Refugees – 1997

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Refugees – 1997

1997

Intermediate Implementation Intermediate implementation

UNTAES reports in the early part of 1997 that “little progress has been made as regards the return of refugees and displaced persons.”1

UNTAES reports that senior officials in the Croatian Office for Displaced Persons and Refugees (ODPR) have made public discriminatory remarks about displaced Serbs being denied ODPR refugee benefits if they choose to vote in the upcoming elections.2

UNTAES reports that 1,836 Serb families (7,303 persons) crossed the border into Yugoslavia from Croatia. Most reported security concerns in Croatia as their reason for leaving.3

In March, the UN Security Council called upon Croatia to improve conditions of personal and economic security for Serbs wishing to return, to resolve the return-of-property issue, and remove uncertainty about the implementation of the amnesty law for Serbs.4

Croatian President Tudjman criticized the demands made to facilitate the return of Serb refugees as unreasonable.5

International pressure regarding the return of property to ethnic Serbs gains attention throughout 1997.6

US Secretary of State, Madeline Albright talks with Croatian leaders about ethnic Serbs being attacked and beaten by Croatian mobs.7

In June it was reported that 14,952 persons (out of an estimated 200,000 who fled to Yugoslavia) had returned to Croatia.8

Many Serbs who have a valid citizenship certificate, called the domovnica, now cannot use it to return to Croatia. The GoC has disclosed no alternative or procedure, other than the fact that the domovnica will not be honored as an official Croatian document.9 The current legal framework makes Croat occupation of Serb houses essentially indefinite. The GoC passed the Law on the Lease of Flats in the Liberated Territory and the Law of Temporary Takeover, which gave Serbs a matter of 2-3 months to legally reclaim their property, or someone could legally occupy it. The second law states that no one can be evicted from a temporary takeover without having alternative housing provided for them. Due to the shortage of housing, this makes all occupations essentially permanent. Getting legal help is difficult for Serbs because the GoC stated that Serbian lawyers cannot practice law in Croatia until they pay for a new Croatian law license. According to UNTAES, most of those who are forcefully evicted from houses are the rightful Serb owners of the home.10 In December of 1997, around 6,000 Croats and 9,000 Serbs returned to their homes in Croatia.11

  1. “Report of the Secretary-General on UNTAES, 24 February 1997,” United Nations Security Council (S/1997/148).
  2. Ibid.
  3. Ibid.
  4. “UN Security Council calls upon Croatia to facilitate return of Croatian Serbs to Western Slavonia and Krajina,” M2 Presswire, March 20, 1997.
  5. “President Tudjman says return of all Serbs to Croatia unreasonable,” BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, May 27, 1997.
  6. “Croatia criticized for not protecting Serbs,” BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, May 22, 1997.
  7. “In Balkans, Albright Sharply Criticizes Leaders of Croatia, Serbia; U.S. Turns Up Heat on Peace Plan Promises,” The Washington Post, June 1, 1997.
  8. “Report of the Secretary-General on UNTAES,” United Nations (S/1997/487), June 23, 1997.
  9. Ibid.
  10. Ibid.
  11. “UNTAES: Recent Development,” United Nations, December 22, 1997.