UN Wire

November 27, 2000

YUGOSLAVIA: UN Tribunal Outraged By Milosevic Appearance

UN war crimes prosecutors at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) yesterday expressed outrage after former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's public appearance Saturday. Milosevic was re-elected president of Serbia's Socialist Party, despite being forced to concede electoral defeat and relinquish power last month.

Milosevic, an indicted war criminal, delivered a bombastic speech on Saturday, accusing the West of genocide against the Serbs and calling the ICTY "the new Gestapo," the London Telegraph reports. Milosevic also claimed that Yugoslavia's media is controlled by foreign intelligence services (Alex Todorovic, London Telegraph, 27 Nov).

Milosevic won 85% of the votes from 2,300 delegates at the closed-door congress in Belgrade. He was the only candidate. The congress reportedly exemplified the intentions of the Socialist Party to engineer a return to power in the Serbian elections in December (Vesna Peric Zimonjicin, London Independent, 27 Nov).

"It's unbelievable to see someone under an international arrest warrant appearing so obviously," said Florence Hartmann, spokesperson for chief UN war crimes prosecutor Carla del Ponte. When asked if Milosevic's recent appearances could increase his chances of being arrested she said, "Yes. Everyone knows where he is and there is no reason not to arrest him."

Pursuing Milosevic's Arrest

Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica, however, maintains that arresting Milosevic is not a priority in light of other problems at hand, including a growing crisis in the southern Presevo valley where ethnic Albanian guerillas have crossed into Kosovo. Serbian units are expected to move in, unless UN peacekeepers take action by today's deadline (Alex Todorovic, London Telegraph, 27 Nov).

French President Jacques Chirac, however, said Wednesday that he is convinced that Kostunica will follow in Croatia's footsteps and cooperate completely with the ICTY (Reuters/Central Europe Online, 23 Nov).

Observers said that Milosevic's speeches and his attitude over the weekend give no indication that he plans to withdraw from political life as demanded by Western powers as well as his opponents in Yugoslavia.

"Everyone can see he is in Serbia and he cannot stay at large with an indictment on him," Hartmann said. "He must be arrested in Belgrade. The prosecutor is expecting him in The Hague as soon as possible."

Hartmann admitted that it might prove difficult for Belgrade authorities to make the arrest and bring Milosevic to The Hague, since Belgrade authorities have known for some time where Milosevic was but did not take action (Reuters/Central Europe Online, 26 Nov).

Zoran Zivkovic, Yugoslavia's interior minister, said that state prosecutors should consider bringing charges against Milosevic for statements made during his outspoken speech on Saturday. "Police can act if the prosecutor brings charges, because Milosevic called those elected by the people traitors, spies and foreign mercenaries," Zivkovic said (Toronto Globe and Mail, 27 Nov).

Commentary On International Justice

Gary Bass, an assistant professor of politics and international affairs at Princeton University, examines the issue of war crimes tribunals in a Washington Post commentary. He says that "much as someone like Milosevic deserves to be punished, the 20th century's experience with war crimes trials suggests that they pose real political risks."

Bass writes that while there is a powerful argument to be made for investing in war crimes tribunals to achieve justice, the "limitations and pitfalls of international justice" must also be considered (Washington Post, 26 Nov).