OPPOSITION officials in the central Serbian town of Kragujevac said yesterday that they had reached a compromise with the authorities over control of the disputed local television station.
However, Serbia's ruling Socialist Party again refused to budge on disputed local elections, saying it was up to the courts to decide whether to recognise opposition gains in last November's local elections.
In Kragujevac, the city's new mayor, Mr Veroljub Stevanovic - an opposition member - and the head of the state controlled national radio and television, Mr Dragoljub Milanovic, struck a deal aimed at ending a stand off in which riot police occupied the local television station.
After several hours of talks, both sides agreed that the station would suspend broadcasts until a court ruled on the dispute, the opposition spokesman, Mr Aleksandar Radosavljevic, said.
The newspaper Svetlost, which belongs to the same media group, will also suspend publication under the agreement. The director general had also promised to allow the television head recently appointed by the new municipal authorities to work unimpeded, the opposition said.
Some 200 riot police subsequently left the radio and television station without incident.
The deal follows violence in Kragujevac on Thursday that left several people injured after police broke up a demonstration.
The ruling Socialist Party meanwhile said that it would not back down on its position on the elections. In a statement after a meeting of its leadership, the ruling party said "irregularities" detected in the voting "must be eliminated as soon as possible".
It also said "lawsuits can only be resolved in the framework of institutions" like courts and electoral commissions.
The opposition demonstrations, it claimed, were aimed at "seizing power by force" and "waging open terror against people who think otherwise".
In the capital yesterday protesting students continued their stand off with the police, joined by actors, lawyers, journalists, professors and others who came to express their support. Later, a rally by opposition supporters ended in a tense atmosphere when police pushed back the crowd which wanted to march on the road.