BosNet Action:Congressional War Crimes Legislation
Steve Albert
B o s N e t -May 6, 1999
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Congressmen Ben Cardin, Chris Smith and Steny Hoyer are seeking the
signatures of fellow members of the House of Representatives on the
following letter to President Clinton. Please call members of the House
of Representatives and urge them to sign on. If you don't have telephone
numbers of particular members, you can call the main switchboard at the
Capitol (225-3121) and ask to be connected to a particular office.
Please call as soon as you can because they would like to get the letter
out as soon as possible. To date, the letter has been signed by
Congressmen Henry Waxman, Tom Coburn, Jim Moran, Peter King, Martin
Frost and Luis Gutierrez. When you call all you need ask is that
Congressman sign on to the war crimes letter being circulated by
Congressmen Cardin-Hoyer-Smith. Thanks. If you have questions, please
call (202) 662-1684 or 662-1595.
The Coalition for International Justice
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May __, 1999
Dear Mr. President:
Over the past few weeks, the world community has again been
horrified by the unconscionably brutal actions of Yugoslav President
Slobodan Milosevic against the civilian population of Kosovo. These
actions are part of a pattern of human rights atrocities which
constitute the worst abuses Europe has seen in half a century.
As you know, the House of Representatives passed legislation last
September, by an overwhelming vote of 369 to 1, stating the belief of
Congress that Slobodan Milosevic is responsible for war crimes, crimes
against humanity, and genocide. The Senate adopted by unanimous consent
identical language in S.Con.Res. 105. These resolutions called for
action by our government, especially in providing information, that
could lead to the public indictment of Milosevic for these crimes by the
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The
Hague.
Since then, President Milosevic has rejected efforts of the United
States and the international community to bring peace to Kosovo.
Instead, he has prosecuted a genocidal campaign against the population
of Kosovo, using military and paramilitary forces to terrorize the
Kosovars. The result has been an international tragedy involving
hundreds of thousands of refugees, untold human suffering, and turmoil
throughout the region. In fact, a team of investigators for the Office
of the Prosecutor of the ICTY working in regions bordering Kosovo has
encountered reports of mass killings, summary executions, systematic
rapes and homes being pillaged and burned. U.S. Ambassador at Large for
War Crimes David Scheffer and Assistant Secretary of State Harold Hongju
Koh have reported similar findings based on their first-hand interviews
in the region.
Mr. President, the Dayton Agreement rightly included provisions that
excluded war criminals from the electoral process in Bosnia. Clearly,
post-conflict normalization and democratization will not be successful
where war criminals make policy and are treated as legitimate
interlocutors by the international community. This is no less true in
Serbia then it was in Bosnia; resolution of the conflict in Kosovo can
be fully achieved only by including measures to bring Mr. Milosevic to
justice. We therefore reiterate our strong belief that the United
States should take appropriate action to facilitate the investigation,
public indictment and trial of President Milosevic as a war criminal by
the ICTY.
The investigations by the ICTY must be supported and augmented by the
international community of nations. As Tribunal President Judge
Gabrielle Kirk McDonald said, "While the Tribunal has the mandate to
investigate, prosecute and conduct trials, it cannot do so without the
active assistance of the States of the international community." The
United States has played a crucial role in NATO's action in Yugoslavia.
Now we can lead by example by actively compiling evidence of Milosevic's
deeds and providing all documentation to the prosecutor's office at the
Tribunal.
To expedite action by the Tribunal against President Milosevic, we urge
you to work towards his public indictment, to cooperate fully with the
ICTY and to provide it with all information relevant to its
investigation. Many of us have differing views on the current military
action in Kosovo, but on the question of Milosevic's public indictment
and support of the Tribunal, we are united. We urge that coordinated
action be taken by U.S. Government agencies to assemble, review and
where necessary declassify, and provide the ICTY with all information
relevant to a possible indictment of Slobodan Milosevic. In our
judgment, full cooperation with the ICTY entails specific measures to
ensure that adequate direction and resources are committed by your
Administration to support the Tribunal's important work.
Congress has already expressed its overwhelming support for this course
of action by adopting both H.Con.Res. 304 and S.Con.Res. 105. We look
forward to learning that the Administration is actively pursuing the
measures described above, and to working with you to ensure that
Milosevic is brought to justice by the Tribunal.
Sincerely,
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