Situation in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- See Doc. 8889, report of the Political Affairs Committee, rapporteur: Mr Frey. Text adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf ofthe Assembly, on 9 November 2000.
- Thesaurus
1. The Assembly congratulates Mr Vojislav
Kostunica on his election as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
and fully supports him in his efforts to ensure that this country makes a
peaceful transition to democracy.
2. It also congratulates the Yugoslav people on their choice and on their
struggle for democracy and freedom, and pays tribute to the democratic forces
that have helped to secure President Kostunica’s election.
3. The Assembly encourages the federal government and parliament formed
after the elections of 24 September 2000 to actively contribute to the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia’s democratic development.
4. The Assembly welcomes the European Union’s decision to lift all the
sanctions applied to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia since 1998 with the
exception of those provisions directed at Slobodan Milošević and those
associated with him.
5. It also welcomes the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia’s admission to full
membership of the Stability Pact for Southeastern Europe, on 26 October 2000,
and membership of the United Nations, on 1 November 2000.
6. The Assembly encourages the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to fulfil, as
soon as possible, the conditions which will permit it to find its place in
other international organisations, in particular the Council of Europe and the
OSCE.
7. The Assembly considers that the Council of Europe has a privileged role
to play in the process of democratic transition, which is under way in the
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
8. To contribute to this, it wishes to establish regular dialogue with the
federal parliament and therefore invites the Speaker of the federal parliament
to request Special Guest status to the Assembly under Rule 59 of its Rules of
Procedure.
9. On the other hand, the Assembly recalls that the holding of free and fair
elections, the implementation of democratic reforms throughout the country, the
functioning of a democratic political system, respect for the rule of law and
the protection of human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to
national minorities, constitute the key conditions to be fulfilled by the
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in order that it may, when the time comes,
become a full member state of the Council of Europe.
10. The Assembly is aware of the current frailty of democratic institutions
in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and considers that at this stage, these
conditions have not yet been fulfilled. None the less, it is determined to work
towards democratic change in the country in order that it may accede to the
Council of Europe as soon as possible.
11. The Assembly is very preoccupied by the serious economic and humanitarian
problems in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and their potential effects on
the stability of the country and its institutions; it considers that massive
and immediate humanitarian assistance is needed and that the Council of Europe
Development Bank should provide emergency aid to the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia.
12. The Assembly notes the Serbian authorities’ decision to renew the
Legislative Assembly of the Republic of Serbia on 23 December 2000 and calls on
all democratic forces to mobilise themselves in order to ensure that the
elections in this republic are free and fair. Their outcome will be decisive to
the future of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and its relations with the
international community.
13. With regard to Kosovo, it notes the results of the local elections held on 28 October 2000 which were accepted by the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (Unmik) on the basis of the positive assessment made by the Council of Europe Election Observation Mission. On the other hand, it recalls that the United Nations Security Council
Resolution 1244 (1999) on the situation in Kosovo must be fully implemented and the Serb minority should be given full protection.
14. The Assembly welcomes the decision of the Committee of Ministers of the
Council of Europe, on 25 October 2000, to instruct the Secretariat to “continue
the planning of co-operation activities with the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
and the examination of the possible setting-up of a Council of Europe office in
Belgrade, as soon as the new competent authorities are in place, in close
co-operation with the relevant international organisations (in particular the
European Union, the OSCE and the United Nations) taking into account the
projects developed in the framework of the Stability Pact for Southeastern
Europe”.
15. The Assembly calls on the authorities of the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia to:
15.1 establish a democratic
political regime based on the rule of law and the protection of human rights,
including the rights of members of national minorities and, in this respect, to
strengthen the democratically accountable role of the police and the credible
independence of the judiciary;
15.2 take the necessary steps to ensure that the elections to the
Legislative Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, on 23 December 2000, are free
and fair;
15.3 invite the international community to observe the
elections;
15.4 respect the freedom of speech and to amend existing legislation,
particularly the Public Information Law passed by the Serbian Parliament on 20
October 1998;
15.5 inform the population of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia about the
crimes committed by the Milošević regime and to co-operate with the
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in order to reach a
solution that will be in the interests of justice and the country;
15.6 continue dialogue with the authorities in Montenegro, with a view to
clarifying the most effective framework for relations between Serbia and
Montenegro;
15.7 co-operate with Unmik in Kosovo, engage in constructive dialogue in
the spirit of reconciliation with the elected Albanian leaders there and
liberate the Kosovo Albanian political prisoners still held in
Serbia;
15.8 investigate the fate of Serbs and the Kosovo Albanians who have
disappeared;
15.9 begin a process of reconciliation with neighbouring countries and
re-establish relations based on trust and co-operation, in particular by
recognising Bosnia and Herzegovina as an independent, sovereign state, by
complying fully with the Dayton Peace Agreement and by recognising the existing
border with “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”;
15.10 take all necessary measures to clarify the fate of Mr Stambolić,
former President of Serbia and former mentor of Slobodan Milošević, and other
people whose disappearance or assassination has not been clarified;
15.11 Resolve the issues concerning the succession to the Socialist Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) and fulfil, as soon as possible, the necessary
conditions for the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to take its place in
international organisations as one of the successor states to the
SFRY.
16. The Assembly urges the authorities concerned to take all appropriate
steps to ensure that the Serbs who have left Kosovo can return to their homes
and resume a normal life with all guaranties provided by the rule of
law.
