Karadzic: Request to disqualify presiding judge

Radovan Karadzic, who is charged, before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, ICTY, with genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina, filed a motion requesting President Fausto Pocar to disqualify judge Alphons Orie from all trial proceedings due to “private interests”, which would bring into question the existence of “an impartial trial”.

“Any involvement of Alphonse Orie in my case would certainly result in numerous irregularities and a hindrance of defence, because Mr. Orie has an interest in the outcome of this case,” Karadzic stated in his motion.

Karadzic considers that the fact that judge Orie was involved in previous cases, such as the case against Momcilo Krajisnik and Milan Babic, would motivate the judge to act in a partial and non-objective manner in order to have “his earlier verdicts sustained and somehow confirmed”.

Karadzic said that the verdict against Krajisnik, sentencing him to 28 years’ imprisonment, was “draconian”. He further claims that the case against Stanislav Galic was “conducted in a way that was unfavourable for the accused”. Galic was sentenced to life imprisonment for the siege of Sarajevo.

Finally, Karadzic stated that he had already become a victim of Orie’s partiality when he made his initial appearance before the Hague Tribunal. He said that, on that occasion, the judge prevented him from presenting “persuasive arguments concerning my physical safety and related to the interest among some circles in the USA and NATO to have me physically liquidated”.

Karadzic was arrested in Belgrade on July 21, 2008. Ten days later he was transferred to The Hague.