ZAGREB, Oct 7 (Hina) - A statement by the chief prosecutor of the international war crimes tribunal that General Janko Bobetko must appear before the Hague-based tribunal before further moves were discussed was described by Croatian
government sources as a natural request by the prosecution which in this case is only one side in the legal dispute before the tribunal.
ZAGREB, Oct 7 (Hina) - A statement by the chief prosecutor of the
international war crimes tribunal that General Janko Bobetko must
appear before the Hague-based tribunal before further moves were
discussed was described by Croatian government sources as a natural
request by the prosecution which in this case is only one side in the
legal dispute before the tribunal. #L#
The Croatian government and the Hague-based tribunal's prosecution
are at this moment two sides with demands from the tribunal, which
has yet to rule on them, a senior government source said on
condition of anonymity on Monday.
The government sources reiterated that nobody was bringing into
question the authority of the tribunal to punish war crimes, and
said the government did not and would not complicate or hinder its
cooperation with the tribunal.
The government's addressing of the Hague tribunal in fact indicates
the highest level of cooperation, government sources say.
Had the government decided to work on a political plan, without
communicating with the war crimes tribunal, that would have been
obstruction, the government source explained, adding that in this
case there was cooperation with and respect of the tribunal.
The government sees a problem in the fact that the UN Security
Council has not given a political assessment of events in this
region.
The Security Council has to do that, it is not late, without
entering into who will be held responsible for war crimes, the
source said, adding that the thesis by which Balkan tribes had come
to blows, which gave rise to crime, was unacceptable.
The government source confirmed that the request to assess the
constitutionality of the tribunal's indictment against Bobetko had
been prepared. The request will be discussed by the government's
council for cooperation with the tribunal on Wednesday, by the
government on Thursday, and then would be forwarded to the
Constitutional Court.
The government sources refused to speculate on the Constitutional
Court's ruling on the matter or whether the Court would proclaim
itself incompetent in the case.
On September 27, the government forwarded to the Hague tribunal a
request for submitting an interlocutory appeal against a warrant
for the arrest and hand-over of General Bobetko, and on October 4, a
request to the tribunal's Chamber of Appeals to rescind a decision
on confirming the indictment against the general, as well as its
amendments, and the warrant for his arrest and extradition.
(hina) lml sb