CRO EXPERT BELIEVES MILOSEVIC'S TRIAL IN BELGRADE WOULD BE CONTRARY TO INTERNATIONAL TRIBUNAL'S STATUTE

ZAGREB, Jan 7 (Hina) - A Croatian expert on international law, professor Ivo Josipovic, said Sunday a trial to former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic in Belgrade instead of in The Hague would be possible only through "an extensive interpretation" of the Hague tribunal's Statute. He also expressed surprise America was getting involved with the work of the international war crimes tribunal. A former Croatian government advisor for cooperation with the Hague-based International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), Josipovic commented for Croatia's national television the statement by US State Secretary Madeleine Albright that she was not against the Milosevic to be tried for war crimes in Belgrade, as long as it is under the jurisdiction of the ICTY. "Some wide interpretations (of the ICTY Statute) are possible as had already been the case with some provisions," Josipovic said. He expressed surprise with the involvement of politics in the work of the Tribunal, as the United States had until now advocated the stance that Milosevic be tried at The Hague for war crimes in Yugoslav's province of Kosovo. "I personally must say that I am surprised to see politics meddle in such a way in the work of the Tribunal that in some ways an auction has begun for the place of trial. I believe this is not good for the independence of the Tribunal," Josipovic said. He held a trial in Belgrade would be contrary to the ICTY's Statute. "Moreover, if this should be granted for Belgrade, I do not see any reason for others not to be granted the same. Instead of The Hague Tribunal we would then have Zagreb, Sarajevo and Belgrade and I don't know where else tribunals," he stressed. Albright had said that the Tribunal's chief prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, after all, had the final word in the matter. On Friday del Ponte's spokeswoman said a trial against Milosevic in Belgrade was out of the question. IF all technical and logistic problems which would occur by transferring the trial to Belgrade are to be put aside, the existence of ICTY in The Hague would make to sense if indictees are to be tried elsewhere, spokeswoman Florence Hartman had said. (hina) lml