IWPR & MEDIA PLAN

MONITORING REPORT

4 December 1996: Vol II/ No 4

The B&H Media Fortnight in Review: 18 November - 2 December

Dayton: The media in harness

With few exceptions, the B&H media have over the past year shown an ambivalent attitude towards the Dayton Peace Agreement (DPA). Parts of the agreement have often been subjected to various and even contradictory interpretations. This, of course, was not the consequence of an excessively metaphorical text, but a result of the unrelenting confrontation between the national and political camps which - ardently assisted by their respective media - have regularly sought to use the implementation process to "correct" one or another of the DPA's provisions. This instrumentalisation of the media has produced a sort of conformity. The media have rarely deviated from the well-trod political paths leading in various directions, but without any discernible connection to the provisions of the DPA itself.

Srpska Television left the annual inventory of the DPA to the highest state and party officials, with a very brief conclusion of its own to the effect "that the Dayton agreement stopped the war and brought statehood to RS, but many problems remain" ("Novosti", 21 November). The same evening, on "Vidik", SDS President Aleksa Buha noted that "there is not a single Serb in the Federation Assembly, and that is where all the talk of multi-ethnicity ends." The focus of his remarks, however, was on the issue of economic equality: "economic discrimination is leading to further separation of the two entities." Srpska TV also carried that day Momcilo speech from the opening of the FAMOS factory: "If there were equality, all of us in B&H would be the winners."

Srpski Radio broadcast a special commentary. Complaining that the international community employs a double standard in its treatment of the two entities, the commentator opined that "the biggest stain on the peace agreement was the exodus of over 80,000 Serbs from Sarajevo," as well as permitting "the continuation of armed Muslim incursions into the territory of RS after signature of the agreement." However, the commentator noted that the real test of the DPA would be the "arbitration of territory around Brcko."

SRT added numerous citations from European newspapers to these assessments. Employing exclusively negative selection criteria, SRT had no trouble arriving at a dire prognosis for the "temporary creation" and "empty illusion" that is B&H.

Little attention was devoted to the DPA anniversary in the main newscasts of Radio B&H, whether in commemorative editorial items or in more wide-ranging analyses of Dayton's year-long impact. Only in one correspondent's report deprecating the Paris conference as "an absolute mistake" was it said that this conclave had "elegantly skirted round the civilian aspects of the Dayton peace agreement" (27 November). According to the already long-established pattern, the implementation of the military side of Dayton was judged a success, while the civilian side was said to have lagged far behind.

TV B&H gave the anniversary much more attention. Both correspondents' reports on "Dnevnik" and statements by politicians emphasised the shortcomings of the agreement, and particularly the failures to ensure the return home of refugees and to provide adequate reconstruction assistance. "The agreement is fine, but it must be consistently implemented," was the conclusion that was often to be heard.

TV B&H also broadcast two special programmes about the DPA anniversary. The first, on 21 November, provided an hour-long chronology of the events, between August and December 1995, that led to the signing of the agreement. The programme used both TV B&H's own archive materials and film clips from other sources in a highly professional manner. "Face to Face" followed two days later. The guests were the current premier, Hasan Muratovic, and two members of the B&H delegation at Dayton: the former premier, Haris Silajdzic, and a former member of the presidency, Ivo Komšic. Asked by the host, Senad Hadzifejzovic, if he would sign the agreement today, Muratovic replied that he would. Silajdzic insisted that if the DPA were not implemented fully, it should be nullified, and the political status quo ante restored. Komšic, for his part, declared that "even when he was in Dayton, he was against Dayton," but that to give up on it now would lend support to those forces seeking the complete destruction of the state. Albeit over-long, this was riveting television.

Although Radio Herceg-Bosna showed no particular interest in covering the Dayton anniversary, Croatian TV did its bit with a report on the "Motrišta" programme. The report used archive material to emphasise the historical importance of the event.

Statehood Day: Between disorientation and forgetfulness

Coverage of the 25 November B&H Statehood Day by the media reflected the disparate attitudes of key political figures in various B&H regions towards the observance of this communist-era holiday. The media's interpretations of this historical occasion ranged from affirmation to denial and from disorientation to dismissal.

Radio B&H's afternoon "Dnevnik" found itself "trapped" journalistically by the need to observe the day. Its apparent embarrassment produced an ambiguous stance towards both the historical inheritance and the current "usable value" of this date. Some reports on the day emphasised the continuity of the modern B&H state proclaimed by ZAVNOBiH (Anti-Fascist Council of National Liberation of B&H) in Mrkonjic Grad in 1943, while others stressed Bosnia's "thousand-year-long" statehood in terms which echoed contemporary political party slogans. On this occasion there was also much invocation of Bosnia's "multi-this" and "multi-that". Radio B&H did not make any of "this" or "that" up, but one of its reporters did draw attention to the different understandings of the state holiday. In a commentary broadcast on 25 November he noted: "This year's main commemoration of Statehood Day was held by the representatives of SUBNOAR (Federation of Associations of Fighters in the National Liberation and Anti-Fascist War of B&H), but with no visible participation by the people who actually defended this country in 1992. Where is the break in the continuity of anti-fascism and the peaceful lives of the people of this country and of these nations? And why?" Despite its importance, the question remained unanswered.

Radio B&H correspondents in Mostar and Livno reported that there had been no observance of the B&H national day in areas under HVO control, but reminded listeners that, one week before, the supposedly non-existent Croatian Republic of Herceg-Bosna had celebrated its birthday. (Radio B&H reporters had not, however, noted this event when it happened.) Another report from Mostar on 26 November showed that history can also be a subject for political negotiation. Asked by a correspondent why 25 November had been marked only in east Mostar, Mayor Ivan Prskalo replied that the holiday would be celebrated in the entire city once both sides had agreed to do so.

Statehood Day also received prominent coverage on TV B&H's evening "Dnevnik". After four years, in fact, a civil holiday finally merited the same attention as Bairam or the days commemorating the army or police. Correspondents reported from almost all parts of the Federation under B&H Army control. As on radio, some of them, such as the reporter in Mostar, underlined the fact that "the holiday is not being celebrated in the Croatian region."

"Dnevnik" also reported on the reception for the diplomatic corps held in the Presidency Building and hosted, on President Izetbegovic's behalf, by Premier Muratovic. It did not explain why Izetbegovic did not attend his own party since, on the same day, he was shown taking part in various protocol events. The day before he had, however, broadcast a short message of congratulation to all citizens of B&H.

The Serb obsession with history is not total. There are also blank spots and zones of oblivion, as 25 November showed. The Serb assembly having abrogated in 1992 the 1943 decisions of both AVNOJ (Anti-Fascist Council of National Liberation of Yugoslavia) and ZAVNOBiH as elements of the communist legacy which had been disastrous to the Serbian nation, SRT ignored the state holiday. Lacking any hot political topics and eschewing historical reminiscence, the popular television phone-in show "And what do you say?" was devoted in its entirety to the subject of how people spend their leisure time! Was this editorial inadvertence or cynical calculation?

The editors of Radio Herceg-Bosna seemed to find the holiday particularly annoying. Announcing at the start of "Dnevnik" that the newscast was being monitored by the BBC, there followed in stentorian tones a communiqué( from the Herceg-Bosna Association of Volunteers and Veterans protesting at President Izetbegovic's congratulatory message to B&H citizens. Employing the vocabulary and style of the bad old days of media warfare, the Association castigated Izetbegovic for his political errors in regard both to B&H Croats and "his own" people. True, however, to their normal "good cop, bad cop" division of labour, Croatian Television broadcast Izetbegovic's congratulations to all "who carry in their hearts the idea of Bosnia" ('Dnevnik', 26 November).

Serbian Television had much more important work to do during these days.

Radio Herceg-Bosna: Embarrassing fervour

Subservience by the media to the powers - or parties - that be is nothing new in B&H, and is certainly no rarity. But Radio Herceg-Bosna shows in this regard a special and embarrassing zeal.

Two events in the Federation provoked great interest and strong reactions on the part of Radio Herceg-Bosna. The first involved the village school in Šator (near Tešanj), which Croatian children were not attending. On 19 November Dnevnik's correspondent reported that local Croats had set up a tent school for their children adjacent to the school building because "the Bošnjaks did not allow them to attend together with Bošnjak children" and "the Bošnjaks see the Croatian children as their political enemies." (Ironically, "šator" means tent in Serbo-Croat.)

The Sarajevo media, for their part, interpreted this development as an attempt by Croats to use their children to prove that Croats are endangered in the region and to stoke up tensions between the two national communities.

The second story preoccupied Radio Herceg-Bosna's news editors for several days. In Vareš the Bošnjak authorities had ordered Croat residents to exchange their existing personal documents for corresponding papers issued by the Republic of B&H. News of this development was first broadcast on 26 November and was repeated several times. Jozo Leutar, deputy interior minister of the Federation government, was reported to have sent a letter of protest to the IPTF commander, Peter Fitzgerald, in which he requested the withdrawal of such orders and insisted on the introduction and use of common documents for the whole Federation.

The story grew over subsequent days, it being reported on 27 November that Croats were being evicted from their flats in Vareš and that the Croatian Council for the Defence of Fundamental Rights had complained to Carl Bildt and Krešimir Zubak "because of the pressure being put by Muslims on Croats in Vareš." The current housing law, which was being invoked by the authorities to justify the planned evictions of some 160 Croats, was called "racist", and the behaviour of the Bošnjaks "fascist." The Croatian Council also expressed its bitter disappointment that the B&H media were reporting nothing about these events. Its letter to Bildt further alleged that the ruling SDA was installing a "dictatorship".

Over the next few days Radio Herceg-Bosna reported that, "far from stopping, the Muslim terror against Croats in Vareš is growing ever fiercer." As an illustration of these "new crimes" it cited the burning of Croats' houses and the eviction of one Croatian family.

For the editors of Radio HB, a special treat was served up by the rally of refugees from Srebrenica under the banner "We won't let you divide Bosnia" which took place in Sarajevo on 26 November. The car in which Ambassador Michael Steiner, the deputy high representative, was riding was attacked during this rally. This provided the occasion for a crude commentary, broadcast twice on 27 November, which was intended to defame both Steiner and President Izetbegovic. Steiner, according to the commentator, was a "clapped out but unconfirmed German diplomat" with an especially irritating habit of "rooting rabidly for the Muslims". His work in Bosnia was a "jerry-built and fraudulent construction". But although Steiner was "a human and a moral misery", he was "not guilty for Srebrenica", said the commentator, making a bridge to his next target - Alija Izetbegovic, to whose "commercial arrangement" he ascribed the tragedy of Srebrenica.

The waging of media war inside the Federation is largely restricted, at least for now, to HVO controlled regions.

TV B&H: The problems are elsewhere

The editors of TV B&H's "Dnevnik" seem to have become alarmed lest their news reports contribute to the creation of yet more tension between the international community and the B&H government. The fiery words of Irfan Ajanoviæ, ex-camp inmate and current SDA MP, at the "We won't let you divide Bosnia" rally in Sarajevo were neither carried nor quoted in the newscast's report on the event (26 November). Although "Dnevnik" did mention Ajanovic's complaints against the international community, it omitted the prediction of renewed war which made Ajanovic the centre of media attention elsewhere in successive days.

Similar treatment was meted out to a statement by the High Representative's spokesman, Colum Murphy, on 28 November. Murphy had said that international agencies have serious reservations about the manner in which the B&H government intends to solve the state's economic problems. This observation was broadcast, as was Murphy's critical conclusion "that what is at issue here is incompetence." But that part of his statement in which he held the B&H government responsible for the inadequacy of natural gas and water supplies in Sarajevo was omitted. It is possible, of course, that there were no political motive behind this excision, but the impression remains that a big favour was done to city officials. Questions pertaining to public utilities are highly sensitive to a shivering citizenry, and the local elections are drawing nearer.

The next day, however, Murphy appeared again on "Dnevnik" to explain that it is the government's fault that there are insufficient gas and electricity supplies in the city. In other words, Murphy was allowed to make exactly the same comment as was cut out of his statement the day before. This time there was no bowdlerisation, and so viewers also heard Murphy's ironic observation that, "If I were in the shoes of local officials, I would make sure that the temperature in people's flats was the same as in those officials' offices."

The relationship of TV B&H towards the Serb entity remains unchanged. This means that a generally negative attitude prevails. News from RS is reported only if it is unfavourable or if it concerns matters of high importance to the functioning of the common institutions.

A report from the second session of the RS National Assembly was broadcast by "Dnevnik" on 27 November. The correspondent reported objectively on the event and on the circumstances which led some deputies from Federation-based parties to quit the meeting. He concluded, however, "that the hosts were correct and the police professional" in their behaviour.

The RS Assembly sitting came up again on the 30 November edition of "Dnevnik". As is his habit on Saturday nights, the editor-presenter, Senad Hadzifejzovic, offered his comments on each item before it was broadcast. Introducing a report which mentioned the rhetorical question of SDS deputy Vojislav Maksimovic as to why there should be so many Bošnjaks and Croats in their Assembly, Hadzifejzovic posed his own rhetorical question: why had no one answered Maksimovic "that they represent the 250,000 people killed on the territory which is now called Republika Srpska?" The item which followed drew attention to the nationalistic posturing of the SDS deputies during the session and its decision to deny the representatives of the SDA, the Party for B&H and the Associated List the right to cast votes until they had sworn the required - and religious - oath. Hadžifejzovic's parting shot was to castigate the B&H government for failing to oppose the nomination of Aleksa Buha as RS foreign minister, asking why "nobody minds having a flea in his ear?" Buha means flea.

Finally, it should be noted that "Dnevnik" carried on 26 November a brief extract from Colum Murphy's press conference at which he explained the complete procedure for refugees and DPs to return to their homes in the Zone of Separation. TVIN's newscast provided a more extensive extract. Given the tragedy in Gajevi to which ignorance of the procedures on the part of would-be Bošnjak returnees - and their manipulation by the Serbs - had led, these reports were not before time.

Radio B&H: Drawing the blinds

Radio B&H was apparently so busy with other matters that it failed to hear - and report - the explosion of a bomb outside the Imperial Café( in the centre of Sarajevo on 21 November. It was also deaf to Hasan Muratovic's criticism of Carl Bildt on 22 November. The next day, however, it went overboard on the subject.

A similarly inconsistent approach characterised Dnevnik's reporting of pronouncements by the UBSD. Although the party's statements about events in Serbia and RS were broadcast, no mention was made of UBSD Vice-President Sejfudin Tokic's otherwise much-reported remarks on 29 November about the B&H premier: "Mr. Muratovic's behaviour and his lecturing of American and West European experts on the economy and market are, to say the least, damaging to this country and people, and inconsistent with the position he occupies."

Radio B&H's coverage of the 26 November protest meeting in Sarajevo seemed designed to contribute to an orchestrated campaign against Bildt, Elizabeth Rehn and other international officials while, at the same time, avoiding association with some of the wilder threats at this rally or the subsequent attack on Michael Steiner. The assault on Steiner by "a group of several thousand women and children from Srebrenica" (!) was, on the other hand, merely a case of "the blockage of the car of an international functionary." The reporter did ask, however, "For whom, why and with what purpose was this necessary, especially when it's well known that Mr. Steiner is only an executor of tasks assigned by the international community?"

Srpska TV: Too much talk about democracy

Judging by the number of reports broadcast in the period under review, Srpska TV was preoccupied mainly with the continuing struggle for control of the RS Army. Statements by both government officials and the new military chiefs appeared regularly. Editorials condemning the arrogant behaviour of the cashiered generals followed just as regularly. One commentary on "Novosti" (26 November) asked - indiscreetly - "why are the pensioned off officers always making trouble for the SDS." The peaceful outcome of this conflict was doubtless a great relief to SRT's editors, whose main task it had been to win over public opinion. The final act of transferring command from the old to the new generals was watched dutifully by Srpska TV's cameras.

Each sitting of the RS National Assembly seems to set a chain of media events in motion. Srpska TV provided both live coverage of the session and extensive reports about it on "Novosti". A one-hour special programme was also aired in prime time on 27 November. As at the inaugural session (see MR 2), the focus of attention was again on the "Muslim deputies" who walked out rather than sign the formal oath of office invoking the New Testament. The special broadcast twice the remarks of two SDS leaders. Vojislav Maksimovic complained, "I am hearing here too much talk about democracy in the Federation, in whose parliament not one Serb sits. You are over-represented here. God only knows how you got elected. We Serbs certainly don't know." For his part, SDS President Aleksa Buha declared: "Republika Srpska is the state of the Serbian nation in which Croats and Muslims live as national minorities, the same as Serbs are a national minority in the Federation. Only now must we reach agreement about the status of these national minorities."

The opposition deputies from the SDA, Party for B&H and Associated List were given no opportunity to defend their stand on Srpska TV. For this they were obliged to use TV B&H. Two days later, however, "Novosti" made amends, broadcasting a veritable bundle of protest letters. These included a letter from the Club of SDA Deputies, Michael Steiner's letter to RS Assembly President Dragan Kalenic and the latter's long-winded reply.

The mainly unproductive meetings of the B&H Presidency are becoming markedly less interesting to the media. Their cancellation sometimes commands more attention than their convocation. When the 26 November Presidency meeting was postponed because of the protest rally in Sarajevo, Srpska TV charged that this was an attempt to sabotage the establishment of common government institutions. Momcilo Krajišnik lent his weight to this interpretation: "We are certain either that the demonstrations are organised in cooperation with the official authorities or, what is even worse, that the official government has no control over events." When the Presidency did finally meet two days later, Srpska TV's "Vidik" programme aired a long "indictment" against Alija Izetbegovic because of his alleged war crimes. The report's author had explained beforehand that the RS warrant for the arrest of Izetbegovic had been withdrawn "because of the circumstance that he must take part in the work of the Presidency", but that its lifting would not affect the legal process due to begin at the end of December in Banja Luka.

TV Serbia: The post-election campaign

The crisis initiated by mass demonstrations against the Miloševic regime's annulment of opposition victories in the local elections in Serbia's main cities meant a continuation both of the struggle for power in Serbia and disregard for developments in the neighbourhood. Fully engaged in the battle for survival at home, TV Serbia had little time for Bosnia. Yet by minimising while simultaneously blackguarding the demonstrations, TV Serbia did offer viewers in B&H some classic lessons in media manipulation. Those in a position to compare TV Serbia's coverage of events with that of other networks were particularly advantaged.

One example was Dnevnik's lead report on 23 November of how Dobrica Cosic, one time novelist, ideologue of contemporary Serbian nationalism and former president of FRY, was howled down when he attempted to address demonstrators in Belgrade. Srpska TV's correspondent saw a totally different event, reporting to RS viewers that Cosic's remarks about "a new age demanding new men" had received a huge ovation from the crowd. Only Croatian Television ("Motrišta", 23 November) brought the two stories together. There had been both applause and, afterwards, catcalls.

TV Serbia broadcast in this period only brief and meagre news items about B&H, focusing attention instead on the issue of international assistance for the 600,000 refugees from Croatia and B&H in FRY. Whether because of its own local difficulties or from a reluctance to point out shortcomings in the Dayton agreement, few unpleasant topics were mentioned. Silence reigned on the conflict between the civilian and military leaderships in RS until it was over. True to totalitarian media practice, the problem was ventilated only when it had been resolved. Thus, after a month of tense uncertainty, "Dnevnik" reported on 28 November - but without pictorial confirmation - that General Mladic had handed over command to General Colic.

The implementation of the Dayton agreement is obviously taking place on screens tuned to TV Serbia with less difficulty than it is on the ground in B&H.

HRT: Turning the other cheek

The protest rally "We won't let you divide Bosnia" won Croatian TV's full attention ("Dnevnik", 26 November). The reason for the actuality report from Sarajevo was not the rally itself, nor the "Dayton or war" dilemma which it exposed, but the attack on Michael Steiner. According to HRT's correspondent, "The rally in support of the preservation of Bosnia & Herzegovina, organised by the SDA, was transformed into an assault on Republika Srpska and Herceg-Bosna, and into a meeting on behalf of the Muslim authorities. During the rally a group of enraged women attacked Michael Steiner, who was meant to address the gathering. The demonstrations caused the postponement of the meeting of the B&H Presidency. After the attack, Michael Steiner stated that he understands the rage and disappointment of citizens." The point of this report came at the end: "When the Administrator of Mostar was assaulted, the whole world rose up in protest, but now the victim is required to apologise to his attackers."

Media news in brief

Zenica's Dom štampe has acquired the most modern technology for colour printing. It is now one of nine European companies - and the only one in B&H - to have this newest "miracle" printing system. According to the firm's technical director, Asim Kaknjo, more than DM 1 million has been invested in this technology. More machines are expected to arrive within a month or two which will equip the company to meet the highest printing standards.

As other B&H publishers order and receive similar equipment, competition will intensify and the old and dirty technology of lead type will disappear. Computers will now prevail.
(Dnevni avaz)

TV Tuzla went off the air on 17 November when ground water again flooded its studio. According to Ðuro Škondic, one of the editors, this problem is endangering the station's production and distribution, both of its own programmes and those of TVIN. It is difficult to forecast how many more floods there will be in the studio before a more suitable location is found. It is obvious, however, that the help of the municipal authorities will be required if this and other problems at TV Tuzla are to be solved.
(Vecernje novine)

As reported by Dnevni avaz, the Federation minister of transport and communications, Dr. Rasim Gracanovic, had this to say about the allocation of radio and television frequencies:

"It is always being said that the government is preventing somebody from working freely, but that is an incorrect interpretation because we have currently in the Federation 300 'wild' broadcasters. Considering that there are no laws which could underwrite their operations, for now all our efforts are directed at preventing absolute anarchy in the use of frequencies. For that reason I am appealing for the passage of a legislative regulation as soon as possible, for in that way it would be clearly established how much each frequency costs and for how long it can be used."

The central B&H government should create a legal framework for this matter on a state level, because only then would both entities receive the necessary framework for the issuance of legal regulations and the allocation of frequency ranges on their respective territories.
(Dnevni avaz)

The RS government has issued a temporary regulation on the assignment of short range radio and TV frequencies which will have to be paid for in future. Frequencies have been awarded on the basis of mutual agreement and competition. Among the recipients of frequencies are individuals, municipalities and various organisations. Twenty-nine radio and 11 television frequencies have been allocated. Orthodox Radio St Jovan from Pale has won the right to establish a network with eight transmitters. The monthly rate for a frequency ranges from DM 360 to DM 4,550. OSCE's Radio FERN is included among the recipients. Its equipment is supposed to be surrendered to the RS Ministry of Information after 31 December 1996. Radio St Jovan has been exempted for one year from the requirement to pay for its frequency.
(SAFAX)

RTV TPK, the Tuzla-Podrinje cantonal station, has received new television studio equipment. This young station has, in the space of eight months, set up two transmitters on Ilincika and Majevica. Its programmes can be seen well beyond its home region: in eastern Croatia, southern Hungary and north-western Serbia. Another transmitter in Bratilo should start operating soon, which will carry TV TPK programmes into the previously inaccessible pockets of Gracanica, Gradacac, Celic and Kalesija. The station also expects to add new current affairs programmes to its schedules and to extend its broadcasting to 18 hours daily.`
(Osloboðenje)

TV B&H's satellite programming was disrupted for several days in late November. According to network management, the reason was an unannounced restriction in access to UTELSAT. Following talks with UTELSAT, TV B&H's programmes were due to resume from 26 November. A new agreement on satellite transmission is scheduled for January, although this is normally the responsibility of the B&H PTT.
(Dnevni avaz)

A new RS government was named at the second session of the National Assembly which met at the former ski resort on Jahorina on 27 November. Svetlana Šiljegovic replaced Dragan Bozanic as minister of information. Heretofore the deputy editor of the journal Knina, Šiljegovic was born in Prijedor in 1956 and was educated in Banja Luka and Belgrade.
(SAFAX)

The SRT management board has denounced ("Novosti", 19 November) the judgment of the Regional Economic Council in Banja Luka that the linkage of RTV licence payments with those for PTT services was unconstitutional. The SRT management regards this decision as based on ignorance of the laws regulating broadcasting in RS and as an attempt to undermine SRT's financial position. SRT asks why a system used to finance RTV Serbia and RTV Montenegro (combining payments for electricity and PTT services) should not also apply in RS?
(SAFAX)

Following extensive preparations, Republika Srpska's only daily newspaper, Glas srpski, will now be available to readers in eastern Herzegovina on week days as well as on week-ends. Until now, communications difficulties have precluded the paper's distribution in the area.
(Glas srpski)

From 23 November, Opresa news kiosks in Tuzla have had the RS papers Alternativa (Doboj) and Panorama (Bijeljina) on sale. This is the first time that RS publications have been on open sale in the Federation. Since the summer, OSCE has operated a press exchange scheme, but publications from the "other" entity were available only in the offices of participating papers. In addition, Slobodna Bosna (Sarajevo) and Nezavisne novine (Banja Luka) were set to initiate on 1 December a mutual distribution agreement whereby 2,000 copies of each publication would be put on sale on the other's territory.
(SAFAX)

Young people in Mostar, Tuzla, Sarajevo and Banja Luka are planning to establish a joint monthly newspaper to be called Nepitani. The project unites the existing and independent youth papers Usput from Mostar, BOM from Banja Luka, Grafit from Lukavac (Tuzla) and Trash from Sarajevo. Their initiative is being supported by the international organisation Student Aid and by Media Plan.
(SAFAX)

Monitoring Report failed on 6 November (no 2) to mention the fact that USAID in Banja Luka is also among the agencies working to support the independent press in RS. We apologise for this omission. Monitoring Report can also be read on the Internet. You can find us at: http://www.demon.co.uk/iwpr/iwpr/iwpr.htm. Readers can find previous issues of War Report, Tribunal and Monitoring Report, as well as a review of the implementation of the Dayton agreement at the same address.

The following broadcast media were monitored for this report: SRT, RTV B&H, Croatian Radio Herceg-Bosna, TV Serbia and Croatian TV.

A Report by MEDIA PLAN and IWPR; Project Director: Zoran Udovicic Obala Kulina bana 4/I, 71000 Sarajevo, B&H Tel/Fax 071-667-734/735 E-mail: MEDIAPLAN_ZU@ZAMIR-SA.ztn.apc.org & 101657.3100@compuserve.com

(c) Copyright: The Institute for War and Peace Reporting 1996

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