ZAGREB, May 21 (Hina) - Croatian Justice Minister Zvonimir Separovic and Bosnia's Ambassador to Croatia Hasan Muratovic on Friday met in Zagreb to discuss legal cooperation and Bosnia's request for the extradition of Fikret Abdic and
another two persons. "Croatia sees to it that, in case suspicion is founded that a person has committed war crimes, this person is either extradited or tried," Separovic told reporters when asked about the possibility that Abdic be tried in Croatia for the crimes he is charged with. Bosnia has requested Abdic's extradition to try him for war crimes. "Croatia's judicial bodies will act in accordance with the law," Separovic said, and reiterated that Croatia's Constitution excludes the possibility of extraditing Croatian citizens. An exception can be made, in keeping with the Constitution, only when the extradition is requested
ZAGREB, May 21 (Hina) - Croatian Justice Minister Zvonimir
Separovic and Bosnia's Ambassador to Croatia Hasan Muratovic on
Friday met in Zagreb to discuss legal cooperation and Bosnia's
request for the extradition of Fikret Abdic and another two
persons.
"Croatia sees to it that, in case suspicion is founded that a person
has committed war crimes, this person is either extradited or
tried," Separovic told reporters when asked about the possibility
that Abdic be tried in Croatia for the crimes he is charged with.
Bosnia has requested Abdic's extradition to try him for war
crimes.
"Croatia's judicial bodies will act in accordance with the law,"
Separovic said, and reiterated that Croatia's Constitution
excludes the possibility of extraditing Croatian citizens.
An exception can be made, in keeping with the Constitution, only
when the extradition is requested by the International Criminal
Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), the justice minister
said.
The Bosnian ambassador assessed as "very constructive" his talks
with Separovic on the extradition of Abdic, Irfan Saracevic and
Serif Mustendagic.
Speaking about the Abdic extradition, Ambassador Muratovic said he
had been told that the County Court in Rijeka was assessing whether
there existed conditions to effect the extradition.
"I have been assured by Minister Separovic that Croatia will act in
keeping with the Croatian Constitution and laws, and that it will
not turn a deaf ear to the demand of international bodies, the
Interpol and the ICTY, in this case," Muratovic said.
Separovic said that in Abdic's case, Croatia had not received an
extradition request from the ICTY. We have put into procedure the
extradition request for Abdic and two other Bosnian citizens, he
said, adding proceedings were in course and that it was too early to
say when they will be completed.
In the case of a request from the international Interpol, Croatia
acts as a law-based state and applies Croatian laws, the justice
minister said.
Separovic and Muratovic also tackled an agreement on property
relations between Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, and judiciary-
related annexes to an agreement on special relations between
Croatia and Bosnia's Croat-Muslim federation.
Separovic emphasised there was mutual interest to solve property
relations.
Today's talks, he said, were also an opportunity to inform
Muratovic that Croatia is in possession of evidence that some
currently high ranking members in the Army of Bosnia-Herzegovina
committed war crimes against civilians in Croatia in 1991 when they
served as officers in the former Yugoslav People's Army (JNA).
Separovic said these are former JNA officers who ordered missile
attacks on Zadar, and an officer who acted against civilians in
Varazdin.
The justice minister said he acquainted Bosnia's ambassador with
the names of Army of BH members who committed crimes against Bosnian
Croats. Separovic declined to name anyone in front of the press.
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