Leaders, politicians and experts in Bosnia and Croatia assess the aftermath of the Mladic arrest.

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By Nidzara Ahmetasevic in Sarajevo

Humanitarian Law Centre
Natasa Kandic, director of The Humanitarina Law Centre from Belgrade got the news of Mladic's arrest in Sarajevo where she is promoting the REKOM initiative for the establishment of the regional truth commission. Kandic said this is one of the most important political and legal events in the region, and that it will help reconciliation. “This is a huge relief for victims. Maybe some people in Republika Srpska (the predominantly Serb entity in Bosnia) do see this as upsetting, but it will affect their lives. The facts are important. And the Mladic trial, as well as the ongoing Karadzic trail, will bring out new facts of importance to all of us,” Kandic said.

Dodik
Milorad Dodik, president of Republika Srpska, issued a statement saying that the Mladic arrest is part of the obligations toward the international community given to all the countries who signed the Dayton Peace Agreement that ended the war in Bosnia in 1995. “Republika Srpska institutions were never in support of anybody who committed war crimes, no matter their nationality or religion. The Mladic arrest will not affect stability in Republika Srpska... I hope he will get a fair trial,” Dodik said.

Opposition
Mladen Ivanic, opposition politician from Republika Srpska, said that Mladic is a person who sparked many controversies over the years. “In one part of Bosnia, he will stay a hero, in another, a criminal. History will establish the truth about him and what he has done,” Ivanic said.

Itzebegovic
Bakir Izetbegovic, member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina said that this is a very important step for Serbia. “This gives us hope that a new era in cooperation between two countries will start, an era that will help people in both countries to face the past and learn the truth about the wars,” Izetbgovic said in Sarajevo.

Croatia
In Croatia reactions are similar to those in Bosnia. President Ivo Josipovic said this is the moement to remember all the victims, people killed or wounded during the war in Boasnia and Croatia. "What we expect now is that he will get a trial and punishment. This is an important step that Serbia made at a crucial moment, but it is also important for the whole region," Josipovic said in Zagreb.

Human Rights
Zarko Puhoviski, a human rights activist in Zagreb, called Mladic "a symbol of the wars in the Balkans" adding that his trial should bring relief to all those who believe in justice.

Hadzic
However, politicians and the public in Croatia reiterate that Goran Hadzic, indicted for war crimes committed in Croatia during the war, is still at large and that Serbia should take the last step in cooperating with the ICTY and find him, too.