Call to defend Milosevic

Milosevic is under police surveillance

By Paul Anderson in Belgrade

The Socialist Party of the former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic has called on this supporters to rise against moves to arrest him.

The party has been staging regular anti-government protests in the expectation that the man who is still the party president will be arrested any moment.

Interrogation of Markovic is not producing evidence

The arrest of the former head of the secret service, Rade Markovic, last Friday has fuelled speculation in party ranks that Mr Milosevic's arrest will follow soon.

A Serbian minister said proceedings against Mr Milosevic would be initiated but because the authorities wanted the process to be legally watertight it would take time.

Mr Milosevic is wanted by the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague on charges of crimes against humanity but is being investigated in Yugoslavia on suspicion of corruption and abuse of power.

Keeping quiet

According to Belgrade's media the questioning of Mr Markovic is going nowhere - at least as far as gathering evidence against Mr Milosevic is concerned.

Mr Markovic, a man better placed than most to pass on incriminating evidence against the former president, is apparently keeping silent.

President Kostunica believes Milosevic trial should be in Serbia

He was head of the secret service from 1998 until the end of last year and is suspected of direct involvement in the attempted murder of leading opposition figure Vuk Draskovic.

His service is also suspected of carrying out the murder of a well-known journalist who was highly critical of the Milosevic regime, and of being behind other killings and disappearances.

Protests

But a bigger challenge facing investigators trying to build a case against Mr Milosevic is to prove the former president was involved himself and to get the testimony to make the charges against him stick.

According to the Serbian Deputy Prime Minister, Zarko Korac, the evidence will be found - it is just a question of time and a question of making the case legally secure.

Meanwhile Mr Milosevic's supporters continue their protests against what they call the government's witch hunts.

A statement from his Socialist Party said the recent arrests of Mr Milosevic's allies was shameful and politically motivated.

Mr Milosevic is currently living under police surveillance in his villa in Belgrade, which the authorities say does not amount to house arrest.