RESOLUTION B3-0034, 0036 and 0101/93

Resolution on the situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina

The European Parliament,

A.reaffirming its condemnation of the murders and other acts of unspeakable brutality committed against the civilian population of Bosnia-Herzegovina, which form part of a deliberate strategy to terrorize the Muslim community, as part of the policy of ethnic cleansing,

B.condemning the lack of genuine political cooperation that would have enabled the Europeans to harmonize their position on the measures to be taken in response to the situation in the former Yugoslavia,

C.deploring the inability of the international community and the Europeans in particular to ensure compliance with Security Council resolutions on the embargo and the passage of humanitarian convoys; wishing to pay tribute, however, to all those who are working for a peaceful solution and providing humanitarian assistance, in particular the observers, soldiers, negotiators and non-governmental organizations working in the region,

D.whereas the tragedy in Bosnia-Herzegovina constitutes a serious threat to peace and stability in the whole region and notably in all republics of former Yugoslavia;

E.whereas the primary responsibility for the conflict and its brutality lies with the leadership of Serbia and of the Bosnian Serbs,

F.whereas unequivocal support should be given to all efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in Bosnia-Herzegovina,

G.noting that the Geneva Conference has opened up the prospect for a negotiated political settlement,

H.having regard to its previous resolutions on the situation in the former Yugoslavia and in particular those of 29 October 1992 on the impending catastrophe in Bosnia and the violation of human rights in the former YugoslaviaMinutes of that Sitting, Part II, Item 17(b), 19 November 1992 on the widening conflict in the former YugoslaviaMinutes of that Sitting, Part II, Item 1 and 17 December 1992 on the rape of women in the former YugoslaviaMinutes of that Sitting, Part II, Item 8(c),

1.Points to the need to step up the pressure on the leaders concerned in order to put a stop to the use of brute force and secure the release of all those who might be held in the camps;

2.Points to the importance of obtaining any first-hand accounts and documents that might help to identify the individual culprits involved in the crimes -- in particular summary executions, torture and systematic rape of women - committed during the fighting in the former Yugoslavia and thus ensure that those responsible can be tried by a special international court;

3.Requests that a Documentation Centre on human rights violations in the former Yugoslavia be established at the European Court of Human Rights, charged with carrying out all the necessary research on this issue; demands that the European Community and its Member States support the setting up and functioning of such a centre;

4.Demands that the European Community and its Member States take full responsibility for ensuring strict respect for and implementation of the embargo against Serbia and Montenegro; asks the Commission to establish a catalogue of sanctions against countries (Member States and others) from whose territory persistent breaches of the embargo take place; demands at the same time that compensation be provided for countries which suffer disproportionately from the effects of the embargo;

5.Calls on European Political Cooperation to use its influence to have the Security Council adopt a new resolution for ensuring effective implementation of its previous resolutions by specifying the resources on which those acting under UN auspices may draw to carry out their duties and for laying down the sanctions and military measures to be implemented should the Serbian militias continue to flout the various resolutions;

6.Underlines the demand for a fair and just settlement, supports the Geneva negotiations process and draws attention to the fact that very firm guarantees will have to be provided from the outset, commencing in the first phase of implementation, in order to protect the minorities living in he future provinces to be set up in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and that large-scale international resources will have to be mobilized for years in order to ensure that any agreement negotiated is observed;

7.Reiterates its demand that all detention camps, and in particular the women's camps, be closed immediately and that free and secure access be given to humanitarian organizations so that all those detained in these camps can be assisted;

8.Appeals once more to the governments of the Member States to offer a (temporary) home to a far larger number of refugees and calls on the Member States as a matter of urgency to open their borders and their coffers to solve the refugee problem in accordance with the principles of equal burden-sharing;

9.Calls on the Community and the Member States to give all the necessary support - material, financial and military - to the UNHCR and ECO for carrying out their efforts to give humanitarian assistance to the suffering population in Bosnia-Herzegovina;

10.Calls for effective and continued support of those groups and the media which are active, in all the republics of former Yugoslavia, in promoting democracy, ethnic pluralism, political and religious tolerance and the rule of law;

11.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, European Political Cooperation, the Commission, the governments of the Member States and the Co-Chairmen of and participants in the Geneva Conference.