From Abu Ghraib to Jezevo

[Ivo Skoric]

i am sure Croatian tv can conduct a poll showing that majority of 
Croatian citizens do not consider what happene at Jezevo torture - 
but i am not sure if that poll would have the same weight against the 
AI accusations, as apparently the American one has. some countries 
are just more sovereign than others.
ivo

News Release Issued by the International Secretariat of Amnesty
International

AI INDEX: EUR 64/002/2004 28 May 2004

Croatia: Implement recommendations to prevent torture


Amnesty International today called on the Croatian authorities to 
immediately implement the recommendations of the United Nations (UN)
Committee against Torture (CAT) which were issued on 14 May 2004, 
after
the CAT considered Croatia's third periodic report.


Prior to the examination of Croatia's report, Amnesty International 
had
submitted a written briefing to the CAT. The document Croatia: 
Briefing to
the United Nations Committee against Torture, published today, 
details
Amnesty International's concerns with regard to issues related to 
torture
and other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or 
punishment in
Croatia as they were included in the organization's briefing to the 
CAT.
Amnesty International's concerns focus in particular on:

- the failure of the Croatian authorities to thoroughly and promptly
investigate acts of torture or cruel, inhuman and degrading 
treatment,
which occurred during the 1991-1995 armed conflict between the 
Croatian
Army and Croatian Serb armed forces, aided by the then Yugoslav 
People's
Army (Jugoslovenska narodna armija - JNA), and to ensure that the
perpetrators of these human rights violations are brought to justice,
either before domestic courts or before the International Criminal
Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (Tribunal);

- the failure of the authorities to thoroughly and promptly 
investigate
violent attacks by non-state actors against returnees and members of
ethnic minorities and to ensure that the perpetrators of these human
rights abuses are brought to justice;

- reports of harassment, ill-treatment and arbitrary detention of 
refugees
and asylum-seekers detained in the Ježevo Reception Centre for 
Foreigners;

- the failure of the authorities to prevent serious violence and 
bullying
between children and young adults placed in social care institutions.


Amnesty International welcomed the recommendations issued by the CAT 
and
urged the Croatian authorities to implement them. The CAT recommended
inter alia:

- to "take effective measures to ensure impartial, full and prompt 
investigations into all allegations of torture and other cruel, 
inhuman or
degrading treatment, the prosecution and punishment of the 
perpetrators as
appropriate and irrespective of their ethnic origin, and the 
provision of
fair and adequate compensation for the victims";

- to fully cooperate with the Tribunal ensuring that all indicted 
persons
present on Croatian territory are arrested and transferred to the
Tribunal's custody;

- to ensure the protection of ethnic and other minorities by 
undertaking
all effective measures to prosecute and punish all violent acts 
against
these individuals, establishing programs to increase awareness 
raising,
preventing and combating this form of violence, and including this 
issue
in the training of law-enforcement officials and other relevant
professional groups;

- to refrain from detaining asylum-seekers and illegal migrants for 
prolonged periods and adopt all necessary measures to improve the 
material
conditions of the reception centres for asylum-seekers and 
immigrants,
ensuring the physical and psychological integrity of all individuals
accommodated in these centres;

- to "increase the protection of children and young adults placed in
social care institutions, inter alia, by ensuring that violent acts 
are
reported and investigated, providing support and treatment for 
children
and young adults with psychological problems, and ensuring that these
institutions employ trained personnel, such as social workers,
psychologists and pedagogues".


In its own recommendations to the Croatian authorities, Amnesty 
International called for measures to be taken to ensure that 
perpetrators
of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including acts of torture,
cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment committed during 
the
1991-1995 conflict are brought to justice, either before the Tribunal 
or
before domestic courts in proceedings that meet recognized 
international
standards of fairness.

Amnesty International urged the authorities to protect Serbian and 
other
minority refugees returning to Croatia and to end impunity for 
violent
attacks against returnees. The authorities should also promptly and
thoroughly investigate all racially motivated attacks against members 
of
Romani communities ensuring that the perpetrators are brought to 
justice.

Amnesty International urged the Croatian authorities to stop 
routinely
detaining, in some cases for prolonged periods, asylum-seekers and
undocumented migrants and to promptly, thoroughly and impartially
investigate all alleged cases of harassment and ill-treatment of 
refugees
held in detention facilities for asylum-seekers and undocumented 
migrants.

The organization also called on the authorities to ensure that 
children
resident in social care institutions are protected from violence and 
are
treated and supervised by professionally trained staff.

Amnesty International called on the European Union (EU) to ensure 
that
these recommendations will be given adequate attention in the
implementation of the European Partnership for Croatia proposed by 
the
European Commission in April. The draft Partnership lists the
strengthening of the judicial system, improved protection for 
minorities,
speeded up refugee returns and full cooperation with the Tribunal as
priorities for the country's preparations for further integration 
with the
EU. The European Partnership for Croatia is to be endorsed in 
conjunction
with the expected positive decision by the EU summit in mid-June to 
start
accession negotiations with Croatia.


View the full report "Croatia: Briefing to the United Nations 
Committee
Against Torture " at
http://amnesty-news.c.topica.com/maaciq8aa7c5IbdYiHgb/

Croatia in the Amnesty International Annual Report 2004: 
http://amnesty-news.c.topica.com/maaciq8aa7c5JbdYiHgb/

View all documents on Croatia 
http://amnesty-news.c.topica.com/maaciq8aa7c5KbdYiHgb/
Ivo Skoric
1773 Lexington Ave
New York NY 10029
212.369.9197
ivo at balkansnet.org
http://balkansnet.org