THE HAGUE, June 9 (Hina) - A parliamentary deputy of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and former advisor to late Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, Ivic Pasalic, has said that he will testify as a defence witness in the trial of
Mladen Naletilic Tuta, charged with crimes in the Mostar area, at the U.N. war crimes tribunal in The Hague.
THE HAGUE, June 9 (Hina) - A parliamentary deputy of the Croatian
Democratic Union (HDZ) and former advisor to late Croatian
President Franjo Tudjman, Ivic Pasalic, has said that he will
testify as a defence witness in the trial of Mladen Naletilic Tuta,
charged with crimes in the Mostar area, at the U.N. war crimes
tribunal in The Hague. #L#
"I will testify for the defence in the trial of Mladen Naletilic
Tuta before the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague
regarding general circumstances of the indictment, namely
Croatia's alleged aggression on Bosnia-Herzegovina," Pasalic said
in a statement forwarded to the media from The Hague.
The hearing in the trial of Naletilic and Vinko Martinovic Stela
will start on Monday.
Naletilic, a former commander of the so-called Convicts'
Battalion, and Martinovic, commander of the battalion's anti-
terrorist unit, are charged with command and personal
responsibility for crimes against humanity, grave violations of
the Geneva Conventions, and violations of the law and customs of
war, committed in Mostar and Jablanica in 1993.
The Hague prosecution has charged Croatia with involvement in the
war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, which the prosecution tried to prove
with, among other things, transcripts from the President's
Office.
The defence has challenged the authenticity of the documents.
The trial of Naletilic and Martinovic started last September. The
presentation of evidence by the defence has been underway.
(hina) rml