By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 26 -- The
Kosovo
representative
of the UN
Farid Zarif,
when he
briefed the UN
Security
Council on May
26, had a long
paragraph
about delay in
trying "cases
arising from
the finding of
the EU Special
Investigative
Task Force" --
without
mentioning the
underlying
organ
trafficking.
Meanwhile
the UN Office
of the High
Commission for
Human Rights,
embroiled in a
scandal of
covering up
alleged child
rapes by
French
soldiers in
the Central
African
Republic,
including
allow the
(French) chief
of UN
Peacekeeping
to try to get
the OHCHR
whistleblower
fired, has
closed its
office in
Kosovo.
In
a speech after
Zarif's briefing,
Russia's
Ambassador
Vitaly Churkin
criticized the
delay in the
Special Court,
and the failure
to report the
build-up to Kumanovo.
Here's what
the UN's Farid
Zarif said on
this, followed
by Churkin:
“A matter of
pressing
importance is
the completion
of the
necessary
steps toward
establishment
of the
Specialist
Court, in
order to try
cases arising
from the
findings of
the EU Special
Investigative
Task Force in
accordance
with the
highest
standards of
international
justice. In my
meetings
across the
Kosovo
political
establishment,
I have
underlined the
clear
expectations
from the
international
community, as
well as from
those who may
have been the
victims of
past crimes,
that there be
no undue
delays in the
steps required
from Kosovo
toward the
establishment
of the Court.
I had hoped to
be able to
report today
that the
relevant
constitutional
and
legislative
steps had been
completed, but
the issue now
has been
tentatively
scheduled for
action this
Friday.”
Farif made a
glancing
reference to
major regional
events: "the
deadly armed
clashes in
Kumanovo,
former
Yugoslav
Republic of
Macedonia, on
May 9 and 10.
The violent
clashes
involved
several
individuals
from Kosovo."
Churkin, on
Kumanovo, said
"The
Kosovan
problem is
still
pertinent and
still has a
destabilizing
impact on the
whole region.
This is
verified by
the recent
events in
Macedonia, in
particular the
attack by
bandits in
uniform of the
KLA on the
Macedonian
border guards
on the 21st of
April and the
incident in
Kumanovo on
the 9 of May.
This was
caused by the
arrival in
that town of a
large group of
radical
fighters from
Kosovo who
planned to
carry out a
series of
terrorist
attacks in the
territory of
Macedonia.
"We
are astonished
that the
information in
Skopje about
the
plans of the
terrorists
were conveyed
to
international
partners who
played a key
role in
ensuring
security in
Kosovo at the
beginning of
this year.
This warning
was ignored.
The Macedonian
incidents show
that in this
region of the
Balkans there
are still
inter-ethnic
conflicts, and
it proves the
high conflict
potential of
the region.
The situation
is also
impacted by a
lack of the
rule of law in
Kosovo. This
is a result of
a lack of
settlement of
the Kosovo
problem on the
whole.
On
the organ
trade, Churkin
said:
"There
have been
delays in
establishing
the Special
Court to
investigating
the crime
carried out by
the KLA
including the
trade in human
organs. It's
odd that the
establishment
of such a body
has been
dependent on
legislative
decisions in
Prisitina when
clearly Kosovo
has not been
ready to
objectively
evaluate such
a delicate
matter. There
is a negative
legacy of this
from the
recent past.
There have
been reports
about western
diplomats in
Pristina
trying to
persuade
Kosovars to
adopt a text
written for
them that
would
apparently
give them
better results
than if this
matter was
brought to the
Security
Council. We
don’t
understand how
such friendly
recommendations
can be married
with the
mantra of the
rule of law.
We
insist on the
need to
achieve real
progress in
this area as
soon as
possible. We
note what was
said today by
Mr. Thaci. We
confirm our
position that
the
perpetrators
of these
crimes must be
brought to
justice
irrespective
of their
status.”
We'll see.
, 
