ZAGREB, Sept 5 (Hina) - Croatian Army General Milivoj Petkovic told Hina Tuesday he had known for several days about the arrival of a subpoena calling him as witness in the Kordic-Cerkez case at the Hague-based international war
crimes tribunal, but had not yet received the document. I expected to be called, and I will testify, Petkovic said.
ZAGREB, Sept 5 (Hina) - Croatian Army General Milivoj Petkovic told
Hina Tuesday he had known for several days about the arrival of a
subpoena calling him as witness in the Kordic-Cerkez case at the
Hague-based international war crimes tribunal, but had not yet
received the document.
I expected to be called, and I will testify, Petkovic said. #L#
He asserted he was not acquainted with a suggestion on his
retirement which, according to Tuesday's statement from the
Defence Ministry, had been forwarded to the President of the
Republic for confirmation.
I have known for seven or eight days now that the subpoena arrived,
Petkovic said, refusing to disclose his sources.
He added he expected the subpoena in this particular case and its
arrival had not been a "shock" as one Croatian weekly claims.
"The process (against General Tihomir Blaskic) in which I had
testified ... relates, so I find it normal for me to have to appear
as a witness," Petkovic said.
Both cases pertain to crimes committed in Central Bosnia during
Croat-Moslem conflicts in 1993, at which time Kordic had been
deputy president of Croat Community Herzeg-Bosna, and Cerkez a
commanding officer of the Vitez brigade.
They have been charged with ethnically-motivated prosecution of
Muslims on the territory of the then Herzeg-Bosna and in the Vitez
municipality.
Blaskic had been a commanding officer of the Croatian Defence
Council for Central Bosnia and had been sentenced to 45 years in
prison by the tribunal, primarily for his connection to the killing
of civilians in the Ahmici village.
Petkovic dismissed claims in the media that he had been prepared to
give false testimony in the Blaskic case.
"Had I been prepared, it would be logical that I would be sitting
with those whose conversation had been issued as a transcript. In
this context, it would have been expected for somebody to have
addressed me and for me to have said whatever I should have had to
say," which the transcript does not contain, Petkovic said.
The Defence Ministry was unavailable Tuesday morning for
information on whether the subpoena had been handed to Petkovic.
In his conversation with Hina, Petkovic also commented on the
Defence Ministry statement suggesting his retirement along with
several other Croatian Army senior officers, all within the
framework of the restructuring of the Armed Forces.
Petkovic said this was the first he had heard of the suggestion.
"Let them work by their own conscience," he added.
The motion for retirement, as the Defence Ministry statement reads,
was sent to the President's Office for confirmation this May.
(hina) lml jn