H. Res. 149

In the House of Representatives, U.S.,

April 9, 2003.

Whereas Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic symbolized the hopes

of a new generation of Serbs exhausted by decades of war

and turmoil until he was felled by 2 sniper bullets in

front of his office in the center of Belgrade on Wednesday, March 12, 2003;

Whereas Djindjic’s killing was a heinous attack on democracy;

Whereas Zoran Djindjic was born on August 1, 1952, in Bosnia and became politically active during his student years

at the University of Belgrade;

Whereas after spending several months in jail for attempting

to create an autonomous noncommunist student organization with fellow students from Croatia and Slovenia,

Zoran Djindjic moved to Germany, where he earned a

doctorate in philosophy under Ju ̈rgen Habermas in 1979,

and returned to Yugoslavia in 1989 to teach philosophy

at Novi Sad University;

Whereas in 1989, Djindjic joined a group of Serb dissident

writers and intellectuals to found the Democratic Party;

Whereas one year later, Djindjic was voted the Chairman of

the Democratic Party Executive Board and in January

1994, he was elected the party’s president;
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Whereas Djindjic became a member of the Serbian Parliament in 1990, serving as the party’s parliamentary

group whip and a member of the Republic’s Council at

the Federal Parliament 3 years later;

Whereas following 88 days of mass protests over electoral

manipulation during local elections in 1996, Zoran

Djindjic was elected Belgrade’s first noncommunist

mayor since World War II;

Whereas Djindjic is widely believed to be the chief strategist

and main organizer behind the Yugoslav presidential elections of September 24, 2000, and the uprising of October

5, 2000, that resulted in the overthrow and delivery of

former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to the

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), that was investigating atrocities committed during the tragic and violent breakup of Yugoslavia;

Whereas subsequent cooperation with the ICTY has been

judged to be less than optimal, but in recent months

Prime Minister Djindjic moved forcefully to fight the organized criminal structures that Serbia inherited from

the Milosevic era and to arrest war criminals who have

remained at large;

Whereas Djindjic is also credited with masterminding the

Serbian elections of December 2000, in which the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS), a coalition of 18 parties spanning a broad range of the political spectrum,

won 65 percent of the popular vote;

Whereas the DOS elected Djindjic to be Prime Minister of

Serbia on January 25, 2001;
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Whereas during his 2-year tenure as Prime Minister, Zoran

Djindjic sought to advance democracy, human rights, free

market reforms, and the rule of law;

Whereas Djindjic’s leadership raised desperately low living

standards and advanced the integration of Serbia into

Europe; and

Whereas Prime Minister Djindjic managed to maintain a disparate 17-party coalition government with a narrow majority in order to achieve these urgently needed reforms:

Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That—

(1) the House of Representatives offers its condolences and deepest sympathy to the people of Serbia and

the family of Zoran Djindjic following the assassination

of Prime Minister Djindjic;

(2) the House of Representatives understands that

organized criminal groups within Serbian society continue to threaten the free and democratic government of

Serbia and Montenegro;

(3) the House of Representatives recognizes that

while implementing necessary reforms and cooperating

with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former

Yugoslavia may carry significant risks for the leadership

of Serbia and Montenegro, these reforms and this cooperation are necessary and must continue; and

(4) it is the sense of the House of Representatives

that the United States should support continued demo-
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cratic reforms initiated by Zoran Djindjic, should urge

his successors to dedicate themselves to continue to support his road to reform, and should pledge to assist Serbia and its new leadership in accomplishing these necessary reforms, including efforts to fight organized crime

and corruption.

Attest:

Clerk.