Karadzic Asks For a Laptop, Internet and Skype

Radovan Karadzic urged the judges at the Mechanism for International Tribunals in The Hague during a status conference in his trial on Monday to allow him a laptop, claiming he has back pain from spending hours at a desktop computer.

He also asked to be allowed access to the internet and Skype so he can find material for his work and communicate with his family.

Judge Theodor Meron said that the Hague Tribunal’s secretariat will address Karadzic’s request soon.

Karadzic also said that he felt like he had been sentenced to death as a result of his isolation in prison.

Speaking about his health, Karadzic said he felt better and that he was satisfied with the treatment he was getting from the staff at eth UN detention centre.

At earlier status conferences, Karadzic had complained about his deteriorating health, which he said was caused by the years he has spent in his cell.

He has been in the Hague detention unit since his arrest in 2008.

In March last year, Karadzic was sentenced to 40 years in prison for his involvement in the Srebrenica genocide, crimes against humanity across Bosnia and Herzegovina, terrorising the population of Sarajevo and taking UN peacekeepers hostage.

However, he was acquitted of genocide in several Bosnian municipalities in 1992.

Both Karadzic and the Hague prosecution have appealed against the verdict, with the former Bosnian Serb political leader asking to be acquitted of all charges and the prosecutors asking for his sentence to be increased to life in prison.