- Title: YUGOSLAVIA: REPUBLICS OF SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO VOTE IN FREE ELECTIONS
- Date: 9th December 1990
- Summary: BELGRADE, YUGOSLAVIA (DECEMBER 9, 1990) 1. SVS SERBIAN PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC VOTES (2 SHOTS) 0.15 2. CU MILOSEVIC SURROUNDED BY REPORTERS AS HE LEAVES POLLING STATION 0.22 3. SV DRASKOVIC VOTING 0.34 4. SV DRASKOVIC DESCRIBING ELECTIONS TO REPORTER AS "CRIMINAL ACT" (ENGLISH) 0.46 5. GV EXTERIOR PEOPLE QUEUEING TO VOTE 0.49 6. SVS PEOPLE VOTING (2 SHOTS) 0.59 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 24th December 1990 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: BELGRADE, YOGUSLAVIA
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA1QG000OSWBEPNQK2EQL5C4FP9
- Story Text: BELGRADE, YOGUSLAVIA
The people of Serbia and Montenegro, Yogoslavia's largest and smallest republics, voted on Sunday (December 9) in free elections that could determine whether the fragile Baltic federation disintegrates.
The communists have been toppled from power in the other four republics this year in the first free elections in Yugoslavia since World War Two.
A deep economic crisis and bitter ethnic quarrels have pushed Yugoslavia close to collapse. The outcome in Serbia is considered crucial as the six republics prepared to arrange talks on holding the multi-ethnic federation together.
Police were out in force to patrol the snowy streets after a bitter election campaign as the 6.8 million voters in Serbia and almost 390,000 in Montenegro began heading for the polls.
The main Serbian opposition party, the nationalist Serbian Renewal Movement (SPO), accused the communists of trying to rig the election by allowing some people to vote a day ahead of schedule on Saturday without opposition observers present.
SPO leader Vuk Draskovic said in a protest to the election commission that they must act according to the election law and immediately annul all results of this "criminal voting."
Communist Slobodan Milosevic is widely expected to be re-elected Serbian president ahead of Draskovic, a fervent nationalist who blames communism for all Serbia's problems.
The communists, now called socialists, could lose control of Serbia's 250-seat parliament but are widely expected to keep power in Montenegro, a poor republic of 600,000 people bordering Albania.
<strong>Source: REUTERS - NIKOLA VITOROVIC</strong> - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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