Newsroom
Survey of War Crimes Trials in Kosovo's legal system published
PRISTINA 23 September 2002
PRISTINA, 23 September 2002 - The first complete survey has just been published of how the courts in Kosovo have dealt with violations of international humanitarian law. The report, Kosovo's War Crimes Trials, covers the 17 cases of war crimes that Kosovo's judicial system has dealt with since June 1999. Although progress has been made in building a legal system based on the rule of law, this report also indicates more needs to be done on this very important and sensitive issue.
"Trials of this nature are of crucial importance for post-conflict societies such as Kosovo as they are a step in the direction of reconciliation and acknowledgement of the truth," said Ambassador Pascal Fieschi, OSCE Head of Mission.
The report aims to fill a lack of information about the trials and their verdicts and makes recommendations to further establish a dynamic, critical and independent jurisprudence for Kosovo's courts. UNMIK, through Pillar I and particularly the Department of Justice, has made great efforts to build the institutional capacity of the judiciary. At the same time, the involvement of international judges in war crimes trials is a positive development that has addressed concerns of possible ethnic bias.
However, the report notes three areas of concern:
Urgently addressing these needs will help the local judiciary improve its war crimes jurisprudence and its understanding of legal issues involved in complex cases of this nature.
The OSCE is mandated with monitoring human rights in Kosovo, and it applies a human rights' perspective to its monitoring of the judicial system. This monitoring has been used in assisting UNMIK to create an effective justice system, striving towards international standards.
The OSCE is working closely with Pillar I, the Police and Justice Pillar, to deal with many of the issues raised in this report with the aim of fostering a culture of respect for human rights and the rule of law.
"Trials of this nature are of crucial importance for post-conflict societies such as Kosovo as they are a step in the direction of reconciliation and acknowledgement of the truth," said Ambassador Pascal Fieschi, OSCE Head of Mission.
The report aims to fill a lack of information about the trials and their verdicts and makes recommendations to further establish a dynamic, critical and independent jurisprudence for Kosovo's courts. UNMIK, through Pillar I and particularly the Department of Justice, has made great efforts to build the institutional capacity of the judiciary. At the same time, the involvement of international judges in war crimes trials is a positive development that has addressed concerns of possible ethnic bias.
However, the report notes three areas of concern:
- The quality of legal assessments in indictments and verdicts in war crimes cases. The OSCE recommendations aim to ensure structural consistency and solid legal analysis;
- The allocation of resources to courts investigating cases. The OSCE recommends that judges and prosecutors should be supported by professional legal officers, researchers and qualified experts in many fields to fully assess cases;
- Summarised witness statements in war crimes cases. The OSCE recommends that these statements should be verbatim records.
Urgently addressing these needs will help the local judiciary improve its war crimes jurisprudence and its understanding of legal issues involved in complex cases of this nature.
The OSCE is mandated with monitoring human rights in Kosovo, and it applies a human rights' perspective to its monitoring of the judicial system. This monitoring has been used in assisting UNMIK to create an effective justice system, striving towards international standards.
The OSCE is working closely with Pillar I, the Police and Justice Pillar, to deal with many of the issues raised in this report with the aim of fostering a culture of respect for human rights and the rule of law.