Opposition celebrates as pressure mounts on Milosevic

LONDON, England -- Opposition supporters have been gathering in towns across Serbia for a second day to celebrate what they see as a clear election defeat for embattled President Slobodan Milosevic.

Up to 40,000 opposition supporters gathered in Belgrade's Republic Square on Monday, and large crowds were also reported in Nis, Novi Sad, Kraljevo and Sokobanja.

Western nations are firmly behind opposition candidate Vojislav Kostunica saying current President Slobodan Milosevic cannot deny the enormity of his defeat in Sunday's parliamentary and presidential elections.

But Milosevic's supporters insist he is winning the race, saying early returns show that the president has 45 percent of the vote - with Kostunica trailing on 40 percent.

The Democratic Opposition of Serbia, an alliance of 18 parties, say that with votes from 65 percent of polling stations counted, Kostunica has 55.3 percent, compared to Milosevic's 34.37.

IN-DEPTH Yugoslavia Decides 2000   • Overview   • The road ahead   • Key players   • Party profiles   • Shrinking of Yugoslavia   • Maps/At-a-glance    VIDEO CNN's Alessio Vinci reports on the lack of official information being made available Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) CNN's Jonathan Mann looks at the history and policies of Vojislav Kostunica Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) CNN's Nic Robertson explains why leaders in Montenegro called for a boycott of the election Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) CNN's Alessio Vinci reports on the latest news from the Yugoslavian election (September 25) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     MESSAGE BOARD Peace in the Balkans     RESOURCES Yugoslavia election information     IMAGE GALLERY Images from the historic vote     ALSO Chronology of Milosevic rule in Yugoslavia

This would place him over the 50 percent required for an outright first-round victory.

Opposition spokesperson Cedomir Jovanovic said that if the State Election Commission did not announce the results by Wednesday night the opposition would "proclaim official results no matter what the government thinks, since it is becoming clear that they are rejecting the possibility to accept defeat."

There has been widespread international condemnation of the elections with Mr Milosevic changing the rules to create direct election for the office of president, banning European election watchers and expelling journalists.

Gareth Evans of the International Crisis Group said there were fears that if there were a second round of elections, Milosevic might engineer a crisis involving a close neighbour such as Montenegro to enable him to declare a state of emergency.

Only 100,000 people came out to vote in Montenegro, Serbia's smaller partner in the Federation of Yugoslavia, where its pro-Western, pro-independence leader had called for a poll boycott.

The ethnic-Albanian majority in Kosovo also largely ignored the election, with the few, mostly Serbian voters, who did turn out, apparently backing President Milosevic.

Opposition officials also say they have pictures to prove that few polling stations were open or even existed in ethnic-Albanian areas.

Maverick Serb opposition leader Vuk Draskovic on Monday congratulated rival Kostunica, saying he believed he had defeated Milosevic.

"I hope Milosevic will accept the will of the people and hand his post over to the new president in a peaceful and civilised manner," he told Beta news agency.

He expressed regret that his Serbian Renewal Movement had decided not to be part of the Democratic Opposition of Serbia bloc, and had instead fielded its own candidate who trailled far behind the two leading contenders.

European leaders are already calling on the Yugoslav government to make way for the opposition.

Italy, France and Britain have called on Milosevic to admit defeat while the EU, in a blistering attack, said any attempt by Milosevic to claim victory would be "fraudulent."

Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini warned of "devastating consequences" if Milosevic tried to steal the election.

Before the elections the European Union promised to end years of economic sanctions if Yugoslavia removed Milosevic from office.

The U.S. Russia and Germany said it appeared Serb voters had opted for "democratic change" and the U.S. pledged on Monday to lift sanctions if Milosevic accepted defeat.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said: "The popular vote was a vote for democracy. The question is whether Milosevic will recognise the will of the people."

In a statement on Monday, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan did not refer directly to Milosevic but said he hoped Yugoslavia's elections would produce a government with a "clear Democratic mandate that can rejoin the regional and international community."

The Associated Press & Reuters contributed to this report.

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Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Republic of Montenegro
Socialist Party (Slobodan Milosevic)
Democratic Party (Vojislav Kostunica)

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