Dear Mr. Kuhner,
You asked the question, "Is Clinton a War Criminal?" The answer, of
course, is yes.
Ah, Mr. Kuhner, you do not disappoint me. You continue to show your
true colors with your commentaries in The Washington Times defending
Croatia.
In today's commentary you state, "Zagreb's lightening military offensive
not only restored Croatia's territorial integrity, but more importantly
helped to achieve the central goal of American foreign policy in the
region: putting an end to Mr. Milosevic's dream of an ethnically pure
"Greater Serbia."
You really had be rolling on the floor with that one, Mr. Kuhner. FYI.
Over 250,000 Serbs (not 150,000 as you stated) were ethnically cleansed
from their ancestral land in the Krajina region alone. However, a total
of 650,000 Serbs were driven out in all of Croatia, not to mention the
5,000 that were murdered while Croatian jets were strafing fleeing
refugees. Understandably, you do not write about the fact that
Croatia today has its Croatian state that Hitler could only promise.
Unfortunately for Croatians, Bosnians and Albanians, the over one
million Serbs, Jews and Gypsies did not add up to Hitler's final
solution, but Clinton and his war criminals began the fulfillment of
that ambition
Mr. Kuhner, Croatian war criminals will be treated with kid gloves so
you worry for nothing. It is because Croatia's war criminals cannot
expose the Clinton's administration's illegal intervention in the
Balkans and that will never be allowed to happen.
Stella L. Jatras
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IS CLINTON A WAR CRIMINAL?
by Jeffrey T. Kuhner
22 September 2002/pg B3
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ZAGREB, Croatia.
Former President Bill Clinton faces possible war crimes
charges by the prosecutor's office at the U.N. tribunal in
The Hague for the former Yugoslavia.
As the media remains riveted by the trial of former Serb
dictator Slobodan Milosevic, an overlooked but far more
consequential case is that of Croatian Gen. Ante Gotovina.
The Gotovina case threatens to destabilize Croatia; it also
raises the possibility Mr. Clinton and several of his other
top administration officials will be indicted by the Balkans
war crimes tribunal.
The decision last year by the ruling coalition government in
Zagreb to hand Gen. Gotovina over to The Hague tribunal has
sparked a political crisis in this small country. While the
general remains in hiding, the popularity of Socialist Prime
Minister Ivica Racan has plummeted.
Gen. Gotovina was indicted in June 2001 by the prosecutor's
office at The Hague on charges that he exercised "command
responsibility" over a 1995 military operation that resulted
in the expulsion of 150,000 ethnic Serbs from Croatia.
Supported by the Clinton administration, Croatian forces
launched a massive, three-day military offensive - known as
"Operation Storm" - on Aug. 4, 1995, in which Croatia
recovered territories occupied by rebel Serbs following the
country's drive for independence from Yugoslavia in 1991.
Gen. Gotovina is not accused of committing or ordering war
crimes, but simply of being in charge when alleged
atrocities were committed.
However, by this standard, the Clinton administration is
also guilty. Washington provided valuable military and
technical assistance to Operation Storm. The Clinton foreign
policy team rightly concluded that the only way to tilt the
strategic balance of power in the Balkans against the Serbs
was to arm and unleash the Croatian army.
Zagreb's lightening military offensive not only restored
Croatia's territorial integrity, but more importantly helped
to achieve the central goal of American foreign policy in
the region: putting an end to Mr. Milosevic's dream of an
ethnically pure "Greater Serbia." The operation
significantly advanced U.S. interests in the Balkans,
helping to pave the way for the Dayton Accords that brought
peace to neighboring Bosnia.
Yet U.S. support and approval for the military offensive
means the indictment against Gen. Gotovina could lead to the
prosecution by tribunal at The Hague of Mr. Clinton and
other administration officials on charges of having "command
responsibility" for alleged war crimes that were committed
during the operation. The prosecutor's office now is
examining whether to investigate Mr. Clinton and former
Ambassador Richard Holbrooke for their role in Operation
Storm. It is only a matter of time before they are made to
appear before the tribunal.
The Bush administration has become increasingly concerned
with the implications of the Gotovina case for the United
States. The State Department is now urging the tribunal's
chief prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte, to send cases involving
Croatian military officials back to the domestic courts in
Zagreb. But Mrs. Del Ponte has refused to cooperate,
insisting that Gen. Gotovina be arrested and sent to The
Hague.
That would be a mistake. The indictment is deeply flawed and
should be dropped immediately. There is no evidence Gen.
Gotovina acted improperly or oversaw war crimes. Most of the
atrocities committed - the murder of 500 civilians, the
looting of property and the burning of 40,000 homes and
barns - took place after the operation was completed, when
the recovered territories fell under the control of local
police.
Moreover, the Gotovina case establishes an ominous precedent
for U.S. foreign policy. The importance of Operation Storm
was that it served as a model for Operation Enduring Freedom
in Afghanistan. The Croatian military acted as the de facto
ground troops for the United States in its effort to defeat
Mr. Milosevic. A similar approach was taken in the war in
Afghanistan. The Northern Alliance provided the bulk of the
ground forces during the Bush administration's campaign to
topple the Taliban regime from power.
But if the theory of "command responsibility" is upheld in
the Gotovina case, then the United States can be made
accountable for the actions of its allies around the world.
There will be nothing preventing the International Criminal
Court from making U.S. officials responsible for isolated
criminal acts that have been committed by Northern Alliance
troops.
Ultimately, the Gotovina indictment threatens to limit
Washington's ability to project its power around the world.
In fact, the case is emblematic of the dangers inherent in
international tribunals that have little transparency and
are not rooted in representative institutions.
There can never be lasting peace and reconciliation in the
former Yugoslavia until justice has been done to the victims
of the Balkan wars - whether they be Croats, Muslims, or
Serbs. There are still plenty of war criminals who remain at
large. They deserve to be indicted and sent to The Hague.
Neither Mr. Clinton nor Gen. Gotovina are one of them.
Jeffrey T. Kuhner is an assistant national editor at The
Washington Times.
Serbian News Network - SNN
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.antic.org/
