CRO JUSTICE MINISTER INFORMS REPORTERS ABOUT LETTER TO BLEWITT

ZAGREB, Dec 2 (Hina) - Croatian Justice Minister Zvonimir Separovic on Thursday announced he will soon forward a motion to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) that at least some or most of the Croats who had voluntarily to the Tribunal be released during the Christmas holidays. "I hope I will be successful," Separovic told reporters after Thursday's closed Government session. Separovic also informed reporters about a letter of protest he had sent to ICTY deputy chief prosecutor, Graham Blewitt. "Blewitt uttered an utterly tactless statement, in which he said that Croatia would cooperate with The Hague Tribunal only after President Tudjman dies. This is a morbid, necrophilic, aggressive, ill-mannered statement by a senior official of the UN tribunal which should never have been uttered," Separovic told reporters. He asserted it was not expected that, in a situation in which a president of a sovereign state was fighting for his life, there could be speculations "about how the Government and the state will cooperate after his death". "This is atypical, inappropriate and this is why I protested," Separovic said. The letter was sent by Separovic to Graham Blewitt, and gave notice to the president of the ICTY, Claude Jorda, as well as the Tribunal's Chief Prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte. Separovic also said a meeting with the president of the Tribunal was being prepared. (hina) lml mm