ZAGREB, Sept 6 (Hina) - Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan said Wednesday the apprehension of two suspects of war crimes in the central Bosnian village of Ahmici was "proof that the Croatian state will not allow any criminal to live
in it freely and at peace". Zadar police this week arrested Tomislav Vlajic and Ante Sliskovic, two suspects of war crimes committed in Ahmici seven years ago. Both Croatian citizens, they his under aliases. Racan commented on their arrest at a request by a reporter during Racan's visit to the agriculture and economy ministries. "Those who work will feel good (in Croatia), while those responsible for robbery or war crime will feel bad," Racan said. The two suspects "of course, are not guilty until proven so, but I wish to ascertain that by such action Croatia raises itself at a higher level as a law-based state," he said. "I had already said, when we discovered documents ev
ZAGREB, Sept 6 (Hina) - Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan said
Wednesday the apprehension of two suspects of war crimes in the
central Bosnian village of Ahmici was "proof that the Croatian
state will not allow any criminal to live in it freely and at
peace".
Zadar police this week arrested Tomislav Vlajic and Ante Sliskovic,
two suspects of war crimes committed in Ahmici seven years ago. Both
Croatian citizens, they his under aliases.
Racan commented on their arrest at a request by a reporter during
Racan's visit to the agriculture and economy ministries.
"Those who work will feel good (in Croatia), while those
responsible for robbery or war crime will feel bad," Racan said.
The two suspects "of course, are not guilty until proven so, but I
wish to ascertain that by such action Croatia raises itself at a
higher level as a law-based state," he said.
"I had already said, when we discovered documents even partially
shedding a different light on the roles of certain people
surrounding the mentioned events in Bosnia, and possibly on General
Blaskic's sentence, that we shall do everything to get to the true
perpetrators of the crimes in Ahmici," Racan stressed.
Bosnian Croat troops in 1993 killed 116 residents of the central
Bosnian village of Ahmici. The international war crimes tribunal in
The Hague sentenced the then commanding officer for Central Bosnia,
Tihomir Blaskic, to 45 years in prison for responsibility of
command.
Racan hailed a statement by Croatian Army General Milivoj Petkovic
that he was prepared to cooperate with the Hague tribunal and take
the witness stand.
In 1993 Petkovic was a member of the Croatian Defence Council (HVO)
general staff. He appeared as witness in the trial against Blaskic,
and has recently been summoned to testify at the trial against
Kordic and Cerkez, indicted for the persecution of Moslems in
Central Bosnia.
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