HR/98/14
12 March 1998


Mrs. Robinson Welcomes Statement by Ministers of the Contact Group with its Concerns Regarding Human Rights in Kosovo

The following is a statement by Mrs. Mary Robinson, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights:

I welcomed the statement on Monday by the Ministers of the Contact Group with its concerns regarding human rights in Kosovo and the proposal that I should visit the region. I believe that sustained violations of a wide range of human rights have been at the heart of the conflict and continuing tension in the former Yugoslavia.

Late yesterday, I met the Chargé d'Affaires of the Permanent Mission of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and handed him a letter addressed to President Slobodan Milosevic. This morning, I also sent a letter to President Franjo Tudjman of the Republic of Croatia regarding the treatment of the minority Serb population in that country.

In my letter to President Milosevic I notified him of my intention to increase the number of human rights officers in Kosovo from one to four and requested assistance to facilitate their entry and movement to the region in the coming days. It is important that the United Nations and the Commission on Human Rights have independent and objective information on the human rights situation in Kosovo.

Currently, human rights officers based in Belgrade visit Kosovo on a regular basis. I have repeated my request for approval to open an office in Pristina to enable the United Nations to contribute more fully to the promotion and protection of human rights in Kosovo. I believe there is strong backing from the international community for such an office which would be in the interests of the people of Kosovo and also of the Government of the Federal Republic.

Yesterday, my Office was in contact with the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Mr. Bacre Waly Ndiaye, who has asked to visit the Kosovo region. I asked President Milosevic to allow the Special Rapporteur's visit in time for Mr. Ndiaye to report to the Commission on Human Rights at its coming session.

In my letter to President Tudjman, I expressed my serious concern over the continued departure of Croatian Serbs from the Danube region. The efforts by the Croatian authorities to ensure equality of treatment have been insufficient. Government policies have resulted in discrimination in important areas including tenancy rights and reconstruction of war-damaged housing. Police officers and government offices do not respond equitably to complaints of harassment and intimidation.

I asked President Tudjman to ensure that displaced Croatian Serbs are given the same status and benefits as other Croatian citizens and that particular attention be given to equitable treatment regarding tenancy and housing rights. Such measures are essential to persuade Croatian Serbs that they have equal rights and to dispel their fears about remaining in Croatia.

In the coming months I plan to visit the human rights field offices in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and to travel to the Kosovo region".