Mayors of `free cities' say food, medicine needed to topple Milosevic

SERBIAN OPPOSITION RALLIES IN BUDAPEST

By Nora Rockenbauer

"Budapest Sun", Hungary's English-language newspaper, October 7-13, 1999, front page

Serbian mayors at a weekend conference in Budapest urged the West to send them aid to avoid a humanitarian disaster this winter. The Decentralization for Democracy conference was the first chance for the Alliance of Free Cities of Yugoslavia to discuss their problems with their peers from abroad.

The representatives of 36 cities opposed to the Milosevic regime focused on the importance of coordinated efforts against the dictator and the importance that strong local government would play in the democratization of Yugoslavia.

Budapest Mayor Gabor Demszky conceived the idea for the conference last June when he met opposition leader and former mayor of Belgrade Zoran Djindjic and Mayor of Szabadka Jozsef Kasza.

The World Bank, the Council of Europe, the Open Society Institute (OSI), the Friedrich Neumman Foundation and President Arpad Goncz participated.

Though the Serbian opposition agreed that radical changes and humanitarian aid would be necessary to change the government, they differed on strategies.

Belgrade Mayor Vojislav Mihajlovics believes that the daily protests being organized there wear people out. He said that although the opposition parties would not need to institutionally unite, a common goal would have to be set. According to Mihajlovics' party, the Serbian Renewal Movement, this should be the calling for early elections. Regular elections are due at the end of next year.

"If the government rejects the request then hundreds of thousands of people would follow us to the streets," he said.

He also called for the West to provide humanitarian aid to the Serbian people through the free cities.

"This help could prevent the suffering of innocent people in the winter and would prove to everyone that there are democratic forces in Serbia," Mihajlovics added.

Other opposition parties, including Zoran Djindjics's Democratic Party, believe that fighting for early elections would last too long.

As people are in imminent danger, quicker action is necessary, said Lajos Balla, a vice president of the temporary government formed in Novi Sad early last week.

Balla's government was seeking Western recognition followed by fuel, medicine, food and help in the reconstruction of Danube bridges.

Mayor Kasza was somewhat pessimistic though. "Although help had been offered from the West and several free cities submitted a list of urgent needs a month ago there has been no answer," he said.