Case No.: IT-95-11-PT

BEFORE THE TRIAL CHAMBER

Before:
Judge Liu Daqun, Presiding
Judge Mohamed Amin El Abbassi Elmahdi
Judge Alphonsus Martinus Maria Orie

Registrar:
Mr. Hans Holthuis

Order of:
3 July 2002

PROSECUTOR
v.
MILAN MARTIC

___________________________________________________________

ORDER

___________________________________________________________

The Office of the Prosecutor:

Hildegard Uertz-Retzlaff

Defence Counsel:

Gert-Jan Knoops

 

THIS TRIAL CHAMBER ("the Chamber) of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991 ("the International Tribunal"):

BEING SEIZE OF the "Appeal" ("the Appeal"), filed by Counsel Strahinja Kastratovic on 26 June 2002;

NOTING the "Decision" of the Deputy Registrar, dated 31 may 2002 ("first Registry decision"), whereby Mr. Strahinja Kastratovic was temporarily assigned as Counsel to the accused Milan Martic ("the accused") until 13 June 2002, pending further clarification of a potential conflict of interest;

NOTING the "Decision" of the Deputy Registrar, dated 14 June 2002 ("second Registry Decision"), whereby Mr. Gert-Jan Knoops was assigned as Counsel for the accused for a period of 100 days:

NOTING that the second Registry Decision provides that "an assignment of Mr. Kastratovic to the accused could, under the current circumstances, lead to adverse impacts on the rights of the accused and the suspect Mr. Kastratovic previously represented", and that "while he was assigned to the accused, Mr. Kastratovic has not taken any further steps to clarify or neutralise the potential conflict of interest";

CONSIDERING that pursuant to Article 13 of the Directive On Assignment of Defence Counsel (Directive No. 1/94) the accused whose request for assignment of counsel has been denied, may, within two weeks of the date of notification to him, make a motion to the Chamber before which he is due to appear for immediate review of the Registrar’s decision; that the Appeal was lodged by Counsel Strahinja Kastratovic and not the accused;

CONSIDERING that it is understood that the accused has requested Mr. Strahinja Kastratovic be assigned his Defence Counsel in his letter directed to Registry, dated 23 May 2002, and in a further letter, received by Registry on 12 June 2002, wherein the accused confirmed his confidence in Mr. Kastratovic;

CONSIDERING that the question of assignment of Counsel relates directly to the right of the accused to a fair trial; that it is therefore in the interests of justice and of a fair and speedy trial that the Chamber considers itself seized op the Appeal notwithstanding the fact that that it was not filed by the accused himself;

NOTING that both the Appeal and the first Registry Decision refer to information provided by the Prosecution to the Registry concerning the factual background of the alleged conflict of interest;

NOTING FURTHER that the second Registry Decision assigned Mr. Gert-jan Knoops as Defence Counsel for the accused only for a period of 100 days without giving any explanation as to the further procedure to be followed with regard to the definitive assignment of Defence Counsel to the accused;

CONSIDERING that the Chamber, on the basis of the information provided in the Appeal and the first and second Registry Decision, requires further information and clarification prior to making a decision; that it considers the question of assignment of Counsel at this point of the proceedings to be an urgent matter requiring expeditious attention;

FOR THE FOREGOING REASONS HEREBY ORDERS AS FOLLOWS:

  1. The accused, Counsel of choice Strahinja Kastratovic, assigned Defence Counsel Gert-Jan Knoops and the Registry shall submit further information and clarification of their respective positions on the alleged conflict of interests and other matters raised in this order;
  2. The Prosecution shall submit all relevant information on the factual background of the alleged conflict of interest;
  3. The written submissions shall not exceed 5 pages and shall be submitted not later than 10 July 2002.

 

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

Dated this third day of July 2002,
At The Hague,
The Netherlands


Judge Liu Daqun
Judge

[Seal of the Tribunal]