BOSNIA: GOOD NEWS AND BAD NEWS ON WAR CRIMINALS

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 SARAJEVO 001212 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EUR(DICARLO),EUR/SCE(STINCHCOMB/HOH), S/WCI(WILLIAMSON/LAVINE); NSC FOR BRAUN E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/01/2017 TAGS: PHUM KCRM KJUS PGOV PINR PREL ICTY BK SUBJECT: BOSNIA: GOOD NEWS AND BAD NEWS ON WAR CRIMINALS Classified By: Political Counselor Michael J. Murphy for reasons 1.4 (b ),(d) ¶1. (S/NF) Summary: In the past seven days two distinct but significant events connected to bringing war criminals to justice occurred in the Republika Srpska (RS). The first, a major success, happened on May 31, when police from the Republika Srpska (RS) apprehended ICTY-indicted Zdravko Tolimir. He was transferred into ICTY custody at The Hague today (June 1). The second, a major set back, occurred on May 25 when convicted war criminal Radovan Stankovic escaped from custody en route from Foca Prison to a local hospital. Stankovic's escape is a serious blow to the credibility of domestic law enforcement and judicial institutions and to the reconciliation process in Bosnia. Stankovic's escape highlights the need for a maximum security state prison. Tolimir's arrest by RS authorities and the Stankovic escape paint a mixed picture of RS handling of war crimes issues. End Summary. Zdravko Tolimir Arrested -------------- ¶2. (S/NF) Shortly after 4pm on May 31, Republika Srpska (RS) Prime Minister Milorad Dodik called Ambassador to inform him that RS police had detained ICTY-indicted war criminal Zdravko Tolimir. According to Dodik, Tolimir was arrested at an illegal border crossing near Bratunac and the RS police intended to transfer him to The Hague. (Note: In 1995 Tolimir was Assistant Commander for Intelligence and Security of the Main Staff of the Arm of Republika Srpska with the rank of general. A close associate of Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, Zdravko Tolimir was indicted in the ICTY for genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, extermination, murder, persecutions on political, racial or religious grounds, and forcible transfers and deportations. Many of these charges relate to his role in events around Srebrenica on/about July 11, 1995, and the extended 44-month siege of Sarajevo. End Note) Arrest Details Sketchy -------------- ¶3. (S/NF) We have received conflicting information about the details of the arrest. Press reports suggest the RS police cooperated with the Serbian police in detaining Tolimir. Dragi Milosevic, head of the RS Police War Crimes Unit, indicated that Tolimir was arrested alone and on foot near the Serbian border with little money and without any passport or other documentation. It is unclear at this time if Tolimir was brought to the Serbian border against his will, or whether as some have claimed, he was caught attempting to secure medical assistance. Tolimir was held in Banja Luka overnight and then transferred to Sarajevo Camp Butmir. Early this afternoon (June 1) Tolimir was transferred by a EUCOM aircraft to the Netherlands. At 15:55 local time today, we received confirmation from General Wightman's Office that Tolimir arrived at The Hague. Stankovic escapes from Foca Prison -------------- ¶4. (C) Early afternoon on May 25 during transport from Foca prison to a hospital for unspecified medical treatment, Radovan Stankovic allegedly overpowered nine guards and escaped in a waiting getaway vehicle. Stankovic, the first 11bis case transferred from ICTY to the BiH State Court, had been convicted of crimes against humanity for multiple acts of enslavement, rape, torture and murder in Foca and had been sentenced to 20 years incarceration. The escape vehicle was found later that evening not far from the Montenegrin border. According to the RS Police, Stankovic telephoned someone in the Foca Prison later that same night. They claim the call was traced to a location in Serbia. Because Stankovic is from Foca, there was immediate speculation that the escape was an inside job. Foca Prison Director Aleksandar Cicmil denied allegations that some of the prison guards were Stankovic's relatives, but he did not exclude the possibility that Stankovic had smuggled a mobile phone into prison and used it to arrange the escape. ¶5. (C) The Stankovic escape prompted numerous accusations SARAJEVO 00001212 002 OF 003 about who was at fault. BiH State Court President Meddzida Kreso laid the blame on the Foca Prison Administration, which falls under the jurisdiction of the RS Ministry of Justice (MoJ). Others, particularly Bosniak political leaders, blamed the RS police. (Note: RS police were not involved in Stankovic's transfer from the prison to the hospital. The prison guards involved work for the RS MoJ, not the RS Ministry of Interior. End Note.) RS Prime Minister Dodik attacked the State Court for having sent Stankovic to a prison in his hometown in the first place. Kreso explained that Stankovic was sent to Foca prison based on the 2005 Justice Ministry Book of Rules guidelines, under which prisoners are assigned to jails on the basis of their place of origin. (Note: We are told that in light of the Stankovic escape the Council of Ministers at its next session will discuss amendments to the law on implementation of criminal sanctions and imprisonment. End Note) RS Actions to Capture Stankovic -------------- ¶6. (C) Dodik claims the RS police are doing all they can to track down Stankovic. Privately, RS Minister of Interior Stanislav Cadjo told us that the RS Ministry of Justice, in charge of the entity prison system, had made mistakes, but that the RS police quickly responded once they were notified of Stankovic's escape. According to Cadjo, the RS police quickly notified other police agencies of the event, sealed off transport routes, and sought cooperation from Serbian and Montenegrin authorities. Although press reports blame a five day delay in issuing an international arrest warrant on the RS police's failure to request one, responsibility for issuing such a warrant falls to the state. According to OHR, the 5-day delay was the result of a bureaucratic dispute between the state-level Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Security over which Ministry was supposed to issue the warrant. SIPA Actions -------------- ¶7. (C) The State Investigative and Protection Agency (SIPA) has created a task force headed by Criminal Investigation Division Director Dragan Lukac and supervised by BiH Chief Prosecutor Marinko Jurcevic to coordinate the hunt for Stankovic. The SIPA Task Force has asked EUFOR and Bosnia's Intelligence Security Agency to provide them with any available intelligence. According to one source, SIPA is excluding RS police from its investigation. SIPA has contacted Serbian police and a delegation is scheduled to go to Belgrade to discuss the issue. However, as of today SIPA has no confirmation of Stankovic's current whereabouts. Immediate Fallout -------------- ¶8. (C) According to RS sources, Head of Foca Prison Aleksandar Cicmil has been fired and the nine guards on duty when Stankovic escaped are on suspension, pending investigation. OHR has asked EUPM to provide investigators that will examine how this even could have happened and to monitor any subsequent disciplinary and criminal proceedings. OHR will also examine the MoJ Book of Rules relating to the execution of criminal sanctions. Due to the threat Stankovic poses to those involved in his case, the State Court announced that the Presiding Judge in his case, Davorin Jukic, and Lead Prosecutor Vaso Marinkovic would be placed under protective custody. Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) Zdravko Tolimir's arrest and Radovan Stankovic's escape present a mixed picture in terms of the RS performance in handling war criminals. The Tolimir arrest is significant not only because he was one of six ICTY indictees who until yesterday remained at liberty, but also because Tolimir was the first major war-crimes suspect ever arrested by the RS police. In the past, RS authorities had arranged for war crimes suspects to turn themselves in. Stankovic's escape highlights systemic weaknesses in the RS's prison system. If it was an inside job, the escape suggests sympathizers with SARAJEVO 00001212 003 OF 003 war criminals remain employed within the RS bureaucracy. Just as disconcertingly, Stankovic's escape is likely to have a chilling effect on witnesses in war crimes cases, who may now wonder whether someone they testify against will actually remain behind bars after a conviction. Finally ,the escape highlights the need for the construction of a maximum security State Prison to house convicted war criminals and other high profile convicts. End Comment. MCELHANEY