Chief ICTY Prosecutor Serge Brammertz plans to visit the BiH Prosecutor’s Office in order to discuss the implementation of the state strategy in the prosecution of war crimes, confirmed the Prosecutor of the ICTY to Fena.
In Sarajevo, Brammertz will speak with the Chief Prosecutor Goran Salihović on progress in the prosecution of cases of other categories that were transferred from the Hague Prosecution to the BiH Prosecution as well as the implementation of the state strategy in the processing of war crimes cases.
The Hague Tribunal told FENA that the date has not yet been set, but it is planned that Brammertz would visit Sarajevo this fall.
On the eve of the visit last April to Sarajevo, Brammertz said to Fena that he is very satisfied with the level of cooperation of the BiH Prosecutor’s Office and the Prosecutor’s Office of the Tribunal, but that he would like to see further progress in the investigation and prosecution of cases of other categories that are transferred from the Hague Tribunal to BiH.
Then, he pointed out that the main challenges of the BiH Prosecution and courts of BiH was the slow implementation of the state strategy for war crimes.
The Council of Ministers recently allocated from the budget reserves 647.500 KM for admission (appointment) of 13 judges and one Register in the BiH Prosecution.
“At the same time, through IPA funds the strengthening of the capacity for the prosecution of war crimes will be ensured at the entity level’’, said recently in an interview for Fena the Chief Prosecutor of BIH Goran Salihović in the context of effective implementation of the national strategy in the processing of war crimes.
The international community has positively assessed the activities for the plan to strengthen regional cooperation in which the BiH Prosecution has an active role, and these are protocols on cooperation in processing war crimes that were signed with the War Crimes Prosecution of Serbia and the Croatian State Attorney’s Office, and they will soon start negotiations on the signing of the agreement with Montenegro.
On 1 July The Hague began with the work of the Residual Mechanism for the International Criminal Court for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), which will gradually take over the functions derived from the ICTY in order for the Tribunal to finish its work on current cases and help the successful completion of the mandate.
The Hague Tribunal does not have new investigations and is not issuing new indictments.
It is expected that by the end of 2014 the trial of Radovanu Karadžić will finish, Goran Hadžić’s trial by 2015, and Ratko Mladić’s trial is expected to end by July 2016.
The ICTY has indicted a total of 161 people from the former Yugoslavia, and verdicts were handed down to 87 people. 69 people were convicted in prison. There are currently proceedings against 25 defendants.
The ICTY Prosecution has more than nine million various documents that are not merely the testimony of witnesses, survivors and experts, but also intercepted conversations, video archives, military documents, political meetings, etc.
(Source: Fena)
