B4-1257, 1280, 1306, 1319 and 1324/96

Resolution on the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia

The European Parliament,

- having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation in the former Yugoslavia, and in particular on the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia,

- having regard to the hearing on impunity held by its Subcommittee on Human Rights on 30 and 31 October 1996,

- having regard to the speech given by the President of the Tribunal, Antonio Cassese, during the hearing,

- having regard to UN Security Council Resolutions 827 of 25 May 1993 and 1074 of 1 October 1996,

A. emphasizing that the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has an important role to play in the establishment of a lasting peace in the former Yugoslavia, and that all the United Nations Member States, and especially the countries of the former Yugoslavia, should cooperate fully with it and contribute to its proper and effective functioning, and should take any measures under their domestic law to implement the provisions of the Tribunal's Statute,

B. whereas the work of the Tribunal, by serving as a textbook case, will have an impact on the work of the Rwanda Tribunal, and, in particular, on the development of a general international war crimes tribunal,

C. whereas, pursuant to Resolution 827(93) of the United Nations Security Council and Article 29 of the Statute of the Tribunal, all states have a legal, but above all a moral, obligation to cooperate with the Tribunal,

D. whereas there can be no impunity for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes,

E. whereas impunity represents an obstacle to the reconstruction of Bosnia-Herzegovina as an independent, democratic state,

F. expressing its concern that until now very few of the indicted war criminals have been brought to trial before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia,

G. whereas the main problem facing the Tribunal is that, unlike domestic criminal courts, it has no enforcement agencies at its disposal and must, therefore, rely on states both to execute its arrest warrants and other orders and make it possible for investigators to interview witnesses and investigate sites on their territory,

H. deeply concerned by the fact that, in blatant disregard of international law, in the "Republika Srpska" four indicted persons are reportedly holding public law enforcement positions and were easily located by the media, and that, in more general terms, the authorities of the abovementioned entity have made only vague promises of unspecified cooperation at some future date to the officials of the Tribunal,

I. whereas Serbia has failed to pass implementing legislation to enable it to cooperate with the Tribunal and has indicated that it has no intention of doing so in the future, and whereas the Croatian authorities, in spite of their initial active cooperation, have failed to exercise their acknowledged influence in the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina so as to effect the arrest of indicted Bosnian Croats,

J. alarmed by the fact that, in general, throughout the territory of Bosnia- Herzegovina the rule of law is often flouted, in spite of the transitional five-year period of international supervision of human rights, owing to a lack of cooperation on the part of local law enforcement authorities,

K. whereas IFOR troops in Bosnia-Herzegovina have so far refused to take active steps to arrest indicted war criminals,

L. whereas adequate funding for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia should be provided in order to guarantee its proper and effective functioning,

1. Calls on the authorities of Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Croatia to take, as a matter of urgency, all the steps needed to cooperate actively with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, bring indicted war criminals to trial and implement the provisions of the Tribunal's Statute;

2. Urges the Commission to link any reconstruction aid to the Republika Srpska to the issue of the handing over to the Tribunal of persons accused of genocide and crimes against humanity;

3. Urges the Member States to oppose the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia's membership of international organizations such as the World Bank and the IMF until such time as it adopts the implementing legislation needed to enable it to cooperate fully with the Tribunal, and to argue against the regularization of Yugoslavia's position in the United Nations until it has fulfilled its obligations under the relevant Security Council resolutions and the Dayton Agreement;

4. Calls on the Commission to link the future development of relations with Croatia to that country's willingness to cooperate fully with the Tribunal and urges the Croatian Government to bring the necessary pressure to bear on the Bosnian Croat authorities to execute the arrest warrants issued by the Tribunal for indicted persons living in that part of Bosnia-Herzegovina and to hand over significant evidence, which is known to exist, to the Prosecutor of the Tribunal;

5. Reiterates its view that IFOR should use its mandate to arrest indicted war criminals;

6. Urges the Council and the UN Security Council to find ways to strengthen the mandate of the International Police Task Force (IPTF), for example by considering the possibility of making it more effective by including it in the scope of the new IFOR mandate to be discussed before the end of 1996;

7. Calls on the European Union and its Member States to cooperate fully with, and contribute to the proper and effective functioning of, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and to make the necessary funds available, not least in the Victims and Witnesses Unit;

8. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the government and regional authorities of Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Croatia, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the UN Security Council.