UN WIRE

Friday, January 12, 2001

BALKANS: Yugoslavia Urges ICTY Suspects To Surrender Voluntarily

Yugoslavia yesterday urged citizens suspected of war crimes to follow the example of former Bosnian Serb President Biljana Plavsic and turn themselves over to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia at The Hague.

"Biljana Plavsic acted normally, in the way every other citizen suspected by a court, local or international, should do," said Justice Minister Momcilo Grubac. "The procedure does not mean that a person is guilty."

During a visit to the United States last week, Yugoslav Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic repeated Belgrade's pledge to cooperate with the UN tribunal, but he reiterated that former President Slobodan Milosevic should be tried at home.

Milosevic's party hit back late yesterday, accusing Svilanovic's statement of being "in direct contrast with the interests of the Serb people, Serbia and Yugoslavia." Socialists accused Svilanovic of giving "not only an alibi and amnesty for (US) crimes and aggression, but also a shameful message that it was a mistake for the Serbs to defend themselves."

Clinton Administration Offers $5M Reward For Milosevic Arrest

US President Bill Clinton's administration has offered a $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Milosevic, Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic (Reuters/Central Europe Online, 12 Jan). A reward has also been offered for alleged Rwandan war criminals (UN Wire, 8 Jan).

Yugoslav Interior Minister Zoran Zivkovic said yesterday Milosevic's police protection would be withdrawn the day the new Serbian government is formed. "But as a politician, I feel that he should have some kind of protection from adventurous individuals who might be inspired by the $5 million reward to kidnap him," he said (Reuters/Central Europe Online).

Plavsic's Voluntary Surrender Seen As Boost To UN Tribunal

While the UN tribunal has been accused of prosecuting only "little fish" for war crimes, Plavsic's appearance at the court is a big boost for the tribunal, the Christian Science Monitor reports.

Plavsic's attorney Krstan Simic reports that Plavsic turned herself in because "she is aware that this is the only place where she can prove that she is not guilty, which she deeply believes" (Peter Ford, Christian Science Monitor, 12 Jan).

The European Union yesterday welcomed Plavsic's surrender to the tribunal and urged other indicted suspects to follow suit (Reuters/Central Europe Online, 12 Jan).

Plavsic's Voluntary Surrender Seen As Blow To Balkan Leaders

Plavsic's decision, however, is viewed as a blow to the Yugoslav president who has insisted that Milosevic and other Serbs accused of war crimes be tried in Yugoslavia.

The South China Morning Post warns that the danger now is that the struggle between the international community and Kostunica "is likely to grow even more heated" (Karl Peter Kirk, 12 Jan).

Kostunica argues that Yugoslav's constitution bans the extradition of its citizens. He considers the tribunal a political, not a judicial body, which has been manipulated by NATO and the United States, according to BBC Online (Gabriel Partos, 10 Jan).

However, the tribunal's chief prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, rules out the idea of trying Milosevic at home (The Economist, 13 Jan).