REFUGEES FROM VELIKA KLADUSA - SLOW PROGRESS ON

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ZAGREB 003944 SIPDIS STATE FOR PRM, IO/PHO, EUR/EEA, EUR/SCE STATE ALSO PASS AID AID FOR AA/BHR, ENI, BHR/FFP, AND BHR/OFDA/DRD E.O. 12356: N/A TAGS: PREF PHUM BK HR TU PHUM BK HR TU SUBJECT: REFUGEES FROM VELIKA KLADUSA - SLOW PROGRESS ON UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 02 ZAGREB 03944 01 OF 02 101335Z ESTABLISHING SAFEGUARDS FOR RETURN REF: A) ZAGREB 3773, B) ZAGREB 3774 -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. TALKS WERE HELD OCTOBER 6-8 BY REPRESENTATIVES OF THE B-H, CROATIAN, AND TURKISH GOVERNMENTS TO ESTABLISH THE FRAMEWORK FOR A TRILATERAL ENTITY THAT WOULD MONITOR THE RIGHTS OF REFUGEES (ABDIC SUPPORTERS) WHO RETURN FROM CROATIA TO THE VELIKA KLADUSA AREA. TURKISH DELEGATION HAS RETURNED TO ANKARA TO SEEK APPROVAL FOR PARTICIPATION IN SUCH AN EFFORT. SEVERAL DETAILS REMAIN UNSETTLED, BUT ALL THREE GOVERNMENTS ARE WORKING QUICKLY TO GET THE ISSUE RESOLVED SO THE REFUGEES CAN RETURN HOME BEFORE WINTER SETS IN. END SUMMARY. -------------- TRYING TO BUILD TRUST -------------- ¶2. IN AN ATTEMPT TO PERSUADE THE 22,000 REFUGEES FROM VELIKA KLADUSA TO RETURN HOME VOLUNTARILY, THE CROATIAN GOVERNMENT HAS DEVELOPED FURTHER ITS EARLIER IDEA TO ESTABLISH A MONITORING FORCE COMPRISED OF POLICE FROM TURKEY, CROATIA, AND BOSNIA-HERCEGOVINA (FROM AN AREA OUTSIDE OF BIHAC). REPRESENTATIVES OF THE THREE GOVERNMENTS MET IN CROATIA AND IN VELIKA KLADUSA OCTOBER 6-8 TO WORK OUT THE MODALITIES OF SUCH A MONITORING FORCE. UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 03 ZAGREB 03944 01 OF 02 101335Z ¶3. ACCORDING TO THE PLAN, THE B-H GOVERNMENT WOULD AGREE TO REMOVE THE V CORPS FROM THE AREA, PROVIDE WRITTEN GUARANTEES OF THE RIGHTS THAT WILL BE GRANTED TO RETURNEES, PARTICIPATE IN THE TRILATERAL MONITORING EFFORT. IT IS THE HOPE OF ALL PARTIES THAT WITH SUCH PROVISIONS IN PLACE THE REFUGEES WILL VOLUNTARILY RETURN TO THEIR HOMES. -------------- RESULTS OF TRILATERAL DISCUSSIONS -------------- ¶4. ACCORDING TO THE TURKISH EMBASSY IN ZAGREB, THE TALKS WERE BASICALLY POSITIVE, ALTHOUGH THERE ARE NUMEROUS DETAILS STILL TO BE DECIDED. THE GROUPS DISCUSSED THE MANDATE, DURATION, AND SIZE OF THE FORCE, AND IT WAS DECIDED THAT -- THE PARTICIPANTS WILL ONLY MONITOR; THEY ARE NOT IN A POSITION TO ENFORCE. VIOLATIONS WOULD BE REPORTED TO THE B-H GOVERNMENT; ENFORCEMENT AND PROSECUTION WOULD BE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE LOCAL AUTHORITIES. -- THE RATIO WILL BE 50 PERCENT BOSNIAN, 25 PERCENT CROATIAN, AND 25 PERCENT TURKISH. -- THE TERRITORY TO BE COVERED IS APPROXIMATELY 400 SQUARE KILOMETERS, INCLUDING VELIKA KLADUSA AND SEVERAL VILLAGES NEAR CAZIN. -------------- UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 04 ZAGREB 03944 01 OF 02 101335Z ISSUES STILL PENDING -------------- ¶5. THE SIZE OF THE FORCE HAS NOT YET BEEN DETERMINED, BUT POSSIBILITIES RANGED FROM 100 TO 200 POLICE OFFICERS. (WE HAD HEARD ORIGINALLY THAT THE FORCE WOULD CONSIST OF ABOUT 150 INDIVIDUALS.) ¶6. THE LARGEST UNRESOLVED ISSUE, HOWEVER, IS THE MATTER OF WRITTEN, ENFORCEABLE RIGHTS FROM THE B-H GOVERNMENT. THE REFUGEES ARE NOT COMFORTABLE WITH THE AMNESTY THAT HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED BY SARAJEVO. THEY WANT SPECIFIC GUARANTEES IN WRITING THAT COVER SUCH TOPICS AS NO PROSECUTION FOR WAR CRIMES, NO CONSCRIPTION INTO THE MILITARY, RETURN OF ALL PROPERTY THAT HAS BEEN SEIZED BY OTHERS (REFUGEES FROM BANJA LUKA WHO WERE BUSED INTO THE BIHAC AREA BY THE CROATIAN GOVERNMENT),EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES, ETC. -------------- THE NEED FOR SPEED UNCLASSIFIED NNNNPTQ2215 UNCLASSIFIED PTQ2215 PAGE 01 ZAGREB 03944 02 OF 02 101336Z ACTION PRM-10 INFO LOG-00 AID-00 AMAD-01 CA-02 CIAE-00 OASY-00 DODE-00 ANHR-01 SRPP-00 EUR-01 OIGO-01 HHS-01 TEDE-00 INR-00 IO-00 L-01 ADS-00 NSAE-00 OIC-02 DRL-09 /029W -------------- F4B75F 101336Z /38 O 101330Z OCT 95 FM AMEMBASSY ZAGREB TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7554 INFO AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST AMEMBASSY SARAJEVO AMEMBASSY BELGRADE NATO EU COLLECTIVE USMISSION USUN NEW YORK USLO SKOPJE USMISSION GENEVA AMEMBASSY LJUBLJANA UNCLAS SECTION 02 OF 02 ZAGREB 003944 SIPDIS STATE FOR PRM, IO/PHO, EUR/EEA, EUR/SCE STATE ALSO PASS AID AID FOR AA/BHR, ENI, BHR/FFP, AND BHR/OFDA/DRD E.O. 12356: N/A TAGS: PREF PHUM BK HR TU PHUM BK HR TU SUBJECT: REFUGEES FROM VELIKA KLADUSA - SLOW PROGRESS ON UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 02 ZAGREB 03944 02 OF 02 101336Z ESTABLISHING SAFEGUARDS FOR RETURN -------------- ¶7. THE TWO-PERSON TURKISH DELEGATION (MURAT ADALI, FIRST SECRETARY AT THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS IN CHARGE OF SIPDIS BALKAN AFFAIRS, AND KAMIL TECIROGLU, DEPUTY SECRETARY GENERAL OF SECURITY AT THE MINISTRY OF INTERIOR) HAVE RETURNED TO ANKARA TO SEEK APPROVAL FOR TURKEY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE MONITORING EFFORT. BEFORE LEAVING CROATIA, THEY ASSURED THE OTHER TWO PARTIES THAT THEY WILL SPEED THE PROCESS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, IN ORDER TO GET THE MONITORS IN PLACE AND ENCOURAGE THE REFUGEES TO RETURN BEFORE WINTER SETS IN. ¶8. THE CROATIAN GOVERNMENT IS ESPECIALLY NERVOUS ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF A HUMANITARIAN DISASTER ON ITS HANDS IF THE UNTENABLE SANITARY CONDITIONS RESULT IN AN EPIDEMIC OR WINTER WEATHER CAUSES SOME OF THE REFUGEES TO FREEZE TO DEATH. ¶9. SARAJEVO MINIMIZE CONSIDERED. GALBRAITH UNCLASSIFIED NNNN