Koštunica: Govt. lacks courage

DSS leader Vojislav Kostunica says Serbia has no independent policy, but is trying to meet the endless demands of the EU and U.S. In an interview to be published in tomorrow’s daily Glas Javnosti, Kostunica says that the current government “doesn’t have the bravery to launch the issue of the Hague Tribunal’s legitimacy, as it doesn’t have the strength to take much smaller steps to criticize, in the least bit, the interests of the world power centers”. Kostunica: Govt. lacks courage “It’s possible that there are a lot of interested parties who’ll try to turn the Radovan Karadzic trial into a trial of the Republic of Srpska,” the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) leader points out, and that “time has shown that the Hague Tribunal is not an institution that metes out justice, but rather injustice.” He adds that “Serbia can’t be asked to send Serbs to The Hague when, at the same time, the Hague Tribunal acquits those who unambiguously committed war crimes against the Serbs.” “It’s not a question of respect for international law, but of a global dictatorship. Quite simply, the Serbian state has to have its own rights when it comes to meeting international obligations vis-à-vis the Hague Tribunal,” stresses Kostunica. He adds that in the light of the recent acquittal of Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) commander Ramush Haradinaj, he would propose that the Serbian government raises the question of the Hague’s legitimacy. “We’ve had more than enough arguments as a state to say: we believe in respecting international law, but we must now see whether the acquittals of Haradinaj and Naser Oric are a respect for the law and basic justice, or are they new crimes against innocent victims,” Kostunica suggests. Vojislav Kostunica (FoNet, archive)

Koštunica: Govt. lacks courage

“It’s possible that there are a lot of interested parties who’ll try to turn the Radovan Karadžić trial into a trial of the Republic of Srpska,” the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) leader points out, and that “time has shown that the Hague Tribunal is not an institution that metes out justice, but rather injustice.”

He adds that “Serbia can’t be asked to send Serbs to The Hague when, at the same time, the Hague Tribunal acquits those who unambiguously committed war crimes against the Serbs.”

“It’s not a question of respect for international law, but of a global dictatorship. Quite simply, the Serbian state has to have its own rights when it comes to meeting international obligations vis-à-vis the Hague Tribunal,” stresses Koštunica.

He adds that in the light of the recent acquittal of Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) commander Ramush Haradinaj, he would propose that the Serbian government raises the question of the Hague’s legitimacy.

“We’ve had more than enough arguments as a state to say: we believe in respecting international law, but we must now see whether the acquittals of Haradinaj and Naser Orić are a respect for the law and basic justice, or are they new crimes against innocent victims,” Koštunica suggests.