>STOP NATO: NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.COM > >http://www.counterpunch.org >CounterPunch >Alexander Cockburn & Jeffrey St. Clair > >May 22, 2000 > > >Yugoslavia A Year Later >Turning a Blind Eye to NATO War Crimes >Shortly after NATO missiles and bombs began killing >civilians in Kosovo and Serbia, Michael Mandel, a law >professor at York University in Canada, filed a >complaint with the International Criminal Tribunal for >the Former Yugoslavia alleging that NATO and key >leaders in the US and Great Britain had committed war >crimes. Over the next year, Mandel, and his >colleagues, have supplemented the original complaint >with numerous other filings, documenting human rights >violations by the humanitarian warriors > >Through the course of the war, NATO's 25,000 missile >strikes and bombing raids would kill between 500 and >1,800 civilians and permanently injure thousands of >others. Thousands of more deaths were indirectly >caused by predicable retaliatory and defensive actions >taken by both the Serbs and the KLA. The raids on >Yugoslavia also provoked a refuge crisis, with more >than a million people fleeing Kosovo to escape the >bombing. The bombings nearly destroyed the economy of >Yugoslavia, causing between $60 and $100 billion in >damage to a country that was already one of the >poorest in Europe. After the bombing ceased, Kosovo, >under the control of NATO troops, was allowed to be >hit by waves of ethnic violence, assassination and >purges, much of it conducted by the KLA. > >But so far the United Nations' tribunal has yet to >even open an investigation into the complaints, >despite a new report by Human Rights Watch-an early >and avid proponent of intervention-condemning the >civilian casualities. > >On March 15, Mandel sent another complaint to Justice >Carla del Ponte, the new chief prosecutor for the >tribunal, who replaced Justice Louise Arbour in >October. Mandel's sharply worded letter protests the >tribunal's refusal to investigate NATO's actions, >saying that del Ponte has turned "the investigation >into more of a farce than a judicial proceeding." >Mandel's letter makes a solid case that far from being >an independent investigator, the tribunal has >conducted itself "as if it were an organ of NATO and >not the United Nations." > >Mandel had hoped that Del Ponte, who comes from >Switzerland which is nominally outside the NATO >alliance, would take a more aggressive stance than >Arbour, the Canadian. And there seemed to be reason >for optimism. At a December press conference Del Ponte >declared that she would be quite willing to hold NATO >accountable if evidence of crimes was unearthed. "If I >am not willing to do that, then I am not in the right >place," Del Ponte said. "I must give up my mission." >This did not sit well with NATO and the US State >Department, which strongly protested. On December 30, >Del Ponte quickly backpedaled, issuing a retraction >saying that "NATO is not under investigation" and >there was "no formal inquiry" going on. > >Since then Del Ponte has been moving closer and closer >to NATO. On January 19, Del Ponte had a private >meeting with NATO secretary general George Robertson, >the subject of numerous war crimes complaints. After >the meeting, Del Ponte made a point of saying that she >had not broached the topic of NATO war crimes with >Robertson or any other NATO leader. Two weeks later >Del Ponte was in London where she had a session with >British foreign minister Robin Cook, also identified >as a responsible party in several war crimes >complaints filed with the tribunal. Following that >meeting Del Ponte was asked if any progress had been >made in the investigation of NATO. "Our work is not >yet done, but what we can say is that up until now we >have no indications that we should open an inquiry," >Del Ponte said. But there is no evidence that the UN >tribunal has even started looking into NATO's actions. >In fact, on March 9, a spokesman for Del Ponte praised >NATO troops, saying that they "respect the rule of >law" and that any "prosecution is very unlikely." > >Mandel calls Del Ponte's refusal to open an inquiry a >"disgrace" and says that the tribanal has evidence >that "NATO planners not only knowingly killed >civilians, but deliberately set out to do so." He >points specifically to the bombing of the Grdelica and >Varvarin Bridges (on April 12 and May 20) and the >strikes on the Nis marketplace on May 7. Mandel notes >that all the strikes on Yugoslavia were carried out >without any risk to NATO pilots or leaders, a scenario >that violates the Geneva code. "This was a war fought >against civilians of all ethnicities with bombing from >altitudes so high that the civilians bore all the >risks of the inevitable collateral damage," Mandel >says. > >Mandel makes a powerful case that the UN tribunal had >been working for NATO from the beginning. "This war >must be understood as an attempt by the United States, >through NATO, to overthrow the authority of the United >Nations and to replace it with NATO's military might, >to be used wherever strategically advantageous and >whatever the human consequences," Mandel says. > >Mandel is convinced that the US backed the creation of >the UN tribunal only in order to advance its on >strategic interests in the Balkans. He has marshaled a >compelling set of facts to back up this assertion, >starting in January 1999, when Judge Arbour made a >high-profile visit to the Kosovo border, where she >endorsed the US/KLA accounts of Serb atrocities at >Racak. This made-for-tv event became a rallying point >for the war, despite later accounts that the events in >Racak had been great exaggerated. > >Shortly after the NATO bombing raids had started, >Arbour announced the indictment of "Arkan", which had >been kept secret since 1997, helping to amplify the >drumbeat of US-backed propaganda about Serbian >atrocities. After the press began to focus on civilian >deaths, Arbour again came to NATO's rescue, holding a >joint appearance with Robin Cook, where she accepted a >NATO-prepared dossier on Serbia "war crimes." Soon >thereafter, Arbour met with Madeleine Albright, who >used the opportunity to inform the world that the US >was the principal financial backer of the UN tribunal. > >Two weeks later, Arbour announce the indictment of >Milosevic for the events at Racak based on undisclosed >evidence gather in the middle of a war zone. After the >bombing came to an end, Instead, Arbour handed over >the investigation of Serbian war crimes to NATO troops >in Kosovo, even though they had motives to falsify >evidence in order to justify their own actions. The >speed with which the Tribunal indicted Slobo and his >associates stands in stark contrast to lethargic pace >of the investigation into NATO's crimes. > >"These actions cannot be regarded as the acts of an >impartial prosecutor," says Mandel. "Not when NATO was >in the midst of a controversial war in flagrant >violation of international law." CP > > >__________________________________________________ >Do You Yahoo!? >Send instant messages & get email alerts with Yahoo! Messenger. >http://im.yahoo.com/ > > >______________________________________________________________________ >To unsubscribe, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Start Your Own FREE Email List at http://www.listbot.com/links/joinlb > __________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. 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