ZAGREB, Oct 17 (Hina) - The Croatian parliament adopted with a majority vote on Friday a conclusion moved by the Social Liberals (HSLS) binding the government to ensure access to legal assistance and documents necessary for the
preparation of the defence of every Croatian army or police member suspected or indicted by the Hague war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
ZAGREB, Oct 17 (Hina) - The Croatian parliament adopted with a
majority vote on Friday a conclusion moved by the Social Liberals
(HSLS) binding the government to ensure access to legal assistance
and documents necessary for the preparation of the defence of every
Croatian army or police member suspected or indicted by the Hague
war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. #L#
The conclusion, moved as part of an interpellation on government
conduct in retired general Ante Gotovina's case, was endorsed by
all opposition clubs of deputies as well as the ruling coalition's
Croatian Peasant Party and the Liberal Party. The Social Democrats
(SDP) and the Croatian People's Party abstained, while only Libra
voted against.
The conclusion binds the government to enable Gotovina's defence
team to access the entire documentation the government submitted to
the U.N. tribunal in connection with the fugitive general.
The conclusion does not state the deadline within which the
government is obliged to do so. The HSLS requested yesterday that
this be done within a week.
The SDP explained its abstention with the fact that the government
is already legally obliged to submit documentation to the defence
teams of the accused, but only to teams which are registered as such
with the Hague tribunal.
Opposition MPs slammed this explanation, saying the government was
not fulfilling its obligation to provide Gotovina's defence team
with documents.
MPs rejected with a majority vote a Croatian Bloc conclusion which
was to bind the government to withdraw a 350,000 kuna reward which
the Interior Ministry offered for information on Gotovina's
movements.
Also today, MPs decided to treat amendments moved to the Penal Code
as a first reading of the bill which will be passed by the next
parliament.
Under these amendments, punishment for people accused of slander
will no longer be imprisonment but a fine.
With a majority vote parliament adopted the Law on the Application
of the Statute of the International Criminal Court which, among
other things, enables Croatian courts to use evidence of the Hague
tribunal for the former Yugoslavia as evidence in domestic trials.
The opposition was against this law.
Parliament also adopted the Amnesty Law and amendments to the Law on
Service in Croatian Armed Forces. MPs rejected a number of bills of
amendments to the Law on Municipalities, Towns and Counties.
(hina) ha sb