Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 11 May 2000

Vol. 519 No. 1

Written Answers. - International Criminal Tribunal.

Michael Ring

Question:

82 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement on the progress made to date by the international tribunal to prosecute those suspected of serious violations of international humanitarian law in the former Yugoslavia. [12828/00]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. Cowen)

Since its inception in 1991 the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, ICTY, has publicly indicted 94 people. In addition, there are an unknown number of undisclosed indictments. Of those publicly indicted 18 have had all charges dropped and the indictment withdrawn, seven have died, one has been transferred to serve his sentence and one has been acquitted. Of the remaining 67, 40 are currently in proceedings before the court, 39 of whom are in the UN detention unit in The Hague and one has been provisionally released pending an appeal. Of the 39 currently in proceedings before the court and in detention, 12 have lodged an appeal against sentence, six are in ongoing trials and 16 are on remand awaiting appearance before the ICTY.

Of those indicted, 37 have been charged with grave breaches of the 1949 Geneva Convention, 65 with violations of the laws or customs of war, nine with genocide, 58 with crimes against humanity and 19 with sexual offences. Some of the 94 indicted have been charged with more than one offence, which accounts for the discrepancy in charges as opposed to numbers of indicted.

Fifteen sentences of imprisonment ranging from six to 45 years have been handed down by ICTY. The longest sentence of 45 years was imposed on Tihomir Blaskic, a Croatian, for three counts of crimes against humanity, six counts of grave breaches of the Geneva Convention and ten counts of violations of the laws and customs of war.

The Deputy may regard the figures I have just given as being unimpressive given the length of time ICTY has been in existence. I would, however, point out that ICTY has by no means finished its work. Investigations are still proceeding in the field and it is likely that many more indictments will be issued followed by arrests and transfer to The Hague for trial. I would point out that, of cases which been brought before ICTY, the vast majority result in a conviction and sentence of imprisonment. Acquittals are very few. This bears witness to the painstaking investigations carried out under the direction of the ICTY prosecutor, Justice Carla del Ponte, Switzerland, since September 1999, and her predecessor Justice Louse Arbour, Canada. The painstaking nature of the investigations and the obvious concern that justice be done and seen to be done, contributes in my view to the credibility of the court.

Ireland has supported the court since its inception and will continue to do so for as long as it continues to do its work. I am concerned, however, at the number of accused who are still at large. This amounts to 27 and includes among their number some such notorious people as Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, who are wanted for their role in the Bosnian war, including the massacre at Srebrenica. It also includes President Slobodan Milosevic and his immediate associates.