US Department of State Dispatch,
Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: US-Iranian Transactions
Bush
Source: President Bush
Description: Text of a letter to the President of the Senate and the
Speaker of the House of Representatives, released by Office
of the White House Press Secretary, Washington, DC
Date: Nov, 10 199211/10/92
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: MidEast/North Africa
Country: Iraq
Subject: Trade/Economics
[TEXT]
Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:)
I hereby report to the Congress on developments since the last Presidential
report on May 14, 1992, concerning the national emergency with respect to
Iran that was declared in Executive Order No. 12170 of November 14, 1979,
and matters relating to Executive Order No. 12613 of October 29, 1987.
This report is submitted pursuant to section 204(c) of the International
Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. 1703(c), and section 505(c) of
the International Security and Development Cooperation Act of 1985, 22
U.S.C. 2349aa-9(c). This report covers events through October 15, 1992. My
last report, dated May 14, 1992, covered events through March 31, 1992.
1. There have been no amendments to the Iranian Transactions Regulations
("ITRs"), 31 CFR Part 560, or to the Iranian Assets Control Regulations
("IACRs"), 31 CFR Part 535, since my last report.
2. The Office of Foreign Assets Control ("FAC") of the Department of the
Treasury continues to process applications for import licenses under the
ITRs. However, as previously reported, recent amendments to the ITRs have
resulted in a substantial decrease in the number of applications received
relating to the importation of non-fungible Iranian-origin goods. During the
reporting period, the Customs Service has continued to effect numerous
seizures of Iranian-origin merchandise, primarily carpets, for violation of
the import prohibitions of the ITRs. FAC and Customs Service investigations
of these violations have resulted in forfeiture actions and the imposition of
civil monetary penalties. Additional forfeiture and civil penalty actions are
under review.
3. The Iran-United States Claims Tribunal ("the Tribunal"), established at
The Hague pursuant to the Algiers Accords, continues to make progress in
arbitrating the claims before it. Since my last report, the Tribunal has
rendered 5 awards for a total of 533 awards. Of that total, 359 have been
awards in favor of American claimants: 217 of these were awards on agreed
terms, authorizing and approving payments of settlements negotiated by the
parties, and 142 were decisions adjudicated on the merits. The Tribunal has
issued 34 decisions dismissing claims on the merits and 81 decisions
dismissing claims for jurisdictional reasons. Of the 59 remaining awards,
3 approved the withdrawal of cases, and 56 were in favor of Iranian
claimants. As of September 30, 1992, payments on awards to successful
American claimants from the Security Ac-count held by the NV Settlements
Bank stood at $2,046,090,574.01.
As of September 30, 1992, the Security Account has fallen below the
required balance of $500 million 35 times. Iran has periodically replenished
the account, as required by the Algiers Accords, by transferring funds from
the separate account held by the NV Settlement Bank in which interest on
the Security Account is deposited. Iran has also replenished the Security
Account with the proceeds from the sale of Iranian-origin oil imported into
the United States, pursuant to transactions licensed on a case-by-case
basis by FAC. Iran has not, however, replenished the account since the last
oil sale deposit on December 3, 1991. The aggregate amount that has been
transferred from the interest account to the Security Account is
$859,472,986.47. As of September 30, 1992, the total amount in the
Security Account was $499,528,936.74, and the total amount in the interest
account was $17,301,717.98.
4. The Tribunal continues to make progress in the arbitration of claims of
U.S. nationals for $250,000.00 or more. Since the last report, 4 large claims
have been decided. More than 85 percent of nonbank claims have now been
disposed of through adjudication, settlement, or voluntary withdrawal,
leaving 85 such claims on the docket.
5. As anticipated by the May 13, 1990, agreement settling the claims of
U.S. nationals against Iran for less than $250,000.00, the Foreign Claims
Settlement Commission ("FCSC") has continued its review of 3,112 claims.
The FCSC has issued decisions in 849 claims, for total awards of more than
$17 million. The FCSC expects to complete its adjudication of the
remaining claims in late 1993.
6. In coordination with concerned Government agencies, the Department of
State continues to present United States Government claims against Iran, as
well as responses by the United States Government to claims brought
against it by Iran.
7. As anticipated by my last report, the Tribunal terminated Case No. A/15
(I:G), the case brought by Iran concerning bank syndicate claims against
Dollar Account No. 1 at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, on June 12,
1992, on the joint request of the two governments.
8. Jose Maria Ruda, President of the Tribunal, tendered his resignation on
October 2, 1992. His resignation will take effect on March 31, 1993, or on
such later date as his successor becomes available to take up his duties.
9. The situation reviewed above continues to involve important diplomatic,
financial, and legal interests of the United States and its nationals, and
presents an unusual challenge to the national security and foreign policy of
the United States. The IACRs issued pursuant to Executive Order No. 12170
continue to play an important role in structuring our relationship with Iran
and in enabling the United States to implement properly the Algiers Accords.
Similarly, the ITRs issued pursuant to Executive Order No. 12613 continue to
advance important objectives in combatting international terrorism. I shall
continue to exercise the powers at my disposal to deal with these problems
and will continue to report periodically to the Congress on significant
developments.
Sincerely, George Bush (###)
Dispatch, Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: NO TITLE LISTED
Moten
Source: Sarah E. Moten, Deputy Assistant Secretary for
International Refugee Assistance
Description: Address before the Institute of Medicine's annual
meeting, Washington, DC
Date: Nov, 20 199211/20/92
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: MidEast/North Africa, Subsaharan Africa,
Southeast Asia, South Asia
Country: Burma, Bangladesh
Subject: Refugees, United Nations
[TEXT]
It is truly a pleasure for me to be with you today, despite the early hour of
the morning. Many thanks to Dr. Cassells and other members of the
Committee on Health and Human Rights here at IOM [Institute of Medicine]
for putting together the workshop this morning. Although it's almost too
early to talk shop, I am always happy to discuss a group of people who are
near to my heart: refugee women. From the day I began my tenure in
[Department of State's Bureau for] Refugee Programs over 3 years ago, I
have tried to be an advocate and a voice for millions of refugee women. I am
continually impressed with the power, dignity, and strength that the refugee
women I've met on monitoring trips to Africa, South Asia, the Middle East,
and Southeast Asia have demonstrated in efforts to empower themselves
under very difficult circumstances.
The subject chosen for today's panel--gender differences in refugee health-
-is certainly timely. Because of the number and scale of emergencies
worldwide that have forced individuals, families, and, in some cases, whole
communities to flee to safety, I would like to focus on the health needs of
refugee women in emergency situations--although please keep in mind that
many of the principles that I will discuss with you today go beyond
emergencies and should be applied to longer-term refugee assistance
programs.
I'm sure that you all have been reading the gruesome details of what has
happened to the people of the former Yugoslavia and of the conflict and
starvation that has devastated Somalia. Hundreds of thousands of refugees
have been forced to flee to neighboring countries in the Horn of Africa. I'd
like to tell you about a lesser-known refugee emergency. Although it has
not graced the front pages of the newspapers for months, it deserves our
attention for efforts by the UNHCR [UN High Commissioner for Refugees] and
the asylum government to provide appropriate and accessible health care
services, particularly to women.
Early this year, a flood of approximately 265,000 Rohingya Muslims, many of
them women, crossed the Burmese border into Bangladesh to seek refuge
from persecution by the Burmese military. Unfortunately, despite efforts by
UNHCR, non-governmental organizations, and the Government of Bangladesh
to provide health care to the refugees, UNHCR officials learned 3 months
into the crisis that twice as many women were dying as men. In contrast,
health data collected also indicated that outpatient visits to camp health
clinics were much higher for men than for women. Relief officials had not
focused on the particular needs of refugee women. Attention to the health
needs of refugee women is so important in an emergency situation. Let us
return to the Bangladesh example in a few minutes. First, let me tell you
about health considerations for refugee women as target beneficiaries.
Assistance affects the health of refugee women in a number of ways. Take,
for example, food distribution systems. If the food distribution system and
the food basket are not constructed with the needs of refugee women in
mind, malnutrition can become a serious problem, especially for pregnant or
lactating women--particularly since, in many cultures, women are
responsible for preparing, cooking, and allocating food in the household.
Certain cultural practices, specifically those in which men eat first [and]
women eat last, can also be a problem. To mitigate these problems, food
rations should be distributed directly to refugee women, who in most
societies are responsible for feeding the family. Male food networks have,
in too many refugee situations, been responsible for the diversion of food to
resistance forces or the black market.
The availability, location, and quality of water supplies can also affect the
health of refugee women. Contaminated water supplies can lead to a number
of water-borne diseases which affect refugee women more than the rest of
the refugee community owing to the time they spend gathering water,
washing clothes, and bathing children. Water must be conveniently located
to minimize the risks taken by refugee women while undertaking daily
chores. Water supplies located too far from refugee homes may discourage
women from collecting an adequate supply of water for their families or can
cause health problems for women who have to carry water for long
distances.
Finally, the accessibility to health services is especially important for
refugee women. Owing to cultural reasons, some women may be reluctant to
seek health care from male providers. If the health care services are not
easily accessible, women may hesitate before bringing themselves or their
children to seek medical attention. Since 80% of the world's refugees are
women and children, providing a sufficient number of female health
workers, adequate clinic hours, and convenient health services is crucial to
the health of the entire refugee family. Another important aspect of health
care for refugee women is mental health. Refugee women have often fled
unspeakable circumstances in their home countries. Along with traditional
health concerns of women, mental health services in refugee camps and
settlements need to be established to handle the number of cases of
emotional trauma associated with fleeing persecution, social disruption,
physical violence, and lack of [a] traditional support system.
In short, the full and effective participation of refugee women in food,
water, and heath care services is absolutely necessary.
Let's return to the Bangladesh example. The Rohingyas fled to Bangladesh
for a number of reasons. Religious sites were desecrated, men were taken
for forced conscription, and an unusually large number of women reported
having been raped. Although, by and large, the refugees report that they left
Burma for several reasons, a significant number of families said that they
left because the sanctity of the family had been destroyed with the abuse
and torture that many women suffered. UNHCR was asked by the Government
of Bangladesh in mid-February to assist in coordinating the relief operation
to provide aid to the thousands of refugees who were entering Bangladesh
each day. After undertaking an initial needs assessment, UNHCR enlisted the
support of several international and national non-governmental
organizations to implement, among other things, health, nutrition, and
sanitation programs. The goal was for UNHCR to bring the international
community's attention and resources into Bangladesh, thereby supporting a
country which is already overpopulated and has limited resources of its own
to contribute.
Since we are focusing on health issues in this workshop, I'd like to talk a
little bit about the way health care was provided to the Burmese refugee
women. When I was in Bangladesh last April, there were approximately 12
refugee camps. (There are a few more now.) In each camp, the Government
of Bangladesh's Ministry of Health operated an outpatient health clinic (in
some camps, several beds were held for in-patient care) which provided
basic curative care--for example, diagnosed ailments, distributed
pharmaceuticals, as well as other limited services. In addition, UNHCR
assigned at least one non-governmental organization to each camp to fill in
the gaps left by the government health care services. At the beginning of
the emergency, the non-governmental organizations focused on child
immunizations, supplementary feeding, and limited curative services. Some
non-governmental organizations had a more community
development/primary health care approach. Health care workers made home
visits.
In Bangladesh, in the early months of the emergency, the primary causes of
death were malnutrition, diarrhea, acute respiratory infection, and malaria-
-all of which are easily treatable and, in most cases, preventable. UNHCR
worked to provide adequate food rations to families, widespread
immunization of children under 10 years of age, clean and plentiful water
supplies, adequate sanitation in the camps, and proper shelter for all
refugees.
Owing to cultural considerations, women were reluctant to visit clinics
staffed primarily by male health workers. The central location of the health
facilities in the camps were inappropriate for women whose time was
consumed by collecting water, preparing meals, caring for children, and
multiple other tasks, particularly for female-headed households. Time was
not available to go to the clinic either for treatment or to collect
information to prevent disease.
UNHCR identified the urgent need for more community-based health care.
Preventive and curative health services were expanded rapidly in order to
identify ill patients quickly and to provide health education. Satellite
health posts were created throughout the camps from which outreach teams
would visit sheds and provide routine care and health education. Emphasis
was placed on massively increasing the number of female health care
workers. The government and non-governmental organizations were
encouraged to designate at least 1 day per week for women to seek care and
provide maternal/child health care services. Although refugee participation
in assistance programs was prohibited by the government, relief officials
made a concerted effort to involve refugee women in decision-making,
particularly decisions concerning expanded health care facilities. Women
were asked why they were reluctant to seek medical attention. Time,
distance, and cultural barriers were most often provided as the reason that
women were not visiting the clinics in the same numbers as men.
Community-based health services were viewed as the answer to decreasing
mortality rates for women.
To some extent, UNHCR has successfully used this approach to reduce
morbidity and mortality rates in the Burmese refugee camps in Bangladesh.
But there is at least one lesson to be learned from this emergency. If we
knew the characteristics of the refugee population from the needs-
assessment stage of the emergency, we would have been better able to
provide adequate and appropriate health care services from the beginning.
UNHCR's needs- assessment team estimated the demographic breakdown of
the refugee population not from concrete information collected from
registration forms, independent calculation, or information from camp
officials but based on the "typical" refugee population breakdown. Neither
the actual demographic breakdown of the population nor cultural
considerations were taken into account in [the] programming, budgeting, or
planning exercise. It is imperative in any emergency that we know who our
target beneficiaries are.
In many ways, the relief operation in Bangladesh has been deemed a success,
largely owing to the efforts to UNHCR. However, it's disappointing from a
donor's point of view that simple programming tools like the demographic
breakdown of the refugee population, the early participation of refugee
women in the planning of health service programs, or cultural factors
gleaned from other refugee situations are still not utilized. For example,
from its genesis, UNHCR's programs in Pakistan have used a community
outreach program with female health workers. Knowing that the population
crossing into Bangladesh was also Muslim, could UNHCR not have
implemented a similar program there? While we compliment UNHCR for an
aggressive campaign to decentralize the health services and focus on
preventive health care in the Burmese refugee camps, there is room for
improvement. We hope that for the next emergency, lessons learned can be
applied.
Thank you very much for inviting me to speak with you today. I've enjoyed it
and hope that you have many questions, so that we can talk further about
refugee women and health. This is a particularly important issue since the
number of emergencies worldwide are increasing and along with them the
number of refugees are also growing. (###)
Dispatch, Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: US-Philippines Statement
Phillippines-US
Source: Philippines-U.S. Mutual Defense Board in
Manila
Description: Joint statement released by the Office of the Assistant
Secretary/Spokesman, Washington, DC
Date: Nov, 6 199211/6/92
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: East Asia
Country: Philippines
Subject: Refugees, United Nations
[TEXT]
The monthly meeting of the Philippines-United States Mutual Defense Board
(MDB) was held today at the Manila Hotel with the U.S. Co-Chairman, Admiral
Charles R. Larson, Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Command (CINCPAC), as
host and the Philippine Co-Chairman, General Lisandro C. Abadia, Chief of
Staff, AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines), presiding.
The Mutual Defense Board was created on May 15, 1958 under the Council of
Foreign Ministers as provided for in the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT).
By its terms of reference, the Board has served as an effective mechanism
for direct liaison and consultation on military matters of mutual concern.
Under the MDT and through the MDB process, the two countries have
contributed their share in addressing the need for cooperation to promote
and maintain peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.
The two sides reviewed the profound changes in the world since the end of
the cold war. While the threat of great power conflict has receded, the
recent crisis in the [Persian] Gulf, the unresolved search for peace in
Cambodia, and continuing threats such as international drug trafficking
amply demonstrate that diverse challenges to our common security remain.
The closure of the last U.S. military facility in the Philippines later this
month will mark the beginning of a new era in U.S.-Philippine defense
cooperation, one in which U.S. forces will no longer rely on fixed permanent
bases in Southeast Asia, but on a variety of cooperation agreements with
virtually all countries in the region. In the case of the Philippines, the MDT
and MDB are expected to continue to provide an effective framework and
forum for coordinating military-to-military activities between the two
allies.
The Board has likewise established a mechanism for joint/combined
training activities, such as the annual "Balikatan Exercise" which enhances
interoperability between U.S. and Philippine armed forces. It has, moreover,
provided the framework for exchange of information on defense and security
interests of the two allies. Through the MDB, U.S. security assistance has
been efficiently managed toward the enhancement of the capabilities of the
Philippine armed forces. It is anticipated that, in the spirit of mutual
cooperation, various programs and projects would include customary ship
visits, aircraft transits, and the rendering of assistance by U.S. forces
during natural disasters and calamities such as the killer earthquake in
northern Luzon, the floods that destroyed much of Ormoc City and the
eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in recent years.
In this morning's meeting, the Board reviewed some recent and on-going
activities, including the 1992 "Balikatan Exercise" which was concluded
last Friday, October 30, 1992, and the progress of U.S. forces withdrawal
from Subic [Bay]. The MDB also discussed its 1993 calendar which will
change the format of its monthly meetings to a quarterly basis, as well as
U.S. representation on the Board in view of the departure of cognizant
American senior officers from the Philippines on November 24, 1992.
During the meeting, former members of the Board and standing committees
were given appropriate awards.
The U.S. side expressed appreciation of the increasing discussion of regional
defense and security issues by the ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian
Nations] countries within the framework of the annual ministerial meetings.
The U.S. side believes the Philippines has a positive role to play in
maintaining regional security along with its ASEAN neighbors, as well as
through participation in U.N. peacekeeping operations such as the current
effort to bring about a democratic settlement in Cambodia. The U.S. side
also expressed support for [Philippine] President Ramos' efforts at national
reconciliation.
While in Manila, Admiral Larson paid courtesy calls on Philippine officials,
including President Fidel V. Ramos, [Defense] Secretary Renato S. de Villa,
[Foreign] Secretary Roberto L. Romulo and General Lisandro C. Abadia. (###)
Dispatch, Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: Third Report on War Crimes In the Former
Yugoslavia
PA
Source: Office of Public Communication, Bureau of Public
Affairs
Description: Supplemental United States Submission of Information to
the UN Security Council in Accordance with Paragraph 5 of
Resolution 771 (1992) and Paragraph 1 of Resolution 780
(1992)
Date: Nov, 6 199211/6/92
Category: Reports
Region: E/C Europe
Country: Yugoslavia (former), Serbia-Montenegro,
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Subject: Regional/Civil Unrest, POW/MIA Issues, Human Rights
[TEXT]
Following is the text of the "Supplemental United States Submission of
Information to the UN Security Council in Accordance with Paragraph 5 of
Resolution 771 (1992) and Paragraph 1 of Resolution 780 (1992)," released
on November 6, 1992. For the text of the first two reports, see Dispatch
Vol. 3, No. 39, p. 732 and Vol. 3, No. 44, p. 802. For text of Resolution 771,
see Dispatch Supplement, Vol. 3, No. 7, p. 44. For text of Resolution 780, see
Dispatch Vol. 3, No. 41, p. 769.
Editor's note: The following contains graphic descriptions.
This is the third submission by the United States Government of information
pursuant to paragraph 5 of Security Council resolution 771 (1992) relating
to the violations of humanitarian law, including grave breaches of the
Geneva Conventions, being committed in the territory of the former
Yugoslavia. As in our two previous reports, we have focused on grave
breaches of the Geneva Conventions and, in accordance with resolution 771,
have provided information that is "substantiated", that is, which rests upon
eyewitness testimony directly available to us or that includes detail
sufficient for corroboration. For the moment, we have also tried not to
duplicate information provided to us from other countries and non-
governmental sources, which we understand will submit reports pursuant to
resolutions 771 and 780. The information provided is intended to be useful
to the Commission of Experts established pursuant to Security Council
resolution 780. The United States has further substantiating information
concerning the incidents included in this report, which we plan to provide
directly to the Commission of Experts on a confidential basis.
In accordance with paragraph 1 of resolution 780, the United States intends
to continue providing reports as additional relevant information comes into
our possession.
The United States is pleased that the Commission of Experts established
pursuant to resolution 780 is ready to begin its work. The United States
played a leading role in the adoption of that resolution and stands ready to
assist the Commission in its important work of investigating war crimes
allegations with the aim of preparing cases suitable for prosecution and, by
doing so, of establishing the record of humanitarian offenses in the former
Yugoslavia.
As in the two previous US reports, the notations at the end of each of the
following items indicate the source from which the information was drawn.
Former Yugoslavia: Grave Breaches of the Fourth Geneva Convention,
Third Submission
Willful Killing
22 Oct: A group of approximately 18 ethnic Muslims was kidnapped near the
Serbian town of Priboj on October 22, while traveling on a bus route that
took them into territory controlled by Bosnian Serbs. Belgrade newspapers
reported on October 23 that the kidnapped Muslims had been killed. A Serb
official has admitted that Serb paramilitaries operating in Bosnia basically
had free run in the Sjeverin area prior to the police and army intervention
after the kidnapping. (Department of State)
24 Sept: Muslims from Kamenica reportedly killed more than 60 Serb
civilians and soldiers in Serbian villages near Milici on September 24-26.
(Department of State)
An American freelance writer reported that he saw the bodies of mutilated
and tortured Serbs from the villages of Rogosija and Nedeljiste at the St.
Paul and Peter Serbian Orthodox Church in Vlasenica after the lids on about
10 of the coffins were removed by soldiers for viewing.
Some bodies were burned to a charcoal, others had fingers cut off on their
right hand which the Orthodox use to bless themselves, some were
circumcised as a final affront (Serbian Orthodox males in Yugoslavia are not
circumcised, whereas Muslims are), some had their eyes gouged out, gaping
knife wounds everywhere, and heads were battered beyond recognition, arms
and legs broken and severed. (Serbian American Media Center, Chicago)
27 Aug: Bosnian Muslim forces killed at least 20 Serbians after ambushing
a convoy of people fleeing the outskirts of Gorazde on August 27. One of the
survivors, a 64-year-old Serbian who lost his left leg after he was wounded
in the ambush, told a correspondent that about 15-20 Muslim guerrillas had
opened fire with automatic weapons beside the road just north of Kukavice.
One witness, who lost his 11-year-old son during the ambush, claimed as
many as 300 people were killed on the road. (The New York Times, The Daily
Telegraph)
Jul-Aug: A 21-year-old man reported he had witnessed the killing of
35-year-old Rizo Habibovic in the beginning of July at Omarska camp.
Habibovic was kicked and pummeled with sticks and weapons for what
seemed more than an hour by guards, two of whom had earlier worked with
the witness at IMPRA meat factory. The victim appeared to be still
breathing when he was brought back to the "machine hall" with his chest
caved in. A doctor tried to help, but Habibovic quickly succumbed.
According to this witness, most of the killings at Omarska took place at
night at the "machine hall." Men would leave the facility when their names
were called out, ostensibly to participate in a prisoner exchange program.
Regularly, shots would be heard not long after they left. No one who was
called out after 9:00 pm ever came back. He believed their real destination
was a mass grave a stone's throw from the machine hall.
The man in charge of Omarska camp, according to several witnesses, was a
colonel from the JNA [Yugoslav National Army]. He had been stationed in the
area long before the breakup of Yugoslavia and was known to many in the
population. He wore a white eagle on his cap; his authority over all the
other soldiers in the camp was clearly apparent.
On August 3, the ICRC [International Committee of the Red Cross] came to
oversee the closing of the Omarska camp. Shortly before that time, some
1,250 inmates out of about 5,000 were transferred to Manjaca camp.
(Department of State)
Mid-Aug: An elderly Serbian farmer was arrested in the village of Idbar,
near Konjic, on May 9. He reported that he was first taken to the police
station in Konjic where he stayed for 21 days. He was then moved 6
kilometers away to Celebici, where he said that all the prisoners were
Serbs and all the guards were Muslims. He said that beatings were carried
out frequently by guards from outside the area. The prisoners, mostly young
men, were beaten with wooden handles of farm tools or with metal rods.
He reported having witnessed 15-16 ethnic Serbs beaten so badly that they
died. The witness was able to identify the camp commander and the most
vicious of the guards. He was released from Celebici on August 20 with all
prisoners over the age of 60. (Department of State)
24 Jul: Three male Bosnian Muslims witnessed and survived a mass
slaughter at Keraterm camp on July 24, when guards opened fire with
automatic rifles on a room packed with prisoners. About 150 men were
killed or wounded in this one incident. According to these witnesses:
They were locked along with 200-300 men into a single room estimated
to be about 80 square meters in size, with a small alcove in the right rear
corner. The room had a single window high up in the front wall above a large
sheet-metal "garage-type" door with a smaller opening in it.
Prisoners received little water or food. The temperature in the room was
stifling, the conditions nearly unbearable.
On July 24, the prisoners in the room were given some water, but in the
words of one of the witnesses, "they put something in the water" and the
men "became crazy." Then something was shot through the window which
produced smoke and gas. The prisoners began screaming and pounding on the
doors; some began to hallucinate and fight each other. Others managed to
force a hole in the sheet metal of a door and started to escape the room, but
were then killed by guards standing outside.
After the disturbance in the room had gone on for some time, the soldiers
opened fire with large machine guns. The bullets came right through the
sheet metal doors. Those near the door were killed first. One of the
witnesses survived because he had been in the back alcove and out of direct
line of fire. Another survived when the body of another prisoner fell on him.
An estimated 150 men were killed or wounded.
On the following day, July 25, soldiers came into the room and chose about
20 of the surviving prisoners, took them outside, lined them up against an
outside wall of the room, and shot them. (Department of State)
Another Bosnian Muslim from the Prijedor region, interviewed separately,
also witnessed the July 24 massacre at Keraterm camp. He said that
prisoners were kept in four rooms. He was in room two. Room three was
where prisoners were most severely tortured and where the massacre
occurred. From a window in room two, he witnessed the changes of the
guards and automatic rifle fire.
On July 25, guards chose two prisoners each from rooms one and two to
remove the dead. These prisoners counted 99 dead and 42 wounded. They
were ordered to put the wounded on the same truck as the dead. The truck
was labeled Prijedor Autotransport. Neither the wounded nor the driver
[was] seen again.
Another witness believes the bodies were buried in the village of Tomasica,
near Omarska, in an area called Depunija. The witness's uncle watched a
truck unload many bodies into a very deep pit and cover them with a large
layer of dirt. A few days later, the uncle saw trucks dump animal corpses
into the same pit. Another layer of soil was put on top of the animal
corpses. (Department of State)
20 Jun: A 69-year-old Muslim farmer from the village of Kamicani was
detained by Serbian forces in June, interned briefly at Trnopolje camp, and,
around June 20, transferred to Omarska camp. When he arrived at Omarska,
guards searched his pockets, confiscating DM 300, and ordered him to find
his son.
When the witness found and identified his son, an irregular Serbian soldier,
who was a former policeman known to the witness, took the son into a
garage and ordered him to lie down. The irregular began to beat the son in
his father's presence. Later, another prisoner told the witness that the
irregular had killed his son, and that he himself had loaded the son's body
onto a truck with many other corpses. The bodies were taken to a nearby
mineshaft and there covered over by a bulldozer.
According to this witness, this same former policeman also had murdered
Jasko Hrnic and another person whose last name was Hrnjak. The witness
said that the policeman had a gang at Omarska, of which he named three
members. (Department of State)
26 May-6 Aug: A 30-year-old Muslim was imprisoned for over 9 weeks at
Omarska camp. He had been apprehended by Serbian forces in Prijedor on
May 26. His duty was to help transport the bodies of dead prisoners; he
helped transport or bury 10-20 persons each day. He estimates having
carried 700-800 bodies during his imprisonment and commented that those
killed for personal revenge typically were decapitated. The witness lost
some relatives during the killings and reported having seen the following:
Guards threw prisoners into large bonfires; as they tried to escape,
guards shot them in the back.
Guards would periodically round up some of the more highly educated and
take them to the 'white house,' from which no one emerged alive.
He also witnessed guards beating, torturing, or murdering prisoners. Nine of
the guards are known to him. (Department of State)
May-Aug: A 40-year-old Muslim from Prijedor, who was interned in
Omarska camp from May 30 to August 3, described the final ordeal of a
Muslim named Emir Karabasic. Emir, who had been tortured regularly, one
day returned to the sleeping room with his back severely burned by a guard.
Two days later, two Serbian brothers were let into the camp after 5 pm.
They had often visited the camp at night.
These brothers entered the sleeping quarters carrying pistols and automatic
rifles. They called for Emir, Jasmin, and Alic to come forward. The three
were beaten with rifle butts and police batons in full view of the other
prisoners, including this witness. The brothers forced Alic first to drink a
glass of motor oil and then to drink the urine of the other two prisoners.
Alic was next beaten until he was unconscious and then revived with cold
water. After further beatings, Alic was forced to take his pants off. The
brothers then forced Emir and Jasmin to bite off Alic's testicles. Alic died
of his wounds that night. According to the witness, these crimes were
committed on the shift of the shift leader under whom the most heinous
tortures and beatings occurred. (Department of State)
May-Jun: About 3,000 men, women, and children were killed during May and
June at the Luka-Brcko camp, which held approximately 1,000 civilian
internees at any one time. Some 95% were ethnic Muslims, and the
remainder were Croatians. Approximately 95% were men. Until May, the
bodies were dumped into the Sava River. Thereafter, they were transported
to and burned in both the old and the new "kafilerija" factories located in
the vicinity of Brcko.
All internees in the camp came from within a 14 kilometer radius of Brcko.
The first hangar was occupied by Muslims from Brezovo Polje. The Serbian
police appeared to have administrative control of the camp.
Upon arrival, all internees were questioned by one of three inspectors who
decided their fate. For example, if a person was a member of the SDA or HDZ
political parties, he was executed at the camp. Other questions included
whether the person had foreign currency, gold, or weapons, or if a neighbor
might have any of these items. Without a signature from either the police
chief at the camp, or one of the military officers, a person could not be
released.
Approximately 1,000 people were released from the camp when Serbs
vouched with their lives--and signed documents to that effect--that the
internees would not leave Brcko, discuss politics, or own weapons. These
people were all released within a 48-hour period; thereafter, releases were
not authorized.
One example was an individual who had his ears cut off with a knife by a
Specijalci soldier. As he grabbed for his ears in pain, a young woman cut off
his genitalia with an instrument called a "spoon." As he fell forward and lay
on the ground, he was shot in the head by a guard. In other instances, ears
and noses were cut off and eyes gouged out. Knives were used to cut into
the skin of internees all the way to the bone; some fingers were cut off
entirely. All was done in front of other internees.
Beatings with clubs were common. A Specijalci soldier used a wooden club
with metal protruding from it to kill several people. He forced internees to
lick the blood from the metal studs. Another shot an individual in the back
several times after he had carried a dead body behind the third hangar. In
June, some 50-60 men had their genitalia removed.
Approximately 10-15 Chetniks, Yugoslav Federal Specijalci, and Serbian
police were involved during the daily occurrences, but some participated on
a more regular basis. Some were drunk. Internees were told to sing. Those
who did not sing loud enough were shot point blank. After they had started
singing, the men would come in and randomly start shooting. About 50 men,
women, and children were killed in one case, allegedly in retaliation for the
death of 12 Chetniks who had been killed on the front. This type of shooting
occurred on a daily basis with anywhere from 15 to 50 victims.
There was also a torture room at the Luka-Brcko camp. Those tortured were
either killed immediately after being tortured or were left to bleed and, if
they did not die in 2 to 4 days on their own, shot to death. They were left
lying in their own blood in the living areas and other internees were not
allowed to help in any way. People were beaten with clubs to the point that
the bones in their faces caved in, and they died.
The internees were then "volunteered" by camp personnel to carry the dead
bodies behind their living area or to the camp garbage dump. During the
movement of the bodies, additional internees were killed when a camp
official took shots at them.
Another frequent occurrence was the shooting of internees with three
bullets in the back of the head of each victim. This was done at a drain, and
the blood was allowed to go down the drain that emptied into the Sava River.
Internees carried victims, some still alive, and had to dump their bodies at
the camp garbage dump. Internees were sent on a detail to clean the blood
from the floor and dump dead bodies outside of a Serbian building in Brcko.
A female internee was sexually assaulted by a soldier while her husband and
other internees watched. One Chetnik sexually assaulted several women,
some as young as 12, in front of internees as Specijalci soldiers held the
women to the ground. The same man killed 80-100 people at the camp.
Another Chetnik sexually assaulted women and killed internees, in some
cases using an axe to the head.
The dead bodies of internees from the Brcko camp were burned at the old
"kafilerija" factory. The trucks carrying bodies drove into a building that
had three industrial-sized cooking vats with furnaces used ordinarily to
make animal feed. The bodies were dumped inside the building with the
three furnaces, then Chetniks dumped the dead bodies into the furnaces.
Before the bodies were dumped, jewelry was removed from them and, in
order to remove rings, fingers were cut off. Gold and silver teeth were
removed from the bodies as well. Chetniks kicked the jaws of the corpses
open to see if they had gold or silver fillings and, if so, removed them with
pliers.
The transporting of the bodies to be burned began in mid-May. Trucks left
every morning at about 4 am. On a typical morning, three trucks left
together. One was a civilian refrigerator truck with the dead bodies and
three Chetniks in the cabin, the second had 10-12 internees who unloaded
the bodies at the factory, and the third had approximately 13 Chetnik guards.
After they arrived at the factory and had begun unloading bodies, two or
three more refrigerator trucks often arrived with approximately 20 dead
bodies transported in each vehicle, perhaps from another location. All the
trucks were Yugoslavian-made civilian trucks. (Department of State)
24-26 May: Statements by Muslim refugees, Western aid officials and
diplomats, and Serbian police described the May 24-26 "ethnic cleansing" of
Kozarac by Bosnian Serb forces.
"They were pulling out private entrepreneurs and educated people, anyone
who could ever organize any Muslim life in Kozarac again," said a 42-year-
old Kozarac resident.
A 60-year-old resident said some of the men had been shot on the spot and
others taken into a house or a bus shelter where their throats were slit.
Still others had been killed as they were put on buses destined for the
Omarska, Keraterm, and Trnopolje camps. (The Washington Post)
23 May: Two brothers, a 17-year-old trade school student and a 28-year-
old, described how Serb armored units surrounded their village of Rakovcani
on May 23 or 25 and marched them to Prijedor, then transported them to the
Serb-run Omarska camp.
The brothers were reluctant to estimate how many killings they had
personally observed that first week, but suggested it was about 50. They
saw five of their fellow prisoners stabbed in the face and cut across the
throat until their heads were virtually severed. Others had the Serbian
(Orthodox) cross carved into their chests or arms. There seemed to be no
pattern or particular motive for these attacks or the execution style
shootings that were taking place inside the facility. As far as they could
determine, the victims were not being interrogated; the violence appeared
totally random.
At the beginning of June, the brothers were moved to a nearby hall housing
many of the machines used for the facility's iron extraction operation. For
the remaining two-and-a-half months of their captivity, they were forced
to run a gauntlet to a "dining" hall in another part of the camp in order to get
their one daily meal of soup and a piece of bread. Each time they did so they
were beaten and kicked. Anyone who fell was killed. (Department of State)
21 May: A former employee of the Zvornik medical center reported that he
was required to remain on duty in the center from April 8 until his
dismissal on May 26. He said that the need for more hospital space for
wounded Serbian soldiers eventually led to the mass murder of Muslim
patients on May 21. At about 1 pm that day, he watched as 36 remaining
Muslim adult patients were forced outside and shot to death on hospital
grounds.
Shortly thereafter, uniformed and non-uniformed Serbian soldiers moved
through the pediatric center breaking the necks and bones of the 27
remaining Muslim children, the only children left as patients in the hospital.
Two soldiers forced him to watch for about 15 minutes, during which time
about 10 or 15 of the children were slaughtered. Some were infants. The
oldest were about 5 years old.
The witness said that a Serbian surgeon, who also stood by helplessly, later
went insane. (Department of State)
Nov 1991: International observers on November 20, 1991, monitored the
evacuation of about 420 Croatian patients and 25 hospital staff of the
Vukovar hospital in Croatia. A JNA army colonel selected young, lightly-
wounded hospitalized soldiers to get on three buses. Each bus had about 60
men aboard, for a total of about 180 men.
Two witnesses--both among the "selected"--described how the buses were
taken first to JNA barracks for 2 or 3 hours, then taken to Ovcara, where the
prisoners were offloaded and taken to a farming equipment storage building.
Paramilitary soldiers beat the prisoners at this location with fists, iron
bars, and batons as officers watched. Apparently, two men died there from
the beatings they received.
At about 5 pm on November 20 after it was quite dark, the men were divided
into groups of about 20 men, taken outside the barn, and put on a truck. The
truck returned empty about every 15 minutes. The truck drove about 3
kilometers southeast of Ovcara towards Grabovo and turned left onto a dirt
road. Knowing that this road led to an extremely isolated area, one of the
witnesses jumped from the truck and eventually lived to give this account.
A member of the team working with UNHRC Special Rapporteur Mazowiecki
discovered evidence on October 18-19, 1992, of a mass grave in the area
from which this witness had escaped. The Croatian Government claims that
174 people--believed to be buried in this mass grave--have never been
found. The team member found skeletons of young adult males in an area of
recently disturbed earth and a skull with a gunshot wound exiting from the
left temple. (Department of State)
Torture of Prisoners
27 Aug-16 Sept: Four of seven survivors of the August 21 mass murder at
Vlasica (reported to the UN in an earlier submission) testified that 18
Muslim male "patients" were interned in the Paprikovac Optical Hospital on
the outskirts of Banja Luka. At the time, this hospital was being used as a
military hospital by Bosnian Serbian forces in the region.
The four subjects had been found wandering separately in the woods several
days after the mass murder at Vlasica. Turned over to Serbian military
forces, each was brought to Banja Luka where they spent August 24-27 in
the surgical hospital before being transferred to the optical hospital across
town. All four remained in the optical hospital until September 16.
At the optical hospital, the four subjects were in room 11 on the fourth
floor of the hospital with six other Muslims. Their door was always locked.
The hallway wall of their room was made of translucent glass permitting
the guard stationed outside to see inside. Nightly, wounded Serbian soldiers
from elsewhere in the hospital, as well as guards, beat them with cable
wires and police batons. Each of the four subjects was beaten every day.
There were two other rooms accommodating four Muslims each.
The prisoners received a slice of bread a day, with some broth. They were
given almost no pure water to drink, but they were forced to drink urine
regularly. All four had hospital discharge papers that claimed they had been
treated for internal injuries and chronic heart diseases. The prisoners,
however, said they had never even received so much as an aspirin.
(Department of State)
Aug-Sept: A fifth survivor of the incident described above, a 16-year-old
Muslim student who had been among the several hundred men taken from
Trnopolje camp on August 21 on a convoy to Vlasica Mountain, also survived
the mass murder of several hundred prisoners.
An elderly Serbian man found the youth unconscious some 9 days later at the
edge of the village of Vlasica. Two Serbian soldiers took him to the school
in the village where they interrogated and beat him. He was then sent to the
Paprikovac hospital in Banja Luka, ostensibly to have a broken finger and
bruised back examined.
The 16-year-old, on being checked into the "hospital", was beaten 20 times
on his kidneys by the military police in attendance. During his month in
Paprikovac "hospital," he was fed one slice of bread each day, was rarely
given pure water to drink, and dropped in weight from 68 to only 50
kilograms. Every morning and evening, the guards forced the prisoners to
drink a glass of urine.
The youth was able to identify the military commander of the hospital.
(Department of State)
21 Jul: A 42-year-old Bosnian Muslim, married to a Serb, was arrested in
his apartment in Prijedor on July 21. Civilian police took him in a police car
to Omarska, where at the gate to the camp, guards began to beat him. During
the beating, one of the guards said, "Don't forget, his wife is a Serb." The
prisoner hoped this would cause the guards to go easier on him. Instead,
they beat him more violently. Three soldiers beat him for about 10 minutes.
The prisoner was then taken to Omarska's "white house." There the guards
began beating him and other prisoners, forcing them to lie on the floor and
stomping on them with their jackboots. After 2 days without any food, he
was taken for "interrogation."
He was led to a room in what he thought had been the administration
building of the Omarska facility before the war. There were five guards in
the room. He was told to kneel on the floor. The guards then circled him,
beating him with metal bars and police batons. Twice he lost consciousness
and collapsed on the floor. Each time the guards doused him with water,
revived him, and continued to beat him.
After 2 or 3 more days of beatings, he was transferred from the smaller
room in the white house to a larger hall full of prisoners. For 5 days, he
was unable to walk and had to lie next to the sinks that were used as
toilets. During his 12 days at Omarska, this prisoner received food only
once. (Department of State)
26 May-6 Aug: A 30-year-old Muslim was imprisoned for over 9 weeks at
Omarska camp. He had been apprehended by Serbian forces in Prijedor on
May 26. The witness reported having seen the following:
Guards frequently beat people with thick electrical cables, often so
badly that they could not stand afterward; in administering these beatings,
guards would hit prisoners in specific places on their bodies, often the
kidneys, in an effort to rupture important internal organs.
Prisoners were forced to run across broken glass in their bare feet; when
they fell, guards would beat them with nightsticks and iron bars.
As a punishment administered in front of a group of prisoners, a guard
cut off the testicles of a prisoner with a knife; one prisoner was forced,
under threat of being executed, to bite off the testicles of another prisoner
with his teeth.
The only water that prisoners had to drink was from a river
contaminated by discharges from an iron mine; the water was yellow, the
prisoners' urine ran red. (Department of State)
12 May-18 Aug: A 59-year-old retired Serbian was arrested by Croat
authorities on May 12 in Mostar along with his son. No reason was given
except that they were Serbs. Held at a detention center in Mostar, they
were forced to do hard labor, building bunkers and other defensive
structures at the airport. Those who could not work or stopped working to
rest repeatedly were beaten around the head and kidneys with nightsticks.
(Department of State)
May-Jun: The Luka-Brcko camp at any one time held about 1,000 civilians,
predominately Muslim internees. At one point, approximately 50% of the
internees had crosses engraved into their foreheads with knives by Chetniks
who gave them Orthodox names such as Alexander. The internees were
required to say "I am Alexander." One internee agreed to say "I am
Alexander" only after 3 to 4 days of beatings. He was convinced by fellow
internees that it was better to say it than to die. This did not happen to
Croatians, only Muslims.
Also a daily occurrence, a police commander, and other camp personnel came
into the hangar with Raki (an alcoholic beverage) and tartan (white pills).
An internee had his mouth opened and the police commander forced the Raki
and pills into his throat. The police then told the internee to beat with a
club everyone in the hangar. He obeyed, and for 1-2 hours beat up his fellow
internees in the third hangar until they passed out.
Internees lived in one of three hangars: the first, 20 by 28 meters in size,
housed 650-700 men; the second, 20 by 40 meters, housed 120-180 men;
and the third, 20 by 40 meters, housed approximately 300 men, women, and
children. Many killings and tortures occurred in front of internees in the
third hangar. There was also one more area where women and children were
kept. The second and third hangars were connected by a large door through
which people could see each other.
Internees in the first hangar slept standing up because of the limited space.
In the other two hangars, they were allowed to sit but legs had to remain
straight on the ground, all internees had to remain along the wall, and the
center area had to be left empty. They were allowed to go to the toilet once
a day for no longer than a minute. The toilet was located in another
building. In many instances, approximately five 10-liter buckets were
placed in each of the hangars and used as toilets. The conditions at the
camp were so bad, that some of the internees went crazy. One man rammed
his face into a wall, causing it to bleed.
In June, goats were placed in the hangars and lived with the internees. The
stench inside the hangars was a combination of goats, human excrement, and
dead internees placed behind the third hangar. Blood was ankle deep in the
area where the bodies were placed.
The internees initially each received 50 grams of bread and approximately
0.15 liters of thin bean soup each day. Later, every 10 persons received 800
grams of bread per day, and every two people shared a 0.16-liter portion of
bean porridge once a week. The porridge was always spoiled. Still later,
10-12 people shared 800 grams of bread every 4 days. (Department of
State)
Late May: A 32-year-old Muslim said Serbian irregular forces had entered
his village of Donji Garevci in late May 1992 and rounded up all the Muslim
men for incarceration. The group was marched to Trnopolje, then bused to
Omarska camp. When they arrived at Omarska, they found that the camp was
"full," and the group was taken by buses to a converted ceramic tile factory
called Keraterm in Prijedor. Guards at Keraterm formed the prisoners into
three groups and administered a beating, from which the witness still had a
lump on his skull in October. The healthiest looking were beaten most
severely.
The men were herded into an airless room about 20 x 25 feet. The room held
over 200 people. The witness, detained there for 29 days, received one meal
a day--usually a few beans and two small slices of stale bread--and lost 17
kilograms during this period.
The witness saw and was forced to participate in sadistic brutality. Guards
would force the prisoners to run in a circle and kick the person in front of
them in the kidneys. Every evening, irregulars came to the room and called
out names from a list. These persons were taken to another room and beaten
severely. To revive the prisoners from these beatings, guards would urinate
on their heads or turn a fire hose on them. The witness was able to identify
several of the guards. (Department of State)
Early May: A witness described conditions at the five detention centers in
Bosanski Samac. The prisoners were Croats, Muslims, and Albanians.
According to this personal account, nearly everyone--including women and
elderly men--suffered beatings and other forms of torture.
The beatings were at the beginning done by special forces. Later the job
was taken over by policemen who guarded us. They were local Serbs who
carried out their jobs far more brutally than the special units men. They
beat us with iron bars, wooden 2x4s and truncheons, iron and rubber devices.
The witness reported being prevented from drinking water and from going to
the toilet. Prisoners were forced to eat sand, swallow their own feces, and
perform sex acts on fellow prisoners. (New York Newsday)
Abuse of Civilians In Detention Centers
Sept: At least 150 Muslim women and teen-age girls--some as young as 14-
-who have crossed into Bosnian Government-held areas of Sarajevo in
recent weeks are in advanced stages of pregnancy, reportedly after being
raped by Serbian nationalist fighters and after being imprisoned for months
afterward in an attempt to keep them from terminating their pregnancies.
"When we let you go home you'll have to give birth to a Chetnik," Serb
fighters supposedly repeated to some of the women. "We won't let you go
while you can have an abortion."
A 15-year-old Muslim girl told the BBC [British Broadcasting Corporation]
on October 1 that she had been seized by Serbian fighters in May in the Serb-
held Sarajevo district of Grbavica. She said she had been held in a small
room with about 20 other girls where they were ordered to undress.
We refused, then they beat us and tore our clothes off. They pushed us on
the floor. Two of the men held me down while two others raped me. I
shouted at them and tried to fight back but it was no use. As they raped me
they said they'd make sure I gave birth to a Serbian baby, and they kept
repeating that during the rest of the time that they kept me there.
Most of these charges were made by women and girls who said they were
attacked in April and May in towns and villages in eastern Bosnia. (The New
York Times)
May-Aug: A 41-year-old Croatian female from Kozarac, a 40-year-old
Muslim male from Prijedor, and a 39-year-old Muslim male were interned
for approximately 3-month periods at Omarska camp. All three subjects
claim to have witnessed severe beatings, sexual torture, mutilation, and
killings.
In part because they had spent such long periods in the camp, they were able
to identify what they believed to be virtually the entire personnel structure
of Omarska camp.
Omarska was one of four very large camps in the Prijedor area. It was an
aluminum mine before the conflict. The other three camps are Keraterm,
Trnopolje, and Manjaca. Civilians were interned at all four camps, while
most alleged POWs were sent to Manjaca. Many detainees described
Omarska as the worst of the four.
Omarska camp was commanded by a retiree from Prijedor. His
administrative deputy was a middle-aged woman who kept the camp
records, i.e., the payroll ledger of the guards and officers, the guard shift
schedule, etc.
The commander of security at Omarska (Obezbjedjenja) was a 29-year-old
inspector in the Bosnian Serbian police before the war. He came from the
village of Petrov Gaj, near Prijedor. Because of his position and the amount
of time he spent at the camp, many internees concluded, incorrectly, that he
was the overall commander at Omarska. In late May, his deputy was a 30-
year-old Serb from the nearby village of Lamovita who had Muslim brothers-
in-law whom he tried to hide in his house. When this was discovered, he
was replaced. This change of deputies occurred in late June.
Omarska camp had three regular guard teams. The teams worked 12-hour
shifts, from 7 am to 7 pm. They rotated consecutively. The three shift
leaders were named and identified.
A 40-year-old policeman from Lamovita was identified as the most brutal
of the shift leaders. The most heinous tortures and beatings, and the
largest number of deaths, took place during his shifts. A middle-aged
waiter who used to work at the Hotel Europa in Omarska before the war was
identified as a generally less brutal shift leader. A man in his thirties from
the village of Maricki, who was in the police reserve and had worked in the
Omarska mine before the war, was identified as less brutal than the former
shift leaders. Each shift team was comprised of 15-20 guards.
Omarska had various inspectors who regularly interrogated the prisoners.
Six of them were named. At least two of the three witnesses personally
identified and named 39 Omarska guards.
The female witness said 38 women in the camp slept near the commander's
headquarters, in rooms 102 and 103. As they tried to sleep, the women
heard screams of prisoners being tortured next door, in the "interrogation"
room. Each morning the women were awakened at 6 am, and two were
chosen randomly to clean the "interrogation" room, which was covered with
fresh blood each morning. The women were always hidden from journalists.
Omarska had two buildings used exclusively as torture centers, the "white
house" and the "red house." Some people returned from the white house, but
no one sent to the red house ever came back. Educated internees tended to
be sent to the red house.
All three witnesses, as well as other detainees from Omarska, said that
each day 10 to 15 new corpses lay in the field next to one of the
"dormitories." These corpses, as well as others, were driven away by small
trucks. The trucks often had blood stains all over them. These witnesses
were able to identify at least six of the drivers. (Department of State)
14-15 June: A 32-year-old Muslim auto mechanic was arrested in Hrnici
near Trnopolje on June 14 and was locked up at Trnopolje camp with 10
others in what was called the "shock room." He spent 24 hours locked in
this room on June 14 and 15 with no food, water, or toilet.
Through a window, the detainee saw prison guards bring 12-15 teen-age
girls to the camp. The girls struggled to get away from the guards, but none
escaped. The girls were forced to enter a building across from his cell.
That evening, through the window, he saw a guard rape a young girl next to
the Red Cross building at the camp. The witness was able to identify this
guard, considered one of the cruelest guards at Trnopolje. (Department of
State)
May: One of the victims of an earlier reported rape of 40 young women from
Brezovo Polje told a reporter in late August that her Serbian abductor had
told her:
We have orders to rape the girls. I am ashamed to be a Serb. Everything
that is going on is a war crime. (New York Newsday)
Deliberate Attacks On Non-Combatants
Oct: By October, five members of the UNPROFOR [UN Protection Force]
contingent in Sarajevo had been killed by combatants. In one incident, two
French soldiers were killed by fire from Bosnian Government forces, which
were engaged in a firefight with Bosnian Serbian forces after a local cease-
fire negotiated by UNPROFOR broke down. (Department of State)
13 Aug: American ABC television producer David Kaplan was killed on
August 13 by a sniper while traveling in a motorcade in Sarajevo with Prime
Minister Milan Panic. He was hit in the back and died at UN headquarters in
Sarajevo. (The New York Times, Department of State)
July: A CNN [Cable News Network] camerawoman was shot and severely
wounded in July by sniper fire in Sarajevo. She is recovering after several
operations at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. (The New York Times)
18 May: An ICRC convoy carrying food and medical relief on May 18 was
attacked as it entered Sarajevo, despite the security guarantees obtained
from the parties concerned. Three ICRC staff members were wounded, and
one of them, Frederic Maurice, died the next day in Sarajevo hospital. (ICRC
Bulletin No. 197)
April: A Belgian member of the EC [European Community] monitoring mission
was killed south of Mostar in April, apparently in an attack by SDS forces.
(Department of State)
Other, Including Mass Forcible Expulsion and Deportation of
Civilians
Note: Given the massive scale of forced exoduses from various regions in
the former Yugoslavia, the episodes below were selected only to give an
indication of how people have been forced from their homes.
2 Nov: A huge column of 15,000-30,000 Bosnians--mostly Muslims,
thousands on foot--fled from Serbian assaults on Jajce and three-way
fighting between Serb, Croat, and Bosnian Government forces in the area.
(Department of State)
25 Oct: Stores and restaurants were still burning in Prozor on October 29
following a Croatian offensive, in an apparent attempt to overtake western
Bosnia-Herzegovina.
"Come on boys, let's get the filthy Muslims!" shouted Croatian fighters
through megaphones.
Croatian Mayor Jozic estimated that six Muslims died and 68 were wounded
during the attack, but sources in Sarajevo estimated that at least 300
Muslims were killed or wounded. (The New York Times)
17 Oct: About 1,500 persons from several Croatian and Muslim towns
around the city of Kotor Varos, near Banja Luka, surrendered after having
been under Serbian attack for 2 weeks and left in an organized evacuation
for Travnik. During the night convoy, uncontrolled Serbian militia robbed
passengers as international escort volunteers looked on, helpless to prevent
it. (Department of State)
26 May: Statements by Muslim refugees, Western aid officials and
diplomats, and Serbian police described the May 24-26 "ethnic cleansing" of
Kozarac by Bosnian Serb forces.
"Muslims get out! Muslims get out!" shouted Serbs during 37 hours of
shelling the city. "Surrender and everyone will be safe!" (The Washington
Post)
23 May: Two brothers--a 17-year-old trade school student and a 28-year-
old--described how Serb armored units surrounded their village of
Rakovcani on May 23 or 25 and marched its mostly Muslim inhabitants about
5 kilometers to a soccer stadium in Prijedor. Some 800 Serbs were allowed
to remain in the village. After nearly a day at the stadium, they were
transported with thousands of men by buses and trucks to the Omarska
camp. (Department of State) (###)
Dispatch, Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: UN Security Council Resolutions On the Former
Yugoslavia
UN
Source: UN Security Council, United Nations
Description: UN Security Council Resolutions 760, 764, and 769, New
York City
Date: Nov, 16 199211/16/92
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: E/C Europe
Country: Yugoslavia (former), Serbia-Montenegro,
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Subject: Regional/Civil Unrest, POW/MIA Issues, Human Rights
[TEXT]
The following UN Security Council Resolutions 760, 764, and 769 were
omitted inadvertently from Dispatch Supplement Vol. 3, No. 7, "Material
Relating to the London Conference (August 26-27, 1992) and the Crisis in
the Former Yugoslavia," September 1992.
Resolution 760
(June 18, 1992)
The Security Council,
Recalling its resolutions 752 (1992) of 15 May 1992, 757 (1992) of 30 May
1992 and 758 (1992) of 8 June 1992, and in particular paragraph 7 of
resolution 752 (1992), in which it emphasized the urgent need for
humanitarian assistance and fully supported the current efforts to deliver
humanitarian aid to all the victims of the conflict,
Acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations,
Decides that the prohibitions in paragraph 4 (c) of resolution 757 (1992)
concerning the sale or supply to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia
and Montenegro) of commodities or products, other than medical supplies
and foodstuffs, and the prohibitions against financial transactions related
thereto, contained in resolution 757 (1992) shall not apply, with the
approval of the Committee established by resolution 724 (1991) under the
simplified and accelerated "no objection" procedure, to commodities and
products for essential humanitarian need.
VOTE: Unanimous (15-0).
Resolution 764
(July 13, 1992)
The Security Council,
Reaffirming its resolutions 713 (1991) of 25 September 1991, 721 (1991)
of 27 November 1991, 724 (1991) of 15 December 1991, 727 (1992) of 8
January 1992, 740 (1992) of 7 February 1992, 743 (1992) of 21 February
1992, 749 (1992) of 7 April 1992, 752 (1992) of 15 May 1992, 757 (1992)
of 30 May 1992, 758 (1992) of 8 June 1992, 760 (1992) of 18 June 1992,
761 (1992) of 29 June 1992 and 762 (1992) of 30 June 1992,
Noting with appreciation the further report of the Secretary-General
(S/24263 and Add.1),
Disturbed by the continuing violation of the Sarajevo airport agreement of 5
June 1992, in which the parties agreed, inter alia:
-- that all anti-aircraft weapon systems would be withdrawn from position
from which they could engage the airport and its air approaches;
-- that all artillery, mortar, ground-to-ground missile systems and tanks
within the range of the airport would be concentrated in areas agreed by the
United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) and subject to UNPROFOR
observation at the firing line;
-- to establish security corridors between the airport and the city, under
UNPROFOR's control, to ensure the safe movement of humanitarian aid and
related personnel;
Deeply concerned about the safety of UNPROFOR personnel,
Cognizant of the magnificent work being done in Sarajevo by UNPROFOR and
its leadership, despite the conditions of great difficulty and danger,
Aware of the enormous difficulties in the evacuation by air of cases of
special humanitarian concern,
Deeply disturbed by the situation which now prevails in Sarajevo and by
many reports and indications of deteriorating conditions throughout Bosnia
and Herzegovina,
Commending the determination and courage of all those who are
participating in the humanitarian effort,
Deploring the continuation of the fighting in Bosnia and Herzegovina which
is rendering difficult the provision of humanitarian assistance in Sarajevo
and its environs, as well as in other areas of the Republic,
Noting that the reopening of Sarajevo airport for humanitarian purposes
constitutes a first step in establishing a security zone encompassing
Sarajevo and its airport,
Recalling the obligations under international humanitarian law, in particular
the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949,
Stressing once again the imperative need to find an urgent negotiated
political solution for the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina,
1. Approves the report of the Secretary-General of 10 July 1992 (S/24263);
2. Authorizes the Secretary-General to deploy immediately additional
elements of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) to ensure the
security and functioning of Sarajevo airport and the delivery of
humanitarian assistance, in accordance with paragraph 12 of his report
dated 10 July 1992 (S/24263);
3. Reiterates its call on all parties and others concerned to comply fully
with the agreement of 5 June 1992, and to cease immediately any hostile
military activity in Bosnia and Herzegovina;
4. Commends the untiring efforts and the bravery of UNPROFOR for its role
in securing humanitarian relief in Sarajevo and its environs;
5. Demands that all parties and others concerned cooperate fully with
UNPROFOR and international humanitarian agencies to facilitate the
evacuation by air of cases of special humanitarian concern;
6. Calls on all parties and others concerned to cooperate with UNPROFOR
and international humanitarian agencies to facilitate the provision of
humanitarian aid to other areas of Bosnia and Herzegovina which remain in
desperate need of assistance;
7. Reiterates its demand that all parties and others concerned take the
necessary measures to secure the safety of UNPROFOR personnel;
8. Calls again on all parties concerned to resolve their differences through
a negotiated political solution to the problems in the region and to that end
to cooperate with the renewed efforts of the European Community and its
member States, with the support of the States participating in the
Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), within the
framework of the Conference on Yugoslavia, and in particular to respond
positively to the invitation of the Chairman of the Conference to talks on 15
July 1992;
9. Requests the Secretary-General to keep close contact with the
developments within the framework of the Conference on Yugoslavia and to
assist in finding a negotiated political solution for the conflict in Bosnia
and Herzegovina;
10. Reaffirms that all parties are bound to comply with the obligations
under international humanitarian law and in particular the Geneva
Conventions of 12 August 1949, and that persons who commit or order the
commission of grave breaches of the Conventions are individually
responsible in respect of such breaches;
11. Requests the Secretary-General to keep under continuous review any
further measure that may be required to ensure unimpeded delivery of
humanitarian assistance;
12. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.
VOTE: Unanimous (15-0).
Resolution 769
(August 7, 1992)
The Security Council,
Reaffirming its resolution 743 (1992) and all subsequent resolutions
relating to the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR),
Having examined the report of the Secretary-General of 27 July 1992
(S/24353 and Add.1) in which the Secretary-General recommended certain
enlargements in the mandate and strength of UNPROFOR,
Taking note of the letter dated 7 August 1992 from the Deputy Prime
Minister of the Republic of Croatia to the President of the Security Council
(S/24390, annex),
1. Approves the Secretary-General's report;
2. Authorizes the enlargements of UNPROFOR's mandate and strength
recommended by the Secretary-General in that report;
3. Reiterates its demand that all parties and others concerned cooperate
with UNPROFOR in implementing the mandate entrusted to it by the Security
Council;
4. Condemns resolutely the abuses committed against the civilian
population, particularly on ethnic grounds, as referred to in paragraphs 14-
16 of the above-mentioned report of the Secretary-General.
VOTE: Unanimous (15-0). (###)
Dispatch, Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: Entry Into Force Of the CFE Treaty
Boucher
Source: Richard Boucher, State Department Spokesman
Description: Statement, Washington, DC
Date: Nov, 9 199211/9/92
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: Eurasia, Europe, E/C Europe
Country: Kazakhstan, Belarus
Subject: Arms Control
[TEXT]
(The treaty is reproduced on this disk in Dispatch Supplement, Volume 2,
Number 4 and may be ordered in print rom the Government Printing Office.)
Today is a milestone in the history of European security and arms control.
With the deposit on October 30 of instruments of ratification by the
Governments of Belarus and Kazakhstan, all 29 signatories to the Treaty on
Conventional Armed Forces in Europe--the CFE Treaty--have formally
completed ratification. Today, 10 days later, the treaty formally enters
into force.
CFE is the cornerstone of the new, cooperative security order we and our
NATO allies have worked to build in Europe. It establishes comprehensive
limits on key categories of conventional military equipment: tanks,
artillery, armored combat vehicles, combat aircraft, and combat
helicopters. Perhaps most important, the treaty provides for the
destruction of weaponry in excess of those limits throughout Europe. CFE's
extensive verification regime is complemented by detailed information
requirements which ensure an unprecedented level of transparency
concerning national military structures and equipment deployments.
Background Information. The CFE Treaty was signed in November 1990 and
ratified by the United States 1 year later. With the collapse of the Soviet
Union, the role of the CFE Treaty in establishing a binding, stable framework
for the defense policy choices of the newly independent states assumed
added importance.
The treaty was originally negotiated between the members of NATO and of
the old Warsaw Treaty Organization. Today, the eight independent states on
the territory of the former Soviet Union in the CFE zone--Europe west of the
Urals--are CFE States Parties in place of the former Soviet Union. The CFE
Treaty was provisionally applied on July 17 so that the new States Parties
could complete internal ratification procedures.
Literally hundreds of inspections have already been conducted under the
provisions of the CFE Treaty by the United States, our allies, and the Eastern
members of the Treaty.
More important, the destruction of equipment that is mandated by the treaty
has already begun. When the CFE Treaty and related agreements have been
fully implemented, we expect that some 35,000 pieces of former Soviet
military equipment will have been destroyed. Many thousands of East
European armaments will also be destroyed under CFE Treaty provisions, in
order to reach the levels mandated by the treaty 3 years from today.
Dispatch, Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: Somalis Demand Withdrawal Of UN Security
Force
Boucher
Source: Richard Boucher, State Department Spokesman
Description: Statement, Washington, DC
Date: Nov, 12 199211/12/92
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: MidEast/North Africa, Subsaharan Africa
Country: Somalia
Subject: United Nations, Regional/Civil Unrest
[TEXT]
The UN Secretary General has informed us of a demand by General Aideed,
the Somali factional leader who controls parts of Mogadishu, that the United
Nations withdraw the Pakistani security force from the airport at
Mogadishu. The Pakistani troops took control of the airport 2 days ago. The
airport of Mogadishu is essential in the effort to feed the country's starving
population. This demand is totally incomprehensible to the international
community and to the United States.
The 500 Pakistani troops were sent to Somalia pursuant to a resolution of
the UN Security Council and with the concurrence of General Aideed. His
refusal to keep his agreement is in defiance of the international community.
The Government of the United States condemns this demand and calls for its
immediate reversal. If Aideed persists in his position, he will have clearly
defined himself as responsible for the perpetuation of starvation in
Somalia.
Dispatch, Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: Fisheries Agreement With Lithuania
Boucher
Description: Statement released by the Office of the Assistant
Secretary/Spokesman, Washington, DC
Date: Nov, 12 199211/12/92
Category: Speeches, Testimony, Statements
Region: E/C Europe
Country: Lithuania
Subject: Resource Management, Environment, International Law
[TEXT]
Acting Secretary of State Eagleburger and Lithuanian Prime Minister
Aleksandras Abisala today signed a fisheries agreement between the United
States and Lithuania. Once the agreement is in force, Lithuania may apply
for permission for its vessels to fish within the US 200-nautical-mile
exclusive economic zone for stocks of fish which have been determined to
be surplus to the needs of the US fishing industry.
Prior to Lithuania's withdrawal from the former Soviet Union, vessels from
ports in Lithuania fished in the US zone, flying the flag of the Soviet Union.
Previously, the vessels from Lithuania which have fished in the US zone
harvested Atlantic mackerel. Prospects for direct fishing for mackerel in
US waters are limited, but significant opportunities may exist for joint
venture operations.
Under these arrangements, US harvesting vessels may transfer their catches
at sea to Lithuanian vessels for processing and delivery to Lithuanian ports.
Both sides hope that more effective use of the Atlantic mackerel resource
will occur as a result of this agreement. (###)
Dispatch, Vol 3, No 46, November 16, 1992
Title: Country Profile: Norway
PA
Source: Office of Public Communication, Bureau of Public
Affairs
Date: Nov, 16 199211/16/92
Category: Country Data
Region: Europe
Country: Norway
Subject: Trade/Economics, Democratization, History,
Cultural Exchange, Science/Technology, Military Affairs,
Resource Management
[TEXT]
Official Name:
Kingdom of Norway
Geography
Area (including the island territories of Svalbard and Jan Mayen): 386,000
sq. km. (150,000 sq. mi.); slightly larger than New Mexico. Cities: Capital--
Oslo (pop. 467,000). Other cities--Bergen (216,000), Trondheim (139,600),
Stavanger (99,800). Terrain: Rugged with high plateaus, steep fjords,
mountains, and fertile valleys. Climate: Temperate along the coast, colder
inland.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Norwegian(s). Population (1991 est.): 4.3
million. Annual growth rate (1991): 0.5%. Density: 14 per sq. km. Ethnic
groups: Norwegian (Nordic, Alpine, Baltic), Lapp (or Sami, a racial-cultural
minority of 20,000); foreign nationals (148,000 from Denmark, UK, Sweden,
US, Pakistan, Vietnam, Germany, Turkey). Religion: Evangelical Lutheran
94%. Languages: Norwegian (official), Lapp. Education: Years compulsory--
9. Literacy--100%. Health: Infant mortality rate--7/1,000. Life
expectancy--men 73 yrs; women 80 yrs. Work force (1991, 2.1 million):
Government, social, personal services--37%. Wholesale and retail trade,
hotels, restaurants--18%. Manufacturing--15%. Transport and
communications--8%. Financing, insurance, real estate, business services-
-8%. Agriculture, forestry, fishing--8%. Construction--6%. Oil extraction-
-1%.
Government
Type: Hereditary constitutional monarchy. Independence: 1905.
Constitution: May 17, 1814.
Branches: Executive--king (chief of state), prime minister (head of
government), council of ministers (cabinet). Legislative--modified
unicameral parliament (Storting). Judicial--Supreme Court, appellate
courts, city and county courts.
Political parties: Labor, Conservative, Center, Christian People's, Socialist
Left, Progress. Suffrage: Universal over 18.
Administrative subdivisions: 18 fylker (counties), the city of Oslo, and
Svalbard.
National holiday: May 17.
Central government budget (1991): $52 billion.
Defense (1991): 3.2% of GNP.
Flag: White cross with blue inner cross on red field. The white cross and
red field are derived from the Danish flag; the blue cross was added to
symbolize Norway's independence.
Economy
GNP (1991): $103 billion. Annual growth rate (1991): 1.9%. Per capita GNP
(1991): $24,200.
Natural resources: Oil, gas, fish, timber, hydroelectric power, mineral ores.
Agriculture and fishing (3% of GNP): Products--dairy, livestock, grain
(barley, oats, wheat), potatoes and other vegetables, fruits and berries,
furs, wool. Arable land--3%.Oil, gas, shipping: 19% of GNP.
Industry (manufacturing, 13% of GNP): Types--food processing, pulp and
paper, ships, aluminum, ferro-alloys, iron and steel, nickel, zinc, nitrogen,
fertilizers, transport equipment, hydroelectric power, refinery products,
petrochemicals, electronics.
Construction: 4% of GNP.
Trade (1991): Exports--$36 billion: crude oil, natural gas, pulp and paper,
metals, chemicals, fish and fish products. Major markets--UK, Germany,
Sweden, US (5%). Imports--$26 billion: machinery and transport
equipment, foodstuffs, iron and steel, textiles and clothing. Major
suppliers--Sweden, Germany, UK, US (8%).
Official exchange rate (average 1991): 6.5 Norwegian kroner=US$1.
Aid sent (1991): $1.1 billion. Primary recipients--Tanzania, Mozambique,
Bangladesh, Nicaragua, Zambia, UN organizations.
History
The Viking period (9th to 11th centuries) was one of national unification
and expansion. The Norwegian royal line died out in 1387, and the country
entered a period of union with Denmark. By 1586, Norway had become part
of the Danish Kingdom. In 1814, as a result of the Napoleonic wars, Norway
was separated from Denmark and combined with Sweden. The union
persisted until 1905, when Sweden recognized Norwegian independence.
The Norwegian Government offered the throne of Norway to Danish Prince
Carl in 1905. After a plebiscite approving the establishment of a monarchy,
the parliament unanimously elected him king. He took the name of Haakon
VII, after the kings of independent Norway. Haakon died in 1957 and was
succeeded by his son, Olav V, who died in January 1991. Upon Olav's death,
his son Harald was crowned as King Harald V. Norway was a non-belligerent
during World War I, but as a result of the German invasion and occupation
during World War II, Norwegians generally became skeptical of the concept
of neutrality and turned instead to collective security. Norway was one of
the signers of the North Atlantic Treaty in 1949 and was a founding member
of the United Nations. The first UN General Secretary, Trygve Lie, was a
Norwegian.
Government
The functions of the king are mainly ceremonial, but he has influence as the
symbol of national unity. Although the 1814 constitution grants important
executive powers to the king, these are almost always exercised by the
Council of Ministers in the name of the king (King's Council). The Council of
Ministers consists of the prime minister--chosen by the political parties
represented in the Storting (parliament)--and other ministers.
The 165 members of the Storting are elected from 18 fylker (counties) for
4-year terms according to a complicated system of proportional
representation. After elections, the Storting divides into two chambers, the
Odelsting and the Lagting, which meet separately or jointly depending on the
legislative issue under consideration.
The special High Court of the Realm hears impeachment cases; the regular
courts include the Supreme Court (17 permanent judges and a president),
courts of appeal, city and county courts, the labor court, and conciliation
councils. Judges attached to regular courts are appointed by the king in
council after nomination by the Ministry of Justice.
Each fylke is headed by a governor appointed by the king in council, with one
governor exercising authority in both Oslo and the adjacent county of
Akershus.
Principal Government Officials
King--Harald V
Prime Minister--Gro Harlem Brundtland
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Thorvald Stoltenberg
Ambassador to the United States--Kjeld Vibe
Ambassador to NATO--Bjorn Kristvik
Ambassador to the United Nations--Martin Huslid
Norway maintains an embassy in the United States at 2720 34th Street, NW,
Washington, DC 20008, tel.202-388-6000 and consulates in Houston, Los
Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, and San Francisco.
Political Conditions
Until the 1981 election, Norway had been governed by Labor Party
governments since 1935, except for three periods (1963, 1965-71, and
1972-73). The Labor Party lost its majority in the Storting in the 1961
elections; thereafter, when in power, its rule has depended largely upon
support of other parties, according to the issue under consideration.
Labor dropped to 66 seats in the 1981 election, and the Conservative Party
formed a minority government with the parliamentary backing of the two
other non-socialist parties, the Center Party and the Christian People's
Party. In June 1988, the Conservative government was reorganized into a
majority coalition government with those two parties. The three-party
coalition government suffered a setback in the 1985 election and lost a vote
of confidence in April 1986 when the Progress Party withdrew its support
over a proposed gasoline tax increase. Since under the Norwegian
constitution the parliament cannot be dissolved, the Labor Party had to form
a minority government in May 1986 with the same parliamentary
composition as existed before the no-confidence vote. The Labor Party
governed for more than 3 years with the support of the Socialist Left Party
and individual members of the other parties on a case-by-case basis. After
suffering losses in the September 1989 elections, the Labor Party left the
government in October 1989 and was replaced by a minority non-socialist
coalition led by the Conservative Party of Jan P. Syse. One year later, the
Syse Government fell over the issue of Norwegian policy toward the
European Community and was replaced in November 1990 by a minority Labor
Party government.
Gro Harlem Brundtland is again Prime Minister after forming her third
government in 10 years. Norway holds national elections in September
1993.
Economy
Norway is one of the world's richest countries. It has an important stake in
promoting a liberal environment for foreign trade. Its large shipping fleet
is one of the most modern among maritime nations. Metals, pulp and paper
products, chemicals, shipbuilding, and fishing are the most significant
traditional industries.
Norway's emergence as a major oil and gas producer in the mid-1970s
transformed the economy. Large sums of investment capital poured into the
offshore oil sector, leading to greater increases in Norwegian production
costs and wages than in the rest of Western Europe up to the time of the
global recovery of the mid-1980s. The influx of oil revenue also permitted
Norway to expand an already extensive social welfare system.
High oil prices in the 1983-85 period led to significant increases in
consumer spending, wages, and inflation. The subsequent decline in oil
prices since 1985 has sharply reduced tax revenues and required a
tightening of both the government budget and private sector demand. As a
result, the non-oil economy showed almost no growth during 1986-88, and
the current account went into deficit. As oil prices recovered sharply in
1990 following the Persian Gulf crisis, the 1990 current account posted a
large surplus which continued into 1991. Unemployment as of the first
quarter of 1991 rose to a post-1945 high of 6.2%. Given the volatility of
the oil and gas market, Norway is seeking to restructure its non-oil
economy to reduce subsidies and stimulate efficient, non-traditional
industry.
Norway's exports have continued to grow every year, largely because of
favorable world demand. Moreover, the flight of Norwegian-owned ships
from the country's traditional register ended in 1987, as the government
established an international register, replete with tax breaks and relief
from national crewmember requirements. At the same time, a drop in
private consumption has helped to reduce Norway's imports.
Norway continues to adapt its economic policy to international
developments, notably the emerging European Community (EC) single market.
Norway and the other European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are
in the process of concluding an economic cooperation agreement with the EC
under the framework of the European Economic Area (EEA). This agreement,
which promotes free trade, is being designed to limit the distortive impact
of the EC single market on commodity trade and the movements of labor and
capital. On EC membership, the Prime Minister has indicated that Norway
may submit an application before the end of 1992. Its principal trading
partners are the EC countries and its Scandinavian neighbors. The United
States is fifth.
Energy Resources
Offshore hydrocarbons were discovered in the 1960s, and development began
in the 1970s. The growth of the petroleum sector has contributed
significantly in recent years to Norwegian economic vitality. Current
petroleum production capacity is over 2 million barrels per day. Production
has increased rapidly during the past several years as new fields are opened.
Total production in 1991 was about 118 million metric tons of oil
equivalents, nearly 80% of which was crude oil. Hydropower provides nearly
all of Norway's electricity, and all of the gas and most of the oil produced
were exported. Production is expected to increase significantly in the
1990s as new fields come onstream. Although not a major energy supplier
to the world, Norway provides about 40% of Western Europe's crude oil
requirements and 16% of gas requirements. In 1991, Norwegian oil and gas
exports accounted for 44% of total merchandise exports. In addition,
offshore exploration and production have stimulated onshore economic
activities. Foreign companies, including many American ones, participate
actively in the petroleum sector.
Foreign Relations
Norway supports international cooperation and the peaceful settlement of
disputes, recognizing the need for maintaining a strong national defense
through collective security. Accordingly, the cornerstones of Norwegian
policy are active member-ship in NATO and support for the United Nations
and its specialized agencies. Norway also pursues a policy of economic,
social, and cultural cooperation with other Nordic countries (Denmark,
Sweden, Finland, and Iceland) through the Nordic Council.
In addition to strengthening traditional ties with developed countries,
Norway seeks to build friendly relations with developing countries and has
undertaken humanitarian and development aid efforts with selected African
and Asian nations. Norway is also dedicated to encouraging democracy,
assisting refugees, and protecting human rights throughout the world.
Defense
Norway has a draft system in which all able-bodied males are subject to
military service. The Royal Norwegian Navy and Air Force are technically
sophisticated organizations and staffed by a core of professionals. The
Norwegian Army is a mobile infantry force.
US-Norwegian Relations
The United States and Norway enjoy a long tradition of friendly association.
The relationship is strengthened by the millions of Norwegian-Americans in
the United States and by about 10,000 US citizens who reside in Norway.
The two countries enjoy an active cultural exchange, both officially and
privately.
Principal US Officials
Ambassador--Loret Miller Ruppe
Deputy Chief of Mission--William C. McCahill, Jr.
Chief, Political Section--Elizabeth P. Spiro
Chief, Economic Section--F. Brenne Bachmann
Public Affairs Officer (USIS)--William M. Zavis
Administrative Officer--Vacant
Chief, Consular Section--Eli N. Lauderdale, Jr.
Commercial Attache--Scott Bozek
Defense Attache--Capt. Richard P. Vidosic
Labor Attache--Elaine Papazian
The US Embassy is located at Drammensveien 18, 0244 Oslo (tel. 47-2- 44-
85-50; FAX: 47-2-43-07-77). (###)