ZAGREB, March 30 (Hina) - The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) will on Monday declare a verdict in the case of two Bosnian Croats -- Mladen Naletilic a.k.a. Tuta and Vinko Martinovic a.k.a. Stela --
accused of war crimes committed in the areas of Mostar and Jablanica in 1993.
ZAGREB, March 30 (Hina) - The International Criminal Tribunal for
the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) will on Monday declare a verdict in the
case of two Bosnian Croats -- Mladen Naletilic a.k.a. Tuta and Vinko
Martinovic a.k.a. Stela -- accused of war crimes committed in the
areas of Mostar and Jablanica in 1993. #L#
In their closing arguments, held in October last year, prosecutors
insisted on 35-year sentence for Naletilic and 25-year sentence for
Martinovic.
The announcement of the verdict was previously scheduled for 24
March, but four days before that date it was cancelled at the
request of Naletilic's lawyer Kresimir Krsnik who asked for some
more time to study evidence incorporated in documents he received
from Prosecutor Kenneth Scott not so much time before.
During a debate on the documents in question, held before the ICTY's
trial chamber on 20 March, the defence lawyers asserted that the
documents had some evidence which could be treated as potentially
extricating and that the prosecution on purpose concealed it,
although it was obliged to forward it to the defence as well,
pursuant to the Rule 68 of the tribunal.
The tribunal postponed the ruling for one week, and during that time
the trial chamber concluded that the documents had no such legal
character as to require the retrial of Naletilic.
The trial of these two Bosnian Croats started in September 2001.
Martinovic was handed over to the Hague-based UN war crimes court in
August 1999, but Zagreb had for some time refused to extradite
Naletilic, justifying the refusal with his poor health. This was
the reason why Croatia was reported to the UN Security Council,
after the ICTY criticised Zagreb for a lack of cooperation.
Naletilic finally arrived in the ICTY's detention centre on 21
March 2000.
The ICTY regards Nalatilic and Martinovic as liable, both as
commanders and on the basis of their personal responsibility, for
war crimes the so-called Convicts Battalion of the Croat Defence
Unit (HVO) perpetrated in Herzegovina. Naletilic was the commander
of the entire battalion, while Martinovic was at the helm of an
anti-terrorist unit within that battalion.
(hina) ms