Everything about International Criminal Tribunal For The Former Yugoslavia totally explained
The
International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991, more commonly referred to as the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia or
ICTY, is a body of the
United Nations (UN) established to prosecute serious crimes committed during the wars in the
former Yugoslavia, and to try their alleged perpetrators. The tribunal is an ad-hoc court and is located in
The Hague in the
Netherlands.
It was originally proposed by German Foreign Minister
Klaus Kinkel and established by
Resolution 827 of the
United Nations Security Council, which was passed on
May 25,
1993. It has jurisdiction over four clusters of crime committed on the territory of the former Yugoslavia since
1991: grave breaches of the
1949 Geneva Conventions, violations of the
laws or customs of war,
genocide, and
crime against humanity. It can try only individuals, not organizations or governments. The maximum sentence it can impose is
life imprisonment. Various countries have signed agreements with the UN to carry out custodial sentences. The last indictment was issued
March 15,
2004. The Tribunal aims to complete all trials by the end of
2009 and all appeals by
2010. The ICTY shouldn't be confused with the
International Criminal Court and the
International Court of Justice; both tribunals are also based in The Hague, but have a permanent status and different jurisdictions.
Organization
The Tribunal employs around 1,200 staff. Its main organisational components are Chambers, Registry and the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP).
Chambers encompasses the
judges and their aides. The Tribunal operates three Trial Chambers and one Appeals Chamber. The President of the Tribunal is also the presiding Judge of the Appeals Chamber. Currently, this is
Fausto Pocar of
Italy (since
2005). His predecessors were
Antonio Cassese of
Italy (
1993–
1997),
Gabrielle Kirk McDonald of the
United States (1997–
1999),
Claude Jorda of
France (1999–
2002),
Theodor Meron of the United States (2002–2005).
The Registry is responsible for handling the administration of the Tribunal; activities include keeping court records, translating court documents, transporting and accommodating those who appear to testify, operating the Public Information Section, and such general duties as payroll administration, personnel management and procurement. It is also responsible for the Detention Unit for indictees being held during their trial and the Legal Aid program for indictees who can't pay for their own defence. It is headed by the Registrar, currently
Hans Holthuis of the
Netherlands (since
2001). His predecessors were
Dorothée de Sampayo Garrido-Nijgh of the Netherlands (
1995–2000) and
Theo van Boven of the Netherlands (February 1994 to December 1994).
The Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) is responsible for investigating crimes, gathering evidence and prosecuting indictees. It is headed by the Prosecutor,
Serge Brammertz. Previous Prosecutors have been
Ramón Escovar Salom of
Venezuela (
1993–
1994),
Richard Goldstone of
South Africa (1994–
1996) and
Louise Arbour of
Canada (1996–
1999) and
Carla Del Ponte of
Switzerland (1999–2007), who until
2003, simultaneously served as the Prosecutor of the
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda where she led the OTP since
1999.
Judges
There are 16 permanent judges and 12
ad litem judges who serve on the tribunal. They are elected to four-year terms by the UN General Assembly. They can be re-elected.
(As of March 2007):
List of judges provided on Organs of the Tribunal at: http://www.un.org/icty/glance-e/index.htm
The indictees ranged from common soldiers to generals and police commanders all the way to Prime Ministers.
Slobodan Milošević was the first sitting head of state indicted for war crimes. Other "high level" indictees included
Milan Babić, Croatian Serb prime minister of
Republika Srpska Krajina;
Ramush Haradinaj, Prime Minister of Kosovo;
Radovan Karadžić, Montenegrin former President of Republika Srpska; and
Ratko Mladić, Bosnian Serb army commander.
Haradinaj's trial began at The Hague on
March 5 2007 and the closing brief was given on 23rd of January 2008.
(External Link
)The final decision of the ICTY was expected in March 2008.
On 3rd of April 2008, ICTY issued a public notice of the Haradinaj verdict, in which he was acquitted of all charges.
(External Link)
Detention facilities
Those defendants on trial and those who were denied a provisional release are detained at a prison facility in
Scheveningen, located some 3 km by road from the courthouse. The indicted are housed in private cells which have a toilet, shower, radio, satellite TV and other comforts. They are allowed to phone family and friends daily and can have conjugal visits (Serb general Nebojsa Pavkovic became a father at the age of 59 as a result of one such visit). There is also a library, a gym and various rooms used for religious observances. The inmates are even allowed to cook for themselves. All of the inmates mix freely and are not segregated on the basis of nationality.
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