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In his motion Karadzic calls upon the previous adjournments approved by the Hague Tribunal – the trial was interrupted for two weeks in August 2010, for one week in September and one month in November because the indictee needed additional time to review certain documents which the Prosecution had submitted.
“In this case the volume of evidence is three times greater than when the trial was adjourned for a month,” Karadzic said in his motion.
If the trial continues without interruption, Karadzic says he will be “irreparably damaged”.
“It can be expected that the Prosecution will violate its obligation to submit evidence in the future. The Trial Chamber ordered the Prosecution to submit other materials, which will be voluminous, about witnesses who will testify about municipalities by April 18, 2011.
“Damage has been caused to the indictee because he has not received all materials ahead of the cross-examination of witnesses. This fact prevents him from establishing a coordinated defence strategy,” the motion says.
Karadzic has asked that his trial to be postponed for three months, but four witnesses from Sarajevo, whose testimonies have already been scheduled for March, would take place as planned.
Karadzic, the former president of Republika Srpska and supreme commander of its armed forces, is charged with genocide, crimes against humanity and violation of the laws and customs of war committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1992 to 1995.
His trial began in late October 2009. The examination of Prosecution witnesses who are testifying about crimes committed in Sarajevo is currently underway.
M.H.
