Statement
by
H. E. Vladimir Drobnjak
Ambassador
Permanent Representative of the Republic of Croatia to the United Nations
General Assembly Fifty-ninth Session
Item 51
Report of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons
Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law
Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991
15 November 2004
Thank you Mr. President,
Croatia has aligned itself with the statement of the European Union on this significant agenda item. In addition to that I would like to emphasize in brief several points of particular importance for my country.
Croatia highly commends the Report of the President of the Tribunal and is pleased with the fact that it takes an accurate note of the continuous and comprehensive efforts Croatia has invested in full cooperation with the ICTY. I use this opportunity to thank President Meron for his words of praise for Croatia in this regard.
The successful implementation of the Completion Strategy remains at the forefront of Croatia´s approach towards the Tribunal. The fulfillment of this Strategy within the 2004, 2008 and 2010 benchmarks, as outlined in the Security Council Resolutions 1503 and 1534, must remain our priority. Croatia stands ready to contribute to this goal to the best of its abilities.
Respecting the benchmarks is not only a question of the effective administration of justice, but equally important, it adds to the confidence building and stabilization processes in the region. We are already approaching the first of the three Completion Strategy´s benchmarks - the completion of all investigations by the end of 2004. With the investigative process done it should be easier to focus on the remaining tasks and shift necessary resources, both on the technical and on the political side of the spectrum, to that direction.
The referral of cases to competent national jurisdictions for trial remains one of the pillars of the Completion Strategy. Croatian judges and prosecutors stand ready for this serious task. They have already demonstrated in several cases their high professional standards in this demanding and enormously sensitive domain. I would like once again to express our gratitude to the Tribunal and its experts for the valuable technical and counseling assistance provided to Croatia´s judiciary, thus helping it to enhance its capability to prosecute war-crime cases in a professional and non-biased manner.
Mr. President,
The area of former Yugoslavia is turning into a zone of peace and stability. As I speak Croatian Prime-Minister, dr. Ivo Sanader, is on an official visit to Serbia and Montenegro, strengthening good neighborliness, confidence building and cooperation between Zagreb and Belgrade. The past is not forgotten, nor should it be, but it is the future that guides and inspires us. It is against this background of new regional stability that we have to evaluate the work of the ICTY and the imperative to complete its remaining tasks efficiently and on time.
Croatia has already stated from this very podium that certain interpretations by the Prosecutor regarding the historical background and political genesis of the conflict in former Yugoslavia, as well as the character of the consequent military operations, appeared not to be fully in line with the General Assembly resolution on the occupied territories of Croatia and the spirit of several important Security Council resolutions. Nevertheless, this in no way shall impede Croatia´s readiness to cooperate fully with the ICTY - after all, the Tribunal remains the place where the innocence or guilt of any and every indicted person has to be determined. It has been wisely said that justice is truth on the march. We are confident that both justice and truth will be served well.
As an early advocate of the Tribunal and its goals Croatia has established a long and largely successful record on cooperation with the ICTY. Being a candidate country for membership in the European Union, Croatia is perfectly aware how important cooperation with the ICTY is. Therefore Croatia shall continue to fulfill all related obligations and will take, within its own borders, all measures required for prosecuting perpetrators of war crimes.
Thank you.
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