[A-PAL] a-pal 6/05/01

[Alice Mead]

>                                              A-PAL STATEMENT

                          JUNE 5, 2001

>
>Unfortunately, as the second year anniversary of the transfer of 
>Albanian prisoners into Serbia, approaches, we must continue to 
>advocate for the immediate release of the remaining Albanians. We 
>need political pressure from European leaders to obtain their 
>freedom. One prisoner, Bedri Kukalaj, shot in the head at the 
>Dubrava massacre, has recently written from Belgrade Central Prison, 
>pleading for medical care.
>
>The Serb Supreme Court must release the remaining 135 Albanian 
>political prisoners to comply with UN law, the Helsinki Accords, the 
>Geneva Conventions, EU demands, the Yugoslav Constitution, UN 1244, 
>and the Council of Europe's pact of protection of human rights. 
>President Kostunica has not fulfilled his many promises to 
>internationals to release the prisoners kept as hostages, tortured 
>and deprived of liberty under the Milosevic regime. Now the Serbian 
>Supreme Court justices, must demonstrate their independence from the 
>brutal political agendas of Milosevic and release these 135 
>prisoners or they will continue to violate international law and the 
>Yugoslav Constitution.
>
>   -On June 29th, the FRY meeting of donors will be held in Brussels.-
>
>1.**We urge all countries who are co-signers of these laws to 
>withhold funding to the former Yugoslavia until the prisoners are 
>released.**
>
>2.** YUGOSLAVIA has now reentered the UN and OSCE. We urge those 
>organizations to develop real consequences for Serbia's failure to 
>release the Albanian prisoners in a timely fashion. Past experience 
>has shown that without immediate consequences, compliance will not 
>take place.
>
>3.** The Council of Europe now has an office in Belgrade and 
>Yugoslavia has indicated an interest in becoming a member. The 
>Council of Europe needs to make the release of prisoners a priority 
>with real consequences if their release continues to be delayed.
>
>4.**Embassy diplomats, MEP staff, US legislative staff, Human Rights 
>Watch, and Amnesty International need to take a much more public 
>role in visiting the remaining prisoners, observing their appeals, 
>and documenting on-going violations of basic humanitarian 
>rights-such as adequate food, freedom from harassment and torture, 
>adequate family visits,medical care, humanitarian releases (all of 
>which have been denied so far). Serb humanitarian cases are equally 
>neglected.
>
>5.**The justices of the Serbian Supreme Court, nearly all of whom 
>are holdovers from the Milosevic regime, need the closest level of 
>outside monitoring. For example, the lack of international outcry 
>over the recent Mazreku case and lack of demands for their release 
>are a disgrace. High-visiblity cases, such as the Gjakova 143 or Dr. 
>Flora Brovina, receive one level of attention. The Mazrekus, and 
>hundreds like them, go ignored.
>
>6. That OSCE appoint an independent investigation to report on the 
>ongoing situation of the Albanian prisoners, to document cooperation 
>and lack of regard for international norms and the Helsinki Accords. 
>To demand appropriate action by the Serb Supreme Court in its 
>"review" of cases.
>
>
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