Investigation into all crimes against Serbs
John Clint Williamson, head of the EULEX Special Investigative Task Force in charge of the probe into the human organ trafficking in Kosovo, on Thursday informed Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic that his investigation would not be limited to organ trafficking but would encompass all crimes against Serbs described in the report of Council of Europe Special Rapporteur Dick Marty.
(KosovoCompromiseStuff) Thursday, October 18, 2012
Williamson informed Nikolic about the progress of the investigation so far and the problems which have accompanied it, the president's office said in release issued after the meeting.
The Serbian president expressed full support to Williamson in his intention to investigate the crimes committed in Kosovo.
Nikolic said Serbia had big expectations from the investigation and was prepared to cooperate fully with the Investigative Task Force.
Nikolic and Williamson agreed it was of extreme importance for Serbia, for the stability of the region, and above all for victims' families, that the investigation be unimpeded and thorough, and that the perpetrators of these heinous crimes be brought to justice.
They concluded that the whole process had to be carried out with utmost care, with national governments in the region fully engaged in witness protection and making sure the investigative team can work without hindrances.
Williamson arrived in Belgrade on Wednesday, for a visit which marks the beginning of concrete steps in shedding light on the crimes against kidnapped and detained Serbs in Kosovo.
On Thursday, Williamson will also meet with Serbian War Crimes Prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic, and the focus of their conversation will be the account of a protected witness whose account was partially released by the Serbian War Crimes Prosecutor's Office mid-September.
In his account, partially broadcast by Radio Television of Serbia, the witness, a former member of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), described in detail how a heart was harvested from a Serb captive near Kukes, north Albania, to be sold in the black market.
The protected witness also described the procedure of trafficking in organs harvested from Serbs, who were abducted and imprisoned in Kosovo-Metohija in 1998/1999.
The details on human organ trafficking, which involved members of the KLA, were presented in a report by Dick Marty on December 12, 2010.
According to Marty's report, the masterminds behind the abductions and human organ trafficking in Kosovo were the incumbent Kosovo Prime Minister Hasim Taci and the Drenica Group.
Carla Del Ponte, former chief prosecutor of the ICTY, wrote in her book "The Hunt: Me and the War Criminals," published after she stepped down from the office, that 300 Serbs and a small number of other non-Albanians were transported to the Yellow House near Burrel, north Albania, where their organs were removed and later sold.
The Serbian president expressed full support to Williamson in his intention to investigate the crimes committed in Kosovo.
Nikolic said Serbia had big expectations from the investigation and was prepared to cooperate fully with the Investigative Task Force.
Nikolic and Williamson agreed it was of extreme importance for Serbia, for the stability of the region, and above all for victims' families, that the investigation be unimpeded and thorough, and that the perpetrators of these heinous crimes be brought to justice.
They concluded that the whole process had to be carried out with utmost care, with national governments in the region fully engaged in witness protection and making sure the investigative team can work without hindrances.
Williamson arrived in Belgrade on Wednesday, for a visit which marks the beginning of concrete steps in shedding light on the crimes against kidnapped and detained Serbs in Kosovo.
On Thursday, Williamson will also meet with Serbian War Crimes Prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic, and the focus of their conversation will be the account of a protected witness whose account was partially released by the Serbian War Crimes Prosecutor's Office mid-September.
In his account, partially broadcast by Radio Television of Serbia, the witness, a former member of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), described in detail how a heart was harvested from a Serb captive near Kukes, north Albania, to be sold in the black market.
The protected witness also described the procedure of trafficking in organs harvested from Serbs, who were abducted and imprisoned in Kosovo-Metohija in 1998/1999.
The details on human organ trafficking, which involved members of the KLA, were presented in a report by Dick Marty on December 12, 2010.
According to Marty's report, the masterminds behind the abductions and human organ trafficking in Kosovo were the incumbent Kosovo Prime Minister Hasim Taci and the Drenica Group.
Carla Del Ponte, former chief prosecutor of the ICTY, wrote in her book "The Hunt: Me and the War Criminals," published after she stepped down from the office, that 300 Serbs and a small number of other non-Albanians were transported to the Yellow House near Burrel, north Albania, where their organs were removed and later sold.
