THE HAGUE, May 19 (Hina) - A total of 50 witnesses have testified at public hearings and several protected witnesses have testified at closed-door hearings in the trial of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, who is indicted
for war crimes in Kosovo. The Kosovo trial started on February 12.
THE HAGUE, May 19 (Hina) - A total of 50 witnesses have testified at
public hearings and several protected witnesses have testified at
closed-door hearings in the trial of former Yugoslav President
Slobodan Milosevic, who is indicted for war crimes in Kosovo. The
Kosovo trial started on February 12. #L#
The witnesses, mostly Kosovo Albanians, described how the Yugoslav
police and army forced them out of their villages by destroying
their homes at the start of NATO attacks in March 1999.
The Albanians were taken to large reception centres from where they
were deported to Albania and Macedonia. Most of them had to hand
over their personal documents so that later they would not be able
to prove their citizenship and return to Kosovo.
Milosevic is indicted for the deportation of 800,000 Albanians, of
whom part was killed, while their homes, as well as cultural and
religious buildings, were destroyed.
Milosevic is also charged with massacres, of which the gravest took
place in the village of Racak in January 1999, when 45 Albanians
were killed.
Milosevic denies that the crimes have taken place, that is, he
believes that crimes like the Racak massacre were rigged, or that
NATO and the Kosovo Liberation Army are responsible for them.
The prosecution, which in the Kosovo trial intends to call around 90
witnesses, this month started calling the first "insider"
witnesses to testify about the crimes committed by the Yugoslav
army and police and Milosevic's connection with them.
Witness Nike Peraj, a former Yugoslav army officer, described how
the army systematically cleared the area of Djakovica of Albanians
and committed mass murders in the villages of Medja and Korenica.
The last witness, Ratomir Tanic, the first Serb to testify against
Milosevic, quoted people from the Yugoslav intelligence and army as
saying that Milosevic had a private line of command, which included
a former Yugoslav Vice-Premier, Nikola Sainovic, General Nebojsa
Pavic, and Serbian Interior Minister Vlajko Stojiljkovic, and
through which he ordered operations against the Kosovo Liberation
Army, in which "not only terrorists, but civilians and property"
were destroyed "with the mass and excessive use of force".
A former official of the New Democracy, Milosevic's coalition
partner, Tanic said that Milosevic had told him in 1997 that "the
Serbian authorities should reduce the number of Kosovo Albanians to
adequate figures and deal with terrorism, and only after that
address political problems", as well as that at the time Milosevic
suddenly backed out on an already prepared political agreement with
Kosovo Albanians, which was supported by the international
community. Milosevic accused Tanic of perjury.
Several prominent Kosovo Albanians, including Ibrahim Rugova,
Mahmut Bakalli and Veton Surroi, have testified before the panel of
judges, which is presided by judge Richard May, about their direct
contacts with Milosevic. British politician Paddy Ashdown and
Deputy Head of the OSCE Mission Karol Drewienkiewicz testified as
well.
The trial resumes on Tuesday, when Milosevic is to complete the
cross-examination of Tanic. The prosecution has been presenting
evidence related to the Kosovo part of the trial, which should be
completed by the end of summer, after which the presentation of
evidence for crimes committed in Croatia should begin.
Milosevic is charged with crimes against humanity in Croatia and
genocide in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
(hina) rml