ZAGREB, Oct 19 (Hina) - The Croatian government is aware that the parliament's decision on the handover of documents to the attorneys of fugitive general Ante Gotovina is illegal, and the office of the prosecutor of the Hague tribunal
will respond if the decision is implemented, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor's office of the UN war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague has told the Croatian press.
ZAGREB, Oct 19 (Hina) - The Croatian government is aware that the
parliament's decision on the handover of documents to the attorneys
of fugitive general Ante Gotovina is illegal, and the office of the
prosecutor of the Hague tribunal will respond if the decision is
implemented, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor's office of the UN
war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague has told
the Croatian press. #L#
"The Croatian government has very good legal advisers and knows
very well that the decision of the Sabor is illegal, and the office
of the prosecutor cannot be satisfied with it," Florance Hartmann
told the Sunday edition of the Zagreb-based Vecernji List daily.
"The office of the prosecutor of the Hague tribunal will certainly
respond if the Croatian government delivers documents to persons
who have no legitimacy of representation before the Hague
tribunal," Hartmann told Jutarnji List.
The Croatian parliament decided on Friday that the government had
to provide all indictees of the Hague tribunal and their attorneys
with documents it had handed over to the tribunal, including the
attorneys of General Gotovina.
Hartmann said that in order for a trial to begin, the office of the
prosecutor must present all documents to the accused as soon as he
or she appears in The Hague.
"The moment Ante Gotovina turns himself in and confirms that the
attorneys who claim to be defending him are his attorneys, the
office of the prosecutor will immeditely provide him with all the
documents in its possession. That is our obligation and the trial
cannot start without it," Jutarnji List quoted the spokeswoman as
saying.
All the documents are made available automatically "once the
accused has selected his attorneys before the tribunal," Hartmann
said, adding that only parties to proceedings are given such
documents, and the Croatian government does not have the status of
party to any proceedings, she said according to Jutarnji List.
Vecernji List says that Croatian legal experts claim that the
Sabor's decision is illegal and impermissible.
Goran Mikulicic, the government's legal representative in the
Gotovina case before the Hague tribunal, says that the decision may
lead to the conclusion that the Croatian parliament directly
interfered in the work of the judiciary.
"(These) documents may be given to attorneys only when a trial
begins, when the attorneys are recognised and registered as counsel
for the defence. This did not happen in the Gotovina case,"
Mikulicic says.
"Because of all that, the decision of the Sabor is not only illegal,
but it also represents an impermissible overstepping of authority
and pressure on the independence and work of Croatian courts,"
Mikulicic tells Vecernji List.
Retired general Ante Gotovina has been on the run since 2001 when
the Hague tribunal issued an indictment against him.
(hina) vm