Sadri Selca, a witness in the Haradinaj et al. case, was today arrested following his indictment for contempt of court.
Selca was indicted on 7 November 2007 for contempt of court having failed on 21 June 2007 to appear before the Trial Chamber without just cause. The indictment was made public today following his arrest.
Throughout the Haradinaj et al. trial, the Prosecution has complained of witness intimidation leading to witnesses refusing to testify. The Prosecution has filed numerous applications for witness subpoenas and trial related protective measures in the case.
The first witness to be charged with contempt in this case, Shefqet Kabashi, refused to testify while taking the oath before his testimony during the trial on 5 June 2007 . He was then charged with contempt of court. Another potential witness in this case, Avni Krasniqi, was last week arrested, transferred to the Tribunal's Detention Unit and charged with contempt of court
for failing to comply with an order to appear before the Trial Chamber. He did not enter a plea at his initial appearance, held yesterday, and a further initial appearance will be scheduled in due course.
Ramush Haradinaj surrendered to the Tribunal on 9 March 2005 and was granted pre-trial provisional release from June 2005 to February 2007. The trial commenced on 5 March 2007 and the Prosecution is expected to complete its case-in-chief in the next few days.
Haradinaj, a well known military figure from the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) during the 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo with Serb forces, was after the conflict the leader of a minority political party and briefly served as Prime Minister of Kosovo. He is accused of participating in a joint criminal enterprise aimed at asserting full control in the KLA operational zone of
Dukagjin which allegedly was carried out by the unlawful removal and mistreatment of Serb civilians, Kosovar Albanians, Kosovar Roma and other civilians who were, or were perceived to have been, collaborating with Serb forces or not supporting the KLA.
The full text of the indictment for contempt can be found on the Tribunal's website at: http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/sadri-ind071106.pdf.
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Courtroom proceedings can be followed on the Tribunal's website www.un.org/icty.
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