THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL FOR THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA

CASE NO. IT-04-79-I

THE PROSECUTOR OF THE TRIBUNAL

AGAINST

MICO STANISIC

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, pursuant to her authority under Article 18 of the Statute of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia ("the Statute of the Tribunal"), charges:

with CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY, and VIOLATIONS OF THE LAWS OR CUSTOMS OF WAR, as set forth below:

1. Mico STANISIC was born on 30 June 1954, in the village of Ponor, Pale Municipality, in Bosnia and Herzegovina ("BiH"). He graduated from law school in Sarajevo. From 21 December 1991, Mico STANISIC was Minister Without Portfolio of the Council of Ministers which was named by the Assembly of the Serbian People of BiH. From 1 April 1992, he was Minister of the newly established Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs in BiH ("RS MUP").

2. Mico STANISIC, as Minister of the RS MUP, was the highest authority in the MUP. His official responsibility included public and state security.

3. In his capacity as Minister of the RS MUP, Mico STANISIC had overall authority and responsibility for the functioning of the police forces within Republika Srpska ("RS"). All commanders of the Security Services Centres ("CSB") were directly subordinated to him. He had authority to appoint and dismiss the heads of police units from duty. He exercised command and control of the police forces in co-ordination with the Army of Republika Srpska ("VRS"), paramilitary forces and volunteer units, the Territorial Defence ("TO"), as well as other civilian bodies. All subordinates were under obligation to carry out all the orders given by the Minister of the RS MUP or other superior officers.

4. Mico STANISIC had the authority to punish or initiate disciplinary proceedings against his subordinates for any crimes that they may have committed.

5. Mico STANISIC is individually criminally responsible pursuant to Article 7(1) of the Statute of the Tribunal for crimes referred to in Articles 3 and 5 of the Statute of the Tribunal as alleged in this Indictment, which he committed, instigated, or in whose planning, preparation or execution he aided and abetted. By using the word "committed" in this Indictment, the Prosecutor does not allege that the accused personally committed any of the crimes charged. "Committed" in this Indictment includes participation in a joint criminal enterprise ("JCE").

6. A JCE came into existence no later than the establishment of the Assembly of the Serbian People in BiH on 24 October 1991 and continued throughout the period of the conflict in BiH until the signing of the Dayton Accords in 1995. The objective of the JCE was to permanently remove and ethnically cleanse, by force or other means, Bosnian Muslims, Bosnian Croats and other non-Serbs from the territory of the planned Serbian state by the commission of the crimes alleged in Counts 1-10.

7. Numerous individuals participated in this JCE. Each participant, by acts or omissions, contributed to achieving the overall objective of the enterprise. Mico STANISIC worked in concert with other members of the JCE, including Stojan @UPLJANIN, Radoslav BR\ANIN, General Momir TALIC (deceased), Slobodan DUBOCANIN (deceased), Simo DRLJACA (deceased), Darko MR\A, Ljuban ECIM, General Ratko MLADIC, Radovan KARAD@IC, Nikola KOLJEVIC (deceased), Momcilo KRAJISNIK, Biljana PLAVSIC, and other members of the Bosnian Serb leadership and of the Serbian Democratic Party ("SDS") at the republic, regional and municipal levels; members of civilian bodies within BiH, including regional and municipal crisis staffs; members of the Yugoslav People’s Army ("JNA"), the Yugoslav Army ("VJ"), the VRS, the TO, the RS MUP, the Serbian MUP, and members of Serbian and Bosnian Serb paramilitary forces and volunteer units, as well as military and political figures from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ("SFRY").

8. Mico STANISIC acting individually and through the positions and powers described above, and/or in concert with other members of the JCE, participated in the JCE from no later than 1 April 1992 until at least 31 December 1992 in one or more of the following ways:

(a) Commanding and directing members and agents of the RS MUP who were engaged in implementing the objective of the JCE or who participated in the perpetration of the crimes listed in this Indictment;

(b) Encouraging and facilitating and thus instigating the commission of crimes against Bosnian Croats, Bosnian Muslims and other non-Serbs by not taking any active steps to investigate, arrest, and/or punish the perpetrators of such crimes;

9. Mico STANISIC participated in the JCE as co-perpetrator.

10. The crimes charged in this Indictment were within the objective of the JCE. Mico STANISIC and the other members of the JCE shared a mutual understanding or agreement to commit the charged crimes and acted with the state of mind required for the commission of each of these offences. In addition, each member of the JCE was aware that his or her conduct occurred in the context of an armed conflict and was part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population.

11. Mico STANISIC knew of the establishment and operation of camps and detention facilities within the RS; he intended to facilitate the ill-treatment of non-Serb detainees held in these facilities; he took no effective measures to prevent or stop the ill-treatment in the camps and detention facilities or punish the perpetrators thereof.

12. Alternatively, the crimes enumerated in Counts 1 to 8 of this Indictment were the natural and foreseeable consequences of the execution of the object of the JCE and Mico STANISIC was aware that such crimes were the natural and foreseeable outcome of the execution of the JCE.

13. Mico STANISIC while holding the position of superior authority, is also individually criminally responsible for the acts or omissions of his subordinates pursuant to Article 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal. Mico STANISIC in his capacity as Minister of Interior exercised de jure and de facto command and control over the police forces that participated in the crimes alleged in this indictment.

14. Mico STANISIC knew or had reason to know that crimes alleged in this indictment were about to be committed or had been committed by his subordinates and he failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent such acts or punish the perpetrators thereof. Mico STANISIC’s duty included an obligation to investigate and establish the facts of the crime, to put an end to the criminal activity, to impose appropriate punitive measures on the perpetrator, and to take measures to prevent or deter further criminal acts committed by his subordinates.

15. Between about 1 April 1992 and 31 December 1992, Mico STANISIC knew or had reason to know that the crime of persecution as alleged below was about to be committed or had been committed by his subordinates, and he knowingly and intentionally failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent such acts or punish the perpetrators thereof. His omissions were such as to amount to his instigation to the commission of further crimes by his subordinates. He thus individually or in concert with other participants in the JCE committed, instigated or otherwise aided and abetted in the planning, preparation or execution of Persecution on political, racial or religious grounds of the Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat populations in the areas designated as the Serbian Autonomous Regions ("SAO"), including the municipalities of Prijedor, Kotor Varos, Sanski Most, Kljuc, Teslic, Donji Vakuf, and Banja Luka in the Autonomous Region of Krajina ("ARK"), and further in the municipalities of Bileca, Bosanski Samac, Brcko, Doboj, Gacko, Ilijas, Pale, Vlasenica, Visegrad, Vogosca and Zvornik ("Municipalities").

16. Bosnian Serb forces under the command and control of Mico STANISIC committed persecution in the ARK and the Municipalities upon Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat population. The persecution included:

- accommodation or shelter;

- food or water;

- medical care;

- hygienic sanitation facilities;

(g) forcible transfer and deportation;

By these acts and omissions, Mico STANISIC participated in:

Count 1: Persecutions on political, racial and religious grounds, a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, punishable under Articles 5(h), 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal.

17. Between about 1 April 1992 and 31 December 1992, Mico STANISIC knew or had reason to know that the crimes of extermination and murder as alleged below were about to be committed or had been committed by his subordinates, and he knowingly and intentionally failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent such acts or punish the perpetrators thereof. His omissions were such as to amount to his instigation to the commission of further crimes by his subordinates. He thus individually or in concert with other participants in the JCE committed, instigated or otherwise aided and abetted in the planning, preparation or execution of the extermination and murder of Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats in the ARK and the Municipalities. The extermination and murder was effected by killings during and after attacks on towns and villages, in detention facilities and during deportations or forcible transfers. The killings are those listed in Schedules A and B.

By these acts and omissions, Mico STANISIC participated in:

Count 2: Extermination, a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, punishable under Articles 5(b), 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal;

Count 3: Murder, a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, punishable under Articles 5(a), 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal;

Count 4: Murder, a VIOLATION OF THE LAWS OR CUSTOMS OF WAR, as recognised by Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal.

18. Between about 1 April 1992 and 31 December 1992, Mico STANISIC knew or had reason to know that the crimes of torture, cruel treatment and inhumane acts as alleged below were about to be committed or had been committed by his subordinates, and he knowingly and intentionally failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent such acts or punish the perpetrators thereof. His omissions were such as to amount to his instigation to the commission of further crimes by his subordinates. He thus individually or in concert with other participants in the JCE committed, instigated or otherwise aided and abetted in the planning, preparation or execution of inhumane acts inflicted on the non-Serb population in the ARK and the Municipalities.

19. Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats were confined in inhumane conditions and subjected to intentional infliction of severe pain or suffering by beatings, torture, sexual violence, humiliation, harassment, and psychological abuses in camps, police stations, military barracks and other detention facilities as listed in Schedule D, as well as during and after attacks on villages and during forcible transfers and deportations.

By his acts and omissions Mico STANISIC participated in:

Count 5: Torture, a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, punishable under Article 5 (f), 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal;

Count 6: Torture, a VIOLATION OF THE LAWS OR CUSTOMS OF WAR, as recognised by Common Article 3 (1)(a) of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, punishable under Articles 3, 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal;

Count 7: Cruel treatment, a VIOLATION OF THE LAWS OR CUSTOMS OF WAR, as recognised by Common Article 3(1) of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, punishable under Articles 3, 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal;

Count 8: Inhumane acts, a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, punishable under Article 5(i), 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal.

20. Between about 1 April 1992 and 31 December 1992, Mico STANISIC knew or had reason to know that the crimes of deportation and forcible transfer as alleged below were about to be committed or had been committed by his subordinates, and he knowingly and intentionally failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent such acts or punish the perpetrators thereof. His omissions were such as to amount to his instigation to the commission of further crimes by his subordinates. He thus individually or in concert with other participants in the JCE committed, instigated or otherwise aided and abetted in the planning, preparation or execution of the unlawful forcible transfer and deportation of tens of thousands of Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats from the ARK and the Municipalities.

21. In order to achieve this objective, Bosnian Serb forces including the police forces of the RS MUP under the effective control of Mico STANISIC or other members of the JCE, subjugated villages and towns in BiH and participated with members of the SDS in the disarming of the Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat population. The towns and villages, including areas in which the inhabitants complied and offered no resistance, were then attacked. These attacks were intended to compel the Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat population to flee. After taking control of the towns and villages, the Bosnian Serb forces often rounded up the remaining Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat population and forcibly removed them from the area. On other occasions, the Bosnian Serb forces in co-operation with the local Bosnian Serb authorities imposed restrictive and discriminatory measures on the Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat population and engaged in a campaign of terror designed to drive them out of the territory. The majority of the Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat population that remained was eventually deported or forcibly transferred from their homes.

By his acts and omissions Mico STANISIC participated in:

Count 9: Deportation, a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, punishable under Articles 5(d), 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal;

Count 10: Inhumane Acts (forcible transfer), a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY, punishable under Articles 5(i), 7(1) and 7(3) of the Statute of the Tribunal.

22. All acts and omissions charged as Crimes Against Humanity were part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against the Bosnian Muslim and Bosnian Croat civilian populations of BiH.

23. At all times relevant to this indictment, a state of armed conflict existed in BiH.

24. At all times relevant to this indictment, the Accused was required to abide by the laws and customs governing the conduct of armed conflicts.

25. In November 1990, multi-party elections were held in BiH for the first time since the Second World War. There were three main parties, each of which was identified with one of the three principal ethnic groups in BiH. The Party of Democratic Action, (the "SDA"), was identified, in the main, as the party of the Bosnian Muslims; the SDS was identified as the party of the Bosnian Serbs; and the Croatian Democratic Union, (the "HDZ"), was primarily identified as the party of the Bosnian Croats. The SDA won the most seats in the Republic Assembly, followed by the SDS and then the HDZ.

26. The SDS political platform concentrated on the goal of unifying ethnic Serbs in a common state. The election results, however, made apparent the fact that as time went on the SDS would be unable to keep BiH in a Serb-dominated Yugoslavia through democratic and peaceful means alone. As a result, Bosnian Serbs began to organise certain areas of BiH into formal regional structures through the concept of "Associations of Municipalities" which existed under the 1974 Yugoslav constitutional regime. These Associations, although nominally non-ethnic, were the first step toward establishing separate Bosnian Serb governmental bodies in BiH.

27. On 25 June 1991, Slovenia and Croatia declared their independence from the SFRY. The following day, the JNA was engaged in armed conflict in Slovenia, and fighting broke out in Croatia soon thereafter. In the autumn of 1991, the JNA began to withdraw its forces from Croatia and re-deploy them into BiH. Working in conjunction with certain elements in the JNA, the SDS started arming the Bosnian Serb population of BiH.

28. As early as mid-1991, Mico STANISIC collaborated with key figures in the Bosnian Serb leadership in formulating and subsequently implementing plans to form a Bosnian Serb MUP.

29. In September 1991, the various Associations of Municipalities were transformed into SAO’s, including the transformation, on or about 16 September 1991, of the Association of Bosanska Krajina Municipalities into the ARK. The ARK came to include (among others) the following municipalities: Banja Luka, Prijedor, Sanski Most, Kljuc, Kotor Varos, Teslic, and Donji Vakuf.

30. Around this period of time the SAO of Herzegovina (including the municipalities of Bileca, Gacko, Visegrad), the SAO of Romanija-Birac (including the municipalities of Pale, Vlasenica, Vogosca, Ilijas, ), the SAO of Semberija and Majevica (including the municipalities of Zvornik, Brcko and Bijeljina) and the SAO of Northern Bosnia (including the municipality of Doboj and Bosanski Samac) were also established.

31. As the war continued in Croatia, and it appeared increasingly likely that BiH would also declare its independence, the SDS began in earnest the creation of a separate Serbian entity within BiH together with separate bodies of authority. A separate Assembly of the Serbian People in BiH, dominated by the SDS, was founded on 24 October 1991 as the highest representative and legislative organ of Serbs in BiH. During the first session, Radovan Karad`ic made it clear that the Bosnian Serbs were prepared to use force and fear to achieve their ends if they were otherwise unsuccessful.

32. On 19 December 1991, the SDS issued instructions for the "Organisation and Activity of the Organs of the Serbian People in Bosnia and Herzegovina in Extraordinary Circumstances" which provided a plan for the SDS take-over of municipalities in BiH. The instructions included plans for the creation of Crisis Staffs.

33. The Crisis Staffs were modelled on similar entities that had existed as part of the Yugoslavian defence system. They were designed to take over the functioning of the municipalities or republic government during times of war or a state of emergency when the Assembly, normally the highest authority of government, could not function. When activated, a Crisis Staff had complete executive and regulatory authority and was comprised of representatives of the police, military and government organs.

34. On 9 January 1992, the Bosnian Serb Assembly adopted a declaration on the Proclamation of the Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ("SR BiH"). On 28 February 1992, the Constitution of the Serbian Republic of BiH declared that the territory of that Republic included "the territories of the Serbian Autonomous Regions and Districts and of other Serbian ethnic entities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, including the regions in which the Serbian people remained in the minority due to the genocide conducted against it in World War Two", and it was declared to be a part of the SFRY. On 12 August 1992, the name of the Bosnian Serb republic was changed to RS.

35. On 11 February 1992, a meeting of Serb officials of the BiH MUP was held in Banja Luka. At the meeting, Mico STANISIC insisted that it was necessary to establish a separate RS MUP at the municipal, regional and republic level.

36. On 1 April 1992, pursuant to the Serb Law on Internal Affairs, which was issued on 23 March 1992 and entered into force on 31 March 1992, a separate RS MUP was established with Mico STANISIC as Minister. According to Article 28 of the Law, CSBs were established in Banja Luka for the ARK, in Trebinje for the SAO of Herzegovina, in Doboj for the SAO of Northern Bosnia, in Sarajevo for the SAO of Romanija-Birac, and in Bijeljina for the SAO of Semberija and Majevica. The RS MUP was considered part of the armed forces of the RS.

37. On 12 May 1992, at the 16^th session of the Bosnian Serb Assembly, Radovan Karad`ic announced the six strategic objectives of the Serbian people in BiH. In essence, these strategic goals constituted a plan to seize and control territory, establish a Bosnian Serb state, defend defined borders and separate the ethnic groups within BiH.

38. Between 1 April 1992 and 31 December 1992, RS MUP forces under the authority of Mico STANISIC, acting together with the VRS, the TO, and paramilitaries carried out a campaign to disarm the non-Serb population. This campaign was conducted under the guise of action against "Muslim and Croat extremists" or to collect "illegally held weapons". Although in public statements and publications the disarmament orders were not always expressly directed at the non-Serb populations, in practice only Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats were disarmed. The disarmament campaign was frequently used as a pretext for unlawful armed attacks on non-Serb villages and their inhabitants.

39. At the same time the forces under the control of the RS authorities seized power in those municipalities deemed to pose a threat to the accomplishment of the overall plan to create a Serbian state within BiH. These take-overs initiated a series of events, organised and directed by the RS authorities, including the RS MUP, which by the end of 1992, resulted in the death of thousands and the forced departure of tens of thousands of Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats from those areas.

Dated this twenty fourth day of February 2005
At The Hague
The Netherlands