Following
weeks of rescheduling, postponements and speculation, the International
Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia has now set August 31
to resume the trial of Slobodan Milosevic. At the same time, the
court has announced that it is considering taking the radical step
of imposing a defense counsel to represent Milosevic against his
will, in order to limit the delays that his ill-health and the strain
of presenting his own case are imposing on the proceedings.
Mr.
Milosevic has been on trial since 1992 for war crimes and crimes
against humanity committed during the wars in Croatia , Bosnia ,
and Kosovo as well as genocide in Bosnia. The prosecution wrapped
up its case in February this year and Mr. Milosevic, who studied
law in Belgrade , has been preparing his defense since. However,
due to his ill health – the stress of presenting his own defense
adding considerably thereto – the case has already lost 66 days
in court this year alone. The court's judges have said they are
determined that the defense case should be completed by October
2005.
While
the Court in The Hague has installed a lawyer to ensure a fair trial
for the former president of Yugoslavia, the members of the Court
are increasingly strained by balancing Mr. Milosevic's right to
self-defense versus the necessity to keep the procedure running.
In their latest move, the judges have ordered an independent cardiologist
to assess whether Mr. Milosevic is fit to stand trial at all. Another
medical expert determined on July 16 that he needs to rest for a
considerable period before the trial can be taken up again at the
end of August.
The
question of whether to impose a defense lawyer on Milosevic represents
a major dilemma for the tribunal. Milosevic has made clear that
he wants to continue arguing his own case, and that he will not
cooperate with any lawyer forced on him by the court. The judges
have so far made enormous efforts not to appear to be curtailing
the defendant's rights, but if the current arrangements continue
there is a real danger that this enormously significant trial may
never be completed. The judges have asked the prosecution to make
submissions by Monday July 26 about the possible role of an assigned
counsel, and how the trial should proceed if Milosevic refuses to
cooperate with this lawyer.
In
what is considered the biggest war crimes tribunal since the post
World War II proceedings in Nuremberg , the accused has criticized
the Court for being biased against him and Serbian people in general.
He has also branded the proceeding as illegal, stating that it is
designed to cover up the crimes committed by UK and US-led NATO
forces.
Once
the trial resumes – Mr. Milosevic's blood pressure permitting –
the accused has announced plans to call some thousand witnesses,
amongst them former US President Bill Clinton and UK Prime Minister,
Tony Blair. The Court has allotted 150 days for defense.
Related
chapters from Crimes of War: What the Public Should Know:
Bosnia
Crimes
Against Humanity
Deportation
Ethnic
Cleansing
Genocide
Related
Links:
International
Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
Coalition for
International Justice
Bard College
- Public Archive of Milosevic Trial
International
Justice in the Balkans
Human
Rights Watch
International Center for Transitional Justice
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