ZAGREB, Jan 15 (Hina) - Croatia should mark the ninth anniversary of its international recognition, one of the key events in recent Croatian history, in a dignified manner and not by talking about chief prosecutor Carla del Ponte, the
leader of the strongest opposition party said on Monday. Ivo Sanader of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) said the recognition had been the result of the Croatian people's determination to establish its own state and defend itself from the Serb aggressor, two goals achieved under the presidency of HDZ and its president and former head of state Franjo Tudjman. Speaking to reporters on the occasion of the recognition anniversary, Sanader recalled that Croatia, as the victim of aggression, had urged the establishment of an international criminal tribunal to prosecute the perpetrators of crimes committed in the early 1990s aggression on Croatia. He reminded
ZAGREB, Jan 15 (Hina) - Croatia should mark the ninth anniversary of
its international recognition, one of the key events in recent
Croatian history, in a dignified manner and not by talking about
chief prosecutor Carla del Ponte, the leader of the strongest
opposition party said on Monday.
Ivo Sanader of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) said the
recognition had been the result of the Croatian people's
determination to establish its own state and defend itself from the
Serb aggressor, two goals achieved under the presidency of HDZ and
its president and former head of state Franjo Tudjman.
Speaking to reporters on the occasion of the recognition
anniversary, Sanader recalled that Croatia, as the victim of
aggression, had urged the establishment of an international
criminal tribunal to prosecute the perpetrators of crimes
committed in the early 1990s aggression on Croatia. He reminded
those crimes claimed the lives of about 15,000 people and resulted
in demolished towns and villages.
The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in
The Hague is negligent, having raised only a few indictments for
those crimes and not prosecuting anybody yet, Sanader said.
He added the tribunal should comply with its statutory obligations,
and was confident that in cooperating with The Hague, the Croatian
government would abide by adopted principles.
Sanader asserted that Flash and Storm, 1995's military operations
which liberated Croatian territories until then occupied by Serb
rebels, had not been ethnic cleansing operations. He added it was
unacceptable to have Croatian state and military officials on trial
in The Hague on grounds of command accountability.
"The time has come to reach national consensus on the matter and
protect Croatia's state interests," Sanader said, adding it was
also necessary to renew the spirit of unity.
Sanader also issued a statement reminding that three years ago
today the Danube River Region was successfully reintegrated with
the rest of Croatia. That was an outstanding success of Croatia's
state policy because a part of state territory was reintegrated
into Croatia's constitutional and legal order without any
bloodshed, he said.
(hina) ha sb