GENERAL MARKAC BEGINS TESTIFYING IN ZAGREB'S ICTY OFFICE

ZAGREB, Dec 10 (Hina) - Retired General Mladen Markac, who has been indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), will give a statement to the ICTY Prosecution and despite the lack of time and documentation he is a moderate optimist, Markac's attorney Miroslav Separovic said before Markac's hearing in the ICTY building downtown Zagreb on Tuesday. #L# Separovic told reporters that the defence did not have sufficient time to prepare and that it had not received the documentation available to the Hague-based tribunal prosecution. Separovic also said that his client had not been exempt from keeping an official secret. Markac will answer the questions of ICTY investigators in a capacity as suspect, and according to earlier announcements, the questions will refer to the operations of Maslenica, the Medak Pocket, Flash and Storm. Until 2000, Markac was the Interior Minister's assistant for Special Police forces. "We are moderate optimists and primarily we are realistic. If the decision on issuing the indictment has been made, than this interview is just a formality. If the decision has not been made, I am certain that the interview will contribute to clarifying the situation," the attorney said. Separovic on Friday requested the tribunal's prosecution to postpone the interview with Markac because the defence did not have sufficient time to prepare, but his request was denied. (hina)it sb