Karadzic: Trial Break Motion Rejected

The Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, ICTY said that approving a one-month break just two weeks prior to the beginning of the presentation of evidence related to Srebrenica “would not be in the interest of justice”.

In his motion filed with The Hague Tribunal, the former President of Republika Srpska, RS said that he had not been able to review the 12,392 pieces of evidence related to the events in Srebrenica, because of “the
constant delays in the submission of acquittal evidence by the Prosecution”.

In its response to the motion The Hague Prosecution said that Karadzic presented the wrong number of documents that had been submitted to him, adding that he had had those documents since December 2010.

The ICTY Trial Chamber accepted The Hague Prosecution’s explanation, adding that the indictee failed to explain “why he has not reviewed the materials that he has already had for a year”, and rejected Karadzic’s motion.

“The Chamber has understanding for the burden that has been put on the indictee as a result of the late disclosure of many pieces of evidence by the Prosecution, but the Chamber already approved a nine-week trial break from March to May this year for that particular reason,” the Trial Chamber’s decision says.

Karadzic is on trial before The Hague Tribunal for genocide in Srebrenica in July 1995 and seven other Bosnian municipalities in 1992. The indictment charges Karadzic with persecuting Bosniaks and Croats from 20 municipalities, shelling and sniping in Sarajevo and taking members of international forces hostage.

Karadzic was arrested in July 2008. His trial began in October 2009.

D.Dž.