SIMONOVIC SPEAKS ABOUT PERMANENT INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL

NEW YORK, Oct 21 (Hina) - Croatia supports the principle that nobody, including the most senior state officials, can be excluded from responsibility for crimes against humanity, war and similar crimes in the jurisdiction of a permanent international criminal court, Croatian Ambassador Ivan Simonovic said in New York on Thursday during a discussion at the United Nations. The decision of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) to issue an indictment against Slobodan Milosevic and the increasingly spreading opinion about the changed institution of immunity of state officials is held by Simonovic as a turning point with "far-reaching repercussions upon the conduct of domestic and foreign policy in the future". Simonovic advocated the "principle of universal jurisdiction in the protection of international humanitarian law". In a speech at the 54th session of the UN General Assembly, Simonovic recalled that Croatia had suggested several amendments to the rules of procedure of the International Criminal Court so that the danger of obstruction of its work may be removed. He announced Croatia would carefully monitor the work of the working group in charge of determining the term aggression because, as a recent victim of aggression, "is aware of the fact that its outcome shall impact upon the efforts of the international community to ensure, preserve and maintain international peace and security". (hina) lml