by V.R.
Obradovic rejected accusations of alleged sexual harassment of his female coworkers and described them as a plot by some of his closest coworkers and friends before whom he had kept no secrets.
It is they and not I who have caused harm to the dignity of these women, said Obradovic. As a man, I can say that I have lacked many things in my life but not the love of women, said Obradovic, rejecting all accusations.
Frequently interrupted by applause, he warned the main board that either the plotters or he himself no longer belonged in the party or at the posts in state institutions where they currently serve. He left it to those present to decide for themselves.
Obradovic also warned that someone was obviously bothered by his work in the Serbian Government on prosecution of corruption and crime and he threatened that he would pursue his case in court.
The first volley against Obradovic in the discussion was fired by Meho Omerovic, who accused him of manipulating the scheduling of the board session and of first agreeing to withdraw, only to then begin a frontal attack. Omerovic met with whistles of disapproval from the majority of those present. Then some sort of commotion broke out in the conference room and hysterical screams by some female members of the main board were heard, who then left the room.
In the discussions of both sides, claims were repeated that the survival of the party was at stake and one of the plotters made the claim that the entire Serbian Government knew of Obradovic's problem and that even the speaker of the Serbian Parliament, Dragan Marsicanin, warned the members of the party that they needed to do something about this problem.
A delegate from Sombor criticized the plotters for rushing to publicize the whole affair and expressed concern that Socialdemocracy would now gain a reputation as a party of ladies men.
The key witness of the accusers was, nevertheless, former BK Television anchor, party spokeswoman and Obradovic's chief of cabinet, Ljiljana Nestorovic. She admitted that she was the first to question the behavior of her boss.
I gave up a good salary, a comfortable life and celebrity status to help Socialdemocracy on the path to the changes which occurred on October 5, said Nestorovic, adding that she now deeply regretted this and was ashamed of it.
Nestorovic accused Obradovic of catching her by the hand on several occasions in his deputy prime minister's office, despite her resistance, and asking that "our lips may meet".
"I felt like I had been accosted by my father," said Nestorovic, withstanding Obradovic's piercing look. She announced that she would file charges against everyone who had accused her of being "an agent of state security or of Zoran Djindjic, a drug addict and a nymphomaniac". "My honor is at stake and you will see how I shall defend it," she said.
The majority of members of the main board who support Obradovic mocked such presentations. One delegate said that during the election and political campaign, he had jubilantly kissed and hugged male and female coworkers alike, called them darling; he asked whether that meant he, too, should be dismissed.
After this, I stepped out of the circus arena . The official results will be announced but as matters stand now, Orlic and company definitely will not remain in the party.
by Violeta PAVLOVIC
The closed session of the main board of the party held in Belgrade's Sava Center on Tuesday has overshadowed developments in the south of Serbia, the parliamentary session and President Kostunica's visit to America in the media. In a session lasting several hours, behind closed doors, which reporters were only able to attend at the very beginning, only to note the loud applause and chants of the majority of approximately 200 members of the full main board of Socialdemocracy in support of Vuk Obradovic, a discussion took place with contradictory commentary during breaks.
This is not a story about women and my relationship with them. I don't talk about the women with whom I have been and especially not about those with whom I have not been. I have not been with any of the women who are accusing me. This is a coup, which has been long in the making, to take over Socialdemocracy, which is in full bloom. Somebody apparently wants to head this party. However, political will is not the deciding factor; people are the ones who decide, Obradovic told reporters.
Another factor may be the fact that I head a commission which investigates abuses in the last 12 years. I am not excluding the possibility that someone wants to bring an end to this project; however, I am convinced that, with or without Vuk, the Government will finish what needs to be done. My fate will not be decided by a group of people who are digging until dawn, in secret meetings held in attorney's offices and cafes, and hatching a plot against me. There is a lot of money involved.
I have absolutely no intention of submitting my resignation. They have the audacity to talk to me about October 5! It is common knowledge where Vuk Obradovic was then; and where were they? In a mouse hole! They've managed to acquire many functions but how did they get them? Thanks to Socialdemocracy. Their place is no longer here, stated Vuk Obradovic, the leader of Socialdemocracy, on Tuesday prior to the beginning of the session of the main board of that party.
Rodoljub Savic, the deputy speaker of the parliament, who was dismissed by the municipal board of Socialdemocracy in the Belgrade municipality of Savski Venac, attended the session of the main board on Tuesday. The meeting was also attended by all 15 members of the presidency who demand Obradovic's resignation. Obradovic's arrival to the session was greeted by loud applause of members of the main board and chants of Vuk, Vuk...
An hour after the beginning of the session, at 12:45 p.m., an incident occurred in front of the doors of the conference room where the session of the main board of Socialdemocracy was taking place. Slobodan Orlic came out and motioned to several young men sitting close to the entrance through a thick row of security guards in front of the doors. The guards in front of the door commented in front of numerous reporters: The fag is calling his personal guard! At that point, Orlic's young men attempted to enter the conference room but they did not succeed.
At that moment, Slobodan Lalovic was at the podium and he said: Calm down. The party is the most important thing. Everybody will get their turn. Soon afterward, Jelena Milenkovic, a deputy in the Serbian Parliament, came out in tears and accompanied by Orlic. They were followed by a visibly distraught Ljiljana Nestorovic, the spokeswoman of Socialdemocracy. It is said that they were the targets of the worst possible curses, that they were called whores, prostitutes and that the majority of those in the conference room chanted: Get out, get out.
Jelena Milenkovic later told reporters: "I fought for a different kind of Serbia and nothing could intimidate me, neither Milosevic, nor the police, nor jail. Vuk Obradovic cannot intimidate me, either. What I am currently experiencing is tragic. It is coming from people who were recruited and who will discover that they are dealing with a classic state security service and a Stalinist regime".
Meho Omerovic, a deputy in the Serbian parliament, said that the session of the main board of the party was completely in violation of the party statute.
"Vuk Obradovic ranted for 45 minutes at the beginning without presenting the agenda. He denied accusations and discussed political topics. I proposed that a roll call of all the members of the main board be called as there are 40 to 50 extra people in the conference room. They even limited speeches to three minutes while Obradovic is mainly replying to the speakers," stated Omerovic.
Slobodan Lalovic, we learned, stated at the podium that the incidents which caused 15 members of the presidency to demand Vuk Obradovic's resignation were also known to members of the Serbian Government and the Serbian Parliament. In his presentation, Lalovic mentioned Dragan Marsicanin, the speaker of the Serbian Parliament, as one such person. Reporters were then addressed by Rodoljub Savic, the deputy speaker of the Serbian Parliament, who said that he learned on Tuesday morning from newspapers that the municipal board of Sanski Venac had expelled him from the party.
"The reasons are unknown to me. I heard that they expelled me for allegedly leading the campaign for Obradovic's resignation. It isn't quite clear to me why a request for the resignation of the leader of a party would automatically prompt the expulsion of the person submitting such a request from that party. That is scandalous. At the meeting of the municipal board, nine of 17 members were present, two did not vote to expel me and, therefore, I actually could not be expelled from the party. However, the president of the municipal board advised me that he would give me written statements regarding the vote for my expulsion from the party. The manner in which this is being done is a catastrophe. The presidency is nominated by the main board; consequently, this session is completely illegal," said Sabic.
Sabic's statement was interrupted by numerous shouts from members of the main board and obvious supporters of Obradovic who were in the hallway during breaks, such as "You are lying, trash!", "You are upset because you will no longer be in the Parliament.", "Shame on you, traitor; why did you spend the last four years next to Vuk!", "You cannot speak in the name of the party."
"In politics, the majority can do anything except always be right. All those insinuations that I am a traitor and a mercenary are lies. I have always worked out of conviction and for the good of the party," said Sabic. He added that order at the session was catastrophic, with hackling and interruptions, and added that it was likely to last a long time.
Dragan Kitic, a member of the main board of Socialdemocracy and the municipal board in Kraljevo, said during a break that he would propose that all members of the presidency be expelled from the party.
"What we have here is an attempt to discredit Vuk Obradovic, whose intention was to work through the Commission for Abuses to give people back the money that was illegally taken from them. All this is a fantasy. Someone wants to destroy Socialdemocracy. Everything will be proven in court. This is the tip of the iceberg; it will be revealed who is behind it. Obradovic has been betrayed by people in whom he had confidence. This has been prepared for years," said Kitic. He added that the majority of dissenting members of the presidency came from the Democratic Center and other centers of powers, and that it was possible that this is where everything was organized. Kitic emphasized that the alleged accusation for sexual harassment is a complete fantasy and that this could be resolved within the party at the main board.
"It is funny to hear Ljiljana Nestorovic announce ‘He patted my hand' at the podium," commented Kitic.
When a reporter commented that if there were such situations, it would be tasteless to talk about them in front of so many people, Kitic quoted [the great Montenegrin poet] Njegos: "'A woman's nature is a strange work indeed'. All this a political plot".
Members of the presidency of Socialdemocracy who are demanding Obradovic's dismissal left the session of the main board at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday and announced an upcoming press conference.
"Let us leave that party to find the strength to determine the veracity, or lack thereof, of the allegations. It should not be forgotten that Obradovic is performing a very responsible task and that he may bother many people as a result," said Branislav Ivkovic, the head of the Socialist Party of Serbia caucus. "I don t believe Obradovic is a sex maniac. It's more likely that the scandal has to do with internal clashes within his party".
"It is possible that he stepped on the toes of someone in the Government with his Commission", believes Borislav Pelevic, the president of the Serbian Unity Party.
Dragor Hiber, a Democratic Opposition of Serbia deputy, assessed that these shocks are not good for any party and that allegations should first be verified .
"This is a serious accusation but we should not forget that it still has not been proven. It is a good thing that it is even being discussed because when things like this did happen earlier, they were kept under wraps," says Natasa Micic, deputy speaker of the Parliament.
"I don't know if the accusations are true; I don't keep tabs on other people's business," said Aleksandar Vucic, secretary general of the Serbian Radical Party.
The head of the DOS caucus, Cedomir Jovanovic, only said that there wasn't anything funny about this and denounced reporters' interest in the scandal as "cannibalism".