ZAGREB, Sept 2 (Hina) - The report on Croatia's cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) -the White Book - which was adopted by the Croatian Government on Thursday proves Croatia's
willingness to cooperate and the fact that Croatia is a victim of aggression, Justice Minister Miroslav Separovic said after today's Government session, commenting on the adoption of the White Book. However, the ICTY has issued indictments only for the mass killing of wounded persons and civilians at Ovcara farm outside Vukovar in 1991 and against Mile Martic for the shelling of Zagreb in 1995. There are no indictments against Serb generals Adzic, Kadijevic, Perisic, Tarbuk, and no full investigation has been initiated as regards Vukovar, he said. On the other hand, the Hague Tribunal has requested from Croatia various information on Croats who allegedly committed criminal a
ZAGREB, Sept 2 (Hina) - The report on Croatia's cooperation with the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) -
the White Book - which was adopted by the Croatian Government on
Thursday proves Croatia's willingness to cooperate and the fact
that Croatia is a victim of aggression, Justice Minister Miroslav
Separovic said after today's Government session, commenting on the
adoption of the White Book.
However, the ICTY has issued indictments only for the mass killing
of wounded persons and civilians at Ovcara farm outside Vukovar in
1991 and against Mile Martic for the shelling of Zagreb in 1995.
There are no indictments against Serb generals Adzic, Kadijevic,
Perisic, Tarbuk, and no full investigation has been initiated as
regards Vukovar, he said.
On the other hand, the Hague Tribunal has requested from Croatia
various information on Croats who allegedly committed criminal
acts, he added.
He reminded that Croatia had done what no other country after World
War II had done with the aim of cooperating with the ICTY, such as
amending its Constitution with a law allowing the extradition of
its citizens to the ICTY. This law also regulates Croatia's
cooperation with the Tribunal, he added.
The Croatian Government will request from an independent
international legal body to decide whether the military-police
operations 'Flash' and 'Storm', which liberated part of Croatia's
occupied territory, are under ICTY's jurisdiction.
If it is established that those operations do represent an
international armed conflict, Croatia will continue to cooperate
but under the clause saying no data important for national security
will be revealed, Separovic said.
"It is our stand that those military-police operations were not an
international armed conflict, but they liberated the occupied
state territory, and we will not allow them to be treated as a
criminal act. Individual crimes were committed during those
operations. We can submit evidence to the Hague Tribunal about that
too, as well as data on numerous proceedings that are being
conducted against the perpetrators", he said.
(hina) jn rml