ZAGREB/THE HAGUE, Aug 9 (Hina) - The UN war crimes tribunal said onMonday that it had asked former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevicand amici curiae who helped him in his defence to voice their opinionon the appointment of a
defence lawyer.
ZAGREB/THE HAGUE, Aug 9 (Hina) - The UN war crimes tribunal said on
Monday that it had asked former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic and amici
curiae who helped him in his defence to voice their opinion on the appointment
of a defence lawyer.
According to a press release issued by the International Criminal Tribunal
for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), the Hague-based tribunal "orders the Accused
and Amici Curiae to file submissions, if any, within two weeks on : the role
that counsel assigned by the Trial Chamber might play in ensuring the fair
presentation of the defence case, in particular in the absence of instructions
to, or cooperation with, counsel by the Accused ; and In light of paragraphs
42-44 of the Prosecution’s submissions, the role which the Amici Curiae might
play to relieve the Accused of the burden of continuing to represent himself
exclusively."
The order followed a week after the prosecution asked the tribunal to
assign a counsel to Milosevic, accused of war crimes in Croatia and Kosovo and
genocide in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The prosecution explained in its request that due to his poor health, the
defendant was not able to take part in the proceedings without the assistance
of a lawyer, and therefore Chief Prosecutor Carla del Ponte asked the ICTY to
assign a defence counsel.
So far, Milosevic has been refusing the services of an assigned counsel
insisting to defend himself.
Since the commencement of the Hague trial of Milosevic on 12 February 2002,
the process has been interrupted on several occasions due to health problems
of the defendant who suffers from high blood pressure.
The presentation of his defence, previously scheduled to begin in June, has
been postponed until 31 August.