ZAGREB, 16 Aug (Hina) - Croatian Vice Premier Ivica Kostovic on Friday held talks with a delegation of the International Court in The Hague about preparations for the exhumation and identification of bodies from the mass grave at
Ovcara near Vukovar.
ZAGREB, 16 Aug (Hina) - Croatian Vice Premier Ivica Kostovic on
Friday held talks with a delegation of the International Court in
The Hague about preparations for the exhumation and identification
of bodies from the mass grave at Ovcara near Vukovar. #L#
The Hague delegation included Investigator Clint Williamson,
Forensic Programme Coordinator Andrew Thomson, forensic expert
William Haghund and the head of the Court's Liaison Office, Jos
Paepen. Present at the talks at Mr Kostovic's side were Deputy
Foreign Minister Ivan Simonovic and the head of the government
Commission for Imprisoned and Missing Persons, General Ivan Gruic.
After the meeting, Kostovic said that the UNTAES
administration, headed by General Jacques Klein, had given full
support for the Court's mission and that it would secure all
necessary logistical support in Ovcara, from the removal of mines
to security measures.
The exhumation would start around 1 September and preparations
for it were already completed, Kostovic said. On 28 August,
international representatives would meet Vukovar mothers and
representatives of other non-government associations to inform them
about the details of their mission.
The Croatian government had carried out all necessary
preparations to facilitate the identification process in Zagreb.
Representatives of the government Commission for Imprisoned
and Missing Persons and Croatian doctors would be present during
the exhumation, Kostovic said, adding that General Klein would
regularly inform the media about the course of the U.N. mission.
Investigator Clint Williamson said that members of the mission
had met General Klein and visited Ovcara mass grave last Wednesday.
The Court's experts were very satisfied with preparations carried
out by the UNTAES.
The Croatian government, too, had fulfilled its obligations to
support the mission, he added.
The exhumation would start on 1 September and Vukovar mothers
as well as representatives of government organisations would be
informed on 28 August about the details of the mission, Williamson
said.
Asked how long the process of exhumation could last,
Williamson said that it could last from four to six weeks, adding
he could not give more precise information since the exhumation
depended on how many bodies would be recovered and what condition
they would in as well as on weather conditions.
(hina) rm
161210 MET aug 96