[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 74 (Friday, May 5, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6195-S6196]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         A CLEAR VIOLATION OF BASIC PRINCIPLES OF HUMAN DECENCY

  Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, on Wednesday, the Capital of Croatia, was 
subjected to a vicious attack by militant Serb separatists. This was 
the second day in a row that Zagreb was attacked by rockets armed with 
cluster bombs. The attack occurred at noon, when civilians were out 
having lunch. The principal targets were the children's hospital and 
the national theater where a ballet company was rehearsing. Several 
people were killed and dozens were wounded, bringing the total number 
of casualties to about 200 people.
  There are those who say that the Croatian Government provoked the 
attack, by conducting a military operation that returned a 200-square-
mile area back to Croatian control. That argument misses the point. 
Nothing, I repeat, nothing, justifies an attack on innocent civilians--
on children in this case. The U.S. Ambassador was right when he 
condemned these attacks at a clear violation of basic principles of 
human decency.
  I am aware that it is U.N. practice to shift the blame and muddy the 
waters in their pursuit of neutrality between aggressors and victims. 
But, to do so--whether in this case, or in the case of attacks on 
civilians in Bosnia--is reprehensible.
  Furthermore, if the United Nations were doing its job in Croatia--if 
the United Nations had implemented its mandate to demilitarize the 
sectors of Croatia under their control thereby clearing the way for 
reintegration of [[Page S6196]] these occupied territories--the 
Croatian Government may not have taken the action it did on Monday. Let 
us not forget, the occupied areas are part of the territory of Croatia. 
So while the international community should urge the Croatian 
Government and its forces to fully respect the human and civil rights 
of the population in the areas they have retaken, it should not urge 
Croatia to give up control of reclaimed territory.

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