On Tuesday, the two Bosnian Serb wartime leaders Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic appeared before the UN ad hoc International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia based in The Hague (Netherlands). This hearing, attended by history’s most sought-after military-political partnership, was particularly tense as Mladic refused to testify for his former ally’s defense.
Mladic, the former general who headed the separatist Bosnian Serb forces, and Karadzic, the political leader of the army, are accused of responsibility for the massacre of 8,000 Muslim men and boys (also referred to as “Bosniaks”) in the town of Srebrenica in 1995. Karadizc, who had been self-proclaimed the President of the Independent Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina when Bosnia became a state in 1992, was the brains behind the attacks in Srebrenica and Sarajevo, whereas Mladic was the one who gave the orders to the soldiers.
A frail-looking Mladic, 71, was called by Karadzic, 68, to appear against his will as a defense witness in the latter’s trial, but when asked to take his oath, Mladic stated: “I do not recognize this court. It is a NATO creation. It is a satanic court.” However, when he was told by the judge of the court that he faced a further seven years of jail for contempt charges, the hearings resumed.
Karadzic had six questions for Mladic, mainly regarding the latter’s knowledge of the Srebrenica massacre and the Serb siege of the capital, Sarajevo, and how much of that information Mladic had passed to Karadzic. It is believed that Karadzic was going to argue that he was unaware of most of Mladic’s activities and therefore he could not be held responsible for what happened. However, much to Karadzic’s disappointment, Mladic had the same answer for every question: "I cannot and do not wish to testify...because it would impair my health and prejudice my own case.” Mladic’s lawyer, Branko Lukic, had told judges that Mladic's poor health—rendered fragile by a series of strokes that left him partially paralysed—had caused gaps in his memory so that he was unable to distinguish fact from fiction. With Mladic pleading his right to silence for the sake of his own case, Karadizc was left without the support of the only person he claims is “the only person who knows what happened in Srebrenica in 1995."
The two men, although on separate trials, are each accused of devising and executing a conspiracy to “ethnically cleanse” Bosnia of its Muslims and Croats, so as to create a pure Serb state following the secession from the former Serbian-led federal Yugoslavia. Their mission was to return Serbia to its grand glory, but this task was what earned Mladic the nickname of the “Butcher of Bosnia”. The genocide of Srebrenica is considered the biggest massacre in Europe following the Holocaust. Both men were indicted shortly before the end of the war in Bosnia (1992-1995) but they spent more than a decade on the run before their arrest. Currently, both Mladic and Karadzic face life imprisonment if convicted of charges that include crimes against humanity and genocide.
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Photo Friday: Tensions Rise as Karadzic and Mladic Appear in Court
January 31, 2014
On Tuesday, the two Bosnian Serb wartime leaders Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic appeared before the UN ad hoc International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia based in The Hague (Netherlands). This hearing, attended by history’s most sought-after military-political partnership, was particularly tense as Mladic refused to testify for his former ally’s defense.
Mladic, the former general who headed the separatist Bosnian Serb forces, and Karadzic, the political leader of the army, are accused of responsibility for the massacre of 8,000 Muslim men and boys (also referred to as “Bosniaks”) in the town of Srebrenica in 1995. Karadizc, who had been self-proclaimed the President of the Independent Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina when Bosnia became a state in 1992, was the brains behind the attacks in Srebrenica and Sarajevo, whereas Mladic was the one who gave the orders to the soldiers.
A frail-looking Mladic, 71, was called by Karadzic, 68, to appear against his will as a defense witness in the latter’s trial, but when asked to take his oath, Mladic stated: “I do not recognize this court. It is a NATO creation. It is a satanic court.” However, when he was told by the judge of the court that he faced a further seven years of jail for contempt charges, the hearings resumed.
Karadzic had six questions for Mladic, mainly regarding the latter’s knowledge of the Srebrenica massacre and the Serb siege of the capital, Sarajevo, and how much of that information Mladic had passed to Karadzic. It is believed that Karadzic was going to argue that he was unaware of most of Mladic’s activities and therefore he could not be held responsible for what happened. However, much to Karadzic’s disappointment, Mladic had the same answer for every question: "I cannot and do not wish to testify...because it would impair my health and prejudice my own case.” Mladic’s lawyer, Branko Lukic, had told judges that Mladic's poor health—rendered fragile by a series of strokes that left him partially paralysed—had caused gaps in his memory so that he was unable to distinguish fact from fiction. With Mladic pleading his right to silence for the sake of his own case, Karadizc was left without the support of the only person he claims is “the only person who knows what happened in Srebrenica in 1995."
The two men, although on separate trials, are each accused of devising and executing a conspiracy to “ethnically cleanse” Bosnia of its Muslims and Croats, so as to create a pure Serb state following the secession from the former Serbian-led federal Yugoslavia. Their mission was to return Serbia to its grand glory, but this task was what earned Mladic the nickname of the “Butcher of Bosnia”. The genocide of Srebrenica is considered the biggest massacre in Europe following the Holocaust. Both men were indicted shortly before the end of the war in Bosnia (1992-1995) but they spent more than a decade on the run before their arrest. Currently, both Mladic and Karadzic face life imprisonment if convicted of charges that include crimes against humanity and genocide.
