Case No. IT-95-11-T

IN TRIAL CHAMBER I

Before:
Judge Bakone Justice Moloto, Presiding
Judge Janet Nosworthy
Judge Frank Höpfel

Registrar:
Mr. Hans Holthuis

Decision of:
10 February 2006

PROSECUTOR

v.

MILAN MARTIC

_____________________________________________

DECISION ON PROSECUTION’S MOTION FOR ADMISSION OF STATEMENT OF WITNESS MILAN BABIC PURSUANT TO RULE 89 (F)

_____________________________________________

The Office of the Prosecutor:

Mr. Alex Whiting
Mr. Colin Black
Ms. Nisha Valabhji

Counsel for the Accused:

Mr. Predrag Milovancevic

 

TRIAL CHAMBER I ("Trial Chamber") of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the former Yugoslavia since 1991 ("Tribunal");

BEING SEISED of "Prosecution’s Motion for Admission of Statement of Witness Milan Babic Pursuant to Rule 89 (F)”, filed on 31 January 2006 ("Motion"), seeking the admission into evidence of the unsigned written statement of Milan Babic annexed to the Motion, and the documents attached thereto ("documents");

NOTING the “Response to Prosecution’s Motion for Admission of Statement of Witness Milan Babic pursuant to Rule 89 (F)” filed by the Defence for Milan Martic (“Defence”) on 7 February 2006, in which the Defence submits that it does not oppose the Motion;

CONSIDERING that Witness Milan Babic is scheduled to begin his testimony before this Trial Chamber on 15 February 2006;

NOTING that under Rule 89 (C) "[ a] Chamber may admit any relevant evidence which it deems to have probative value";

NOTING that Rule 89 (F) of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence provides that "[a] Chamber may receive the evidence of a witness orally or, where the interests of justice allow, in written form";

NOTING further that the jurisprudence of the Tribunal allows for the admission of a written witness statement under Rule 89 (F) provided that the witness is present in court, and available for cross-examination and any questioning by the judges, and attests that the statement accurately reflects his or her declaration and what he or she would say if examined;1

NOTING that the determination of the "interests of justice" under Rule 89 (F) of the Rules must be made by the Trial Chamber in relation to each individual witness, in light not only of the surrounding circumstances, but also the evidence to be given by the witness;2

CONSIDERING that the written statement of Milan Babic does not relate directly to the accused but concerns information on the political developments in territories relevant to the present case, and predominantly before the Indictment period;

CONSIDERING that the written statement fulfils the criteria set out above, and that the Trial Chamber considers it to be in the interests of justice to admit the statement;

CONSIDERING that the documents listed under tabs 1, 2, 4, 7, 9, 10, 13, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 26, 29, 30-35, 38-42, 44, 46-51, 53-55, are relevant and have probative value;

CONSIDERING however, that the documents listed under tabs 3, 5, 6, 8, 11, 12, 14-18, 21, 25, 27, 28, 36, 37, 43, 45, 52, do not have relevance or probative value;

PURSUANT TO Rule 89 of the Rules;

HEREBY

GRANTS the Motion in part, as follows, and ORDERS:

  1. the Prosecution to re-file the written statement of Witness Milan Babic signed by the witness as true, whereupon it shall be admitted into evidence with the documents listed under tabs 1, 2, 4, 7, 9, 10, 13, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 26, 29, 30-35, 38-42, 44, 46-51, 53-55, pursuant to Rule 89 (F) subject to the witness:

    1. appearing in court for cross-examination and any questioning by the judges, and

    2. attesting that the statement accurately reflects the evidence he would give if examined in court;

  2. the Registrar to assign individual exhibit numbers to each of the documents listed above and the written statement;

DENIES the Motion in all other respects.

 

Done in English and French, the English version being authoritative,

______________
Judge Bakone Justice Moloto
Presiding

Dated this tenth day of February 2006
At The Hague
The Netherlands

[Seal of the Tribunal]


1. Prosecutor v. Slobodan Milosevic, Case No. IT-05-54-AR73.4. "Decision on Interlocutory Appeal on the Admissibility of Evidence-in-Chief in the form of a Written Statements", 30 September 2003, p. 11.
2. Ibid. at para 21.