YUGOSLAVIA TO DRAW UP LAW ON COOPERATION WITH ICTY

BELGRADE, Feb 20 (Hina) - An expert team of the ruling Serbian coalition DOS should prepare a bill on Yugoslavia's cooperation with the UN war crimes tribunal at The Hague over the next three- four days, Serbian Justice Minister Vladan Batic told reporters on Wednesday. The Yugoslav parliament could discuss the bill as early as Monday. The bill has only three articles as all else would "obstruct cooperation" with the tribunal, said Batic. The law should have a provision stipulating that Yugoslav citizens may be extradited to the tribunal at The Hague but not to another state's tribunal, and a provision stipulating that the extradition procedure is carried out by Yugoslav bodies. If the Yugoslav parliament fails to adopt the law, the Serbian government will continue to act on a June 28, 2001 decision whereby the Statute of the UN tribunal is automatically applied with regard to the extradition of war crimes indictees. In the case of incumbent Serbian President Milan Milutinovic, however, who has been charged with war crimes in Kosovo in 1999 together with former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, extradition is not possible even with the enforcement of the UN tribunal's Statute as he has immunity, said Batic. The Statute does not recognise immunity but "there are rules of conduct which no one will break," he added. (hina) ha sb