(25 Sep 2000) Serbo-Croat/Nat
XFA
Some hundred supporters of Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic and his Montenegrin ally Momir Bulatovic, gathered on Sunday night in front of the Socialist People's Party headquarters.
They were there to celebrate what they believe is certain victory in Sunday's elections.
Waving Milosevic's pictures and Yugoslav flags, the supporters chanted Serbian songs showing the traditional Serbian greeting of three fingers in the air.
Zoran Zizic, the vice president of the Socialist People's Party and Milosevic's coalition partner, said at the press conference that Milosevic has won nine times more votes than all the other presidential candidates together in Montenegro.
SOUNDBITE: (Serbo-Croat)
"(Milosevic) has nine times more votes than all the other candidates put together, meaning he won 90 percent of the whole voter turnout number."
SUPER CAPTION: Zoran Zizic, deputy president, SPP
He also claimed that his party will have the majority in the federal parliament.
SOUNDBITE: (Serbo-Croat)
"We'll have 30 seats in the upper house and 19 in the house of the republic. That tendency shows us that support will make us the strongest party in the federal parliament."
SUPER CAPTION: Zoran Zizic, deputy president, SPP
Meanwhile, the Democratic Socialist Party, which is headed by Montenegrin president Milo Djukanovic and which boycotted the Sunday vote, said the elections were a failure due to low turnout.
SOUNDBITE: (Serbo-Croat)
"In one word, these elections, which we consider illegitimate, are more proof of a political debacle of the political violence which has its centre in the Belgrade dictatorship."
SUPER CAPTION: Misko Vukovic, adviser to Montenegrin president Djukanovic
Many ordinary people are judging Mr Milosevic harshly after 10 years of economic hardship and conflict in the Balkans.
Having seen their living standards decline steadily, many are desperate for change, starting at the top.
SOUNDBITE: (Serbo-Croat)
"Let's just be peaceful. And the results...we'll see. I've seen enough war in my lifetime."
SUPER CAPTION: Vox pop
SOUNDBITE: (Serbo-Croat)
"I'm happy with the results in Montenegro, and I'm hoping the same will happen in Serbia."
SUPER CAPTION: Vox pop
SOUNDBITE: (Serbo-Croat)
"I'm fed up with this on-going row between leading politicians in Serbia and Montenegro, while people don't have anything to eat. It's really sad."
SUPER CAPTION: Vox pop
During his 13 years of power, the people of Yugoslavia have seen their country torn apart, and hundreds of thousands of people die.
All that is left now of the former Yugoslavia, which used to consist of six republics, is Serbia and its reluctant junior partner, Montenegro.
Time and again, Milosevic's downfall has been predicted - but so far he has sprung back from each disaster, keeping his grip on power.
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