Yugoslavia

Although a UN court has charged more than 160 people for war crimes committed during the Balkan wars, that number is still “very little” considering the thousands of violations that still need to be investigated.

That’s the assessment of Serge Brammertz, chief prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), which closes its doors this month after nearly 25 years of service.

Two United Nations policemen have been talking about the “horror stories” they heard from the families of victims of an indicted war criminal from the former Yugoslavia.

The two policemen, Vladimir Dzuro from the Czech Republic and Kevin Curtis from the United Kingdom, made history in 1997 when they delivered the very first alleged war criminal to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), based in The Hague.

People who have been found guilty of war crimes in the former Yugoslavia should not be considered “heroes” according to the Prosecutor of the ICTY, the UN tribunal tasked with prosecuting crimes committed during the Balkan wars of the 1990s.

Serge Brammertz was speaking before the acquittal on Thursday of the former Serbian politician, Vojislav Šešelj, who was accused of having been involved in crimes committed by Serbian forces from August 1991 until September 1993.

The political dynamics in the areas that once made up the former Yugoslavia remain “extremely complicated”.

That’s the assessment of Serge Brammertz, Prosecutor of the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, who recently returned from a visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The trip was part of the preparatory work ahead of the Prosecutor’s twice-yearly report to the Security Council.  He will also visit Belgrade next month.