OMRI DAILY DIGEST
No. 44, 4 March 1997

HUNGARY ARGUES AGAINST SLOVAKIA IN THE HAGUE. On the opening day of a
lawsuit between Hungary and Slovakia in the International Court of
Justice in the Hague, Hungary's legal representative, Gyorgy Szenasi,
said that Slovakia's unilateral diversion of the Danube for a
hydroelectric power project was an illegal act, international media
reported on 4 March. The project was initially agreed on in 1977, when
Hungary and Czechoslovakia decided to build a hydroelectric plant on
their shared border. Budapest, however, halted construction in 1989,
citing environmental concerns. The Slovaks pursued the plan and
unilaterally diverted the Danube in 1992. The Hungarian delegation used
a videotape to illustrate the environmental damage caused by the
diversion. -- Zsofia Szilagyi

HUNGARIAN FARMERS THREATEN TO CONTINUE PROTESTS. Farmers in eastern
Hungary, who staged three days of protests against new tax and social
insurance laws last week, will request police permits to stage more
demonstrations. The announcement came after Finance Minister Peter
Medgyessy turned down their invitation to hold more talks, Hungarian
media reported. Medgyessy said that he sees no chance for further
consultations, as the cabinet has already met the farmers' demands. --
Zsofia Szilagyi

HUNGARIAN PRESIDENT SIGNS CONFLICT OF INTEREST AND PRIVATIZATION BILLS.
Arpad Goncz on 3 March signed into law a conflict of interest bill and
amendment to the privatization law, Hungarian dailies reported. Goncz
used his veto power for the first time in seven years when he refused to
sign the two bills in January (see OMRI Daily Digest, 3 and 6 January
1997). Parliament last week partly amended the privatization bill to
satisfy one of Goncz's concerns but passed the conflict of interest bill
unchanged. Since both bills were passed by a two thirds majority, Goncz
is now compelled to sign. -- Zsofia Szilagyi

[As of 12:00 CET]

Compiled by Sava Tatic