<nettime> latest news from belgrade

[www@freeb92.net]

Latest News

(all times are GMT+1)

THE SITUATION HAS CALMED DOWN
MIDNIGHT -- The situation in central Belgrade has calmed down considerably.
Most demonstrators have dispersed. Radio B2-92 coverage of the situation
will continue at 09.00 CET tomorrow.

NEW BELGRADE RALLY AT 7.00 P.M. TOMORROW
22.10 -- At the end of tonight's rally in front of the Belgrade City
Assembly, the citizens were invited to assemble in the same place at 7.00
p.m. tomorrow.

FANS CLASH AGAIN WITH POLICE AT BEOGRADJANKA
22.05 -- At the end of the rally in forn of the City Assembly part of the
crowd joined the Red Star fans at the corner of Kralja Milana and Generala
Zdanova. The fans exploded two stun bombs which caused a disturbance among
the public. Radio B2-92's Milos Milic reports that the fans had announced
they would charge Beogradjanka, the building which houses Studio B. At this
point there was a heavy build-up of riot police two hundred metres from
Beogradjanka on the corner of Kneza Milosa St , as the fans grouped by the
building.

PROTEST IN MLADENOVAC
22.00 -- Several hundred citizens of Mladenovac gathered tonight in front of
TV Mladenovac which was closed down on police orders this morning. After
hearing addresses from local party leaders and Otpor representatives, the
protesters marched through the main city street to the private radio station
M Plus, where they expressed support for the only indpendent broadcaster
remaining in Mladenovac. Police did not interfere and the march ended
without incident. A new rally has been scheduled for tomorrow at 5.00 p.m.

PROTEST IN NOVI SAD
22.00 -- Otpor activist Vladimir Pavlov was released from custody in Novi
Sad at about 9.00 p.m. this evening. He was greeted by about 2,000
demonstrators on his release. Pavlov told media that he had been punished
for "irregular registration of his residence" and because he had spoken at a
gathering of an unregistered organisation. He also said that he had
interrogated as to whether he knew Milivoje Gutovic, who was arrested over
the murder of Socialist official Bosko Perosevic, and whether he knew the
whereabouts of Otpor activists Stanko Lazendic and Milan Gagic for whom
warrants had been issued in connection with the murder.

POLICE RETREAT FROM SLAVIJA
21.30 (Beta) -- Four police buses and several four-wheel-drives and police
vans have left Slavija Square in different directions. However a large
number of police vehicles are still circling the square and adjacent
streets. After the majority of protesters retreated from Slavija towards the
City Assembly, police were stationed on nearby footpaths. Several, mostly
elderly, people approached them to discuss the incident in which police
pushed back citizens and Red Star fans from Slavija. Traffic flow has
resumed through the squre, which is now littered with rocks and broken
glass.
The police intervention began after several hundred protesters began
throwing rocks at a police cordon deployed at the corner of Kralja Milana
and Slavija. The police used tear gas to disperse the crowd. A medical team
has given assistance to two Belgraders who say they were beaten during the
clash. A medical officer form the Anlave clinic told Beta that the two had
bruises all over their bodies.

MORE THAN 10,000 DEMONSTRATE IN KRAGUJEVAC
21.10 -- The mayor of Kragujevac today called on 10,000 protesters in the
city centre to resist the regime, practice civil disobedience and contribute
to a general blockade.

OPPOSITION LEADERS MEET
21.05 -- Radio B2-92 has learnt from unconfirmed sources that leaders of the
Serbian opposition parties are holding an extraordinary meeting to plan
their next move. A joint statement is expected. Vuk Draskovic is still in
Montenegro.

POLICE AND DEMONSTRATORS IN VIOLENT CLASH
21.00 -- Some time after 8.30 p.m. at the entrance roads to Slavija Square
police intervaned brutally against demonstrators marching from the City
Assembly to the square. The protesters were attempting to liberate the
10,000 Red Star fans already held by police at the Square. The city's main
artery, Kralja Milana St is blocked with garbage containers which have been
set alight. The marchers are retreating towards the Assembly and the road is
blocked also at Knez Milos St. Strong reserve busloads of riot police have
been seen at the access roads to Slavija Square.

POLICE ASSEMBLE ON SLAVIJA
20.10 -- A large number of demonstrators have set off from the protest rally
outside the Belgrade City Assembly towards Slavija Square, after protesters
were told that police had blocked 10,000 fans from the Red Star Football
Club at the square. The fans had planned to join the rally after the Red
Star-Sartid match. Rally organisers asked the marchers to return, saying
that the football fans would eventually join the demonstration. In the
meantime, several hundred police in riot gear have set up a cordon at the
entrance of Kralja Milana St into the Slavija Square. The several hundred
marchers are standing off the cordon of police at about thirty metries
distance.

JOURNALISTS READ NEWS TO PROTESTERS
20.00 -- Journalists from the media companies barred in last night's
government raid on Studio B have read today's news to tens of thousands of
protesters outside the Belgrade City Assembly. Demonstrators are still
arriving in large numbers. There are indications that a protest march will
follow the rally.

RADIO PANCEVO OFF THE AIR
20.00 -- The signal or Radio Pancevo, in the city of Pancevo near Belgrade,
was turned off at about 7.00 p.m., Television Pancevo reports. Both FM and
SW signals transmissions have been cut. Radio VK in the Vojvodina town of
Kikinda was turned off earlier in the afternoon.

FOOTBALL FANS BLOCKED
19.45 -- Heavy police forces stopped a column of about 10,000 Red Star
Football Club fans who left a football match this afternoon to march to the
protest rally outside the City Asembly. During the match fans chanted
"Studio B, Studio B" and sand "Save Serbia and kill yourself, Sloba". Four
red and white Otpr flags appeared on the northern side of the Red Star
stadium.

RALLY BEGINS
19.10 (Beta) -- The main Belgrade artery of Kralja Milana Street is closed
to traffic as several thousand people gather in front of the Belgrade City
Assembly. The rally began with the reading of an opposition proclamation
calling citizens to civil disobedience. Many protesters are carrying party
flags.

Journalists from Studio B, Blic, Radio B2-92 and Radio Indeks will read
information to the crowd. Journalists from the same media companies were
today banned from entering their offices in the Beogradjanka building.
Before the rally began several dozen Democratic party activists blocked one
lane of Kralja Milana St near the City Assembly Building with garbage
containers. The demonstrators, who were soon joined by members of the
public, shouted "Serbia has arisen", "Studio B", "Otpor, Otpor".

#  distributed via <nettime>: no commercial use without permission
#  <nettime> is a moderated mailing list for net criticism,
#  collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets
#  more info: majordomo@bbs.thing.net and "info nettime-l" in the msg body
#  archive: http://www.nettime.org contact: nettime@bbs.thing.net