FORMER OSCE OFFICIAL TESTIFIES AT MILOSEVIC TRIAL IN THE HAGUE

ZAGREB/THE HAGUE, July 5 (Hina) - A former official of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on Friday testified at the trial of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic at the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague. Ms. Sandra Mitchel said the OSCE Mission in Kosovo established that in 1999 Serbian forces had committed serious violations of human rights, including mass deportation and individual crimes, in the province. #L# Mitchel, a former head of the OSCE office for human rights in Kosovo, organised the gathering of the testimonies of 3,000 Kosovo refugees who found shelter in Macedonia and Albania, which were later used to compile a report on eye-witnesses' statements. The documentation refers to the gross and systematic violation of human rights of 90 percent of the population, committed by Yugoslav and Serbian security forces, she said. She added that the statements were consistent. All refugees reiterated that the Serbian troops had forced them to flee, taking away their documents and telling them that they would no longer need those papers as they would not be able to return, the witness said. Mitchel said the refugees had related stories about other forms of violence, including murder. She informed the tribunal that official Serbian bodies had refused to cooperate with the OSCE Mission in Kosovo. (hina) ms sb