VZCZCXRO7116
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHVB #0227 0651440
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 061440Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY ZAGREB
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7386
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS ZAGREB 000227 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/SCE, S/WCI, INR, INL 
DEPT PLEASE PASS TO NSC BRAUN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KAWC PGOV HR WAR CRIMES
SUBJECT: ICTY SEES LOCAL NGOS AS CREDIBLE TRIAL MONITORS 
 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY AND COMMENT: Croatian NGOs Documenta and the 
Center for Peace, Nonviolence, and Human Rights discussed 
their recently released annual war crimes trial monitoring 
report with judicial officials at a March 3 roundtable in 
Zagreb.  Panelists, including a judge, a prosecutor, a law 
professor, and a human rights activist, all agreed that the 
report showed credible NGO trial-monitoring capacity and 
painted a realistic picture of war crimes trials in Croatia. 
Post supports both NGOs through war crimes program grants. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Thomas Osorio, Zagreb head of mission for the 
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia 
(ICTY), attended roundtable at PolOff's urging.  He concluded 
that local NGOs offered a credible alternative to OSCE trial 
monitors for the Ademi-Norac case, transferred to Croatia 
under rule 11bis and scheduled to go to trial in Zagreb in 
May.  Osorio, who told PolOff that Hague Chief Prosecutor Del 
Ponte had charged him with finding an alternative to OSCE 
monitors by the end of 2007, urged NGOs to approach his 
office if they are interested in entering a future monitoring 
agreement with the ICTY.  Post agrees with Osorio's 
assessment that local NGOs are capable of objective trial 
monitoring and will fill any information gaps in this area 
after OSCE closes its mission in Croatia.  END SUMMARY AND 
COMMENT. 
 
REPORT CONCLUSIONS: MARKED IMPROVEMENT, OLD WEAKNESSES 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶3. (U) Center for Peace and Documenta monitored 18 war crimes 
trials across Croatia in 2006, drawing the following positive 
conclusions: 
- the Chief State Prosecutor's Office has strengthened 
regional cooperation on war crimes trials, discontinued 
pursuit of "in absentia" trials, launched investigations 
regardless of the ethnicity of perpetrators or victims, 
pursued prosecutions based on command responsibility, and 
increased transparency of their work; and 
- County Courts (the first instance court for war crimes) 
registered no major violations of the law on criminal 
procedure, prevented supporters of defendants from staging 
obstructive incidents on court premises, successfully 
completed several trials where previous verdicts were 
overturned by the Supreme Court, and cooperated with police 
in Croatia and in the region to bring witnesses to the court. 
 
¶4. (U) The report identified the following weaknesses: 
- continuation of "in absentia" trials against large numbers 
of defendants (Note: This figure is skewed by several large 
group indictments filed in Vukovar before the change in 
policy), 
- insufficiently detailed indictments, 
- the burden of repeating trials when verdicts are overturned 
by the Supreme Court, 
- inconsistent policies regarding pre-trial detention, and 
- insufficient support to victims and witnesses. 
An English summary of the complete report is available 
on-line at: 
www.centar-za-mir.hr/pdf/wc Annual%20Report%202006.pdf . 
 
¶5. (U) Panelists, which included Vukovar County Court 
President Ante Zeljko, a Deputy State Prosecutor Antun 
Kvakan, law professor and MP Ivo Josipovic, and Croatian 
Helsinki Committee president Zarko Puhovski human rights 
activist, agreed that the report was generally accurate. 
Judge Zeljko explained why "in absentia" trials are sometimes 
necessary and are in fact specifically provided for in 
Croatian law.  Josipovic noted that he is finalizing a trial 
monitoring handbook (financed by Post) for use by NGO trial 
monitors. 
 
WITNESS SUPPORT/FACILITATION IDENTIFIED AS CRITICAL NEED 
--------------------------------------------- ----------- 
¶6. (U) NGO representatives stressed the importance of 
development of a system to support victims and witnesses 
during the trial process.  Court logistics are frequently 
intimidating to witnesses, who often have to use the same 
entrance as the defendants and members of the public, and who 
must testify while defendants sit just a few feet behind 
them.  Currently, no one prepares witnesses for what awaits 
them in court, and there are no logistical services to assist 
them in appearing.  COMMENT: Embassy is currently considering 
assisting the GoC in filling this witness-support gap, 
possibly by redirecting some SEED funds currently allocated 
to other rule-of-law activities. END COMMENT. 
BRADTKE