Weather Today: Sunny. High 56. Low 21. One hundred ei ht years n editorialfreedom Tomorrow: Partly cloudy. High 60.6J Ve lk e Friday March 26, 1999 - ------ ----- NATO air offensive continues The Washington Post American and allied warplanes threw fresh waves of bombs and missiles against ,,slavia yesterday, concentrating again on alefenscs to clear the skies for manned striktes yet to come against the military forces in the field. For the second day, NATO massed a great deal of its fire on the regional and central command posts that bind Yugoslavia's 2,000 anti-aircraft weapons into a modern integrat- ed system. Other targets included military air- fields in the city of Nis, army barracks in Urosevac and Prizren and a radio and televi- s transmitter at Mount Jastrebac south of grade, the-capital. Gen. Wesley Clark, NATO's supreme com- mander,, said the bombardment would "sys- tematically and progressively attack, disrupt, degrade, devastate" and "ultimately ... destroy" the army of President Slobodan Milosevic if he did not bow to an American- Targets in Yugoslavia hit in second day of attacks drafted peace plan for Kosovo, the rebellious province of Yugoslavia's dominant republic, Serbia. The first visible returns on Operation Allied Force, however, directly contradicted NATO's declared objectives. Serbian army and special police stepped up their efforts to crush resis- tance in Kosovo, gouging a wider trail of blood and flame across the secessionist province that the United States and its allies sought to pro- tect. Fighting also slipped across Yugoslavia's international border, when Serbian forces opened fire with mortars and automatic weapons at the villages of Dobruna and Vicidol in neighboring Albania. Containing the Kosovo conflict- which "has no natural boundaries," President Clinton said Wednesday - is the central strategic interest at stake for NATO. Among the homes destroyed in Vicidol, according to Albanian independent radio stations, was one belong- ing to the family of former Albanian president Sali Berisha, a sponsor of the rebel Kosovo Liberation Army. Another alarming prospect of spillover appeared in Montenegro, the republic that is Serbia's last and unwilling partner in the for- mer Yugoslavia. According to U.S. intelligence See AIR STRIKES, Page 7 AR > -V -j v I AP PHOTO Protesters burn the American flag outside the American Embassy in Skopje, Macedonia yesterday while NATO forces conduct air strikes in neighboring Yugoslavia. Votes reach record high Demerits may threaten outcome By Jewel Gopwani Daily Staff Reporter Although an 18 percent voter turnout for a major election may seem lackluster, it was a record for this term's student gov- ernment elections which ended last night. As the second day of voting for the Michigan Student *Assembly, LSA Student Government and University of Michigan Engineering Council winded down yesterday at 11:59 p.m., a record high of 6,380 students had cast their ballots. "Last year was a record," MSA Elections Director Andrew Serowik said. "This has surpassed our expectations." Serowik added that during last year's elections, about 4,600 students voted. Of the total number of students who voted, 6,202 cast their vote online and 178 students voted at a paper polling site. Taking some last ditch efforts to sway voters, members of all Ohree parties and independent candidates campaigned on the Diag yesterday. While simple literature handouts did not cause contro- versy, deciding who could use the Diag for special party activities sparked conflict between the Blue Party and the Students' Party. The Blue Party reserved the Diag through the Office of Student Activities and Leadership for campaign activities yes- terday that included music and a gorilla-suited LSA-SG vice president Gregg Lanier entertaining students. In addition, the Students' Party held its traditional Pizza Day on the Diag, but did not reserve the area, Students' Party spokesperson Brian Reich said. Blue Party member Elise Erickson said she called the SAL and *he Department of Public Safety to find out if the Students' Party reserved the Diag and if not, to have their distribution halted. SAL Director Susan Wilson arrived at the Diag to investigate the complaint and asked Students' Party members cease hand- ing out the pizza. See MSA, Page 7 Education budget passes state House By Nick Bunkley Daily Staff Reporter In a session that adjourned at 3:25 a.m. yesterday, the state House of Representatives approved Gov. John Engler's fiscal year 2000 igan higher educa- tion budget al recommenda- tion, leaving itl nearly identi- cal to the orig- inal proposal. Budget proposal The 69 to 41 vote sends the bill to the Senate for discussion in a series of four hearings held by the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Colleges and Universities set to begin April 9. Sen. John Schwarz (R-Battle Creek), who chairs the committee, said he plans to rewrite the way fund- ing is distributed to the state's 15 pub- lic universities. Engler's proposal includes a 1.5 per- cent funding increase to be distributed to every university, plus an extra 1.5 percent to each university that raises tuition by less than 3 percent. University President Lee Bollinger told a House committee earlier this month that a 1.5 percent across-the- board increase would be insufficient for the University's needs and would cause a 4 to 5 tuition increase this fall. But Schwarz said yesterday that he will combine both figures. giving all universities a base increase of 3 per- See BUDGET, Page 7 SONG AND DANCE. ABOVE: LSA junior Betsy Crouch lifts a piece of pizza to her plate as LSA sophomore Eric Lai reaches for a free slice provided by the Students' Party yesterday on the Diag. LEFT: Dressed as a gorilla for a Blue Party promotion, current LSA Student Government Vice President Gregg Lanier entertains LSA sophomore and Students' Party candidate Marisa Shetlar on the Diag yesterday. DAVID ROCKHIND/Daily 'M' athletic Foar gives varsity status to 2 sports aonStoffer Staff Reporter Years of club team dreams were realized yester- day when the Board in Control of Intercollegiate Athletics voted unanimously to grant men's soccer and women's water polo varsity status for the 2000- 2001 academic year. Planning Committee Chair Phil Hanlon, who oversaw the new sport selection process, said rev- enue from rising football season ticket prices for the upcoming season helped make the additions possi- One consequence of the increase in football prices is that the department gained the flexibility and ability to add new sports," Hanlon said. "This runs counter to national trends where many campus- es are cutting sports because of rising scholarship costs." The men's soccer and women's water polo club ,athletic chages- a Men's soccer and women's water polo are to become varsity sports in 2000. Even with the addition of men's soccer, the University is still pr essing toward meeting Tit'e 1X nder equity requirements. a Both sports will cost a combined $x.25million er year in five years, once allscholarships are fully. phased in. sity status since 1989. "For the past four years we've been preparing our- selves in the event this should happen," Burns said. "We tried this time to address all the perceived stum- bling blocks of the past: facilities, financing and gender equity. "Anything that'll give this much pleasure to so many people is worth waiting for," he said. Women's water polo coach Scott Russell said he is elated and is convinced that a Michigan women's water polo team will spur statewide interest in the sport. "We had been hearing rumors for a couple of months but I wasn't sure until I heard it today," Russell said. Hanlon said the planning committee also con- sidered adding women's lacrosse and women's Bill targeting Hash Bash passes Senate By Nick Bunkley Daily Staff Reporter Calling a state Senate bill that would toughen Ann Arbor's marijuana laws a "sham," Sen.-Alma Wheeler Smith (D- Salem Twp.) cast the lone opposing vote yesterday as the pro- posal passed the Senate 36 to 1. With the 28th annual Hash Bash on the Diag scheduled to take place next Saturday, the bill has no chance of affecting this year's event because the Houe of Representatives began a three-wee recess yesterday. Senate Bill 380, sponsored by Sens. Beverly Hammerstrom (R-A Temperance) and Mike Rogers (R- r Howell), would prohibit cities in Michigan from enforcing penalties fo marijuana use that are less than what state mandates. A legislative loophole currently allows Ann Arbor to be the only city in Michigan to classify marijuana possession as a civil infraction punishable by a $25 fine for a first offense. State law --,.Irv% --A NATHAN RUFFER/Daily Sigma Kappa sorority members Erika Dudley and Laurel Carlson cheer for their team during the "Sing and Variety" show at Hill Auditorium last night. Greeks unite for communtity service By callie Scott Daily Staff Reporter Shouts and chants filled Hill Auditorium last night as members of the Greek community finished off Greek Week 1999, With 800 pints of blood drawn, 2,000 hours of community service tallied and more than $115,000 donated, 10 days of festivities culmi- nated in the grand finale - "Sing and Variety," the annual performance show during which Greek members display their talents to a full house. teams was given its chance to perform last night, bringing to a close the week of what many Greek members describe as good-natured competition. Fraternity and sorority members, donning get-ups that ranged from tuxedos and evening gowns to pleather pants and cowboy hats, dom- inated the stage throughout the evening. Adding their personal touches to a variety of songs, including "Circle of Life," "Footloose" and "Ice Ice Baby," the teams sang, danced and I , I