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Serbia Today, 96-12-24
CONTENTS
[01] 16.000 MISSING PERSONS IN THE BOSNIAN WAR
[02] PRESENTATION OF THE BELGRADE TOURISM OFFER IN 1997
[03] MOSLEMS REJECT EVEN SANTA
[04] ALLEGED WAR CRIMES BY BOGDAN BANIC
[05] DOSSIER ON CROATIAN CRIMES AGAINST THE SERBS IS BEING COMPLETED
[06] CHRISTMAS PRAYER FOR THE USTASHA FUEHRER
[01] 16.000 MISSING PERSONS IN THE BOSNIAN WAR
Mr. Cornelio Somarauga - Chairman of the International Committee of the Red
Cross (ICRC), took part in the international conference in London and
illustrated in his speech the ICRC activities in Bosnia after the signing
of the Dayton Agreement. He indicated among other things that according to
individual reports that have been filed, 16 thousand people are missing in
Bosnia and Herzegovina. Lamentably, the ICRC Missing Persons Office managed
to locate only a thousand missing persons. Mr. Somaruga stressed that in
the next two years the ICRC shall make maximum efforts to locate the
missing persons. During the war, the ICRC carried out the enormous task of
taking care of POW's and arranging numerous exchanges of prisoners. Even
though a year has passed since the war stopped in Bosnia and Herzegovina,
151 prisoners of war are still detained in Bosnian jails. According to some
estimates, in Croatia about 100 prisoners are being held in 14 jails.
Serbia Today, 1996-12-24 ; Politika, 1996-12-24
[02] PRESENTATION OF THE BELGRADE TOURISM OFFER IN 1997
Presenting the touristic offer of the Yugoslav capital for the coming year,
the director of the Belgrade Tourism Organization - Mr., Djordje Borotic -
said that hard currency earnings of about 40 million USD are anticipated
65% being for Belgrade. A better promotion of the offer will be used in the
Russian Federation, Ukraine, Germany, Italy, France, Greece and Holland. A
number of Belgrade travel agencies have prepared tours of Belgrade for
foreign tourists. Starting on January 1st, the Belgrade Tourism
Organization will be present on the INTERNET, which should also help bring
more visitors to the capital of Yugoslavia and Serbia.
Serbia Today, 1996-12-24 ; Borba, 1996-12-24
[03] MOSLEMS REJECT EVEN SANTA
Sarajevan kids will not have their presents from Santa Claus this year. The
Bosnian Moslem political leaders have abolished this unsuitable figure
belonging to another religious culture. "Santa Claus didn't buy the present,
why should he give them out?" - said an activist of the Moslem Democratic
Action Party (SDA), using such distorted logic to justify the official
ruling party stand that Santa is a "persona non grata". In fact, SDA
activists have been covering all elementary schools and "convincing" the
school principals that Santa Claus shouldn't give out presents. Nostalgic
Sarajevans refuse this deletion of the "good old man with the beard" and
they are supported by independent media. A survey conducted by the
independent radio station ISB, 84% of the people interviewed said that they
support Santa Claus and adding that Santa bothers Alija Izetbegovic,
national parties, Islamic fanatics and fascists. The director and editor of
the independent radio station ISB - Mr. Elvir Bucalo has been attacked and
heavily beaten only a few days after the survey.
Serbia Today, 1996-12-24 ; Ekspres Politika, 1996-12-24
[04] ALLEGED WAR CRIMES BY BOGDAN BANIC
The Veritas Documentation Center submitted to the Hague Tribunal
investigators a list of 117 Serbs serving sentences in Croatian jails for
"crimes of war". The "confirmed crimes" in question are probably best
illustrated by the case of Bogdan Banic from the village of Lepur near the
town of Benkovac. He has been sentenced to 6 years of imprisonment by the
Zadar County Court. The sentence states that Mr. Banic "killed three pigs
and 4 horses" owned by his Croatian neighbors, cut wood from their forest
and "took away a barrel". He also took a window and a door from a house
"and paraded in the village wearing a Serbian uniform". The Zadar County
Court deemed that this constitutes "criminal act against humanity and
international law - crime of war against civilian population". When Bogdan
Banic appealed to the Supreme Court of Croatia, he was given two more years
of imprisonment, even though the alleviating circumstance that his house
has been burned down in the "Storm" offensive has been taken into
consideration. The sentence was augmented because the higher court found
that "major damages" were made to the house of the neighboring Croat where
Banic took the door and the window. Bearing in mind that the homes of
Krayina Serbs have been all been practically destroyed, this interpretation
of the Supreme Court of Croatia would send half of Croatia to jail. The
other half would end up in jail for killing hundreds of thousands of pigs,
horses, cows and sheep owned by the Serbs - if the Croatian justice used in
the case of Bogdan Banic were to apply to all.
Serbia Today, 1996-12-24 ; Vecernje Novosti, 1996-12-24
[05] DOSSIER ON CROATIAN CRIMES AGAINST THE SERBS IS BEING COMPLETED
The Hague Tribunal judges will continue their investigation of the crimes
committed against the Serbs by the Croatian Army and Police during the
"operation Storm". After their 10 day stay in Belgrade where they
interviewed the first group of Serbian refugees from Krajina the judges
will continue gathering evidence in the coming year. "We are satisfied with
the way that the investigators are handling the crimes committed by the
Croatians during the "Storm"" - said Mr. Savo Strbac head of the Veritas
Documentation Centre. At the beginning of next year, the investigators from
the Hague will hear other witnesses. The Dutch news agency AMP recently
published a statement made by UN official Stephanie Bond. She accused the
Croatian Army and Police for the death of about 300 Serbs in the refugee
column that reached the town of Dvor na Uni. In fact they were massacred in
front of the town hall on August 8, 1995. Members of the Danish UN
Battalion were immediate witnesses of the of the crime that Croatian "HOS"
troopers carried out with the help of a Moslem Army unit from the town of
Bihac - said Ms. Bond from Holland. Soldiers from the UN Battalion from
Nepal also witnessed Croatian Army crimes: the massacre of Serbian
civilians near Prasnjik forest during the other Croatian offensive called
"Flash". More than 100 people were executed then. The judges of the Hague
Tribunal have a long list of about 300 UN officers or soldiers that saw
Croatians commit crimes in Krayina.
Serbia Today, 1996-12-24 ; Vecernje Novosti, 1996-12-24
[06] CHRISTMAS PRAYER FOR THE USTASHA FUEHRER
Ever since the Croatian Democratic Community (HDZ) came to power, prayers
for the soul of Ante Pavelic are being held in Catholic churches. The
novelty this year is that the Croatian believers have been invited by
various daily newspapers as part of the Christmas greetings to "pay their
tribute to the great patriot, politician and statesman - supreme leader of
the Independent State of Croatia". Prayers for the specter of this war
criminal, that obviously lives on in Croatia, organized by pro-Ustasha
organizations HOP (Croatian Liberation Movement) and HCISP (Croatian Pure
Rights Party), have not yet been officially commented upon by Croatian
Catholic prelates.
Serbia Today, 1996-12-24 ; Ekspres, 1996-12-24
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