Cacak, Yugoslavia; 29 June 1999 (RFE/RL)- About 3,000 Yugoslavs have ignored police warnings and turned out in the central Serbian town of Cacak for a demonstration against Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. Our correspondent on the scene reports that the protestors gathered in the central town square even though police blocked off side streets. The rally is the first organized protest calling for Milosevic's resignation since the beginning of the NATO bombardment of Yugoslavia started on March 24.
Police had earlier tried to discourage the rally, but did not officially ban it. One of the organizers, Milan Kandic, said he was summoned to a police station and told to postpone the rally. And the Democratic Party, one of the members of an umbrella oppositon group known as the Alliance for Change, said police stopped a bus-load of foreign and local journalists travelling to Cacak from Belgrade.
Shortly after the rally started, a minor explosive device went off near a car some 30 to 50 meters from the podium. No one was hurt, and the rally continued.
Police had earlier tried to discourage the rally, but did not officially ban it. One of the organizers, Milan Kandic, said he was summoned to a police station and told to postpone the rally. And the Democratic Party, one of the members of an umbrella oppositon group known as the Alliance for Change, said police stopped a bus-load of foreign and local journalists travelling to Cacak from Belgrade.
Shortly after the rally started, a minor explosive device went off near a car some 30 to 50 meters from the podium. No one was hurt, and the rally continued.