Ljuboten trial ends at The Hague

13/05/2008

After 13 months, the trial of former Macedonian Interior Minister Ljube Boskovski and former security officer Johan Tarculovski is over.

By Zoran Nikolovski for Southeast European Times in Skopje -- 13/05/08

The Hague trial of former Macedonian Interior Minister Ljube Boskovski lasted a year. [Getty Images]

The trial of former Macedonian Interior Minister Ljube Boskovski and former security official Johan Tarculovski ended last week at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague. The trial, which began on April 16th 2007, included testimony from 64 witnesses, 1,200 exhibits and 11,000 pages of recorded minutes.

In closing arguments, the prosecutor sought a 15-year prison sentence for Tarculovski and a 12-year sentence for Boskovski. The two allegedly ordered a brutal police attack on the Albanian-populated village of Ljuboten near Skopje during the 2001 conflict between Macedonia's security forces and Albanian guerrillas.

According to the prosecutor, Boskovski has command responsibility for the atrocity, while Tarculovski bears individual criminal responsibility for committing, ordering, planning, instigating or aiding and abetting violations. By using the word "committing", the prosecutor does not allege that the defendants physically committed any of the crimes, says the indictment. The two men are the only Macedonian citizens indicted by the tribunal for violating the customs of war.

Defence attorneys say prosecutors failed to prove the pair bore responsibility in the case. Boskovski's legal representative, Edina Rasidovic, said there was no evidence that the former interior minister commanded the attack or had direct influence over the reservists in Ljuboten.

Boskovski undertook the legal measures necessary to conduct an investigation into the case -- informing judicial organs, establishing an interior ministry commission and co-operating with the relevant officers while investigating the village, Rasidovic said. The Hague Tribunal Office in Skopje also received notification about the victims.

In its final arguments, the prosecution said the police unit directed by Tarculovski killed civilians and destroyed 14 homes that were not legitimate military targets.

The court allowed Boskovski and Tarculovski to present their final arguments. They thanked the court for the "just" treatment. Both said that they expect a just verdict -- acquittal.

"I fully agree with the clearly stated positions and arguments of my defence team, which did everything in its power in order to spread the truth about my country, Macedonia. I am very grateful to it for working in line with all the laws, so that no stain remains on the period that the Republic of Macedonia endured," Boskovski said.

Tarculovski's lawyer, Antonio Apostolski, said the prosecution did not prove that his client participated in a conspiracy. He emphasised that Tarculovski followed orders given by the late President Boris Trajkovski.

Observers expect a verdict in July.