Word: serbian
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Milosevic, the leader of the Socialist Party of Serbia (formerly the Communist Party), used a surge of Serbian nationalism in late 1980s to come to power. Since then he has been the president of Serbia and then of the new Yugoslavia, which consists of Serbia and the much smaller republic of Montenegro. His popularity has been declining throughout the 1990s, hitting all-time lows last year after the defeat in the Kosovo conflict. He now has the support of only 20 to 25 percent of the population...
When Milosevic decided to call the elections in late July, he was counting on friction among his opponents to bring him a relatively easy victory. Two major political forces are in opposition to Milosevic: the pro-Western government of Montenegro and the Serbian opposition, which is notorious for its bitter fragmentation. The government of Montenegro decided to boycott the elections despite U.S. diplomatic pressure, and the Serbian opposition again failed to unite. The largest opposition party, the Serbian Renewal Movement, decided to nominate their own presidential candidate, while the other major opposition parties came together under the name...
...streets in large numbers even before Milosevic has a chance to declare his victory. The opposition will hold rallies in major cities on the night after the election where results will be announced as they arrive. They hope that the presence of millions of people on the streets of Serbian cities will put Milosevic on the defensive, forcing him to accept the opposition victory rather than risking a confrontation which might lead to divisions and defections within his own party...
...past year, many in Yugoslavia are pessimistic. Some analysts, on the other hand, point out that the Milosevic power structure is much less homogeneous than usually assumed. They assert that the people will not sit calmly in the face of clear electoral fraud and notice that the Serbian pro-democracy movement has found new resilience in the past year, as demonstrated by the "Otpor" movement...
...West has promised to lift sanctions against Serbia if Milosevic is voted out. How does this weigh on Serbian voters' decision...