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I, Claude Jorda, President of 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 (hereinafter "the Tribunal");

NOTING the Motion for access to confidential information filed on 12 July 2000 by Counsel for the accused Momir Talic in case no. IT-99-36-PT, The Prosecutor v. Radoslav Brdjanin and Momir Talic;

NOTING the Decision on the Motion by Momir Talic for access to confidential documents rendered on 31 July 2000 by Trial Chamber II in which the pre-trial Judge invites the Registrar to transfer the Motion of Momir Talic to the President to deal with the variations sought to the protective measures ordered in the cases The Prosecutor v. Tadic and The Prosecutor v. Kovacevic in accordance with Rule 75(D) of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence (hereinafter "the Rules");

NOTING the Motion to join the Motion of Momir Talic for access to confidential documents filed on 16 August 2000 by Counsel for the accused Radoslav Brdjanin in case no. IT-99-36-PT, The Prosecutor v. Radoslav Brdjanin and Momir Talic;

NOTING the Decision on the Motion by Radoslav Brdjanin for access to confidential documents rendered by Trial Chamber II on 22 August 2000 in which the pre-trial Judge invites the Registrar to transfer the Motion of Radoslav Brdjanin to the President to deal with the variations sought to the protective measures ordered in The Prosecutor v. Tadic and The Prosecutor v. Kovacevic in accordance with Rule 75(D) of the Rules;

NOTING the Order on the Motions of Momir Talic and Radoslav Brdjanin for access to confidential information in the cases The Prosecutor v. Tadic and The Prosecutor v. Kovacevic rendered by the President on 11 September 2000 (hereinafter "the Order");

NOTING the Prosecution’s Motion for reconsideration of the Order issued by the President dated 11 September 2000 filed on 4 October in accordance with Rule 73(A) of the Rules;

NOTING the Response to the Prosecution’s Motion for reconsideration of the Order issued by the President of the Tribunal on 11 September 2000 filed by the Defence on 28 September 2000;

PURSUANT to Articles 20, 21 and 22 of the Statute and Rules 66, 68, 69, 73 and 75 of the Rules;

CONSIDERING that, first, the Prosecution contends that it was unable to have heard its arguments on access to all the exhibits and confidential transcripts in the cases The Prosecutor v. Tadic and The Prosecutor v. Kovacevic;

CONSIDERING that the Prosecution also submits that the "Order is vague as to the form in which the confidential transcripts and exhibits will be released to the Accused, Brdjanin and Talic" and "is unclear whether it applies to all of the proceedings related to Dusko Tadic and Milan Kovacevic, or only to the transcripts of the testimony of witnesses";

CONSIDERING that General Momir Talic’s Defence asserts that the Order "is precise and contains no ambiguity" and that it "clearly establishes the equality of arms between the Defence and the Prosecutor";

CONSIDERING that Defence Counsel also points out that the "documents requested S…C are still covered by the protective measures which the Trial Chamber in the cases concerned ordered for them and SthatC General Talic’s Defence is held to respect them";

CONSIDERING that the Prosecutor set out her arguments in her Response to the Motion for access to confidential information filed by Counsel for the accused Momir Talic dated 26 July 2000 and that it was not considered necessary to hear her further on the matter;

CONSIDERING, moreover, that, under the Order, the transcripts and exhibits relating to other cases tried before the Tribunal deriving from events which allegedly took place in the same region and at the same time as those in the present case could be of significant interest to the Defence;

CONSIDERING that the Order also provides that the protection of the witnesses must be assured and that as a result the same protective measures as those granted for the exhibits and confidential hearing transcripts relating to the cases The Prosecutor v. Tadic and The Prosecutor v. Kovacevic must mutatis mutandis be guaranteed;

CONSIDERING, however, that this does not mean that all the transcripts and exhibits must be disclosed in a redacted form, since Defence Counsel must respect all protective measures taken previously;

CONSIDERING that there is cause to state that the order concerns only the transcripts of the testimony of the witnesses who were called to testify in the trial The Prosecutor v. Tadic (IT-94-1-T) and The Prosecutor v. Kovacevic (IT-97-24-T) and the related exhibits;

CONSIDERING that there is cause to state also that the Prosecutor may request Trial Chamber II, the recipient of the witness testimony transcripts and the exhibits, to order additional protective measures such as the assignment of different pseudonyms and the prohibition against stating that a witness has already been heard by the Tribunal;

CONSIDERING that the Prosecutor provides no new ground justifying a reconsideration of the Order;

STATE that there is no cause to reconsider the Order, subject to the clarification set out above;

Done in French and English, the French version being authoritative.

Done this eleventh day of January 2001
At The Hague
The Netherlands

(signed)
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Claude Jorda
President