ZAGREB, Sept 30 (Hina) - Croatia's Council for Cooperation with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague assessed ICTY president Gabrielle Kirk
McDonald's recent letter to the president of the United Nations Security Council was the result of a misunderstanding.
ZAGREB, Sept 30 (Hina) - Croatia's Council for Cooperation with the
International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International
Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague
assessed ICTY president Gabrielle Kirk McDonald's recent letter to
the president of the United Nations Security Council was the result
of a misunderstanding.#L#
McDonald says in her letter Croatia is continuing not to fulfil its
obligations to the ICTY, and distances herself from some
assessments Croatian Justice Minister Zvonimir Separovic made in a
letter to the UN Security Council.
According to today's statement of the Office for Cooperation with
the ICJ and the ICTY, the Council for Cooperation discussed
McDonald's letter on 29 September.
"The Council concluded there is no disagreement regarding the
contents of Minister Separovic's talks with president McDonald,
but the manner in which the talks are being interpreted," says the
statement.
It reminds Council president Separovic's letter to the UN Security
Council was unanimously accepted at the Council's 52nd session of
21 September, and forwarded the day after through Croatia's Embassy
to the UN. The statement points out the Separovic's letter is in
fact the letter of the Croatian Government's Council for
Cooperation with the ICJ and the ICTY.
The statement says that in a letter to Separovic of 27 September,
McDonald herself pointed out that she found their meeting
constructive and positive, while adding she disagreed with some
interpretations of their talks.
"McDonald welcomed Croatia's position to extradite (war crimes
suspect) Mladen Naletilic Tuta at once and unconditionally as soon
as the trial, in which the Croatian Government will and must not
interfere, has ended," the statement says.
Speaking about changes to ICTY's Rules on Procedure and Evidence,
the Council "believes there has obviously been a
misunderstanding."
"Given that ICJ's existent Rules on Procedure and Evidence do not
contain regulations which would provide for the possibility of a
state to decide on a request for assistance, the ICTY Prosecutor's
Office has issued to a particular state, (Croatia) as an interested
party, proposed a change of rules at the meeting which would enable
such decision-making."
The statement says McDonald suggested that the change of rules be
proposed as soon as possible so that the matter might be discussed
as early as November. "As soon as the team of expert has decided, a
proposal on the change of rules these will be forwarded to
McDonald.
The statement reminds that "president McDonald however maintains
that Croatia is not cooperating with the ICTY as long as Naletilic
is not extradited to the Tribunal, and she also distances herself
from proceedings relative to the Flash and Storm military/police
operations."
The Council for Cooperation with the ICJ and the ICTY points out it
"believes that an explanation will be possible regarding
contentious issues with the ICTY in proceedings before Croatian
courts (Tuta's extradition), i.e. before the ICTY, in issues on
jurisdiction for the Flash and Storm operations."
"The ICTY will soon be briefed on the course of Supreme Court
proceedings on Naletilic's extradition; also submitted will be
documents on his state of health, as well as the proposal to (...)
McDonald to include the proposal for the change of ICTY Rules on
Procedure on the Tribunal's agenda for November, as she has
promised," the statement concludes.
(hina) ha/sp