Karadzic has been captured.

With all the hyperbole that will surround this, I'm inappropriately reminded of the Onion headline when George Harrison died: "George Harrison Dead: Ringo Next?"

In this case, "Karadzic Caught. Osama Next?"

"One of the worst men in the world, the Osama Bin Laden of Europe, has finally been captured," Mr Holbrooke told BBC World News America.

My immediate reaction on hearing this news was to feel pleased, though. He seems to have been a nasty piece of work.

They sold him in the best possible moment, after thirteen years of successful haggling. Now let's shove Serbia into the EU, they're collectively innocent, wheeee!!!!

sparky wrote:
In this case, "Karadzic Caught. Osama Next?"

Why Osama? He is innocent. Should be "Karadzic Caught. Bush next?"

Yes, the timing suits Serbia's entry into the EU. His whereabouts seem to have been an open secret to many, as this recent article suggests.

I'll be happy to see Serbia enter the EU, though. Collective guilt is a tricky concept to apply - we (the West) have not had a particularly great track record over the past 40 years, or even ten years.

I was in Serbia a year ago and liked the people I met there. As a friend put it, a lot of them did not vote for Milosevic. On the other hand, a lot of Serbs will deny that their countrymen did anything wrong in the breakup of Yugoslavia. And turning it around again, a lot of our countrymen will deny that our boys have done aught but good in the world in the last 100 years.

The breakup of Yugoslavia was a bloody mess and people have suffered all over. If this settles more than incites, then great.

I have to admit, I'm curious to see how the evidence trail of the trial is going to work, which I'm not so proud about. Karadzic was portrayed as Europe's Dr Evil when I was a teenager.

sparky wrote:Yes, the timing suits Serbia's entry into the EU. His whereabouts seem to have been an open secret to many, as this recent article suggests.

I'll be happy to see Serbia enter the EU, though. Collective guilt is a tricky concept to apply - we (the West) have not had a particularly great track record over the past 40 years, or even ten years.

I was in Serbia a year ago and liked the people I met there. As a friend put it, a lot of them did not vote for Milosevic. On the other hand, a lot of Serbs will deny that their countrymen did anything wrong in the breakup of Yugoslavia. And turning it around again, a lot of our countrymen will deny that our boys have done aught but good in the world in the last 100 years.

The breakup of Yugoslavia was a bloody mess and people have suffered all over. If this settles more than incites, then great.

I have to admit, I'm curious to see how the evidence trail of the trial is going to work, which I'm not so proud about. Karadzic was portrayed as Europe's Dr Evil when I was a teenager.

Thanks for posting. Radovan's capture should at least be a medium-sized step toward EU acceptance for Serbia, although I am willing to bet it will be another 5 years before the formal negotiations even start. About the 'open secret' nature of Radovan's long refuge from justice: I don't really think the fact he went free so long is good evidence that Serbs were actively supporting him and the previous dictatorial regime by failing to hand him in. Fear of reprisals may have been a much bigger motivator. Furthermore, I have never seen any credible evidence that the Koštunica government played any role in hiding him.
Lastly, it is nowhere near as difficult to 'get gone and stay gone' as one might think. Especially if you go around in the guise of an Orthodox monk.

Mazec wrote:Radovan's capture should at least be a medium-sized step toward EU acceptance for Serbia, although I am willing to bet it will be another 5 years before the formal negotiations even start.

Mladic's arrest would certainly still be a condition of entry to the EU. And in many ways he is more of the Serbian establishment than Karadzic and for that reason could be more elusive.

Cranius wrote:

Mazec wrote:Radovan's capture should at least be a medium-sized step toward EU acceptance for Serbia, although I am willing to bet it will be another 5 years before the formal negotiations even start.

Mladic's arrest would certainly still be a condition of entry to the EU. And in many ways he is more of the Serbian establishment than Karadzic and for that reason could be more elusive.

Fair enough, but I was thinking more along the lines of Serbia's difficulties in economic and political stability forming an even more challenging obstacle to EU accession than capturing war criminals. With a GDP near the bottom of the European barrel, terrible infrastructure and weak foreign trade, Serbia has a lot of catching up to do notwithstanding the fact that they have only had about five years of uninterrupted political stability. Although with countries like Romania getting in, who knows?

How are Croatia's chances looking?

Mazec wrote:About the 'open secret' nature of Radovan's long refuge from justice: I don't really think the fact he went free so long is good evidence that Serbs were actively supporting him and the previous dictatorial regime by failing to hand him in.

I agree. I didn't mean to imply that - rather that there is a strong sense that what has prevented his earlier capture has been as often due to difficult political sensitivities beyond the logistics of finding and encircling him.

I am ambivalent over this idea that a country must hand over all its political criminals before being allowed into "our club". Part of me likes this idea that murderous leaders will see that they can be held accountable; and part of me thinks that it is lousy that a whole country can suffer for the sake of one now impotent man.

As indicated earlier, I also think that "our club" has its own fair share of respected criminals.

I have no answer on this, but there you go!

The details currently given are weird!

BBC wrote:Captured Bosnian Serb war crimes suspect Radovan Karadzic was practising alternative medicine and living in Serbia's capital, Belgrade.

He looks a little like Michael Caine in a big beard in that photo.

sparky wrote:I am ambivalent over this idea that a country must hand over all its political criminals before being allowed into "our club". Part of me likes this idea that murderous leaders will see that they can be held accountable; and part of me thinks that it is lousy that a whole country can suffer for the sake of one now impotent man.

Yes, especially in such a shitstorm situation as the Yugoslav conflicts - it would seem as though the obligation to round up all the war criminals would prevent all of the republics from joining, except Slovenia, who only took part in the fighting for about 8 days or so.
Virtually any leaders in office in any of the beligerant nations from 92 to 95 could be considered war criminals - the armies of Croatia and Bosnia also had a hand in killing civilians and burning down people's houses, athough it is clear that the death toll effected by the Serbs was much greater.
Still, you don't hear too much about Croatian and Bosnian war criminals, now, do you? And if you did, it's safe to bet they wouldn't be mentioned in the same breath with Osama bin Laden.