The Court of the Bosnia and Herzegovina sentenced on Monday Mirko Pekez to 20 years of prison for crimes in Jajce area, applying the Criminal Code of the Former Yugoslavia.
During a hearing held before the Appellate Chamber of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina Mirko (son of Mile) Pekez requests the renewal of trial following the revocation of a second instance verdict, under which he was sentenced to 29 years in prison for crimes committed in the Jajce area.
On Wednesday, December 18 the Appellate Chamber of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina is due to pronounce a new second instance verdict against Mirko (son of Spiro) Pekez and Milorad Savic, who were previously sentenced for crimes committed in the Jajce area.
The Appellate Chamber of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina rejects custody order motions for nine convicts, who were released from prisons, where they were serving their sentences for war crimes, following the revocation of their verdicts.
The Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina files a custody order motion for Mirko (son of Spiro) Pekez, Mirko (son of Mile) Pekez and Milorad Savic, who were released from serving their sentence for war crimes, due to a danger that they might flee, influence their accomplices and disturb public order.
The EU and international organisations in Bosnia expressed concerns after ten war crimes and genocide convicts were set free because they were tried under the wrong criminal code.
The Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina files custody order motions for ten former war-crimes and genocide convicts, who were released by the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and allowed to defend themselves while at liberty. They were sentenced to between 14 and 33 years in prison.
The release to liberty of ten war crimes and genocide convicts has brought war-crimes victims into a situation whereby they have become victims of the system nearly 20 years after the war. In order to prevent that from happening, they call on the judges of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina to resign.
The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina announces that it will make a separate decision for each individual case as to whether to renew second instance trials against the ten genocide and other war crimes convicts, who have been released from prison.
The Bosnian state court has ordered the immediate release of ten genocide and war crimes convicts because the wrong criminal code was used at their trials.