ZAGREB, Aug 27 (Hina) - A year after the liberation of occupied Croatian territory, Croatian authorities are not ensuring sufficient security to Croatian Serbs in those territories, said a letter from UN Special Rapporteur of the
Commission on Human Rights Elizabeth Rehn forwarded to the president of the Commission Gilberto Saboia.
ZAGREB, Aug 27 (Hina) - A year after the liberation of occupied
Croatian territory, Croatian authorities are not ensuring
sufficient security to Croatian Serbs in those territories, said a
letter from UN Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights
Elizabeth Rehn forwarded to the president of the Commission
Gilberto Saboia. #L#
During her mission she "learned of numerous recent cases of
looting, arson and harassment in the region, in which most of the
victims had been Croatian Serbs," the letter said.
Rehn stressed some of the most important problems concerning
human rights violations which she had noticed during her visit to
the territory of former Yugoslavia from 3 to 11 August.
Concerning Croatia, where she visited Karlovac, Korenica and
Knin, she warned about "ominous" bombing incidents which caused at
least three deaths.
Rehn also warned about attacks on non-governmental
organizations for the protection of human rights.
"The continuing state of insecurity in former sectors North
and South so long after last summer's military operations leads me
to conclude that there apparently is an unwillingness on the part
of the Croatian authorities to take strong preventive measures to
ensure the safety of local residents," the letter said.
In the conclusion she reached from her visit, out of the 9,253
Serbs who had been authorized by the Croatian government to return,
"probably no more than one or two thousand" Serbs have returned to
their homes.
As regards Bosnia-Herzegovina, Rehn expressed concern with the
democratic character of the upcoming elections.
"In my view, it is necessary now to proceed with the elections
as scheduled. However, we may as well abandon the notion that the
elections will be 'free and fair' for sadly, it appears this will
be far from the truth. The best way in which to view the elections,
I believe, will be not as an end in themselves, but simply, as part
of a new beginning for Bosnia and Herzegovina," Rehn said in her
letter.
Rehn also warned about the "deteriorating human rights
situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina", citing cases of expulsions of
non-Serb citizens from the village of Vrbanja near Banja Luka (Serb
entity) and the continued harassment of Serbs in the suburbs of
Sarajevo.
(hina) lm jn
272036 MET aug 96