Da: ICDSM Italia
Data: Mar 16 Mar 2004 16:40:22 Europe/Rome
A: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Oggetto: [icdsm-italia] Aggiornamenti "processo" Milosevic
(english / italiano / deutsch)
Aggiornamenti "processo" Milosevic
1. IN ITALIANO
2. LINKS (in english)
3. Milosevic case combats Washington's 'regime changes' (by John
Catalinotto / Workers' World) ; Judge Steps Down In Miloševic Case (by
Elizabeth Farrell / New Worker Online)
4. AUF DEUTSCH:
Tribunal-Richter zurückgetreten: Wird Milosevic-Prozeß auf Eis gelegt?
5. Una nota sulla campagna di finanziamento dell'ICDSM
=== 1 ===
In base ad informazioni che giungono dall'IWPR - un istituto finanziato
da istituzioni NATO per orientare "opportunamente" i mezzi di
informazione internazionali sulle questioni relative ai Balcani (vedi:
http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/tri/tri_347_1_eng.txt) il
"tribunale" dell'Aia avrebbe assegnato al giamaicano Patrick Robinson
il compito di sostituire Richard May dopo le dimissioni di quest'ultimo
"per ragioni di salute". Si puo' prevedere dunque una continuazione
"regolare" del "processo" a partire da fine maggio 2004, con la fase
dibattimentale di "autodifesa dell'imputato".
(a cura di ICDSM-Italia)
TPI: MILOSEVIC, AVVOCATI CHIEDONO RITIRO ACCUSA GENOCIDIO
(ANSA) -L'AJA, 5 MAR - Ritirare l'accusa di genocidio nei confronti
di Slobodan Milosevic: e' la richiesta formulata dagli 'amici
curiae', gli avvocati designati dal Tribunale penale internazionale
(Tpi) per vegliare sull'equita' del processo contro l'ex presidente
della Jugoslavia. In un documento inviato alla corte e reso noto
oggi i legali sostengono che ''non ci sono prove che l'imputato abbia
progettato, ordinato o commesso un genocidio o atti di genocidio''.
Per questo chiedono di cancellare dagli atti di accusa questa
imputazione. Contro Milosevic e' in corso dal 12 febbraio del 2002
un processo che e' appena arrivato al giro di boa con le
conclusioni della parte riservata all'accusa. A giugno la parola
passera' allo stesso Milosevic il quale ha deciso di difendersi
personalmente dall'accusa di crimini di guerra e contro l'umanita' e,
se non sara' cancellata, di genocidio.(ANSA). VS 05/03/2004
18:28
http://www.ansa.it/balcani/serbiamontenegro/20040305182832865899.html
Vedi anche:
Text of Amicus Curiae's motion for the aquital of Slobodan Milosevic
http://www.un.org/icty/milosevic/040305.pdf
=== 2 ===
LINKS (IN ENGLISH)
Text of Amicus Curiae's motion for the aquital of Slobodan Milosevic
http://www.un.org/icty/milosevic/040305.pdf
Crisis at The Hague ICTY Kangaroo Court: Presiding Judge in Milosevic
Trial resigns (by Cathrin Schütz)
http://globalresearch.ca/articles/DIC402A.html
Milosevic outlasts May (by Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey)
http://english.pravda.ru/printed.html?news_id=12176
Muted end to Milosevic prosecution; Tribunal Boost for Milosevic (by
Stacy Sullivan)
http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/tri/tri_346_1_eng.txt
http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/tri/tri_347_1_eng.txt
The Hague Suffers New Shocks to the Nervous System
http://www.balkanalysis.com/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=279
Correspondence from an Eyewitness in Bosnia to ICDSM:
NATO/SFOR & ICTY Are Manufacturing Fake Mass Graves
to Convict Milosevic! - January 4, 2004
http://www.icdsm-us.org/libraries/viewdocument.asp?DocumentID=186
--- MORE ---
Republika Srpska:
Republic Secretariat for Relations with The International Criminal
Tribunal in The Hague and War Crimes Research
http://www.rs-icty.org/engleski/ulaz_eng.htm
Republicki Sekretarijat za odnose sa Medunarodnim krivicnim sudom u
Hagu i istrazivanje ratnih zlocina
http://www.rs-icty.org/
Un interessante documentario televisivo olandese /
Dutch TV documentary on the Hague process, in two parts
http://info.vpro.nl/info/tegenlicht/index.shtml?7738514+7738518+8048024
MILOSEVIC SPEAKS!
The Writings, Speeches and Interviews
of President Slobodan Milosevic
http://www.icdsm-us.org/speaks/default.asp
=== 3 ===
http://www.iacenter.org/milos_030704.htm
YUGOSLAVIA, HAITI, IRAQ
Milosevic case combats Washington's 'regime changes'
By John Catalinotto
New York
A Feb. 29 International Action Center forum here on NATO's
two-year-long prosecution of former Yugoslav President Slobodan
Milosevic turned into a spirited fight-back workshop. The discussion
ranged across topics from that morning's criminal overthrow of the
Haitian government to the Iraqi resistance, the latest political turn
in Serbia and Washington's aggressive policy of "regime change."
Pat Chin, an IAC spokesperson on both Haiti and Yugoslavia, chaired the
meeting. She drew the audience's attention to the similarities of the
U.S. overthrow of constitutional governments in both countries. Both
were pushed out by a combination of military assault and subversion
under the cover of "human rights" concerns, she said.
IAC organizers had originally called the meeting to coincide with the
end of the case that the prosecution had tried to bring against
Milosevic at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former
Yugoslavia.
Speakers at the forum included former Attorney General Ramsey Clark,
IAC co-director Sara Flounders and Kingsborough Community College
professor Barry Lituchy, who had recently observed the ICTY trial and
Milosevic's defense. Clark had been hit by a car the day before the
forum, suffering a broken foot and ankle. Still he found the energy to
inspire the audience with his phoned-in presentation defending
Milosevic.
Without any legal basis in United Nations bylaws, the United States and
other NATO powers established the tribunal through the UN in 1993 to
target Yugoslavs and especially Serbs. In May 1999, during the 78-day
U.S./NATO bombing campaign against Yugoslavia, the ICTY charged
Yugoslav President Milosevic with war crimes in order to bring
additional pressure on him to surrender Serbia's Kosovo province to
NATO occupation.
Two years later, NATO forces kidnapped Milosevic from Belgrade and put
him under ICTY control in a former Nazi prison in The Hague. Only then
did the tribunal also charge him with war crimes and even genocide
regarding the civil wars in Croatia and Bosnia.
By now, in 2004, the court has dropped genocide charges regarding
Kosovo. It may also drop all charges regarding Bosnia and Croatia,
according to rumors in the media.
Observing the ICTY 'circus'
As far as Lituchy is concerned, the court proceedings were a "circus"
and the case should end now in a mistrial.
"It should be ended immediately," he said. "In two years we have seen
no decent evidence. They have been unable to produce any direct links
between Milosevic and those alleged to have committed war crimes. The
media coverage has dried up because the prosecution has been unable to
impose its false version of events on the trial proceedings."
Lituchy, a key organizer of the Inter national Committee for the
Defense of Slobodan Milosevic in the U.S., also showed 30 fascinating
minutes of a longer documentary shown last fall on Dutch television.
The documentary exposes many of the lies about 1990-2000 events in the
Balkans. It also shows Milosevic's effective cross-examination that
consistently exposed prosecution witnesses' weaknesses and outright
lies.
Milosevic has represented himself before the ICTY. As he defends
himself, he sets the historic record straight by blaming the United
States and NATO for aggression in the Balkans.
The former president suffers from high blood pressure. He faces a grave
risk of heart attack. Despite these serious health problems, he has
outperformed the prosecutors and outlasted presiding judge Richard May.
May's recent announcement that he has to retire from the case because
of unexplained medical problems has thrown the prosecution into
disarray. How the trial should proceed now is in doubt: A new judge
would have to review videotapes of almost 300 witnesses, plus 33,000
pages of transcribed testimony and a million pages of depositions. A
serious review of this material could require a year.
The ICTY is allowing Milosevic only three months to go over the same
material to prepare his defense, which is supposed to open on May 26.
Iraqi resistance helps the truth
In her talk, Flounders showed how the heroic Iraqi resistance to the
U.S. occupation has created an atmosphere where few believe
Washington's lies to justify its war. "It is important that we continue
to fight to get out the truth about Yugoslavia at a time when many are
questioning the 'Big Lie' told by the U.S. government," she said.
Clark reviewed recent Balkans history and attacked the legality of the
ICTY. He recently wrote a paper developing these points, "Divide and
Conquer," which is available at the IAC website: www.iacenter.org.
Clark urged the audience to work to support the team doing back-up
research for Milosevic as he presents the defense case. This team
consists of a few young Yugoslav attorneys who hope to have continuing
assistance from Tiphaine Dickson, a Canadian attorney experienced in
international law
before this type of tribunal.
During an audience discussion that lasted over an hour, a member of an
early Milosevic cabinet who lives now in the United States brought up
recent developments in Serbia. "The last elections," she said, "pushed
out the neo-liberal puppets of the West who had replaced Milosevic in
2000." She called it "a first step" toward winning independence again
in Serbia.
Some in the audience expressed frustration that the progressive
movement in the United States had failed to understand the Yugoslav
struggle. Yet the general mood as the meeting ended was increased
readiness to struggle.
People vowed to find ways to support the website of the ICDSM-US
(www.icdsm-us.org), to work to get the video shown publicly, to
circulate Ramsey Clark's paper and to support those defending Slobodan
Milosevic and exposing U.S. imperialism's lies.
"Mugabe in Zimbabwe, Chavez in Venezuela, Aristide in Haiti and
Milosevic in Yugoslavia were demonized. People who understand how the
government here lied in one of these cases should be helped to
understand them all," remarked one participant during the discussion.
"And publicizing Milosevic's
defense is one way to do it for Yugoslavia."
Reprinted from the March 11, 2004, issue of Workers World newspaper
(Copyright Workers World Service: Everyone is permitted to copy and
distribute verbatim copies of this document, but changing it is not
allowed. For more information contact Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY,
NY 10011; via
email: ww@.... Subscribe wwnews-on@.... Unsubscribe
wwnews-off@.... Support independent news
http://www.workers.org/orders/donate.php)
---
From: New Worker Online, Friday, February 27, 2004
http://www.newworker.org
(through http://www.solidnet.org )
Judge Steps Down In Miloševic Case
by Elizabeth Farrell
THE CASE against Slobodan Miloševic has ended early in The Hague due to
the illness of British presiding judge, Richard May, and further delays
are inevitable, as his replacement will have to study over two years of
detailed testimony. The former Yugoslav president, accused of
war-crimes at The Hague tribunal, is entitled to challenge May’s
successor and he could even demand a complete retrial. But Judge May is
not the only person with health problems. Slobodan Miloševic himself
suffers from high blood pressure, which means he has often been too ill
to attend court hearings. Despite this, Miloševic has been denied
access to a specialist doctor and often works through the night to
prepare his case.
Richard May will leave the International Criminal Tribunal for the
Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on 31 May, around the time that Miloševic was
due to begin his defence. A lawyer in his own right, Miloševic has been
conducting his own defence and personally cross-examined most of the
298 witnesses put forward by the prosecution.
Judge May received predictable plaudits on his departure. ICTY
president Theodor Meron praised Richard May for his “formidable
intellect and unwavering dedication” and said he ensured the procedures
of the trial are “fair, efficient and sound”. Meron added: “[May] has
shepherded the Miloševic case, one of historical importance and
daunting dimensions,
through a major part of the trial with patience and care and handled
the unique issues presented by that case creatively and effectively.”
Slobodan Miloševic, the former leader of Serbia and the Yugoslav
federation, is accused of war-crimes in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo.
After his defeat by pro-imperialist elements in Serbia Miloševic was
handed over to West for the
trial which began in February 2002.
The former president has repeated refused to enter a plea and he has
questioned the legitimacy of the court. And so far, as one
international human rights lawyer said, “the only evidence against him
is that he is not guilty”. Miloševic is the first head of state to be
indicted by an international court. Now observers say the prosecution
at the kangaroo court in The Hague might not be able to secure a
conviction on the most serious charge for genocide.
*End*
=== 4 ===
http://www.jungewelt.de/2004/02-25/015.php
junge Welt (Berlin), 25.02.2004
Interview: Cathrin Schütz
Tribunal-Richter zurückgetreten: Wird Milosevic-Prozeß auf Eis gelegt?
jW sprach mit Tiphaine Dickson, kanadische Anwältin im Rechtskomitee
des Internationalen Komitees zur Verteidigung von Slobodan Milosevic
(ICDSM)
* Die kanadische Anwältin war leitende Verteidigerin in einem der
ersten Völkermordprozesse vor dem Ruanda-Tribunal in Tansania.
F: Das Tribunal für Kriegsverbrechen im ehemaligen Jugoslawien (ICTY)
in Den Haag hat am Sonntag den Rücktritt des leitenden Richters im
Milosevic-Prozeß, Richard May, bekanntgegeben. Offiziell wird auf
gesundheitliche Gründe verwiesen. Wie bewerten Sie diesen Vorgang?
Das ist eine spektakuläre Entwicklung. Der Rücktritt zeigt, daß dieser
Mammutprozeß angesichts des riesigen Umfangs an Protokollunterlagen und
der Unmenge an Zeugen nicht adäquat geführt werden kann, schon gar
nicht von einem gesundheitlich angeschlagenen Menschen.
Bedauerlicherweise wird Slobodan Milosevic, dessen Krankheit ihn
ähnlich beeinträchtigt, nicht mit der gleichen Rücksicht begegnet wie
Richard May, dem sogleich Mitleid und Sorge zuteil wurden. Milosevic
kann nicht einfach vom Prozeß zurücktreten – obwohl er gegen seine
lebensbedrohliche Krankheit ankämpfen muß, ohne eine vorübergehende
Haftentlassung oder ausreichende fachärztliche Behandlung gewährt zu
bekommen.
F: In der internationalen Presse ist neuerdings zu lesen, man könne
Milosevic Völkermord nicht nachweisen. Wird die Öffentlichkeit jetzt
darauf vorbereitet, daß sich zahlreiche Vorwürfe gegen Milosevic als
unhaltbar erweisen werden?
Die Einschätzung der Presse stimmt insofern, als die bisher
vorgebrachten »Beweise« auf Hörensagen, Spekulationen, persönlichen
Meinungen und Irrelevanzen beruhen. Die Chefanklägerin, Carla del
Ponte, konnte keinen einzigen schlüssigen Beweis präsentieren, wie es
die Strafjustiz verlangt. Es ist klar, daß zahlreiche Anklagepunkte
fallengelassen werden müssen.
F: Einige Kommentatoren stellen inzwischen sogar in Frage, daß
Milosevic Kriegsverbrechen in Bosnien und Kroatien nachzuweisen seien.
Deutet sich darin vielleicht das Kalkül des Westens an, die Anklage
demnächst auf den Kosovo-Komplex zu beschränken?
Selbst wenn die Bosnien- und Kroatienanklage fallengelassen würden,
könnte Milosevic noch immer dieselbe Verteidigungsstrategie verfolgen,
wie er sie in seiner Eröffnungsrede dargelegt hat. Kosovo war nur der
Vorwand des Westens für einen grausamen Bombenkrieg, mit dem
internationales Recht gebrochen wurde. Diese Aggression besiegelte das
Auseinanderbrechen Jugoslawiens. Es ist sehr wahrscheinlich, daß
Milosevic wie angekündigt aufzeigen wird, daß es nur einen Krieg im
ehemaligen Jugoslawien gab: nämlich den gegen Jugoslawien.
F: Was bedeutet der Rücktritt Mays für den Fortgang des Verfahrens?
Die Verfahrensregeln besagen eigentlich, daß ein neuer Richter nicht
ohne Zustimmung des Angeklagten berufen werden kann. Doch im »Dienste
der Gerechtigkeit« dürfen die Richter gegen die Vorbehalte des
Angeklagten handeln. Das Recht auf Einspruch des Angeklagten ist also
nicht mehr als eine Farce. Jeder neu berufene Richter muß bestätigen,
daß er mit dem gesamten Fall vertraut ist, also mit über 33 000 Seiten
von Mitschriften, ganz zu schweigen von Videokassetten, Karten und
einer großen Zahl anderer Beweisstücke. Es wäre zudem notwendig, daß
ein neuer Richter alle Videoaufzeichnungen der Verhandlungen anschaut,
denn keine Mitschrift kann vermitteln, was die Körpersprache von Zeugen
aussagt.
F: Könnte der Prozeß also erst einmal auf Eis gelegt werden?
Unter strikter Anlegung des angloamerikanischen Rechtssystems müßte der
Prozeß eigentlich noch einmal komplett von vorne aufgerollt werden. Was
diesen Fall betrifft, besteht aber die Gefahr, daß die Richter
angesichts des enormen politischen Drucks die Verfahrensregeln so
ändern, daß der Prozeß ohne Hindernisse fortgeführt werden kann. Eine
solche Entwicklung wäre ein schlimmer Präzedenzfall für die Zukunft des
internationalen Rechts.
=== 5 ===
Una nota sulla campagna di finanziamento dell'ICDSM
La Sezione Italiana dell'ICDSM ringrazia tutti quelli che hanno finora
contribuito alla campagna di finanziamento per la difesa di Milosevic.
La richiesta dell'ICDSM internazionale, tuttavia, e' che tali sforzi
vengano RADDOPPIATI nel prossimo futuro, poiche' le spese sono ingenti.
Non esistono altre fonti di finanziamento: la situazione a Belgrado e'
irrespirabile, i lavoratori ... non lavorano, chi ha i soldi per
mangiare li tiene stretti e non rischia certo la galera in attivita'
politiche o di solidarieta' a favore di Milosevic, che viene presentato
dai media locali (oramai tutti in mano a societa' occidentali)
esattamente come da noi, cioe' come un dittatore criminale e
ferrovecchio. I nuovi ricchi votano i partiti filo-occidentali e di
destra e non appoggiano certo Milosevic. Per di piu', alla campagna per
Milosevic l'SPS e' sostanzialmente ESTRANEO, poiche' la leadership
parlamentare di quel partito ha scelto una linea accomodante con
Kostunica ed e' in rotta di collisione con il gruppo organizzatosi
attorno a SLOBODA (sezione belgradese dell'ICDSM).
A tutti deve essere infine chiaro - se ancora ci fosse bisogno di
ripeterlo - che non esiste alcun "tesoro nascosto" di Milosevic e che
il nostro impegno per la sua difesa e' insostituibile ed
indispensabile. Altrimenti, la storia la scriveranno da soli i nemici
della Jugoslavia, a base di "sentenze giudiziarie" dettate dai servizi
di intelligence della NATO.
Per contribuire dall'Italia alla difesa di Milosevic:
Conto Corrente Postale numero 86557006
intestato ad Adolfo Amoroso, ROMA
causale: DIFESA MILOSEVIC
Per contatti:
ICDSM - Sezione Italiana
c/o GAMADI, Via L. Da Vinci 27
00043 Ciampino (Roma)
email: icdsm-italia@...
==========================
ICDSM - Sezione Italiana
c/o GAMADI, Via L. Da Vinci 27
00043 Ciampino (Roma)
email: icdsm-italia@...
Conto Corrente Postale numero 86557006
intestato ad Adolfo Amoroso, ROMA
causale: DIFESA MILOSEVIC
Data: Mar 16 Mar 2004 16:40:22 Europe/Rome
A: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Oggetto: [icdsm-italia] Aggiornamenti "processo" Milosevic
(english / italiano / deutsch)
Aggiornamenti "processo" Milosevic
1. IN ITALIANO
2. LINKS (in english)
3. Milosevic case combats Washington's 'regime changes' (by John
Catalinotto / Workers' World) ; Judge Steps Down In Miloševic Case (by
Elizabeth Farrell / New Worker Online)
4. AUF DEUTSCH:
Tribunal-Richter zurückgetreten: Wird Milosevic-Prozeß auf Eis gelegt?
5. Una nota sulla campagna di finanziamento dell'ICDSM
=== 1 ===
In base ad informazioni che giungono dall'IWPR - un istituto finanziato
da istituzioni NATO per orientare "opportunamente" i mezzi di
informazione internazionali sulle questioni relative ai Balcani (vedi:
http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/tri/tri_347_1_eng.txt) il
"tribunale" dell'Aia avrebbe assegnato al giamaicano Patrick Robinson
il compito di sostituire Richard May dopo le dimissioni di quest'ultimo
"per ragioni di salute". Si puo' prevedere dunque una continuazione
"regolare" del "processo" a partire da fine maggio 2004, con la fase
dibattimentale di "autodifesa dell'imputato".
(a cura di ICDSM-Italia)
TPI: MILOSEVIC, AVVOCATI CHIEDONO RITIRO ACCUSA GENOCIDIO
(ANSA) -L'AJA, 5 MAR - Ritirare l'accusa di genocidio nei confronti
di Slobodan Milosevic: e' la richiesta formulata dagli 'amici
curiae', gli avvocati designati dal Tribunale penale internazionale
(Tpi) per vegliare sull'equita' del processo contro l'ex presidente
della Jugoslavia. In un documento inviato alla corte e reso noto
oggi i legali sostengono che ''non ci sono prove che l'imputato abbia
progettato, ordinato o commesso un genocidio o atti di genocidio''.
Per questo chiedono di cancellare dagli atti di accusa questa
imputazione. Contro Milosevic e' in corso dal 12 febbraio del 2002
un processo che e' appena arrivato al giro di boa con le
conclusioni della parte riservata all'accusa. A giugno la parola
passera' allo stesso Milosevic il quale ha deciso di difendersi
personalmente dall'accusa di crimini di guerra e contro l'umanita' e,
se non sara' cancellata, di genocidio.(ANSA). VS 05/03/2004
18:28
http://www.ansa.it/balcani/serbiamontenegro/20040305182832865899.html
Vedi anche:
Text of Amicus Curiae's motion for the aquital of Slobodan Milosevic
http://www.un.org/icty/milosevic/040305.pdf
=== 2 ===
LINKS (IN ENGLISH)
Text of Amicus Curiae's motion for the aquital of Slobodan Milosevic
http://www.un.org/icty/milosevic/040305.pdf
Crisis at The Hague ICTY Kangaroo Court: Presiding Judge in Milosevic
Trial resigns (by Cathrin Schütz)
http://globalresearch.ca/articles/DIC402A.html
Milosevic outlasts May (by Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey)
http://english.pravda.ru/printed.html?news_id=12176
Muted end to Milosevic prosecution; Tribunal Boost for Milosevic (by
Stacy Sullivan)
http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/tri/tri_346_1_eng.txt
http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/tri/tri_347_1_eng.txt
The Hague Suffers New Shocks to the Nervous System
http://www.balkanalysis.com/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=279
Correspondence from an Eyewitness in Bosnia to ICDSM:
NATO/SFOR & ICTY Are Manufacturing Fake Mass Graves
to Convict Milosevic! - January 4, 2004
http://www.icdsm-us.org/libraries/viewdocument.asp?DocumentID=186
--- MORE ---
Republika Srpska:
Republic Secretariat for Relations with The International Criminal
Tribunal in The Hague and War Crimes Research
http://www.rs-icty.org/engleski/ulaz_eng.htm
Republicki Sekretarijat za odnose sa Medunarodnim krivicnim sudom u
Hagu i istrazivanje ratnih zlocina
http://www.rs-icty.org/
Un interessante documentario televisivo olandese /
Dutch TV documentary on the Hague process, in two parts
http://info.vpro.nl/info/tegenlicht/index.shtml?7738514+7738518+8048024
MILOSEVIC SPEAKS!
The Writings, Speeches and Interviews
of President Slobodan Milosevic
http://www.icdsm-us.org/speaks/default.asp
=== 3 ===
http://www.iacenter.org/milos_030704.htm
YUGOSLAVIA, HAITI, IRAQ
Milosevic case combats Washington's 'regime changes'
By John Catalinotto
New York
A Feb. 29 International Action Center forum here on NATO's
two-year-long prosecution of former Yugoslav President Slobodan
Milosevic turned into a spirited fight-back workshop. The discussion
ranged across topics from that morning's criminal overthrow of the
Haitian government to the Iraqi resistance, the latest political turn
in Serbia and Washington's aggressive policy of "regime change."
Pat Chin, an IAC spokesperson on both Haiti and Yugoslavia, chaired the
meeting. She drew the audience's attention to the similarities of the
U.S. overthrow of constitutional governments in both countries. Both
were pushed out by a combination of military assault and subversion
under the cover of "human rights" concerns, she said.
IAC organizers had originally called the meeting to coincide with the
end of the case that the prosecution had tried to bring against
Milosevic at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former
Yugoslavia.
Speakers at the forum included former Attorney General Ramsey Clark,
IAC co-director Sara Flounders and Kingsborough Community College
professor Barry Lituchy, who had recently observed the ICTY trial and
Milosevic's defense. Clark had been hit by a car the day before the
forum, suffering a broken foot and ankle. Still he found the energy to
inspire the audience with his phoned-in presentation defending
Milosevic.
Without any legal basis in United Nations bylaws, the United States and
other NATO powers established the tribunal through the UN in 1993 to
target Yugoslavs and especially Serbs. In May 1999, during the 78-day
U.S./NATO bombing campaign against Yugoslavia, the ICTY charged
Yugoslav President Milosevic with war crimes in order to bring
additional pressure on him to surrender Serbia's Kosovo province to
NATO occupation.
Two years later, NATO forces kidnapped Milosevic from Belgrade and put
him under ICTY control in a former Nazi prison in The Hague. Only then
did the tribunal also charge him with war crimes and even genocide
regarding the civil wars in Croatia and Bosnia.
By now, in 2004, the court has dropped genocide charges regarding
Kosovo. It may also drop all charges regarding Bosnia and Croatia,
according to rumors in the media.
Observing the ICTY 'circus'
As far as Lituchy is concerned, the court proceedings were a "circus"
and the case should end now in a mistrial.
"It should be ended immediately," he said. "In two years we have seen
no decent evidence. They have been unable to produce any direct links
between Milosevic and those alleged to have committed war crimes. The
media coverage has dried up because the prosecution has been unable to
impose its false version of events on the trial proceedings."
Lituchy, a key organizer of the Inter national Committee for the
Defense of Slobodan Milosevic in the U.S., also showed 30 fascinating
minutes of a longer documentary shown last fall on Dutch television.
The documentary exposes many of the lies about 1990-2000 events in the
Balkans. It also shows Milosevic's effective cross-examination that
consistently exposed prosecution witnesses' weaknesses and outright
lies.
Milosevic has represented himself before the ICTY. As he defends
himself, he sets the historic record straight by blaming the United
States and NATO for aggression in the Balkans.
The former president suffers from high blood pressure. He faces a grave
risk of heart attack. Despite these serious health problems, he has
outperformed the prosecutors and outlasted presiding judge Richard May.
May's recent announcement that he has to retire from the case because
of unexplained medical problems has thrown the prosecution into
disarray. How the trial should proceed now is in doubt: A new judge
would have to review videotapes of almost 300 witnesses, plus 33,000
pages of transcribed testimony and a million pages of depositions. A
serious review of this material could require a year.
The ICTY is allowing Milosevic only three months to go over the same
material to prepare his defense, which is supposed to open on May 26.
Iraqi resistance helps the truth
In her talk, Flounders showed how the heroic Iraqi resistance to the
U.S. occupation has created an atmosphere where few believe
Washington's lies to justify its war. "It is important that we continue
to fight to get out the truth about Yugoslavia at a time when many are
questioning the 'Big Lie' told by the U.S. government," she said.
Clark reviewed recent Balkans history and attacked the legality of the
ICTY. He recently wrote a paper developing these points, "Divide and
Conquer," which is available at the IAC website: www.iacenter.org.
Clark urged the audience to work to support the team doing back-up
research for Milosevic as he presents the defense case. This team
consists of a few young Yugoslav attorneys who hope to have continuing
assistance from Tiphaine Dickson, a Canadian attorney experienced in
international law
before this type of tribunal.
During an audience discussion that lasted over an hour, a member of an
early Milosevic cabinet who lives now in the United States brought up
recent developments in Serbia. "The last elections," she said, "pushed
out the neo-liberal puppets of the West who had replaced Milosevic in
2000." She called it "a first step" toward winning independence again
in Serbia.
Some in the audience expressed frustration that the progressive
movement in the United States had failed to understand the Yugoslav
struggle. Yet the general mood as the meeting ended was increased
readiness to struggle.
People vowed to find ways to support the website of the ICDSM-US
(www.icdsm-us.org), to work to get the video shown publicly, to
circulate Ramsey Clark's paper and to support those defending Slobodan
Milosevic and exposing U.S. imperialism's lies.
"Mugabe in Zimbabwe, Chavez in Venezuela, Aristide in Haiti and
Milosevic in Yugoslavia were demonized. People who understand how the
government here lied in one of these cases should be helped to
understand them all," remarked one participant during the discussion.
"And publicizing Milosevic's
defense is one way to do it for Yugoslavia."
Reprinted from the March 11, 2004, issue of Workers World newspaper
(Copyright Workers World Service: Everyone is permitted to copy and
distribute verbatim copies of this document, but changing it is not
allowed. For more information contact Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY,
NY 10011; via
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---
From: New Worker Online, Friday, February 27, 2004
http://www.newworker.org
(through http://www.solidnet.org )
Judge Steps Down In Miloševic Case
by Elizabeth Farrell
THE CASE against Slobodan Miloševic has ended early in The Hague due to
the illness of British presiding judge, Richard May, and further delays
are inevitable, as his replacement will have to study over two years of
detailed testimony. The former Yugoslav president, accused of
war-crimes at The Hague tribunal, is entitled to challenge May’s
successor and he could even demand a complete retrial. But Judge May is
not the only person with health problems. Slobodan Miloševic himself
suffers from high blood pressure, which means he has often been too ill
to attend court hearings. Despite this, Miloševic has been denied
access to a specialist doctor and often works through the night to
prepare his case.
Richard May will leave the International Criminal Tribunal for the
Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on 31 May, around the time that Miloševic was
due to begin his defence. A lawyer in his own right, Miloševic has been
conducting his own defence and personally cross-examined most of the
298 witnesses put forward by the prosecution.
Judge May received predictable plaudits on his departure. ICTY
president Theodor Meron praised Richard May for his “formidable
intellect and unwavering dedication” and said he ensured the procedures
of the trial are “fair, efficient and sound”. Meron added: “[May] has
shepherded the Miloševic case, one of historical importance and
daunting dimensions,
through a major part of the trial with patience and care and handled
the unique issues presented by that case creatively and effectively.”
Slobodan Miloševic, the former leader of Serbia and the Yugoslav
federation, is accused of war-crimes in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo.
After his defeat by pro-imperialist elements in Serbia Miloševic was
handed over to West for the
trial which began in February 2002.
The former president has repeated refused to enter a plea and he has
questioned the legitimacy of the court. And so far, as one
international human rights lawyer said, “the only evidence against him
is that he is not guilty”. Miloševic is the first head of state to be
indicted by an international court. Now observers say the prosecution
at the kangaroo court in The Hague might not be able to secure a
conviction on the most serious charge for genocide.
*End*
=== 4 ===
http://www.jungewelt.de/2004/02-25/015.php
junge Welt (Berlin), 25.02.2004
Interview: Cathrin Schütz
Tribunal-Richter zurückgetreten: Wird Milosevic-Prozeß auf Eis gelegt?
jW sprach mit Tiphaine Dickson, kanadische Anwältin im Rechtskomitee
des Internationalen Komitees zur Verteidigung von Slobodan Milosevic
(ICDSM)
* Die kanadische Anwältin war leitende Verteidigerin in einem der
ersten Völkermordprozesse vor dem Ruanda-Tribunal in Tansania.
F: Das Tribunal für Kriegsverbrechen im ehemaligen Jugoslawien (ICTY)
in Den Haag hat am Sonntag den Rücktritt des leitenden Richters im
Milosevic-Prozeß, Richard May, bekanntgegeben. Offiziell wird auf
gesundheitliche Gründe verwiesen. Wie bewerten Sie diesen Vorgang?
Das ist eine spektakuläre Entwicklung. Der Rücktritt zeigt, daß dieser
Mammutprozeß angesichts des riesigen Umfangs an Protokollunterlagen und
der Unmenge an Zeugen nicht adäquat geführt werden kann, schon gar
nicht von einem gesundheitlich angeschlagenen Menschen.
Bedauerlicherweise wird Slobodan Milosevic, dessen Krankheit ihn
ähnlich beeinträchtigt, nicht mit der gleichen Rücksicht begegnet wie
Richard May, dem sogleich Mitleid und Sorge zuteil wurden. Milosevic
kann nicht einfach vom Prozeß zurücktreten – obwohl er gegen seine
lebensbedrohliche Krankheit ankämpfen muß, ohne eine vorübergehende
Haftentlassung oder ausreichende fachärztliche Behandlung gewährt zu
bekommen.
F: In der internationalen Presse ist neuerdings zu lesen, man könne
Milosevic Völkermord nicht nachweisen. Wird die Öffentlichkeit jetzt
darauf vorbereitet, daß sich zahlreiche Vorwürfe gegen Milosevic als
unhaltbar erweisen werden?
Die Einschätzung der Presse stimmt insofern, als die bisher
vorgebrachten »Beweise« auf Hörensagen, Spekulationen, persönlichen
Meinungen und Irrelevanzen beruhen. Die Chefanklägerin, Carla del
Ponte, konnte keinen einzigen schlüssigen Beweis präsentieren, wie es
die Strafjustiz verlangt. Es ist klar, daß zahlreiche Anklagepunkte
fallengelassen werden müssen.
F: Einige Kommentatoren stellen inzwischen sogar in Frage, daß
Milosevic Kriegsverbrechen in Bosnien und Kroatien nachzuweisen seien.
Deutet sich darin vielleicht das Kalkül des Westens an, die Anklage
demnächst auf den Kosovo-Komplex zu beschränken?
Selbst wenn die Bosnien- und Kroatienanklage fallengelassen würden,
könnte Milosevic noch immer dieselbe Verteidigungsstrategie verfolgen,
wie er sie in seiner Eröffnungsrede dargelegt hat. Kosovo war nur der
Vorwand des Westens für einen grausamen Bombenkrieg, mit dem
internationales Recht gebrochen wurde. Diese Aggression besiegelte das
Auseinanderbrechen Jugoslawiens. Es ist sehr wahrscheinlich, daß
Milosevic wie angekündigt aufzeigen wird, daß es nur einen Krieg im
ehemaligen Jugoslawien gab: nämlich den gegen Jugoslawien.
F: Was bedeutet der Rücktritt Mays für den Fortgang des Verfahrens?
Die Verfahrensregeln besagen eigentlich, daß ein neuer Richter nicht
ohne Zustimmung des Angeklagten berufen werden kann. Doch im »Dienste
der Gerechtigkeit« dürfen die Richter gegen die Vorbehalte des
Angeklagten handeln. Das Recht auf Einspruch des Angeklagten ist also
nicht mehr als eine Farce. Jeder neu berufene Richter muß bestätigen,
daß er mit dem gesamten Fall vertraut ist, also mit über 33 000 Seiten
von Mitschriften, ganz zu schweigen von Videokassetten, Karten und
einer großen Zahl anderer Beweisstücke. Es wäre zudem notwendig, daß
ein neuer Richter alle Videoaufzeichnungen der Verhandlungen anschaut,
denn keine Mitschrift kann vermitteln, was die Körpersprache von Zeugen
aussagt.
F: Könnte der Prozeß also erst einmal auf Eis gelegt werden?
Unter strikter Anlegung des angloamerikanischen Rechtssystems müßte der
Prozeß eigentlich noch einmal komplett von vorne aufgerollt werden. Was
diesen Fall betrifft, besteht aber die Gefahr, daß die Richter
angesichts des enormen politischen Drucks die Verfahrensregeln so
ändern, daß der Prozeß ohne Hindernisse fortgeführt werden kann. Eine
solche Entwicklung wäre ein schlimmer Präzedenzfall für die Zukunft des
internationalen Rechts.
=== 5 ===
Una nota sulla campagna di finanziamento dell'ICDSM
La Sezione Italiana dell'ICDSM ringrazia tutti quelli che hanno finora
contribuito alla campagna di finanziamento per la difesa di Milosevic.
La richiesta dell'ICDSM internazionale, tuttavia, e' che tali sforzi
vengano RADDOPPIATI nel prossimo futuro, poiche' le spese sono ingenti.
Non esistono altre fonti di finanziamento: la situazione a Belgrado e'
irrespirabile, i lavoratori ... non lavorano, chi ha i soldi per
mangiare li tiene stretti e non rischia certo la galera in attivita'
politiche o di solidarieta' a favore di Milosevic, che viene presentato
dai media locali (oramai tutti in mano a societa' occidentali)
esattamente come da noi, cioe' come un dittatore criminale e
ferrovecchio. I nuovi ricchi votano i partiti filo-occidentali e di
destra e non appoggiano certo Milosevic. Per di piu', alla campagna per
Milosevic l'SPS e' sostanzialmente ESTRANEO, poiche' la leadership
parlamentare di quel partito ha scelto una linea accomodante con
Kostunica ed e' in rotta di collisione con il gruppo organizzatosi
attorno a SLOBODA (sezione belgradese dell'ICDSM).
A tutti deve essere infine chiaro - se ancora ci fosse bisogno di
ripeterlo - che non esiste alcun "tesoro nascosto" di Milosevic e che
il nostro impegno per la sua difesa e' insostituibile ed
indispensabile. Altrimenti, la storia la scriveranno da soli i nemici
della Jugoslavia, a base di "sentenze giudiziarie" dettate dai servizi
di intelligence della NATO.
Per contribuire dall'Italia alla difesa di Milosevic:
Conto Corrente Postale numero 86557006
intestato ad Adolfo Amoroso, ROMA
causale: DIFESA MILOSEVIC
Per contatti:
ICDSM - Sezione Italiana
c/o GAMADI, Via L. Da Vinci 27
00043 Ciampino (Roma)
email: icdsm-italia@...
==========================
ICDSM - Sezione Italiana
c/o GAMADI, Via L. Da Vinci 27
00043 Ciampino (Roma)
email: icdsm-italia@...
Conto Corrente Postale numero 86557006
intestato ad Adolfo Amoroso, ROMA
causale: DIFESA MILOSEVIC