SPLIT, Nov 19 (Hina) - The trial against eight former military policemen, accused of war crimes they allegedly committed in 1992 at the Lora military jail in Split, continued on Tuesday when defence lawyers gave closing arguments. The
president of the council of judges in the case, Slavko Lozina, announced a ruling for Friday, November 22.
SPLIT, Nov 19 (Hina) - The trial against eight former military
policemen, accused of war crimes they allegedly committed in 1992
at the Lora military jail in Split, continued on Tuesday when
defence lawyers gave closing arguments. The president of the
council of judges in the case, Slavko Lozina, announced a ruling for
Friday, November 22. #L#
The defence attorneys asked for an acquittal of their clients
because the hearing and testimonies made by witnesses as well as
statements made by witnesses in Yugoslavia did not, as they said,
prove their guilt.
Zeljko Olujic, the defence lawyer for the prime suspect Tomislav
Duic, said the proceedings commenced with the presentation of
numerous lies and public pressure and attacks on the court and the
judicial council presided by Judge Lozina who was supposed to find
the accused guilty.
Explaining why he believes that his defendant (who has been on the
run since the start of the process), and the other defendants were
not proven guilty, Olujic said that the key witnesses Barisic and
Paic were both registered as suffering from PTSS (post traumatic
stress syndrome)- and that they brought out a series of lies as they
were told to do so.
Not one country that won a war tried their citizens accusing them of
war crimes but instead tried criminals on the opposing side yet here
we are trying defenders, Olujic claimed.
He claimed that at the time the crimes were committed, his defendant
was no where near the scene the crime was allegedly committed.
Doris Kosta and Zeljko Gulisija, defence attorneys for Josip Brkic
questioned the credibility of the main witness Zlatko
Sulejmanovic. They claimed that the accused could not have
committed war crimes because not one prisoner in Lora who was
allegedly abused, was a foreign citizen caught on the front.
As they said, war crimes cannot be perpetrated against one's own
citizens.
Zeljko Gulisija added that perhaps the issue could refer to
violation of guard duty, illegal detention and overstepping
authority but only if this can be proven which nevertheless was not
done so.
Attorney Vinko Ljubicic, who represents defendant Davor Banic,
also claimed that war crimes were not committed at the Lora jail and
asked for an acquittal of his client who was not proven guilty of
being involved in the crimes.
The trial will continue on Wednesday with the closing arguments of
the remaining three defence attorneys.
(hina) sp sb