DOES CROATIA WISH TO JOIN THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE?

AIM, February 11, 1996

After reception of Russia, there are only three states on the old continent which are not permanent members of the Council of Europe - Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia and FR Yugoslavia. The Serbo-Montenegrin federation did not even apply for admission, because it believes that it is entitled to a seat in Strasbourg as the only legal successor of the former Yugoslav state. Bosnia & Herzegovina, although a permanent member of the United Nations, is still in a state of war (regardless of the extent to which the Dayton Agreement changed the situation), so it still does not know where its actual borders are and what its future will be like. As concerning Croatia, back in 1992, it acquired the status of a special guest in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, then it almost lost it at the time of the Croat-Muslim war, so that nowadays it is still uncertain whether it will be able to keep uts seat there.

Nevertheless, what is really interesting, after every session of the Parliamentary Assembly, head of the Croat delegation, Dr Zarko Domljan, gives optimistic statements about Croatia being on the point of becoming a member of the Council of Europe. At one moment it seemed that Domljan might even be right - this was in April last year - but then "flashes", "storms", amd "mistrals" came, and the Croat application never reached the agenda. Although Croatia was not a topic discussed at this January session either, except through the topic concerning the situation of human rights in the former Yugoslav space, Mr Domljan was optimistic again, claiming that, in a way, even the schedule was determined and that admission of Croatia should take place in April. With somewhat more caution, foreign minister Mate Granic also spoke about the possibility of admission of Croatia. Later it proved, however, that Domljan's thesis that "admission of Russia paved the road for Croatia and that there was no more reason to postpone the admission even for a single day", was actually the result of completely wrong assumptions and considerations. Vice Chairman of the Croat Assembly and President of the International Relations Committee, manifested once again his lack of skill and lack of knowledge of international relations, but it also seems that he concealed a great deal from both the Assembly and the public.

Starting from a completely wrong hypothesis, in the fact that Russia was admitted, Dr Domljan recognized a permit for admittance of Croatia, disregarding the report he was handed in Strasbourg. The troika of Committee Presidents of the Council of Europe (Committee of Political Issues, Committee of Civilian Issues and Human Rights, and Committee of Relations with European Countries - Non-members of the CE), in a report submitted after a three-day inspection in Croatia (December 7-10, 1995) was so critical and demanding that it would make any serious diplomat worried, and certainly could not inspire optimism.

First of all, the report warns against robbery, larson and murders after operation "Storm", which were not denied by either President Tudjman or foreign Minister Granic. Experts of the Council of Europe demanded from Croatia that which was written in the Presidential Statement of the UN Security Council. They were not satisfied with Tudjman's excuses that some of the crimes had been committed by Serb terrorists, nor with the number of about 750 suspects, out of which charges were formally brought against 230, but as it is claimed by organizations for protection of human rights, they have not been brought to trial at all. Rapporteurs believe that the Croat administration was and still is responsible for safety of persons and property in regions returned under its control, and they refuse to accept the pretext that it is a territory difficult to supervise, but on the contrary think that it was comparatively simple to block access to it. And that the situation on freed territories is not improving, but that crimes continue is verified by the piece of news published in the black chronicle of the "Vjesnik" which reads that in Ljubovici near Gracac, certain Marija Djuric (58) was found dead in her home, and that the same happened in Bilisani near Obrovac, to Milica Olujic (85), who were both murdered by firearms.

Further on, the rapporteurs do not accept the stance of Croat authorities that return of the Serbs will be welcomed, but only individually, because despite the fact that several thousand requests for return have been submitted, just a few hundred were actually approved. The rapporteurs believe that the return is a right which must not be limited, except for war criminals. It is unacceptable that the return of people and their right to enjoy their own property is conditioned in any way, and therefore it cannot be conditioned by the return of the Croats to Eastern Slavonia. "Croatia should be pressured to definitely cancel the time limit, as well as other obstructions for return", the rapporteurs say.

Croatia is also expected to cooperate with the Tribunal for war crimes in the Hague, and in this sense the case of general Tihofil Blaskic is especially stressed, who was transferred from the Croat Defence Council to the Croat Army by a decree of President Tudjman. There is also the problem of refugees from Velika Kladusa who live in inhumane conditions in camp Kupljensko near Vojnic. The old issue of freedom of the media is also repeated, with the accent on the right to privately-owned television, but not only on the local but on the national level. The new issue is the demand for amending laws on local self-administration, especially that district-prefects should not at the same time be representatives of self-adminitration and state administration. More precisely, Tudjman is reproached for failing to recognize the will of the voters in Zagreb. According to certain information, it is possible that Tudjman may verify election of Jozo Rados for the mayor of Zagreb and district-prefect, which would be the first positive shift after pressure exerted from Europe.

Nevertheless, one cannot but wonder why Zarko Domljan did not inform his colleagues from the delegation, who are members of different political parties, nor the Assembly about this report and why he persistently raises false hopes? One of the members of the delegation, Liberal Bozo Kovacevic believes that expectations that Croatia will be admitted in the Council of Europe in the near future, especially in April, are unfortunately not realistic. All things considered, it will be necessary to wait for quite some time for such a decision, so that the scanario that the Council of Europe could reach the decision on simultaneous admittance of Croatia, FR Yugoslavia and B&H seems to be the most probable one.

President of the Istria Democratic Assembly Ivan Jakovcic declared recently that it was high time Zarko Domljan stepped down from the post of the President of the Assembly Foreign Policy Committee, because for years now he has been arousing false hopes that it was just a matter of a few months when Croatia would be admitted in the Council of Europe. Someone with more affinity for European integrations should be elected for the post, and the political secretary of the Croat National Party Stjepo Martinovic went even a step further. He says: "Declaration of Zarko Domljan that admittance of Russia into the Council of Europe would make Croat admittance easier was imbecile. Europe has a lot of objections to operation of the political system in Croatia, to defects of democracy, as well as to enormous difference between the legal framework and practise. In many segments, our policy is identical to that of Belgrade, so we should not be surprised if some day we were admitted in the Council of Europe together with Serbia".

Martinovic and the President of his party Ratomir Cacic claim that "there is a conscious intention of the ruling party not to be accepted in the Council of Europe in order to avoid control mechanisms". Martinovic was categorical: "It is a question of an intentional subversion which is veiled by periodical departures of Minister Granic to Strasbourg, where he unconvincingly whimpers for not being accepted in the Council".

This is the first time someone has publicly and severely accused the HDZ of doing everything not to be admitted in the Council of Europe, in order to avoid being brought up for discussion all the time. The Council of Europe, it is true, has no authority, but it is not pleasant to have various resolutions and recommendations adopted, which would speak of violation of human rights, bad legislature, no freedom of the media, war crimes. After all, to what extent the membership is taken into account by diplomatic circles is best illustrated by examples of Greece and Turkey. The first froze its membership after the colonels' coup in order to avoid condemnation, and Turkey, threatened by a highly unsparing resolution due to its attitude towards the Kurds and other cases of violation of human and national rights, did the same last April.

Therefore, the hypothesis on intentional subversion is not completely unfounded, but although there is no formal power in Strasbourg, becoming part of the Council of Europe offers many financial and other conveniences which Croatia would enjoy. This is obviously a matter of a conflict of interests within the ruling party, because President Tudjman is constantly seeking American support and getting it, for joining processes of European integration. And the rapporteurs themselves claim that as concerning President Tudjman "he is personally ready to sign the list of obligations".

GOJKO MARINKOVIC