GARESNICA, Oct 11 (Hina) - President Stjepan Mesic has said that according to all pieces of information gathered by intelligence services he can say that the fugitive general Ante Gotovina is not in Croatia for sure.
GARESNICA, Oct 11 (Hina) - President Stjepan Mesic has said that
according to all pieces of information gathered by intelligence
services he can say that the fugitive general Ante Gotovina is not
in Croatia for sure. #L#
Mesic gave this statement when he was asked by journalists to
comment on a report which the Hague-based UN war crimes tribunal's
Chief Prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte, submitted to the Security
Council in which she claimed that neither he nor Croatian Premier
Ivica Racan had explicitly told her that Gotovina was not in
Croatia. In this context Mesic was also asked to comment on
Parliament President Zlatko Tomcic's surprise at the Chief
Prosecutor's assertion.
"I do not comment on statement made by others, but I can further
explain my statement. With all pieces of information of the
intelligence services, I can say for sure that Gotovina is not in
Croatia," Mesic said while he was visiting the town of Garesnica
(some 80 kilometres east of Zagreb) on Saturday.
He added that he hoped that there was a possibility for General
Gotovina to be provisionally released if he voluntarily appeared
before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former
Yugoslavia (ICTY), just as it was in the case of General Rahim
Ademi.
Asked by reporters to comment on announcements that new indictments
can be expected from The Hague against Croatian nationals, the head
of state said Croatia's most important problem was a high
unemployment rate while the public was unnecessarily being
burdened by the issue of the ICTY.
"Croatia fully co-operates with the Hague-based tribunal and this
is not electoral or political topic. This is about the functioning
of the rule of law," Mesic said while touring local successful
plants manufacturing textile and construction material in
Garesnica.
(hina) ms