DECLARATION BY DIRECTOR OF HOLY SEE PRESS OFFICE

VATICAN CITY, SEP 21, 2005 (VIS) - Yesterday afternoon, with reference to an article entitled "Vatican accused of shielding 'war criminal'" that appeared in the Daily Telegraph newspaper on September 20, 2005, Holy See Press Office Director Joaquin Navarro-Valls issued the following declaration to journalists. The article concerned accusations that the Vatican is shielding General Ante Gotovina, suspected of having committed war crimes during the conflict in former Yugoslavia:

  "During the meeting between Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, secretary for Relations with States, and Carla Del Ponte, chief prosecutor of the international criminal tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, in response to her request for information and support, Archbishop Lajolo made it clear that the Secretariat of State is not an organ of the Holy See that can collaborate institutionally with the tribunals.

  "Archbishop Lajolo also requested Ms. Del Ponte to specify with some precision the evidence leading her to believe that General Ante Gotovina had taken refuge in certain religious buildings in Croatia, in order to be able to enter into contact with the competent ecclesiastical authorities; earlier investigations had, in fact,  yielded negative results. Archbishop Lajolo's request has not yet received any response from Ms. Del Ponte."
OP/ACCUSATIONS VATICAN/NAVARRO-VALLS            VIS 20050921 (210)