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DATE=10/05/00

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=Yugoslavia Elections (L)

NUMBER=2-267482

BYLINE=Eve Conant

DATELINE=Pristina

INTERNET=YES

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: Yugoslavia's democratic opposition is preparing for a massive rally in Belgrade as it awaits President Slobodan Milosevic's response to a Thursday afternoon deadline to concede defeat to its candidate Vojislav Kostunica. Correspondent Eve Conant in Pristina reports the Tanjug News Agency says Yugoslavia's constitutional court will release details of plans to annul some election results from the first round of voting September 24th.

TEXT: Mr. Kostunica responded to the news by the Yugoslav constitutional court by saying the ruling could be a concession or in his words, "this could just be a big trap." The constitutional court was examining the opposition's claim that the elections were rigged.

The independent Beta News Agency said the court was looking at the vote counting process and also how election results had been released.

Tension in Yugoslavia was coming to a head Thursday with the opposition calling for President Milosevic to step down immediately or face a massive and growing campaign of civil disobedience.

Opposition candidate Vojislav Kostunica says he won outright in the first round of voting September 24th and will boycott a second round scheduled for October 8th.

Demonstrations have been growing in momentum each day with tens of thousands coming to the streets to support what they say was a Kostunica victory. Busloads of police faced off with striking coal miners at the Kolubara mine, south of Belgrade, late Wednesday. But opposition supporters came to the scene to support the striking miners breaking police lines without any significant reports of violence.

President Milosevic so far has refused to heed both domestic and international recognition of Mr. Kostunica as the legitimate victor of the presidential election and insists a second round will be held this coming Sunday.

NEB/EV/TVM-T/PLM