Legal Drama in Belgrade

[Ivo Skoric]

Zvezdan Jovanovic, man accused of killing Djindjic, now faces trial 
in Belgrade. Of course, he accuses authorities of mounting a 
political process against him. A former policeman and torturer 
himself, now he blames the police for beating the plea out of him, 
and refuses to enter the plea in the court. This all, indeed, comes 
politically on the eve of elections in which bad guys are supposed to 
win (Seselj's nationalists).

40 lawyers, defending Jovanovic et alia on trial for killing prime 
minister Djindjic, walked out of the courtroom in protest over the 3-
panel judge handling of the case. Added to that is the UN legal 
observer's statement noting "the apparent meddling" of politics in 
the proceedings:    "The chief judge is acting both as a judge and a 
prosecutor."

Inevitably, the trial is tainted before it even begun. The only 
question now is - was it intentional to be this way?

ivo

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Chaos Erupts at Serb Assassination Trial

APO  24/12/2003 13:13
Copyright 2003 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The
information contained in this news report may not be published,
broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written 
authority of the Associated Press.
   By DUSAN STOJANOVIC
 Associated Press Writer

   BELGRADE, Serbia-Montenegro (AP) -- The trial of the accused
   assassins of Serbia's prime minister descended into turmoil 
Wednesday when the alleged triggerman refused to enter a plea and 
defense attorneys walked out of the courtroom in protest.
   Zvezdan Jovanovic, former commander of an elite Serbian police 
unit who is charged with firing the fatal sniper shot that killed 
Zoran Djindjic on March 12, said he was framed by pro-Western 
authorities.
   "I have been exposed to tremendous pressure by these authorities,"
   said Jovanovic, 38. "I have been proclaimed guilty even before the 
trial had started."
   Authorities initially said Jovanovic confessed to the slaying. But
   his defense attorneys claim he was pressured during the police
interrogation and was not told that everything he said could be used
against him in court.
   "I don't trust this court and the judiciary of this country," said
Jovanovic, whose police unit fought in Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo.
   Wednesday's courtroom proceedings were cut short when 40 defense
   lawyers representing the 36 suspects in Djindjic's killing walked 
out, claiming the three-judge panel was biased and incapable of 
handling the case.
   If they do not return Thursday, the court would have to appoint
   lawyers for the policemen and alleged gangsters charged with 
Djindjic's killing.
   That would jeopardize the fairness of the trial, which is
   considered a crucial test of the independence of Serbia's 
judiciary in the wake of President Slobodan Milosevic's ouster in 
2000.
   Milosevic was ousted by Djindjic's coalition and extradited to the
   U.N. war crimes court in The Hague, Netherlands, to face charges 
stemming from the Balkan wars of the 1990s.
   The trial began three days ago in a high-security courtroom in
   Belgrade. A U.N. court observer said the trial has many flaws,
   including "the apparent meddling" of politics in the proceedings.
   "The chief judge is acting both as a judge and a prosecutor," said
Aleksandar Cvejic, legal adviser for the U.N. commissioner for human
rights. "That is unacceptable."
   Jovanovic's lawyer, Nenad Vukasovic, said authorities were using
   the trial to boost their chances in Serbia's key parliamentary 
elections Sunday. Ultranationalists, who are allies of Milosevic, are 
predicted to win, according to pre-election polls.
   Djindjic was killed in a sniper attack in front of his government
headquarters in Belgrade. The indictment says Jovanovic fired two
shots from a window in a building close to government headquarters,
one killing Djindjic and the other seriously injuring his bodyguard,
Milan Veruovic.
   The suspects are charged with killing Djindjic in order to
   overthrow his pro-Western government and replace it with Milosevic 
allies.
   Thirteen men are charged with direct involvement in the attack
   while the remaining 23 are alleged members of their criminal group 
and face other charges.
   Twenty-two suspects are appearing in court, while 14 remain at
   large and are being tried in absentia.
   The fugitives include the alleged mastermind of the assassination
   and the chief suspect, Milorad Lukovic, who commanded the elite 
Red Berets during the Balkan wars.
   Jovanovic was Lukovic's deputy in the special police unit.
   During Milosevic's war crimes trial, Lukovic was accused by 
Bosnian Muslim witnesses of torturing them in a Serb-run 
concentration camp.


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Ivo Skoric
19 Baxter Street
Rutland VT 05701
802.775.7257
ivo at balkansnet.org
balkansnet.org