Gerard Murphy
Question:66 Mr. Murphy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement on the progress of a Serbian commission of investigation into the assassination of Prime Minister, Zoran Djindic. [30402/03]
Written Answers. - Foreign Conflicts.
A state commission, chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia, was established on 15 May 2003 to investigate the circumstances surrounding the assassination on 12 March of Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic. The investigation was completed on 12 August and the final report of the commission was adopted unanimously by the Government of Serbia on 21 August 2003.
The main conclusion of the report was that the assassination was the work of a criminal gang, the so-called Zemun gang. The chief suspect was identified as Milorad Lukovic, who had been removed as leader of a paramilitary force, the Red Berets, by Prime Minister Djindjic in 2001. The commission suggested that the assassination was in retaliation for the crackdown on the activities of the Zemun gang undertaken by the government in Belgrade. The gang would appear to have had close links with elements in the security system who remained in place after the collapse of the Milosevic regime.
Although Lukovic remains at large, the trial of a number of people arrested in connection with the assassination is scheduled to begin in Belgrade later this month. It will be monitored by the OSCE.
The assassination of Zoran Djindjic was an attack on democracy and the reform process in Serbia and Montenegro. The EU has supported the determination of the government in Belgrade to pursue reforms and the fight against organised crime following the Prime Minister's death. General elections will be held in Serbia on 28 December. Ireland as EU President in the first half of 2004 will work with the new government and with the authorities of the state union in support of their commitment to making the progress necessary to advance Serbia and Montenegro's relations with the European Union.