Call to Lynch

Counter-Intelligence Serbia

On Tuesday, 12 January, the governement of Serbia exposed the secret plan of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) for destruction of Yugoslavia, plutocratic foundations of American democracy and, by the way, new legions of domestic traitors

AIM Podgorica, 14 January, 1999

(By AIM correspondent from Belgrade)

Ratko Markovic, Vojislav Seselj and Milovan Bojic, vice prime ministers of Serbia, and in this case, representatives of the ruling red-and-black coalition of the Socialist Party of Serbia, the Serb Radical Party and the Yugoslav Left, respectively, convened a special press conference. All three of them waved a piece of paper which they claimed was a secret document of the CIA addressed to American administration as a proposal for destabling Yugoslavia. "By intuitive action and a profound plan", as Milovan Bojic put it, the government of Serbia not only unmasked the present destroyers of the system, but with the help of this document, traitors will continue to be revealed in the future.

On that very afternoon, spokesman of CIA, Anna Glisher, declared that the published document, "does not even resemble" papers of this Agency, and that CIA has no Institute for the Balkan. Almost simultaneously, the author of the "secret document" also appeared, Dr Daniel Server, associate of the American Peace Institute. "This is a public document which I myself have written and presented it at the Congress testimony in Helsinki Committee on 10 December in Washington", declared Dr Server for Belgrade daily Blic, adding that charge-d'affaires of Yugoslavia in the USA was present at the presentation of the document, as well as that the "top secret" paper had been available on Internet for weeks.

The state and electronic media close to the regime constantly repeated the vehement statements of the three vice prime ministers during the afternoon and the evening. However, news that deny the authorship, the origin and the secrecy of the document were not published even the next day except by independent media.

The forged secret document of the non-existent Balkan institute of the CIA contains an evaluation of resources necessary to assist democratic changes in FR Yugoslavia in 1999 - along with broadening diplomatic initiative and establishment of an international group for support. Users of the total of about 35 million dollars - which is a significant increase in comparison with 15 million that American administration invested in 1998 - should be non-governmental organizations, citizens' associations and initiatives, independent media, trade unions, non-governmental educational institutions and programs, independent judiciary, political parties, voting committees and youth organizations. The "top secret" document revealed by the government of Serbia ends with the invitation to everybody to send comments on its content and topics to the address of the American Institute and other organizations which are also open to opinions and suggestions.

Instead to do that, the government of Serbia decided to inform its public via the speeches of the three vice prome ministers. Ratko Markovic, professor of constitutional law - and one of the authors of the constitution of FR Yugoslavia now in force, authorized interpreter of the number of terms in office Slobodan Milosevic had spend as president of Serbia before he appeared at the post of the president of Yugoslavia, head of Serbian state delegation of negotiators with Kosovo Albanians, professor of Police Academy, etc. -reading in front of TV cameras a prepared text, explained that "espionage, bombs and bribery were means used for the achievement of the most sacred goals of the humanity: world peace and democratic rule". Briefly, the government of Serbia has revealed to our public, according to Markovic, the American pricelist for imposing a prime minister in Republika Srpska, bribery of the citizens of Serbia, opposition parties (because the secret document cast a "shadow and suspicion on authenticity of political opposition in our country", the opposition which is elsewhere in the world, established Markovic, "a natural political phenomenon") and purchase of everything else that "can be bought for American dollars". But, Markovic concluded, "we have wealth which not even America can buy, because it does not have enough money to pay as much as they are worth. And this wealth is national honour and pride".

By publishing the American document of top secrecy, Vojislav Seselj explained, the government of Serbia revealed that it was "of great significance for world history" because it explains not only American behavior to "our country", but also to Eastern Europe, "and even the whole world". Vojislav Seselj felt very much at home that evening. The opportunity to "explain" the conspiracy against the state did not differ much from those just before the beginning of dissolution of SFRY when he publicly listed names of journalists-traitors, those whose family names did not end in "ich" (characteristic for Serb names), or, even if they did end in "ich", their mothers, aunts, spouses, ancestors and descendants who were of different origin. This Tuesday, Seselj did not name mercenaries, but indirectly threatened "traitors". "Their problem is how their surroundings, how their compatriots, how their relatives and friends will look upon their activities. And how the traitors will feel in such conditions, let them think for themselves". The "top secret CIA document" has just confirmed the already known breeding places of traitors; but only in two cases his accusation was directed at individuals: in the judiciary "we have one traitor in the Supreme Court, and one in the Constitutional Court".

"Serbia and FRY do not invent enemies", said Milovan Bojic: "They present themselves and pay dearly for it", that is, the content of the "secret CIA document" is "only the initial trigger or the starting basis of money the task of which is to encourage the discontented, stimulate the rebellious, find and bribe the traitors, corrupt the citizens, enslave the people".

A day later, only state media and media close to them did not know that triumphant unmasking of the CIA conspiracy against three vice prime ministers and "their" state burst like a bubble. Ivan Markovic, spokesman of the Yugoslav Left took upon himself a somewhat more precise identification of enemies. According to him, allies of the USA are Vuk Obradovic ("eternal deserter"), Zoran Djindjic ("eternal mercenary"), Nebojsa Covic ("careerist"), Milan Panic, Vesna Pesic ("former") and media "which lie" (Blic, Danas, Evropljanin, Monitor, Vreme). The Patriotic League of Belgrade appealed - via state television - that "the legitimate state publish lists of those who are receiving money from the CIA".

The list of enemies made public by the spokesman of the Yugoslav Left is interesting only because it is focused only on political organizations which that same Ivan Markovic until recently marked as insignificant. Except for Zoran Djindjic and the Democratic Party, all those listed are actively - as individuals or leaders of minor parties of democratic orientation - involved in the League for Changes, the movement which is headed by former Yugoslav prime minister, American businessman and "America's man" Milan Panic. In other words, this, still unofficial, coalition of internal and external forces - political parties which are generally part of the social democratic program from within; and a few successful emigrants and their foundations, from without - was taken as a serious although "treacherous" challenge to Serbian authorities.

In its "watchfulness", the government of Serbia has again permitted itself the luxury of a world-wide disgrace. By reading the allegedly secret document of the CIA, the government of Serbia has broadened suspicion to include every citizen in Serbia who has no family, neighbours or compatriots ready to denounce him as a traitor. Therefore, 72 hours after the "historical discovery" of the government of Serbia, one may say that it is intended primarily for the domestic public, for intimidation of its own citizens, "brethren" from across the Drina who are not enthusiastic with what is happening in Republika Srpska, and finally, the Montenegrin brethren who have not noticed this "discovery". The list of questions which are impossible to answer has not been completed yet. A day after the "historical unmasking", the government of FR Yugoslavia discharged from duty the federal minister of information Goran Matic leaving him in charge for the time being. Goran Matic is a prominent official of the Yugoslav Left, and the "punishment" in this fishy story might mean that somebody has not done his job well. Despite harsh words, the fact that a public and broadly accessible paper has been "planted" for the government to find it - or at least three doctors of sciences in it - as a top secret document, caused mostly laughter. This, of course, does not mean that those who stage such developments are not deadly serious.

Aleksandar CiriC

(AIM)