Jovica Stanisic’s defense counsel have sought certification to appeal the decision of the Trial Chamber to start the trial on Monday, 14 April. The prosecution, for its part, has asked not to bring its witnesses to The Hague before confirmation that video link has been established with the UN Detention Unit, making it possible for Stanisic to monitor the trial


Jovica Stanisic’s defense sought certification tonight to appeal the decision of the Trial Chamber to start the trial of the former Serbian state security service chief on Monday, 14 April 2008 with the opening statement of the prosecution. The defense believes the Chamber has made this decision ‘notwithstanding his health and medical evidence’, which, they contend, indicate Stanisic is not fit for trial.

In its motion, the defense wants the proceedings to be suspended until the Appeals Chamber has rendered its decision; in their view, this is ‘an exceptional, unusual and highly controversial matter’. To continue the case at this time would, in their view, cause ‘irreparable damage to the integrity of the proceedings’. The Trial Chamber has decided that Stanisic will follow the proceedings via video link from the UN Detention Unit, if he is indeed unable to be in the courtroom. The absence of ‘any meaningful input by the accused in the proceedings’, his defense counsel Knoops claims, ‘places the defense in an extremely complicated legal and ethical position’ which might be prejudicial to Stanisic.

The prosecution for its part has filed a motion asking that the first prosecution witnesses be examined three days after the Registry has informed the Chamber it is possible to establish a video link between the courtroom and the UN Detention Unit. The prosecution has noted that former UN official Charles Kirugja, the first on the prosecution witness list, had already traveled to The Hague once, but had been compelled to go back to Kenya when the Chamber postponed the trial in March.

Jovica Stanisic is charged, together with former commander of the Special Operations Unit (JSO) Franko Simatovic, with crimes committed by the special forces of the Serbian state security service and paramilitaries in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina between May 1991 and December 1995. The charges against them include persecution of the non-Serb population on political, racial and religious grounds, murders, deportation and forcible transfer of population.

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