Justice delayed is not justice denied

The capture of Radovan Karadzic, the former Bosnian Serb leader responsible for horrendous war crimes during the Bosnian war, is welcome news.

It is a victory for justice, for the UN tribunal in The Hague which sought his arrest for 13 long years, for the people of Bosnia and, most poignantly, for the people of Srebrenica where at least 8,000 Muslim men and boys were massacred by his forces in 1995.His being held responsible for his acts will not wipe out the horror of what happened. For the victims' families, the suffering is lifelong. Nor does it undo the other crimes of which this unrepentant thug is accused, notably the siege of Sarajevo in which 12,000 died. But it does provide some degree of comfort for his victims and their families. It says that he has not got away with his crimes. Justice delayed is not justice denied.

The arrest is good news too for the people of Serbia. It draws to a close a shameful period in their history and opens the door to a prosperous future for them in the European Union. Almost. One figure remains at large: Ratko Mladic, Karadzic's military leader during the war. His arrest will enable the appalling saga of what were Europe's worst atrocities since World War II to be brought to a close. It will happen soon.That can be said because Karadzic's was no chance arrest. He was able to remain free all these years because he had friends in power in Belgrade who protected him. There is no other explanation. Serbia and the dependent Serb statelet in Bosnia are too small for a fugitive as notorious as he to remain unnoticed all that time.

The arrest was a political move — and it shows the scale of change that has taken place in Belgrade since the victory of pro-EU Boris Tadic in the presidential elections five months ago and again in the parliamentary election in May. That latter election is the key to the arrest. Although Tadic's party won the largest share of the May vote, it was only four weeks ago that a coalition government under new Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic was finally agreed and appointed. Its priority is EU membership, the big block to that being Karadzic and Mladic. By arresting Karadzic, President Tadic has sent out a clear signal to Brussels that Serbia is committed to Europe and the rule of law.


The EU is bound to respond favorably. Indeed, once Mladic is caught, it will be surprising if it does not put Serbia on fast track to membership — as was done in the early 1980s with Spain and Portugal — in order to entrench its democratic and European roots. (There would also, however, have to be a solution on Kosovo, whose independence all Serbian politicians refuse to recognize — for the moment.)Not everyone, however, will be pleased with Karadzic's capture and the political implications. Hardline nationalism remains a powerful force in Serbia. The nationalists, for whom Karadzic is a hero, only just lost the presidential vote in February and came second in the parliamentary elections. They are anti-EU. So too is former Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica. Both want Serbia to move closer to Russia, the other potential malcontent. Moscow wants Serbia in its sphere of influence, rather than in the EU. The new coalition is far from stable. The junior partners are the now firmly pro-European socialists of the late Serbian president and indicted war criminal Slobodan Milosevic. Europe is the only thing they and Tadic's party have in common. They could easily fall out and force new elections.


Editorial: Arab News