CROATIAN PROSECUTOR LEADS THE REGION IN "PALIC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ZAGREB 000159

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EUR, EUR/SCE, S/WCI
JUSTICE FOR OPDAT - VALDER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/11/2017
TAGS: PREL KCRM HR WAR CRIMES
SUBJECT: CROATIAN PROSECUTOR LEADS THE REGION IN "PALIC
PROCESS" COOPERATION

REF: A. 06 ZAGREB 1251


B. 06 ZAGREB 941

C. 06 ZAGREB 898

D. BELGRADE 188

Classified By: Political Officer Tom Selinger for reasons 1.4 (b) & (d)
.


1. (U) SUMMARY AND COMMENT: Chief State Prosecutor Mladen
Bajic told Ambassador Bradtke and Ambassador-at-Large for War
Crimes Issues Clint Williamson on February 7 that he has
transferred evidence in five war crimes cases to Belgrade War
Crimes Prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic under an October 2006
cooperation agreement (ref A).


2. (C) Bajic's office is also in final preparations to
transfer evidence in a case involving the Morinje prison near
Dubrovnik to the prosecutor in Montenegro under a July 2006
agreement (ref C).


3. (U) All these crimes were committed in Croatia, but the
suspects are located in a neighboring jurisdiction and cannot
be extradited due to constitutional prohibitions. Croatian
prosecutors will follow each case as it is tried, and will
drop the domestic case if they are satisfied with the
prosecution next door. These evidence transfers demonstrate
Bajic's political courage in leading the way to greatly
increased regional cooperation among prosecutors -- the focus
of the OSCE's so-called "Palic Process." END SUMMARY AND
COMMENT.

ENCOURAGING SAME MODEL FOR BiH
--------------


4. (U) Ambassador Williamson praised Bajic's efforts in
advancing cooperation among prosecutors, calling his work a
model for the region. Williamson encouraged Bajic to
continue his efforts to reach a similar evidence transfer
agreement with Sarajevo while acknowledging the opposition to
such an arrangement within the BiH judiciary. Williamson
said the success of Croatia's agreements with Montenegro and
Serbia can serve as a signal to BiH skeptics that justice can
be served through such cooperation.


5. (C) Bajic stressed that his prosecutors routinely
cooperate with their BiH colleagues on ongoing cases, but
that his efforts to reach an evidence transfer agreement with
BiH have been thwarted by BiH court president Meddzida Kreso.
Bajic noted that Kreso told him privately that the
international community had invested too much money in her
court for her to send cases to Croatia and Serbia.


6. (C) Bajic said he believes BiH chief prosecutor Marinko
Jurcevic is willing to transfer evidence but lacks political
support. Bajic recounted how Jurcevic was almost dismissed
after Serbian prosecutor Vukcevic mentioned at a press
conference that he was discussing the possibility of evidence
transfer with him.

PUBLIC PERCEPTION AND POLITICAL SUPPORT ARE KEY
-------------- --


7. (U) In Croatia, high-level political support has been key
to curbing any public opposition to transferring evidence to
Montenegro and Serbia, according to Bajic. Both President
Mesic and PM Sanader played active roles in laying the
groundwork for the bilateral transfer agreements.


8. (U) In addition, Bajic has been careful to avoid both weak
and controversial cases, choosing only cases with solid
evidence and low to mid-level defendants. Bajic has also
clearly articulated to the public that these agreements are
non-binding. They only provide the possibility for transfer;
in every case each party will decide whether or not to
transfer or accept the evidence, and in the end, whether or
not to drop the original case after the neighboring trial.

OVERTURNED OVCARA VERDICT WILL ONLY INCREASE COOPERATION
-------------- --------------


9. (SBU) When asked about his reaction to the Serbian Supreme
Courts decision to overturn the convictions in the Ovcara
case in Belgrade, Bajic said it will only lead to an increase
in his cooperation with Vukcevic. According to Bajic,
Vukcevic called him immediately upon learning of the Supreme
Court's decision, as Croatia had provided both evidence and
facilitated witness testimony in the case. Bajic said he
advised Vukcevic to expand the indictment and press on to

ZAGREB 00000159 002 OF 002


show the public that this would not slow down his work. As a
result, Vukcevic will reportedly add new defendants to the
case, and Bajic said his office is prepared to broaden its
work to support him.

THREE PROSECUTORS WITH DEL PONTE AT REGIONAL CONFERENCE
-------------- --------------


10. (U) Bajic, Vukcevic, and Jurcevic all met in Zagreb
during the NGO-organized International Conference on
Establishing the Truth about War Crimes and Conflicts in
Zagreb February 8-9. In addition to bilateral meetings on
regional cooperation, the three met with ICTY Chief
Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte on cooperation with the Hague
Tribunal.


11. (U) Ambassador Williamson did not have the opportunity to
clear this cable.
BRADTKE