Indicted along with Jelavic are a former defence minister of the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Miroslav Prce, former Federation President Ivo Andric Luzanski, a former deputy commander of the Federation Army, General Dragan Curcic, former officials of the Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Marko Tokic and Zdravko Batinic, and a former president of the Croatian Christian Democrats of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Petar Milic.
They are charged with taking part in the establishment of Croat self-rule in Bosnia-Herzegovina in the spring of 2001, thus refusing to recognise the lawful authorities elected at the October 2000 elections.
They are also charged with unlawful attempts to disband the Croat component of the Federation Army.
The three-member panel of judges, presided by Pietro Spera of Italy, accepted arguments by defence counsel representing some of the indictees, who said that it was impossible to have a good trial in the case because of the ongoing trial in the Hercegovacka Banka case, in which Jelavic is the principal indictee.
Jelavic has been in the Kula prison near Sarajevo since January 2004, when he was arrested on the basis of an indictment charging him with the mismanagement of financial aid sent to Bosnian Croats by the Croatian government through Hercegovacka Banka.
Miroslav Prce was arrested along with Jelavic, but he pleaded guilty in the meantime and was sentenced to five years in prison. Jelavic is still on trial in that case and the trial is due to continue on January 13, on the same day when the trial in the case of Croat self-rule was expected to continue.
Attorney Dragan Barbaric, who is defending Jelavic in the Hercegovacka Banka case, moved today that the trial for Croat self-rule be postponed until his client was "released from custody", after which he would be able to prepare for defence as other indictees.
Prosecutor John McNair did not oppose this motion, but he requested that the trial not be postponed for more than 30 days.
McNair moved that the panel of judges convene after the postponement expired to discuss the course of the trial in the case of Hercegovacka Banka and decide if the main hearing in the case of Croat self-rule could start, which Judge Spera accepted.
A defence attorney for Miroslav Prce, Zarko Bulic, repeated that the panel of judges which included two foreign judges did not have the legitimacy to prosecute citizens of Bosnia-Herzegovina whom Bosnia's constitution granted the right to a trial before a court composed of judges who are citizens of Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The Court of Bosnia-Herzegovina dismissed the attorney's objection.