Serbia "committed to missing persons' issue"

Serbia "committed to missing persons' issue"

BELGRADE -- Serbia is absolutely committed to finding a solution to the missing persons' issue and not a single body or individual has ever done anything to prevent it.

This is what President of the Commission on Missing Persons Veljko Odalović told Tanjug ahead of the conference on the matter due to take place in Mostar on Friday.

Odalović said that during the conference, the presidents of Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) and Montenegro should sign a declaration on the role of the state in the search for a solution to the missing persons' issue in cases of armed conflicts and violation of human rights, adding that the declaration should encourage others to take on a responsible and professional approach to the problem.

The declaration will be signed by Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić, Croatian President Ivo Josipović, Chairman of the Bosnian Presidency Bakir Izetbegović and Montenegrin President Filip Vujanović in the course of the conference to mark the International Day of the Disappeared observed on August 30.

“The document should contribute to improvement of the general situation and restoration of trust because the solution to the fate of missing persons is an important prerequisite for any progress, let alone reconciliation in the region. For as long as 11,000 people are still recorded as missing and there are hundreds of thousands of people who are directly interested in the search for a solution to the issue, we cannot expect a more serious stabilization,” Odalović said.

The authorities insist on establishment of responsibility for crimes, Odalović said and underscored that Serbia exchanges all information it obtains with relevant...