Page 26588
1 Monday, 15 September 2003
2 [Open session]
3 [The accused entered court]
4 --- Upon commencing at 9.06 a.m.
5 JUDGE MAY: Yes. We'll have the witness.
6 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, the Prosecution calls B-179.
7 JUDGE MAY: While the witness is coming, Mr. Groome, one minor
8 housekeeping matter. We had handed in on Friday directive number 7
9 concerning Srebrenica. I understand that that will formally be produced
10 in due course. I think it's really rather early to produce it at the
11 moment, so it may be that we'll just simply hand it back.
12 MR. GROOME: Yes, Your Honour.
13 JUDGE MAY: Thank you. And we are having problems with the --
14 this distorted microphone, as you know, with leakage, so we must make sure
15 that witnesses understand that they should not speak early, and perhaps
16 you could try and instil that in them.
17 MR. GROOME: I will remind the witness, Your Honour.
18 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
19 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, while we're waiting, the Prosecution
20 will be tendering a binder of 13 exhibits to be used with this witness.
21 Could I ask that a number be assigned.
22 JUDGE MAY: Yes. If we could give it a number.
23 THE REGISTRAR: Prosecution Exhibit 539, Your Honour.
24 [The witness entered court]
25 JUDGE MAY: If you would like to take the declaration.
Page 26589
1 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I solemnly declare that I will speak
2 the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
3 JUDGE MAY: If you'd like now to take a seat.
4 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Thank you.
5 WITNESS: WITNESS B-179
6 [Witness answered through interpreter]
7 Examined by Mr. Groome:
8 Q. Sir, before I begin my examination of you, I would like to remind
9 you of the following: Part of the protections extended to you by the
10 Chamber are -- is a distortion of your voice. In order for that to be
11 effective, it's very important that you watch the person asking you
12 questions and make sure that this little red light on the top of their
13 microphone is off when you answer the question. Do you understand that?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. Now, we can begin by asking you to take a look at Exhibit 539, tab
16 1. My first question to you is: Is that your name on the top of that
17 page?
18 A. Yes.
19 Q. And the last line on that page, does that indicate the position
20 that you held that's relevant to your testimony here today?
21 A. Yes.
22 Q. Can I ask you to describe in a sentence or two what was the
23 Association of Emigrant Serbs.
24 A. The Association of Serbs and Emigrants of Serbia was an
25 organisation for aid to Serbs outside Serbia, actually, in the diaspora.
Page 26590
1 It worked on humanitarian aid and providing supplies for the battlefields
2 of Croatia and Bosnia. It also transported humanitarian and military
3 supplies and aid.
4 Q. Sir, did there come a time when the name was changed of that
5 organisation?
6 A. Yes. The Association of Serbs was originally called the
7 Association of Emigrants of Serbia. Later, the name changed to the
8 Association of Serbs and Emigrants of Serbia.
9 Q. Now, before I ask you to talk about your testimony in detail, I'm
10 going to ask you the names of four people, and if I could ask you, in
11 simply a sentence, identify the position that each of these people held.
12 The first person I'd like to ask you about is a person by the name
13 of Branislav Crnjevic -- Crncevic, sorry.
14 A. Brana Crncevic was the president of the Association of Serbs and
15 Emigrants of Serbia.
16 Q. Can you describe what, if anything, you know about his
17 relationship to the accused, Mr. Milosevic.
18 A. Yes. I do know that in those days they were good friends, and I
19 know that Brana often went to see Mr. Milosevic. On one occasion, I
20 myself drove him in my car to the house of Mr. Milosevic. In front of the
21 house I dropped him off.
22 Q. The person by the name of Milan Prodanic. Can you tell us briefly
23 who he was.
24 A. Milan Prodanic was the head of the 6th department of the state
25 security department of the MUP of Serbia.
Page 26591
1 Q. What can you tell us about his relationship to Jovica Stanisic?
2 A. He was directly subordinated to Jovica Stanisic, and they were in
3 permanent contact. They discussed the work and supplies issues.
4 Q. And a person by the name of Lieutenant Colonel Bora Stanisic. Can
5 you tell us what you know about him?
6 A. Lieutenant Colonel Bora Stanisic was in the command of the town
7 military post 5055 and was in charge of the military warehouses in Bubanj
8 Potok.
9 Q. Are you aware of any family relationship between Bora Stanisic and
10 Jovica Stanisic?
11 A. I don't know that they were in any kind of family relationship.
12 Q. And the last person I'd like to ask you about is Mr. Tepavcevic.
13 A. I met Mr. Tepavcevic only once in the MUP of Serbia. He was to
14 have worked with Bora Stanisic before even Prodanic, but they didn't get
15 on for some reason, and so he didn't work with Tepavcevic but with Milan
16 Prodanovic.
17 THE INTERPRETER: Could the witness approach the microphone,
18 please?
19 MR. GROOME:
20 Q. Sir, could I ask you to sit up a little bit closer to the
21 microphone so that it may pick up your voice a bit more clearer.
22 During the course of my questioning to you, I will refer to the
23 Association of Emigrant Serbs as "the association," and my first question
24 to you is where precisely did the association have its offices?
25 A. The offices of the association were in Nusiceva Street, number 4,
Page 26592
1 Belgrade.
2 Q. Now, I'd like to ask you to describe for the Chamber any prominent
3 visitors that came to the office during the time that you were at the
4 office.
5 A. Yes. Various politicians would come. The leaders from the
6 Republic of Serbian Krajina and from Republika Srpska would also come, as
7 would members of the government of Serbia and people from the MUP of
8 Serbia.
9 Q. Now, if I could ask you to be a bit more specific. With respect
10 to political leaders, can you describe the party or parties that those
11 leaders belonged to?
12 A. Mostly they belonged to the SPS and to the democratic party of
13 Karadzic, the Serbian Democratic Party led by Karadzic.
14 Q. Now, you have described leaders from the Republic of Serb Krajina
15 and from Republika Srpska. Can I ask you to identify the names of
16 individuals from both of those entities?
17 A. I can say that from the Republika Srpska, Goran Hadzic would come
18 often, and from Republika Srpska, various politicians. Whenever there
19 were meetings, I could not attend nor could the others.
20 Q. Are you able to identify the names of any of the other people who
21 came from Republika Srpska?
22 A. I can. Krajisnik would come frequently.
23 Q. Anyone else?
24 A. I once met with Biljana Plavsic in the government of Serbia, and
25 then I drove her to the airport at Batajnica. She would come too.
Page 26593
1 Q. Now, you've identified members of the Serbian MUP as also visiting
2 the office. Are you able to identify any particular names of people from
3 that organisation?
4 A. Yes. His name was Isidor. He would set up the equipment for
5 communications, radio equipment for communication with Krajina. Above the
6 offices there was a centre for monitoring developments in Republika Srpska
7 and in the Republic of Serbian Krajina.
8 Q. You are describing a person from the Serbian MUP setting up
9 communications equipment. Do you know where those lines -- where the
10 other end of those lines were located specifically?
11 A. What do you mean the other end? I didn't quite understand.
12 Q. You said that these lines were set up to monitor events in the
13 Serbian Krajina, I believe. What I'm asking you is do you know in what
14 particular location the other end of those communication lines were
15 terminated, a particular organisation or a particular place?
16 A. There were radio communications, and the antennas were placed on
17 the roof, and there were connections with various commands in the
18 Republika Srpska and the Republic of Serbian Krajina.
19 Q. During the period of which you have knowledge, were there ever any
20 members of the JNA or the VJ visiting the association?
21 A. As far as I know, a security officer came who worked in Korenica,
22 but I cannot recollect his name, from the army of Yugoslavia.
23 Q. And during the time that you're familiar with, was there ever
24 anybody from the Serbian Ministry of Defence who visited the association's
25 offices?
Page 26594
1 A. From the Defence Ministry, no one came. From the army, as far as
2 I know, they didn't come to the association itself. Brana went to
3 meetings, but they didn't come to the association.
4 Q. Can you please describe what you know about meetings with members
5 of the association and members of the Ministry of Defence. How
6 frequently, and where were those meetings held?
7 A. They were held on a daily basis. Every morning, there would be
8 meetings in the state security of the MUP of Serbia where they would
9 review information from the battlefront. And then Milan Prodanic would go
10 to Bubanj Potok where he held meetings every afternoon with Boro Stanisic
11 as to what should be sent where, to what part of the battlefront.
12 Q. Now, before I leave this topic of the association's offices, were
13 there ever any members of paramilitary organisations that you saw visit
14 the office?
15 A. Yes. From Novi Sad, Lajnovic Dugi came, who later was killed. I
16 remember him well coming there. Captain Dragan would also come.
17 Q. Any others?
18 A. I can't remember. Kojic from Borovo Selo.
19 Q. Now, was there ever a time that Mr. Crncevic informed you about
20 some special lines or telephone lines that he had installed in his office?
21 A. It's not a matter that he told me about; I saw those telephone
22 lines. There were special telephone lines with Mr. Milosevic and the
23 state security of the MUP of Serbia.
24 THE INTERPRETER: Could the witness speak up.
25 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] These are special telephones,
Page 26595
1 so-called red telephones, not ordinary telephones.
2 MR. GROOME:
3 Q. Sir, the people doing the translation are asking if you can speak
4 a little bit louder. They're having difficulty hearing everything that
5 you say.
6 Could I ask you, the line that was connected to the -- I believe
7 you said the Serbian state security or the MUP of Serbia, can you tell us,
8 do you know who it was, whose office, that line was connected to?
9 A. At the other end of the line was the state security of MUP Serbia
10 and Mr. Milosevic. The line was directly connected to them. Brana
11 Crncevic had direct communication with them, not using regular lines but
12 those special telephones.
13 Q. Did Mr. Crncevic ever tell you what the purpose of having those
14 direct lines was?
15 A. The purpose of the direct lines was to know exactly what was
16 happening on the theatre of war. Many people came to Brana Crncevic's
17 offices to inform him about developments on the front and then he would
18 convey that information to the state security and the former president,
19 Slobodan Milosevic.
20 Q. Now, before I ask you detailed questions about the activities of
21 the association, can I ask you, in summary fashion, to describe for the
22 Chamber the portion of assistance that was rendered that you, I think
23 believe -- I think you referred to it as "battlefield supplies." Can you
24 give the Chamber some sense of what quantity of battlefield supplies or
25 military equipment passed through the -- passed through the association to
Page 26596
1 the battlefields of Bosnia and the Krajina.
2 A. I can say the exact number from Bubanj Potok in the 1992 -- in
3 1992 towards the end of the year. I think that more than 1.200 trucks of
4 weapons and ammunition passed through Bubanj Potok, and transports by
5 matica -- by the association participated. Then there were also vehicles
6 of the MUP of Serbia that were engaged, as well as private transporters,
7 and trucks were coming from Serbian Krajina and from Republika Srpska.
8 And there was more than 1.200 heavyweight trucks. Not small ones of four
9 and a half tons but those with more than 20 tons carrying capacity.
10 Q. Now, the military equipment that was distributed by the
11 association, do you know from where it came?
12 A. A part of it were radio stations, and these radio stations were
13 received by the association from Serbian societies all over Europe and the
14 world. Actually, the military equipment, the weapons and ammunition, they
15 came from Bubanj Potok 2.
16 Q. Can you please be more precise about what was at Bubanj Potok.
17 What type of facility? Who owned it? What type of facility was at Bubanj
18 Potok from which the association received weapons and ammunition?
19 A. Bubanj Potok number 2 is one of the largest warehouses of
20 ammunition and weapons in the former Yugoslavia. It supplied -- it
21 provided weapons. These are large underground depots. There are hangars
22 above ground. In addition to those depots, there is Bubanj Potok 1, which
23 was used as a training ground and shooting range, and it is from there
24 that people were sent to the front, and the two facilities about -- are
25 about 2 kilometres apart.
Page 26597
1 Q. Bubanj Potok 2 where the ammunition and weapons were stored, who
2 owned that facility?
3 A. The warehouse was owned by military post 5055, that is the command
4 of the city of Belgrade.
5 Q. What, if you know, was the relationship between the MUP of Serbia
6 and either Bubanj Potok 1, the training facility, or Bubanj Potok 2, the
7 storage facility?
8 A. The relationship between the MUP of Serbia and the warehouses was
9 such there were only two men involved, Bora Stanisic and Milan Prodanic.
10 Milan Prodanic came with the orders what should be carried and Bora
11 Stanisic prepared the transport convoys and sent them off to the front.
12 So the link with the state security of MUP in the MUP of Serbia was that a
13 very small circle of people in the former JNA actually knew what was going
14 on in Bubanj Potok, at least as far as I know. The same applies to the
15 MUP of Serbia. A very small circle of people were aware of that.
16 Q. What percentage of the weapons and ammunition that were
17 distributed by the association came from Bubanj Potok 2, from VP 5055?
18 A. A very large per cent. It's not negligible. Nowadays, you could
19 supply, well, one-third of the former Yugoslavia, say, as regards
20 manpower. The figure speaks in itself. One thousand two hundred trucks
21 in 1992. These are heavy trucks. You could arm a great many men.
22 Q. Can I ask you to simply list the names of any people who
23 significantly contributed to the distribution of weapons from Bubanj
24 Potok. You've mentioned Bora Stanisic already. Are there any other
25 officers, either military or civilian employees, whose names should be
Page 26598
1 recorded here as being involved in this?
2 A. Yes. Bubanj Potok had a total of five persons. There was Dule
3 Malusic. He was a sergeant in the military police. Then there was also a
4 man called Rile. He was a civilian military person employed by the army
5 of Yugoslavia. Then there was a man called Brka, and then there was a man
6 called Buca who died. He was actually the main person in charge of
7 warehouses in Bubanj Potok and he died during the war, but how he died is
8 something that has never been explained.
9 Q. Was there any particular piece of military equipment or weaponry
10 that had to be purchased separately from what was received from these
11 military warehouses?
12 A. Yes. The former JNA did not have silencers only, because this was
13 not part of regular requirements. This was manufactured in Kaludjerica
14 near Belgrade; a privately owned workshop manufactured them. The payments
15 for these silencers were made, as far as I know, by the state security of
16 the MUP of Serbia.
17 JUDGE KWON: Mr. Groome, if you could clarify a couple of things
18 with the witness.
19 MR. GROOME: Yes, Your Honour.
20 JUDGE KWON: First, whether Bubanj Potok is the name of a military
21 facility or a name of a place. Secondly, whether it is in Belgrade or
22 near Belgrade.
23 MR. GROOME: Yes, Your Honour.
24 Q. Sir, if I may clarify those points that Judge Kwon is inquiring
25 about. Let's take Bubanj Potok. The place that you're referring to as
Page 26599
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Page 26600
1 Bubanj Potok 1, was that the official name or simply the name of the place
2 where it was located?
3 A. This is a locality. This is where the place actually was. It's
4 outside Belgrade, a few kilometres on the road to Nis. You get off the
5 highway, after a few kilometres Bubanj Potok 1 is on the left-hand side.
6 Bubanj Potok 2 is on the right-hand side. But the two facilities are
7 divided. Both belonged to the army of Yugoslavia.
8 Q. Sir, Bubanj Potok 1, did it have any official name, let's say, at
9 the gate or any official address that you can recall now?
10 A. As far as I know, no. Quite simply, it was called Bubanj Potok 1.
11 When you received call-up papers for mobilisation, it would say Bubanj
12 Potok 1. That's where you were mobilised to.
13 Q. And does the same hold true for Bubanj Potok 2?
14 A. No. Bubanj Potok 2 was a closed facility. It only consisted of
15 storage facilities for military equipment, nothing else.
16 Q. Now, the weapons that -- and ammunition that the association
17 received from Bubanj Potok 2, did it have a place where the association
18 itself would temporarily store those weapons prior to them being
19 distributed in Croatia and Bosnia?
20 A. In some cases, yes. We had some parking space at the Belgrade
21 fairgrounds or, rather, the entrance to the Belgrade fairgrounds on the
22 right-hand side. This is where some old workshops existed before. And
23 then we were given this parking space so that vehicles could be parked
24 there before they went to Republika Srpska and Republika Srpska Krajina.
25 For a while while Kertes was in the MUP, we had -- we had their hangars
Page 26601
1 too in Makis, and that also belonged to the MUP of Serbia.
2 Q. Now, an earlier witness has talked about a location that he
3 described as an overpass in the vicinity of the fairgrounds. Are you
4 familiar with an overpass, an elevated highway, in the vicinity of the
5 fairgrounds?
6 A. This is right underneath the overpass. It's underneath the
7 highway, the loop of highway is called the Gazelle. It's on the left-hand
8 side. It's at the very entrance into the Belgrade fairgrounds.
9 Q. So the location you're describing as where the trucks would be
10 parked, this is under a highway. Is that what you're describing?
11 A. Well, perhaps you can put it that way, although it's a bit to the
12 left compared to the highway, because there was this big haul of the
13 Belgrade fairgrounds that the matica used for humanitarian aid, medicine
14 and things like that, and that was right underneath the highway loop, and
15 I don't know whether that's what you had in mind.
16 Q. Now, in addition to this storage facility, were -- did the
17 association ever transport weapons directly from facilities belonging to
18 the Serbian MUP, and if so, can you please identify the location of those
19 facilities?
20 A. I can identify them. There was a warehouse in Ostruznica that
21 belonged to the MUP of Serbia, and that is where transports directly
22 started as well. Later on, a warehouse was made towards the very end in
23 Lipovica. The army of Yugoslavia gave this to the MUP of Serbia. This is
24 E on the road leading to Barajevo.
25 Q. Sir, I am now going to ask that you be shown Exhibit 539, tab 2.
Page 26602
1 It is a document dated the 1st of September, 1992. Can I ask you to look
2 at it and tell us whether you recognise the document; and if so, please
3 comment on its contents.
4 A. Yes. This is what the association got, 10.000 litres of diesel
5 fuel for meeting its own needs, and it was by way of coupons for the month
6 of September.
7 Q. This fuel that the association received, was it used in the
8 distribution of -- solely for the distribution of humanitarian aid, as
9 indicated in this document?
10 A. No. No. All this fuel was obtained for military and civilian
11 aid. Also, we used fuel from military storage facilities. Bubanj Potok 2
12 had a gasoline station of their own, and we got fuel from there. And no
13 payments were made for that fuel; we simply received it.
14 Q. I ask that the witness be shown Exhibit 539, tab 3, and I'd ask
15 you the same question, sir: If you can identify this document; and if so,
16 please describe its -- its meaning to the Chamber.
17 A. This is a document of the Ministry for Communications with Serbs
18 outside Serbia. The address is Nusiceva number 4, and this gives approval
19 to take over 2.500 litres of fuel in accordance with the decision of the
20 ministry of the government of Serbia.
21 Q. If I can now ask you to take a look at Exhibit 539, tab 4. It is
22 an undated piece of paper containing a list of numbers. Can I ask you to
23 describe what is the significance of the names and phone numbers contained
24 on this exhibit.
25 A. These are telephone numbers of Jugopetrol, Beopetrol, and the
Page 26603
1 Nafta gas company from Novi Sad. There were contacts with them when
2 certain amounts of fuel were required. These are the direct telephone
3 numbers of the general managers of Jugopetrol, Dragan Tomic; the director
4 of the former Beopetrol, Mileta Nedjo; and contacts were made with him, if
5 necessary, to take over fuel from their storage facilities or gasoline
6 stations.
7 Q. Sir, so that the record is clear, I've just been asking you
8 questions about military equipment and ammunition. Would it be fair to
9 say that significant amounts of humanitarian - purely humanitarian - aid
10 were also distributed by the association to those people in need in both
11 the battle-torn areas of Croatia and Bosnia?
12 A. Yes, certainly.
13 Q. Can I ask you to take a look at tab 5 of Exhibit 539, and my
14 question to you is in this document dated the 19th of June, 1992, is this
15 not a record of one such shipment of purely humanitarian aid going to
16 Sarajevo?
17 A. Yes. This aid was sent to Sarajevo. The government of the
18 Republic of Serbia was sending humanitarian aid to Sarajevo. These are
19 different amounts of sugar, flour, oil, everything else that was sent to
20 the area of Pale and Sarajevo.
21 Q. If I can now ask you to take a look at tab 6 of 539. Can you
22 please identify this document - it's a document dated the 17th of June,
23 1992 - and describe its contents for the Chamber.
24 A. This is a document of the Red Cross of Serbia to the government of
25 the Republic of Serbia, to the Ministry for Communication with Serbs
Page 26604
1 Outside Serbia. This is a document requesting that humanitarian aid be
2 brought to the Red Cross warehouses from where matica trucks were supposed
3 to transport it to Pale and Sarajevo.
4 Q. Were you involved in one such convoy that transported humanitarian
5 aid from Belgrade to Pale near Sarajevo?
6 A. Yes.
7 Q. During the course of that convoy or your duties to deliver that
8 convoy, did you have a meeting with Mr. Radovan Karadzic?
9 A. Yes. In that particular case, I actually met with Radovan
10 Karadzic in Pale. Biljana Plavsic and Radovan Karadzic. I had some
11 problems precisely with Radovan Karadzic, because he would not allow me to
12 take a number of trucks that were intended for Sarajevo to Sarajevo
13 itself. He asked for all the trucks to be unloaded in Pale. I opposed
14 that. I would not allow all the trucks to be unloaded in Pale because it
15 was written on the trucks themselves by the Red Cross people that this aid
16 was sent to Serbs, Muslims, and Croats. Actually, to Merhamet and
17 Caritas, the charity organisations.
18 Q. If I could now ask you to look at Exhibit 539, tab 8. Do you
19 recognise this document?
20 A. Yes, I recognise this document too. This is a document that was
21 received by the Association of Serbs from the public security station in
22 Donji Lapac in Lika, specifying all the equipment they needed for this
23 police station of theirs in Donji Lapac. Most of this is military
24 materiel.
25 Among this materiel, inter alia, silencers were being requested
Page 26605
1 for automatic rifles; 35 for sniper rifles, for 7.9-millimetre rifles, and
2 for Scorpios silencers as well, 15 pieces.
3 Q. Sir, this document, is this document an example of the types of
4 documents that would be sent to the association requesting ammunition and
5 military equipment?
6 A. Yes.
7 Q. Now, you've testified earlier about Mr. Prodanic and Bora Stanisic
8 having meetings. Can I ask you to describe where they would have those
9 meetings and with what frequency.
10 A. The meetings between Milan Prodanic and Bora Stanisic at first
11 took place at the warehouse of Bubanj Potok 2. There was a small office
12 within the hall itself. It's a makeshift office, a very small one. It
13 was made mostly for the winter, because these hangars are very cold during
14 the winter. However, these conversations could be overheard as well
15 because it wasn't a properly built room.
16 Later on, these meetings were held at the matica hall every
17 afternoon at the Belgrade fairgrounds. That's where humanitarian aid was
18 kept.
19 Q. You've testified that the meetings that were held at Bubanj Potok
20 2 could be overheard. Did you yourself ever overhear those conversations;
21 and if so, could I ask you to just briefly summarise the types of subjects
22 that were discussed at those meetings.
23 A. Well, at these meetings supplies with ammunition and weapons in
24 parts and Bosnia and Croatia, that's what was discussed; what was
25 necessary, what amounts, what kind of weapons, what kind of ammunition.
Page 26606
1 For the most part, that is what these meetings dealt with.
2 Q. You testified earlier about other meetings that were held at the
3 state security building. Can I ask you to be more specific in telling us
4 who would attend these meetings and with what frequency these meetings
5 were held?
6 A. Well, meetings at the state security took place every day or,
7 rather, every morning. As far as I know, these meetings were held
8 including the following people: Milan Prodanic, Jovica Stanisic,
9 Tepavcevic, and for a while Mihalj Kertes while he was at the federal MUP.
10 I don't know about the rest but as far as these people are concerned, I
11 heard that they attended these meetings. Mr. Milosevic was also informed
12 about these meetings every day, because I know that when they had
13 discussions in my presence, Mr. Milosevic would have to be informed about
14 these meetings every day.
15 Q. Can I ask you to describe for the Chamber how it is you know about
16 these meetings that were held every morning in the state security?
17 A. Well, of course I know, because when additional amounts of weapons
18 were requested, whenever Prodanic came to Bubanj Potok 2, he would say at
19 the meeting we received information as to what was necessary in which part
20 of the front line so that these deliveries could be made from Bubanj Potok
21 itself. Because the MUP of Serbia itself did not have such large storage
22 facilities and so many weapons in order to be able to send all of this to
23 the front line. Actually, all the military equipment that came from the
24 former Yugoslav republics, from Slovenia, from Croatia, from Macedonia,
25 for the most part was brought to the Bubanj Potok storage facilities and
Page 26607
1 the other storage facilities around Belgrade. So for such weapons -- so
2 as far as these weapons were concerned, they didn't have to be accounted
3 for. There would always be a certain amount that could remain within the
4 storage facility of Bubanj Potok 2 and thus be accounted for. And these
5 weapons didn't have to be recorded, the other ones.
6 As for all these weapons that were needed, over a certain period
7 of time the Territorial Defence of Serbia was abolished. These weapons of
8 the Territorial Defence of Serbia were taken to the front line, actually.
9 Q. The front line where, if you know?
10 A. Republika Srpska and Republika Srpska Krajina, all these places
11 there where of course there were headquarters that received this
12 equipment. At first all of them were civilians. These were not military
13 personnel. It wasn't professional policemen or military personnel who
14 were involved. These were ordinary citizens who were establishing the
15 so-called Territorial Defence at the time, and this ammunition and these
16 weapons were sent to them.
17 Q. The meetings at the state security office of the Serbian MUP, did
18 Mr. Crncevic ever go to those meetings?
19 A. I think he went to these meetings only on a few occasions. He
20 would come to work very late in general. He was a late sleeper in the
21 morning, as far as I know. And the meetings were held early in the
22 morning.
23 Brana Crncevic went to see Jovica Stanisic, I know that. They
24 were good friends. They even visited each other at home.
25 Q. When he -- you say that he would go see or visit Jovica Stanisic.
Page 26608
1 Was this a social visit or a business visit, and where precisely would he
2 go see Mr. Stanisic.
3 A. To the MUP of Serbia. It is a purely business relationship. It's
4 not a private relationship, personal.
5 Q. Now, you testified --
6 JUDGE KWON: Wait a second, please. Mr. B-179, you said that
7 Mr. Milosevic must have been receiving the daily report from the meeting.
8 Could you elaborate on how you came to know that a little more? You said
9 that you had overheard something. What is it that exactly you heard from
10 their conversation?
11 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Well, I heard in Bubanj Potok
12 conversations between Milan Prodanic and Jovica Stanisic, that the
13 president, Mr. Milosevic at the time, had to be informed about everything
14 that was being done. After all, Mr. Milosevic, although he did not
15 command the army, the supreme defence command, it was the MUP of Serbia
16 that was under his command and the state security.
17 JUDGE KWON: So is it your assumption that Mr. Milosevic received
18 the daily report from them?
19 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] It's not my assumption. It's the
20 truth. He received reports. I heard that he received reports from Milan
21 Prodanic, from the state security of Serbia, from the head of the state
22 security of Serbia. It's not an assumption. I heard this with my very
23 own ears.
24 JUDGE KWON: So could you tell me what you heard at that time
25 exactly.
Page 26609
1 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] At that time, I mean on various
2 occasions, I heard that Mr. Milosevic had to be informed about everything
3 that was being sent to the front line. The meetings themselves were held
4 at the state security of the MUP of Serbia in this small circle of people.
5 Milan Prodanic came from these meetings to Bubanj Potok, and he directly
6 conveyed this to Mr. Jovica Stanisic and to Mr. Milosevic.
7 JUDGE KWON: Thank you. Mr. Groome, apart from that, I think you
8 haven't dealt with the paragraph 19 in the summary and the following
9 paragraphs. Was it your intention?
10 MR. GROOME: No, Your Honour. Thank you for pointing that out.
11 I'll return to that now.
12 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
13 MR. GROOME:
14 Q. Before I return to questions that I inadvertently omitted, when
15 you would hear Mr. Prodanic refer to conversations with Mr. Milosevic,
16 what term did he use sometimes to refer to Mr. Milosevic?
17 A. They called him "Dad." They would say, "That is what Dad
18 ordered."
19 Q. Now, prior to the association receiving weapons and ammunition
20 from Bubanj Potok 2 and distributing it, would -- who would have to give
21 permission for those weapons to be released from Bubanj Potok 2 and given
22 to the association?
23 A. You mean permission in terms of having the weapons handed over to
24 the matica so that they could then be transported further to the front
25 line? Is that what you mean?
Page 26610
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Page 26611
1 Q. Precisely.
2 A. Well, I should put it this way: In order to load the weapons onto
3 the trucks, it was Lieutenant Colonel Bora Stanisic from Bubanj Potok who
4 gave orders to that effect. Then it was sent to Bubanj Potok, and then
5 weapons and ammunition were boarded on those trucks. If necessary,
6 medicine and blankets and food were added on to the trucks in the hall of
7 the matica, and then from there the trucks went to different frontlines.
8 It was the MUP of Serbia that issued orders concerning this, and I can
9 explain in which way, so that -- I mean, we did not need any special
10 permission for these transports in order to cross checkpoints of the
11 Ministry of the Interior. Policemen were always informed that
12 such-and-such vehicles would be passing there, and nobody checked these
13 vehicles in any way.
14 Q. Who would Lieutenant Colonel Bora Stanisic receive his orders
15 from? Would it be his military superior or someone else?
16 A. No. No way. It would not be his military superior. It would be
17 the MUP of Serbia; Milan Prodanic specifically and directly.
18 Q. Just so it's clear, what is your understanding about how orders to
19 distribute weapons belonging to the JNA and VJ, what would have been the
20 regular course of that order to give out such weapons?
21 A. Well, it should have been going through the Ministry of Defence
22 and the army of Yugoslavia. However, it didn't go through the Ministry of
23 Defence of Yugoslavia or the army. That would have been the proper
24 course. However, this proper course was bypassed in this case. This work
25 was not supposed to be known about by a great number of people. Only a
Page 26612
1 small number of people knew about it in the circle that I dealt in.
2 Q. Now, if I can change the subject and ask you: Were you personally
3 involved in some convoys that distributed weapons to the Krajina?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. How many times?
6 A. Well, a number of times. I went twice to Zvecevo. I was on
7 convoys led by Bora Stanisic. Sometimes -- for a while, in fact, these
8 convoys started from Bubanj Potok every Friday, would come back on
9 Saturday. Those were pretty large convoys. I usually went to a hospital
10 in Bucje, near Zvecevo, where I dropped off medicine, blankets and other
11 aid, but sometimes I went all the way to Zvecevo where military equipment
12 was stored for that part of the battlefield, the front line. Also, there
13 was one convoy that I led myself instead of Bora Stanisic. It included
14 four trucks that carried ammunition for Podnoble [phoen] at the time of
15 battles in Slavonski Brod and Bosanski Brod.
16 Q. Can I draw your attention to the first time you were involved in
17 one of these convoys. Can I ask you to describe how many trucks in total
18 were involved in the convoy, and can you give us some idea about which
19 percentage of those trucks were carrying humanitarian aid and which were
20 carrying military equipment?
21 A. You mean for Zvecevo.
22 Q. Yes.
23 A. Well, usually there would be ten to 15 trucks. One truck would be
24 carrying only humanitarian aid and other trucks would carry military
25 assistance.
Page 26613
1 Q. Were you ever involved in a convoy in which the Serbian state
2 security had provided the trucks to transport the material?
3 A. Certainly. In most of these convoys, the trucks of the MUP of
4 Serbia were involved. It is true that their trucks were slightly smaller.
5 Those were Mercedes trucks, Mercedes 12 and 13. Their carrying capacity
6 was slightly lower, but they were usually used for carrying supplies
7 within the convoys. Also, there was a time when the MUP of Serbia had a
8 Renault trailer truck that was brought from the front line as war booty.
9 And I know that they were not able to start it for a while because this
10 cab of the truck was operated by remote control.
11 Q. Now, if I can draw your attention to the Republika Srpska, that
12 part of Bosnia. Are you aware of convoys, similar convoys being sent into
13 areas in Bosnia?
14 A. Yes. They sent supplies to all parts of Bosnia, from Sarajevo all
15 the way up to Herzegovina. There were liaison persons, contact persons
16 designated by the MUP of Serbia. They were mainly civilians. As for
17 Sarajevo itself, the liaison was a woman nicknamed Beba, who before the
18 war used to own a cafe in Sarajevo, in Ilidza.
19 Q. Sir, can I ask you just to simply list the different locations in
20 Bosnia that you have personal knowledge that convoys of weapons were sent
21 to these locations.
22 A. Well, supplies were sent to Knin, Gracac, Licka Osijek, also Banja
23 Luka, to Nevesinje in Herzegovina, to Trebinje, although these are very
24 remote places looking from Belgrade, but Belgrade supplied that part of
25 the front line as well. Maybe there were other sources of supplies, but I
Page 26614
1 didn't know about that other part.
2 Q. And with what frequency did these convoys go into Bosnia? Can you
3 give us a -- was it every week, every month? Can you give us some idea of
4 the frequency with which they travelled to Bosnia?
5 A. Well, convoys went practically on a daily basis. They came and
6 went from Bubanj Potok practically every day. They would come back from
7 the front line, from Croatia and Bosnia, and then they would -- these
8 trucks coming from these areas would load supplies and drive it back to
9 their own locations. Trucks came and went every day.
10 Q. Now, the convoys that went to Bosnia, did they go before the
11 conflict broke out, after the conflict broke out, or both?
12 A. Well, let me tell you. Before the conflict, one truck -- I mean,
13 before the conflict in Bosnia, one Scania truck from the association took
14 from Bubanj Potok weaponry to Sarajevo before the conflict broke out in
15 Sarajevo. It was a Scania truck driven by Zeljko Rajcevic who is a
16 professional driver of the association, a refugee from Western Slavonia.
17 Q. Now, can I ask you to describe what was the arrangement with the
18 people who would receive these weapons? Would they have to pay for these
19 weapons? What would happen when the weapons were delivered to the
20 locations in Croatia and Bosnia?
21 A. No. This weaponry was not paid for. It was just received.
22 Q. Would the people receiving the weapons have to sign that they had
23 received them?
24 A. Yes. Everybody had to sign a receipt issued by the command of the
25 city of Belgrade, military post box 5055, and it accompanied on a
Page 26615
1 compulsory basis every truck that was sent out. All these receipts had to
2 be signed for the entire amount contained in the truck, ammunition and
3 weaponry.
4 MR. GROOME: I ask that the witness be shown Exhibit 539, tab 12.
5 Q. Sir, I'd ask you, can you identify this document, how it is you
6 identify this document, and describe its contents.
7 A. This is one of the receipts of the military post 5055, the
8 Belgrade city defence command. It concerned 82-millimetre shells for
9 mortars. The quantity indicated is 225, and that fitted into one van.
10 I personally took it over from Bubanj Potok.
11 Q. Is that your -- is that your signature?
12 A. Yes. This is my signature, meaning that I received it and
13 delivered it to the man who was designated to me from Gabos.
14 Q. Sir, this document has at the top of it for the following materiel
15 received for temporary use. A number of the documents seem to refer that
16 some of this equipment was loaned rather than given outright. My question
17 to you is: Were you ever involved or ever aware of similar transportation
18 carrying back weapons and ammunition from the places from where it was
19 distributed to -- from the places it was distributed?
20 A. No. By no means I never returned these weapons.
21 Q. Was there ever an occasion when you were making a delivery or
22 involved in a delivery when Arkan and his men sought to join the convoy?
23 A. Yes. It was our first travel to Knin, first journey. The first
24 convoy, when it was very difficult to reach Knin and Banja Luka. It was
25 the first convoy that set out for Knin, included me. There was a meeting
Page 26616
1 at a petrol station where I was supposed to meet up with the rest of the
2 convoy that did not belong to my organisation.
3 I had behind me my part of the personnel in my vehicles, and when
4 I came to this petrol station outside of Belgrade, I was met by the
5 vehicles and the men belonging to Arkan. When I realised that those were
6 Arkan's men, knowing what they were doing and what they were dealing with,
7 I ordered my men to start their trucks and to return to the depots where
8 we had started from.
9 However, after awhile, Arkan came with 10 to 15 of his men who
10 were pointing his guns, his automatic rifles, at me and my men. He
11 slapped me, and he told me to order my trucks to start and drive on. In
12 order not to risk the lives of my men, I had to do as he said.
13 Arkan accompanied that convoy up to Modrica, and then he probably
14 returned to new Belgrade; whereas I continued my journey across Plitvice
15 all the way to Knin and only --
16 Q. Sir, that's sufficient detail with Mr. Arkan's involvement in the
17 convoy.
18 You mentioned the association transporting radio transmitters. I
19 just want to ask that you be shown tab 7 of 539. Without going into too
20 much detail, is this document a receipt for a quantity of radio
21 transmitters given to the Republika Srpska?
22 A. Yes. This is a receipt referring to radio transmitters that I
23 gave to Biljana Plavsic for the headquarters of Republika Srpska, and it
24 is directly related, intended for Radovan Karadzic.
25 Q. Did Mrs. Plavsic sign that receipt?
Page 26617
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. Now, did there come a time when General Mladic asked to see some
3 of the people involved in the supply of the VRS with weapons? Again, the
4 detail of the conversation is not as important as just telling us when and
5 where it was you met General Mladic.
6 A. Well, I was at Bubanj Potok 2 when we received a telephone call
7 when it was said that General Mladic wanted to see us, to see who was
8 supplying him with weapons, who was doing that part of the work, and he
9 was waiting for us in a coffee bar near the new Belgrade municipality
10 building, and that was the first time I saw General Mladic in person.
11 Q. Now, was there an occasion when you were asked to escort a
12 truckload of Republic of Serb Krajina dinars from Belgrade to Knin?
13 A. Yes. I was told to send a truckload, and it was again a Scania
14 truck, which is a closed truck, not with a tarpaulin but it had a
15 completely closed box. They told me to load it with money. Those were
16 the first Krajina dinars printed at the mint in Topcider. It was driven
17 again by this man Jovo, who was a refugee from Western Slavonia. He went
18 to the mint and took over between seven and eight tons of banknotes that
19 we sent to Knin.
20 Q. On --
21 A. Also, we carried back from Knin a certain amount of money of all
22 currencies - German marks, dollars, et cetera - and they were driven to
23 the mint at Topcider. That was on the way back.
24 Q. Now, you've testified about being able to pass through checkpoints
25 without any difficulty. I'd ask that you be shown tab 9 of 539 and ask
Page 26618
1 you, are you able to identify this document?
2 A. Yes, I recognise this document. It concerns a bus with Vukovar
3 licence plates, which I drove myself. I have a licence for driving
4 trucks, and I was driving refugees to Lazarevac to a centre for
5 accommodation of refugees, and these used to be barracks for accommodation
6 of miners from that area. The very name of Brana Crncevic made it very
7 easy for us to make our passage anywhere.
8 Q. Whose responsibility was it to notify border crossings and
9 checkpoints, to arrange for the unimpeded access of the trucks
10 transporting weapons for the association?
11 A. That was done by Milan Prodanic, head of the 6th administration of
12 the state security of the MUP of Serbia.
13 Q. Now, during the embargo against the Republika Srpska, was there
14 any significant change in the level of supplies that went from the
15 association to areas of Bosnia-Herzegovina?
16 A. Well, there was no particular change. It continued, but the
17 vehicles had to be removed from Bubanj Potok. They couldn't stay on long.
18 One or two trucks at most would come in at a time, and then they had to be
19 removed after being loaded so as to prevent leakage of the information
20 that this loading was being done there.
21 Q. Now, you've testified earlier about being aware of meetings held
22 in the state security and also of Mr. Milosevic being notified or wanting
23 to be kept informed about the transportation of these weapons. Are you
24 able to say that during the embargo these meetings continued or are you
25 not able to say?
Page 26619
1 A. Yes. Meetings were held even during the embargo. At that time,
2 the meetings were held on the premises of the association, namely, this
3 hall at the Belgrade fairgrounds that belonged to the association.
4 MR. GROOME: I'm going to ask that the witness now be shown
5 Exhibit 539, tab 10.
6 Q. And I'm going to ask you, sir, if you're able to identify this
7 document, and if so, please describe its contents.
8 A. This is one of the applications by Brana Crncevic to the Ministry
9 of Defence of the Republic of Serbia in Nemanjina Street, that is, the
10 government building of Serbia, applying for 15 automatic rifles, eight
11 pistols, four automatic Skorpio pistols, and 500 9-millimetre rounds for
12 pistols.
13 This was approved, and it says here precisely that this was
14 settled and that Boro should give it to the association. In fact, he gave
15 it directly to me, and I distributed it.
16 MR. GROOME: I ask now that the witness be shown 539, tab 11.
17 Q. Sir, this is a series of documents. The specific detail of the
18 documents isn't as important as whether or not you're able to identify
19 what they are; and if you are, can you summarise the general nature of
20 these various documents.
21 A. These are again the documents of military post 5055 concerning the
22 weapons and ammunition that I took over on behalf of the Association of
23 Serbs and Serbian Expatriots.
24 Q. And the equipment described in those documents in tab 11, would it
25 be fair to say that that equipment was ultimately then redistributed by
Page 26620
1 the association to places in Bosnia and Croatia?
2 A. No. These weapons and ammunitions were directly meant for the
3 association. It didn't go to Bosnia or Croatia. It was given to people
4 who worked for the association and for practice purposes, because our
5 staff, our people, were taken to target practice because they had to
6 undergo training.
7 Q. So these documents represent equipment directly issued to the
8 association for the purpose of its distribution, not for actual
9 distribution to a third party itself; is that correct?
10 A. Precisely.
11 Q. Now, was there ever a time when the association was requested to
12 transport actual paramilitary members, members of paramilitary units, to
13 areas in Bosnia and Croatia?
14 A. Yes. On a couple of occasions, Brana was asked to secure trucks
15 for members of various formations that were sent from Bubanj Potok 1.
16 Brana was one of the few people who had enough authority for his requests
17 to be met whenever he asked transport companies like Lasta or any others
18 for trucks of their own to be given to us.
19 MR. GROOME: Finally, I'd ask that the witness be shown tab 13 of
20 539.
21 Q. And once again, sir, I'd ask you if you can recognise this
22 document.
23 A. Yes. This is a thank you note addressed to me from the army of
24 Yugoslavia for my commitment and self-effacing efforts in lending
25 assistance to members of the Territorial Defence and the Serbian people
Page 26621
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Page 26622
1 who were exposed to Ustasha terror and genocide. This was issued by
2 military post 5055, it was signed by Colonel Radoslav Blazic, but honestly
3 I don't even know who that person is.
4 Q. Sir, I have no further questions for you. I would remind you that
5 when you're being asked questions by Mr. Milosevic, that you keep an eye
6 on the red light on his microphone and only begin your answer after that
7 light has been turned off.
8 And if I could advise the Chamber, the only particular areas of
9 sensitivity the Prosecution ask be taken in private session would be the
10 specific job description and title of this witness in the association as
11 well as any other questioning about the previous court proceedings which
12 are listed on page 14 of the summary. Other than that, it is the
13 Prosecution's position that none of it will compromise the identity of the
14 witness.
15 JUDGE MAY: Yes. The registry raised the question of which
16 matters should be under seal.
17 MR. GROOME: Yes, Your Honour. If I could identify those at this
18 stage. They would be tab 1, tab 3, tab 4, tab 9, tab 11, tab 12, and tab
19 13.
20 JUDGE MAY: We will take the usual adjournment now. It will be
21 for 20 minutes.
22 Witness B-179, could you be back in 20 minutes, please, to go on
23 with your evidence. Could you remember this: During the course of those
24 adjournments, don't speak to anybody, please, about your evidence until
25 it's over.
Page 26623
1 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Thank you.
2 JUDGE MAY: We will adjourn now.
3 --- Recess taken at 10.28 a.m.
4 --- On resuming at 10.51 a.m.
5 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Mr. Milosevic, we've decided you should have one
6 hour and a half for cross-examination of this witness. That should be
7 ample time provided you don't argue with him and waste time with other
8 peripheral issues.
9 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] I hope I won't waste time on
10 peripheral issues, Mr. May, though this witness is telling untruths from
11 beginning to end, and therefore, I will have to examine him in some
12 detail, so I'm not sure that I will be able to fit my cross-examination
13 with your envisaged hour and a half.
14 JUDGE MAY: The witness can deal with your first suggestion.
15 Witness B-179, you've heard what the accused has alleged. He's
16 alleged that you've been telling untruths from beginning to end. Is that
17 so or not?
18 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] If he is a liar, I am not. I do not
19 lie.
20 JUDGE MAY: Very well. Yes.
21 Cross-examined by Mr. Milosevic:
22 Q. [Interpretation] Mr. B-179, I see you gave this statement to the
23 investigators on the 11th and 12th of March, 2003. Is that right?
24 A. Yes.
25 Q. You say that the motive for giving this statement to the
Page 26624
1 investigators is to show that Serbs are not a genocidal people. You say,
2 "My motivation for contacting and deliver these documents are to show that
3 the population of Serbia are not the genocide type of people." Is that
4 right?
5 A. Yes.
6 Q. This is in your statement. Do you have your statement?
7 A. No, I don't, but it doesn't matter.
8 Q. Tell me, what does this word "genocide" mean?
9 A. Genocide is killing of one people, Mr. Milosevic. You, as the
10 President of Serbia, inflicted the greatest damage and genocide to your
11 own people, the Serbian people.
12 Q. I'd like you to have a look at your statement, Mr. B-179, and to
13 mark on it the places, paragraphs, or sentences in which you acted in
14 accordance with this motive, that is, your motivation, as you say, to show
15 that Serbs are not genocidal.
16 JUDGE MAY: Cross-examination is not a form of trick or anything
17 like that or any sort of test for the witness. Now, if you want to ask
18 the witness questions, you can, but he cannot possibly comply with that
19 suggestion.
20 Now, rephrase your question.
21 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] The question, Mr. May, was to ask
22 the witness to point to parts of his statement which corroborate what he
23 says he's doing.
24 JUDGE MAY: I heard that, and I've told you that you cannot ask
25 that question. It's not a test for the witness. It's not a proper
Page 26625
1 question, or a trick which you seem to be playing. Now, you can rephrase
2 your question if you want to ask it, or you must move on to a new one.
3 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Very well, Mr. May. I'll move on to
4 other questions.
5 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
6 Q. Tell me, why did you say that for you there is no written trace
7 that you ever took part in any kind of war operations?
8 A. I'll answer that question. According to the war assignment, I
9 come under the military post 5055. Nowhere in my military booklet is it
10 indicated that during the war I took part in the work of any unit of the
11 VP 5055. Also, you know very well that all the documents for Bubanj Potok
12 were burnt. I heard with my own ears when it was stated, that is a
13 conversation between Bora Stanisic and Milan Prodanic who said that all
14 those documents had been destroyed by fire.
15 Q. You mean there were minutes of those conversations between
16 Stanisic and Prodanic and then they were burnt?
17 A. No. Minutes were not kept of their conversations, but the
18 documents of VP 5055 that were sent to the front accompanying weapons and
19 ammunition, those documents that went with the transports were burnt.
20 Q. Mr. B-179, you point out also that on many occasions you risked
21 your own life for the convoys to reach places that were under siege; is
22 that right?
23 A. Yes.
24 Q. Tell me, who could have killed you, as you say that you were
25 risking your life?
Page 26626
1 A. Who could kill me? Among others, they could have killed me in
2 Western Slavonia. Whenever we went to Zvecevo in a convoy, fire was
3 opened at us from artillery weapons. Also, there were quite a lot of
4 tricks when I was driving the truck to Sarajevo on the way there and back.
5 If you remember the first convoy of the government of Serbia sent to Pale,
6 Cvijan was on television announcing that a convoy of aid was leaving for
7 Pale that morning. I didn't go early, as planned intentionally, but I
8 left at noon, and instead of my column, another column was framed. Eleven
9 drivers were killed from Milici who were transporting ore. I was told
10 that the road to Milici from Zvornik was safe. I went around a different
11 way. Instead of via Milici, I went via Sekovici to Vlasenica.
12 Q. Mr. 179, you say that you risked your life to reach the places
13 that were under siege; is that right?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. Who held those places under siege?
16 A. If you mean -- I can give you the example of Mirkovci. On one
17 occasion, I was tasked to drive Dr. Aco Todorovic from the Emergency Ward
18 and two technicians, only one arrived. However, when I reached Sid, the
19 driver who was to take them over with other medical equipment didn't dare
20 go. He was elderly man, and he was frightened, and he didn't dare go to
21 Mirkovci.
22 That time, I asked the president of the municipality, Ljilja
23 Popovic, as no one wanted to go with them, I continued with them to
24 Mirkovci, and I passed through various barricades. I also crossed the
25 Sarajevo airfield amid shooting, but my people didn't kill anyone.
Page 26627
1 Q. But who held those places under siege?
2 A. The Croatian army.
3 Q. So this means that Serbs in Croatia in many places were besieged.
4 A. Yes, they were.
5 Q. Did the Serbs attack the Croats and place themselves under siege
6 or were they attacked and that is how they came to be under siege?
7 A. Mr. Milosevic, one could give you a very lengthy answer to that
8 question. I've seen so much that I don't know whom to trust any more.
9 I'll give you an example from those very Mirkovci.
10 On that journey to Mirkovci, I was escorted by two tanks, a van
11 that I drove, and another truck that was transporting weapons. Look at
12 this absurdity of yours. In that truck there were weapons for Mirkovci.
13 It was distributed to the citizens of Mirkovci. And in Mirkovci, you had
14 one of the major warehouses of weapons and ammunitions. I think you are
15 very familiar with this location, Vrapcana. I had a lot of trouble with
16 offices of the state security of the army of Yugoslavia because of that
17 warehouse.
18 Q. To tell you the truth, I don't know anything about Vrapcana and
19 storage of weapons there.
20 A. You will understand, because from Vrapcana it was the Croatian
21 army that was supplied with weapons and ammunition. An officer, a JNA
22 officer, a captain would transport weapons to Vinkovci every morning in
23 four trucks. In those days, he was the commander. The commander in
24 Mirkovci was Belgan [phoen]. We asked those trucks to be searched one day
25 and the captain would not allow it. And it is common knowledge when
Page 26628
1 trucks leave what they look like when they're full. You can see how heavy
2 they are when they weigh down on the wheels, and you can see what they
3 look like when they're empty. So you were arming both sides.
4 Q. We were arming both sides, were we?
5 A. Not we, but you.
6 Q. Very well, B-179. I hear that assertion for the first time.
7 Now, tell me, please, as you say in paragraph 2 of your statement,
8 you were a member of the Serbian Renewal Movement.
9 A. I was never a member of any party, of the League of Communists or
10 any of your parties, but I joined the Serbian Renewal Movement precisely
11 to topple your regime in 1998.
12 Q. Is it true that as a member of that party, the Serbian Renewal
13 Movement, SPO, you must know that the SPO headed all the opposition
14 activities directed against what you call the regime?
15 A. Let me tell you something, Vozdovac municipality, where I reside,
16 the SPO was in power and the SPS and JUL. So you can't say that the
17 opposition was in power. You were in power. I felt the consequences very
18 well on my own back. Your authorities first tried to seize my house, then
19 to destroy my --
20 Q. Let's not talk about your house and who wanted to seize your
21 house, et cetera. I really wouldn't like to go into such things here now.
22 As a volunteer during 1991, 1992, 1993, that is the period you're
23 testifying about, you worked as a volunteer in the Association of
24 Emigrants; is that right?
25 A. Yes. I was a volunteer in that association. When aid was asked
Page 26629
1 for Borovo Selo, Brano Crncevic announced over the media an appeal for
2 help to Borovo Selo and to assist the refugees crossing the Sava River. I
3 had a large boat that I made myself with two engines, Yamaha and Mercury,
4 and I made a gift them to Borovo Selo and went there myself.
5 Q. Do you know how many volunteers in the course of 1991, 1992, and
6 1993 were sent by the SPO to the front in Croatia?
7 A. No. I had no interest in statistics.
8 Q. And do you remember when Vuk Draskovic founded the so-called
9 Serbian Guards? I assume you know that.
10 A. I know something about it. I think there were offices also in
11 Nusiceva Street. That is Vuk Draskovic's offices, close to the matica, in
12 fact. As I say, I was never involved in politics. It never interested
13 me.
14 Q. But Vuk Draskovic in those days was a politician who said that
15 every hand that isn't a Serbian hand should be cut off.
16 A. No.
17 Q. You don't remember that statement of his? Was that a call for
18 conflict and war or not?
19 JUDGE MAY: He doesn't remember the statement, so there's not much
20 point asking him that.
21 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Very well.
22 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
23 Q. Just to establish the real motives for your testimony, in addition
24 to testifying here, as you yourself said, you are my political opponent.
25 That's how you described yourself; isn't that right?
Page 26630
1 A. Mr. Milosevic, when you came to power, to be quite sincere, I
2 thought an intelligent man had come to lead the Serbian people.
3 Q. Will you please answer my questions briefly.
4 A. Why briefly? I have to give you a full answer. I can't give you
5 a yes or no answer. But with subsequent developments, I drew my own
6 conclusions and an opinion about you, and formed an opinion about you.
7 Q. Is it true that you came to the Emigrants Association upon your
8 own initiative, disturbed by the fact -- by the well-known event when Mr.
9 Seskocevic [phoen] drowned, a man from Borovo Selo, because his boat
10 capsized? And you contributed to the humanitarian fund for refugees from
11 Croatia your own boat, you offered your own boat to transport people from
12 Borovo Selo; is that right?
13 A. Yes. I gave them a metal boat that I made myself. It was for 12
14 men. A bullet couldn't pierce it because it was made of steel sheeting.
15 Q. And then you volunteered to transport refugees from Croatia and
16 humanitarian aid through the only then established refugee camps; is that
17 right?
18 A. Yes.
19 Q. And it was assumed at the time that, as a patriot, you wanted to
20 help the humanitarian activities of the matica, of the association; is
21 that right?
22 A. The humanitarian aid to the whole people, not just the matica.
23 Q. I'm talking about the humanitarian activities of the matica, of
24 the association, which was distributing aid all over. That is not in
25 dispute.
Page 26631
1 A. No. No, it is not in dispute.
2 Q. Tell me, please, is it true from one humanitarian activity you
3 didn't return? You stayed in Mirkovci of your own free will for a couple
4 of months?
5 A. It is not true.
6 Q. According to information I have, you stayed there for a couple of
7 months, and you did arms trading over there. Is that right?
8 A. No, it's not right, Mr. Milosevic. I entered Mirkovci nine times
9 and left Mirkovci. Now, what kind of weapons could I trade in? Where
10 would I get the weapons from?
11 Q. You enumerated enormous quantities of weapons that you allegedly
12 transported.
13 A. I did.
14 Q. So that's why I'm saying you had them if you claim that you were
15 transporting them.
16 A. I think I said a moment ago that I went to Mirkovci accompanied by
17 a truck with weapons that was distributed in Mirkovci. I didn't say that
18 I was transporting those weapons.
19 Q. Very well, Mr. B-179. (redacted)
20 (redacted)
21 (redacted)
22 (redacted)
23 (redacted)
24 (redacted)
25 (redacted)
Page 26632
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Page 26633
1 MR. GROOME: Your Honour.
2 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Yes.
3 MR. GROOME: Could I ask that this be redacted and any remaining
4 questions about the specific position this witness held be taken in closed
5 session or private session.
6 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Do you have any more questions on this topic,
7 Mr. Milosevic? If so, we'll go into private session.
8 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
9 Q. Is it true, Mr. B-179, that convoys were organised occasionally
10 when humanitarian aid had been gathered from various quarters, including
11 from Serbs in the diaspora, and for the drivers, volunteers were chosen,
12 and it could be a representative of the company who had collected the most
13 food or sanitary material or even Serbs from the diaspora who were willing
14 to go with that convoy of aid organised by the Emigrants Association?
15 A. No, that's not true. All -- I led all the transports with my men
16 who were armed. No one else could have taken those transports. I headed
17 all those transports of humanitarian aid from the Serbs Association.
18 JUDGE MAY: Deal with the other point the accused makes. He
19 alleges that convoys were organised occasionally when humanitarian aid had
20 been gathered from various quarters. Is that an accurate description of
21 what was happening or not?
22 Yes. Could you answer, please.
23 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I see, you're asking me. Well, let
24 me tell you, it was like this: I would take a humanitarian convoy from
25 Vojvodina when the locals were sending aid for the Lika battlefront. It
Page 26634
1 consisted of 18 trucks. Those were those occasional convoys. What
2 affected me most in those convoys, let me tell you straight away, when I
3 reached the final destination, Gracac, it was requested that things would
4 be loaded onto other trucks and taken to shops, to outlets, instead of
5 being distributed to the people.
6 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Can I move on, Mr. May?
7 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
8 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
9 Q. Mr. 179, Mr. Groome asked you to mention all the places you went
10 to, and I wrote down here what you said. You say that you went twice in
11 convoys that went to Zvecevo.
12 A. Yes.
13 Q. So that's right. But you didn't get to Zvecevo itself. You
14 stopped somewhere; isn't that right?
15 A. No. I handed over my equipment at Bucje. That was equipment for
16 a hospital, but I continued to Zvecevo with the rest of the convoy.
17 Q. When you handed over what you had for Bucje, there was a hospital
18 at Bucje wasn't it, Mr. 179?
19 A. Yes, that's right.
20 Q. So you gave blankets and medicines and things of that sort to the
21 hospital; is that right?
22 A. Yes.
23 Q. So you did not bring any weapons to Bucje, you gave them medical
24 equipment, blankets and other things that a hospital needs?
25 A. Not me, but Bora Stanisic took the convoy further. I mentioned
Page 26635
1 that. And the other part of the convoy that went to Zvecevo was
2 ammunition and weapons.
3 Q. All right. So you went twice in these convoys to Zvecevo. Once
4 you went in a convoy to the region of Bosanski Brod; is that right?
5 A. I led that convoy. It was a purely military convoy. It wasn't
6 humanitarian.
7 Q. All right. From what I see here, you say that you were in a
8 convoy that went to Zvecevo -- rather, two for Zvecevo, one for Bosanski
9 Brod and one that went to Sarajevo; is that right?
10 A. Inter alia, yes.
11 Q. Did you lead any other convoy except for these four that you
12 mentioned?
13 A. Yes. I can list more if you wish.
14 THE INTERPRETER: The interpreters cannot hear the question.
15 JUDGE MAY: Repeat the question, would you, please. We're having
16 some trouble with the monitors here. I take it that the transcript is
17 still running. I'm told that it is.
18 Yes. Could you repeat the question, please, Mr. Milosevic.
19 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
20 Q. It was my understanding on the basis of what you said that you
21 were in two convoys for Zvecevo, one convoy that went to the area of
22 Bosanski Brod and one convoy that went to Sarajevo. That is what you
23 mentioned in response to the questions put to you by Mr. Groome.
24 Tell me now, what were these other convoys in addition to the four
25 ones that you mentioned? What were the other ones that you were involved
Page 26636
1 in?
2 A. I can mention others. You probably remember the number of people
3 in Smoluca, between 4.000 and 7.000 of them that were surrounded for
4 months. I also led the humanitarian convoy that went to Smoluca. Is that
5 perhaps incorrect as well?
6 Q. This is the first time I see you, and it's the first time I've
7 heard of you. How can I say whether it was correct whether you led a
8 convoy or not.
9 (redacted)
10 (redacted)
11 A. Yes.
12 Q. And then you claim that -- you claim that you held a position for
13 which I claim, according to the information provided by the matica, never
14 even existed.
15 A. Well, officially for you none of us who were involved in this line
16 of work existed.
17 Q. And you claim that this kind of position did existed and that you
18 actually held that job?
19 (redacted)
20 (redacted)
21 (redacted)
22 Q. All right. That does not explain at all what I'm asking you right
23 now. In tab 9, you provided an authorisation given by the Matica of
24 Emigrants, and you can see that it was signed by Brana Crncevic, president
25 of the matica, and it says here in tab 9 that this is an authorisation
Page 26637
1 enabling a vehicle, a bus, TAM, registration plates such-and-such. It can
2 be used on behalf of the Centre of Serbs and Emigrants of Serbia, Nusiceva
3 4 Belgrade, for the needs of refugees from Croatia.
4 So you have this document where it says that you, as a bus driver,
5 namely that this bus and that you as its driver have the job of meeting
6 the needs and helping emigrants from Croatia, refugees from Croatia; is
7 that right?
8 A. Yes. That is only one of the authorisations given for
9 transporting persons, refugees, actually, to the prefabricated buildings
10 of the Lazarevac mine. And what you've been claiming, that I never had
11 that job and that I never received payments for it, I have a document, and
12 I would like you to see it. The matica paid me.
13 JUDGE MAY: Wait a minute, you're giving evidence to a court, not
14 a private conversation with him.
15 Do you know anything about this, Mr. Groome? What is it?
16 MR. GROOME: I'm not sure what document the witness is referring
17 to now, Your Honour.
18 JUDGE MAY: Have we got anybody who can help translate it here? I
19 doubt it.
20 MR. GROOME: I would be able to have it translated within the
21 hour, Your Honour.
22 JUDGE MAY: We'll try and deal with this, Witness, by -- if you
23 would hand it over to Mr. Groome, he can have a look at it and then we'll
24 try and put it to the accused in a moment, but let's deal with it by
25 starting with Mr. Groome.
Page 26638
1 Yes. Mr. Milosevic, go on.
2 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
3 Q. As regards this document, as far as I managed to understand what
4 you were saying a few minutes ago, this is a document that confirmed that
5 they paid you your salary; is that right?
6 (redacted)
7 (redacted)
8 (redacted)
9 (redacted)
10 Q. Mr. 179, that's the information I have --
11 JUDGE MAY: Now, look, if you're going to ask any more questions
12 about the witness or his jobs, you must do so in private session. Now,
13 you know those rules.
14 Now, do you want to ask any more questions along those lines?
15 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Well, I just want to clarify this,
16 Mr. May, but let's wait then and take a look at this document and then
17 I'll put questions in connection with that.
18 JUDGE MAY: We'll go into private session for this.
19 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] There is no need for it.
20 JUDGE MAY: We will go into private session, and then we'll see if
21 we can go into open session.
22 [Private session]
23 (redacted)
24 (redacted)
25 (redacted)
Page 26639
1 (redacted)
2 (redacted)
3 (redacted)
4 (redacted)
5 (redacted)
6 (redacted)
7 (redacted)
8 (redacted)
9 (redacted)
10 (redacted)
11 (redacted)
12 [Open session]
13 THE REGISTRAR: We're in open session.
14 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
15 Q. All right, Mr. 179. You say that during the war, the matica
16 distributed to the Serbs in Croatia some assistance and that 80 per cent
17 were donations given by Serbs who lived abroad. Is that what you said?
18 A. Yes. Humanitarian aid.
19 Q. That's the kind of assistance I'm talking about, because that is
20 what the matica dealt with, humanitarian aid.
21 And then you say that the government of Serbia financed the
22 matica. Do you know for how long the matica has been in existence?
23 A. I know that it's been in existence for a very long time. I don't
24 know exactly how many years.
25 Q. So you don't know.
Page 26640
1 A. No, I don't.
2 Q. Then I'm not going to ask you about that.
3 And is it correct then, Mr. B-179, that Serbs, regardless of
4 whether they were Serbs from the diaspora or Serbs from Serbia itself,
5 used the matica, the association, to send humanitarian aid through it in
6 various forms to Serbs in Bosnia and to Serbs in Croatia?
7 A. Yes. The matica was used for that. Who else? At any rate, all
8 assistance coming from the diaspora went through the matica for the most
9 part. After awhile the bureau of the Government of Republika Srpska was
10 opened, and then part of this aid went through them. I can also tell you
11 that there were two trucks that were used by the matica were actually
12 given to this bureau of the Government of Republika Srpska so that they
13 could use them for this aid. These were actually trailer trucks from
14 Bugojno.
15 Q. Let's clarify this, Mr. B-179. Matica did receive donations,
16 financial donations, from citizens of Serbia, from emigrants, and used
17 that money to buy food, medicine, and other things that they sent by way
18 of humanitarian aid; is that right?
19 A. Yes, that's right.
20 Q. The matica decided how and in which way it would use the money it
21 received by way of donations, and they used that money to send aid to
22 those they thought were needy.
23 A. Yes.
24 Q. Is that right?
25 A. Yes.
Page 26641
1 Q. Is it correct that this money was used as humanitarian aid only
2 and no weapons were ever bought from that money?
3 A. As far as I know, that's correct. Weapons were never bought.
4 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone, please.
5 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
6 Q. Is it correct that humanitarian aid often came in the form of
7 food, medicines, clothing, and other things that were needed and that were
8 then again sent through the matica to the places where the population was
9 in greatest peril?
10 A. That is correct. There was a hall at Belgrade fairgrounds where
11 all these things were accumulated and then sent further on by way of
12 humanitarian aid.
13 Q. All right. This hall at the Belgrade fairgrounds where all the
14 aid came to, this was primarily clothing, medicine, food, blankets; other
15 things that were needed. There weren't any weapons there; isn't at that
16 right?
17 A. Well, not really. Once I brought some 120-millimetre mortars to
18 that hall from the warehouses, the military warehouses.
19 Q. You brought mortars to the hall of the Matica of Emigrants?
20 A. Yes, I did.
21 A. From your testimony here and from the documents that you provided,
22 I saw that you stated that the only exception was when a few radio
23 transmitters were taken to some headquarters in Croatia and Bosnia, and
24 you proved that by way of some document, and you say it was signed by
25 Biljana Plavsic. Is that right?
Page 26642
1 A. Yes. Yes. That's right. But there is another thing. You forgot
2 that I also had parking space for trucks at the entrance into Belgrade
3 fairgrounds, on the right-hand side. That is where the vehicles with
4 ammunition and weapons were.
5 Q. It is not clear to me. Could you please explain this to me.
6 Where did these vehicles with weapons and ammunition come from to the
7 parking space of the matica? What were they doing in the parking space of
8 the matica?
9 A. Well, let me tell you. Precisely because they were not supposed
10 to spend any time in Bubanj Potok, they were not supposed to spend any
11 time at the MUP warehouses. They had to be kept in innocent locations, if
12 we are going to call them that. As a matter of fact, even at my own plot
13 of land sometimes these trucks with ammunition and weapons were kept so
14 that the public could not be aware of them.
15 Q. You kept such trucks at your very own plot of land? Did somebody
16 from the matica tell you that you should keep trucks with weapons and
17 ammunition on your own plot of land?
18 A. Bora Stanisic and Milan Prodanic did. Don't tell me that Milan
19 Prodanic was not acting on your instructions.
20 Q. I did not have any -- as far as I know, Milan Prodanic is an
21 official of the state security.
22 Tell me now, this document that you provided here in relation to
23 the radio transmitters and you say that it was signed by Biljana Plavsic,
24 is this a document that you gave to the investigators or did the
25 investigators give this document to you?
Page 26643
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Page 26644
1 A. No. I gave this document to the investigators. I picked up
2 Biljana Plavsic that time at the government of Serbia. I used my own car
3 to take her to the airport in Batajnica where she boarded a helicopter,
4 and that's where she signed this document for me that she received these
5 radio transmitters.
6 THE INTERPRETER: The interpreters did not hear the question.
7 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes.
8 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
9 Q. Where did these radio transmitters come from?
10 A. They by JAT aircraft from Germany, Yugoslav Airlines aircraft from
11 Germany.
12 Q. All right. Tell me now: You say that the president of the
13 matica, Brana Crncevic -- was Brana Crncevic. He's a writer otherwise.
14 You know that, don't you?
15 A. Yes.
16 Q. He's a well-known writer.
17 A. Yes.
18 Q. You say that he was a member of the Socialist Party of Serbia.
19 A. Well, I'll tell you now, now, whether he was a member of the
20 Socialist Party -- you answer my question: Was he at the congress of the
21 Socialist Party of Serbia in Sava centre as an associate member of the
22 Socialist Party of Serbia?
23 Q. Brana Crncevic was never a member of the Socialist Party of
24 Serbia, and he could have been there as a guest at some event, including
25 the congress itself, but he was never a member of the Socialist Party of
Page 26645
1 Serbia.
2 A. He used to say that he was an associate member. I don't know what
3 it means to be an associate member.
4 Q. He could not have said that he was an associate member because he
5 was not a member.
6 JUDGE MAY: This is just a waste of time, this kind of discussion.
7 Let's move on.
8 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] All right.
9 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
10 Q. Is it clear to you that Brana Crncevic could have been only one of
11 the many guests there? In no other capacity could he have been there
12 because he was not a member.
13 JUDGE MAY: No. This is a point you know about, whether he was or
14 not a member. The witness doesn't. So what is the point of wasting time
15 like this on it?
16 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, I have that document now returned to
17 court if the -- I'm not sure -- I can summarise basically what it is. It
18 is unclear to us at this stage its relevance, but it's basically a
19 contract signed between the -- this witness and other person of a fund
20 that seems to have some dealings with the association or the matica.
21 JUDGE MAY: Very well.
22 MR. GROOME: It's there if the Chamber --
23 JUDGE MAY: Just remind me what the matica association is.
24 MR. GROOME: It's the Association of Serbian Emigres.
25 JUDGE MAY: It's also known as the matica.
Page 26646
1 JUDGE KWON: I think "matica" is translation of "association."
2 MR. GROOME: In Serbian, yes.
3 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
4 MR. GROOME: A proper translation is being done now. I'm not sure
5 it will be down within the next few minutes, but it should be down before
6 the cross-examination concludes.
7 JUDGE MAY: It may not matter for the moment. Is this a matter
8 which should be dealt with in private session? We'll deal with the
9 document.
10 MR. GROOME: I think it should be, Your Honour, yes, if the
11 accused is going to ask questions about this document.
12 JUDGE MAY: Let us go into private session, and let the accused
13 see the document.
14 [Private session]
15 (redacted)
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17 (redacted)
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Page 26651
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19 [Open session]
20 THE REGISTRAR: We're in open session.
21 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
22 Q. So this document by way of which the fund of the Serbian
23 Association Nikola Tesla from Zurich is sending some equipment cannot be
24 evidence that the Association of Emigrants of Serbia used its own money to
25 purchase that equipment. Would it be fair to say that all donations
Page 26652
1 received by the Association of Emigrants of Serbia were used to buy
2 humanitarian aid for those who were in the greatest need?
3 A. Yes. That's precisely what we said. That is not in dispute.
4 That is the truth.
5 Q. Thank you. Thank you very much. Are you aware, since you are
6 talking about Brana Crncevic, do you know that he was at that time deputy
7 to the Assembly of Serbia but as an independent deputy, a non-party
8 candidate? He was not a member of any party, including the Socialist
9 Party of Serbia.
10 A. I know that he was an assemblyman, but whether he was independent
11 or not, I don't know. I never was involved in politics. I was not
12 interested, and I'm still not interested.
13 Q. In paragraph 7 of your statement, you say that in relation with
14 the activities you were involved in, that you know that the Association of
15 Emigrants transported more than 1.200 trucks with ammunition, weapons, and
16 humanitarian aid to Krajina and the territory of the Republika Srpska. Do
17 you say that here?
18 A. What I said is this: Among other things, the Association of
19 Emigrants was involved in the transport of these 1.200 trucks. MUP
20 vehicles and civilian vehicles and vehicles that came from the battlefield
21 were also involved, not only the association.
22 Q. I want us to clear up one thing here. The Association of
23 Emigrants of Serbia dealt in humanitarian aid. It did not deal in nor did
24 it own any weapons that it could have sent to anyone. Is that true,
25 Mr. 179, or not?
Page 26653
1 A. Well, Mr. Milosevic, then why would I or my men get these weapons?
2 Q. We'll come to that because that is the only specific matter
3 related to weapons and the Association of Emigrants. That's tab 10, and I
4 would like you to look at it. It's signed by Brana Crncevic. It's
5 possible that such a document exists.
6 "Please issue for the purposes of the Association of Serbs and
7 Serbian Emigrants for escorts of convoys and security to issue the
8 following things: 15 automatic rifles, 8 pistols, 4 automatic pistols,
9 500 rounds and appropriate ammunition."
10 So 15 automatic rifles, 8 pistols, 4 automatic pistols, and 500
11 rounds. But it is specified very clearly for the purposes of escorting
12 convoys and security. We are talking about the security of those convoys
13 carrying humanitarian aid. Is that correct, Mr. 179?
14 A. Yes. This is the only document that passed through regular
15 procedure, through the ministry, and there are many other documents.
16 Q. And if the association disposed of large amounts of weapons, as
17 you say, why would it need to apply for these small amounts of weaponry
18 for its own security?
19 A. It had to apply because these people had to have appropriate
20 licenses for carrying these weapons. And in order to have these licenses,
21 you had to prove to the Ministry of Defence that you had received these
22 weapons. In the beginning, it was Boro Stanisic who signed these
23 licenses, and later on I got blanks of these -- blank forms of these
24 licenses and I issued them myself and distributed them.
25 Q. For the purposes of securing convoys. Let me read here in
Page 26654
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Page 26655
1 handwriting. "Boro, please issue them by numbers under receipt valid up
2 to two months, after which they should be returned."
3 A. Yes, but that was only pro forma. "Bora" is Bora Stanisic from
4 Bubanj Potok.
5 Q. Is that what's written here. He must have been somebody who was
6 authorised to order the person in charge to issue those weapons; is that
7 correct?
8 A. Yes. That must have been somebody in the government, and who from
9 the government signed it, I don't know. You are in a better position to
10 know than I am.
11 Q. All right. Is it then clear from these documents that you produce
12 here that the only weaponry applied for by the Association of Emigrants is
13 the weaponry needed by men who were securing its convoys, because the
14 convoys were travelling on unsafe roads through Croatia and Bosnia and
15 Herzegovina and needed security; is that correct?
16 A. Yes, Mr. Milosevic. This assumption of yours is correct. The
17 association did have a humanitarian line of work, but it had another line
18 of work as well which you keep avoiding. Why don't you ask me a question
19 about that part?
20 Q. Well, I have information here that Brana Crncevic had never any
21 contact whatsoever with any military post, including this military post
22 5055, in his capacity as president of the Association of Emigrants. He
23 had nothing to do with it. As far as I can see, he didn't even address
24 this military post for this weaponry for securing convoys. He wrote to
25 the Defence Ministry.
Page 26656
1 JUDGE MAY: Let the witness answer these assertions.
2 Yes, Witness B-179.
3 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Well, you see, Mr. Milosevic, you
4 claim one thing and I claim another.
5 Brana Crncevic was a very good friend of both you and Jovica
6 Stanisic, and as far as I know, you met very frequently. For you to deny
7 something that I know about is not really possible. I even met up once
8 with Jovica Stanisic when Boro got his rank of colonel. He was involved
9 in the same line of work involving weapons and ammunition, and Crncevic
10 was there and Jovica Stanisic and Milan Prodanic was there.
11 Q. So what is that supposed to confirm? Do you mean that it confirms
12 that Brana Crncevic maintained special relations with that military post
13 5055?
14 A. Not the military post 5055 but with the MUP of Serbia, the state
15 security department, and with you.
16 Q. He was a good friend of Jovica Stanisic, and he's a good friend of
17 mine - Brana Crncevic, I mean - but that has nothing to do with what we're
18 talking about here. You even go --
19 JUDGE MAY: You don't dispute that he was a friend of yours,
20 Crncevic; is that right?
21 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] It is well known, Mr. May. Brana
22 Crncevic is a well-known writer, president of the Emigrants Association of
23 Serbia. He was my friend. But that has nothing to do with his alleged
24 activities that he allegedly engaged in arms trafficking, et cetera.
25 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
Page 26657
1 Q. You say that you drove Brana Crncevic to my house?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. Witness 179, let me tell you that Brana Crncevic was never in my
4 house, never.
5 A. Is your house, Mr. Milosevic, across the road to the former
6 president of Yugoslavia, that writer?
7 Q. He is in a different street. Quite close by, but in a different
8 street that is at right angles to my own street.
9 A. Yes, very close. I know I drove him to your place. He told me
10 that I was driving him to his place.
11 Q. I don't believe that he could have said that, because he never
12 went to my house.
13 A. So you never had whisky together?
14 Q. We certainly did, but not in my house. Brana Crncevic was never
15 in my house.
16 JUDGE MAY: We've heard that. We've heard the witness's response.
17 He says that he took this man there.
18 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
19 Q. That is an absolute falsehood. Brana Crncevic was never in my
20 house.
21 A. You said that whatever I said was not true.
22 JUDGE MAY: Sometimes you must understand that constant repetition
23 of a point doesn't improve it.
24 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Very well, Mr. May. What then can I
25 say about this allegation: Slobodan Milosevic, Jovica Stanisic, Brana
Page 26658
1 Crncevic, and Mihalj Kertes and some others usually met in the morning at
2 the premises of the state security and discussed deliveries to the SAO
3 Krajina and Republika Srpska.
4 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
5 Q. Did you say that?
6 A. Yes.
7 Q. Mr. 179, I'm being accused here as an autocratic ruler that
8 everyone came to consult. I don't see how now you should give a
9 completely different impression. Can you imagine me beginning my working
10 day by going to the state security service to meet with various people in
11 that service, and then I go to my own office? Don't you understand how
12 nonsensical that is?
13 A. I certainly didn't make your own timetable. I'm saying what I
14 heard about meetings.
15 Q. That I first go in the morning to the security service and then to
16 my office?
17 A. No, not every morning but occasionally. I didn't say you went
18 there every morning.
19 Q. Meetings in the state security service could be attended by people
20 working in that service and not by someone else. What would Brana
21 Crncevic and Mihalj Kertes be doing there, not to mention me? Where did
22 you get that idea from? Who gave you this information?
23 A. Well, I was in the state security at MUP Serbia on one occasion
24 with Mihalj Kertes.
25 Q. Were you there perhaps when I was attending a meeting?
Page 26659
1 A. No. I heard that from Milan Prodanic, your man.
2 Q. I see. You heard that from someone.
3 A. Not someone, from Milan Prodanic, head of the 6th department of
4 the state security of the MUP of Serbia. Maybe you're going to tell us
5 that you don't know him or that he doesn't know me.
6 Q. How do I know who Milan Prodanic knows and who knows Milan
7 Prodanic? I am telling you that this is absurd when you say that I, in
8 the morning, go to these premises --
9 JUDGE MAY: You've made that point, and the witness has given his
10 answer, so let's move on.
11 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Very well.
12 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
13 Q. Let's clear up a few more matters, please. You say that you met
14 with Radovan Karadzic in a rather strange manner. Actually, it is true
15 that not once but several times that we from Serbia did send humanitarian
16 convoys to the citizens of Sarajevo on a non-discriminatory basis, which
17 means to both Serbs, Croats, and Muslims. You're aware of that, I assume.
18 A. I led the first convoy that went there.
19 Q. The first convoy. I see. So then you know that Serbia sent a
20 convoy to the citizens of Sarajevo, both Serbs, Croats, and Muslims; is
21 that right?
22 A. Yes, I know that.
23 Q. Very well. Now, from what you say, it emerges that the convoy was
24 stopped or, rather, that Karadzic met with you to stop the humanitarian
25 aid and then that you demanded of Karadzic that the very next day he
Page 26660
1 should remove obstacles and barriers and patrols from the roads, and then
2 he got scared and removed them and allowed you to go on.
3 A. It's beautiful really the way you've interpreted this. Let me put
4 it in a slightly different way. This aid from the government of Serbia, a
5 part was for Pale and the second part for Sarajevo. When I arrived at
6 Pale, the first thing that I was told was to go to Karadzic's villa for
7 dinner. I sent some of my men to that dinner, but I stayed behind with
8 two other men to secure the vehicles, and then later on I went to that
9 villa too. And the first problem was that my men were disarmed at the
10 entrance to this villa, and I was very angry, which that meant they didn't
11 trust my men with weapons and they were armed, which meant that I didn't
12 trust those men either.
13 Biljana Plavsic was there with her sister. She knew me. And then
14 she asked me to wait until she went to see Karadzic. She went to see him,
15 and then he invited me to come upstairs to his office. I went there.
16 They required that all the humanitarian aid be unloaded at Pale. There
17 was a debate, quite a fervent one. Four trucks of that convoy were
18 supposed to go to Sarajevo. At first, he wouldn't allow those trucks to
19 go to Sarajevo, and then he called up someone -- no, not someone,
20 Djuretic. He was one of the assistants for Serbs outside Serbia. And I
21 knew Djuretic personally.
22 He asked Karadzic on the phone who was there, and he told him my
23 first and last name, and then Karadzic gave in and allowed those four
24 trucks to leave for Sarajevo. At great difficulty and in spite of heavy
25 fighting on the Sarajevo airstrip, I managed to reach Sarajevo without any
Page 26661
1 serious problems. I reached the police station at Ilidza. I couldn't go
2 any further, and those four trucks were unloaded there.
3 Q. Witness 179, without offence, I have no intention of insulting
4 you. My questions are based on what you wrote in your statement. So let
5 me remind you what you wrote in your statement on page 5. I think you
6 have that statement in front of you.
7 This is in paragraph 15, which is quite a long one. I won't read
8 it all.
9 "The aid was meant for all ethnic groups, not only Serbs. I
10 stopped in Pale and had a meeting with Radovan Karadzic who wanted to stop
11 me from going to Sarajevo. He wanted me to hand over that aid to the Red
12 Cross in Pale. I knew his wife was the president of the Red Cross in
13 Pale, and I also knew that they used to sell the humanitarian aid they
14 received in the warehouses. I told him that I would leave for Sarajevo
15 the next morning and that he should remove his patrols from the road
16 because I would shoot if I saw anybody in uniform."
17 So you went to Karadzic who wanted to keep the humanitarian aid.
18 You threatened to shoot, and then they got scared and removed everything,
19 and you were able to reach Sarajevo. Isn't that right what emerges from
20 this paragraph? You say: "I managed to deliver the aid in Sarajevo."
21 A. Yes, that is true. I said that I would shoot if anyone stood in
22 my way. Don't believe that I'm lying. I know very well what I was doing
23 and what I'm saying.
24 Q. Witness 179, I'm just quoting what you said. "To remove patrols
25 from the roads because I would shoot if I saw anybody in uniform."
Page 26662
1 A. Yes. If he stood in my way, I would shoot.
2 Q. And then in the face of such a threat of yours, they let you go on
3 to Sarajevo.
4 A. I don't know whether it was because of this threat or because of
5 the conversation with Djuretic from the Ministry for Serbs outside Serbia,
6 but I said what I said and I stand by what I said.
7 Q. Is there any document whereby Brana Crncevic, as president of the
8 Emigrants Association, or anyone on -- anyone else on his behalf signed
9 any kind of permission or authorisation for the transportation of weapons?
10 A. Brana Crncevic did not, but I did.
11 Q. I see. You signed on behalf of the Brana Crncevic.
12 A. No, in my own name but on behalf of the Association of Serbs.
13 That was my part -- a part of my duties.
14 Q. Would you be kind enough to show me what it is that you signed on
15 behalf of the Association of Serbs. I see tab 11 here. Four automatic
16 rifles, two pistols, two automatic pistols. This is linked to the request
17 that we quoted from a moment ago; isn't that right?
18 A. Yes, but there are other requests too.
19 JUDGE KWON: [Microphone not activated]
20 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] In this document which seems to be a
21 photocopy, Mr. Kwon, and which has the number ERN 03269340, it is a
22 handwritten document. Under number 1 is an automatic rifle, 7.62, four
23 pieces. And then a 7.62 pistol, semi-automatic, 2. Then a pistol 7.62,
24 automatic 2, and then the rest has to do with bullets or rounds.
25 That is what is linked to this letter of Brana Crncevic's where he
Page 26663
1 says: "We request that for the needs of the Association of Serbs for the
2 escort of the transport and its security you issue the following," and we
3 see that less was issued than requested. And it says: MORS, which I
4 assume, means the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Serbia; isn't
5 that right?
6 JUDGE KWON: Yes, but English translation says the number of
7 quantity of pistols at 12. Whether OTP can confirm that.
8 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Mr. Kwon, I hope that you yourself,
9 regardless of the fact that this document is in Serbian, you can see the
10 numbers in column number 5, and the heading for that column is "Quantity"
11 and the numbers are indicated by hand, 422, and then the ammunition.
12 JUDGE KWON: Yes, I see that.
13 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Now, how they translated that, I --
14 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Groome, perhaps you'd look into that. It does
15 seem to be inaccurate.
16 MR. GROOME: Yes, Your Honour. I would concede that it does
17 appear to be to somebody misread the way the person made the 2 as really
18 being a one and a two.
19 JUDGE MAY: So we need a new translation.
20 MR. GROOME: Yes, Your Honour.
21 JUDGE MAY: Yes, Mr. Milosevic.
22 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
23 Q. Then the other receipts, the one with the ERN 341, ending with
24 341, refers to six rifles, then the other one two rifles, and then when
25 you add all that up, it roughly amounts to what you requested.
Page 26664
1 On the back side of this receipt, I assume, are the names of the
2 people to whom these weapons were issued, and I suppose the serial numbers
3 of those weapons. Is that right, Mr. 179? It's just one of the
4 documents.
5 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone, please.
6 MR. MILOSEVIC: [No interpretation]
7 JUDGE MAY: There is some difficulty about the interpreters
8 hearing. Can we start again, please.
9 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] I was saying, Mr. May, that in tab
10 10 is the letter from Brana Crncevic requesting these 15 rifles and eight
11 pistols for the escorts and security of a convoy, and this was addressed
12 to the Ministry of Defence. And then in tab 11, we have the receipts
13 whereby those weapons were issued. On the first one, four plus two plus
14 two; on the second receipt six rifles; and on the third receipt two; which
15 means a total of 12. One could add up the other items, but all this fits
16 within the context of this letter requesting weapons for the escort and
17 security of a convoy, and it all amounts to some 15 weapons.
18 JUDGE MAY: Just a moment. Just a moment. That's your
19 interpretation. Let the witness answer it.
20 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Mr. Milosevic, it is true that that
21 was requested of the Ministry of Defence, but also there are many, many
22 things whereby the Ministry of Defence was sidestepped, has nothing to do
23 with the Ministry of Defence. You just read out what is there, but I have
24 many more such documents.
25 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
Page 26665
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Page 26666
1 Q. I'm referring to tab 11. I was going from one document to the
2 next. I can't read what I don't have in front of me.
3 A. You see, Mr. Milosevic, I have a permit to carry weapons and
4 ammunition which doesn't exist among these documents, and I have a licence
5 signed by Bora Stanisic for a M-84 machine-gun, a heavy machine-gun. You
6 won't find that weapon anywhere here. Then I have a licence for a pistol,
7 CZ-799. Also you won't find that in these documents. What I'm trying to
8 say is something else: There were documents, these minor quantities, to
9 account for them, but for the others, you won't find them.
10 Q. Surely, Mr. 179, to cover such vast quantities of weapons that you
11 say you transported cannot be accounted for by this collection of receipts
12 which, when added up, amounts to 12 or 15 pieces of weaponry. Surely this
13 request of Brana Crncevic asking for some weapons for the security of the
14 transport and your own personal safety cannot account for that large
15 quantity.
16 A. Mr. Milosevic, that applies to only that part of the weaponry. I
17 had a far larger number of documents. I don't know whether you know that
18 you searched my house, looking through my dirty linen and everything else,
19 and that you seized a good number of those documents.
20 Q. Mr. 179, I heard of you for the first time and saw you for the
21 first time today, and be sure that I did not search your house.
22 A. But people from the state security did.
23 Q. Do you know how an apartment can be searched?
24 A. I do know that very well.
25 Q. There has to be a judicial order.
Page 26667
1 JUDGE MAY: We're going to have to break there. Mr. Milosevic,
2 you will have ten minutes left.
3 We will go into private session to deal with an administrative
4 matter.
5 [Private session]
6 (redacted)
7 (redacted)
8 (redacted)
9 (redacted)
10 (redacted)
11 (redacted)
12 (redacted)
13 (redacted)
14 (redacted)
15 (redacted)
16 (redacted)
17 (redacted)
18 (redacted)
19 (redacted)
20 (redacted)
21 (redacted)
22 (redacted)
23 (redacted)
24 (redacted)
25 (redacted)
Page 26668
1 (redacted)
2 (redacted)
3 (redacted)
4 (redacted)
5 (redacted)
6 (redacted)
7 (redacted)
8 (redacted)
9 (redacted)
10 (redacted)
11 (redacted)
12 (redacted)
13 (redacted)
14 (redacted)
15 (redacted)
16 (redacted)
17 --- Recess taken at 12.18 p.m.
18 --- On resuming at 12.45 p.m.
19 [Open session]
20 JUDGE MAY: We are in open session. Yes, Mr. Milosevic.
21 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Mr. May, I cannot finish the
22 examination of this witness within ten minutes.
23 JUDGE MAY: Well, do what you can.
24 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] All right.
25 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
Page 26669
1 Q. Mr. 179, please give me brief answers to my questions. In
2 paragraph 8, you said that the military equipment came from military post
3 code 5055 in Bubanj Potok which was the storage facility of the command of
4 the town of Belgrade, city of Belgrade; is that right?
5 A. I really have a problem. I'm receiving the English
6 interpretation.
7 Q. Should I repeat my question?
8 A. I didn't hear it.
9 Q. In paragraph 8 of your statement, you say that the military
10 equipment came from military post code 5055 in Bubanj Potok, which was the
11 storage facility of the command of the city of Belgrade; is that right?
12 A. Yes.
13 Q. And do you have any proof that a certain type or amount of weapons
14 from this source was delivered, as you claimed, through the matica to the
15 Krajina or Republika Srpska?
16 A. I have travel authorisations.
17 Q. I did not see among your papers here, the ones accompanying your
18 statement, a shred of evidence to support this claim of yours, so I'm
19 asking you whether you do have any proof.
20 A. I do have proof. You saw from the approval of the Ministry of
21 Defence itself. You see that there is only one document concerning the
22 giving of weapons to the matica for meeting the needs of our people.
23 Q. That is the evidence that we already discussed, and that is a set
24 of receipts issued for purposes of providing security for transports on
25 the basis of an order that is -- and the number is on each and every one
Page 26670
1 of them. That is 332/2, dated the 20th of June, 1991.
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. So is that the only proof that you have?
4 A. No. There's also Gabos concerning the 82-millimetre mortar
5 shells.
6 Q. All right. If you say that you have this evidence concerning
7 82-millimetre mortar shells --
8 A. Yes.
9 Q. Tell me then, please -- take that document, then. That is a page
10 ending with the numbers 8383. You say that you personally received these
11 mortar shells, the ones that are specified in this document; is that
12 right?
13 A. Yes.
14 Q. Who did you receive them from?
15 A. Well, you see, at that time it was not allowed to have people
16 sign, those who gave them to you. It was Boro Stanisic who gave them to
17 me, but it does give the number, the military post code number 5055.
18 Q. As far as I can see here, please look at 8, 9, 10, items 8, 9, 10
19 on this document. Tell me, which weapons were issued, who is the order
20 issuing authority? Who received this? All of these spaces are empty,
21 Mr. 179?
22 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, if I may be of assistance. Mr. Milosevic
23 and the witness are talking about two different documents. The document
24 Mr. Milosevic has referred the witness to is tab number 12.
25 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
Page 26671
1 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
2 Q. Item number 8, handed over. Number 9, received; 10, order issuing
3 authority. And the space there is empty, all three boxes.
4 A. It is correct all three spaces are empty, because no signatures
5 were placed there. That was the beginning when the war had just started,
6 but the receipt was issued by military post 5055 and, also, there is the
7 stamp of the matica.
8 Q. The stamp that you placed and your signature. But as opposed to
9 the other receipts where persons signed their names, those who issued
10 orders, who received this, who handed it over, and also mention is made of
11 the order that is relevant. Here all these spaces are empty.
12 A. Well, this proves that I am one of the people who did not exist at
13 that time of yours.
14 Q. Mr. 179, this proves that that is a forgery.
15 A. No. No. I never forged any such thing, nor did any such thing
16 ever cross my mind.
17 Q. All right. Can we agree at least that here in the spaces assigned
18 for "issued by," "received by," "ordered by," there is nothing written in
19 these boxes?
20 A. We can agree on that.
21 Q. Now look at the document whose ERN number ends in 385. This is a
22 receipt too. Is it clear that what is written here, "Rifles are taken
23 over and returned --"
24 JUDGE MAY: Let the witness have the document.
25 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
Page 26672
1 Q. It says -- it says, "Received, handed over, and order issuing
2 authority."
3 MR. TAPUSKOVIC: [Interpretation] Your Honours, if I can help, this
4 is tab 11, the one but last receipt.
5 JUDGE MAY: Thank you.
6 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
7 Q. It says: "Issued by," "received by," "ordered by," all of it is
8 written, and it also says that the weapons are taken over and returned to
9 Bubanj Potok for the needs of the convoy of the government of the Republic
10 of Serbia. Is that right?
11 A. Yes.
12 Q. So it says on this document, like on the others, that for the
13 weapons received, they should, rather, be returned to Bubanj Potok and
14 that this is for the needs of the government of Serbia.
15 A. Yes.
16 Q. Were these weapons also issued on the basis of document 3/132/2?
17 A. Possibly. Possibly, but I doubt it. I doubt it, because a great
18 many weapons were issued while the Ministry of Defence was sidestepped.
19 Q. But on the receipt it says KOGB, and the number is number 3/132/2.
20 All of this pertains to the weapons that were requested for providing
21 security for the convoy. Is that right or is that not right, Mr. 179?
22 A. All the receipts that were issued by the command of the city of
23 Belgrade have this designation KOGB, and also at the request of the
24 government of the Republic of Serbia. However, as far as I know, the
25 ministry of the Republic of Serbia, the Ministry of Defence did not take
Page 26673
1 part in this, and they could not have known about this because this was
2 known by a very small circle of people.
3 Q. Oh, so the Ministry of Defence did not know about this? Only you
4 knew about it and a few other people, and me.
5 A. Yes, that's what I'm claiming.
6 Q. Oh, very well. But you don't have a shred of evidence for that.
7 A. You will receive evidence.
8 Q. Well, now is the time for you to provide this proof because you
9 are testifying now.
10 Tell me now, you also gave a letter here addressed to the
11 Association of Emigres - 0290873 is the ERN number - and the head from
12 Donji Lapac, a certain Dusko Vojvodic, is sending this, and he is asking
13 for some military equipment from the Association of Emigres.
14 JUDGE MAY: Let the witness have the appropriate tab.
15 MR. GROOME: It's tab 8, Your Honour.
16 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Let the witness have it.
17 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
18 Q. Uniforms, blankets, automatic rifles and the rest are requested
19 here; is that right?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. Tell me now, in addition to the Association of Emigrants, is any
22 other state authority mentioned here, either of Yugoslavia or of Republika
23 Srpska?
24 A. No. No one is mentioned here, but it is well known. This came to
25 the Association of Emigrants, to Brana Crncevic. He gave me this
Page 26674
1 document, and with this document I went over to Bubanj Potok, and I handed
2 it over to Bora Stanisic. Bora Stanisic handed this over to Milan
3 Prodanic, and then decisions were made as to where things would be sent.
4 Q. Please. Do you have any evidence that the matica addressed the
5 JNA or the Territorial Defence of Serbia or the Ministry of Defence in
6 relation to this request? So the matica is requesting weapons for
7 providing security for the convoy, and they are not sending a request in
8 relation to this; is that what you're claiming?
9 A. Yes, that's precisely what I'm claiming. I've been telling you
10 all the time that the Ministry of Defence was sidestepped. Very few
11 people knew about these supplies and these convoys, and it's impossible
12 that you did not know what the state security of the MUP of Serbia was
13 doing, Jovica Stanisic and Prodanic.
14 Q. You do not have a single document to prove this. I'm asking you -
15 so I'm not going to claim anything - can you show a document which
16 confirms that you --
17 JUDGE MAY: All of this argument. You're arguing with the witness
18 again, wasting time. He gives his evidence. He's not to be argued with.
19 Now, you can ask him about the document, of course, but that's as far as
20 it goes.
21 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] I'm not arguing. I'm not arguing,
22 Mr. May. I am asking the witness whether he can show me any document
23 confirming whatsoever.
24 JUDGE MAY: That is the matter of argument. He's produced the
25 documents he has. It is for you to ask him about it. There's no need to
Page 26675
1 argue with him further when he has produced here what he has.
2 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Mr. May, isn't it clear that this
3 kind of request could have lost its way and reached the matica? It's not
4 that that the matica had any weapons at their disposal. That's why I'm
5 asking the witness whether he had any document.
6 JUDGE MAY: He has told you that the matica was distributing the
7 weapons. You dispute that, and so there is really very little point in
8 going on and arguing about it. He has given his evidence quite plainly.
9 Here was the matica distributing weapons all over Croatia and Bosnia. You
10 say that's not true. We will have to make our minds up where the truth
11 lies.
12 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] All right.
13 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
14 Q. Let me just clarify the following point: You claim that the
15 matica did not address itself to the government or other official
16 authorities, but that they directly took weapons from the 5055 storage
17 facility and that they were allowed to do so?
18 A. Yes.
19 Q. All right. You also claim that the command of the military post
20 also issued weapons and military equipment to the matica without any kind
21 of certificate?
22 A. Not to the Matica. They gave it to me, and I took it further on
23 to the front line.
24 Q. Do you have any kind of certificate to prove that? So it was
25 issued to you without a certificate?
Page 26676
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Page 26677
1 A. Mr. Milosevic, I have travel authorisations here, and I also have
2 work authorisations here and you can also see that they bear the stamps of
3 1055 here and of the Territorial Defence of the Republic of Serbia and the
4 stamps of the matica, the Association of Emigrants of Serbia, and I drove
5 vehicles with weapons of the -- with the registration plates of the
6 Yugoslav People's Army and military licence plates, civilian licence
7 plates, and you cannot tell me that this is not correct when this is
8 correct, and everybody knows that full well.
9 Q. I'm not talking about your travel authorisations now. Does that
10 prove that you carried weapons?
11 A. In the travel authorisation, there are also -- there are only the
12 numbers of the vehicles.
13 Q. Numbers of vehicles. And then you were allowed to be involved in
14 transport, and you transported humanitarian aid of the Matica of
15 Emigrants.
16 A. Yes.
17 Q. And I assume that the Association of Emigrants did not have
18 weapons but humanitarian aid.
19 A. And then why would the matica use registration plates of the
20 Yugoslav People's Army?
21 Q. The Association of Emigrants, as far as I know, begged everybody
22 for assistance in terms of transportation vehicles for transporting
23 humanitarian aid. Everybody, private owners, the army, state organs,
24 economic organisations, because they themselves did not have any such
25 thing. Is that right or is that not right?
Page 26678
1 A. No, it's not right, Mr. Milosevic. Precisely from the matica a
2 MAN trailer truck went that belonged to the Bugojno forwarding company of
3 the MUP of Serbia and I precisely gave this vehicle that was used by the
4 Ministry of the Interior, that is to say, the state security for
5 transporting military equipment and weapons.
6 Q. That is what you say, Mr. 179, because you said that on the basis
7 of this order 3/132/2 -- do you at least have that order on the basis of
8 which these weapons were being issued and this would cast more light on
9 the nature of the receipts that you provided here, and then we could
10 perhaps establish what all of this is about, because so far we've
11 established only that these were rifles for providing security for
12 convoys, and that's the only thing that's registered?
13 JUDGE MAY: Look, Mr. Milosevic, that's what you allege. We've
14 heard the witness's evidence as to what it was that was being transported,
15 but you've got -- we'll allow you two more questions. You've already had
16 over the time which we allotted. Now, two more questions.
17 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
18 Q. All right, then. Then I'll put this question: To whom did you
19 deliver, since you say you were delivering weapons to Zvecevo, to whom did
20 you deliver them in Zvecevo?
21 A. As far as I remember, it was -- whether he was a lieutenant
22 colonel or colonel, I'm not sure, but he was from the Novi Sad Corps who
23 had come to Zvecevo.
24 THE INTERPRETER: The interpreter couldn't hear the question.
25 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] No, no.
Page 26679
1 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
2 Q. All right, then. Tell me one more thing. You state that you had
3 carried money from the Topcider mint to Krajina.
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. Was it at the time when the dinar of the Republic of Serbian
6 Krajina was introduced?
7 A. Yes.
8 Q. Does it mean, then, that the mint of the National Bank of
9 Yugoslavia at Topcider provided services for the needs of the Republic of
10 Serbian Krajina?
11 A. I don't know whether they provided services. All I know is that I
12 was ordered to load up the money and carry it there.
13 Q. To whom did you deliver the money?
14 A. Frankly, I don't know. I know Jova Danilovic drove the truck with
15 the money. I only added one padlock to avoid possible problems. He
16 delivered to somebody in Knin. To whom exactly, I don't know. All I know
17 is that there was another amount of money with foreign currencies loaded
18 up there and carried back.
19 Q. Who gave you that money? Who handed it over to you?
20 A. Nobody handed it to me. They handed it to my driver. My driver
21 signed for it, that he received it.
22 Q. What did he sign?
23 A. He signed that he received banknotes for Knin, a full truckload,
24 seven to eight tons of dinars.
25 Q. For the Republic of Serbian Krajina.
Page 26680
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. So money intended for the Serbian Krajina.
3 A. Yes. The money printed in Topcider.
4 Q. But the driver went alone. You didn't go with him and you don't
5 know to whom he handed it over.
6 A. I didn't accompany him to the mint at Topcider, but I led that
7 convoy up to Knin, and then to whom he handed over that money in Knin, I
8 don't know, because it was his job to hand it over.
9 Q. So you led the convoy, but you don't know to whom the money was
10 handed over?
11 A. I don't know. To somebody at the bank there.
12 JUDGE MAY: The witness has answered as best he can.
13 Yes, Mr. Tapuskovic.
14 MR. TAPUSKOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honours.
15 Questioned by Mr. Tapuskovic:
16 Q. [Interpretation] But I would like to go back to this topic from
17 paragraph 21 of your statement regarding this money. If you would be kind
18 enough to look at your statement. You said in the first sentence: "I
19 remember that on one occasion I transported a whole truckload of RSK
20 dinars to Knin. This must have been seven to eight tons of freshly
21 printed RSK dinars."
22 So you say that you drove that money personally.
23 A. Yes.
24 Q. And then a couple of sentences on, you say: "I was the first one
25 to deliver RSK dinars to Knin." And then: "I do not know why these
Page 26681
1 deliveries took place, because I was just the driver. I do not remember
2 to whom I delivered the money." Whereas here you -- here in the statement
3 you said that you drove and you handed it over. How do you explain the
4 discrepancy between this and what you said just a second ago?
5 A. There is a slight error here. I'm telling you that the money was
6 taken there by the truck driver Jovo Danilovic and I was the one leading
7 the convoy. There was always a leader of the convoy.
8 Q. You said you delivered the money. If you had delivered the money
9 and you are denying it now, there must be a document to prove it, because
10 it's a huge amount of money, and then a huge amount of foreign currency
11 was taken back. Is there a document to prove that this amount of money -
12 because it's huge - was taken and handed over there? Do you have that
13 document or does somebody else have it, somebody who drove the money?
14 A. It was signed by Jovo Danilovic, because he would take it to Knin
15 and he would leave the document to Belgrade on his way back.
16 Q. All right. Then I have a couple of more questions about this set
17 of documents under tab 9. We see here an authorisation from which it is
18 evident that you took over a truck, a bus, and it says that this vehicle
19 would be (redacted) .
20 A. Yes, yes.
21 Q. Was anyone able to drive a vehicle that didn't belong to them
22 without having an authorisation, a document? I'm not talking about arms
23 deliveries, I'm talking about driving regulations because of routine
24 controls. Did you have to have an authorisation as somebody who was not
25 the owner?
Page 26682
1 A. No, I didn't.
2 Q. Didn't you have an authorisation for every vehicle allowing you to
3 drive it, because it didn't belong to you?
4 A. I'll give you an example of this bus precisely. This bus came
5 from Vukovar, and I got this pass because I was the only one who had the
6 licence to drive the bus, and I used this bus to drive refugees to their
7 destination.
8 Q. You explained that earlier. I wouldn't like to come back to that.
9 Let us just discuss the document from tab --
10 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, I've requested a redaction be made, but
11 may I remind Mr. Tapuskovic not to mention the witness's name on the
12 record.
13 MR. TAPUSKOVIC: [Interpretation] I did not mention the witness's
14 name.
15 MR. GROOME: It's at line 13:10:47.
16 JUDGE KWON: You mentioned the driver's name.
17 MR. TAPUSKOVIC: [Interpretation] Yes, but only as a driver. I
18 didn't mention his name and surname. I can't understand. I can't explain
19 this error. I don't believe I made it.
20 Q. But in this tab 10 we discussed already that the weapons that were
21 requested were requested for purposes of security of convoys and all these
22 documents under tab 11 concern precisely those weapons requested for
23 security details for convoys and drivers; isn't that right?
24 A. I will try to give you a more detailed explanation now. When we
25 drove military convoys, we did not need any authorisations. Civilian
Page 26683
1 transports were another matter. When you were transporting civilians or
2 civilian property, it was a different matter.
3 Q. Why am I asking you this? You said you led three convoys plus one
4 in relation to those besieged Serbs. There were three or four convoys.
5 A. There were some more, but it doesn't matter.
6 Q. It does matter, Witness, because if you look at paragraph 15 --
7 no, paragraph 7, you say: "While I was," this and that, "the unit
8 transported more than 1.200 truckloads of ammunition and weapons that had
9 been taken from Bubanj Potok." Then a couple of sentences down, you say:
10 "I know this personally because I participated myself in the transport."
11 This is mentioned after your reference to 1.200 trucks. How do
12 you explain this if you were involved in only three or four convoys?
13 A. You're trying to set a trap for me. I said something entirely
14 different. I said that in 1992, 1.200 trucks were transported from Bubanj
15 Potok, carrying ammunition and weapons. And I said vehicles from the
16 Association of Emigrants were involved but also vehicles from the MUP of
17 Serbia and other civilian vehicles.
18 Q. Look now at paragraph 17. You say: "When these weapons were
19 transported, the receivers of the arms had to sign for it when we
20 delivered it. When I picked up the weapons in Bubanj Potok -" and you say
21 when - "I was always given the name of the receiving party. I think I
22 will be able to find the receipt for the weapons, and I will contact the
23 investigator when I do."
24 That is something you say in the statement drawn up in March this
25 year.
Page 26684
1 You cannot mention any contact related to the weapons received in
2 Krajina or in Bosnia by the Serbs from these areas.
3 A. You are very wrong, Mr. Tapuskovic. I had major problems. My
4 family received threats in this period. From my first contact with the
5 Hague Tribunal, I received an anonymous call telling me that I would be
6 killed. I had to hide my family away because we were receiving threats.
7 Every night telephones would ring and the caller would ring off
8 immediately.
9 Q. That is not without reason.
10 A. Let me tell you my story to the end. You will receive these
11 documents. I will find them. Part of these documents are still in
12 existence. I kept documents in various places. I had to conceal a part
13 of them, but I was not able to collect them before my travel to The Hague,
14 but I will pick them up, and I will bring them.
15 Q. Thank you for this explanation. But today in response to
16 different questions, you already answered that you do not have these
17 documents because everything was burnt in your home, and on another
18 occasion you said that everything had been removed from your apartment.
19 How can you produce them if you don't have them any more?
20 A. You are wrong, Mr. Tapuskovic. I said the documentation from the
21 military base 5055 had been burnt. It wasn't burnt in my apartment. And
22 it was during searches of my apartment that a part of my documentation was
23 removed. I said it loud and clear. Please do not try to confuse these
24 two things. Nothing in my house was burnt. It was the documentation of
25 military base 5055 that was burnt.
Page 26685
1 Q. Thank you for this. You mentioned today for the first time that
2 you met Mladic, Krajisnik, Tepavcevic, Lajnovic, Buca, Brka, Isidor and
3 other people, and you never mentioned before that you had any meetings,
4 any encounters with the people you mentioned here.
5 A. I don't know what you're driving at.
6 Q. You mentioned that you met Stanisic.
7 A. Yes.
8 Q. And you hadn't mentioned it before. The same goes for Mladic.
9 You mentioned the paramilitaries of Lajnovic and Tepavcevic and you had
10 not mentioned any of these persons before.
11 A. I will try to give you an explanation of this. When I gave my
12 first statement in Belgrade, it was in the offices of the ICTY, precisely
13 at the time when the Prime Minister of Serbia was killed. And my meeting
14 there was cut short, and I got my first opportunity to explain certain
15 things when I came here.
16 Q. One of the Judges was interested in this topic that I'm going to
17 cover now. You say that somebody conveyed certain information to Slobodan
18 Milosevic, but here in paragraph 11, you already spoke about this, and you
19 said in no unclear terms that Slobodan Milosevic talked every morning with
20 the persons you mention here about arms deliveries to Krajina. If he
21 participated directly in these discussions, why would he need to be
22 informed about them? Can you explain this for the benefit of the Judges?
23 A. Yes, I can very easily explain. I said that he did not always
24 attend. He sometimes attended, and on other occasions he was briefed. I
25 think he was perfectly clear on this, and you are confusing things.
Page 26686
1 MR. TAPUSKOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you. Thank you.
2 JUDGE MAY: Yes, Mr. Groome.
3 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, there is one document that I would ask
4 to be added to the binder of exhibits to be used with this witness, and
5 I'd ask that the witness be shown this document now.
6 Re-examined by Mr. Groome:
7 Q. Sir, that is document containing two identification cards. I'd
8 like to draw your attention to the identification card on the lower part
9 of the document. Sir, whose identification card is that?
10 A. That is an identity card of the Association of Serbian Emigrants
11 concerning assistance to Serbian refugees.
12 Q. And is that your identification card?
13 A. Yes.
14 Q. I'd ask you to look at the second page which is a copy of the
15 reverse of that card. Does that bear your name and the stamp of the
16 association?
17 A. Yes. We can see my name here and the stamp of the association and
18 my personal identity card number.
19 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, I would tender that under seal, and I
20 have no further questions.
21 JUDGE MAY: And that will be tab 14.
22 THE REGISTRAR: 14, Your Honour
23 Questioned by the Court:
24 JUDGE KWON: Mr. B-179, what is your base of knowledge when you
25 say that more than 1.200 trucks of ammunition had been transported?
Page 26687
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12 Blank page inserted to ensure pagination corresponds between the French and
13 English transcripts.
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Page 26688
1 A. It is based on the conversations between Bora Stanisic and Milan
2 Prodanic that I overheard that took place in Bubanj Potok when they were
3 saying that we had managed to transport over 1.200 trucks full of
4 ammunition and weapons with great success to Republika Srpska and the
5 Serbian Krajina.
6 JUDGE KWON: If you could tell me when it was.
7 A. It was towards the end of 1992.
8 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
9 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Mr. May.
10 JUDGE MAY: Yes, what is it?
11 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Well, just in relation to this
12 document that Mr. Groome introduced a minute ago, since it wasn't
13 introduced before my cross-examination.
14 JUDGE MAY: Yes. What is your question?
15 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Well, there are two documents here,
16 actually. I suppose that the witness can see that, because he received
17 this a couple of seconds before I did.
18 Further cross-examination by Mr. Milosevic:
19 Q. [Interpretation] So the first document is a copy of his personal
20 identity card, the kind that every citizen of Yugoslavia has?
21 A. Yes.
22 Q. And we see here that this identity card was issued in December
23 2000?
24 A. Yes.
25 Q. It has nothing to do with the time that you are testifying about;
Page 26689
1 is that so?
2 A. Mr. Milosevic, I changed my identity card. The identity card that
3 I had was taken by the office of the ICTY when I was giving my statement.
4 That is why these don't correspond. My old card and my new card. They
5 made a photocopy of my new card.
6 Q. Leaving that aside, I only want to note that this first document
7 is a copy of the personal identity card issued in December 2000.
8 A. Yes. And it bears a different identity card number. If you would
9 be kind to look at it, it says M -- registration number --
10 JUDGE MAY: What is the point?
11 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
12 Q. You don't have to read the number.
13 JUDGE MAY: Just a moment. Now, what is the point of this? The
14 accused points out accurately it's dated 2000. We waste time in this case
15 in this sort of way.
16 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, the Prosecution isn't offering or isn't
17 tendering the top document. The Prosecution is only tendering the image
18 on the bottom half of this page, which is the identification card for the
19 association which the accused has alleged he never held the position in.
20 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Very well. No. We're going to bring this to an
21 end.
22 You wanted to say something, Mr. Witness. Did you want to add
23 something?
24 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Nothing. I just want to thank you.
25 JUDGE MAY: Yes. We're going to bring this to a close.
Page 26690
1 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Let us clear up this second matter
2 too, then.
3 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
4 Q. This second ID card has on it the Matica of Serbs and Emigrants of
5 Serbia, with a photograph, which is quite unclear, and below that it says
6 "aid to Serbian refugees." That is what it says. And on this other
7 page, on the reverse side, it says the name and last name of this witness.
8 So the entire document only relates to the fact that it is the Matica of
9 Emigrants of Serbia and Serb Refugees, and the name of the witness with a
10 number that I am not familiar with, and it does not coincide at all with
11 the other number in the other document. So it says nothing else. That's
12 all that is said in this document.
13 A. May I clarify? On the reverse side of this ID card is my ID card
14 number while I was working in the matica. So this is the old ID card
15 number. An ID lasts ten years. I had to change it because it had
16 expired. And that is why the number of the ID card on the upper document
17 does not coincide with the number on the reverse side of the other
18 document. Mr. Milosevic must know this very well. He's just pretending
19 not to.
20 JUDGE MAY: We're not going to pursue this any further. The
21 issue, in any event, has not been whether the -- whether there was any
22 involvement with the matica. The role has been the role of that
23 association -- the issue has been the role of that association. We really
24 must bring these matters to an end.
25 Witness B-179, that concludes your evidence. Thank you for coming
Page 26691
1 to the Tribunal to give it. You are free to go. But just wait, if you
2 would, until we've pulled down the blinds, please.
3 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Thank you, too.
4 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] I have an objection regarding you
5 personally.
6 JUDGE MAY: No. You can make an objection -- you can make an
7 objection to some part of the evidence, but you can't make an objection to
8 me personally.
9 Now, what is the objection you want to make?
10 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] I wanted to say that you're allowing
11 this witness to use a rather common language which is not appropriate for
12 civilised behaviour, rather crude language used on several occasions, in
13 fact.
14 JUDGE MAY: Such crude language as there may have been has not
15 been interpreted, so we've not been able to follow it. If there had been
16 an objection earlier, we would have dealt with it.
17 Yes. Thank you, B-179, if you'd like to go now.
18 [The witness withdrew]
19 MR. NICE: While we're waiting for the changeover of witnesses,
20 can I use the time for two very short administrative matters?
21 JUDGE MAY: Yes. If you'd like to go, Mr. B-179.
22 MR. NICE: First, we've reviewed the position about the witness
23 Harland in light of the amicus objections to the document or a substantial
24 part of it being subject to 92 bis. We think there's force in their
25 argument and that what would be left to be 92 bis is really not worth
Page 26692
1 troubling you with, and therefore in reality we think that the whole of
2 the evidence should be given viva voce and we shouldn't trouble you
3 further. I'm sorry to have taken your time thus far.
4 JUDGE MAY: Well, a sensible concession if I may say so.
5 MR. NICE: Second thing is the lists on witnesses need not be
6 prepared because there is not real prospect of there being time to call
7 them are in preparation. I hope to have the lists to you by the end of
8 business today, courtesy copy or otherwise, and I hope that will be
9 helpful to cover both list A and the 92 bis witnesses, although I think
10 there may be yet further names on the Bosnia 92 bis list whom we will be
11 able to suggest later on needn't be subject to preparation, but we're
12 doing out best to minimise preparatory work.
13 JUDGE MAY: It might be helpful, speaking for myself, if we could
14 simply have a list of those witnesses in addition of the witnesses who you
15 intend to call between now and the end of the case.
16 MR. NICE: Yes, certainly. It's of course to be found on list A,
17 but --
18 JUDGE MAY: I know, but I have to say for myself I find it
19 confusing because in it there are all the witnesses you have called.
20 MR. NICE: We did that intentionally so that you could have a
21 continuing document, but if you find it more helpful we can simply strip
22 out and republish with all those names deleted, leaving the numbers for
23 the witnesses frozen at what they were for ease of reference amongst
24 yourselves or with your legal others or with us. I'll have that dealt
25 with in one way or another today.
Page 26693
1 JUDGE MAY: If would you.
2 MR. NICE: We are also hoping to get to you today a filing on the
3 witness list, deletions and additions that I hope will basically take us
4 to the end of the case subject to other eventualities.
5 But Mr. Ierace will be taking the next witness, and I'll hand it
6 over to him.
7 [The witness entered court]
8 JUDGE MAY: Yes. If the witness will take the declaration,
9 please.
10 THE WITNESS: I solemnly declare that I will speak the truth, the
11 whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
12 JUDGE MAY: If you would like to take a seat.
13 THE WITNESS: Thank you.
14 WITNESS: AERNOUT VAN LYNDEN
15 JUDGE MAY: Yes, Mr. Ierace.
16 MR. IERACE: Yes, thank you, Your Honour.
17 Examined by Mr. Ierace:
18 Q. Are you Aernout van Lynden, Baron Aernout van Lynden?
19 A. I am.
20 Q. What is your occupation?
21 A. I'm currently working as a lecturer at the American university in
22 Bulgaria.
23 Q. Were you previously, for some 22 years, a war correspondent?
24 A. Yes.
25 MR. IERACE: Your Honour, most of the witness's testimony in the
Page 26694
1 Galic trial has been admitted pursuant to Rule 92 bis (D). Some further
2 material has been admitted pursuant to Rule 92 bis (A). I will present a
3 summary of combined evidence. Some matters which do not qualify for
4 admission under those rules will be the subject of viva voce evidence.
5 Four brief news stories or parts thereof which were filed by this witness
6 will also be shown. In relation to the witness's background, Baron van
7 Lynden, a Dutch national was born in London in 1954 and was educated in
8 the United Kingdom. As a -- he was a war correspondent who covered the
9 Yugoslavian conflict for Sky News, a satellite news service including
10 Croatia in 1991 from the Serb side and the siege of Sarajevo. He had
11 previously covered the war in Lebanon, the Iraq-Iran war from both sides,
12 and the Gulf War. Prior to becoming a war correspondent in 1978, he was
13 an officer in the Dutch Marine Corps, specialising in mortars.
14 He stayed in Sarajevo on the Bosnian side between May and August
15 1992. In September 1992, with the assistance of Dr. Karadzic, he spent
16 three and a half weeks on the Bosnian Serb side. He was again in Sarajevo
17 from the end of October until late December 1992. Thereafter, he visited
18 Sarajevo sporadically for a few days at a time, except after the first
19 market -- Markale market incident in 1994 when he stayed for a few weeks.
20 In relation to the settlement of Dobrinja, he marked its position
21 on a map as being to the west of the city alongside the airport and gave
22 evidence that it was separately besieged, being cut off from the rest of
23 Sarajevo until June 1992, when Bosnian forces took control of the nearby
24 Mojmilo hill.
25 In relation to the layout of Sarajevo generally, the witness has
Page 26695
1 stated that it was an elongated city lying in a valley along the Miljaka
2 River. The Bosnian Serb forces held the high ground and were able from
3 those positions to fire along the streets which intersected the main
4 east-west thoroughfare, Marsal Tito Boulevard. Accordingly, an
5 alternative pedestrian route was developed to enable the inhabitants to
6 traverse the city along the valley floor on an east-west access, in
7 particular at the valley's narrowest point which was the central city area
8 in the vicinity of Marin Dvor and the Marsal Tito barracks where the
9 Bosnian held part of the valley floor was about a kilometre wide and
10 immediately adjacent to the Bosnian Serb-held Grbavica.
11 This route involved utilising building cover and anti-sniping
12 barricades and has been indicated on a map which is Annex II to the
13 witness's 92 bis statement.
14 The witness has given evidence that whilst residing on the Bosnian
15 Serb side in September 1992, with the permission of General Mladic, his
16 Sky News team spent ten days touring various Bosnian Serb front-line
17 positions around Sarajevo, escorted by two Bosnian Serb military
18 policemen. As they did so, the witness was introduced to the various
19 company commanders. These officers wore their JNA uniforms displaying
20 their JNA ranks, having changed their badges from the JNA to the Bosnian
21 Serb army.
22 During this tour, he noticed that the Bosnian Serb gunners from
23 their commanding positions were able to personally sight their targets
24 rather than rely on observers, thereby enabling more accurate fire.
25 The topography also allowed relatively few infantry forces backed
Page 26696
1 up by artillery to keep large numbers of Bosnian troops committed to the
2 defence of Sarajevo.
3 At Grbavica along the Miljaka River which delineated the opposing
4 forces at that point, he was shown several sandbagged positions in
5 apartment blocks operated by uniformed soldiers armed with machine-guns
6 and what he recognised to be sniping rifles and in radio communication
7 case with spotters who apparently assisted them to locate targets. In one
8 fourth-floor position they utilised a dummy decoy. Elsewhere in Bosnian
9 Serb held Grbavica he saw mortars, tanks, armoured personnel carriers,
10 which are known as APCs, and vehicle-mounted anti-aircraft artillery.
11 The state hospital. The witness described the state hospital as
12 being positioned in front of Marin Dvor square as were the Bosnian
13 Parliament Buildings and in a direct line of site and fire from the
14 Bosnian Serb forces in Grbavica. His news team stayed there from May to
15 August 1992, camping in the shelled out upper floors because it gave them
16 an ideal filming position of the city and the surrounding hills which were
17 occupied by the Bosnian Serb forces.
18 The hospital continued to function from the lower levels.
19 From there, in the four days and nights following the evacuation
20 of the Marsal Tito barracks in June 1992, they filmed the city being
21 shelled indiscriminately from Bosnian Serb positions. He estimated that
22 over a thousand shells from heavy weapons including anti-aircraft
23 artillery fell on the city each night. All tracer rounds were seen coming
24 into the city.
25 The witness contrasted the saturated fire which was concentrated
Page 26697
1 on the Marsal Tito barracks following its evacuation with indiscriminate
2 fire where shells would land randomly all over Sarajevo. In his opinion,
3 this random fire was directed at the city generally and those who lived in
4 it. Its effect was inculcate fear in the city's inhabitants.
5 In this period during these four days and nights, he observed the
6 Unis towers which were twin commercial towers of 35 to 40 storeys high
7 near Marin Dvor square being almost completely destroyed by Bosnian Serb
8 shelling even though up until that time they had not been a source of fire
9 by Bosnian forces. He witnessed a steady stream of casualties coming into
10 the state hospital, filling the emergency ward and corridors.
11 During his stays and visits to Sarajevo during the war, the
12 witness observed other instances of deliberate attack of civilians and
13 civilian facilities by Bosnian Serb forces. In mid-July 1992, he
14 witnessed a sniping incident. At about 4.00 p.m. on Marsal Tito
15 Boulevard, he observed two men and a woman dressed in civilian clothes
16 lying on the ground in place which was open to Bosnian Serb positions.
17 The woman wore a skirt and had with her what appeared to be a shopping
18 bag. All three people appeared to be in their 40s and had been shot. Two
19 were moaning. He was told by bystanders that initially one was shot, then
20 a person who went to assist, and finally a third person who went to assist
21 those two. The witness observed a Bosnian APC arrive, but before it could
22 provide cover to the three adults, at least two single shots struck them.
23 The two men were killed. He does not recall whether the woman survived.
24 The second incident concerned an apartment block shelling. On the
25 5th of December, 1992, while driving along Marsal Tito Boulevard, the Sky
Page 26698
1 News team observed a high-rise apartment block near the road which
2 accommodated several hundred people, including children, being hit with
3 incendiary rounds that were coming from the direction of the nearest
4 Bosnian Serb positions, which were to the south of the Miljaka River. They
5 stopped and filmed the incident and spoke to the residents, determining
6 that the building had not been used by the defending military forces
7 according to the residents and, therefore, in the witness's opinion, was
8 not a military target.
9 While the fire department attempted to put out the ensuing fire,
10 the building continued to receive incendiary rounds at levels lower than
11 the firefighters.
12 While driving on the Bosnian side, the witness observed that
13 mortars would on occasion land either in front of his vehicle or behind
14 his vehicle, leading him to conclude that his vehicle was being sniped, so
15 as to speak, by Bosnian Serb mortar crews.
16 In relation to the Jewish cemetery, on two occasions the witness
17 visited the positions of Bosnian Serb forces in the area of the Jewish
18 cemetery, which was positioned on the confrontation lines and overlooked
19 the southern part of the city, in particular, Marin Dvor. On one visit in
20 February 1994, he met the local commander, a person known as Aleksic. He
21 observed that his troops were not uniformed and were armed with
22 non-standard weaponry. He was informed, that is the witness, was informed
23 by his Bosnian Serb minder who accompanied him from the Pale headquarters
24 that Aleksic and his men nevertheless came under the command of the local
25 Bosnian Serb army commander.
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Page 26700
1 Prior to the first Markale market incident which was on the 5th of
2 February, 1994, it was not possible to cross Marin Dvor square safely, the
3 witness said in his evidence, since it attracted fire from Bosnian Serb
4 forces on an almost daily basis. The fact that it was possible to walk
5 across it in March 1994 during the cease-fire which immediately followed
6 the Markale market incident confirmed to the witness that Aleksic was
7 indeed subject to a centralised command and control system.
8 In relation to the Bosnian army, the witness observed that the
9 Bosnian army in the city had significantly less weaponry than did the
10 Bosnian Serb forces. He had seen a tank on the Bosnian army side, and in
11 February 1994, at a weapon collection point set up in the city, he saw
12 120-millimetre mortars but no artillery. He observed that the Bosnian
13 army was multi-ethnic in its composition, including people who were
14 identified as being Serbian or Croatian as well as of the Muslim faith.
15 In the early stages of the conflict, he noted that the Bosnian
16 army was not consistently outfitted in uniforms.
17 In mid-1992, he met a Bosnian paramilitary by the name of Juka
18 Prazina who the witness estimated had 200 to 300 men under his command.
19 They were armed and un-uniformed except that they tended to wear black.
20 As to military targets in the city, on occasion he would visit
21 various Bosnian army officers which were located in what as far as he
22 could tell had previously been non-military office buildings. On one
23 occasion he saw a mortar that had been set up in the grounds of Kosevo
24 Hospital.
25 As to conditions in the city by May 1992, the shops were empty and
Page 26701
1 food had to be brought in. Some tried to grow vegetables for themselves,
2 but many lived in apartment blocks and, therefore, were unable to do so.
3 When on the Bosnian Serb side of the confrontation lines, in
4 particular in the area of Grbavica, the witness had observed anti-sniping
5 barricades, and he was informed that civilians on that side were being
6 shot by snipers from the Bosnian side of the confrontation lines. He
7 asked to be taken to the hospitals to see the victims but was not taken.
8 As to prisons on the Bosnian side, the witness was aware of the
9 existence of prisons in Sarajevo. He asked the Bosnian authorities for
10 access to those prisons but was never given access.
11 Your Honour, that concludes the presentation of the summary of the
12 evidence. At this point I would show -- seek to show four video clips or
13 some parts, but I note the time.
14 JUDGE MAY: Yes, I think that would be a convenient moment to stop
15 for the day. We will adjourn now. Twenty minutes. Baron, could you
16 remember, please, not speak to anybody about your evidence, not that
17 you've given any so far, until it is over.
18 THE WITNESS: Yes, Your Honour.
19 JUDGE MAY: Did I say 20 minutes? Adjourned for the day.
20 --- Whereupon the hearing adjourned at 1.49 p.m.,
21 to be reconvened on Tuesday, the 16th day of
22 September, 2003 at 9.00 a.m.
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