Numerous statements have been made by Serb and Bosnian Serb political, and even religious, leaders saying that Karadzic and Mladic must be brought to The Hague.

However, the scope of crimes by Bosnian Croats and Bosnian Muslims was significantly lesser than those carried out by Bosnian Serbs.

In the landmark Foca case, the ICTY convicted three Bosnian Serbs of rape, torture, and enslavement of Muslim women in 1992.

This acceptance was manifested in a constitutional structure that gave the Bosnian Serb region quasi independence and the power to obstruct the emergence of an effective central government in Sarajevo.

Regarding Ratko Mladic, the former leader of the Bosnian Serb Army, the Serbian authorities have admitted that he was hidden by the Army of Serbia and Montenegro at least until 2002.

Biljana Plavsic, the President of the Bosnian Serb Republic after Karadzic, expressed remorse for her crimes, pled guilty, and is serving a prison sentence.

These unresolved issues are now returning prompted by Serbia s government, Bosnia s Serb leadership is contemplating secession, even as its Muslim leadership tries to increase central control.

Why was it not enough to prove that the Bosnian Serb military leadership was financed and paid by Serbia and that it was tightly connected to Serbia political and military leadership?

According to the Court, the Bosnian Serb generals who were guilty of this genocide, the various Mladic s and Kristic s, were neither acting as Serbia s agents nor receiving specific instructions from Belgrade.

The Government has decided to assign the ministerial position to a representative of the Kosovo Serbs (none has been nominated by the Kosovo Serb parties).

This is why it is so important to capture and prosecute Radovan Karadzic, who spurred on the homicidal rage of so many Bosnian Serbs.

This happened in the case of former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, who, although never arrested, has been removed both from power and the international arena as a result of his indictment in 1995.

That court, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, may soon mete out justice to a new defendant, following the arrest in Belgrade of Radovan Karadzic, wartime leader of Bosnia s Serbs.

HEIDELBERG Rarely does one read such hopeful news in late June, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) acquitted former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadžić of genocide.

A Kosovo Serb recently joined the Government as Minister for Returns and Communities, and Kosovo Serbs have participated in recent talks on decentralization.

The Bosnian Serbs and their supporters in Serbia seemed to be winning the war, while the UN made no provision for taking into custody those charged with ordering or carrying out atrocities.

Many Kosovo Serbs are moving about.

In particular, I urge Kosovo Serbs to engage in the local government reform process.

Kosovo Serbs in particular continued to consider themselves at risk.

Few qualified Kosovo Serb candidates are presented.

Bosnian Serb Prime Minister Milorad Dodik, once the darling of the international community (and especially the United States) for his opposition to the nationalist Serb Democratic party, has adopted that party's agenda without being tainted by their genocidal baggage.

This means mainly that the Kosovo Albanians and their leaders must step up their efforts to reach out to the Kosovo Serbs, while the latter must show their concrete will to integrate into Kosovo society.

These unresolved issues are now returning prompted by Serbia s government, Bosnia s Serb leadership is contemplating secession, even as its Muslim leadership tries to increase central control.

If that happens, it is likely that the Serbs of North Kosovo would declare their own independence.

Participation is the most effective means for Kosovo's Serbs to advance their interests in Kosovo.

We share the view that the involvement of Kosovo Serbs in those bodies is perfectly expedient.

With Serbia at the helm, the Council, which aims to promote human rights and the rule of law, is now overseen by a state that thumbs its nose at the Genocide Convention and harbors an indicted war crimes suspect, former Bosnian Serb army chief Ratko Mladic.

But the vast majority of Kosovo Serbs are moving about freely.

Those who oppose progress can always find some reason to defer allowing participation, but recent trends have proven that bolder engagement can actually foster real progress for the benefit of all.

First, progress needs to be intensified, especially in the priority areas related to the rights of the Kosovo Serbs.

Kosovo Serb participation this week in the decentralization working groups is also encouraging.

That way, Kosovo Serbs can be persuaded to participate in the institutions of Kosovo and Metohija.

I would like to stress that my country supports the Secretary General's appeal to the Kosovo Serbs to become constructively involved in Kosovo's institutions and his appeal to Serbia's authorities to encourage them in that regard.

In that context, the European Union welcomes the participation this week, for the first time, of Kosovo Serb representatives at the meeting of the working group on decentralization, and it calls upon Belgrade to encourage further Kosovo Serb participation in the political life of Kosovo.

The present report is being issued without formal editing.

Data source Statistical bulletin 4, 2003, Agency for Statistics of BiH

bosnia and herzegovina

Original English

Legal Advisory Office for Popular Organizations

of the Congo

The Turks in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as Bosnian Turks, are ethnic Turks who form the oldest ethnic minority in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The KPC KFOR team reported that Kosovo Serbs experienced intense pressure from their communities not to join KPC resulting from Belgrade's rejection of the legitimacy of KPC and of Kosovo Serb participation in it. Eleven Serbs were dismissed over the reporting period for non attendance.

In that respect, we welcome the participation for the first time of Kosovo Serbs in the relevant working group.

The Provisional Institutions must exert greater efforts to convince Kosovo Serbs to participate in the process.

In that context, all means must be applied to allow the participation of the Kosovo Serbs in the process.