SANDZAK SCUFFLE LAST STRAW FOR LJAJIC

UNCLAS BELGRADE 000610

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KISL KPAO KIRF SCUL PREL SR
SUBJECT: SANDZAK SCUFFLE LAST STRAW FOR LJAJIC

REF: 05 BELGRADE 1938


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: A Serbian government decision to
dissolve the democratically-elected assembly in
Novi Pazar, the de facto capital of the primarily
Bosniac area of Serbian Sandzak, has sparked low
level violence in the city. The move was a blow
to the progressive Human and Minority Rights
Minister Rasim Ljajic on his home turf, and
prompted him to resign his position as chair of
the Coordinating Body for Southern Serbia - though
he has agreed to stay on on an interim basis until
a successor is named. End Summary

INTERVENTION FROM ON HIGH
--------------

2. (SBU) The genesis of the current political
situation was the adoption of a budget by the Novi
Pazar Municipal Assembly in mid-March 2006, after
city mayor Sulejman Ugljanin failed to submit a
budget proposal to the Assembly as required by law
(reftel). Following the adoption of the new
budget, on March 31 the Assembly initiated a
recall motion against the mayor. This was a
somewhat risky move, as the Assembly faced
dissolution should the measure fail to secure
enough signatures in the local electorate. On
April 7, GoS Minister for Local Administration
Zoran Loncar unexpectedly announced that the
adoption of a budget by the Assembly was "not in
accordance with accepted election law" and
effectively dissolved the assembly, eliminating it
as a political counter to Ugljanin and stifling
the Assembly's own recall motion.

LAST STRAW FOR LJAJIC
--------------

3. (SBU) Several senior GoS officials spoke out
against the dissolution of the Assembly, most
notably Deputy PM Labus. At the G17+ Main Board
meeting on 9 April 2006, Labus called the decision
"scandalous" and ordered G17+ deputies to not
participate in the interim municipal council.
G17+ MINFIN Mladan Dinkic said his ministry had a
positive opinion about the Assembly's action
regarding the budget but could not stop the
decision of the government to disband the
Assembly.


4. (SBU) More importantly, state union Human
Rights Minister Rasim Ljajic, whose Sandzak
Democratic Party led the ruling coalition in the
assembly, called the dissolution an act of
"political violence" by the GoS against his party
and, on April 11, announced his resignation as
head of the Coordinating Body for Southern Serbia
in protest. (He subsequently agreed to PM
Kostunica's request not to activate the
resignation until the GOS had officially accepted
it.) The move is the latest in a running feud
that has pitted Ljajic and his party against DSS's
support for Ugljanin in exchange for two MOP votes
in the Serbian parliament

SECURITY SUMMARY
--------------

5. (SBU) In addition to political fallout, the
episode has led to some low-level politically
motivated violence. Over the weekend of 8-9 April
2006, a Molotov cocktail was launched at the
Ljajic's SDP headquarters in Novi Pazar,
presumably thrown by Ugljanin supporters. No
injuries were reported, but there was slight
cosmetic damage to the building. During the night
of 10 April 2006, in an apparent retaliatory
strike, a hand grenade was detonated at the
Municipality building housing Ugljanin's offices.
No personal injuries were reported, although six
parked cars and windows in the building were
damaged. These incidents echo similar acts of
violence that punctuated the run-up to local
elections in September, 2004.

COMMENT
--------------

6. (SBU) It will be difficult for the GoS to
find a similarly competent replacement on the
Coordinating Body for Ljajic if he holds to his
intention to resign the position. Ljajic has
legitimacy on all sides for his handling of often
tense relationships between Muslim Albanians and
Orthodox Serbs in this region. The incident will
also push Ljajic closer to the opposition DS (his
natural inclination in any case),which might in
turn have a small impact on voting patterns in
Sandzak and the broader Bosniak community in
future parliamentary elections.

POLT