DATE=4/8/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=BOSNIAN ELECTIONS (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-261071
BYLINE=TIM BELAY
DATELINE=TIRANA
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Bosnians are voting in municipal elections
Saturday. Tim Belay reports Western officials hope
voters there will use the occasion to reject hardline
nationalism, which in the past has led to war and
bloodshed.
TEXT: Pre-election surveys indicate more moderate
politicians will win in some areas, including the
capital Sarajevo. But diplomats and observers say it's
probably too soon after the devastating conflict of
1992-1995 to expect radical political change. This is
in contrast to the results of recent voting in
neighboring Croatia, where a centrist coalition this
year ended a decade of nationalist rule. Bosnians will
be electing councils in 145 municipalities. Saturday's
vote is the second municipal election since
the war. General elections were held in 1996 and 1998.
With many Serbs, Croats and Muslims likely to continue
voting along ethnic lines rather than on economic
issues, hardline parties look set to remain
influential in post-war Bosnia, despite poverty and an
estimated forty percent jobless rate. Even though the
fighting in Bosnia ended almost five years ago,
Western officials say corruption and poor local
leadership are still hampering efforts to speed up
refugee returns and introduce free market reforms.
These are seen as the key areas which would reduce
Bosnia's dependence on massive foreign aid.
Since ethnically based parties remain popular,
observers say the international community has done
little to change the political landscape in post-war
Bosnia. For example, the Serb Democratic Party founded
a decade ago by wartime Bosnian Serb leader Radovan
Karadzic -- now an indicted war criminal in hiding --
is expected to remain the single biggest party. SDS
leaders insist the party has changed and that Mr.
Karadzic no longer has any influence on it.
In Croat areas in the south, the local branch of the
nationalist Croatian Democratic Union is expected to
retain power, despite its heavy defeat in Croatia.
Still, the opposition Social Democratic Party, which
enjoys support from the West, is predicted to do well
in Sarajevo. Some two and a half million Bosnians are
eligible to vote. Preliminary results are expected by
Monday. (signed)
NEB/TB/PLM
08-Apr-2000 05:05 AM EDT (08-Apr-2000 0905 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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