SERBIAN PREMIER, JUSTICE MINISTER SURPRISED WITH DECISION OF KOSTUNICA'S PARTY

BELGRADE, Aug 17 (Hina) - Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic said on Friday night he was "surprised" with the decision of the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) to withdraw its representatives from the Serbian government, but insisted that "all contentious issues" should be discussed within the country's ruling coalition DOS and in parliament. The DSS, which is headed by Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica, withdrew a vice premier, a minister and several deputy and assistant ministers from the Serbian government saying it did not want to be part of the government which was "deceiving citizens" and was "unable to fight crime." The DSS' decision came after mutual accusations between Kostunica's party and the Democratic Party of Zoran Djindjic over a scandal which erupted after the mysterious murder of a former official in the Serbian state security service, Momir Gavrilovic. Djindjic told the Belgrade agency Beta he was surprised because he expected the DSS to accept yesterday's appeal by the Serbian government for "an uncompromising resolution of issues concerning organised crime and the role of individuals" in the Gavrilovic case. The Serbian premier insisted on "the clearing up of every detail in the scandal." Asked if the DSS decision would mark the break-up of the DOS coalition, Djindjic said that "after the Gavrilovic scandal, the DOS would not be able to function without a serious internal discussion anyway." In his first statement on the latest developments, Serbian Justice Minister Vladan Batic said the break-up of the Serbian government "would have very serious consequences in the current situation." Both Djindjic and Batic said each party was responsible for its actions and asserted that "the DOS is not made up of one party." (hina) rml