CANDLES LIT FOR RADIO 101

AIM Zagreb, 22 November, 1996

A day after the Council for Telecommunications allocated a concession to Radio Globus 101 for the frequency on which in the past thirteen years the most popular Zagreb radio station - Radio 101 broadcast its program, about a hundred thousand citizens of Zagreb flooded the central square, the Square of Ban Josip Jelacic, and demanded from the authorities to nullify this decision and enable undisturbed broadcasting of the popular Radio 101.

The largest mass protest against the current authorities in Croatia, at the moment when its President Franjo Tudjman was undergoing a medical treatment in the USA, forced first Ninoslav Pavic, owner of "Europapress Holding", one of the greatest privately owned news publishing companies, which got the concession instead of Radio 101, to give it up, because the embittered citizens threatened to boycott all their journals, and then the Government of the Republic of Croatia suggested to the Council for Communications to announce an open competition again and to enable broadcasting to Radio 101 until the new competition was completed.

Obviously there were very few people, especially among the authorities, who could have expected that the decision about allocation of the frequency used by Radio 101 to Radio Globus would cause such a turmoil in Zagreb. The decision was reached by the Council for Communications - a nine-member committee dominated by members of the ruling HDZ - on Wednesday about noon.

The team of the popular radio did not have to do much to stir the public: listeners immediately swamped their telephone lines (and the air) with messages of support. People cried, shouted, swore, they were joined by taxi-drivers with their deafening horns who caused traffic jams in the city. The Bad Blue Boys, most vehement fans of Dinamo (or officially: Croatie) football team, organized protest meetings at the Flower Square where several thousand people gathered. Messages of representatives of political parties, journalists, actors, known and unknown citizens and various institutions, were read during the whole day in succession with rock protest music, jingles in glory of Radio 101, Dinamo and other Zagreb "mythic" urban characteristics.

The pressure exerted by the public was so powerful that Nino Pavic, founder of new Radio Globus 101 - which was supposed to replace Radio 101 - in the evening came to Radio 101 and promised that they would give up the channel!

"Radio 101 was always a symbol of freedom and democracy in Croatia and we by no means want the concession at the expense of Radio 101. If it means endangering freedom of the media in Croatia - we simply do not wish to have any part in it! If people from Radio 101 have no interest in making a radio program together with us, we do not wish a confrontation with them", said Pavic, while making it public that he was giving up the concession he had got to Radio 101.

By the way, Pavic is a big Croatian entrepreneur, owner of the Holding company which publishes the weekly Globus, Arena, a few women's magazines and other publications. Recently he founded the "Network" - a television company which should be producing programs for a few privately-owned local tv stations.

With the project of Radio Globus 101 Pavic participated at the competition for allocation of the city radio channel, along with Radio 101 and radio station called Zagreb Krugoval. Zagreb Krugoval is also a station which exists only "on paper" and which was founded by a few Zagreb businessmen who are believed to be close to certain factions of the HDZ.

Allocation of the concession to Nino Pavic is also explained by his being close to certain other factions of the HDZ. The fact that he was allocated the concession is apparently unusual, because the weekly Globus distinguished itself by being highly critical towards the ruling HDZ, and it especially caused tarnishing of the reputation of this party by publicizing numerous scandals which prominent officials of the ruling party were implicated in.

But, the HDZ is not united from within. Tudjman's departure for medical treatment in the USA additionally stirred up faction struggle. There are two prominent representatives of two factions in the Council for Communications: Ivic Pasalic - Tudjman's advisor and politician who is classified in the so-called right faction of the HDZ (unformal leader of this faction is the minister of defence Gojko Susak), strongly advocated the cause of Zagreb Krugoval.

Vesna Skare-Ozbolt, also employed in the Presidential Office, close to the head of this Office Hrvoje Sarinic, favoured Pavic's Globus 101. She eliminated Radio 101 because in the past weeks work of the Council for Telecommunications was sharply criticized in its programs, so she proposed that the channel be allocated to Radio Globus.

Her words conveyed a concealed message to the observers - "We are giving the concession to Globus which will have an identical program as Radio 101 and which will also be considerably critical to the authorities. In this way, we will deny criticism that we are stifling freedom of the media, and as a group within the authorities, we will have allies in the unsparing pre-election struggle for power among the factions". For a long time, it is possible to hear a thesis among the journalists that the faction of Hrvoje Sarinic "controlled" the journal Globus, supplying them with information compromising for rivals in the party. Four other members of the Council (also members of the HDZ) joined Vesna Skare-Ozbolt and these were the needed five votes for their favourite to get the channel. Ivic Pasalic was left alone in his offering support to Zagreb Krugoval. The only oppositionist in the Council, Stjepan Radic (grandson of "the" Radic), member of the HSS, pleaded in favour of Radio 101 in vain.

Radio 101 is the only of the three competitors which is already broadcasting program. Its independent position in the beginning of the year was confirmed by Zagreb City Assembly (with opposition majority) by transferring major ownership share to the employees of the Radio. Almost all 12 years for as long as it exists, Radio 101 has operated in a semi legal status, i.e. with temporary permits. Recently the American administration has been especially interested for Radio 101: from the Ambassador in Croatia Peter Gabraith to Clinton's Vice-President Al Gore, american politicians have been warning their Croatian interlocutors that by depriving Radio 101 of its channel they would considerably influence deterioration of relations between the USA and Croatia. Similar messages have been arriving from the Council of Europe, the OSCE and other institutions.

Just a few hours after it was made public that Radio 101 had not been granted the concession, American State Department issued a sharp statement assessing that the case of Radio 101 had added to significant slowing down of democratization and stifling of freedom of expression in Croatia. It was demanded from the Croatian authorities to issue a new permit to Radio 101 for broadcasting. On the contrary, the USA will consider this case to be another attack on independent media. It was claimed in the statement that the State Department had already expressed "deep concern" to Tudjman and foreign Minister Granic, and it was added that the Americans had announced that the case of Radio 101 would be placed on the top of the list of priorities in following contacts with the Croatian party, and that they would initiate a discussion in OSCE agencies.

Soon after, public "washing hands" of various HDZ officials started. Zlatko Canjuga, another of the numerous Tudjman's advisors and President of Zagreb Board of the HDZ declared on air to Radio 101 that nobody in the HDZ was against this radio getting a channel and announced tha the decision might be re-considered. Rikard Gumzej, member of the management of Croatia Television, also appeared on air and accused a faction of his party - the HDZ - that they were plotting with Nino Pavic against Radio 101. He expressed support to Radio 101 and announced that he would fight against those in the HDZ who had "sneaked into the HDZ in order to get their hands on great wealth". He nominated Ivica Todoric, businessman who is believed to owe his quick rise to former prime minister Nikica Valentic, and who belongs to the so-called techno-managerial current together with Hrvoje Sarinic.

Since the session of the Council for Telecommunications was public, arguments used to reject Radio 101 were additional oil on the fire. For instance, a member of the Council said that he was voting against Radio 101 because it had too many programs with titles in English. This inflamed concealed intolerance between "true citizens of Zagreb" inclined towards the West and "primitive nationalists, new comers from the mountains". Telephones of Radio 101 went red-hot and the protest somewhat unexpectedly turned into a public trial to the authorities, thieves, culprits for low salaries and pensions, etc. etc...

It culminated with the mass protest of citizens of Zagreb who took sides with about a hundred journalists and technicians of Radio 101 who had unsparigly fought for a whole year to be granted the concession which would enable them to broadcast their program undisturbed on the channel on which they have been regular guests for almost thirteen years in majority of Zagreb homes. And although they have won this battle with the authorities, all things considered, they have not ended the war yet. Having appeared in the Croatian Embassy in Washington for the first time in public since he had gone to the USA for medical treatment, President Tudjman referred to the developments in Zagreb. Having assessed the protest with candles as an attempt to re-establish communism in Croatia, he announced that he would not allow it. And this can mean nothing but that the struggle of journalists of Radio 101 and their numerous Zagreb listeners to keep the most popular Zagreb radio program on the air will continue.

IGOR VUKIC