Gasal et al: Status of Questionable Documents
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The Defence of Nisvet Gasal and Musajb Kukavica informed the Trial Chamber that they will examine seven joint witnesses, also saying that indictee Gasal will testify for his Defence.
The Defence attorney of Enes Handzic said the Defence of the third indictee would need fifteen working days to present its evidence, but he did not say how many witnesses would be invited to testify.
The Defence of the fourth indictee asked the Court to let it have “seven or eight” working days for the examination of 15 witnesses.
Nisvet Gasal, former Manager of “Iskra” detention camp in Bugojno, and Musajb Kukavica, former Commander of security at the detention camp, are charged with responsibility for the functioning of the detention camp, in which about 300 Croat civilians were held in inhumane conditions during 1993 and 1994.
Enes Handzic, former Assistant Commander for Security with the 307th Brigade of the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina, ABiH, and Senad Dautovic, a former member of the Joint Command of the ABiH, are charged with helping to plan the detention of civilians in Bugojno.
The trial began in February last year. The Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina completed its evidence presentation on November 11 this year. It presented a total of 500 pieces of material evidence.
At this status conference the Defence of indictee Handzic asked the State Prosecution to specify which pieces of evidence it would give up, because some pieces of evidence mentioned in the indictment were not presented during the course of the trial.
Trial Chamber Chairman Davorin Jukic ordered the Prosecution to state in writing “the status of the questionable documents” within the next seven days.
Jukic said that if the issues pertaining to the Prosecution’s evidence are resolved, the first three witnesses of the first indictee’s Defence would give their statements at the next hearing, scheduled for January 13, 2010.
The Trial Chamber rejected the Defence’s proposal to accept the previously determined facts “concerning the international nature of the war conducted in Bosnia and Herzegovina”, considering them “irrelevant” for this case.
