Yugoslavia votes amid mounting tension

BELGRADE, Yugoslavia -- Voters in Yugoslavia went to the polls Sunday to pass judgment on President Slobodan Milosevic's 11-year rule amid growing tensions in the region.

NATO is on high alert in case of violence sparked by the election, while Western leaders have stepped up their charges that Milosevic -- who is trailing in the opinion polls -- may rig the vote in order to stay in power.

But authorities in Belgrade have hit back with attacks on the president's opponents, who say they fear a security crackdown once the results are declared.

Both sides seem ready to claim victory in the election, leaving the outcome dependent on the public's reaction and Milosevic's response.

And as tension grew across Yugoslavia, a group backing the government said it would sue polling organisations putting Milosevic behind his main challenger, Vojislav Kostunica.

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In further developments, a group of foreign journalists, recently arrived in Yugoslavia to cover the polls, were ordered to leave on Friday, while would-be election observers from Romania were turned back at the border.

"I think Milosevic is afraid," said Cedomir Jovanovic, who heads the electoral centre for the main opposition bloc.

The Yugoslav army has held early voting for conscripts in barracks across the country, with the ballots to be transferred to their home towns for Sunday's count, one of several practices the opposition says leaves room for fraud.

Meanwhile, Serb officials in Kosovo have distributed thousands of ballot papers, though the separatist ethnic Albanian majority is expected to boycott the poll.

Opponents of Milosevic say his supporters could stuff the ballot boxes with the "votes" of Kosovo Albanians, the war dead and displaced, as well as Serbs who fled the province over a year ago after NATO bombing drove Yugoslav forces out.

The United Nations says on-the-spot tallies of Sunday's turnout by independent witnesses will enable it to counter any wildly exaggerated claims by the Belgrade regime.

Yugoslavia says it has welcomed more than 200 observers from over 50 countries -- all of whom were invited by Belgrade -- to monitor the elections.

Monitors from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe were barred from overseeing the poll.

In elections in 1996 Milosevic at first claimed victory in local elections, but then backed down after three months of protests on the streets.

A leading pollster, Srdjan Bogosavljevic, said he expected to have some idea of the trend by around midnight (2200 GMT).

Ranka Savic, spokeswoman for the federal parliament, said the result may not be known until Monday.

The Patriotic Alliance of Yugoslavia, which acts as a mouthpiece for the authorities, said it was suing half a dozen pollsters and an election monitoring organisation for "flagrantly forging" polls and serving the Western "aggressors."

The polls show Milosevic trailing Kostunica by between six and 20 percentage points at the head of a field of five, pointing to a second round on October 8 between the two men.

But government officials insist Milosevic will win outright, something critics say shows he is planning to cheat.

On the eve of the poll, opposition leaders seemed unsure if people would protest if he did do so.

"We must hold on to our victory in a democratic way," Jovanovic said. "We have to see what Milosevic will do."

Rumours spread through Belgrade that Milosevic's Socialist Party would hold an outdoor concert there on the same night -- an event that could lead to clashes between rival supporters.

Jovanovic said he did not know if they were true, but that they helped create an atmosphere of uncertainty that played into Milosevic's hands. "There are too many rumours," he said.

Opposition leaders said Milosevic appeared set on convincing Serbs there was no point in voting, pointing to an assertion by a top official on Thursday that the constitution required him to serve out his term until mid-2001 regardless of the vote.

Such suggestions have prompted widespread concern in the West, with U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright saying: "I think Milosevic is going to do everything he can to steal the election. I really think that."

NATO Secretary General Lord George Robertson urged Milosevic not to rig the vote or violate the rights of Serbia's sister republic Montenegro, whose pro-Western leadership has been trying to distance itself from Belgrade.

"He should not attempt to steal this election and should listen to the verdict of his people," Robertson said.

But Yugoslavia's ambassador to Moscow has said that the Yugoslav president will respect the election result no matter what the outcome.

Borislav Milosevic, who is also the president's older brother, said Milosevic would uphold the constitution.

He said: "Those who predict that Slobodan Milosevic will cling to power and will not respect the outcome of the elections are wrong. Slobodan Milosevic has respect for the constitution."

If no candidate wins 50 percent of the vote for president, a run-off must be held two weeks later.

The Associated Press & Reuters contributed to this report.

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