Yugoslavia Mints New Govt.
In a further move to consolidate democracy, Yugoslavia's federal parliament convened Saturday to approve and inaugurate the first de facto noncommunist government in more than half a century.
The new cabinet, likely to be approved by both chambers of parliament, would replace a coalition primarily made up of Socialists — the renamed communists of former President Slobodan Milosevic — and the neo-communist party of his wife. Before that government and others dominated by the Socialists, the Yugoslav communist party founded by Josip Broz Tito held sway for nearly four decades.
Before the vote, prime minister-designate Zoran Zizic outlined priorities for the new government — restoring diplomatic relations with Western countries severed because of the 1999 NATO bombing of the country, "economic and social reforms ... accelerated privatization and further adjusting of the country's economic and legal system with European Union regulations."
Zizic pledged the new government would "secure international economic assistance for Yugoslavia's economic recovery," and "respect its international obligations" — like the Dayton peace agreement Milosevic signed in 1996 to end the Bosnian war.
Zizic expressed support for the U.N. Security Council resolution that ended fighting in Serbia's Kosovo province, but said the United Nations and NATO, currently in charge of Kosovo, are not respecting the U.N. document under which they deployed in the province. He did not elaborate, but the previous government often asserted that the international organizations running Kosovo made decisions counter to its status as part of Serbia.
Milosevic and four of his associates have been indicted by the U.N. war crimes tribunal in connection with the Kosovo conflict. Echoing earlier statements by new President Vojislav Kostunica, Zizic said cooperation with the tribunal "will not be a priority for the federal government."
Under Milosevic, Yugoslavia suffered under punitive international sanctions. Yugoslavia began to move toward democracy and reintegration into the rest of the world with Milosevic's defeat in Sept. 24 elections and a popular uprising that forced him out of office.
Since then, Kostunica's 18-party Democratic Opposition of Serbia has struggled to consolidate its authority. The parliament session Saturday will largely complete the handover of power on the federal level, although Milosevic's Socialists continue to hold some authority in Serbia, the main Yugoslav republic that is home to more than 90 percent of the population.
Kostunica's alliance gets key posts in the new federal Cabinet, such as the foreign, police, justice, traffic, health, agriculture, telecommunications, sports and ethnic minorities ministries. Zizic comes from the federation's smaller republic, Montenegro, and his Montenegro Socialist People's Party will control the defense ministry.
Zizic said one of the government's priorites will be to "harmonize relations between Serbia and Montenegro ... through a process of constitutional reforms."
A pro-independence group of parties that runs Montenegro's government boycotted the federal elections and turned down offers to participate in the central government. It also expressed outrage when Zizic's party, its rival, was offered a role in the federal government.
Also Saturday, Kostunica sought to ease tensions over replacements of police and army commanders who served under Milosevic, saying there would be no "hasty" changes in the forces.
"Hasty replacements of people from top positions in police and the military are undoubtedly against state interests because that would lead to a destabilization," Kostunica said in a statement.
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