(1 Sep 2000) English/Nat
XFA
The Yugoslav presidential candidate for the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) has submitted his candidacy to the federal electoral commission.
Vojislav Kostunica signed his candidacy at his party headquarters and then, with other opposition leaders, walked through the streets of Belgrade to the Yugoslav Parliament.
There has been a reported decline in Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's popularity, while Kostunica has a strong lead in opinion polls.
This is the party headquarters of the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) in the Yugoslav capital, Belgrade.
It's here that Vojislav Kostunica, the Yugoslav presidential candidate for the party, signed his candidacy on Friday.
Along with other opposition leaders, he then walked through the streets of Belgrade to the Yugoslav Parliament building to submit his candidacy to the federal electoral commission.
D-O-S members waved party banners, while passersby applauded and chanted Kostunica's nickname - "Vojo, Vojo!"
Several hundred supporters waited in front of the Parliament building, chanting the pre-election slogan against Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic - "He is finished, he is finished!"
Talking to reporters infront of the parliament building, Kostunica said the campaign to oust Milosevic has already come a long way.
SOUNDBITE: (English)
"Though our campaign begins formally today, the largest part of that road we have crossed. This is one step forward towards the elections. That means one step forward towards the necessary changes in Serbia."
SUPER CAPTION: Vojislav Kostunica, Yugoslav presidential candidate for the Democratic Opposition of Serbia party
Most opinion polls in Serbia suggest that Kostunica has a strong lead over Milosevic.
According to a poll by the Institute of Social Sciences, Kostunica will get 35 per cent of the vote in Serbia, while Milosevic can count on only 23 per cent of the vote.
But in the same poll, 46 per cent of the respondents said they expected Milosevic to remain in power after the elections.
It seems that Serbs expect Kostunica to win the majority of the votes and Milosevic to resort to electoral fraud to stay in power.
Nevertheless, the opposition parties are trying to convince Serbs that their votes can oust his regime.
Meanwhile, video footage of four Dutch citizens arrested in Yugoslavia on suspicion of plotting to assassinate Milosevic has been released.
The Yugoslav government says the four men were arrested sometime in July in southern Yugoslavia as they tried to enter Kosovo.
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