SAKIC FOUND GUILTY AND SENTENCED AFTER SIX-MONTH TRIAL

ZAGREB, Oct 4 (Hina) - Following a six-month hearing during which about 40 witnesses gave their statements, the Zagreb County Court panel of judges on Monday sentenced Dinko Sakic to 20 years in prison. Sakic, a commander of the Ustashi concentration camp of Jasenovac, was found guilty of the war crime against the civilian population. #L# The verdict, read out in a full court-room by the president of the seven-member panel of judges, Drazen Tripalo, said Sakic was guilty of commanding and carrying out, in violation to the Convention on the Law and Customs of War on Land, the torture and the killing of prisoners and of failing to prevent and punish crimes committed by his subordinates between May and 28 October 1944, during his command of the Jasenovac camp. It took the panel of judges three days to deliberate the verdict. The panel pronounced Sakic guilty on most of the counts and believes it has been proved beyond doubt that Sakic is guilty of hard labour, the starvation, physical and mental abuse of prisoners, the abduction, torture and abuse of prisoners in the Zvonara building, as well as of the execution of the sick and those unfit for labour at Gradina, Granik, and other sites. According to the verdict, Sakic personally shot dead from a pistol an unidentified prisoner for the alleged theft of a corn cob, ordered the hanging of Albert Izrael and cap-maker Nisim, as well as the hanging of 12 prisoners from the group of Mile Boskovic, whom he shot from a pistol on September 21, 1944. The panel believes the prosecution has proven Sakic's guilt for the death of two Jewish inmates, Avram Montiljo and Leon Perera, whom he had personally selected during a muster and shot dead from his pistol. Violating the rules of the international law during World War II, Sakic ordered the killing, torture, inhumane treatment, intimidation, collective punishment, and starvation of civilians, thus committing the war crime against the civilian population, the verdict read. "Sakic was the peak of a pyramid and he doubtlessly had the right to decide about everything that was going on in the camp. The killings of prisoners were not incidents, they happened systematically with his knowledge", Tripalo said. The panel did not find evidence to support the accusation that Sakic had participated in the so-called "hunting game", in which Ustashi officers shot at prisoners from the command building, killing an unidentified number of prisoners. Although the County State Attorney's Office claimed in the indictment that about 2,000 inmates had been killed during Sakic's command of the camp, the panel of judges did not attempt to speculate about the number of victims. According to Tripalo, it was not possible to establish that number at the trial, nor would speculation about it be appropriate. However, the panel believes that on the basis of established facts and testimonies, one can say that at least several dozen thousands of persons were killed at Jasenovac. The panel believes that the large number of crimes Sakic committed was an aggravating circumstance. "Everything points to the mass suffering of civilians", Tripalo said, adding Sakic's uncritical attitude toward the crimes, that is, his lack of remorse, was also taken as an aggravating circumstance. Sakic's age and the passage of time are extenuating circumstances, which in the panel's opinion cannot lessen the pronounced sentence, which is the maximum sentence in the Basic Penal Code, applied in the Sakic trial. The panel also emphasised that the trial of Sakic was "a proof that there is no statute of limitations on war crimes and that those who committed such crimes cannot have a clear conscience and feel safe until they are brought to justice". "I hope this verdict is a warning for the future, and that those who in the recent or distant past committed crimes will not escape justice", Tripalo said. Speaking about the discrepancies in witness testimonies, Tripalo said in other proceedings this would point to false testimonies. "However, here we have events which happened 55 years ago and it would be unusual if their statements were the same", said Tripalo, adding the court did not notice a wish on the part of witnesses to charge Sakic with somebody else's crimes. Sakic will remain in custody until the sentence goes into force; if the Supreme Court confirms the verdict, the time Sakic has already spent in prison will be included in the sentence. Sakic's attorneys have the right to appeal against the sentence within 15 days from the receipt of the written explanation of the verdict. Sakic was calm during the pronouncement of the verdict and he made no comments about it. Some of those watching the trial voiced dissatisfaction with the verdict, telling reporters in front of the court building the trial was a "set-up by Chetniks, Serbs, and partisan executioners". Leaving the building after the verdict was pronounced, an older man tried to attack the president of the Civil Committee for Human Rights, Zoran Pusic, who was attending the trial. The completion of the trial and the pronouncement of the verdict was covered by numerous domestic and foreign reporters. Commenting on the verdict, the president of the Zagreb Jewish community, Ognjen Kraus, who testified in the pre-trial proceedings, said he believed the verdict was appropriate. The president of the Croatian Party of Rights (HSP), Anto Djapic, said "the trial of Sakic is a political process held under pressure from the international community. If there is no statute of limitations on war crimes, when will we witness a trial for crimes committed in Bleiburg and crimes committed by the Chetniks against the Croats", Djapic asked. The director of the Belgrade Museum of the Victims of Genocide, Milan Bulajic, who had been following the trial from the beginning, said he was "satisfied with the verdict". "I had expected such a verdict and I believe the court has made the right decision", Bulajic said, adding however, "Sakic should have been indicted for genocide, not for the war crime against civilians". (hina) rml