Williamson: No evidence of human organ trafficking

No evidence of organ harvesting has been found so far, but that does not mean that there will not be any, Williamson noted, adding that the investigation will continue.He pointed out that in his report, Council of Europe (CoE) rapporteur Dick Marty mentions a “handful” of individuals who were subjected to this crime, and not hundreds of people as some media speculated.I can say that I personally believe that such crimes occurred and even though they were committed against a relatively small number of people, they were brutal acts that cannot be justified, said the chief prosecutor presenting the results of the three-year investigation. He added that according to the Marty Report the number of victims of organ harvesting is less than ten. Of course, this figure can change in the course of the investigation. We found the number to be slightly higher but not astronomically high, as earlier speculations suggested, Williamson specified in reply to a reporter's question.Williamson said that the evidence was found, however, of the systematic crimes against minority populations in Kosovo, especially against Serbs and Roma.The attacks were directed against all of the Serbs who wanted to stay in Kosovo after the conflict, many of whom were elderly or infirm, he added.Certain elements of the KLA (Kosovo Liberation Army) carried out the ethnic cleansing south of the Ibar River, and engaged in a sustained campaign of violence and intimidations directed at political opponents after the conflict in Kosovo in 1999, Williamson said, adding that these crimes were not the acts of rogue individuals but rather conducted in an organized fashion and were sanctioned by certain individuals in the top levels of the KLA leadership.According to estimates from numerous sources in 1999, the number of internally displaced Serbs and other minorities ranges between 170,000 and 250,000, some of which are displaced outside Kosovo, and others to the north of the Ibar River and in the enclaves in the territory of Kosovo, Williamson said.When asked if some of the incumbent (Kosovo) politicians are involved in the crimes investigated by the SITF, Williamson said that certain individuals under investigation were members of the KLA top tier.Replying to reporter's question as to whether members of the Drenica Group headed by outgoing Kosovo Prime Minister Hasim Taci were involved in the crimes, Williamson said that the “findings were largely consistent with the Council of Europe report of 2011 by Senator Dick Marty.”The chief prosecutor stressed that these are crimes against humanity, including killings, abductions and inhumane treatment of civilians, which is largely consistent with the allegations in the Marty Report.No indictments will be filed until the specialist court is in place, established within the legal system but outside the territory of Kosovo, said Williamson.“This is an unprecedented situation in international justice where a special prosecutor's office has been set up with full investigative authorities and with a mandate to issue indictments, but where no viable court exists in which those indictments can be filed,” he said, expressing his disappointment at the delay in the setting up of the specialist court.Williamson stressed that the SITF team faced an extremely challenging task of investigating crimes that occurred in several countries 15 years ago.“Many witnesses have since died or become too infirm to provide testimony,” he explained.The prosecutor specifically pointed to the climate of witness intimidation, which undermined earlier investigations of individuals associated with the former KLA.The impact of witness intimidation grew stronger as the investigation progressed, he said, without naming the powerful Kosovo individuals interfering with the course of justice.As long as a few powerful people are trying to hide the evidence of the crimes, the rule of law and the people of Kosovo will pay the price, he warned.Williamson said that negotiations are underway with a certain country which expressed readiness to host the specialist court.Serbs, Roma and disloyal Albanians.Marty said that the civilians were taken to Albania, where their organs were harvested in improvised hospitals and then sold in the black market.June 1999, and 529 are still registered as missing.