Key Milosevic ally defects to the opposition

Key Milosevic ally defects to the opposition: Rightwing maverick offers his support to Kostunica's coalition
The Guardian (London) - September 30, 2000

By: Gillian Sandford in Belgrade

The most important power base of Slobodan Milosevic is now under serious threat after the far-right Radical party, which rules Serbia in coalition with the Milosevic regime, offered its support to the opposition.

It emerged yesterday that the Radical leader, Vojislav Seselj, contacted the opposition directly to offer his help. The Radicals are the most strident force in Yugoslav politics and their support for the Democratic Opposition of Serbia marks a major political shift. It opens up a real possibility of overcoming Mr Milosevic's hold on his legislative power base within Serbia by the end of this year.

Mr Seselj, whose party holds 83 seats in the 250-seat Serbian parliament, also demanded the resignation of the Serbian interior minister, Vlajko Stojiljkovic, because of his alleged corruption, misuse of authority and incompetence.

Mr Stojiljkovic is a top aide of Mr Milosevic. Both men were indicted last year by the UN war crimes tribunal for atrocities allegedly committed during the government crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists in Kosovo.

Mr Seselj is a former paramilitary, active during the war in Bosnia. He is famous in Belgrade for waving a gun on the streets on more than one occasion. Most recently, he threatened local journalists, saying they should be "liquidated".

The Radicals are in the Serbian republic's government with Mr Milosevic's Socialist party and the Yugoslav Left party of the president's wife, Mira Markovic.

Mr Seselj, a highly intelligent man who came top of his class at law school in Belgrade, appears to be a populist, but he is also a political survivor. Many people label him, above all, a "fascist".

The Radicals' support for Mr Kostunica's coalition is all the more surprising because the blocs were rivals in Sunday's election. But soon after the opposition and the Centre for Freedom and Democracy (Cesid) announced their results -both independently declaring Mr Kostunica the winner - the Radicals corroborated the claims with their results.

The Radicals' own presidential candidate, Zoran Nikolic, performed miserably.

Mr Seselj publicly recognised Mr Kostunica as president on Thursday. He congratulated him and sent a formal letter.

Opposition sources say that Mr Seselj also offered the Kostunica camp political help because of the Radicals' power base in the Serbian republic's government.

However, Mr Seselj is said to have pointed out that he is a pragmatic politician and explained that he would want something in return for his backing now.

The Radicals have in recent days been going back dramatically on their past deeds. Mr Seselj, who signed the order for police to storm the Studio B television studio in May, has now called on Studio B to be brought back under the control of Belgrade city hall.

He has called for a repeal of the information law which gagged journalists and newspapers - even though it was a law which he personally wrote.

He is also calling for changes in the law governing the state newspaper, Politika. An attack on this by non-regime forces would deny Mr Milosevic a monopoly on information.

Mr Seselj and his party have the power to provoke a crisis in the republic's government - but it may be that they decide to stay in government and to work against Mr Milosevic from within. "It's easy to bring down a government, but we are not in a hurry," Mr Seselj said yesterday.

Another key political party at republican level is the Serbian Renewal Movement (SPO) of the maverick Vuk Draskovic. His party suffered a terrible drubbing at the federal elections because of his failure to back the Kostunica coalition. He has admitted the error and has congratulated Mr Kostunica.

SECTION: Guardian Foreign Pages, Pg. 19 - September 30, 2000