START OF MARKAC-CERMAK TRIAL DOESN'T DEPEND ON GOTOVINA'S APPEARANCE - ATTORNEY

ZAGREB, March 12 (Hina) - Fugitive Croatian General Ante Gotovina's attorney Luka Misetic on Friday refuted a statement made by attorney Cedo Prodanovic, defence counsel for another Croatian general, Ivan Cermak, who said that his client would be put on trial before the U.N. war crimes tribunal only when Gotovina appeared in The Hague.#L# Prodanovic said in The Hague earlier today he was "almost certain" that Cermak and another Croatian general on the same indictment, Mladen Markac, would be tried with Gotovina even though the indictments were separate, because "we have one event and identical evidence". In a statement delivered to Hina, Misetic says that under the Hague tribunal's rules, those who have surrendered to the tribunal may be put on trial even if the other co-accused are unavailable to the tribunal. He cited the example of Bosnian Croat Ante Furundzija, whom he defended even though three other men accused on the same indictment were unavailable to the tribunal and still are. Misetic went on to mention Bosnian Serbs Radovan Karadzic and Momcilo Krajisnik, who are indicted of virtually the same crimes. Krajisnik's trial began last month even though Karadzic remains at large, he said. Misetic added the fact that Gotovina was unavailable to the tribunal would not affect the start of the Cermak-Markac trial in any way. (Hina) ha