Conditional EC green light for Serbia - Candidacy only after Mladic’s
extradition! Anything new? B.
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http://www.blic.co.yu/news.php?id=3219
Conditional EC green light for Serbia
Candidacy only after Mladic’s extradition
Author: Ž. Jevtić | Foto: fonet | 31.10.2008 - 09:52
The most serious obstacle for Serbia to get the candidate status for the EU
membership in 2009 is condition of the full cooperation with the Hague
Tribunal, i.e. extradition of Ratko Mladic to that court. The authorities in
Serbia find all other requests mentioned by the European Commission in its
annual report, easy to be fulfilled. Analysts, however are of the opinion that
the goal – candidate status in 2009 – shall not be easy to achieve. They also
think that it is not very likely that Serbia shall manage to fulfill the
reforms in the field of judicial system and carry out fight against corruption.
In its report that is to be publicized next week, the EC is of the opinion that
Serbia can get the candidate status for the EU membership in 2009 if it fulfils
the necessary conditions.
‘Serbia is demonstrating an enviable level of capacity to overcome all
problems. However, we have the issue of the Hague Tribunal that has to be
solved as soon as possible. This is actually the only obstacle that is a
problem for Serbia’, Bozidar Djelic, Serbia Deputy Prime Minister in charge for
European integration processes says.
Rasim Ljajic, President of the National Council for cooperation with the Hague
Tribunal shares Djelic’s opinion.
‘Until so far 44 people have been extradited to the Tribunal but that seems to
be nothing and the problem shall not be solved until Ratko Mladic is arrested
and extradited. Until so far everything depended on the evaluation of
cooperation by the Hague tribunal, now Holland is insisting on extradition
regardless of the evaluation by the court. We have intensified our operational
activities to the utmost. Still we cannot say when that shall happen. Serbia
has already paid such high price because of the fact that Mladic is still at
large’, Ljajic said.
Another problem is prevention of and fight against corruption. Verica Barac,
President of the Council for fight against corruption is of the opinion that
the candidate status in 2009 is an unachievable goal for Serbia.
‘The level of corruption in Serbia does not allow functioning of the
institutions and economic development. There is no elementary legal and
economic safety, there is no implementation of law in full and there is no
independent judicial system. Corruption here is a system problem. We do have a
strategy for fight against corruption but that is not enough. We have to
implement it in full’, Barac says.
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