Tribunal Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia

Page 770

1 Wednesday, 11 October 2000

2 [Status Conference]

3 [Open session]

4 --- Upon commencing at 4.03 p.m.

5 JUDGE ROBINSON: Will the Registrar call the case, please.

6 THE REGISTRAR: This is case number 95-9-PT, the Prosecutor versus

7 Simic and others.

8 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you. And may we have the appearances for

9 the Prosecutor.

10 MS. PATERSON: Yes, Your Honour. Nancy Paterson representing the

11 Office of the Prosecutor, and with me is Andrew Powell, the case manager.

12 I'd just like to inform the Court that this will be Mr. Powell's last

13 appearance on the case. He will be leaving the Tribunal at the end of the

14 month.

15 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you. For the Defence.

16 MR. BRASHICH: Good afternoon, Your Honour. Deyan Brashich for

17 the Todorovic defence, and I would like to introduce to the Court my legal

18 assistant Mr. Zivan Blagojevic of the Republika Srpska bar. Good

19 afternoon.

20 JUDGE ROBINSON: Good afternoon.

21 MR. PANTELIC: Good afternoon, Your Honour. Igor Pantelic for

22 Mr. Miroslav Tadic.

23 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you.

24 MR. ZECEVIC: Good afternoon, Your Honour. Slobodan Zecevic for

25 Milan Simic.

Page 771

1 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you.

2 MR. LAZEREVIC: Good afternoon, Your Honours. Aleksander Lazerevic

3 for Mr. Simo Zaric.

4 JUDGE ROBINSON: This is a Status Conference pursuant to the

5 provisions of Rule 65 bis. Before making the usual inquiries of the

6 accused, I will deal with the outstanding matters and provide information

7 on pending issues. I have listed six.

8 First, the motion relating to requests for judicial assistance, a

9 decision on that motion will be given shortly.

10 Secondly, there is before the Chamber a motion filed by the

11 accused Todorovic seeking the assistance of the Chamber in accessing

12 documents in domestic proceedings in the FRY.

13 Mr. Brashich, I think you were to give us some information --

14 MR. BRASHICH: Yes, Your Honour.

15 JUDGE ROBINSON: -- as to whether you had succeeded in becoming a

16 party to those proceedings.

17 MR. BRASHICH: Yes, Your Honour, I have. As I had advised the

18 Court, Mr. Blagojevic and I have filed notices of appearance in those

19 proceedings representing the interests of the victim, Mr. Todorovic, under

20 the procedure as they exist in the FRY.

21 On the 18th of October, the trial of the five accused will

22 commence at Uzice, and I intend to appear there with Mr. Blagojevic. I

23 have met with the Prosecution, and they will make available to me

24 statements and transcripts -- or I guess they would be minutes of the

25 proceedings, and at that particular time, I will withdraw my request for

Page 772

1 judicial assistance as to the FRY.

2 I have given notice to Ms. Paterson of the proceedings, and I have

3 also given her notice of the name of the prosecutor and the judge.

4 I confirm now that as of this morning, notwithstanding the

5 situation in the FRY, the proceedings will commence on the 18th, and

6 they're scheduled to run for three days.

7 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you.

8 Our next matter relates to the two motions regarding the issue of

9 the legality of arrest. First, the request for return to the FRY, and the

10 second, the application for habeas corpus.

11 In relation to that, as you know, there is an ongoing evidentiary

12 hearing. The date for the continuation of that hearing will clearly have

13 to await the decision in the motion for the request for judicial

14 assistance. As I said earlier, that decision will be given very shortly.

15 It may also have to wait other matters arising out of that, that decision.

16 The next matter is an application on behalf of the accused Tadic

17 for an extension of provisional release in respect of medical examination.

18 Who is the counsel? Mr. Pantelic.

19 MR. PANTELIC: I am, Your Honour.

20 JUDGE ROBINSON: Do you wish that to be taken in closed or private

21 session?

22 MR. PANTELIC: No.

23 JUDGE ROBINSON: No, okay.

24 MR. PANTELIC: I don't think it's necessary, thank you.

25 JUDGE ROBINSON: Would you have anything to say on the motion?

Page 773

1 MR. PANTELIC: Just a few words. Maybe it is not so clear from

2 our application.

3 I spoke with Mrs. Featherstone about this issue. I just simply

4 informed her that due to the extraordinary moments, the relevant medical

5 experts from the clinical centre from Banja Luka were at Macedonia

6 participating in some symposium or something, so this seven days which was

7 agreed and which was -- sorry -- yes, permitted by the Court due to this

8 fact was not sufficient to perform additional analysis of a neurological

9 doctor. So simply due to this reason, we were obliged to submit our

10 application for additional time of four days of examinations in order to

11 complete the general examinations, medical examinations of my client.

12 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you. The motion itself is quite clear.

13 Ms. Paterson, would you have any response at this time?

14 MS. PATERSON: Your Honour, actually, I was about to prepare a

15 written response, and then when I realised we were going to have this

16 session today, if it's acceptable to the Court, I'm willing to just give

17 our oral response, which is we have no objection to Mr. Tadic getting the

18 treatment he's requested.

19 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you. The Chamber will give a decision on

20 this early next week.

21 [Trial Chamber confers]

22 JUDGE ROBINSON: So a decision on that will be given early next

23 week.

24 The next matter is a request by the accused Todorovic for access

25 to the OTP investigator Mr. Brondum. The stage at which this was is that

Page 774

1 I think the parties are now to confirm whether the Defence has spoken with

2 the investigator and whether there is a need to call him.

3 Mr. Brashich?

4 MR. BRASHICH: Your Honour, Ms. Paterson and I conferred on the

5 matter.

6 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone, please, Mr. Brashich. Microphone.

7 MR. BRASHICH: I think that we have resolved the matter. I have

8 been given access to the investigator by telephone. I interviewed him at

9 length by telephone, and I do plan to call him as a witness.

10 I am satisfied, after discussing the circumstances of the arrest,

11 and the guidelines under which the investigator operated, that he would be

12 a necessary witness, and he has told me that he's perfectly willing to

13 come and testify at this Chamber's pleasure. Thank you.

14 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you. The next Status Conference will have

15 to be held sometime prior to the 8th of February, 2001, and the usual

16 contacts will be made with a view to fixing the date.

17 May I now inquire from the accused, Mr. Todorovic, whether there

18 is any matter that you wish to raise in relation to your conditions of

19 detection or indeed in relation to any other matter.

20 THE ACCUSED TODOROVIC: [Interpretation] Mr. President, thank you

21 for your interest. For the moment, I have nothing in particular to say.

22 Thank you.

23 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you, Mr. Todorovic.

24 There being no other matter to be raised -- Mr. Brashich, yes.

25 MR. BRASHICH: Thank you, Your Honour. I'm mindful of the court's

Page 775

1 comments that the decision will be shortly forthcoming. I'm mindful of

2 the tremendous case load that this Court has. However, just very briefly,

3 I would like to place on the record that I'm pressing as hard as I can on

4 behalf of my client to resolve the issue, and I do not wish to in any way

5 offend the Court, I just want to make a statement that I, as the counsel

6 for the Defence, am doing everything in my power, and I'm sure the Court

7 is doing the same. Thank you, Your Honour.

8 JUDGE ROBINSON: Thank you, Mr. Brashich. I think you're acting

9 very properly, and I'd like to assure you that the Court is very sensitive

10 to the pressures of time, and we will see to it that the evidentiary

11 hearing resumes at the earliest opportunity.

12 MR. BRASHICH: Thank you, Your Honour.

13 JUDGE ROBINSON: The hearing is adjourned.

14 --- Whereupon the Status Conference adjourned

15 at 4.15 p.m.

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