TRANSNATIONAL FAX N.27
Information bulletin on the campaigns of the Transnational Radical Party
Issue #27 6 November, 1998
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* Editor's Office: Mihai Romanciuc - Marco Perduca, Via di Torre Argentina 76, 00186 Rome (IT)
Tel : +39-6-689.791
Fax : +39-6-6880.5396
Mailto: radical.party@agora.it
URL : http://www.radicalparty.org
Telnet: agora.stm.it
* Printing and Distribution: Alberto Novi (B)
* Published in English, Italian, French, Russian, and Spanish.
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In this issue:
- Milosevic Indictment Campaign
- TRP Secretary visits Albania
- EP Sakharov Prize
- ICC ratification campaign launch.
KOSOVO: FOR THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY MILOSEVIC REMAINS THE INTERLOCUTOR
The result of the diplomatic activities of Ambassador Holbrooke of the last weeks has been the confirmation of the centrality of Milosevic in the Balkan scenario. The international ado has reinforced his role as interlocutor in the so-called 'peace process' with respect to a war that he himself started and carried out. All this at the cost of the respect of fundamental rights of Serbs and Kosovars sacrificed on the altar of a National-Communist regime that Western Governments have deliberately decided to save time and again.
To those who think that an indictment of Milosevic is a big strategic and tactic mistake, and think that we are exaggerating with our requests, or that we are too pessimistic or too 'realistic', we want to tell that after three years of the Dayton Accords - orchestrated by Holbrooke with Milosevic - less than 20% of Bosnian refugees have returned home, and that both Karadzic and Mladic are still at large.
We will continue to ask and work, day by day, for the freedom of all political prisoners, for the return of all refugees, for the arrest of all war criminals, starting from the supreme chief of the Belgrade regime: Slobodan Milosevic.
As of the first week of November, over 51,000 citizens and some 787, between parliamentarians, members of Government, University Professors, personalities have signed our appeal, among whom: Michel ROCARD, Leo TINDEMANS, Otto von HABSBURG, Achille OCCHETTO, David MARTIN, Wilfried MARTENS, Antoinette SPAAK, Adem DEMACI, AndrT GLUCKSMAN, Bianca JAGGER, Ismail KADARE, Isabelle ADJANI, Antonino ZICHICHI, Marie-Claire MENDES-FRANCE, John POLANYI.
The campaign is doing very well in the Balkans, 5,000 signatures have been collected by Arthur Nura of the Tirana TRP office in Albania, and after the political elections we are expecting good results also from the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Our goal now is to reach several hundreds thousands signatures on our appeal that requests the action of the Tribunal for the crimes committed in the former Yugoslavia on the Milosevic case. We need to put pressure on international organizations, to make then take action and put an end to impunity in the Balkans.
Once again the Yugoslav regime has denied access to the investigating team of the tribunal. We must help the Tribunal in its activities and the best way to do it is to push for the incrimination of Milosevic.
The appeal can be signed and/or downloaded at www.radicalparty.org, we ask you to sign it and to circulate it wherever you think it can be received positively. We must stop Milosevic and we must do it now!
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TRP SECRETARY OLIVIER DUPUIS VISIT TO ALBANIA.
In his official visit to Tirana, Olivier Dupuis met with Prime Minister Pandeli Majko, Sali Berisha president of the Democratic Party, Arta Dade, former Minister of Culture, Sabri Godo, honorary President of the Republican Party and Fatmir Mediu, acting president of the Republican Party. Prime Minister Majko first joined the Transnational Radical Party 5 years ago at the age of 26. Mr. Maiko has expressed his desire to meet with Radical Leader Marco Pannella once in Italy on his first official trip. Mr. Dupuis discussed extensively the Kosovo situation with former President Berisha. Mr. Dupuis also met with the President of the Republican Party on the possibility of enlarging the group of endorsers of the international petition to the whole Albanian Parliament.
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EP SAKHAROV PRIZE: KOSOVAR UKSHIN HOTI WAS ONE OF THE THREE NOMINATED BY THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
On 13 October 1998, Kosovar University Professor Ukshin HOTI - a political prisoner since 1994 - was selected together with Akin BIRDAL and Ibrahim RUGOVA by the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament as a possible candidate for the 1998 Sakharov Prize. Despite this first radical victory, at the final selection, the EP Conference of Presidents decided to award The Sakharov Prize to Mr. Rugova. The Prize is awarded every year to a personality who has distinguished him or herself for his or her struggle in favor of freedom of speech and opinion.
Mr. Hoti nomination was presented by the whole European Radical Alliance Group and other MEPs.
On the occasion of the nomination, Olivier Dupuis, MEP and Secretary of the Radical Party declared that it was particularly meaningful that in such a difficult moment for Kosova, the EP Foreign Affairs Committee decided to nominate a kosovar like Ukshin Hoti. Mr. Dupuis also added that Mr. Hoti has always believed that the Kosova situation needed to be faced by a strong political confrontation - a choice he paid with a very high personal price - and not with the hollow slogans or escapes from reality, the line unfortunate chosen by the kosovar leadership of the last decade.
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INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT: 58 COUNTRIES HAVE SIGNED THE ROME TREATY.
Rome - October 17, 1998. At a Ceremony held at Palazzetto Trevi, 19 countries signed the Rome Treaty for the establishment of the International Criminal Court. With these 19 countries (Angola, Austria, Cote d'Ivoir, Costa Rica, Djibouti, Ecuador, Eritrea, Finland, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Gabon, Jordan, Honduras, Ireland, New Zealand, Paraguay, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden, Uganda) the number of signatories has now reached 58.
On November 18 at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, there will be the launch of the international campaign for the ratification of the Rome Treaty by the year 2000. Members of the European Parliament, jurists, human rights activists and NGO representative will participate in the event.
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Email us your support and your comments to radical.party@agora.stm.it. For updates on the campaigns and further information on the Transnational Radical Party, browse the net www.radicalparty.org.