Ratko Mladic’s Son Expects Father’s Acquittal
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Darko Mladic told BIRN on Wednesday that “any verdict other than a not guilty one would be unjust” when the Hague Tribunal delivers its judgment in the trial of his father Ratko Mladic on November 22.
“Any verdicts that is not an acquittal would be unacceptable for his family,” Darko Mladic said.
“All legal analyses show that the Hague prosecution did not prove the indictment which charges my father,” he added.
Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb Army’s former commander, is on trial for genocide, crimes against humanity and violations of the laws and customs of war.
The prosecution charges him with genocide in Srebrenica in 1995 and six other municipalities in 1992, the persecution of Bosniaks and Croats throughout the country, terrorising the population of Sarajevo and taking UN peacekeepers hostage.
Darko Mladic, who lives in Belgrade, said that “if normal criminal law is applied, General Mladic will be on his way home on November 23”.
He says that his father’s health is poor and that the Hague Tribunal doctors have made “cardinal mistakes in his treatment”.
“All this story about his treatment is part of a large obstruction. The latest medical documents which arrived from The Hague and head shots show that Mladic had several new seizures. As his family, we are very worried about his health,” he said.
Prior to his arrest in May 2011, Mladic – who is now 74 – had suffered three strokes.
His defence claims that his health has deteriorated during the course of the trial.
Earlier this month, Mladic’s lawyers asked the UN court to postpone the delivery of the verdict in his trial and suspend proceedings while it was determined whether Mladic is capable of standing trial because of his poor health.
The prosecution opposed the motion, arguing that doctors at the UN tribunal’s detention unit, where Mladic is being held, and independent specialists have closely monitored his health during the course of his trial, and said that he is fit to appear in court.
Ratko Mladic was on the run for 16 years before he was arrested in Serbia.
Asked about the time his father spent as a fugitive, during which, according to various books and reports, his son knew his whereabouts, Darko Mladic declined to comment.
