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1 Friday, 28
2 [Open session]
3 [Initial appearance]
4 --- Upon commencing at 10.38 a.m.
5 JUDGE HUNT: Call the case, please.
6 THE REGISTRAR: [Interpretation] This is case
7 IT-98-32-I. The Prosecutor against Mitar Vasiljevic.
8 JUDGE HUNT: Appearances.
9 MS. KORNER: Joanne Korner. I represent the
10 Prosecution, with the assistance of co-counsel,
11 Ms. Nancy Paterson, and case manager Diane Boles.
12 JUDGE HUNT: Thank you. For the accused?
13 Are you appearing for the accused?
14 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone for the Judge,
15 please.
16 MR. PRODANOVIC: [Interpretation] Your Honour,
17 I am Slavisa Prodanovic. I am legal counsel today for
18 the accused Vasiljevic.
19 JUDGE HUNT: Have you had a chance to discuss
20 this matter with your client yet?
21 MR. PRODANOVIC: [Interpretation] Yes, Your
22 Honour. I did have an opportunity of discussing it
23 with my client yesterday and today, and he is aware of
24 the procedure.
25 JUDGE HUNT: And is he aware of the nature of
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1 the allegations made against him?
2 MR. PRODANOVIC: [Interpretation] Yes, Your
3 Honour. Yes, he is aware, and he is also aware of the
4 plea he is supposed to enter. And we wish to suggest
5 to the Court not to have the factual part of the
6 indictment read, only to have the accused enter his
7 pleas.
8 JUDGE HUNT: I am grateful to hear that. But
9 he is ready to enter a plea today, is he?
10 MR. PRODANOVIC: [Interpretation] Yes, Your
11 Honour. Yes.
12 JUDGE HUNT: Thank you. Before we actually
13 take the pleas, I should ask the accused: Are you able
14 to hear the proceedings in a language which you
15 understand? Are you able to hear the proceedings in a
16 language which you understand?
17 THE ACCUSED: Yes.
18 JUDGE HUNT: What is your full name?
19 THE ACCUSED: Mitar Vasiljevic.
20 JUDGE HUNT: And what is the date upon which
21 you believe you were born?
22 THE ACCUSED: The 25th of August, 1954.
23 JUDGE HUNT: And what is the address at which
24 you resided before you were arrested?
25 THE ACCUSED: Vojvode Stepe 140, Visegrad.
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1 JUDGE HUNT: And you are now ready to enter
2 pleas to the charges against you in the indictment?
3 THE ACCUSED: Yes.
4 JUDGE HUNT: I propose to read out to you
5 just the charge, and then I will ask you: How do you
6 plead to that charge, guilty or not guilty? Your
7 answer in each case should be "guilty" or "not guilty,"
8 as the case may be.
9 The first count against you is a charge of
10 extermination, being a crime against humanity. How do
11 you plead, guilty or not guilty?
12 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
13 JUDGE HUNT: The second count is a charge of
14 persecution on political, racial and religious grounds,
15 as a crime against humanity. How do you plead, guilty
16 or not guilty?
17 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
18 JUDGE HUNT: The third count is a charge of
19 murder, being a crime against humanity. How do you
20 plead, guilty or not guilty?
21 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
22 JUDGE HUNT: The fourth count is another
23 charge of murder, as a violation of the laws or customs
24 of war. Do you plead guilty or not guilty?
25 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
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1 JUDGE HUNT: The fifth count is a charge of
2 inhumane acts, being a crime against humanity. How do
3 you plead, guilty or not guilty?
4 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
5 JUDGE HUNT: The sixth count is a charge of
6 violence to life and person, being a violation of the
7 laws or customs of war. How do you plead, guilty or
8 not guilty?
9 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
10 JUDGE HUNT: The seventh count is a charge of
11 murder, being a crime against humanity. How do you
12 plead, guilty or not guilty?
13 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
14 JUDGE HUNT: The eighth count is another
15 charge of murder, being a violation of the laws or
16 customs of war. Do you plead guilty or not guilty?
17 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
18 JUDGE HUNT: The ninth count is a charge of
19 inhumane acts, being a crime against humanity. Do you
20 plead guilty or not guilty?
21 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
22 JUDGE HUNT: The tenth count is a charge of
23 violence to life and person, being a violation of the
24 laws or customs of war. Do you plead guilty or not
25 guilty?
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1 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
2 JUDGE HUNT: The eleventh count is a charge of
3 murder, being a crime against humanity. Do you plead
4 guilty or not guilty?
5 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
6 JUDGE HUNT: The twelfth count, a charge of
7 murder, being a violation of the laws or customs of
8 war. Do you plead guilty or not guilty?
9 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
10 JUDGE HUNT: The thirteenth count is a charge of
11 inhumane acts, being a crime against humanity. Do you
12 plead guilty or not guilty?
13 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
14 JUDGE HUNT: And the fourteenth and final count is
15 a charge of violence to life and person, being a
16 violation of the laws and customs of war. Do you plead
17 guilty or not guilty?
18 THE ACCUSED: Not guilty.
19 JUDGE HUNT: Sit down, please, sir.
20 The Registrar will be instructed to fix a
21 date for trial, when appropriate. And the accused is
22 remanded in custody until further order.
23 Is there any matter which the Prosecution
24 wishes to raise at this stage, Ms. Korner?
25 MS. KORNER: Your Honour, just to say this:
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1 We are in a position to make immediate disclosure of
2 the Rule 47 supporting material, both in English and in
3 B/C/S. But, as I understand the matter, Defence
4 counsel will not be instructed or may not be instructed
5 by his client, and so it may well be that for the
6 moment we'd better, as it were, hang onto it.
7 Can I just mention one other matter?
8 JUDGE HUNT: Yes.
9 MS. KORNER: Your Honour, we filed a motion
10 for protective measures. We were unaware, at the time
11 that we filed the motion, that Your Honour had issued a
12 scheduling order in respect of another matter, of which
13 Your Honour is seized, effectively asking for
14 clarification of the order that was dealt with in that
15 case. So we will re-examine the motion that we filed,
16 in the light of the order that Your Honour has made.
17 JUDGE HUNT: Well, I am grateful to that.
18 There is another matter which you should consider, and
19 that is the definition of the public includes various
20 persons other than the Judges of the Tribunal and the
21 staff of the Registry.
22 Now, that may be interpreted as a term of
23 art, which means those people who work in the Registry,
24 rather than the staff of the Registrar, who also work
25 in Chambers. So at the moment you are denying us the
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1 opportunity of showing our own legal officers and
2 secretaries the material that we have to deal with.
3 MS. KORNER: Your Honour, I am very grateful
4 for that. We will reconsider that matter as well.
5 JUDGE HUNT: Yes. This is a new form, this
6 one, so far as I am aware, and it does need a little
7 bit of cleaning up, I think.
8 MS. KORNER: Your Honour, I'll make sure that
9 the appropriate steps are taken.
10 JUDGE HUNT: Thank you. Mr. Prodanovic, do
11 you want to raise any matter at this stage?
12 MR. PRODANOVIC: I have nothing special to
13 add, Your Honour. It is true that I shall no longer
14 appear as Defence counsel in this case, because I am
15 busy with another case. However, the accused is
16 quickly going to find a new attorney and all
17 communication will go through him. Thank you.
18 JUDGE HUNT: Well, I am grateful to you for
19 telling us this. You might enforce this with your
20 client, however, that the sooner he does obtain Defence
21 counsel, the sooner he will find out what this is all
22 about, by the material which the Prosecution will
23 provide.
24 It is necessary, of course, to notify the
25 Registry, or the Defence counsel unit anyway, so that
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1 the Prosecution are aware of to whom the material
2 should be sent. So will you make sure, before you
3 leave the case, that you explain to your client, your
4 current client, the importance of moving quickly.
5 Well, that's all. We'll adjourn.
6 --- Hearing adjourned at 10.50 a.m. sine die
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