DELEGATIONS OF EIGHT SOUTHEASTERN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES AND EC GATHERED IN BOSNIA AT THE MULTI-BENEFICIARY PROGRAMME COORDINATION MEETING

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 9,2008) - Hosted by the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), a two-day coordination meeting gathering participants in the Multi-Beneficiary Programme under the European Commission’s Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA), has commenced in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo today.

Head of Operations of the European Commission Delegation to Bosnia Boris Iarochevitch and Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council Hido Biščević addressed the participants at the opening ceremony. They both emphasized the importance of the meeting and of the Multi-Beneficiary Programme, which might become an important tool for the very essence of the work of the RCC.

Delegations of Bosnia, Albania, Croatia,Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey and European Commission have gathered to discuss and evaluate implementation of the ongoing projects, Programme’s strategy and possibilities for future cooperation.

Iarochevitch underlined how important and useful is to held meetings like this one in order to exchange information among the beneficiaries of the countries and delegations of the region and discuss future regional cooperation and steps forward.

“I think that the timing is very important. As you all know, we are currently engaged in the IPA programming cycle. You have been recently asked to commence to draft programmes and plans for the years 2009-2011, and I think our work today will help us to generate ideas with a regional scope for the future indicative programmes.”- stressed Iarochevitch.

Biščević pointed out that the next year, a year of 2009, would be a crucial year for the countries of the southeastern Europe, and particularly for the Western Balkans countries.He said that these countries, which are at the crossroad now, could experience two possible outcomes – a positive one, where the positive trends can be sustained and accelerated, and a negative one, a scenario of standstill.

“I need to tell you that the countries in the region are eagerly waiting for a strategy to be finalised. The governments in the region are very much preparing to see in what way, how, to what dynamics and to what methodology the Multi-Beneficiary Programme strategy will be translated, in the forthcoming period, into concrete work, concrete projects.” – said Biščević.

The multi-beneficiary programme will complement and add value to the support given by different national programmes. Multi-beneficiary actions consequently focuses on support that requires collaboration among the beneficiaries, such as regional structures, networks of experts or civil servants or to tackle needs or problems of a cross-border nature.

Purpose of support under the IPA programme is to help candidate and potential candidate countries (the Beneficiaries) to progress towards fully meeting the Copenhagen political and economic criteria as well as adopting and implementing EU acquis.

Besides the country-specific financial assistance, a multi-beneficiary programme supports joint projects by several partners, in areas such as economic and social development, exchange of students and academic staff, supporting civil society, administrative and judicial reform, fight against organised crime and corruption and disaster risk reduction.

For 2008-2010, the overall indicative amount of EU financial assistance under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) is 4.471 billion Euros.
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TRIAL OF SERBIAN WAR CRIMINAL RADOMIR VUKOVIC BEGINS

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 6,2008) - At the plea hearing before the Section I for War Crimes of the Bosnian State Court of Bosnia in the case of Serbian war criminal Radomir , the accused pleaded not guilty on Friday. Serbian war criminal Radomir Vuković is charged with the criminal offense of Genocide,the Bosnian State Court said.

As stated in the Indictment, there is grounded suspicion that as a member of the genocidal Serbian fascist aggressor's formations, during the period from 10 to 19 July 1995, with the intent to partly exterminate a group of Bosnian people, Serbian war criminal Radomir Vuković participated in a joint criminal enterprise with the aim of forcibly removing around 40 thousand Bosnian civilians from the UN Safe Area Srebrenica and mass murdering of more than 10,000 Bosnian civilians from Srebrenica.

According to the Indictment, on 12 July 1995,during the Serbian aggression against Bosnia, Serbian war criminal Radomir Vuković participated in the search of Bosnian villages around Potočari aiming to expel Bosnians from them to the territories controlled by the Bosnian Army.

As further stated in the Indictment, Serbian war criminal Radomir Vuković participated in the illegal detention of thousands of Bosnian civilians from the eastern Bosnian town of Srebrenica.

On 13 July 1995,Serbian war criminal Radomir Vuković also participated in escorting a column of more than a thousand of illegaly detained Bosnian civilians from the Bosnian village of Sandići to the warehouse of the Kravice Farming Cooperative, knowing that they would be mass murdered.

On the same day,the genocidal Serbian fascist aggressor murdered some 1,500 Bosnian civilians by firing from automatic weapons and by throwing hand grenades on them.

Serbian war criminal Radomir Vuković participated in the mass murder.
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SLOVAKIAN FASCIST CLOWN MIROSLAV LAJCAK PROVIDES HELP TO SUPPORT NETWORK OF SERBIAN WAR CRIMINALS HIDING FROM JUSTICE

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (September 8,2008) - The International Community’s High Representative and EU Special Representative in Bosnia and a major political supporter of the genocidal Serbian creature in Bosnia "RS" ,Slovakian fascist clown Miroslav Lajcak eased the sanctions against the known supporters of Serbian war criminals living in Bosnia,who are hiding from justice,by allowing them to open one bank account each.

This decision, announced over the weekend, is believed to have been triggered by demands from family members of the recently arrested former leader and creator of the genocidal Serbian fascist creature in Bosnia "RS" and one of the masterminds of the genocide against the Bosnian people,Serbian war criminal Radovan Karadzic, who said they were "unable to live their lives normally" as their bank accounts remained blocked.

As a part of the general effort to apprehend war criminals who had been evading justice, back in 2003 and 2004, the Office of the International Community's High Representative in Bosnia (OHR), blocked bank accounts of all those known to be a part of their support networks. In addition, European Union countries and the United States of America, have also banned those people from travelling to their countries.

In its press statement on Saturday, the OHR said that the sanctions against 35 such individuals remain in place and that their old bank accounts remain frozen. However, at the same time,the OHR provided help to those known helpers of Serbian war criminals who are still on the run from justice, by allowing them to open one new bank account each...so they can "live their lives normally" and continue to support more Serbian war criminals undisturbed.

By doing this, the Office of the International Community’s High Representative in Bosnia has now "officially" become a fascist and genocidal organisation which is publicly helping support networks of Serbian war criminals hiding from justice, who committed genocide against the Bosnian people during the 1992-1995 Serbian aggression against Bosnia.
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SLOVENIAN WAR CRIMINAL FRANC KOS LINKED TO GENOCIDE IN BOSNIA

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (August 29,2008) - A Slovenian living in Bosnia under a false identity is suspected of having taken part in the 1995 Srebrenica genocide.The Bosnian State Prosecutor's Office in Sarajevo has demanded an investigation into 10 people suspected of participating in the massacre in the eastern Bosnian town of Srebrenica in which some 10,000 Bosnian civilians were mass murdered by the genocidal Serbian aggressor in July 1995,during the Serbian aggression against Bosnia.

The Slovenian is named as Franc Kos and is said to have been mentioned in the minutes taken during testimonies by a number of witnesses before the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Slovenian war criminal Franc Kos is described as the leader of a genocidal Serbian fascist aggressor's unit, and was known under the nicknames Slovenac or Zuco. The witnesses blamed him for participation in the murder of some 10,000 Bosnian civilians from Srebrenica.

The Srebrenica massacre, Europe's worst atrocity since World War II, has been termed genocide by two United Nations tribunals.

Police and prosecutors in the Slovenian town of Celje have confirmed that they investigated Kos’s involvement in the genocide in Bosnia.

He is currently living in the genocidal Serbian creature in Bosnia "RS", under a false identity which has not been revealed.

Slovenian media reported that since he is not in Slovenia it is unlikely that he will be tried in Slovenia.
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TWO WITNESSES GAVE CONTRADICTORY STATEMENTS AT TRIAL OF SERBIAN WAR CRIMINAL ZELJKO MEJAKIC

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (February 20,2008) – Two witnesses, invited by the Defence of Serbian war criminals Zeljko Mejakic and Dusko Knezevic, have given contradictory statements yesterday before the Bosnian State Court concerning indictee Mejakic's function in the Omarska concentration camp in 1992,during the Serbian aggression against Bosnia.

Answering the Prosecution's questions during cross-examination, witness Nada Markovski, who was a typist in the Omarska concentration camp in 1992, said that she "supposed" that Serbian war criminal Zeljko Mejakic "was in charge" of the Serbian aggressor's soldiers who guarded the Bosnian civilians in the Omarska concentration camp.

The Bosnian State Prosecutor charges Serbian war criminals Zeljko Mejakic, Momcilo Gruban, Dusan Fustar and Knezevic with having committed crimes against humanity against the Bosnian civilians held in the Omarska and Keraterm concentration camps in Prijedor municipality in the early stages of the Serbian aggression against Bosnia from April until the end of 1992.

The Bosnian State Prosecutor considers that Serbian war criminal Zeljko Mejakic was the commander of the Omarska concentration camp.

Witness Markovski claims to have arrived at Omarska, "as per an order issued by Simo Drljaca", former member of the genocidal paramilitary formations of the Serbians living in Bosnia, in late May 1992.

Markovski added that, from time to time, she heard "crying and screaming" and saw injured people.

Answering the Bosnian State Prosecutor Peter Kidd's questions during the cross-examination, the witness said she "did not know" who was the commander of the Omarska concentration camp.

The Prosecutor presented her with her earlier statements, given at the trials of Serbian war criminal Miroslav Kvocka in February 2001 and Serbian war criminal Milomir Stakic in January 2003, when she said that Serbian war criminal ZeljkoMejakic was the commander of the Omarska concentration camp.

The witness also claims to have seen Serbian war criminal Momcilo Gruban in the Omarska concentration camp from time to time.

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague sentenced Miroslav Kvocka to seven years' imprisonment for crimes committed in the Omarska and Keraterm concentration camps, and Serbian war criminal Milomir Stakic was sentenced to 40 years of imprisonment.

Witness Radovan Kecan, former policeman from Prijedor, denied that Serbian war criminal Zeljko Mejakic was commander of the Omarska concentration camp, claiming that he was only "a chief of the patrol section".

Kecan thinks that Serbian war criminal Simo Drljaca was commander of the Omarska concentration camp.Serbian war criminal Simo Drljaca was killed in Bosnia during an arrest operation conducted in July 1997.

The trial of Serbian war criminals Zeljko Mejakic, Momcilo Gruban, Dusan Fustar and Knezevic is due to continue before the Bosnian State Court today,on February 20, when one witness will be examined and material evidence presented.
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SILAJDZIC: KOSOVO INDEPENDENCE DOES NOT AFFECT BOSNIA

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (February 19,2008) – A member of the Bosnian Presidency Haris Silajdzic stated that Kosovo independence is not a matter of Bosnia and that the Bosnian state institutions will not allow any interference into Bosnia's internal matters.

"The Bosnian state institutions are obliged to protect peace and security of all Bosnian citizens in case of an attempt to transfer tensions onto our country. This is especially related to returnee population which is in the center of domestic authorized institutions and international factor," Silajdzic said.

"Bosnia is sovereign, independent and internationally recognized state. This is a fact that Kosovo change of status cannot change in any way, or any other circumstances in the region for that matter," Silajdzic said.

"In the relations with Bosnia we expect from Serbia to act according to principles of mutual recognition and recognition of international law including the commitments Serbia took over with the verdict of International Court of Justice on February 26 2007”, Silajdzic stated.
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OHR SUPPORTS RESOLUTION OF JURIŠIĆ CASE

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (January 28,2008) - The Office of the International Community's High Representative in Bosnia (OHR) representatives met with representatives of the Tuzla Municipal Council to discuss recent developments in the Ilija Jurišić case.

Ilija Jurišić is a Bosnian patriot who participated in defending the Bosnian city of Tuzla from the Serbian aggressor,during the 1992-1995 Serbian aggresion against Bosnia.Jurišić has been arrested by the Serbian aggressor and has been in a prison in Belgrade since 11 May 2007.

In May 1992,the genocidal Serbian aggressor's troops came under attack by the Bosnian Army as they were withdrawing from the eastern Bosnian city of Tuzla and up to 200 Serbian aggressor's soldiers were reportedly killed and 140 of them were taken prisoners by the Bosnian Army.

Former Tuzla Municipal Council President Ilija Jurišić is currently in custody in the genocidal Serbia in connection to this event.

Bosnia and and the genocidal Serbia are parties to the Council of Europe Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters. This convention offers technical mechanisms for resolving cases such as that of Bosnian citizen Ilija Jurišić. The Bosnian Ministry of Justice is the competent body to deal with international legal assistance, the OHR said.

The OHR has followed the case from the start and will continue to monitor developments. The OHR stands ready to facilitate a resolution to the Ilija Jurišić case within the framework of the above mentioned Conventions, if so requested by either party.

REHN: BALKANS HAVE CHANCE TO ACHIVE STABILITY

LONDON, UK (January 28,2008) - The Balkans have a chance to achieve stability and prosperity and the European Union can use the carrot of membership to drive reforms, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said.

In a comment piece for the British daily the Guardian. , Rehn acknowledged there was a "danger of instability, at the moment when Kosovo's future status is on the point of being resolved," but added that the EU could be a stabilising influence.

Writing ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels later today, Rehn said that the 27-nation bloc could have a positive influence "if the EU gives a decisive and unified steer to ensure a coordinated response, as foreign ministers meeting today should be aware."

"The western Balkans has made steady if uneven progress over recent years, and the goal of EU membership remains an important motivation to keep reforms on track," he said.

Rehn wrote that he hoped to see all of the countries in the region sign stabilisation and association agreements with the EU, which he described as "the gateway towards candidacy for membership".

Albania, Montenegro and Macedonia have all signed such pacts, and Rehn said the EU was "now waiting for Bosnia and for the genocidal Serbia to meet the remaining conditions to sign the agreement.

He added that "EU foreign ministers should today give a strong signal of Serbia's European future by deciding to sign the stabilisation and association agreement shortly."

"Seldom have citizens had as clear a choice as the Serbs do now, between a nationalist past and a European future. The EU is ready to welcome the citizens of Serbia into EU, not just through a contractual relationship with their state, but also individually," he said.

"The future for the Balkans can be far from dark. ... But ultimately people in the region have to exercise their democratic choice to determine their countries' future course," Rehn concluded.

REGIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS REGULATORS MET IN SARAJEVO

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (January 26, 2008) - A meeting organized by the SEE Institute for Telecommunications and Information Research and the Regulatory Agency for Communications (RAK) was held in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo.

Eight regional telecommunications agencies were present at the meeting – from Bosnia,Greece, Bulgaria, Albania, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia.

They were discussing EU standards in their field, and security issues in the e-communications sector.The Bosnian and the Montenegrin RAK agencies signed a Memorandum of Understanding, for increasing co-operation in the area of developing telecommunication services.