Below we publish a copy of the letter we have sent to Kofi Annan Secretary General of the United Nations and to the Security Coucil members of the UN.

Grave misgivings about the trial of Mr Slobodan Milosevic

7th March 2004.

Dear Sir,

Re: The Trial of Mr Slobodan Milosevic at the ICTY in The Hague.

It is with deep concern that we write to express our grave misgivings about the current trial of Mr Slobodan Milosevic as conducted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

We understand that the defendant has been given a mere three months to prepare the case for his defence and furthermore that the witnesses he wishes to call upon will be subjected to the discretion of the tribunal itself. This is in stark contrast to the many years and unlimited finance that was at the disposal of the prosecution for the preparation of its case and the permission it received to add to its list of witnesses on almost a day to day basis throughout the last two years. Clearly the legal requirement for an ‘equality of arms’ between the prosecution and defence is absent from these proceedings.

Legal observers of the trial have commented that the ICTY creates its own rules and regulations, which alarmingly have been amended no less that twenty-eight times during the course of the prosecution case, and that the tribunal is subject to no external regulatory body. In the interests of justice ‘being seen to be done’ this is clearly unacceptable.

Moreover the imposition of the three-month time limit allows no consideration for the poor health condition of the defendant. Even the ICTY appointed doctors have confirmed that Mr Milosevic suffers from malignant hypertension and a damaged heart.

We submit that the sheer volume of court documents, videos and cassettes, that the defendant is obliged to study in such a short period of time, will damage his health even further.

The court proceedings over the last two years have demonstrated two things.

One: that the prosecution, reliant primarily on hearsay and circumstantial evidence, has significantly failed to prove its case on any of the charges levelled against the defendant.

Two: that Mr Milosevic is not merely defending himself, but courageously defending first and foremost his country and its people against a level of propaganda and misinformation that has not been witnessed for many decades.

In view of the above and in consideration of upholding the established principles of international law and the reputation of the United Nations, we respectfully request that the trial of Slobodan Milosevic be adjourned and that he be released into an environment that would allow the defendant the adequate time and conditions to prepare his defence and recuperate his health.

It is our belief that in the interests of truth and justice this is the only honourable course of action to take.

History will be a harsh judge on the people and institutions which allows the current travesty to continue.

Yours sincerely,

Ian Johnson. UK Co-ordinator /Committee to Defend Slobodan Milosevic. (CDSM)

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