ZAGREB, Oct 16 (Hina) - By bringing the 52nd witness to the stand, the defence for Mario Cerkez, a former commander of a Croat Defence Council (HVO) brigade from the central Bosnian town of Vitez, rested on Monday. Cerkez's attorney
Bozo Kovacic told Hina in a phone interview from The Hague the defence had given up its plan to call Cerkez to the stand after the prosecutor on Friday introduced new evidence from Croatian archives - thousands of pages in a 40-cm-high stack - and his client had not been given the time to study them. Cerkez is being tried together with a former vice-president of the Croat Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia, Dario Kordic, whose attorneys presented defence between April and July this year. Kordic was not called to the stand by his attorneys either. Closing arguments in the Kordic-Cerkez trial should be held by the end of this year. Before they are completed, the prosecution will have the opportunity to introd
ZAGREB, Oct 16 (Hina) - By bringing the 52nd witness to the stand,
the defence for Mario Cerkez, a former commander of a Croat Defence
Council (HVO) brigade from the central Bosnian town of Vitez,
rested on Monday.
Cerkez's attorney Bozo Kovacic told Hina in a phone interview from
The Hague the defence had given up its plan to call Cerkez to the
stand after the prosecutor on Friday introduced new evidence from
Croatian archives - thousands of pages in a 40-cm-high stack - and
his client had not been given the time to study them.
Cerkez is being tried together with a former vice-president of the
Croat Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia, Dario Kordic, whose attorneys
presented defence between April and July this year. Kordic was not
called to the stand by his attorneys either.
Closing arguments in the Kordic-Cerkez trial should be held by the
end of this year. Before they are completed, the prosecution will
have the opportunity to introduce new evidence and witnesses
against their defence, after which the same will be done by the two
Croats' counsels. Before their closing arguments are presented,
the so-called court witnesses, including Croatian army general
Milivoj Petkovic, will testify as well.
The Kordic-Cerkez trial started on April 12 1999. The two are
indicted for the systematic prosecution of Bosnian Muslim
civilians on political, racial, ethnic or religious grounds on the
territory of the Croat Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia from late 1991 to
March 1994 in Kordic's case, and between April 1992 and August 1993
in the area of Vitez, Novi Travnik and Busovaca (central Bosnia) in
Cerkez's case.
The prosecution charges both men on the basis of their personal and
commanding responsibility with crimes against humanity, grave
violations of the Geneva Conventions and the laws and customs of
war.
During the trial, 230 witnesses have been called to the stand and
thousands of documents have been presented as evidence.
The trial has been conducted by a panel of judges, under the
chairmanship of a British judge, Richard May.
(hina) jn rml