OPINION Kosovo's Cry To Nuremberg *MOST AREAS RE SALE ENDS JUNE 24TH 1999 THE MOST DURABLE GRILL KNOWN TO MAN 3 SERIES-THIS IS THE BIGGEST ONE BARBECUE DELIVERY*, ASSEMBLY & TANK FILL R SARA J. BLOOMFIELD Special to the Jewish News A t a recent NATO briefing, the Yugoslav authorities were charged with digging up mass graves of ethnic Albani- ans in Kosovo in a systematic effort to destroy evidence that could be used against them in war crimes trials. Both common sense and history say this should not surprise us, but it is still cause for alarm. Without evidence, there can be no justice; without an attempt at justice, any moral reckoning with history will remain incomplete. Such a reckoning is no guarantee against future atrocities, but without it, prevention is impossible. Evidence par- ticularizes culpability, teaching us that ethnic cleansing" is not an inevitable, spontaneous, mass eruption of cen- turies-old antagonisms. Rather, it is the product of an organized campaign built on misuse of the media, the fear and indifference of a citizenry, and a sense of impunity bolstered by recent history in Bosnia and Rwanda. Kosovo is not the Holocaust, but for those seeking to address the tragic situation there, the implications of the Nuremberg Trials are significant. Relatively early in World War II, the U.S. government received information that the Nazis planned to murder all the Jews of Europe. In August 1942, word reached the highest echelons at the State Department that the Nazis' virulent anti-Semitism had become a systematic program to kill every Jew in Europe. Although the U.S. government did not act — and, in fact, tried to sup- press it — it did investigate. By November 1942, our government had established that what seemed an incred- ible allegation was true. Only a year later, on Oct. 20, 1943, would a United Nations War Crimes Commission be established. The fol- lowing month, the United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union, speaking for all 32 countries then at war with Germany, issued the Moscow Declara- tion. It publicly committed them to pursue Nazi war criminals "to the utter- most ends of the earth" so that justice might be achieved. Thus began a series of historical events, military activities, political strategies, and legal developments that culminated in the post-war Nuremberg Trials and other less well- known proceedings. The establishment of this interna- tional tribunal of victors to address the crimes of the vanquished was ECUE 4 SEASONS FIREPLACE & D39N W/ IN GROUND D3CP D39N P3CP $579 .99 D39N W/ PATIO BASE $599. 99 D3CP LP ON CART $749.99 P3CP STAINLESS STEEL LP ON CART '849" EXPERT BARBECUE SERVICE ON YOU BARBECU E AT HOME CALL US_ IT'S $40.00 PLUS PARTS IF NEEDED. INSTALLATION 30903 ORCHARD LAKE RD (248) 855-0303 SALE ENDS JULY 4TH 1999 AVAILABLE 4 Seasons in the plaza between 13 & 14 Mile by THE GAP CLOSED SATURDAY Open Sunday W am- 6 pm, Monday to Thursday 10 am- 9 pm, Friday 10 am- 5 pm 4 lots of barbecue parts on hand-bring in model# or old part to be replaced (( /-' Fe AlisTr uzsm Our CDs Don't play Music, but could be Music 5.09 to your Ears BANK Member F.D.I.C. One Year Certificate , A.P.Y. 248-338-7700 or 248-352-7700 2600 rIblegraph Rd. • Bloomfield Hills • MI 48302 This is a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insured account (FDIC). A minimum opening deposit and balance of $500.00 is required to obtain tree stated Annual Percentage Yield. *Annual percentage yield when compounded quarterly. Rate is accurate as of 3/26/99. Penalty for early withdrawal from certificate accounts may be assessed. We bvelleve our sto The process of making a bank deposit should not require ropes, directional arrows and marching band formations. So Michigan Heritage Bank has made it easy for you to see us—and your money—whenever you like. Our branches in Novi and Troy are comfortable. neighborhood banks where we enjoy serving you just inside the door, not at the end of the line. Call us silly, but we think it's just good manners to help our customers feel at ease. That's our heritage. 3.73% 3.90% 6.00% MO. Minimum $500 or Call Toda,N 1011 at CI) b ∎ NO% I: Next to the No‘i Hilton 21211 Ilaggert) Road at 8 Mile 1-800-914-3524 Cr LEN FDIC Insured visit us al our web site: 11-vm. Milleritage.com 111..7:_at . kpplicalion. MICHIGAN HERITAGE Udam,h O Minimum $500 TROY: Trod Sports Center 1917 East Rig Bearer at John R. 1-248-619-0264 25. 1999. Annual Percentage Yield is diet:Ike as or Penalty for early \\ ithdrawal. Business or brokered accounts not eligible. Detroit Jewish News 6/25 1999 33