as telling Beta in an interview. According to him, by fostering friendly relations with China and Russia, the Serbian government is pursuing a very smart and wise foreign policy. “Every policy has its good and bad sides, there is none that is perfect, but I greatly respect the policy that is now conducted by your government,” said the Chinese Ambassador. Turning to the upcoming visit to China by Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, Li said the main topics of the meetings will be strengthening political but also economic cooperation, and announced the signing of a number of documents. “The state of relations between our two countries is currently at the highest level, but I am certain it will be even better and will be marked by a new epoch after the visit of the prime minister,” Li said.

What is known about the extremist Islamic website “Vijesti Umeta”? (Novosti)

“Vijesti umeta”, a former web portal and now a blog that sent threats to B&H citizens, is registered at the wordpress.com service. Novosti unofficially learns that one of the masterminds of the portal was Nedzad Balkan, along with a group of people from B&H and the Sandzak region. The website is allegedly edited in Switzerland, Austria and Sweden. Nezdad Balkan, who is still not confirmed as being behind the “Vijesti umeta” blog, is originally from Tutin, Serbia, and he belongs to the takfiri ideology that is not in accordance with the official stands of the Islamic community in the region. He preached in Vienna, and the Austrian authorities described him as having radical stands. “Vijesti umeta”, which is a platform for the propaganda of the Islamic state, glorified the terrorist attacks in Paris with the message that blood will flow soon in the streets of entire Europe.

REGIONAL PRESS

Mektic in France on discussion on the fight against terrorism (Novo vrijeme)

On the second day of the official visit to the Republic of France, B&H Minister of Security Dragan Mektic will attend a series of meetings with top police and judicial officials to discuss cooperation and joint removal of security threats and breaking the organized criminal groups. Due to the recent tragic attacks in Paris, the focus of the meetings is the joint fight against terrorism and extremism. Mektic attended the opening of Europe’s largest fair of equipment and the latest achievements in the field of internal security Milipol in Paris, which is attended by the directors of numerous police agencies and ministries from the world. Mektic was given a special honor to open this prestigious fair with the director of Milipol and representative of the Minister of Internal Affairs of France. Mektic sent a message that France can count on the full support and any help needed in shedding the light on the recent terrorist attack.

Conference in Washington: No prosperity with 150 ministers (Fena/Oslobodjenje)

The Center for Transatlantic Relations on Monday and Tuesday organized a large conference in Washington dedicated to prospects for reforms in B&H, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Dayton Agreement. “We support the project of socioeconomic reforms and we will help B&H to pass through this process. Implementation of these reforms will be key. For some of these reforms there will certainly develop strong debates in B&H, and you will need to choose the best solution for citizens. With this conference we want to affirmatively support the reform processes, in one common voice: both the U.S. and the EU and other international financial institutions, and prime ministers in B&H, businessmen and representatives of civil society. This is an opportunity for the first time for all key players to speak together in this process. And there will need to be more in the coming years,” Daniel Hamilton, executive director of the Center for Transatlantic Relations at the Johns Hopkins University SAIS in Washington, told Fena. According to him, Dayton is the basis, but what is urgently needed is an upgrade of our country, namely political and institutional reform. “You think that a system in which you have 150 ministers and 13 governments and parliaments is financially sustainable? I do not know how you think you will ensure prosperity for citizens and a better living standard without constitutional reform,” said Hamilton. Among the participants in the conference were: Hoyt Yee, deputy assistant secretary of state, who spoke about the poor administration of our country with Oslobodjenje; Ambassador Maureen Cormack; Ellen Goldstein, director of the World Bank for the Western Balkans; Ian Brown, EBRD director; Nadeem Ilahi, IMF chief of mission for B&H; Gary O’Callaghan, senior advisor to the EU representative in B&H; Valentin Inzko, High Representative in B&H; Vance Sherchuk, KKR Global Institute executive director; Dave Howell, Telemach board member; leading experts at CTR SAIS Dan Hamilton, Daniel Serwer, Sasha Toperich, Ed Joseph and Samy Boukaila; Robert Benjamin, NDI director; and Haki Abazi, Rockefeller Brothers Fund director.

Domestic participants were: Igor Crnadak, foreign minister; Zeljka Cvijanovic and Fadil Novalic, prime ministers of Republika Srpska (RS) and the Federation of B&H; Jelka Milicevic, deputy PM and finance minister in the Federation government; Zoran Tegeltija, finance minister of RS; Goran Mirascic, advisor to the Federation of B&H prime minister; Haris Abaspahic, advisor to the executive director of the World Bank; Mak Kamenica, executive director of the America-Bosnia Foundation; Mirza Ustamujic, chairman of the board of ABF; and Jasmin Besic, executive director of KULT B&H.

Bieber: Serbia is an important country in the region (Srna/Tanjug)

Cooperation in the region is very important, but it is not a substitute for the EU integration process, Florian Bieber, professor of Southeast European Studies at the University of Graz, stated on Wednesday. Good neighboring relations are a precondition for the EU accession, Bieber said at a conference entitled “Regional Cooperation in South East Europe: Working together towards EU Accession” in Sarajevo, adding that everyone knows that Serbia is an important country in the region as it is involved in many vital bilateral issues. If Serbia were not interested in regional cooperation, that would be a stumbling block for all, Bieber said, adding that the refugee crisis and terrorist threats to the EU have showed that Europe cannot tackle such issues independently without the involvement of the Western Balkans.

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

Kosovo PM slams Serbia for trying to block UNESCO bid (Anadolu Agency, 17 November 2015)

Kosovo’s Prime Minister Isa Mustafa has said Serbia’s campaign to prevent his country’s membership of UNESCO will negatively affect dialogue between the two states. Speaking to Anadolu Agency in an interview on Friday, Mustafa evaluated the dialogue process between Pristina and Belgrade, and the latest developments in the Western Balkans. “Serbia abuses and exploits the dialogue. They tried to convince the other countries to vote against our membership of UNESCO. The question of UNESCO is not a question of dialogue, because we do not have to get permission from Serbia if we want to join in UNESCO,” he said. Mustafa also stressed that like any other member country Serbia has only one vote in in UNESCO. “Unfortunately [they] succeeded in mobilizing a number of countries with the full support of Russia and some other, mostly non-democratic, countries, so that Kosovo does not receive a two-thirds majority vote.” On November 9 Kosovo lost the membership bid when it failed to gain a two-thirds majority. Out of the 142 countries that voted, 92 were in favor, 50 against, while 29 abstained. The country needed at least 95 votes to become a member. Kosovo has been recognized by 111 countries since it declared independence from Serbia in 2008 but its bid to become a full United Nations member has been blocked by Russia, Serbia’s close ally. According to Mustafa, Kosovo did a good job in winning 92 votes from countries” including the U.S., Germany, the U.K. and France as well as Turkey.

Dacic: Crises unveil importance of OSCE (IRNA, 18 November 2015)

Tehran – Chairman of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic on Tuesday strongly condemned terrorist attacks on Paris, adding that facing ‘such terror and extreme violence’ would only add to the determination to preserve the basic principles of democracy and human rights the OSCE rested on. According to the Bulgarian news agency (BETA), Dacic made the remarks while addressing the opening of the European Parliament (EP) conference Europe in Crisis: A Call for a New Dialogue 1975-2015: 40 Years of the Helsinki Final Act. He said that the crises emerging last year, namely, the crisis in Ukraine, the current migrant crisis and the terrorist attacks in Paris, unveiled the active, indispensable role of the OSCE. ‘At the beginning of the year, we witnessed a terrorist attack against a French satirical weekly, Charlie Hebdo. Just a few days ago, we witnessed unseen terror in the streets of Paris. The shock we are feeling when faced with such terror and extreme violence will strengthen our determination not to let the fundamental principles of democracy and human rights, which the OSCE and our societies rest upon, be threatened,’ Dacic said. The OSCE chair said that Serbia’s chairmanship-in-office was dominated by a crisis in and around Ukraine, adding that the most important political result was the harmonization of the Package of Measures in Minsk, on Feb.12, within the Normandy group, which materialized through the trilateral Contract Group and translated into a political process on the ground. ‘It is very important to note that a ceasefire was established along the contact line on Sept. 1, and that it’s been maintained so far. Another important agreement was concluded to withdraw tanks and other weapons, and verify the withdrawal,’ Dacic explained.

Bosnia Arrests 3 for War Crimes, Including a Police Official (AP, 17 November 2015)

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina — Bosnian authorities have arrested a police commissioner, a lawyer and a third Muslim Bosnian suspected of having committed crimes against Bosnian Serb civilians during the 1992-95 war. Sarajevo lawyer Ibro Merkez and Gorazde police commissioner Esef Huric were arrested Tuesday morning suspected of having illegally imprisoned more than 100 Serbs from the eastern town of Gorazde at the local police station at the start of the war. The civilians were held for several months in inhuman conditions, so bad that two of them died, a statement from the state prosecutor said. As a consequence of the treatment, Serbs permanently left Gorazde. In a separate case, police arrested Ahmet Sejdic under suspicion of illegal imprisonment, expulsion, torture and inhumane treatment of dozens of Serb civilians and prisoners of war.

Deadline Looms in Macedonia for Media Deal (BIRN, by Sinisa Jakov Marusic, 18 November 2015)

Macedonian parties have until a Friday deadline to agree on a package of media reforms to ensure balanced reporting during the early elections in April 2016. A deadline for the Macedonian government and the opposition parties to iron out their differences on a package of media reforms expires on Friday. “We are discussing how to ensure the impartiality of the [state broadcaster] MRTV, how to get politics out of the Agency for Audio and Audio-Visual Services [the regulatory body] and how to cut government’s financial influence and pressure on private media outlets,” a source from the opposition Social Democrats told BIRN.  A source from the main ruling VMRO DPMNE party said that they were ready for compromise. “There are certainly going to be some personnel changes in the regulatory bodies… We remain constructive because our foremost goal is to preserve freedom of the press,” the source told BIRN.  The EU mediator in the talks, former Belgian MP Peter Vanhoutte, this week said that the talks on the media would focus on eight priorities. He mentioned eliminating violence against reporters, free access to information, avoiding libel laws suits against journalists, control over political and government advertisements in media, self-regulation of journalists through a council of ethics as well as freeing the broadcasting council and the national broadcaster, MRTV, from the government’s grip. The EU-mediated talks in Skopje involve media experts and representatives of the leading media organizations in Macedonia. Dejan Georgievski, from the Centre for Media Development, CRM, an NGO, says the time remaining until the April elections is too short to see long-term effective changes. He advises focusing on short-term solutions that would at least ensure a minimum degree of impartiality by the media during the elections. “The problems in the media sphere are so many and so serious that they will need to be solved after the elections with the inclusion of the entire media community and the public,” he said. “The talks now should focus on how to ensure fair and impartial coverage of the elections,” Georgievski added. Following this year’s crisis over opposition allegations of mass illegal surveillance, Brussels issued a list of urgent reform priorities for Macedonia in June, including media reform.  The EU told Macedonia to “provide tangible evidence of ongoing policy-, organisational-, training- and editorial-reforms within the Public Broadcaster, aiming at addressing criticisms made regularly… about its lack of political independence, and lack of balanced reporting, as well as to provide informative, high-quality content”. It also demanded the establishment of “stringent rules on government advertising”, including full transparency, as well as a fall in the bumper of defamation cases against reporters. The talks on media reforms are among the last obligations that the opposition and the government led by Nikola Gruevski agreed upon in the EU-brokered summer crisis agreement. According to the terms of the agreement, Gruevski should resign at the end of the year, at least 100 days before the elections, to ensure he cannot interfere in the election process. The crisis in Macedonia revolves around opposition claims that covertly recorded tapes which it has been releasing since February show Gruevski was behind the illegal surveillance of some 20,000 people, including ministers. They insist that the tapes contain incriminating evidence against many high-ranking officials. Gruevski, who has held power since 2006, insists the tapes were “fabricated” by unnamed foreign intelligence services and given to the opposition to destabilise the country. Meanwhile, the tapes released earlier this year by the opposition appear to confirm that the government has a secure grip on the media. The opposition said the tapes reveal that the ruling party has selected journalists for work in the public broadcaster while controlling the private media through ties to outlet owners.