ATTORNEY: ICTY'S ILLEGITIMACY - MAIN ARGUMENT OF MILOSEVIC'S DEFENCE

BELGRADE, Sept 11 (Hina) - Misha Wladimiroff, one of the three 'amici curiae' (friends of the court) appointed by the international war crimes tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) as legal counsel for the former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic, has told a Belgrade-based daily one of the defence's main arguments in Milosevic's trial will be the lawfulness of the tribunal. Mr. Milosevic disputes the legality of the tribunal and the defence would present arguments against the tribunal which would be in the interest of the defendant, Wladimiroff told the Politika daily but refused to give any details about the arguments. The Dutch attorney has been appointed along with Yugoslav attorney Branislav Tapuskovic and British attorney Steven Key by the ICTY as 'amici curiae' after Milosevic refused to appoint counsel and announced that he would defend himself on his own. Milosevic is a lawyer by profession and was a businessman before he became a politician. Wladimiroff, who arrived in Belgrade to meet the other two court- appointed attorneys, has called on experts and law professors to present arguments against the legitimacy of the Hague tribunal thus helping Milosevic's defence. Wladimiroff believes Milosevic has been granted a fair trial, probably fairer than if he were to be tried in Yugoslavia. Explaining the role of the court-appointed attorneys, Wladimiroff said they were defence attorneys and were doing everything a classic attorney would do in the interest of his client. However, as in this case the client is not giving any instructions, the attorneys are trying to establish all extenuating circumstances on their own, he said. (hina) rml