Belgrade Defends Enforcement of Release Conditions

Belgrade came under fire after three such accused - ex-Yugoslav deputy prime minister Nikola Sainovic and two former chiefs of staff of the Yugoslav army, Dragoljub Ojdanic and Nebojsa Pavkovic - were seen attending the funeral of former Yugoslav president and fellow-indictee Slobodan Milosevic in Pozarevac in March.



According to the rules governing their temporary release from the Hague tribunal’s custody, they were banned from meeting one another or travelling outside Belgrade municipality.



Defence counsel subsequently said the three had got permission to leave Belgrade from the Serbian authorities. But Serbia’s deputy prime minister Miroljub Labus was quoted by the news agency B92 as saying that no one from the government had given such authorisation.



The latest submission, endorsed by the government, acknowledges that the Serbian ministry of justice did in fact allow the three men to leave Belgrade under police escort. It also says that the authorities have granted similar permission to accused in the past for “specially justified personal reasons and in cases of emergency” such as consultations with defence counsel, deaths and illness in the family - and funerals.



The statement explains that “the ministry of justice’s understanding is that such short absences, lasting several hours, are not in contravention of the prohibition on leaving the territory of the place of residence”.



It adds that reports in the media that officials had denied that any such permission had been granted were “the result of a misunderstanding” and it criticises the journalists in question for failing to check with “the relevant institutions”.



The statement underlines Belgrade’s belief “that future cooperation with the tribunal will continue to be based on a high level of collaboration and trust”. It is signed by Labus himself, who quit his post this week over Serbia’s failure to deliver top war crimes suspect Ratko Mladic to The Hague in accordance with a self-imposed end of April deadline.