SETimes.comFormer generals' trial expected to test Croatian judiciary
09/05/2007
Two retired Croatian generals -- Mirko Norac and Rahim Ademi -- will go on trial next month on war crimes charges.
By Natasa Radic for Southeast European Times in Zagreb – 09/05/07
The trial of two retired Croatian generals -- Rahim Ademi, 52, and Mirko Norac, 40 -- is slated to begin June 18th. Many see it as the biggest test the Croatian judiciary has faced to date.
"The trial will have nine hearings before the summer break," Zagreb County Court spokesman Kresimir Devcic said. "Only the prosecution and the generals' defence teams are summoned to the first hearings, while witness testimonies will follow after the summer."
The case, which involves war crimes allegedly committed during a September 1993 operation in the so-called Medak Pocket, was first investigated by the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague, but later transferred to the Croatian judiciary.
"This is the first case The Hague tribunal has handed to the Croatian judiciary, and we will be following with interest. It's another test case of whether the local judiciary is mature enough," said a European Commission official in Zagreb. "Unlike in the past, this time we do not expect any protests or rallies by right-wing groups or war veterans, and that's a good sign," the official added.
Croatia, now a candidate for EU membership, has had a poor record in the past when it comes to prosecuting war crimes cases. With the Ademi-Norac trial, the judiciary has a chance to demonstrate whether it has matured sufficiently to handle such cases.
Prosecutors from the UN tribunal will be monitoring the proceedings. If they decide, at any point, that the case is not being handled appropriately, they have the authority to transfer it back to The Hague.
According to the indictment, Ademi and Norac "planned, instigated, ordered, committed or otherwise aided and abetted in the planning, preparation or execution of persecutions of Serb civilians of the Medak Pocket on racial, political or religious grounds."
Approximately 400 Serb civilians lived there before the Croatian military attack began on September 9th. According to the indictment, "the Medak Pocket became uninhabitable" as a result of the operation.
"The villages of the Pocket were completely destroyed, thereby depriving the Serbian civilian population of their homes and livelihood," it reads.
By virtue of their ranks, Ademi and Norac "had the power, authority and responsibility to prevent or punish serious violations of international humanitarian law committed during the Medak Pocket operation," the indictment charges.
Norac already is serving a 12-year sentence for war crimes against Serb civilians. His arrest and trial in 2001 sparked anti-government protests.
Ademi, who surrendered voluntarily to The Hague, is barred from leaving his place of residence or talking to the press while awaiting trial.