Methodology of the Detecting and Investigating of War Crimes with the Special Focus on Western Balkans Cases
Methodology of the Detecting and Investigating of War Crimes with the Special Focus on Western Balkans Cases

Summary/Abstract: The work on the detection and prosecution of war crimes in attempting to provide evidence in criminal proceedings of war crimes at the Western Balkans is extremely hard and difficult. Despite the fact that the first investigations started more than fifteen years ago, a large number of unexplored and unresolved cases remain. The reasons for this is that research of this type of crime is more complicated and difficult than investigations of the classic crime. In this paper we suggest methods to gather personal and material evidence in war crimes cases in the Western Balkans. Paying attention to the information and attending to the recommendtions of this paper, practioners and theorists alike will become familiar with the problems of investigating and prosecuting war crimes in the Western Balkans, and possibly also set the foundation for new research in the field. Based on an analysis of the specificity of the armed conflicts in the former Yugoslavia, we nevertheless conclude that none of the countries involved in the conflict has adequate technical and human resources for the effective investigation and prosecution of war crimes. This suggests that the effective investigating and prosecuting of these most serious crimes require mutual cooperation between the police and the judicial authorities of the countries of the former Yugoslavia.

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