Jr i .r rnla ti Vol. CI, No.74 Ann Arbor, Michigan -Tuesday, January 15, 1991 Tuyright ©iy h ily Soviets .kill 14 Baltic citizens U.S.S.R. (AP) - President Mikhail Gorbachev yesterday said a l6cal military commander decided to Oise force in the breakaway republic of Lithuania, where an assault by Soviet troops on Sunday claimed 14 lives. "The manner of defense was de- cided by the commandant," Gor- bachev said of the assault. "I learned only in the morning, the early morn- ing, when they got me up. When it lappened, no one knew." Lithuania's foreign minister, who in Poland with instructions to form a government in exile if Moscow takes over the republic, said the army is taking control in the Soviet Union. "In Vilnius, the Soviet army is the enemy and nobody knows who is c9mmanding it," said Foreign Min- ister Algirdas Saudargas. Gorbachev said Sunday's assault ame after a group of what he called workers and intellectuals" had asked thle military commander in Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, to "give us protection." He referred to opponents of Lithuanian independence who have formed a self-declared National Sal- votion Committee. Sunday's deaths were the first in the 10-month-old standoff between the Kremlin and the republic of 3.7 million people, which was annexed by the Soviet Union at the start of World War II. The storming of the republic's main broadcast facility provoked harsh condemnation from the United States and the European Commu- nity. Western governments expressed renewed concern today about the sit- uation in Lithuania. !"I don't see how we could con- tinue with the kind of programs of help for reform in the Soviet Union...if the Soviet Union has turned its back on the West and on the ideas of reform and gone back into its Stalinist shell," British For- eign Secretary Douglas Hurd told the British Broadcasting Corp. Gorbachev did not identify by name the military leaders who or- 9dered the assault. Nor, during his 10- minute conversation with reporters, did he express regret for the deaths, or explain why he waited until today to comment on the violence. In Lithuania today, the streets were quiet, and the republic closed its schools to begin three days of of- ficial mourning. Congress, allies support Bush policy France offers peace proposal BRIAN CANTONI/Daily At a meeting last night in Hutchins Hall to debate proposed actions in case of a declaration of war, Erin Brennnan, LSA junior, discusses the heated debate taking place over actions in the Persian Gulf. Anti war activists debate acti0ons to protest Gulf war WASHINGTON (AP) - As prospects for peace in the Persian Gulf grew dimmer yesterday, Sen. Sam Nunn (D-Ga) said, "It's time to rally behind the forces in the field." President Bush approached the last hours before today's deadline for an Iraqi pullout with backing from Congress for military action. The president said Sunday his mes- sage to Americans who do not want to go to war with Iraq is: "We've got to do what we have to do." A senior administration official said U.S. military allies were nearly unanimous in agreeing to send their forces into battle. Nunn, an opponent of the con- gressional resolution backing the use of force, said that the debate was "behind us," but he also cautioned Americans to expect "confusion," and possible bad news from the bat- tlefield if war breaks out. Meanwhile, France offered a last- minute proposal Monday to avert war in the gulf, but the United States appeared to reject the plan be- cause it called for talks on the Pales- tinian question in exchange for Iraq's pullout from Kuwait. In addition to the French plan, to be presented to the U.N. Security Council Monday night, Yemen and the Palestine Liberation Organiza- tion were also floating proposals. Iraq's U.N. ambassador, Abdul, Amir al-Anbari, said French Foreign Minister Roland Dumas would go to Baghdad, presumably to discuss the proposal. U.N. diplomats said the visit might occur today. FBI Director William Sessions predicted "terrorism may emerge and may explode worldwide." The president awaited word from United Nations Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar, who met with Saddam in Baghdad on Sunday. The U.N. official said in Paris yes- terday, "Unfortunately, I don't see any more reasons to be optimistic. I don't see any reason to have real hope." Secretary of State James A. Baker was in Canada with Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. Baker expressed hope that "as the clock ticks down to midnight today there will be an opportunity to resolve this crisis peacefully and politically. That opportunity now must come from Baghdad." Interviewed on "CBS This Morning" Nunn, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that while there might be some last minute diplomatic effort to avert war, "It doesn't look good." In the event of hostilities, said Nunn, "No one should be surprised if there's some confusion, that's the nature of warfare." Nunn also said Americans "certainly need to be prepared for some bad news from the battlefield. I don't think there's going to be very much, I hope there's not." All the allies are in agreement on using military might to evict the 540,000 Iraqi troops under an undisclosed timetable proposed to them- by President Bush, a senior U.S. official said Sunday. by Purvi Shah and Lari Barager Daily Staff Reporters Students Against U.S. Inter- vention in the Middle East (SAUSI) debated proposed actions in case of a declaration of war late into the night yesterday. SAUSI is a coalition of stu- dents from the University, nearby campuses, and members of the Ann Arbor community opposed to current U.S. policy in the Middle East. The coalition has adopted an 11-point statement of principles based on the National Campaign for Peace in the Middle East's platform. The statement demands imme- diate withdrawal of U.S. troops from the Middle East, peaceful diplomatic settlement of all Mid- dle East conflicts by an interna- tional peace conference under United Nations auspices, and an end to all military research at the University. SAUSI voted to change plans to hold a noon rally in the Diag to 11:30 tonight due to a conflict in time and location with another rally held for Students of Color Against the War. The use of non-violent action was hotly debated. "I propose we pledge to non-violence in all of our actions. That way we can protest the war and keep ourselves from being killed," said meeting chair and Michigan Student As- sembly President Jennifer Van Va- ley. Not everyone agreed. Graduate See MEETING,-Page 2 Engler's new budget cuts will not affect 'U' by Bethany Robertson Daily Government Reporter Higher education is the only state program not planned to receive cuts under a proposal announced by the state budget director yesterday, reaf- firming newly-inaugurated Gov. John Engler's campaign pledge to support Michigan's educational sys- tem. State Budget Director Patti Woodworth outlined the second round of state cuts to occur this fis- cal year. Engler will officially pro- pose cuts of $265.2 million to the state's general fund and $102.9 mil- lion to the state's "rainy day" fund before the legislature tomorrow. Engler's plan must be addressed by both the House and Senate Ap- propriations Committees within 10 days of the announcement, said House Fiscal Agency Associate Di- rector Greg Rosine. If it is passed, the cuts will become effective im- mediately. University officials said they were pleased by the initial an- nouncement, but added that it is too soon to know if the legislature will approve the proposed cuts. "I think it's really too early to tell what the final results will be. Of course we're pleased with this first step, but I think there's a long way to go," Executive Director of Uni- versity Relations Walter Harrison said. Higher education received a one percent cut last December, while all other state agencies, excluding ele- mentary and secondary education, sustained a 9.2 percent across-the- board cut. The University's Ann Ar- bor campus lost $2.47 million in funding due to the one percent cut. Statewide cuts totaled $536 million. University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Gilbert Whitaker formed an advisory committee in December to recom- mend University reductions in re- sponse to the original state cuts. He said last night the committee has just begun their work, and no defi- nite decisions will be made until the legislature approves Engler's plan. Engler's refusal to cut any addi- tional money from the large higher education portion of the budget is in *Council votes to use stadium dirt by Lynne Cohn and David Rheingold Daily City Reporters The city of Ann Arbor recently looked to the University for a solu- tion to its most recent dilemma, and the University provided one, dirt cheap. At a special work session last night, members of the Ann Arbor City Council unanimously passed a resolution to fill the excavation called Schneider hole with dirt from Michigan Stadium. The hole, located where Packard meets Main Street, was the begin- ning stage in the groundwork for The Seasons, a complex of residen- tial condominiums. The contractor for the project bailed out last sum- mer when the plan fell through. "They (contractors) apparently started the project before they got the money to finance it," said City Attorney Bruce Laidlaw. "They never received the money to finish it." City estimates for the cost of fill- ing the hole ran between $140,000 grow to ensure that the football team will be able to play in the fall. "Four inches of top soil plus backfilling meet the cost of $25,000," Donaldson said. "We will go back in the spring for reseeding and removal of portions of shoring, which will add $15,000 to the initial cost." The hole has caused undercutting of nearby property including a side- walk. The city is not currently liable for the excavation, but if it is filled improperly, they will be, Laidlaw said. With the recent state budget cuts and the possibility of war holding the prospect of extra spending, using University dirt would save the city budget a hefty cost at a crucial time. "We sent tickets to the property owners stating that they must sub- mit a plan for excavation to the city by Jan. 7," said City Building Direc- tor Jack Donaldson. "After this deadline, we have the right to go in and fill the hole." "(In using this dirt), we have a keeping with his campaign promises to make education a main focus of his administration. "It's always been the governor's position that education would be held harmless during budget restruc- turing. That was his position throughout the campaign, so we didn't expect anything different," said John Arundel, administrative assis- tant to Senate Education and Mental Health Committee Chair Paul Wart- ner (R-Portage). However, about 90,000 welfare See CUTS, Page 5 Woman reports rape on Diags by Tainl Pollak Daily Crime Reporter An Ann Arbor woman told police that an armed assailant grabbed her as she was crossing the Diag, dragged her to an isolated area, and raped her early Sunday evening. The woman, 22, was crossing central campus at about 7:30 p.m. Sunday night on her way to a friend's house when a man armed with a knife attacked her from be- hind, according to Ann Arbor police reports. The man forced the woman into a remote residential area, which po- lice suspect was somewhere in the vicinity of North Ingalls Street. According to the University De- partment of Public Safety and Secu- rity's report, the man forced the .maa ...ew rgmm.m