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1 Thursday, 29 September 2011
2 [Status Conference]
3 [Open session]
4 [The accused entered court]
5 --- Upon commencing at 3.29 p.m.
6 JUDGE MERON: Please be seated.
7 Registrar, would you please call the case.
8 THE REGISTRAR: Good afternoon, Your Honours.
9 This is case number IT-06-90-A, the Prosecutor versus
10 Ante Gotovina and Mladen Markac.
11 JUDGE MERON: Thank you.
12 I would like to begin by ensuring that the audio equipment is
13 working properly.
14 Mr. Gotovina, can you hear the proceedings in a language you
15 understand?
16 THE APPELLANT GOTOVINA: [Interpretation] Yes, I do. Thank you.
17 JUDGE MERON: Thank you, Mr. Gotovina. You may be seated.
18 Mr. Markac, can you hear the proceedings and understand -- in a
19 language?
20 THE APPELLANT MARKAC: [Interpretation] Yes, I do.
21 JUDGE MERON: Counsel for the Defence, please.
22 MR. KEHOE: Yes, Your Honour. Equipment is working well.
23 JUDGE MERON: Thank you, Mr. Kehoe.
24 Prosecution.
25 MS. BRADY: Yes, Your Honour. We can hear you.
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1 JUDGE MERON: Thank you, Ms. Brady.
2 Counsel for Mr. Markac.
3 MR. MIKULICIC: I can hear you perfectly, Your Honour.
4 JUDGE MERON: Could you introduce yourself for the record.
5 MR. MIKULICIC: On behalf of Mr. Markac Defence, Goran Mikulicic,
6 accompanied by my learned colleague Mr. Tomislav Kuzmanovic and our Case
7 Manager Vlado Rendulic.
8 JUDGE MERON: Thank you Mr. Mikulicic. Thank you, all.
9 MR. KEHOE: Your Honour, I neglected to introduce the rest of the
10 team for --
11 JUDGE MERON: By all means, please do it.
12 MR. KEHOE: My apologies. To my right is Luka Misetic and next
13 to him is Guenael Mettraux. Thank you.
14 JUDGE MERON: Thank you very much.
15 MS. BRADY: Your Honour, I also --
16 JUDGE MERON: Ms. Brady.
17 MS. BRADY: Yes, Your Honour, I also should introduce the rest of
18 my team.
19 With me today is Ms. Laurel Baig and our Case Manager
20 Ms. Lourdes Galicia. Thank you.
21 JUDGE MERON: Thank you, Ms. Brady.
22 As you are aware, Rule 65 bis (B) of the Rules of Procedure and
23 Evidence requires a Status Conference to be convened within 120 days
24 after the filing of a notice of appeal and, thereafter, within 120 days
25 after the last Status Conference for each appellant in the Tribunal's
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1 custody.
2 A Status Conference serves two prime purposes. First, it allows
3 the appellant an opportunity to express concerns relating to their appeal
4 or detention conditions. Second, it provides an opportunity to update
5 the appellants with respect to the status of their case. The Status
6 Conference is also an opportunity for the Tribunal to inquire about the
7 mental and physical condition of the detained persons.
8 In the present case, the notices of appeal were filed on 16
9 May 2011. Thus, this Status Conference is taking place after the
10 expiration of the 120-day period specified in Rule 65 bis (B). The
11 Status Conference was postponed until today at the request of the parties
12 in view of the case's briefing schedule. Today's Status Conference was
13 scheduled by the amended Scheduling Order issued on 1 September 2011.
14 I would like to begin this Status Conference by inquiring into
15 Mr. Gotovina's and Mr. Markac's health. If you wish, Mr. Gotovina, or
16 Mr. Markac, we can have this discussion in closed session. It's up to
17 you.
18 Could you indicate your preference.
19 THE APPELLANT GOTOVINA: [Interpretation] Your Honour, no, thank
20 you. It is all right as it is. Everything is fine.
21 JUDGE MERON: Thank you very much.
22 Mr. Markac, are you comfortable with an open court today?
23 THE APPELLANT MARKAC: [Interpretation] Yes, Your Honour.
24 JUDGE MERON: Thank you, Mr. Markac.
25 We will proceed accordingly.
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1 I will say something about the recent procedural history of this
2 case.
3 So let me turn to the update of the case.
4 The briefing has recently concluded with the filing of the reply
5 briefs by Mr. Gotovina and Mr. Markac on 27 September 2011. Currently,
6 there are two pending motions. On 7 September 2011, counsel for
7 Mr. Gotovina filed a renewed application for an order pursuant to
8 Rule 54 bis directing the government of the Republic of Serbia to produce
9 documents. The motion will be decided in due course.
10 I further note that on 12th September 2011, the Prosecution filed
11 a motion to strike Gotovina's abandoned grounds of appeal. This motion
12 also will be decided in due course.
13 At this point I would like to ask the parties whether they have
14 any other issues that they would like to raise at this time.
15 So for the Defence? The counsel of Mr. Gotovina.
16 MR. KEHOE: Nothing, Your Honour. Thank you.
17 JUDGE MERON: Thank you.
18 The counsel for Mr. Markac.
19 MR. MIKULICIC: Your Honour, we have no questions to raise up.
20 JUDGE MERON: Thank you very much.
21 The Prosecution?
22 MS. BRADY: Just two issues to raise, or really they're just
23 points that I wanted to mention.
24 I have spoken to Mr. Misetic about this matter. The Defence has
25 filed public redacted appeal briefs on the 2nd of August. We've written
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1 to the Defence, we've highlighted a few matters that we believe should be
2 redacted so as not to reveal confidential information. We -- we're still
3 in discussion about that. We're endeavoring at the moment to uplift the
4 confidentiality of a couple of Appeals Chamber decisions in other cases
5 which I think will be of assistance to the Defence in this regard. I'm
6 confident we can resolve the matter, but if not there may need to be a
7 motion filed either by ourselves or by the Defence.
8 JUDGE MERON: Well, I understand that so far the Defence has not
9 answered you definitively.
10 MS. BRADY: I think we have a different position on what should
11 be redacted on the basis of it being confidential. That's --
12 JUDGE MERON: Let's hope that the Defence and you can agree on
13 that. Of course, if there is disagreement parties are always entitled to
14 file a motion with the Court.
15 MS. BRADY: Yes.
16 And, Your Honours, just another point on the Defence replies,
17 which we received yesterday, we will just need a little bit more time to
18 review them and to consider our position about whether or not we need to
19 do anything further in relation to the replies. And I've also
20 foreshadowed with Mr. Misetic that we think that there may be a word -- a
21 problem with the word limit on the Gotovina reply brief. It seems on our
22 count to be somewhat over when consideration is taken of the annexes.
23 And we are considering that -- we are considering whether or not to file
24 a motion for clarification of that word count in their brief. And,
25 again, if we do bring this, it will be filed later today or tomorrow.
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1 JUDGE MERON: Thank you, Ms. Brady. If it is a matter -- if
2 there is a problem, you know the procedure. You will submit a motion.
3 MS. BRADY: Yeah. Thank you.
4 JUDGE MERON: Thank you, all. Since there appear to be no other
5 matters to be raised, I would thank the parties for their attendance, and
6 the lawyers, and the Prosecution. I call the proceedings to a close.
7 The Court will rise.
8 --- Whereupon the Status Conference adjourned at
9 3.40 p.m.
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