HR/CERD/98/18
12 March 1998


The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination continued its consideration of a report presented by Yugoslavia this morning. One Committee expert said the report gave an overly optimistic picture of the situation in the country with regards to the rights of minorities and the implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

Noting that the situation in the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija should receive particular attention from the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the expert asked for frank and clear information on attacks and bombings by the Serbian army which caused a number of civilian victims, as well as information on arrests, executions and ill-treatment inflicted on inhabitants of Kosovo. Several experts said the International Red Cross should be granted unimpeded access to the area.

As one of 150 States parties to the Convention, Yugoslavia is required to provide periodic reports to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on its efforts to implement the treaty.

Responding to questions raised this morning and yesterday by the 18-member panel of experts, the Yugoslav delegation said the State provided the Albanian national minority in the Province of Kosovo and Metohija the enjoyment of the rights guaranteed under the Yugoslav Constitution and international instruments. The Government was prepared to open a dialogue with representatives of the minority group to resolve all outstanding issues, however, they systematically refused to enter into talks, favouring dramatic solutions and requesting independence.

The Yugoslav official said the country was consistently confronted with activities of terrorist groups in Kosovo and had regularly informed the international community of this. The civilian victims, in the past weeks, were caused by the fact the terrorists used women and children as human shields, he added.

The following experts participated in the discussion this morning: Shanti Sadiq Ali (India); Michael Parker Banton (United Kingdom); Régis de Gouttes (France); Carlos Lechuga Hevia (Cuba); Peter Nobel (Sweden); Agha Shahi (Pakistan); and Mario Jorge Yutzis (Argentina).

The Committee will resume its meeting at 3 p.m. to conclude its consideration of the report of Yugoslavia and start to review the report presented by Armenia (document CERD/C/289 Add.2).

Discussion of Report

Continuing yesterday's discussion on the report of Yugoslavia, one Committee member said the present activities taking place in Kosovo entered under the competencies of the Convention and should receive particular attention from this Committee. The urgency and seriousness of the situation and the inherent risk of destabilisation in the region as well as the fact that these events had raised international attention made this all the more necessary. The report of Yugoslavia gave an overly optimistic picture of the situation in the country with regard to the rights of minorities and the implementation of the Convention. The Committee could not accept the statements in the report which said that Albanians of Kosovo could enjoy their full rights, that the secessionist group systematically discontinued all dialogue, and that the Government was making every effort to overcome the existing problems and conflicts.

This expert asked for frank and clear information on attacks and bombings by the Serbian army which caused a number of civilian victims, as well as information on arrests, executions and ill-treatment inflicted on inhabitants of Kosovo. It was important to know more about the training of the armed forces in human rights and inter-ethnic tolerance. Honest information on the discrimination of Albanians in elections, employment, education, health services, the press, mass media and other areas was needed.

A number of experts asked whether the Government of Belgrade was prepared to follow up the Good Offices Mission, which was unfortunately suspended because of action by that Government. The Mission had facilitated a rapprochement between the two parties in the field of education, health and mass media and could still play an important role.

A number of experts requested that information on the follow-up be given to the Contact Group which had entrusted Mr. Felipe Gonzalez with a mission of reconciliation in Kosovo. The Contact Group requested, among other things, the withdrawal of the special Yugoslav military unit, the cessation of acts of armed forces against civilians, free access by the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations, and dialogue with the Albanian community. The Contact Group clearly stated it was not in favour of independence in the area but called for higher level of autonomy.
One member said that throughout the report, it was claimed that Albanians had refused to cooperate. In an area where Albanians were a majority and were denied human rights, it was not surprising that a secessionist group had developed. Violence should come to an end and dialogue should resume between the two parties, he said.

A number of experts said the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) must be given free access and necessary administrative assistance to reach the areas of concern. Media reports stated that ICRC was barred access to Kosovo and yet the statement of the Government of Kosovo invited an expert group from the ICRC to visit the region. Why was no assistance granted to victims, one member asked?.

While distinction between terrorists and civilians was said to be made in Belgrade, it was not made by the troops and State officials in Kosovo, one expert said. There was clearly ethnic segregation in the State party. It was recognized that the causes for this were complex, however, it should have been acknowledged in the report. He further pointed to the fact that no progress had been made on the implementation of a 1996 agreement for the normalization of relations between Serbs and Croats.

More information was needed on the right to nationality for persons of Croat ethnic origin living in Yugoslavia, an expert said. Moreover, reports referring to 20,000 stateless persons of Croat origin were cause for concern. Too much depended on the discretion of individual State officials, he said. Moreover, reports stated that ethnic Croats unwilling to fight against the Republic of Croatia were being refused entry in the country. In certain areas, these ethnic Croats were thrown out of their homes, of their jobs and their children were not allowed to attend State schools.

Concerning crimes of war and crimes against humanity, a number of experts asked whether the Government was ready to cooperate better in the future with the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia which now had a liaison office in Belgrade. How many criminals did the Government agree to bring before the International Tribunal? Moreover, how many criminals were brought and convicted before national courts? The experts expressed the need for Yugoslavia to send indicted war criminals to the Hague.

More information was requested by one member on demographic statistics. Who were considered under the terms Yugoslavs and Muslims? More information was needed about the education system and health care system in Kosovo; about what prevented the Belgrade Government from providing more funds to the health and welfare system; and about the situation of the Roma.

One member said the Committee had not engaged in a dialogue in substance as no reference was made in the report to the concerns raised by the Committee in its concluding observations and recommendations in 1993. Another expert said the Committee was determined to take a fair and balanced view point, nevertheless, the greater responsibility for the situation in Kosovo and Metohija laid with the Government of Yugoslavia. Reports of violations of basic rights and practices of disappearances were unacceptable and should not be concealed.

REDZEP HODZA, Assistant Federal Minister of Justice of Yugoslavia, welcomed the comments made by the Committee and said he was highly appreciative of the observations and comments made on a series of important issues. As a number of questions concerned the internal constitutional, legal and administrative situation of Yugoslavia, Mr. Hodza said he would briefly address these issues.

Kosovo and Metojia was an Autonomous Province within the Republic of Serbia and the members of the Albanian national minority in the Province enjoyed all the rights under the international instruments. There was, therefore, no need to grant a special status to the minority. Rather, one should encourage the members of the Albanian minority to refrain from boycotting elections and the State administration and thus benefit from the rights afforded to them under the Constitution.
Mr. Hodza recalled that there were over 20 minority groups which accounted for over 30 per cent of the total population in Yugoslavia. All of these, except the national Albanian minority, exercised their minority rights, abided by the law, and participated extensively in political, economic and cultural life. The Government was prepared to resolve the problems in Kosovo through a dialogue in line with the Constitution and international norms. In keeping with such a position, Serbia had called on the Albanian minority in Kosovo to open a dialogue to deal with all outstanding issues and it felt this was the only way of obtaining any progress. The Government had already appointed representatives for the meeting to be held at noon today between both parties. It seemed, however, that the members of Albanian minorities had declined to attend the opening of a dialogue, favouring dramatic solutions. In particular they were aiming at dramatising the situation on the international scene to obtain independence and secession, both of which were condemned by this Committee.

Mr. Hodza rejected the fact that, under the pretext of concern for violations of human rights in Yugoslavia, the international community was considering the imposition of sanctions and other measures. Cooperation should be adopted on an equal footing and should observe the legitimate rights of Yugoslavia which had so far been omitted. If the Committee proposed a mission to be sent to Yugoslavia, the Government would give it serious consideration.

Mr. Hodza said minorities were highly represented in the parliament as well as in executive, judicial and other bodies. To name but a few, there was one federal judge of Albanian origin and 26 members of Parliament of Vojvodina were of Hungarian origin. If Albanians had participated in the elections, they would have had over 30 seats in the regional Parliament and would have been highly represented in federal and regional authorities.

Mr. Hodza said the term Albanian separatists referred to the segment of the Albanian minority that openly carried out activities supporting the independence of Kosovo. Since the Second World War, Yugoslavia had been consistently confronted with activities of terrorist groups in Kosovo. Yugoslavia regularly informed the international community of these activities. In the Yugoslav comment to the report of Ms. Elizabeth Rehn of Finland, the former Special Rapporteur of the situation of human rights in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, a detailed review was given of terrorist activities in Kosovo from August 1991 to 1997. From 1996 to 1997, 37 persons were killed, including both police and civilians and even in some cases Albanians. Moreover, reports in Sweden, Denmark and Switzerland recorded cases of racketeering of Albanians to raise funds for arming of the separatist group. Yugoslavia prosecuted a number of terrorist persons. In some cases these persons were found to have received military training abroad. In 1996 and 1997 criminal indictments were filed against 37 persons, all initiators or direct perpetrators of terrorist actions.

Mr. Hodza explained that the civilian victims, in the past weeks, were caused by the attempts of terrorists to use women and children as human shields. The terrorists prevented them from leaving after warnings were made by the army. Yugoslavia asked the ICRC to take all measures necessary in this context, and the Yugoslav authorities were engaged in a dialogue with the organization.

Mr. Hodza said Albanians seeking asylum abroad were not leaving for political reasons, adding that only those responsible for crimes fled the country. Yugoslavia had signed bilateral agreements with Switzerland, Sweden and other countries to deal with phoney asylum seekers. Reports confirmed that nothing happened to asylum seekers returning to the country.
Concerning the concrete implementation of the Convention, Mr. Hodza said there had been more cases of violations of the Convention during the war because of the proximity of the fighting in neighbouring countries. Cases of harassment of Muslims and of Croats residing on the border areas were reported, however, perpetrators were prosecuted and sentenced. Mr. Hodza pointed to the fact that Croatia was in the process of becoming the most ethnically cleansed country in Europe and hundreds of Serbs were having to seek asylum abroad. Why were there no reports in the news or by international organisations on this?

MARGIT SAVOVIC, Chairperson of the Yugoslav Commission for the Cooperation with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and for the Promotion of the Position of Women, said Yugoslavs referred to Serbs, Muslims of Bosnia and Herzegovina and to 350,000 persons of mixed marriages who did not want to express themselves as belonging to one or other entity making up the country of Yugoslavia. There were an estimated 213,000 Romas residing in the country. Elementary education was provided in their mother tongue and measures were adopted to foster their national identity. Referring to Croats, she said that no citizens of Yugoslavia were expelled during the war. All the citizens who left Yugoslavia at that time left of their own wish. In many cases, they exchanged their houses with those of Serbs living in Croatia. She denounced the continued persecution and expulsion of Serbs in Croatia.

Ms. Savovic said that following the agreement signed in 1996 between the President of Serbia and the Representative of the Albanian minority, a working group was set up. So far several meetings had been held but the agreement was not implemented because of obstructions put by the Albanian representatives. The Albanians refused the unique programme and curriculum of Serbia and did not propose a curricula of their own.

One expert said that although detailed information was welcome, it prevented the continuation of the dialogue in view of the time. Another expert apologized to the delegation and said he did not agree with the interruption.

BRATISLAV DJORDJEVIC, Director, Division for International Organizations, Federal Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Yugoslavia, said a number of the issues raised by members of the Committee were political and did not fall under the mandate of the Convention. Yugoslavia was cooperating closely with the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. The Prosecutor made a number of visits to Belgrade and was in contact with the Government authorities. A representative of the Tribunal was currently in Belgrade and had access to all necessary information and archives. The Yugoslav Constitution expressly prohibited the extradition of Yugoslav nationals and this was the main reason for the slow progress. Self-determination was granted to peoples, he continued, however, the Albanians of Kosovo and Metohija were a minority group and as such could only enjoy minority rights.

MIRA NIKOLIC, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of Yugoslavia, Geneva, said the Government did not deny cases of torture and ill-treatment in Kosovo. These were condemned and the courts initiated different investigations. Precise data on the number of prosecutions and convictions and criminal charges brought against police officers and other official persons were given to the Committee Against Torture. As a State party to the Convention Against Torture, Yugoslavia recognized the competence of the Committee to consider individual claims. No such claims were brought before that Committee.