Heads I Win, Tails I Don't Lose

The reasoning behind the judgement is that opposition complained about the irregularities and fraud - so the court did not grant opposition the victory, it simply annulled the results mandating the (Milosevic's) government to hold another elections within six months. This is the clear case of 'heads I win, tails I don't lose.'

And Serb citizens ARE NOT TAKING IT ANY LONGER.

First, the Belgrade investigative judge refused to sign the arrest warrant against the 13 leaders of Kolubara strike. Then, in the pivotal point in the anti-Milosevic revolution, the 30 bus-loads of police failed to break the coal-miners strike. They gave it up. Instead they mingled with the workers, they lost themselves in the crowd. They abandoned Milosevic.

Milosevic's failure to break the Kolubara strike, means no coal, no power, no television. Ten days of coal-miners strike in Serbia is more effective than seventy days of NATO bombing - in terms of paralyzing the state's infrastructure. He is finished.

And more and more people are switching colors. Coal-miners strike is now joined with strikes in other mines. Trade unions in electric power providers, public transportation, telecommunications, postal system and sanitation joined in a call for general strike, leaving many places in Milosevic's Serbia without electricity, electronic media, postal service and piled up in garbage.

The journalists and editors in regime media are also turning coats - many are resigning and switching to opposition loyal media or independent media. Some are abruptly changing loyalties by switching editorial policies and changing headlines and front pages practically overnight, and Matroz, corporation that provides newsprint to Yugoslav newspapers, is now restricting newsprint to Milosevic controlled media, as it did to independent media so far - letting the regime taste some of its own medicine.

Kostunica changed his mind about visiting Moscow - he realized that Putin wants to meet them only after the eight and perhaps coerce him into the power-sharing agreement with Milosevic, something DOS can't accept. Also, it is clear that right now if he leaves, he won't be able to come back, since Milosevic still controls the border crossings. Kostunica doesn't have plans to repeat the Izetbegovic's mistake and get arrested on the airport.

Instead he gave an ultimatum to Milosevic to step down today by 3 PM (9 am EST), the ultimatum Milosevic did not abide by. Meanwhile a rally started in front of the Federal Parliament and people came from all over Serbia, and when they learned of the Constitutional Court annulling the election results, of Milosevic having no plans of stepping down and of police failing to break up the Kolubara strike, something just clicked in the crowd, and as it happens in times like that, Molotov cocktails started flying towards the parliament building and the ambiguous police cordons. Apparently, with many police officers now being with the protesters, the protesters acquired the tear gas capability, and they flung canisters of it liberally through the windows of the parliament building and to the RTS (Slobo's TV) crew.

The last news I've heard is of the demonstrators taking over the Federal Parliament. I guess Milosevic's residence comes next. And if everything goes well, this would be over before either Putin comes back from India or Albright from Israel.