Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1989
YUGOSLAVIA
.
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia is a multiethnic,
federal state comprising six republics (one of which has two
autonomous provinces); the Constitution terms the League of
Communists of Yugoslavia (LCY) the "leading organized
political and ideological force."
The ideology and practice of Yugoslav "workers'
self-management" socialism differ substantially from the
traditional centralized Soviet model. In the highly
decentralized system set up by the late President Tito, the
locus of power resides with republic and provincial government
and party authorities. This system was intended to preserve
stability among Yugoslavia's contentious ethnic groups, but it
has also impeded effective leadership at the national level.
State security and uniformed police are under the jurisdiction
of Federal and Republic Secretaries for Internal Affairs. The
armed forces are under Federal jurisdiction, although a
controversial amendment to the constitution of the Republic of
Slovenia is intended to restrict their use in that Republic.
In the economic system, workers' self -management is intended
to allow workers to run their own enterprises through a system
of elected workers' councils. In practice, however, political
officials have traditionally exercised considerable, and often
decisive, influence over the management of enterprises in
areas under their jurisdiction. The Yugoslav Government is
embarking on a major program of economic reform, intended to
open the Yugoslav economy to market forces by reducing
government regulation, reforming the banking system, expanding
competition by making enterprises more independent, and
encouraging private enterprise and foreign investment.
Obstacles to reform include political and bureaucratic
resistance and economic difficulties, such as an inflation
rate which may reach 2,500 percent by year's end. Nearly 85
percent of agricultural land in Yugoslavia is privately owned,
and there is a growing number of private enterprises in
services and small-scale manufacturing, particularly in the
Republics of Croatia, Slovenia, and Macedonia.
Political pressure to observe human rights continued in 1989,
coming both from within Yugoslavia and from external sources.
Freedom of speech and freedom of expression in the media and
the publishing industry increased, "alternative" political
associations were founded in several areas, and the first
direct elections were held in four republics, using the secret
ballot and multiple candidacies (all from the LCY) to choose
representatives to the collective Federal Presidency. The
Republic of Slovenia continued to lead the way toward
democratic practices.
In some other regions of the country with different historical
and cultural traditions, political and civil liberties,
including freedom of speech, press, and assembly, and the
right to a fair trial continue to be restricted to varying
degrees. There were numerous arrests on charges of "hostile
propaganda" and similar offenses, particularly in Kosovo and
in Macedonia, where ethnic Albanians accused of "nationalism
and separatism" were the primary victims. According to
government reports released in 1989, of 436 persons officially
acknowledged to have been sentenced for political offenses in
Yugoslavia, 336 were in Kosovo. March demonstrations by
ethnic Albanians protesting the Serbian effort to assert
greater control over the Province of Kosovo led to at least 25
deaths, including those of two police officers.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no reported instances of such killings in
Yugoslavia.
b. Disappearance
No instances of prolonged or permanent disappearance were
reported.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
The Yugoslav Constitution and the law forbid torture, and
there were no reports of its practice. However, there were
numerous credible reports that people were sometimes beaten,
mistreated, or threatened during detention in Yugoslavia. The
Yugoslav press reported that many Albanians subjected to
"isolation" after March demonstrations in Kosovo (see Section
l.d.) were subjected to beating, deprivation of food and heat,
and other forms of mistreatment. In October guards were
indicted for beating Albanian prisoners in two Serbian
prisons. At year's end, the trial was continuing.
There are also credible reports that use of psychiatry is
abused in Yugoslavia. In 1989 the "Anatoliy Koryagin
Committee" was formed to document and protest psychiatric
abuse. The Koryagin Committee claims to have recorded at
least 60 such cases. The Yugoslav Forum for Human Rights, a
quasi-official body, in an appeal to the Yugoslav President,
included psychiatric abuse as one of the serious human rights
problems in the country. Legal experts believe that
government rngulations designed to safeguard against
involuntary admission to mental hospitals are sometimes
ignored.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
Yugoslav criminal law and procedures are influenced by the
Napoleonic and Soviet law codes. They include many provisions
inconsistent with generally accepted civil and human rights.
Yugoslav law provides for pretrial detention for up to 3
months, with a possible 3-month extension, which is often
implemented. Access to prisoners in pretrial detention by
family or legal counsel is sometimes restricted, ostensibly to
prevent interference with investigations. Fikret Abdic,
defendant in the highly publicized "Agrokomerc" financial
scandal, was held in jail for over 2 years during his trial
and pretrial investigation.
In March, as part of government measures to counter
demonstrations by Albanians protesting Serbian efforts to
expand Serbian influence in Kosovo Province (see Section
2.b.), Yugoslav authorities subjected 237 Albanians from
Kosovo to a legal procedure known as "isolation" which had not
previously been used in Yugoslavia in this fashion. These
people were rounded up and held for up to 3 months, in most
cases denied access to attorneys or to families. The majority
were not held in Kosovo but in prisons in Serbia, where they
were subjected to beatings, cold, inadequate food, and harsh
interrogations. Isolated prisoners were reportedly detained
under suspicion of belonging to illegal organizations, contact
with "hostile" emigre groups, illegal aims trafficking, and
organizing strikes and demonstrations. Of the 237 persons
isolated, 41 were eventually charged with criminal offenses
and 18 with misdemeanors. Yugoslav human rights activists
consider the way the authorities employed isolation in Kosovo
to be inconsistent with Yugoslav criminal procedures, which
apparently allow such isolation through house arrest but not
through imprisonment. The use of "isolation" in Kosovo was
widely criticized in the Yugoslav press and even by the
President of Yugoslavia, and by July the authorities said that
no one was being held any longer in this condition.
In February Yugoslav authorities arrested Azem Vlasi, a former
leader of the League of Communists of Kosovo, on suspicion of
"counterrevolutionary activity." The trial of Vlasi and 14
others began in November and was still under way at year's
end. Based on the charges brought forward by the prosecutor,
however, Yugoslav human rights advocates have argued that the
charges against Vlasi amount to holding him criminally liable
for policies he carried out, while a leader in Kosovo, which
ran counter to those of Serbia.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
Each republic and province has its own criminal code and court
system. Decisions by the highest republican and provincial
courts, their supreme courts, may be appealed to the Federal
Supreme Court, which seeks to ensure the uniform application
of law. The Constitutional Court may rule on the
constitutionality of laws and regulations. Offenses by those
in the armed forces or offenses by civilians deemed to affect
national security are tried in the military court system.
Defendants have the right to be present at their trials and to
have an attorney, at public expense if needed. The majority
of trials, including those on political charges, are conducted
in accordance with Yugoslav legal norms, without overt
interference by outside authorities. In some cases, however,
Yugoslav courts may be influenced by political authorities.
During debate in 1988 over a proposed constitutional amendment
to remove the "moral-political" suitability test imposed for
the election of judges of regular courts, considerable
criticism emerged of political interference and other
conditions (low pay, short terms of office, election by the
local communities ) which combine to make judges susceptible
to outside influence.
In many political cases, the outcome is often predetermined by
the political authorities. Moreover, the Yugoslav legal
system contains numerous inequities toward the defendant,
regardless of whether the trial is criminal or political.
Long periods of pretrial detention are allowed. The defense
is sometimes restricted in the time allowed to prepare its
case. While the prosecution can call as witnesses whomever it
wants, the defendant has the right only to request the court
to call witnesses, and the court has complete discretion
whether or not to honor the request. The Supreme Court is
considered to be more free of political interference than
local or republic-level courts, according to some legal
observers.
Although ordinary criminal trials are almost always open to
the public, some political trials are not. In September
observers from the International Helsinki Federation who
sought to visit an "open" trial in Kosovo were told that
foreigners could not attend.
The Federal Criminal Code defines a number of "political"
criminal acts ranging from armed rebellion, terrorism, and
espionage, to broad, imprecise categories such as hostile
propaganda, "arousing national, racial, and religious hatred,
dissension, or intolerance," and "damaging the reputation of
Yugoslavia." In addition, the republic and provincial
criminal codes cover a variety of misdemeanors considered
political crimes, including "spreading false rumors and
defaming the peoples and nationalities of Yugoslavia."
Authorities frequently bring charges against those who make
derogatory or inflammatory ethnic statements or other
statements considered politically unacceptable. There is wide
variation in local practice.
Yugoslav law permits the arrest and imprisonment of Yugoslav
citizens for acts considered criminal offenses under Yugoslav
law, even when they are committed abroad and are not crimes in
the country in which they take place. Such cases are often
based on the expression of views "hostile" to the Yugoslav
Government or association with perceived anti-Yugoslav emigre
groups. In February the Committee for Defense of Thought and
Expression, a Belgrade-based human rights group, revealed that
author Mihajlo Mihajlov's citizenship had been revoked by the
Secretariat of Internal Affairs of the Republic of
Bosnia-Hercegovina because of critical statements he had made
in the United States about the Yugoslav Government. Yugoslav
law permits the revocation of citizenship if the defendant had
another citizenship (in this case, U.S. citizenship) and if he
"through work abroad causes damage to the international and
other interests of Yugoslavia...."
The precise number of political prisoners in Yugoslavia is
difficult to determine. In 1989 Amnesty International
estimated that at least 200 political prisoners were being
held in 1988. Yugoslav authorities sometimes release
statistics on "political" prisoners, but these are often
incomplete or misleading. Moreover, Yugoslav statistics on
political prisoners generally appear to refer to persons
sentenced for criminal offenses and do not include the larger
number of people who receive misdemeanor sentences of 30 to 60
days for verbal crimes under republic or provincial laws.
After an amnesty in November in which 45 political prisoners
were released, Yugoslav government figures indicated that 232
persons were still being held in Yugoslavia for political
crimes. Government statistics for 1988, released in June
1989, revealed that, of 517 political charges filed
nationwide, 43 percent of the defendants were ethnic Albanians
from Kosovo, many accused of engaging in "separatist"
activities. Albanians were tried in other republics as well
as in Kosovo.
In the first half of 1989, charges for political crimes were
filed against 174 people in Croatia, resulting in 36
convictions, according to the Yugoslav press. As of September
19, 1989, in Kosovo, which has the largest number of political
prisoners in the country, 1,180 people had been indicted for
misdemeanors, and 56 for more serious criminal acts in
connection with the March demonstrations. Yugoslav
authorities state that such repressive measures are intended
to repel a threat to political stability which they believe is
posed by Albanian "nationalism and separatism."
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence
Arbitrary interference in private life occurs most often in
connection with government efforts to monitor opposition or
dissident activity. Although the judicial system includes
restrictions on arbitrary searches, these safeguards are
sometimes ignored. Authorities eavesdrop on conversations,
read private mail, and tap telephones in some cases. Yugoslav
citizens are generally free to receive and read foreign
publications; however, the publications of certain Yugoslav
emigre groups, particularly those advocating the dissolution
of the Yugoslav Federation or the redrawing of its internal
political boundaries, are considered hostile in themselves,
and their importation, possession, or sale is illegal.
Possession or circulation of pamphlets advocating republic
status for Kosovo in itself is considered a criminal offense.
In April, for example, Ismail Sherifi was sentenced to
2 months' imprisonment for possessing photographs of symbols
representing "Greater Albania," and many other Albanians have
been similarly sentenced (see Section 2. a).
g. Use of Excessive Force and Violations of Humanitarian Law in Internal Conflicts
The continuing Serbian campaign to assert greater political
control over the predominantly ethnic Albanian Province of
Kosovo (an area within the Republic of Serbia that Serbs
consider the historic cradle of their nation) led to
demonstrations by Albanians in February and March. The
Federal Government sent thousands of troops and police,
introduced a curfew, and banned public meetings. After
amendments to the Serbian Constitution were rammed through the
Kosovo Provincial Assembly in March, youthful demonstrators
began throwing stones at police, who responded with tear gas.
On March 27, the demonstrations turned violent, resulting in
the official toll of 25 deaths, including those of 2 police
officers. According to official accounts, security forces did
not begin firing until after one police officer had been
killed by gunfire. Unofficial sources assert that the
security forces used excessive force in dispersing the
demonstrators, including by beating them, indiscriminately
firing at them (sometimes from helicopters), and using
ammunition designed to increase deaths and injuries.
Unofficial and unsubstantiated reports assert that the number
of demonstrators killed exceeded the officially admitted
total. Government sources say 58,000 Albanians participated
in the March demonstrations; they identified 1,665 of them and
brought misdemeanor charges against 1,180 and criminal charges
against 56. During demonstrations on November 2 and 3, at
least three people were killed while protesting the trial of
Azem Vlasi (see Section l.d.), and 138 people were later
convicted of misdemeanors in connection with the
demonstrations.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
Although the Yugoslav Constitution and law affirm the freedom
of speech and press, and there is a trend towards greater
respect for these freedoms, both law and practice impose
significant restrictions.
Arrests and convictions for what are called "verbal crimes"
(most often charges involving "nationalism" or "hostile
propaganda") continued in Kosovo Province and in Macedonia and
also occurred in other parts of Yugoslavia. The charge is
often used in combination with other charges such as "forming
illegal hostile organizations." For example, in April Fikirye
Musa was sentenced to 1 1/2 years' imprisonment in Pristina,
Kosovo, for her unpublished writings, including pro-Albanian
poetry, found in her possession. Ten others, all under the
age of 22, were codefendants in the trial. Three defendants
stated in court that they were exercising their freedom to
express nonhostile and noncounterrevolutionary opinions.
Nedzat Malichi and Hairedin Hiseni were sentenced to 5 years
each, the heaviest sentences passed at the trial.
In March Muzafer Ljuti was sentenced to 60 days' imprisonment
for shouting slogans in a restaurant and in a public square in
Macedonia. In April Violtsa Dushi , a bank director's
secretary, was sentenced to 60 days' imprisonment for taking
part in a demonstration in Urosevac, Serbia, where she shouted
hostile slogans. Some months earlier, she allegedly had made
a pro-Albanian speech to pupils at the local youth sports
center.
Outbursts of nationalism from other ethnic groups also led to
political trials. In July some 30 people were arrested and 6
convicted on misdemeanor charges of disrupting an official
commemoration in Knin, Croatia, of the 600th anniversary of
the Battle of Kosovo. One of these, Jovan Opacic, after
serving his misdemeanor sentence, was indicted for the same
actions under more serious criminal charges of "committing a
criminal act against the Socialist self-management system and
security of Yugoslavia" and "against the reputation of
Yugoslavia." At his trial in September, the most severe
charges against Opacic were dropped, and he was sentenced to
90 days' imprisonment on lesser charges.
All media are state owned, but the degree of official
oversight varies from republic to republic. Government
oversight of the media is carried out through publications
boards, which include ranking party officials. There are
important informal channels for official supervision of the
press, including editorial staffs' use of self-censorship.
Eighty-one percent of Yugoslav journalists in a recent poll
said they were members of the League of Communists. If a
story or press criticism displeases senior officials,
journalists and editors may be reprimanded, removed,
transferred, or encounter difficulty in future employment.
In May local authorities in Bar, Montenegro, closed down Radio
Bar because of its sympathetic coverage of a dockworkers'
strike. Local authorities recommended that journalists
covering the strike te disciplined, but republic authorities
intervened on the strikers' behalf, and the station resumed
broadcasting. Foreign broadcast media are easily received in
Yugoslavia.
Despite periodic bans on specific publications, the media have
increased latitude to discuss and comment freely on a wide
range of political and social topics. They directly criticize
government and LCY officials at all levels, although,
reflecting the political infighting among the republics, they
prefer to target officials outside their own republics.
Direct criticism of Tito is still rare and controversial.
Albanians in Kosovo may well be jailed for calling for their
Province to be given republic status within Yugoslavia, while
in other parts of the country journalists or public figures
may openly advocate this step. The first nonofficial
newspaper since World War II began publication in 1989 in
Slovenia.
Public prosecutors have the power to ban temporarily the
publication and sale of books or periodicals if they think
that the content is, for example, "false" or could "disturb"
the public. However, a judge must review the temporary ban,
and editors have the right to contest the prosecutor's
decision at the hearing. In February Ratko Dimitrovic was
sentenced to 3 months in jail for an article he had written in
Politika, a Belgrade daily, in 1988. An issue of the magazine
Nasi Dani was banned in April because it was found to be
insulting to Bosnian officials. In 1989 at least nine
magazine issues were banned, seven of them student
publications. In three cases, the ban was later lifted by
court order on appeal. Banning publications is usually done
at the local or republic level. The criteria for such action
varies from region to region; and criticism of the Federal
Government was the most frequent reason cited for banning
publications.
Indirect constraints can sometimes also be applied to
publications. The Serbian youth magazine Non had its printing
contract with the Politika publishing house canceled in
November because of Non's criticism of Politika's stands in
support of the Serbian leadership. Non was able to find
another printer, however. In December Politika canceled the
printing contracts of two other magazines, citing "technical
reasons .
"
In book publishing, the authorities generally provide only
loose oversight. The Yugoslav publishing industry puts out a
wide range of U.S. and Western European books, including the
works of Soviet and Eastern European dissidents. "The Satanic
Verses" was published in both Macedonian and Serbo-Croatian in
1989, despite objections from Yugoslav Muslim groups.
Academic freedom was severely damaged in the Province of
Kosovo when at least 30 instructors were expelled from the
University of Pristina, and large numbers of teachers at all
educational levels were disciplined or fired under suspicion
of influencing students toward Albanian separatist views. At
least 1,500 party members have been expelled in Kosovo for
allegedly espousing separatist views, and Kosovo party
officials have stated that those expelled should also be fired
from "leading positions," including those in the managerial
level of business enterprises.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Yugoslav Constitution guarantees freedom of assembly, but
this right traditionally has been severely circumscribed in
practice. Public political demonstrations generally have been
permitted only in support of offici3.1 policies and by
officially recognized organizations. All public gatherings
must be registered by the authorities, who will often seek to
ban those that run counter to official policies. In 1988 and
1989, however, thousands of discontented workers or farmers
marched in peaceful but unauthorized protest demonstrations to
Belgrade or republic capitals. The authorities generally met
with the protesters and did not try to disperse them by force.
In 1989 there were a number of large demonstrations in Serbia,
Kosovo, Montenegro, and elsewhere. Demonstrations by Serbs
were tolerated or even encouraged if they coincided with the
Serbian leadership's objectives. Albanian demonstrators in
Yugoslavia, even if peaceful, faced possible use of force by
police and dismissal from their jobs. Albanian demonstrations
in Kosovo were banned and eventually dispersed by force.
Demonstrations in Montenegro in January led to the overthrow
of the Republic government. After a peaceful demonstration by
several thousand Serbs on July 9 in the Croatian town of Knin,
6 persons were sentenced to 30 to 60 days' imprisonment on
misdemeanor charges.
In Macedonia, Liman Jashari was sentenced to 10 years, and
four others were sentenced to terms of from 6 to 8 years for
organizing the August 1988 demonstration in Kumanovo of ethnic
Albanians. In the Macedonian town of Bitolj , 10 ethnic
Albanians were tried for "hostile propaganda," "association
with the aim of carrying out hostile activities," and
"counterrevolutionary acts." Eight ethnic Albanians in
Macedonia were sentenced in 1989 to prison terms of from 5 to
11 years for participating in a demonstration on language
rights.
In Kosovo, Yugoslav authorities reacted strongly to
demonstrations and strikes in February and March (see Section
l.f.). Slovenian authorities banned a May 8 demonstration
organized by nonofficial groups supporting the "Ljubljana 4,"
a group of journalists and one soldier convicted in 1988 on
charges of revealing military secrets. The demonstration took
place, however, when the official youth organization agreed to
sponsor the event. Slovenian authorities banned a
demonstration of Serbs and Montenegrins planned for December 1
in Ljubljana.
Freedom of association is guaranteed under the Yugoslav
Constitution, and, although the scope of political association
is limited by the monopoly of power of the LCY, many new
nonofficial organizations have formed in the past year. To
obtain legal status, organizations must register with the
Government, but many do not, and the law is laxly enforced.
In February the Association for a Yugoslav Democratic
Initiative met for the first time in Zagreb. By the end of
the year, the organization had chapters in many cities in
Yugoslavia, including Belgrade, Sarajevo, and Titograd. A
number of nonofficial organizations were founded in Croatia in
1989. In December the Croatian League of Communists agreed
with a proposal by these groups for early republic elections
in which all political groups could compete. Other new
organizations include human rights groups and environmental
groups in Montenegro and Serbia. In Slovenia, many alternative
political associations formed in 1988 and 1989 will be
competing for seats in the republic elections in the spring of
1990. Human rights organizations, for esample the Yugoslav
branch of the International Helsinki Federation, have
unhampered contact with their international affiliates.Association for the purpose of hostile activities is a crime
under Yugoslav criminal law, and this law has been used to
prosecute ethnic Albanians who advocate republic status for
Kosovo. In February 11 Albanians were convicted in Pristina,
Kosovo, on this charge, receiving sentences of from 4 months
to 8 years. In April, 10 ethnic Albanians were convicted in
Prizren, Kosovo, on this charge, receiving sentences of from 1
to 5 years. Most of the accused belonged to an association
called "Marxist-Leninists of Kosovo." A group of ethnic
Albanian soldiers was convicted in January under this article
for organizing a hostile association in their garrison in Nis
in April 1988.
For a discussion of freedom of association as it applies to
labor unions, see Section 6. a.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Yugoslav Constitution provides for freedom of religious
practice but proscribes "abuse" of religion and religious
activities for political purposes. Yugoslav authorities
officially encourage atheism. Religious believers in
Yugoslavia are not generally subject to overt persecution, but
open practice of one's faith is normally a disqualification
for high positions in government, business, the media, and
academia. In practice, however, religious freedoms vary from
republic to republic, depending in part on the political and
historical role of the various religions. The largest faiths
in Yugoslavia are Serbian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and
Islamic. Since World War II, the Jewish community has
numbered fewer than 10,000, but it is active and well
organized. There is a small Protestant community which
includes denominations such as Pentecostals, Baptists, and
Jehovah's Witnesses.
In Serbia, the Serbian Orthodox Church has enjoyed unusually
good relations with republic authorities over the past 2
years. The Serbian media in general have provided an
unusually comprehensive and sympathetic view of religion.
Belgrade television covered Christmas celebrations in
Belgrade, Zagreb, and Ljubljana in 1988 and the dedication of
the new Cathedral of St. Sava in Belgrade in June 1989.
In Slovenia, where most believers are Catholic, the
authorities also have displayed a tolerant attitude toward
religion. In 1989 December 25 became an official holiday in
Slovenia. The authorities in Croatia, however, have a more
reserved position toward the Catholic Church, in part stemming
from a tradition of conflict between the Catholic Church and
the Communist authorities that goes back to World War II.
All Saints' Day (November 1) became an official holiday in
Croatia in 1989.
Yugoslav authorities maintain restrictions on the public
activities of religious communities, including limits on
religious education, on publishing activity, and on the
construction of new churches and other facilities. In recent
years, the application of these rules has been more relaxed in
keeping with a somewhat more tolerant approach by the
authorities toward all nonofficial activity. As yet, however,
there have been no changes in the rules themselves. Religious
communities in Yugoslavia have vigorous publishing programs,
although they do not have their own printing facilities. The
construction of new places of worship requires the consent of
local government authorities, who sometimes construct
bureaucratic obstacles. The Serbian Orthodox Church in Split,
Croatia, a predominantly Catholic area, is having difficulty
in getting permission to complete its Church, and the Islamic
communities in Belgrade and Split have had applications
pending to build new mosques for many years. Authorities in
Macedonia have been reluctant to issue permits for the
construction of new mosques. In the Banat region of Vojvodina
Province, authorities reportedly denied permission to begin
the construction of churches in 1989. In Zagreb (Croatia),
the Jewish community has received official permission to
construct a new synagogue, which will be combined with a
Jewish cultural center. Several new mosques were completed in
Bosnia in 1989, but up to 500 requests for building permits
for religious edifices remain unfulfilled in this republic,
where Muslims account for about 40 percent of the population.
Primary education outside the state system is not permitted in
Yugoslavia. There are some opportunities for religious
education at the secondary and university level for all major
faiths. The Catholic Church, for example, maintains 8
secondary schools (about 100 pupils each), 2 theological
faculties, and 5 seminaries in Croatia and Slovenia. The
Serbian Orthodox Church has four high schools and two
theological faculties, one of which just opened in 1989. The
Yugoslav Islamic Association runs three high schools in the
Muslim areas of the country and one Islamic theological
faculty in Sarajevo. The degrees offered by these
institutions are not officially recognized by the Yugoslav
authorities. Yugoslav religious communities, both Christian
and Muslim, also make vigorous efforts to provide religious
instruction outside of school for children and young people.
Religious believers are subject to restrictions while doing
obligatory military service. Active duty military personnel
may not attend religious services or have religious materials
in their possession. In April the Federal Presidency amended
the law on military service to permit conscientious objectors
to serve in the military without bearing arms for a period of
24 months, twice as long as the standard conscription period.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
Freedom of movement within the country is provided for by the
Constitution and generally permitted in practice. No exit
permits are required to visit the more than 135 countries with
which Yugoslavia has diplomatic or consular relations.
Passports are routinely available to most Yugoslavs, and
roughly half of Yugoslavia's population has passports for
foreign travel. Approximately 700,000 Yugoslavs are employed
as "guest workers" in Western Europe.
The Yugoslav authorities have sometimes denied passports to
well-known dissidents, but recently prominent critics, such as
Milovan Djilas and Dobroslav Paraga, have received passports
and traveled abroad. In Croatia, human rights activists
demonstrated in front of the Croatian Parliament in early 1989
to seek reinstatement of passports for the approximately 50
Croats who have had their passports confiscated or denied on
political grounds.
In 1989, however, the authorities began to deny passports to
Albanians and Gypsies, in large part because so many of them
were seeking asylum in the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG).
In 1988, 20,800 Yugoslavs sought asylum in the FRG. According
to press reports, FRG authorities threatened to require visas
for all Yugoslavs entering the FRG, which would have created a
hardship for the approximately 600,000 Yugoslavs already
living there. The Yugoslav Government responded by denying
passports to several thousand people, mostly in Kosovo and
Macedonia.
The law on the entry of foreigners into Yugoslavia notes the
right of permanent asylum and provides for government
assistance to persons granted that right. Yugoslavia extends
temporary asylum to refugees who, with the assistance of the
Belgrade office of the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR), seek permanent resettlement in third
countries. According to UNHCR figures, in the first 11 months
of 1989, a total of 4,401 new cases were registered with UNHCR
in Yugoslavia, and 4,171 cases were resolved by permanent
settlement outside Yugoslavia. As of November 30, 1989, there
were 1,081 people residing in Yugoslavia who had been accepted
by the UNHCR refugee program but whose permanent settlement
had yet to be arranged. Of those interviewed by UNHCR during
this period, one-third were denied refugee status and returned
by Yugoslav authorities to their country of origin.
Romania is the source of most refugees in Yugoslavia. The
Yugoslav Government says it screens out what it considers
"undesirables:" criminals, mentally ill people, and
unaccompanied minors are sent back to Romania without the
opportunity to be interviewed by the UNHCR. The number of
Romanians seeking asylum who are returned to Romania without
being interviewed by the UNHCR is a matter of some dispute.
In October, about 30 Romanians (out of several hundred
asylum-seekers held in a Yugoslav detention facility) were
involuntarily returned to Romania following their
participation in a hunger strike protesting the action of the
Yugoslav authorities to force them to depart the country
without being interviewed by the UNHCR. After the toppling of
the Ceasescu regime, some of the Romanian asylum-seekers in
Yugoslavia voluntarily returned to Romania.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
Yugoslav citizens do not have the right to change the basic
system of government. The 2-million-member League of
Communists of Yugoslavia (LCY) formally maintains a monopoly
on political power. The party's authority at the Federal
level, however, is greatly dispersed and diluted because of
the decentralization of decisionmaking power to the parties in
the six republics and two provinces. With few exceptions, no
major initatives, including constitutional amendments, may be
adopted by the Federal Government without the unanimous
consent of the republics and provinces. Autonomous political
"associations" proliferated in 1988 and 1989, reflecting a
growing demand at the grassroots level.
The collective State Presidency (Chief of State) is
responsible for overall policy direction. The Federal
Executive Council (Cabinet), headed by the Prime Minister, is
responsible for running the governmental machinery and
proposing specific legislation. The terms of government
officials are from 1 to 5 years, with a possible extension for
one additional term.
The Federal Assembly, responsible for enacting legislation,
operates sometimes by majority vote and sometimes by consensus
among delegations representing the country's eight Federal
units. Although over 99 percent of the assembly delegates are
members of the LCY, the Assembly has been active and
contentious in recent years and has several times rejected or
drastically altered proposals endorsed by the Presidency and
Cabinet. Its debates generally are fully reported in the
media. As a result of 1988 constitutional amendments, in the
spring of 1990 one house of the bicameral Federal Assembly
will for the first time be chosen by direct election using
secret ballots and multiple candidacies.
In 1989, for the first time, members of the Federal Presidency
from Slovenia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Hercegovina, and Macedonia
were elected in their republics in competitive elections by
secret ballot. All the candidates were members of the LCY,
and government organs controlled the list of candidates.
There are about 20 "alternative movements" in Yugoslavia, some
of which are registered as official organizations and some of
which are not. Some of the "alternatives" operate under the
umbrella of the Socialist Alliance of Working People, a
party-approved mass organization. Others openly advocate
competition with the LCY and, in Slovenia, have indicated
their intention to put forth lists of candidates in the 1990
spring elections. Independent groups in Croatia may do so as
well. The national daily Borba printed the platforms of 16
alternative groups in June. Among the groups founded in 1989
were the Croatian Social-Liberal Alliance, the Alliance of
Workers, the Social Democratic Union of Slovenia, and the
Association for a Yugoslav Democratic Initiative. An old
established organization, the Serbian Writers Association,
issued a public statement in May calling for an independent
judiciary, a free press, and the introduction of a multiparty
system in Yugoslavia.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
In the past, the Government criticized Western charges of
human rights violations within Yugoslavia as interference in
Yugoslav internal affairs and as efforts to bring pressure on
Yugoslavia to alter its social, economic, or political
system. In recent years, the Government has been somewhat
more willing to acknowledge human rights as a legitimate topic
for other governments. It is still reserved about discussing
specific instances of human rights violations, particularly
alleged violations in Kosovo. A fact-finding mission from the
European Parliament in June was denied a meeting with
political prisoners and was harshly criticized in the press.
A September delegation from the International Helsinki
Federation met unofficially with ethnic Albanians and Serbs
but was denied any meetings with government officials. The
group returned in October for meetings with government
officials, including the President, the first time an official
of that rank had met with human rights activists. Yugoslavia
is a member of the U.N. Human Rights Commission.
Of the domestic human rights groups, the largest is the Forum
for Human Rights, established by the Socialist Alliance to
monitor domestic human rights trends and foster understanding
of Yugoslavia's international commitments to human rights.
The Forum has presented findings and suggestions for changes
in the legal code to the Federal Presidency and the Federal
Ministry of Justice, including elimination of "verbal crimes"
and the practice of isolating prisoners.
Helsinki Watch has a branch in Yugoslavia, and several
independent human rights groups have sprung up among the
"alternative movements." In April, 30 human rights
organizations from all over Yugoslavia met for the first time
in Sarajevo, Bosnia. They founded a joint committee, the
Sarajevo Trial Working Group, which on December 11 published a
letter in the national daily Borba criticizing human rights
abuses in a 1983 trial of Muslim fundamentalists.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution provides for the equality of citizens
regardless of sex, and the Government is officially opposed to
racial discrimination. Despite government efforts, however,
some social prejudice continues to exist, particularly with
regard to ethnic Albanians and Gypsies, who constitute 8 and
0.7 percent respectively of Yugoslavia's population. On the
other hand, the Serbian minority in the Autonomous Province of
Kosovo has complained sharply of physical mistreatment and
discriminatory practices on the part of the Albanian majority
(over 90 percent of Kosovo's population).
Ethnic Albanians are concerned about anti-Albanian sentiment
in the country as a whole. There is legitimate suspicion that
certain government policies on family subsidies are
specifically aimed at ethnic Albanians, who have the highest
birthrate in Europe. Macedonia already limits "social
welfare" payments to the first three children in a family;
Serbia is considering plans to follow suit. Macedonian
authorities have manipulated building code regulations
governing the height of walls to justify the bulldozing of
walls that traditionally surround Albanian homes in the
Republic.
In an effort to reverse the emigration of Serbs and
Montenegrins from Kosovo, Serbia restricts all sales of real
property in Kosovo by Serbs and Montenegrins to Albanians.
Prospective sales must be submitted to a review board which
determines whether or not the sale was "coerced" by the
Albanian purchaser. In practice, this amounts to a ban on
purchase of Serbian and Montenegrin property in Kosovo by
Albanians. Some try to avoid the restriction by engaging in
"secret sales," which is a criminal offense. In September two
ethnic Albanians were sentenced to 60-day jail terms for
secretly buying Serbian property in Vucitrn. It appears that
only Albanian buyers are prosecuted for such transactions, not
Serbian sellers.
Similarly, jobs and housing are reserved for ethnic Serbs who
wish to move back to Kosovo. Some Albanians were fired simply
to make room for returning Serbs. In one instance, the nephew
of the former Kosovo party chief Azem Vlasi was fired because
"his presence was an irritant to the Serbs in the workplace,"
according to the Yugoslav press.
There is legal equality of the sexes under Yugoslav law.
Maternity leave for employed women is routinely granted for
periods between 9 and 12 months. Working mothers are given
day-care allowances based on their salaries and the number of
children to be cared for. Also, a working mother may take
sick leave when her child is ill (up until 2 years after its
birth), and the father may do so when the mother is ill.
Statistics on the prevalence of violence against women are not
readily available, but spouse abuse is not uncommon in the
lesser developed parts of Yugoslavia. Legal penalties for
spousal abuse are the same as those for assault of any person;
however, the abused spouse must make out a complaint, and this
is seldom done. Data collected by feminist hotlines in
Zagreb, Belgrade, and Ljubljana over the past 2 years recorded
6,000 women who reported wife abuse. The same source reported
that women's lives were endangered in one case out of five.
The official Yugoslav Women's Organization has begun a legal
initiative to exact harsher legal penalties for wife abuse and
rape and to make the Slovene Republic law against rape within
marriage also a Federal law. Federal marriage laws allow the
woman to keep her maiden name, to continue working if she
wishes, and to have "equal input in the decision as to where
the couple will live." There are feminist groups in the
larger cities of Slovenia, Croatia, and Serbia (including
Vojvodina) campaigning for improvements in women's rights.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Since 1950 Yugoslavia has had a unique industrial relations
system in which most enterprises are neither privately owned
nor owned by the state, but are defined as socially owned.
Neither the Yugoslav Constitution nor the law prohibit the
formation of unions outside the structure of the sole labor
central known as the Council of Trade Unions of Yugoslavia
(CTUY) . However, the CTUY is accorded various rights and
responsibilities under legislation, and the Constitution also
provides that unions shall pursue the objective of building
and defending a self-managing Socialist society.
Trade unions are organized geographically by republic and
province and by craft at all levels. Workers are not required
to join the official unions, but virtually all workers (93
percent) in the socially owned sector of the economy do. The
trade unions are formally independent of the Government and
the LCY but unquestionably are influenced by political
leaders. The degree of political influence appears to vary
considerably by region and level. Trade union independence in
general appears to be growing, as reflected in the increasing
frequency of strikes and strike threats organized by the
unions. (A majority of strikes in 1989 were organized by union
bodies .
)
Federal law makes no provision for the free formation of
independent trade unions, although there is no specific ban
either. At the republic level, an amendment to the
constitution of Slovenia adopted in September provides for
free trade union association. In Croatia, the Republic
Presidency and official union organization have both publicly
backed the free formation of independent unions. Moreover,
workers in that Republic established their own railroad union
in November, and Yugoslavia's commercial pilots formed an
independent union in December. The issue has not become
relevant for small private firms to date, and the rights of
the trade unions to organize in the private sector are
guaranteed by the new law on labor relations.
Yugoslav workers have had a constitutionally guaranteed right
to strike since November 1988, although strikes have been
commonplace for years. A law on strikes is currently under
debate in the Federal Assembly. The right to strike includes,
and is exercised by, workers in socially owned firms and the
Government. Preliminary figures indicate some 1,900 strikes
occurred during 1989, involving 470,000 workers.
Strikes are resolved through negotiations between the workers'
strike committee and a combination of management, the workers'
council, and (at times) politicians. The position of the
trade union generally depends on the activism of the union
local. In Slovenia, Croatia, and Macedonia, official union
policy enjoins locals to support or sponsor strikes favored by
a majority of workers.
Although not a participating member of the World Confederation
of Labor since 1950, the CTUY has good cooperation with that
organization, as well as with the European Trade Union
Confederation. The CTUY, although not a member of the
Communist-controlled World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) ,
has also begun cooperation with the WFTU at the craft union
level.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Western-style collective bargaining has not existed in
Yugoslavia. The new law on labor relations introduces the
concept of "collective agreements" to be negotiated between
the unions and Chambers of Economy (semiofficial Chambers of
Commerce), but the system remained untested in 1989. Workers
at present continue to protect their interests through the
self-management system.
All large firms in Yugoslavia are socially rather than
privately owned. All the employees at any one enterprise
belong to the same trade union, which also includes the
managers. Under Yugoslav law, workers elect their council (a
body separate from the trade unions) which has a voice in
selecting management and must approve by majority vote major
(and sometimes minor) business decisions, including wage
levels, by the enterprise. Enterprise managers are
increasingly bound by law to more Western-style standards of
business discipline. Yugoslavia has no economic incentive
zones, nor are there any special industries where labor
standards differed from those elsewhere in the country.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
Forced labor is prohibited by the Yugoslav Constitution and is
generally not practiced. However, many Yugoslavs were
surprised to learn during the State's enforcement of "special
measures" (i.e., a state of emergency) in troubled Kosovo
Province that the Government may impose a "work obligation" on
workers in industries of "broader social significance." The
"work obligation" was also invoked during the September strike
of railroad workers in Croatia, despite the fact that no state
of emergency was in place at the time, violation of the "work
obligation" may be punished by criminal and administrative
penalties.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
The minimum age for employment of children is 16 years. Of
those unemployed in Yugoslavia, 78 percent are under the age
of 30, and in practice, young people often must wait years for
their first job.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
Yugoslavia has an official 42-hour workweek, with generous
vacation time and sick leave benefits. The republics set
minimum wage levels, which vary widely in keeping with varied
levels of economic development and prices. The August minimum
monthly wage in more developed Slovenia, for example, was
roughly the equivalent of $170, while in poorer Montenegro it
was roughly $35. Wage levels were raised frequently during
the reporting period. The trade unions point out that minimum
wages lag behind inflation, leaving workers who earn only the
minimum at or below "the poverty line."
Yugoslavia has extensive federal and republic laws and
regulations on worker safety. Occasional press reports and
informal observations of many Yugoslav workplaces suggest that
enforcement of work safety rules is lax.'
