Page 29751
1 Tuesday, 6 November 2012
2 [Open session]
3 [The accused entered court]
4 [The witness takes the stand]
5 --- Upon commencing at 9.02 a.m.
6 JUDGE KWON: Good morning, everyone.
7 Mr. Karadzic, you have more questions for the remainder of your
8 re-examination?
9 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Just a couple short questions to
10 which the witness will be able to answer by yes or no.
11 JUDGE KWON: Now, I take it you have heard some advice from
12 Mr. Robinson, but it was totally inappropriate that you put several
13 statements to the witness yesterday. Please continue then.
14 WITNESS: MOMIR GARIC [Resumed]
15 [Witness answered through interpreter]
16 Re-examination by Mr. Karadzic: [Continued]
17 Q. [Interpretation] Mr. Garic, when it comes to the
18 Territorial Defence of Novo Sarajevo, was anything against the Law on
19 All People's Defence?
20 A. No, absolutely not.
21 Q. Thank you. And those who were organised into Territorial Defence
22 units during that time before the arrival of the army, did any of them
23 commit a crime that was covered up?
24 A. There were cases of crimes, but none were covered up. There were
25 subsequent court proceedings. For example, the chief of Novo Sarajevo
Page 29752
1 municipality was involved in a problem but there were proceedings after
2 that. Nothing was covered up, although there may have been crimes
3 committed.
4 Q. Thank you, Mr. Garic, for having to testify here in The Hague.
5 JUDGE KWON: Ms. Gustafson, you stated that you had one question
6 yesterday.
7 MS. GUSTAFSON: Yes. Just one question that arises from the
8 questions of the accused relating to the ethnic make-up of Novo Sarajevo.
9 If we could have 65 ter 00242F, please, which is an extract from the 1991
10 census.
11 Further cross-examination by Ms. Gustafson:
12 Q. Mr. Garic, yesterday in re-direct you were asked what is the
13 majority population --
14 A. I apologise, can you speak up? I can't hear the interpreter very
15 well.
16 Q. Is that better, Mr. Garic?
17 A. Yes, now it's okay.
18 Q. Yesterday you were asked what's the majority population in the
19 municipality of Novo Sarajevo, and you answered:
20 "In Novo Sarajevo, the population is mainly Serbian."
21 And you also stated that the majority were Serbs, over
22 50 per cent of them.
23 MS. GUSTAFSON: If we could go to page 10 of the English and
24 page 15 of the B/C/S in this document.
25 Q. Now, Mr. Garic, this is from the 1991 census, and if we could
Page 29753
1 zoom in on the middle of the page in B/C/S where it gives the breakdown
2 for Novo Sarajevo. Do you see the information there for Novo Sarajevo,
3 Mr. Garic, it's in the middle of the page? And it has information from
4 19 --
5 A. The letters are very small.
6 MS. GUSTAFSON: Could we make those figures for Novo Sarajevo
7 bigger.
8 Q. Mr. Garic -- there we go. That's better. There we go. Can you
9 see them now, Mr. Garic?
10 A. Yes, I can.
11 MS. GUSTAFSON: Is it possible to also scroll down so that the
12 table headings can be seen. I apologise. There we go.
13 Q. Now, we can see the ethnic breakdown for Novo Sarajevo in 1991.
14 The first column is "total," then it's "Croat, Muslim, Serb, Yugoslav,
15 and other." And we have numbers and percentages. And if we could go
16 back to the previous view. That's great. Thank you.
17 So we have 9.3 per cent Croat, 35.7 per cent Muslim,
18 34.6 per cent Serb, and then we have Yugoslavs and others. So contrary
19 to what you stated yesterday, Novo Sarajevo was not over 50 per cent
20 Serb; it was just under 35 per cent Serb, and, in fact, there were just
21 about the same number of Muslims as Serbs as well as a significant number
22 of Croats; right?
23 A. Well, judging from the table that we're looking at now, yes, yes.
24 However, it is my opinion that all those who declare themselves as
25 Yugoslavs, they are, as a matter of fact, Serbs. That's the way I see
Page 29754
1 it.
2 Q. Well, plenty of people in Sarajevo consider themselves to be
3 Yugoslavs of all -- people of all ethnicities; right?
4 A. That's right. However, most of them were Serbs. This is my
5 very, very deep belief. I believe that mostly the Serbs declare
6 themselves as Yugoslavs.
7 Q. Thank you.
8 MS. GUSTAFSON: Thank you, Your Honours.
9 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Can we establish the source of this
10 document? This is Croatia in 1995; right? Can we go back to the first
11 page where we can see that.
12 JUDGE KWON: I think that can be clarified by Ms. Gustafson.
13 MS. GUSTAFSON: This is an extract from the 1991 census.
14 Extracts from this document have been tendered throughout the trial. I
15 don't think that there's been any concerns as to the --
16 JUDGE KWON: But the e-court explains that it is -- it was
17 published in Zagreb in 1995. Can you see the -- could you confirm that?
18 MS. GUSTAFSON: It does, Your Honour. I'll have to look into
19 that. I can't comment on that at the moment.
20 JUDGE KWON: It's the Republic of Croatia, state bureau of
21 statistics, Zagreb, April 1995.
22 MS. GUSTAFSON: I see that, Your Honour. I'll look into it and
23 get back to the Court. If it could be marked for identification for the
24 moment.
25 JUDGE KWON: Mr. Robinson, do you object to the admission of this
Page 29755
1 document?
2 MR. ROBINSON: Other than verifying the provenance of it, no.
3 JUDGE KWON: It's written here it's Zagreb.
4 MR. ROBINSON: Well, it probably ought to be compared with the
5 official census to make sure that we're working with the correct numbers,
6 but short of that we don't have any objection.
7 [Trial Chamber confers]
8 JUDGE KWON: The Chamber will receive it.
9 THE REGISTRAR: As Exhibit P5964, Your Honours.
10 JUDGE KWON: Unless my colleagues have questions for you,
11 Mr. Garic, that concludes your evidence. Thank you for your coming to
12 The Hague. Now you're free to go.
13 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Thank you.
14 [The witness withdrew]
15 JUDGE KWON: Could the Chamber move into private session briefly.
16 [Private session]
17 (redacted)
18 (redacted)
19 (redacted)
20 (redacted)
21 (redacted)
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Page 29756
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Page 29757
1 (redacted)
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21 (redacted)
22 [Open session]
23 THE REGISTRAR: We're now in open session.
24 JUDGE KWON: Mr. Karadzic, in relation to the issue raised during
25 the private session, the Chamber will admit the cover page and the
Page 29758
1 relevant page, only those two pages.
2 That -- I think that's fine with the Prosecution as well,
3 Ms. Gustafson?
4 MS. GUSTAFSON: Yes, Your Honour, that's fine. And while I'm on
5 my feet I should also mention I communicated with Mr. Robinson. We would
6 like to tender the extracts from the witness's 2004 OTP interview that
7 were used in cross-examination --
8 JUDGE KWON: And could you identify the page numbers that were
9 dealt with.
10 MS. GUSTAFSON: Yes, it's pages -- well, page 1 for the
11 identifying information; pages 16 to 17 that were referenced at
12 transcript page 29733 through 29734; page 26, referenced at transcript
13 page 29650 through 29653; and page 54, referenced at transcript
14 page 29692 and 29693; and those extracts have been uploaded under
15 65 ter 24038.
16 JUDGE KWON: Did you not say to the effect that he dealt with his
17 nickname in pages 47 to 52 about his nickname Momo?
18 MS. GUSTAFSON: I don't --
19 JUDGE KWON: Could you check it and --
20 MS. GUSTAFSON: I'll check --
21 JUDGE KWON: That being the case, the Chamber is minded to
22 include those pages as well.
23 I take it there's no objection?
24 MR. ROBINSON: That's correct, Mr. President.
25 JUDGE KWON: We'll give a number for that.
Page 29759
1 THE REGISTRAR: Exhibit P5965, Your Honours.
2 JUDGE KWON: Is the next witness prepared, ready to come? Yes,
3 let's bring him in.
4 MR. GAYNOR: Mr. President, could I request the next witness be
5 given a warning pursuant to Rule 90(E).
6 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
7 [The witness entered court]
8 JUDGE KWON: Good morning, sir.
9 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Good morning.
10 JUDGE KWON: Could you take the solemn declaration.
11 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I solemnly declare that I will
12 speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
13 WITNESS: SLAVKO GENGO
14 [Witness answered through interpreter]
15 JUDGE KWON: Please take a seat and make yourself comfortable.
16 Yes, Mr. Karadzic.
17 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Excellencies. Good
18 morning to everybody.
19 Examination by Mr. Karadzic:
20 Q. [Interpretation] Good morning, Mr. --
21 JUDGE KWON: Before you proceed, Mr. Karadzic -- Mr. Gengo.
22 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Go ahead.
23 JUDGE KWON: Before you start giving evidence, I would like to
24 draw your attention to a particular Rule at the Tribunal. Under this
25 Rule, Rule 90(E), you may object to answering a question from the
Page 29760
1 Prosecution or the accused or even from the Chamber if you believe that
2 your answer will incriminate you. When I say "incriminate," I mean that
3 something you say may amount to an admission of your guilt for a criminal
4 offence or could provide evidence that you have committed an offence.
5 However, even if you think your answer will incriminate you and you do
6 not wish to answer the question, the Tribunal has the discretion to
7 oblige you to answer the question. But in such a case, the Tribunal will
8 make sure that your testimony compelled in such a way shall not be used
9 as evidence in other case against you for any offence other than false
10 testimony.
11 Do you understand what I have just told you, sir?
12 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes.
13 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
14 Yes, Mr. Karadzic.
15 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] My good morning applies to
16 everybody. Good morning to everybody. And I would like to call up
17 1D6033.
18 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
19 Q. While we're waiting, Mr. Gengo, what was your rank when you left
20 the army?
21 A. I was lieutenant-colonel.
22 Q. Thank you. Lieutenant-Colonel, sir, did you provide a statement
23 to the Defence team?
24 A. Yes, I did.
25 Q. Is this the statement, the one that is in front of you on the
Page 29761
1 screen?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. Was it read out to you and does it reflect your words correctly?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. If I were to put the same questions today to you in the
6 courtroom, would your answers be the same?
7 A. Yes, they would.
8 Q. Lieutenant-Colonel, sir, let us make breaks between questions and
9 answers because we speak the same language and if we do not break between
10 questions and answers the interpreters will not be able to interpret
11 properly.
12 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Your Excellencies, I would like to
13 tender this statement pursuant to Rule 92 ter. I would like to tender
14 the entire package with the statement.
15 JUDGE KWON: And I take it you are also tendering three
16 associated exhibits as well?
17 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Yes, Excellencies, the package is
18 an offer to be tendered into evidence.
19 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
20 Mr. Gaynor.
21 MR. GAYNOR: No objection, Mr. President.
22 JUDGE KWON: Very well. They will be all admitted.
23 Shall we give the number.
24 THE REGISTRAR: Yes, Your Honour. The statement
25 65 ter number 1D06033 will be Exhibit D2383, 65 ter number 1D10007 will
Page 29762
1 be Exhibit D2384, 65 ter number 1D10008 will be Exhibit D2385, and
2 65 ter number 1D10009 will be Exhibit D2386.
3 JUDGE KWON: On this occasion before I forget again,
4 Mr. Robinson, I emphasise again to write down the exact 65 ter number in
5 the future in order not -- for the witness -- the Chamber staff not to
6 waste time.
7 MR. ROBINSON: Yes. Very well, Mr. President. Thank you.
8 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
9 Yes, Mr. Karadzic, please continue.
10 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you. I would like to read
11 out a short summary of Lieutenant-Colonel Gengo's statement in English.
12 [In English] From 1979 to 1991 Slavko Gengo worked as a highly
13 skilled mechanic for the infantry weapons at the Lukavica barracks in
14 Sarajevo garrison. In 1991 he was transferred to the
15 216th Mountain Brigade in Han Pijesak and appointed commander of the
16 technical maintenance, weapons, and ammunition workshop. In
17 September 1992 he was transferred to the 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade
18 and appointed officer for technical supplies. From January 1994 to
19 February 1995 he was commander of the 7th Infantry Battalion of the
20 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade. From February 1995 until the end of the
21 war he performed logistical duties in the command of the
22 Sarajevo-Romanija Corps.
23 On February the 5th, 1994, day of Markale I incident, he was in
24 the command of the battalion in Hresa, 7 kilometres from Mrkovici. He
25 did not hear any launching activities -- launcher activities nor did
Page 29763
1 anyone report on that fact from his battalion. He was informed that an
2 inspection team would come to the VRS Main Staff, the
3 Sarajevo-Romanija Corps, and the brigade command, escorted by UNPROFOR.
4 The artillery pieces were not moved from their established firing
5 positions before, during, or after the incident at Markale Market.
6 Milorad Dzida informed Slavko Gengo about the content of the inspection
7 and presented his conclusion that everything was fine, based on
8 everything that had been seen. Several days later, during a UNPROFOR
9 regular visit, the French major in charge of the sector told Slavko Gengo
10 through an interpreter that the on-site finding indicated that the
11 7th Battalion had nothing to do with the incident at Markale.
12 He first heard about the Green Berets -- Mr. Gengo first heard
13 about the Green Berets in 1991 from the JNA commander of Muslim
14 ethnicity.
15 The objectives of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps units were
16 defensive actions. Fire was opened exclusively against the enemy's
17 combat positions and mostly as a response to their actions. Neither he
18 nor his unit had any intention to cause civilian casualties or terrorise
19 civilians who were under the control of the Muslim authorities. They
20 were informed about the basic provisions of international law of war and
21 humanitarian law through reports, orders, and the media. When required,
22 the higher levels of command would issue orders of various forms of bans
23 with the aim to respect international law standards.
24 On the contrary, civilians in the zone of responsibility felt
25 endangered. Since the area where they lived was under constant threat,
Page 29764
1 their decision and intention to defend themselves was strengthened. Most
2 members of the 7th Battalion were men who lived in the battalion's zone
3 of responsibility, local population. They had a deficit of professional
4 commanding officers.
5 The battalion had four 120-millimetre mortars, two at the firing
6 positions in Mrkovici and two at Gornje Biosko. They also had four
7 92 mortars, two on Debelo Brdo and two at Mrkovici.
8 The average distance of the Muslim and Serbian lines were around
9 100 metres. Almost all positions from the opposing Muslim units were in
10 settlements which were continuously inhabited by civilians. They
11 frequently informed the UNPROFOR about abuses regarding the deployment of
12 military targets, fire from civilian facilities, and cease-fire
13 violations. They also had information that enemy heavy artillery, that
14 means tanks, frequently fired from the direction of Kosevo and the tunnel
15 at Ciglane. This forced them, the Serbs, to return fire against it.
16 Occasionally, groups of snipers armed with sniper rifles and passive
17 scopes would come to the zone of responsibility of the opposing units.
18 They would fire during the night at this position and level -- and leave
19 the area. They would also fire at the passenger buses, civilian cars,
20 and everything else that travelled along the Vogosca-Hresa-Pale road.
21 Local Muslim population regularly protested against their stays, because
22 they knew that a response from the Serbian side could follow.
23 The VRS provided security for the Mostanica spring water-supply
24 line, made UNPROFOR's access possible, and that of the teams from
25 Sarajevo in order to do check and repair. Water-supply was never
Page 29765
1 deliberately switched off.
2 Everyone who left Sarajevo via the Serbian positions could
3 continue their journey as they wished. Conversely, he was aware that a
4 large number of Serbs that remained in the area of the town under the
5 control of the Muslim authorities were not allowed to leave the town.
6 [Interpretation] Your Honours, at this point in time, I don't
7 have any questions for this witness. I give the floor to my -- to
8 Mr. Gaynor.
9 JUDGE KWON: Yes, Mr. Gaynor.
10 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
11 Cross-examination by Mr. Gaynor:
12 Q. Good morning, Mr. Gengo. I'm here to ask you some questions on
13 behalf of the Prosecution. Now, Mr. Gengo, first of all, it's correct,
14 isn't it, that you met me and two of my colleagues in the presence of a
15 member of the Defence on the 16th of October, 2012?
16 A. Yes.
17 Q. You're aware that that interview was audio recorded?
18 A. Yes.
19 Q. Did you tell the truth in that interview?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. Now, turning to another preliminary matter. As Mr. Karadzic
22 said, your statement was taken by members of the Defence team. Could you
23 name the members of the Defence team who took your statement?
24 A. I don't know which period you have in mind.
25 Q. I'm referring to the statement that you confirmed a few minutes
Page 29766
1 ago which has been admitted before the Court. Could you confirm who took
2 the initial version of that statement?
3 A. Savcic, Milomir took the first statement from the Defence team.
4 Q. And anyone else involved in that initial interview?
5 A. No.
6 Q. Right. Now I'm going to move to a few of the things that we
7 discussed in our interview. First of all, the question of
8 communications. You said there were 650 men in your battalion; isn't
9 that right?
10 A. Over 800. There were 650 in the infantry companies. All the
11 others were for logistics support. There was a technical platoon, a
12 quartermaster platoon, medical security, medical support, rather.
13 Q. How many were in the communications section?
14 A. Fifteen men.
15 Q. Did you have communications with the Kosevo Battalion?
16 A. I did.
17 Q. Were they generally good, those communications?
18 A. Well, it functioned fairly well.
19 Q. Did you also have communications with the brigade command, the
20 corps command, with the 4th Mixed Artillery Regiment?
21 A. Yes, I did. With the 4th, with the brigade command, but not with
22 the corps. I was in touch with the brigade command. I was subordinated
23 to them and it wasn't necessary for me to communicate with the corps
24 command.
25 Q. Your communications with the brigade command and with the
Page 29767
1 4th Mixed Artillery Regiment were generally satisfactory; is that right?
2 A. They were satisfactory.
3 Q. The commander of the 4th Mixed Artillery Regiment was who?
4 A. Well, there were two regiments in the zone of responsibility, the
5 4th Mixed Regiment, there was Bartla Jovan and there was the 4th MAP, and
6 there was a certain Cvetkovic there whose name I don't know.
7 Q. Now in your battalion you had a mortar platoon; is that correct?
8 A. Yes.
9 Q. How many were in the mortar platoon?
10 A. It was a mortar platoon, 36 or 37 men. It depended. The number
11 changed. It wasn't always the same number. People would leave,
12 disappear, and so on and so forth.
13 Q. Did you control the firing of rounds by that mortar platoon?
14 A. They were subordinated to me. So the mortars could not be used
15 without my authorisation.
16 Q. And did you need to seek authorisation from anybody to order the
17 firing of mortars?
18 A. I had to seek authorisation from the superior command, the
19 brigade command.
20 Q. That was Colonel Lizdek?
21 A. Yes.
22 Q. Did Colonel Lizdek have to seek authority from anyone?
23 A. I don't know about that. That didn't fall within my remit.
24 Q. Well, I suggest that you told me in our interview that only with
25 the authorisation of General Galic first and later was from
Page 29768
1 General Milosevic could Lizdek approve the firing of a mortar round; is
2 that right?
3 A. General Galic wasn't the commander when I was the battalion
4 commander. Dragomir Milosevic was the commander.
5 Q. Is it true to say that the corps commander, the commander of the
6 Sarajevo-Romanija Corps, ultimately controlled the firing of mortar
7 rounds by your battalion?
8 A. Well, he was probably privy to this. The brigade commander
9 probably informed the corps commander. That's how the chain of command
10 worked.
11 Q. Now, did you exercise discipline over your battalion effectively?
12 A. Yes.
13 Q. Did the mortar crews ever fire without your approval?
14 A. No.
15 Q. Now, in paragraph 18 of your statement --
16 JUDGE KWON: Just a second, Mr. Gaynor. I wasn't clear about the
17 witness's answer about the 4th Mixed Regiment and 4th MAP. Could you ask
18 the -- could you tell us again what they are about.
19 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Does this concern me?
20 JUDGE KWON: Yes. When asked about the 4th
21 Mixed Artillery Regiment you answered to the effect that there were two
22 regiments, one is 4th Mixed Regiment, the other was 4th MAP, but it --
23 your answer wasn't clear so that's why I'm asking you again to tell us
24 about it.
25 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] In the zone of responsibility of
Page 29769
1 the 7th Battalion, there were -- there was the 4th MAP and the
2 4th Mixed Artillery Regiment, their units were deployed there.
3 Bartla Jovan was one of the commander. He was the command of the 4th
4 Mixed and the commander of the 4th MAP was Cvetkovic, Radislav, but I'm
5 not sure if that was his name. And some of the artillery was behind the
6 lines of the 7th Battalion.
7 JUDGE KWON: Probably you heard this but I don't remember at this
8 moment, but what does "MAP" mean?
9 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Mixed artillery regiment.
10 JUDGE KWON: Do you follow, Mr. Gaynor?
11 MR. GAYNOR: No, I share your confusion, Your Honour. The --
12 perhaps we can ask the witness to distinguish between the role of the
13 4th Mixed Artillery Regiment and the 4th MAP, which appears to be the
14 same thing.
15 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
16 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Well, they're two different units,
17 two different regiments.
18 JUDGE KWON: I leave it to you, Mr. Gaynor.
19 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you.
20 Q. Could you distinguish --
21 JUDGE BAIRD: Mr. Gaynor.
22 MR. GAYNOR: Yes, Your Honour.
23 JUDGE BAIRD: Before you go further, there is something I should
24 like to have clarified, a question you'd put to the witness.
25 General, it was put to you by Mr. Gaynor:
Page 29770
1 "I suggest to you that in our interview that only with the
2 authorisation of General Galic first and later General Milosevic could
3 Lizdek approve the firing of a mortar."
4 Now, your answer was:
5 "General Galic was not the commander when I was the battalion
6 commander. Dragomir Milosevic was the commander."
7 But could you answer the question for me, please?
8 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Could you please repeat that. What
9 answer would you like me to provide?
10 JUDGE BAIRD: Mr. Gaynor suggested to you that in your interview
11 with him only with the authorisation of General Galic first and later
12 Milosevic could Lizdek approve the firing of a mortar round. Do you
13 agree with that, that you said that?
14 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Well, I said that I believe that
15 that is the case.
16 JUDGE BAIRD: So that is the case? Did you hear me? Is that the
17 case?
18 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] No, could you interpret that?
19 JUDGE BAIRD: Mr. Gaynor, are you seeing the point I'm trying to
20 make?
21 MR. GAYNOR: Yes --
22 JUDGE BAIRD: Can I have that question answered, please.
23 MR. GAYNOR: Certainly, Your Honour.
24 Q. First of all, Witness, General Galic was the commander of the
25 Sarajevo-Romanija Corps during the period that you worked at the command
Page 29771
1 of the 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade, more or less; isn't that true
2 during --
3 A. Yes --
4 Q. Now --
5 A. -- correct.
6 Q. The successor to General Galic as commander of the
7 Sarajevo-Romanija Corps was General Dragomir Milosevic; is that correct?
8 A. Yes, yes.
9 Q. Now, we agreed that you could only authorise the firing of a
10 mortar with the approval of Lizdek; is that correct?
11 A. Yes.
12 Q. And Lizdek, in turn, could only authorise the firing of a mortar
13 with the approval of the commander of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps; is
14 that correct?
15 A. I assume that that is the case.
16 Q. Very well. Now, just going back to the earlier point about the
17 4th Mixed Artillery Regiment, you referred to the
18 4th Mixed Artillery Regiment and the 4th MAP. Again, could you clarify
19 if you can what the difference was in the role of those two units or
20 regiments?
21 A. Well, they differed in terms of the weapons that they had.
22 Q. Could you explain just a little more clearly what you mean by
23 that.
24 A. They differed in terms of the weapons they had.
25 Q. Mr. Gengo, could you clarify whether one regiment had heavier
Page 29772
1 weapons perhaps than another regiment. If they were both artillery
2 regiments, did they both have the same kinds of artillery? Did one have
3 heavier artillery? One have lighter artillery? Could you give
4 Their Honours some kind of indication what the difference was?
5 A. Well, the difference was that, for example, one of them had BOVs
6 and the other didn't. They had BOVs, and they had other types of weapons
7 that the other unit didn't have. I'm not an artillery man, so I'm not in
8 a position to know exactly what they had, what kind of weapons they had.
9 So as I said, they had BOVs or APCs.
10 Q. What is a BOV?
11 A. It's an armoured personnel carrier.
12 Q. Very well. Now, in your statement at paragraph 18 which is to be
13 found on page 5, you say:
14 "Heavy weapons against our lines were mostly used from the firing
15 positions from the sector of Kosevo below Grdonj and from the
16 Jajce barracks."
17 You recall that evidence?
18 A. Yes.
19 Q. Now, did you respond to fire coming from those locations?
20 A. Well, I responded to fire if they attacked. It depended on
21 whether they were attacking the road. I had a retaliate with
22 authorisation from my command. I had to fire on the firing position that
23 was obstructing the passage of vehicles from the town, from the
24 municipalities of Ilijas, Hadzici, Vogosca, and so on and so forth.
25 Q. Now, I'm returning to something that we discussed in our
Page 29773
1 interview. Can you confirm that when you were responding to fire coming
2 from the Kosevo area or the Jajce barracks area, that you would use
3 120-millimetre mortars to do so?
4 A. 120-millimetre mortars were used only when my positions were
5 attacked, so whether that was on the Mala Tvrdjava-Velika Tvrdjava axis
6 that's when I used 120-millimetres that were located at Mrkovici. That
7 was in front of the defence line Grdonj. 120-millimetre mortars that
8 were in the Biosko-Debelo Brdo sector were ones that I used when the
9 Faletici-Zecija Glava sectors were attacked. Those lines were lines
10 where mortars had been placed and they weren't used on any other axis.
11 The Jajce barracks was at that forward place on the Zmajevac hill or
12 Sedrenik. It's all in the same area.
13 Q. We'll confirm the location of the Jajce barracks in a moment.
14 Can you confirm that when you were responding to fire coming from the
15 Kosevo area and the Jajce barracks area, that you used 120-millimetre
16 mortars?
17 A. Yes.
18 Q. Now, in your statement at paragraph 13 and I think you've
19 confirmed it a moment ago, you said you had two 120-millimetre mortar
20 positions at Mrkovici and two 120-millimetre mortar positions at
21 Gornje Biosko; is that right?
22 A. That's one position, two mortars. That was a mistake.
23 Q. Well, it's in your statement. You had two 120-millimetre mortar
24 positions at Mrkovici; correct?
25 A. Yes.
Page 29774
1 Q. You had two more 120-millimetre mortar positions at
2 Gornje Biosko?
3 A. [No interpretation]
4 THE INTERPRETER: Could the witness please repeat his answer.
5 JUDGE KWON: I'm not sure to which question witness answered
6 "yes."
7 MR. GAYNOR: Yes.
8 Q. Mr. Witness, I won't interrupt. Just tell the Judges where the
9 four mortar positions were located.
10 A. Two mortars at Mrkovici, 120-millimetre mortars; two mortars in
11 sector of Donje Biosko-Debelo Brdo. That's the area.
12 Q. Now could we --
13 A. That's the same area.
14 MR. GAYNOR: Could we look, please, at D2385.
15 Q. What's coming up now, Mr. Gengo, is a map which you marked. And
16 at the end of paragraph 14 of your statement you said that you marked in
17 red circles the positions of the support hardware on this map. Now, in
18 paragraph 14 you described quite an array of support hardware. So I'd
19 like you to identify with the assistance of the usher those circles which
20 represent the 120-millimetre mortar positions at Mrkovici and the
21 120-millimetre mortar positions at Gornje Biosko. Perhaps we could zoom
22 in on the centre part of the screen, please.
23 JUDGE KWON: I'm afraid whether this is such a quality to be able
24 to zoom in.
25 MR. GAYNOR: I think if Your Honours can see the four red circles
Page 29775
1 towards the top of the map, if -- my intention was to get the witness to
2 identify which of those refer to the 120-millimetre mortar positions.
3 Q. Mr. Witness, with a pen could you simply put a circle around the
4 two locations you have described, the Mrkovici mortars and the
5 Gornje Biosko mortars.
6 A. Is that Mrkovici? Could we zoom in so that I can see a little
7 more clearly.
8 MR. GAYNOR: Sorry, Mr. Usher, would you mind zooming in on the
9 top part of this map for a moment, please.
10 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Can I? Mrkovici, Mrkovici is here.
11 This is Biosko.
12 MR. GAYNOR:
13 Q. Could you put an M next to Mrkovici and a B next to Biosko,
14 please.
15 A. [Marks]
16 Q. Now, could you sign and date that, please. Could you put your
17 signature and -- oh, it is, yes.
18 MR. GAYNOR: Could I tender that, please, Mr. President.
19 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
20 THE REGISTRAR: Exhibit P5966, Your Honours.
21 MR. GAYNOR:
22 Q. Now, Mr. Witness, you know where the Jajce barracks are, don't
23 you? You were there in 1991?
24 A. Yes.
25 Q. You'd be able to identify their position on a map or would you
Page 29776
1 like me to remind you of its location?
2 A. I wouldn't be able to. I can't see it very well. I know that it
3 is in the city on the slope of a hill. It's difficult.
4 MR. GAYNOR: Could I call up, please, P2193. It's P2193, please.
5 Now, in this map we can see on the far left the Kosevo area, to the
6 middle on the far left, and then I think that's fairly visible. If we
7 look down towards the bottom right towards a box marked with the English
8 word "legend," could we zoom in on the bottom right corner.
9 Q. Mr. Witness, do you see near where there's a bend in the river to
10 the left of the box marked "legend," there's a building with the figure
11 "103" marked in red. The building looks like a very large capital E. Do
12 you see it, Mr. Witness?
13 A. Yes.
14 Q. Can you confirm that is the Jajce barracks?
15 A. Yes.
16 Q. Thank you.
17 MR. GAYNOR: Mr. Registrar, we'll move now to a another map,
18 please, and that is -- first of all, we'll look at P1021.
19 Q. Now, Mr. Witness, this is a map showing confrontation lines and
20 VRS assets around the city of Sarajevo. Perhaps we can go in, blow up a
21 little bit towards the city of Sarajevo, please. That's perfect. Thank
22 you very much.
23 Now, Mr. Witness, you see the Cyrillic letters "SRK" marking the
24 area of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps. Do you see that?
25 A. I do.
Page 29777
1 Q. And to the east of that you see the Cyrillic letters "DK" marking
2 the area of the Drina Corps. Do you see that?
3 A. Yes.
4 Q. Now, your brigade's area of responsibility extended from the
5 north-eastern edge of the front line all the way towards the territory
6 held by the Drina Corps; is that right?
7 A. Yes, if we're talking about the brigade.
8 Q. Yes, your brigade. Now -- so your brigade had a front on the
9 edge of the city of Sarajevo and behind that it was free territory as far
10 as the Drina Corps, wasn't it?
11 A. Yes.
12 Q. Now, I'd like to take you to a blown-up version of that.
13 MR. GAYNOR: And could I ask the Registrar, please, for
14 65 ter 23919E, please.
15 Q. Just to confirm my earlier question where I said the expression
16 "free territory," we both understand that to mean territory controlled by
17 the Bosnian Serb army; isn't that right?
18 A. Yes.
19 Q. Now, in this map, if I can ask the Registrar to blow it up a
20 little, we see -- you'll see in a moment the areas of Kosevo and Grdonj.
21 If we can blow up the central part of the map, please. Are you able to
22 see the words "Kosevo" yet?
23 A. Yes.
24 Q. Now you also see the area where we identified the Jajce barracks
25 just above the bend in the river. Do you see that?
Page 29778
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. And do you see the word "Grdonj" on this map?
3 A. Yes, here.
4 Q. Just so it's clear for everyone, I'd like to ask the court usher,
5 please, to help you just to circle, if you will, the word "Kosevo,"
6 circle the word "Grdonj," and then identify the location of the
7 Jajce barracks.
8 A. Grdonj.
9 Q. Yes, please. Circle the word "Kosevo," please.
10 A. Kosevo is a wider area as a matter of fact. The term denotes a
11 wider area.
12 Q. Circle the area which you understand to mean the Kosevo area.
13 A. Well, no. I believe that this area below, that would be ... I
14 don't see the brick works Kobilja Glava, Pionirska Dom, all those things
15 are in the Kosevo sector. That also includes the Kosevo stadium. I
16 would say that it is this part here.
17 Q. Now, Mr. Gengo, the word "Kosevo" appears to lie outside the area
18 that you've just identified as the Kosevo area.
19 A. Well, this is an entire plateau. This is an entire
20 neighbourhood. I can't explain. Everything is in Kosevo, the hospital,
21 the stadium. Everything is there. Everything is comprised within that
22 name Kosevo. It's a wide plateau.
23 Q. All right. Well then identify clearly the boundaries of the area
24 that you consider to be the Kosevo area. You've just put a line there at
25 the moment. Could you just identify clearly the area that you consider
Page 29779
1 to be the Kosevo area.
2 A. Well, Kobilja Glava is somewhere around here. This would be it.
3 Q. All right. Put the letter K next to that area.
4 A. [Marks]
5 Q. Now I'd like you to identify with a dot the location of the
6 Jajce barracks. If I can remind you, we saw that it was just above a
7 bend in the river which I think is fairly visible on this map.
8 A. Well, this is it. This is where it is.
9 Q. Mr. Witness, you see where the river is, do you?
10 A. Here.
11 Q. Very well. Now, could you put J next to the dot you've
12 identified as the location of the Jajce barracks.
13 A. [Marks]
14 Q. Okay. Now could you sign and date that, please. And you can
15 sign it in the bottom right-hand corner, please, bottom right. Very
16 well.
17 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to tender that, please, Mr. President.
18 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
19 THE REGISTRAR: Exhibit P5967, Your Honours.
20 MR. GAYNOR:
21 Q. Now, Mr. Witness, I think we can agree that when you were firing
22 120-millimetre mortar unit -- mortar round, I should say, from the
23 Mrkovici area towards either the Kosevo area or the area of the
24 Jajce barracks, that you were firing at an area where there is likely to
25 be a substantial civilian population in that general area. Do you accept
Page 29780
1 that?
2 A. I accept that if we fired at the Jajce barracks. However, I told
3 you that we were firing at the forward post of the Jajce barracks which
4 was about a kilometre away from the location in the city.
5 Q. Well, in your statement, Mr. Gengo, at paragraph 18, you said:
6 "Heavy weapons against our lines were mostly used from the firing
7 positions from the sector of Kosevo below Grdonj and from the
8 Jajce barracks."
9 You did not there refer to the forward post of the
10 Jajce barracks.
11 A. Well, that was also the Jajce barracks, and part of those
12 barracks was the warehouse, Zmajevac, and that's how I responded when I
13 was asked about the Jajce barracks. I explained that the location was
14 not in the city but outside of the city. And all those were parts of the
15 one and the same Jajce barracks.
16 Q. Nevertheless, we can accept or we can agree, I think, that when
17 you were firing 120-millimetre mortar rounds from Mrkovici towards the
18 locations that you've identified, the distance travelled by those
19 projectiles would be of the range of 3 or 4 kilometres; is that right?
20 A. Yes.
21 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] May I correct the transcript,
22 please. In the previous answer it wasn't recorded that the witness said
23 that he had already explained the issue of Zmajevac during the interview.
24 That was not recorded.
25 JUDGE KWON: I don't follow. I leave it to you, Mr. Gaynor.
Page 29781
1 MR. GAYNOR: Yes, I wasn't able to understand the witness's
2 answer. I'll move on anyway.
3 Q. When you were approving the firing of 120-millimetre mortar
4 rounds into the urban part of Sarajevo or towards the areas that you've
5 identified in your evidence, what precautions did you take to minimise
6 the possibility of civilian casualties?
7 A. First of all, fire was never opened if it was not a response to
8 enemy attack. When we were under attack, I used 120- and 80-millimetre
9 mortars. I did not need to use them at any other time. So when we
10 opened fire it was in response to the enemy fire that had been opened at
11 us.
12 Q. And I think you've said in your statement that positions of the
13 Muslim unit opposed to you were in settlements which were continuously
14 inhabited by civilians also. Now, when you were responding to fire --
15 A. There were, Sedrenik settlement and some others, Vlasan Han
16 [phoen] was also settled, the slopes of Grdonj were also inhabited.
17 There were private houses there as well, family homes.
18 Q. So as a general matter, what precautions did you take to minimise
19 civilian casualties?
20 A. What could I do for the enemy side? The enemy side should have
21 done that. If they had opened fire from a settlement, they knew that we
22 would respond. So they should have taken measures in order to avoid
23 civilian casualties. I could not see whether there were any civilian
24 people around that firing position or not. All I did was to return fire
25 on the firing position from which fire had been opened on us.
Page 29782
1 Q. Is it your position that if the enemy side did not take measures
2 in order to avoid civilian casualties, that that was their problem and
3 you would fire anyway?
4 A. Of course, but of course. I could not see what they were doing
5 at a distance of 3 to 4 kilometres. How was I in a position to see what
6 they were doing over there?
7 Q. I'd like to move now, please, to paragraph 27 of your statement.
8 We're moving to sniping, Mr. Gengo. In paragraph 27 you said that the
9 opposing forces had sniper rifles and passive scopes and they would fire
10 at night. How did you know that the enemy's snipers were using passive
11 scopes?
12 A. I knew because on one occasion I had three casualties. Three of
13 my men were killed after having been hit in the head and in the area of
14 the eye. It is well-known that a sniper reacts to heat if they had IC
15 devices and all of my men were hit in those areas, in the head and eye
16 areas.
17 Q. You also say:
18 "They would fire against our positions and leave the area."
19 How did you know that they left the area after firing against
20 your positions during the night?
21 A. I knew because my men and men on the opposing side were
22 neighbours and they communicated to each other and they would say to each
23 other: Move away, we would use snipers. They were not happy because
24 they knew that sniper fire would be returned by the opposing side and the
25 location population was not happy and they were against those infiltrated
Page 29783
1 units because before that it was peaceful, there were no fires, and
2 fire -- fires opened, and they just disturbed the peace, they would just
3 infiltrate briefly, they would kill, and then they would return.
4 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] We have a problem with the
5 interpretation. It says here from lines 11 onwards, on line 13 it says
6 that local Muslims would tell them: Move away, we will open fire. And
7 the witness said that they informed the enemy, their neighbours, and they
8 told them: Move away, some people have come and they will open fire.
9 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] And you should be aware.
10 JUDGE KWON: Speak slowly when answering the question and I'll
11 leave it to you.
12 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
13 Q. Is it -- in your interview with me you told me that you found out
14 that they would leave the area after firing against your positions after
15 the war, that's when you found that out, isn't it?
16 A. Of course. They talked to each other. After the war I talked to
17 my people and I learned that that's how they had done things. They
18 talked to each other during the war. They were neighbours. They
19 exchanged opinions on various issues because they knew each other.
20 Q. Now I want to talk about the nature of the Serbian side's
21 response. You said in your statement:
22 "The Muslim local population regularly protested against their
23 stays because they knew the Serbian side's response would follow."
24 Can you clarify the nature of the Serbian side's response?
25 A. I can. For example, if they came closer to positions and if
Page 29784
1 opened fire on the road, if there was a mortar on one of the vehicles,
2 they would open fire. I had to neutralise such firing positions. I had
3 to open fire. And as soon as you fire from a 120- or 82-millimetre
4 mortar, you know that the target area is about 50 kilometres --
5 50 metres -- 50 square metres wide. So there was a danger that there
6 would be collateral damage and the civilian population protested.
7 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Not "kilometre."
8 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Square metres.
9 MR. GAYNOR:
10 Q. So is it right you retaliated against sniper fire using mortar
11 fire?
12 A. It depended on the area where it was, from where it opened fire.
13 It dictated the use of response weapons. Sometimes it would be a mortar.
14 Sometimes it was a 12.7 machine-gun. It all depended on the area from
15 which it was fired from. That dictated your choice of a weapons that
16 would be used to neutralise --
17 JUDGE KWON: Mr. Karadzic, please do not --
18 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Again there is a mistake in the
19 interpretation. The witness said if the position was in the forest -- I
20 apologise I have to ask the witness to slow down because very important.
21 Things are being omitted from the transcript.
22 JUDGE KWON: We do not know how much we are missing.
23 So could you repeat your answer from the part which said to the
24 effect, "It all depended on the area from which it was fired from."
25 Mr. Gengo, do you follow?
Page 29785
1 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes.
2 JUDGE KWON: So could you repeat your answer to the question
3 whether it is right that you retaliated against sniper fire using mortar
4 fire.
5 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes. If fire was opened from a
6 forest, from a thick forest in Borije, then I had to use mortars.
7 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President. I think we're noting a
8 clear pattern by the accused of raising interpretation questions when he
9 does not like the answer that the witness is giving. That's my personal
10 observation.
11 JUDGE KWON: Let's not go there. Could you take up the issue
12 from there.
13 MR. GAYNOR: Yes.
14 Q. Now, Mr. Witness, I want to put to you a few words that you said
15 in your interview with me when you were describing the nature of your
16 response with mortar projectiles. You said that the mortar explodes and
17 shrapnels have wider domain of causing injuries, so it was inevitable
18 that the civilians would get hurt as well. You recall that?
19 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Please.
20 JUDGE KWON: Yes, before the witness answers.
21 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes.
22 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Can we get a reference for that?
23 It would allow us to follow.
24 JUDGE KWON: That's fair enough.
25 MR. GAYNOR: Well, yes. It's in his interview which has the
Page 29786
1 65 ter number 24035.
2 JUDGE KWON: But for the record, line 11, page 35, the "yes" was
3 said by the witness, not by the accused.
4 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you. Now, unless we want to bring up the
5 witness's interview which the accused is free to do in re-direct, I
6 propose to move on.
7 Q. I would like to now ask you a few questions, Mr. Gengo, about a
8 location known as Spicasta Stijena. That -- you know this location?
9 A. Yes.
10 Q. The VRS held it throughout the 1992 to 1995 conflict; is that
11 correct?
12 A. Yes.
13 Q. Was there one evening, I believe, that it fell under ABiH control
14 for one evening; is that right?
15 A. Yes.
16 Q. And what month or year was that in?
17 A. In September. I believe that it was on the 18th of September.
18 Q. Of which year?
19 A. 1994.
20 Q. Now, apart from that evening it was under the control of the VRS
21 throughout the conflict; is that right?
22 A. Yes.
23 Q. Now, from Spicasta Stijena you had an excellent view of that part
24 of the city of Sarajevo?
25 A. Only the part known as Sedrenik.
Page 29787
1 Q. But it's certainly an excellent location to place, for example, a
2 sniper unit if you wanted to strike people in Sedrenik, isn't it?
3 A. No.
4 Q. Why do you say that?
5 A. Because my three trenches on Spicasta Stijena were under
6 cross-fire from the enemy, from Kresa on the right and from Borovo on the
7 left. They were always under cross-fire, and I had to dig those three
8 trenches on Spicasta Stijena and I -- I can show you how the men who
9 defended their part of the village approached those trenches. I could
10 not have the snipers there. I did not have them. They were not trained,
11 in any case. In any case, that part of Sedrenik is up to 1200 metres
12 away and the difference in altitude is about 1600 metres -- 2600 metres.
13 Spicasta Stijena is at 900 metres, Sedrenik is at 630 metres. It was
14 impossible to open fire under those conditions. It would have been
15 impossible even in peacetime, let alone under the conditions that we were
16 in during the war.
17 Q. We agree that Spicasta Stijena does have an excellent view of
18 Sedrenik, don't we?
19 A. Yes, there's a good view if it's not obstructed by someone.
20 Q. Now, in your statement at paragraph 35, you said:
21 "There were no trained sniper shooters in my battalion."
22 Now, I want to talk about the 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade. You
23 worked at the command of the 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade from
24 September 1992 until -- until January 1994?
25 A. Yes.
Page 29788
1 Q. You were in charge of technical supplies?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. You worked under General Lizdek?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. Did the brigade have sniper weapons?
6 A. Yes, as per establishment.
7 Q. About how many sniper weapons did it have?
8 A. Well, I don't know how many exactly, but it had M76
9 sniper rifles, JNA establishment rifles.
10 Q. Right.
11 MR. GAYNOR: We'll take this up after the break. Your Honour, we
12 can take a break now if Your Honours wish.
13 JUDGE KWON: Before we take a break, Mr. Gengo, I checked some
14 evidence we have about the organisation of the SRK, and I noted there are
15 two separate regiments with respect to artillery. One is the 4th MAP,
16 which is called mixed artillery regiment; and the other seems to be
17 4th mixed anti-tank artillery regiment which was abbreviated as MPO --
18 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] An artillery regiment, not an
19 anti-tank regiment.
20 JUDGE KWON: Which was abbreviated as MPOAP. Does it ring a
21 bell, Mr. Gengo?
22 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes, yes.
23 JUDGE KWON: Yes. Thank you.
24 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] A mixed anti-armour regiment, a
25 regiment.
Page 29789
1 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
2 We'll take a break for half an hour and resume at five past.
3 --- Recess taken at 10.34 a.m.
4 [The witness stands down]
5 --- On resuming at 11.06 a.m.
6 JUDGE KWON: The Chamber needs to rise at the end of today at
7 2.30, so we asked around with the staff and thanks to the kind
8 understanding we have decided to reduce the lunch break to half an hour
9 today. So we'll take a break from 12.30 to 1.00.
10 Yes, Mr. Robinson, I was told that you had something to raise.
11 MR. ROBINSON: Yes, Mr. President. You will recall that
12 Dr. Karadzic asked for a reference from Mr. Gaynor to portions of the
13 interview that the OTP had conducted with this witness and we never
14 actually received the page reference but we did receive the
15 65 ter number. But in looking through that interview it raises some
16 concerns that what Mr. Gaynor was putting to the witness is not
17 accurately reflected -- reflecting what was said in the interview. And I
18 point out, first of all, the question that Judge Baird came back to which
19 is at page 17 of the transcript on lines 22 and 25, about whether or not
20 Colonel Lizdek had to seek authority from anyone for approval. And on
21 line 22, Mr. Gaynor said:
22 "I suggest that you told me in our interview that only with the
23 authorisation of General Galic first and later from General Milosevic
24 could Lizdek approve the firing of a mortar round."
25 And when going back to the actual interview on page 9 the
Page 29790
1 question first was asked about through Colonel Lizdek you had to get
2 authorisation and he said yes. And then: Who was his immediate
3 superior? General Milosevic. And then Mr. Gaynor asked him: And
4 Milosevic himself could order the use of a mortar. And the answer from
5 Mr. Gengo was:
6 "I don't know. I'm really not familiar with that line of duty."
7 So we don't believe that Mr. Gaynor accurately put to the witness
8 what he had said earlier.
9 I have another point I want to make before I finish. And that is
10 during the examination Mr. Gaynor suggested to the witness that he had
11 not previously indicated in his statement that they were firing at the
12 forward feature of the Jajce barracks, that he had only said in his
13 statement that they were firing at the Jajce barracks. But in fact, on
14 page 25 of the interview, Mr. Gengo informed Mr. Gaynor that -- he said
15 that we were firing at the barracks Jajce, but that's forward feature,
16 that's not the Jajce barracks itself. And we believe that it's improper
17 for Mr. Gaynor to suggest to the witness that he had said something in
18 the past that was inconsistent with his current testimony when Mr. Gaynor
19 has in the very same interview information that the witness said
20 something totally consistent with his testimony.
21 So based on those two items we're concerned that the witness --
22 that things are being put to the witness unfairly, and we would like to
23 have in the future references from Mr. Gaynor if he's going to refer to
24 this interview.
25 JUDGE KWON: I think I understood your first point, but I'm not
Page 29791
1 sure about the second point you raised, Mr. Robinson. When Mr. Gaynor
2 referred to Mr. Gengo's statement did he refer to the 92 ter statement or
3 the interview?
4 MR. ROBINSON: He referred to the 92 ter statement, but yet --
5 knowing that the witness had said in the interview that they were firing
6 at the forward positions. So I think as an advocate when you -- if
7 you're trying to show that the witness has been mislead -- has been
8 saying something inconsistent, if you have another more recent consistent
9 statement, I don't think that it's proper to simply suggest that the
10 witness is lying now because he said something different earlier.
11 JUDGE KWON: I don't think Mr. Gaynor said Mr. Gengo was lying
12 not talking about a forward position in his 92 ter statement, but let's
13 move on.
14 Yes, do you have any observation in response?
15 MR. GAYNOR: Well, two observations. I'm slightly concerned that
16 Mr. Robinson has now mis-characterised the words of the interview. So we
17 can either have the page in question of my interview with Mr. Gengo
18 admitted in evidence or I can simply read out the relevant question and
19 answer so that Your Honours have a full picture of that. I can simply
20 read the questions and answers into the transcript right now if you wish.
21 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
22 MR. GAYNOR: All right. The --
23 JUDGE KWON: Or shall we --
24 MR. GAYNOR: Let's put that up.
25 JUDGE KWON: Put questions to the witness when the witness is
Page 29792
1 here.
2 MR. GAYNOR: Very well. We can do that, yes.
3 JUDGE KWON: What is your -- another observation?
4 MR. GAYNOR: Right, the second observation is this: My point was
5 that the witness in his statement referred to Jajce barracks. He then
6 showed up here, and in his interview with me he moved away from that and
7 he said, Well, I was talking about the forward --
8 JUDGE KWON: Let's not spend more time. I dealt with that
9 already.
10 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Your Honour.
11 JUDGE KWON: Let's bring in the witness. I overlapped again.
12 What I said, Let's not go there -- I already forgot, but I said I dealt
13 with it already.
14 MR. GAYNOR: Perhaps the Registrar -- thank you, Mr. President.
15 Perhaps the Registrar could bring up 65 ter 24035, page 9, and we'll
16 simply clarify the point with the witness.
17 [The witness takes the stand]
18 JUDGE KWON: Yes, Mr. Gaynor, please continue.
19 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Your Honour.
20 Q. Mr. Witness, I'm going to read to you a portion of an English
21 language transcript of my interview with you, and I'd like to give you
22 the opportunity to comment upon that if you have any comments to make.
23 Now, on the page which is in front of the other participants in the
24 courtroom at line 5 I said:
25 "Okay. Take, for example, if you wanted to fire a mortar. Could
Page 29793
1 you order the firing of the mortar? Or could the mortar crew order the
2 firing of the mortar or did you have to go through Colonel Lizdek?"
3 You responded:
4 "Through Colonel Lizdek because," there's an unintelligible word
5 then, "already the use of heavy weaponry and you had to get an
6 authorisation from your respective superior command, because later you
7 would have to justify the use of it."
8 My question:
9 "Okay. Now, was he authorised to approve the use of a mortar
10 himself or did he have to get authorisation from another level?"
11 Your response:
12 "I understand, as far as I know, he would have to go in depth,
13 meaning to ask from his superiors."
14 Answer -- sorry, excuse me, my question:
15 "And who was his immediate superior?"
16 Your answer:
17 "General Milosevic."
18 My question:
19 "And Milosevic himself could order the use of mortar?"
20 Your answer:
21 "I don't know. I'm not really familiar with that line of duty."
22 Now, Mr. Witness, we clarified earlier that General Milosevic was
23 the commander of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps; correct?
24 A. Yes.
25 Q. His predecessor was commander -- was General Galic; correct?
Page 29794
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. Would you like to make any clarifications whatsoever to the
3 portion of the transcript that I've read out?
4 A. Well, it's not necessary. This is how things worked. This is
5 how the chain of command functioned.
6 Q. Thank you.
7 JUDGE KWON: Let's continue.
8 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
9 Could I ask, please, for P5945.
10 Q. And we were talking about the question of sniper rifles within
11 the 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade. The document that's coming up is from
12 General Lizdek of the 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade. It's dated the
13 29th of October, 1993, and I think we can see from it that Lizdek notes
14 that his brigade has a total of 68 sniper rifles, 50 plus 14 plus 14. Do
15 you agree with that?
16 A. Yes, that's probably correct. I didn't verify this, but yes,
17 sniper rifles.
18 Q. And further down he says they had trained snipers from lower
19 units. If we can go further down the English language, please.
20 A. No.
21 Q. It's --
22 A. I didn't -- I didn't have any such things.
23 Q. In -- I accept your answer. In this document Lizdek says that
24 they had trained snipers from lower units. Now, we also see that the
25 sniper rifles in this document were 7.9-millimetre calibre and
Page 29795
1 7.62-millimetre calibre; isn't that right?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. Now, were you involved in securing the delivery of large
4 quantities of 7.62-millimetre rifles and ammunition from the VJ to the
5 VRS in 1995?
6 A. Well, requests were certainly made to the technical and
7 maintenance system. I can't remember what sort of requests. And then
8 items were sent back. I can't remember the exact number, but this was an
9 issue that was dealt with.
10 Q. Can we call up, please, P1279. This is a communication from
11 General Dragomir Milosevic to the VRS Main Staff dated the
12 10th of July, 1995. Do you see in this document - perhaps it can be
13 enlarged for you if necessary - that it seeks --
14 A. I can see it.
15 Q. And it seeks the delivery of over 600, 7.62-millimetre rifles?
16 A. I see that.
17 Q. They're clearly spelled out in the document itself. It also
18 seeks the delivery of 378.000 bullets for 7.62-millimetre automatic
19 rifles.
20 MR. GAYNOR: If we can move down the English, please.
21 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I see that.
22 MR. GAYNOR:
23 Q. Fine. I'll move on now to the Mostanica spring. You say in your
24 statement at paragraph 29 -- sorry, just returning to that document, you
25 do confirm, therefore, that you personally were involved in facilitating
Page 29796
1 the supply from the VJ to the VRS of very large quantities of ammunition
2 for 7.62-millimetre rifles; you accept that?
3 A. Yes.
4 Q. Thank you. We'll turn now to paragraph 29 of your statement and
5 there you refer to the Mostanica spring which you say was located in your
6 battalion's zone of responsibility. Could we clarify whether you are
7 referring to the Moscanica spring?
8 A. Yes, it's behind Moscanica and it is from there that part of the
9 town of Sarajevo is supplied.
10 Q. Now, you say:
11 "The VRS provided security for this water-supply line, made
12 UNPROFOR's access possible, and that of the teams from Sarajevo in order
13 to do checks and repairs and the water was never deliberately switched
14 off."
15 Now, that observation does not apply to the entirety of the
16 conflict, does it?
17 A. I was talking about the period during which the battalion was
18 under my command, about the period during which this was my
19 responsibility.
20 Q. Do you accept that the Serb side did, in fact, deliberately
21 switch off water-supplies from the Moscanica spring during the conflict?
22 A. I'm not aware of that.
23 MR. GAYNOR: Can I ask the Registrar, please, for 65 ter 1D02137.
24 Q. This document, Mr. Gengo, is only available in English so I will
25 read to you the relevant paragraph. It's an UNPROFOR document dating
Page 29797
1 from October 1993. If we can go, please, to page 3 in the English, and
2 there are a number of paragraphs marked by asterisks at the second half
3 of this document. And if we look at the bottom of the page, the
4 penultimate paragraph says:
5 "WHO experts suggest that the biggest humanitarian problem facing
6 Sarajevo at the moment may be water. Recent shelling has cut the
7 electricity to the Bacevo pumping station and has further disrupted the
8 water distribution system. In addition, the Serbs have now cut off water
9 coming from Moscanica, the small back-up system the city used to use when
10 Bacevo was not functioning. The amount of available water in Sarajevo
11 has consequently shrunk considerably. The incidence of Hepatitis A in
12 the city is increasing. An epidemic is possible."
13 Do you accept that on the basis of this document alone it appears
14 that the Serb side did cut off water coming from Moscanica?
15 A. I'm not aware of that. The water-supply wasn't cut off in my
16 time. Things functioned normally. So I don't know.
17 MR. GAYNOR: Now, I'd like to tender that document unless there's
18 an objection.
19 MR. ROBINSON: Yes, Mr. President, we do object. The witness
20 hasn't confirmed anything.
21 MR. GAYNOR: I think we're back at the understanding I thought we
22 had reached with the Defence where if the document sufficiently
23 contradicts the witness's evidence, it is admissible on that basis.
24 MR. ROBINSON: Yes, and I understand that, Mr. President, but
25 since the witness indicated that during -- it wasn't during his time,
Page 29798
1 then I don't think it directly contradicts and doesn't fall into this
2 category.
3 MR. GAYNOR: Well it's ...
4 [Trial Chamber confers].
5 JUDGE KWON: I think you have another opportunity to tender this
6 document.
7 MR. GAYNOR: Very well, Mr. President. Thank you.
8 Q. Now to orient everyone, the rest of the cross-examination will
9 concern the Markale incident of the 5th of February, 1994. I want to
10 start with the background to that incident --
11 JUDGE KWON: Before that, can I ask one question --
12 MR. GAYNOR: Yes.
13 JUDGE KWON: -- to Mr. Gengo. I take it you've been staying in
14 The Hague for a long time?
15 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes.
16 JUDGE KWON: My question was whether by any chance you followed
17 the testimony of Mr. Dzida?
18 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] No, I was in Sarajevo at the time.
19 JUDGE KWON: Yes, Mr. Robinson.
20 MR. ROBINSON: Yes, Mr. President. If I can just clarify that he
21 did have to return to Sarajevo. He just came in on Sunday night. He was
22 here for the first week and not called and then he went back home, so he
23 wasn't actually in The Hague during Mr. Dzida's testimony.
24 JUDGE KWON: And from Sarajevo you didn't hear the testimony of
25 Mr. Dzida?
Page 29799
1 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] No, I didn't.
2 JUDGE KWON: Yes, Mr. Gaynor, please continue.
3 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
4 Q. Paragraph 33 which is on page 10 of your statement, you say:
5 "There have never been plans to move our lines forward. It was
6 the Muslims who kept attacking our positions. Their increased artillery
7 activity had been notices since early 1994, usually followed by constant
8 infantry attacks."
9 Do I understand it that in the period the weeks preceding the
10 5th of February, 1994, there were no plans by the SRK to undertake
11 offensive operations in the Sarajevo area?
12 A. No, there were never such plans.
13 Q. And is it your evidence that there was no direction to your
14 brigade in particular to undertake any offensive operations against the
15 urban part of Sarajevo in the period before 5th of February, 1994.
16 A. No.
17 MR. GAYNOR: Could I call up, please, 65 ter 15575.
18 Q. The document that's coming up, Mr. Gengo, is an order from
19 General Galic dated the 26th of January, 1994. We can agree I think that
20 this is about ten days before the shelling of the market-place; correct?
21 A. Yes.
22 Q. If we could turn, please, to page 6 in English and page 4 of the
23 original. At the end of section 2 there is a reference to:
24 "Continue with offensive activities and liberate the Serb part of
25 the city of Sarajevo."
Page 29800
1 Do you see that?
2 A. I do.
3 Q. I'd like to take you to two -- well, first of all, can I ask you:
4 Is that consistent with your assertion that there were no plans for any
5 offensive operations at this time?
6 A. When it comes to my battalion, I never had such an order. There
7 were never offensive activities planned. I was never involved in any
8 such thing. My only duty and all I did was to defend my positions.
9 Q. I'll take you to two other parts of this document. If we can go
10 now, please, to page 8 in English which is page 6 in B/C/S. This part
11 arises, I think, in a part of the document headed "decision of the
12 commander." And if we look halfway down in English and in the third
13 paragraph in the original, Mr. Gengo, it reads, I quote:
14 "Further in the operation by holding the MOS in Sarajevo firmly
15 encircled, inflicting casualties, preventing supplies from arriving, and
16 preventing evacuations, using all means to exasperate them and with
17 offensive activities along the following axes:
18 Lukavica-Vojkovici-Hrasnica-Ilidza and Hadzici-Tarcin-Ivan Sedlo ..." and
19 the order carries on.
20 Now, that, I put it to you, is also inconsistent with your
21 statement that there were no plans for any offensive actions.
22 A. In the area of responsibility of my battalion there were no such
23 things and that transpires from this paragraph and I was not responsible
24 for any other zone.
25 Q. Right. Let's move -- you were at this time -- your battalion was
Page 29801
1 in the 1st Rpbr, wasn't it?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. And that is the 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade, isn't it?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. And you've confirmed earlier in your evidence that you had
6 satisfactory communications from your battalion to that brigade?
7 A. Yes.
8 Q. Could we turn now to page 9 in English and page 7 in B/C/S --
9 sorry, make that page 10 in English. I'm looking at the start of
10 paragraph 5.2 which is halfway down in B/C/S and towards the top of the
11 page in English. Now, the 1st Rpbr is the 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade,
12 isn't it?
13 A. Yes.
14 Q. You've already confirmed that your battalion was in that infantry
15 brigade. I want to draw your attention to --
16 A. Yes.
17 Q. I would like to draw your attention to five lines down in the
18 English version and the fourth line in the B/C/S version, and in
19 particular I'd like you to consider the words:
20 "... put the Muslim forces under control in the urban part of
21 Sarajevo ..."
22 Do you see those words?
23 A. Please repeat.
24 JUDGE KWON: Let the witness to read out the first paragraph.
25 MR. GAYNOR: Yes. Thank you, Mr. President.
Page 29802
1 Q. Could you read out the first paragraph after -- in paragraph 5.2.
2 Perhaps you can read it out loud, Mr. Witness.
3 A. Well, I understand this. I'm clearly on this. However, I did
4 not participate in that. My only task was to hold my positions reached
5 and that was it. There was nothing else to that on my part.
6 Q. But do you accept that according to this document there was a
7 plan ten days before the shelling of the market-place and that plan
8 envisaged that your brigade should put the Muslim forces under control in
9 the urban part of Sarajevo; do you accept that?
10 A. I did not have that document. I did not have this order.
11 Q. I accept that you didn't have this order according to your
12 evidence, but do you accept that is what is envisaged by this order?
13 A. I can read that.
14 MR. GAYNOR: Mr. President, I'd like to tender this document.
15 MR. ROBINSON: No objection, Mr. President.
16 JUDGE KWON: Yes, this will be admitted.
17 THE REGISTRAR: As Exhibit P5968, Your Honours.
18 MR. GAYNOR:
19 Q. Now, Mr. Witness, I'd like to turn now to the question of the
20 mixed UNPROFOR/VRS commission, which you describe at paragraph 32 of your
21 statement, and this - so everyone is aware - will take a fair portion of
22 time. First of all, can you tell us when you first heard about the
23 shelling of the market-place on the 5th of February, 1994?
24 A. I heard the information on the radio that same evening, that a
25 shell had fallen on the market-place, that there had been casualties. I
Page 29803
1 heard it on Sarajevo radio.
2 Q. Did you also see images on television?
3 A. I did too.
4 Q. Where were you when you saw those -- that footage on the
5 television?
6 A. I was at the battalion command on Hresevo.
7 Q. What station was it on, what television channel?
8 A. BH.
9 Q. What was your immediate reaction to the incident?
10 A. It looked ugly, but I could tell that it had been staged.
11 Q. You could tell by looking at the television footage that it had
12 been staged; is that your evidence?
13 A. Well, from what I could observe, the bodies, and some other
14 details that could be seen in the market-place, I could conclude that
15 everything had been prepared in advance.
16 Q. Was Dzida at the battalion command with you while you were
17 watching that broadcast?
18 A. I don't remember, but I don't think so.
19 Q. Now, you said in your statement that on the following day the
20 mixed commission arrived, but you first heard -- let's go back to
21 paragraph 32 at the start. You were informed on the 5th of February
22 itself by the command of the 1st Romanija Motorised Brigade via the duty
23 battalion that an inspection team would come to the zone of
24 responsibility of your battalion. That was on the 5th of February, 1994;
25 is that right?
Page 29804
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. Now, when did you tell Dzida about the arrival of this
3 inspection?
4 A. I told him immediately and I told him to be ready to go with them
5 when they came. They arrived around 10.00 in two vehicles, one of them
6 belonging to UNPROFOR, the other to the Main Staff, and I sent him to go
7 with them, to take them where they wanted to go.
8 Q. Can we clarify, did you tell Dzida about the commission on the
9 5th or the 6th of February, 1994?
10 A. I watched the TV on the 5th, and on the 6th the commission came
11 around 10.00 on that same morning. On the 6th I told him to get ready to
12 go with them.
13 Q. Now, you say in your statement that the commission requested a
14 person from the battalion command who would take them to Mrkovici sector
15 and the firing position of the 120-millimetre mortar which was suspected
16 of being the weapon which fired the grenade at the Markale market. First
17 of all, can we clarify as a matter of linguistics that the word you used
18 for "grenade," do you mean --
19 A. I mean a shell, a grenade. It's all the same.
20 Q. Is it correct that the word you used refers to a mortar round,
21 the word "grenata" in this context means mortar round; isn't that right?
22 A. Well, yes, yes, of course, of course.
23 Q. Now, you must have been deeply concerned when you heard the
24 suggestion that a mortar unit under your command might have been
25 responsible for what many believe to have been a massacre at the
Page 29805
1 Markale market-place on the 5th of February?
2 A. Please repeat.
3 Q. Yes. You must have been deeply concerned when you heard the
4 suggestion that a mortar unit under your command might have been
5 responsible for what many believe to have been a massacre at the
6 Markale market-place on the 5th of February?
7 A. Of course. It was not like it was -- I was indifferent to it.
8 But I know that it had not happened, so I was relieved in a way.
9 Q. You must have been determined to make it absolutely clear that no
10 mortar unit acting under your command was involved in this incident?
11 A. I claim with full responsibility that it didn't.
12 Q. My question was about your frame of mind at the time. Can you
13 confirm that you felt strongly that it should be shown that no mortar
14 unit under your command was responsible for this incident?
15 A. Of course it was not involved. I was relieved because I knew
16 that it hadn't been involved. I knew it then, I know it now, and I stand
17 by that.
18 Q. So you knew even before the commission had set off that no mortar
19 unit under your command was involved; is that your evidence?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. Can you name the members of the commission, first of all on the
22 UNPROFOR side. Which UNPROFOR representatives arrived at your battalion
23 headquarters?
24 A. I wouldn't know. I only know who the representative of the
25 brigade was. He was always in charge of UNPROFOR. He was warrant
Page 29806
1 officer Jakovljevic. I know that he was with them. He got out of the
2 vehicle. He greeted me. Dzida got into the car. They went to the
3 scene. They spent about three hours there, and Major Dzida briefed me.
4 He gave me his feedback and that was that the commission had measured the
5 distances, that it had established the -- controlling the mortars, that
6 no fire had been opened from our positions. They had gone through all
7 the motions. They had done whatever they had to do and that's what they
8 established.
9 Q. How many UNPROFOR representatives were in this commission?
10 A. I wouldn't know. They were in the vehicle, they never got out of
11 the vehicle, and I never counted them.
12 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] I have to intervene on the
13 transcript. The witness said that they also uncovered the mortars, and
14 that was not recorded.
15 MR. GAYNOR:
16 Q. Now, Mr. Witness, it's your evidence that no member of this
17 UNPROFOR team got out of the vehicle when they arrived at your battalion
18 command; is that right?
19 A. The vehicles arrived and nobody got out of them.
20 Q. You don't remember by any chance the nationality of any UNPROFOR
21 member of this team?
22 A. No, how should I remember them? They never got out of the car.
23 I never saw them. I don't know who they were.
24 Q. And just for clarity, you don't know the first name nor the
25 surname of any member of the UNPROFOR contingent?
Page 29807
1 A. You mean of those who came on that day? I don't remember any of
2 them.
3 Q. Could you name the members -- you've given us one name,
4 Jakovljevic. Could you name the other members of this mixed commission
5 on the VRS side.
6 A. Nobody but Jakovljevic got out. I saw him. I did not see -- I
7 did not see any others. I didn't inspect their IDs. The commission had
8 been set up by the Main Staff and it was not up to me to check who they
9 were.
10 Q. You decided not to go with the commission yourself. You sent
11 Dzida instead; isn't that right?
12 A. He was always in charge of that part. Whenever the observers
13 came, he would escort them to wherever they wanted to go. That was his
14 regular duty. That was part of his job.
15 Q. Now, Lizdek didn't go with the commission either, did he?
16 A. No, just his representative went. I don't know who he was.
17 Q. Now, when the commission came back to you having conducted this
18 inspection, what did Dzida tell you?
19 A. He told me that it had been established that no fire had been
20 opened from our mortars, the mortars were there, they had never been
21 moved, and everything was found to be in order there.
22 Q. This was extremely important information, wasn't it?
23 A. Well, of course, yes, it was. Indeed.
24 Q. No doubt you asked Dzida to put it in writing in a report
25 addressed to you?
Page 29808
1 A. Of course he wrote a report, and that report was sent to the
2 brigade command and I suppose that the brigade's representative drafted a
3 report on his part.
4 Q. Did you receive a copy of Dzida's report?
5 A. I did.
6 Q. And did you keep it safely?
7 A. Together with the rest of the battalion documents.
8 Q. Now, did you take steps yourself to make sure that the brigade
9 command and indeed the corps command were fully aware of the outcome of
10 this inspection?
11 A. Sir, there were representatives of a higher instance there and
12 they were the ones who report to the brigade command, the corps command,
13 the Main Staff. They were higher-ranking officers who were appointed to
14 that commission, and it would have been out of order for me to teach them
15 how to proceed on those matters.
16 Q. Now, apart from the report drafted by Dzida that you referred to,
17 did Jakovljevic draft a separate report?
18 A. I suppose he did to the 1st Romanija Brigade, to those who had
19 sent him there.
20 Q. Did anyone from this mixed commission provide you with
21 photographs or videos or sketches of the scene; that is to say the
22 location at Mrkovici where --
23 A. No. No, no.
24 Q. Now, I'll -- I'm going to bring up a series of documents and
25 we're going to look for reference to this inspection on the
Page 29809
1 6th of February, 1994, and the documents will start on the 5th and then
2 will go on. So I'd like to call up, please, 65 ter number 23901. This
3 is a regular combat report to the SRK command of the
4 5th of February, 1994. The top of page 2 in English, please. And in the
5 middle of -- sorry, at the bottom of page 1 in B/C/S we see the words:
6 "First UNPROFOR reports on an alleged massacre are that the
7 possible axis of attack was from the 1st Kosevo Infantry Brigade's
8 direction."
9 It straddles pages 1 and 2 in the English. Do you see that,
10 Mr. Gengo?
11 A. Yes, yes.
12 Q. So first of all clarify one thing for the Court, please.
13 According to this document, the allegation is that the attack was from
14 the 1st Kosevo Infantry Brigade's direction. That's not your brigade, is
15 it?
16 A. No. The Kosevo Battalion was down there under the 3rd
17 Sarajevo Brigade, not the brigade.
18 Q. Now, are you aware of any inspection of mortars operated by the
19 1st Kosevo Infantry Brigade?
20 A. I don't. I don't know.
21 Q. Now, this document -- take your time to inspect it if you like.
22 But there's no reference to any intended visit by a mixed commission.
23 A. On the 5th? What is the date of this document, please?
24 Q. This document is the 5th of February. There's no reference in
25 this. My point is this --
Page 29810
1 A. The commission arrived on the 6th, not on the 5th, and in -- on
2 the 6th, in the morning, I was informed that they would be arriving.
3 Q. Very well. But there's certainly no reference to any intended
4 visit by a commission in this document, is there?
5 A. How could they have planned it if they didn't? I was only
6 informed that they would be arriving and that I should provide somebody
7 to escort them and it was the Main Staff and UNPROFOR who had planned
8 that inspection.
9 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to tender that document, Mr. President.
10 MR. ROBINSON: No objection.
11 JUDGE KWON: Yes, this will be admitted.
12 THE REGISTRAR: As Exhibit P5969, Your Honours.
13 MR. GAYNOR: I'd now like to call up, please, 65 ter 23884. This
14 is an order from General Galic to all SRK units dated the
15 5th of February, 1994.
16 Q. This is -- this document is a ban on fire against the urban part
17 of Sarajevo according to its header, and I will -- you can see from the
18 opening paragraph he says that:
19 "Despite explicit orders, certain units, individuals, and
20 artillery weapons crews have arbitrary and without approval been opening
21 fire on urban parts of Sarajevo without need, instances of which have no
22 effect."
23 The paragraph after that he refers to the fact that Sarajevo was
24 the focus of media and world attention and then he gives an order. And
25 in that order he strictly forbids the opening of fire towards the urban
Page 29811
1 part of Sarajevo without a special order of the corps commander except in
2 the event of our positions being jeopardised and the lives of the
3 combatants being threatened. Now, do you agree that this is an order to
4 stop the offensive firing of weapons into the urban part of Sarajevo
5 unless otherwise instructed?
6 A. Yes. Orders frequently came instructing us to honour
7 cease-fires, not to open fire. This was not the first order of that
8 kind. It was constantly pressed upon us to respect cease-fires.
9 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to tender that document, Mr. President.
10 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
11 MR. ROBINSON: No objection.
12 JUDGE KWON: Exhibit P5970.
13 MR. GAYNOR:
14 Q. Now, I'd like to draw your attention briefly to two documents
15 from Milovanovic in which he does raise the possibility of a
16 Joint Commission. So can we please bring up D2182. This is an order
17 from Milovanovic calling for the establishment of a Joint Commission.
18 Now, in the third paragraph we're looking there at an UNMO translation.
19 In the third paragraph down which is paragraph number 2, it says:
20 "The work of the mixed expert artillery commission has to be
21 documented (TV camera, photo shot, sketch, scheme, and so on) with all
22 the necessary facts and figures."
23 So I think there -- we can agree that there was an intention to
24 establish a Joint Commission; isn't that right, Mr. Gengo?
25 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Can we have the date for this
Page 29812
1 document.
2 JUDGE KWON: First let's show the second page to the witness.
3 This is a letter of General Milovanovic written in English to the
4 UNPROFOR. And then shall we show the first page. On top of the page it
5 is written that it is 5th of February and 3.30 on 6th -- 4.30, something
6 to that effect. Yeah, date seems to be 5th of February, 4.30 in the
7 afternoon.
8 Yes, Mr. Gaynor.
9 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
10 Q. So it seems from this document that Milovanovic did hold an
11 intention to form a Joint Commission. Can we agree on that, Mr. Gengo?
12 A. Yes, yes. Based on this document I suppose so.
13 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Why doesn't the witness have a
14 Serbian version? Because in the text it says the 5th of January;
15 however, it is clear that this was drafted on the 5th of February. It
16 would be good for the witness to be provided with a Serbian version which
17 is also the original of this document. There must be one in place. I'm
18 sure there is.
19 JUDGE KWON: If you have, you can put it to the witness.
20 Let's continue, Mr. Gaynor.
21 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you.
22 Q. Now, you've already confirmed, but I'd like you to re-confirm,
23 that you never saw, Mr. Gengo, any television footage, any photos,
24 sketches, or plans from the Joint Commission that you observed, did you?
25 A. Yes, I never did. Only on television.
Page 29813
1 MR. GAYNOR: I'd now like to call up, please, D2183.
2 JUDGE KWON: Before we go further.
3 Mr. Karadzic, it is you that tendered the previous document, and
4 here you are asking for the B/C/S version. I think it's quite
5 inappropriate intervention.
6 Let's continue.
7 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
8 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Well, we uploaded the document in
9 the Serbian language.
10 JUDGE KWON: Unfortunately, no, I couldn't see it in B/C/S in the
11 e-court.
12 Let's continue.
13 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you.
14 Q. Now, on the left we can see the B/C/S original. On the right is
15 an English translation of this document which appears to have been
16 created by UNPROFOR. Now, the part of this I want to draw your attention
17 to, Mr. Gengo, is the part where General Milovanovic says that he has
18 been informed that the Muslim side refuses to take part in the
19 establishing and work of the joint military expert commission. And two
20 paragraphs later, this is in the fourth paragraph:
21 "Since the Muslim side is refusing to take part in the work of
22 the mixed expert military commission, the headquarters of the
23 Army of the Republic of Srpska is convinced that it has planned and
24 instigated this dreadful massacre."
25 And he goes on to deny any involvement or responsibility in what
Page 29814
1 he describes as this evil crime.
2 So I put it to you that this was, in fact, the end of the idea of
3 General Milovanovic to form a Joint Commission. Well, before you answer
4 that, let me draw your attention to one more part of it, Mr. Gengo. He
5 says that:
6 "The UNPROFOR command refuses that the Chief of Staff of UNPROFOR
7 and the Chief of Staff of the so-called Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina
8 together with," it continues on the next page in English, "the Chief of
9 Staff of the Army of the Republic of Srpska go to the scene of the crime
10 and uncover the consequences and the circumstances of this tragedy."
11 I put it to you that when he says the "scene of crime" there he's
12 talking about the suspected origin of fire in VRS territory. So again I
13 put it to you, Mr. Gengo, that this was the end of General Milovanovic's
14 idea of a Joint Commission.
15 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Where can we find this? Where is
16 this written?
17 MR. GAYNOR: I've just read from the last paragraph of the
18 document.
19 JUDGE KWON: Just a second, just a second.
20 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I don't know what it is you would
21 like me to say --
22 JUDGE KWON: Please hold on, everybody. Please slow down on your
23 part as well. And please do not overlap while the interpretation is
24 going on.
25 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] May I intervene now? Where does it
Page 29815
1 say what Milovanovic means by the "scene of the crime"? And how can this
2 refer to the location where shots were fired from, where shells were
3 fired from, when the location in question is Markale?
4 JUDGE KWON: Just -- let -- let's go back.
5 So you read out the passage. Could you put your question again.
6 MR. GAYNOR: Certainly.
7 Q. We'll leave the scene of the crime for a moment, Mr. Gengo. But
8 do you agree that from this document it appears that
9 General Milovanovic's idea of a Joint Commission came to a premature end
10 and there was no Joint Commission?
11 A. Well, I couldn't say. I'm not familiar with what happened. All
12 I know is that the commission came to see me, but as to who organised it,
13 it wasn't for me to give much thought to such matters.
14 Q. Very well. And I would like to put it to you that where
15 General Milovanovic refers to a visit by the ABiH, the VRS, and UNPROFOR
16 to the scene of the crime, he is - in the context of this
17 letter - referring to the origin of fire. I put that interpretation to
18 you.
19 A. I don't know what was at stake, what requests they had made. I
20 know nothing about that.
21 Q. I'd now like to move to the 6th of February, 1994, and we'll call
22 up, please, 1D01655. This, Mr. Gengo, is a regular combat report,
23 reporting the situation at 1600 hours on the 6th of February, 1994. The
24 report is to the SRK command. Now, in paragraph 3 --
25 JUDGE KWON: I'm sorry, it's written by the SRK.
Page 29816
1 MR. GAYNOR: Your Honours, we're -- just after this we're about
2 to come to a document which appears to go from the SRK command to the VRS
3 Main Staff. It's my understanding that this particular document is a
4 document preceding that later document which is to the SRK command. But
5 I'm quite happy for that to be clarified.
6 JUDGE KWON: It's signed by General Milosevic, wasn't it? Very
7 well. Let's continue. I leave it there.
8 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you very much, Mr. President. I would like to
9 make sure I'm showing Your Honours the correct document.
10 JUDGE KWON: You can see the list. Can we see the page 2, both
11 versions, on the e-court. Page 2.
12 MR. GAYNOR: Yes. This is, indeed, signed by General Milosevic.
13 I'm grateful to Your Honour.
14 Q. Now, I think we see at paragraph 3 of this document if we could
15 go to -- first of all, on this page at least, Mr. Witness, there is no
16 reference to a visit of a Joint Commission; is that correct?
17 A. Yes.
18 Q. If we can go to the preceding page, please. Now, in this
19 document, as the Presiding Judge has correctly pointed out, it is from
20 General Milosevic. Again, there is no reference to a visit of a
21 Joint Commission; although, it does at paragraph 3 refer to a meeting on
22 events in Sarajevo which was held in the corps command attended by
23 President Karadzic, General Gvero, UNPROFOR, and UN representatives.
24 A. Yes, I can see that.
25 Q. So you agree that there's no reference in this document anywhere
Page 29817
1 to this visit of the Joint Commission that you've given evidence about?
2 A. Yes.
3 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to tender that, please, Mr. President.
4 MR. ROBINSON: No objection.
5 JUDGE KWON: Yes, that will be admitted.
6 THE REGISTRAR: As Exhibit P5971 , Your Honours.
7 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to call up now, please, 65 ter 24034.
8 Q. This document is to the VRS Main Staff from the SRK command dated
9 the 6th of February, 1994, and it's a regular combat report with the
10 situation at 1800 hours. Once again -- well, first of all, we can
11 observe that this replicates much of the information that we saw in the
12 earlier report. Again in paragraph 3 we see the reference to a meeting
13 held at the corps command attended by President Radovan Karadzic,
14 Major-General Gvero, and UNPROFOR and UN representatives. What we do not
15 see, Mr. Gengo, is any reference whatsoever to the mixed commission visit
16 which you said took place earlier on the day of this document.
17 A. The commission paid a visit. I don't know whose orders they were
18 following. This is something I'm not aware of.
19 Q. But do you accept that this document does not refer to that
20 visit?
21 A. It doesn't refer to it.
22 Q. Right.
23 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to tender that, Mr. President.
24 MR. ROBINSON: No objection.
25 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
Page 29818
1 THE REGISTRAR: Exhibit P5972, Your Honours.
2 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to call up, please, now 1D01656.
3 Q. We're moving now to the 8th of February, 1994. This is a regular
4 combat report dealing with the position at 1600 hours on the
5 8th of February, and there's no reference in this to a mixed commission
6 either. Take your time to read it, Mr. Gengo, if you wish.
7 A. No.
8 Q. So you agree there is no reference to that mixed commission, is
9 there?
10 A. That's correct.
11 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to tender that, Mr. President.
12 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
13 THE REGISTRAR: Exhibit P5973, Your Honours.
14 MR. GAYNOR:
15 Q. Mr. Gengo, we'll move on a week now to the
16 14th of February, 1994.
17 MR. GAYNOR: Could I call up, please, D2378.
18 Q. This is a document from Colonel Radislav Cvetkovic to the SRK
19 command and to the VRS Main Staff. He says in the opening paragraph of
20 this document - if we can go down a little further in the English,
21 please - that he was appointed to an international committee on the
22 14th of February -- excuse me, correction, on the 13th of February, 1994.
23 Now, that's eight days after the purported visit on the
24 6th of February, 1994, isn't it, Mr. Gengo?
25 A. Yes.
Page 29819
1 Q. Now, if we have a look at page 3 in the English we see that he
2 says -- well, first of all, if we can go up a little on the English
3 version. Well, he says in this document that as a representative of the
4 VRS he was asked by the members of the commission for technical
5 information proving that the Serbian side did not launch the shell. Do
6 you see that reference?
7 A. Yes, but it's not very clear. Could we zoom in.
8 Q. Can you see it better now?
9 A. Yes, I can.
10 Q. Now, does it not strike you as strange that he would say that if
11 it was eight days after you claim that an international commission had
12 already inspected the mortar units at Mrkovici?
13 A. Well, I don't know the exact dates. I know this event occurred,
14 but I don't know when exactly. I did not keep any written records. But
15 I know that the commission paid a visit; however, I do not remember
16 Cvetkovic paying a visit.
17 Q. If we can look at the next page in English, please. And
18 here - that's the next page in B/C/S as well, please - Cvetkovic says:
19 "I strongly denied the possibility that a shell was launched from
20 the Serbian side and offered the commission to visit the suspected
21 place ..."
22 Again, that statement by Cvetkovic is totally inconsistent, is it
23 not, with the fact that the VRS had already brought an international
24 commission to visit the suspected place eight days earlier?
25 A. The commission paid a visit, but I cannot remember the exact
Page 29820
1 dates.
2 Q. We'll move on, please, to P1441, please. Now, this next document
3 is in the English language, Mr. Witness, so I'll tell you briefly what it
4 is. It's a compilation of several different documents, most -- the bulk
5 of this is -- are documents produced by UNPROFOR in the days following
6 the Markale I massacre. And I've gone through the entirety of this
7 bundle of documents, Mr. Gengo. There's not a single reference to the
8 mixed commission visit of 6th of February, 1994. And I'm going to bring
9 you to three pages of it which I will put to you in due course strongly
10 suggests that that visit never took place.
11 MR. GAYNOR: Could we go, please, to page 41. This is a part of
12 annex D.
13 Q. And this portion of this bundle of documents, Mr. Witness, there
14 is a summary of the evidence of ten UNPROFOR officers and other personnel
15 who were involved in investigations relating to the Markale massacre or
16 the Markale incident, if you prefer, on the 5th of February, 1994. Not
17 one of those summaries refers to a visit to Mrkovici on the
18 6th of February or any kind of visit to SRK positions. And on this page
19 we see a reference to Colonel Pardon - under number 9 if we can go down a
20 little - he refers there to an inspection which he attended to mortar
21 positions held by the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He says from there
22 they visited a 120-millimetre mortar position in Kosevo stadium where
23 they saw a 120-millimetre mortar. He then gives its unit, which is M75,
24 number 2977, I should say the mortar unit's number. And he refers later
25 to a visit to a second position, again of a mortar unit controlled by the
Page 29821
1 Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina. There's no reference to any visit to
2 mortar units controlled by the Bosnian Serbs.
3 If we can go now, please, to page 44 which is part of Annex E.
4 This document, Mr. Gengo -- if we can perhaps go to the next page of
5 this, please. Yes, sorry, to the previous page at the bottom under
6 paragraph 4, please. Just below paragraph 4. I'll read out the relevant
7 part of it to you, Mr. Gengo. It says:
8 "Colonel Cvetkovic, CO, BSA Artillery Regiment stated that
9 Kosevo Brigade has mortar positions (including 120-millimetre mortar) in
10 the Mrkovici area (BP 9463). These positions have not been visited by UN
11 personnel in at least four months, and cannot be located with any
12 accuracy. Since October 1993, UNMOs have been denied freedom of movement
13 in this brigade area, although most shots fired from the area can be
14 observed from UNMOs in adjacent areas."
15 And finally I'll take you to a third reference in this document,
16 that is in Annex G at page 56. This page, Mr. Gengo, refers to a meeting
17 held on the 13th of February, 1994, in Pale between some UNPROFOR
18 representatives and Colonel Cvetkovic. In the second paragraph it says
19 that Colonel Cvetkovic confirmed that he was to act as the Bosnian Serb
20 representative for purposes of the UN investigation into the Sarajevo
21 market explosion of 5th of February, 1994. Now, if we go down to the
22 fourth paragraph it says:
23 "Colonel Cvetkovic then discussed numerous aspects of the
24 incident in theoretical terms, and offered his personal opinion
25 concerning the validity of events as portrayed by the media. He had no
Page 29822
1 specific evidence to offer of direct relevance to the investigation."
2 Now, Mr. Gengo, I think we can agree that the results of an
3 inspection of 120-millimetre mortar positions which might have been held
4 on the 6th of February, 1994, would be of direct relevance to the
5 investigation, wouldn't it?
6 A. That concerns my area of responsibility, my mortars. As for the
7 Kosevo mortars, I don't know, I didn't go there, but they continually
8 visited my area and I co-operated with the UNPROFOR representatives who
9 kept visiting my area and they would sometimes announce their visits and
10 sometimes they would not.
11 Q. And do you not find it strange that Colonel Cvetkovic makes no
12 mention whatsoever, according to this note, of the meeting of the
13 inspection of the 6th of February, 1994?
14 A. Well, it wasn't Cvetkovic who was in charge of the mortars. He
15 was the commander of a mixed artillery regiment. He had his guns in that
16 area of responsibility. He did not have any mortars there.
17 Q. Are you seriously suggesting that Colonel Cvetkovic would not
18 have been aware of an inspection which had been carried out on the
19 6th of February, 1994, between members of the VRS Main Staff and others
20 with UNPROFOR officials?
21 A. Well, I don't know about Cvetkovic, whether the Main Staff
22 organised that commission. I don't know whether and how they organised
23 it and according to whose orders. I just went to the site, that's all I
24 know. I'm not aware of anything else.
25 Q. Okay. Finally we'll show a brief video-clip.
Page 29823
1 MR. GAYNOR: This is 65 ter 45200. According to the clip, it
2 appears to date from the 10th of February, 1994.
3 [Video-clip played]
4 "I can't answer your questions. I just want to say that we are
5 not going -- we don't have any reason to go on with the conference until
6 we get an international investigatory body to investigate and resolve the
7 Sarajevo massacre. I would remind you that Muslims have staged --
8 managed the killing in bread queue killing 18 of their own people, and
9 Yugoslavia got sanctions. Then Muslims have shut down the Italian air
10 traffic and Serbs got no-fly zone resolution. Now, until this massacre,
11 Serb side getting an ultimatum -- an ultimatum from NATO. We don't have
12 any reason to go on with the conference until we get commission to
13 investigate every single circumstance and to say publicly who is the
14 responsible for this massacre.
15 "We are going to pose that and to demand an international
16 investigatory body to get findings and to make it public."
17 MR. GAYNOR:
18 Q. Now, in that -- first of all, for the record, we can agree that
19 that was --
20 JUDGE KWON: Just --
21 MR. GAYNOR: Yes.
22 JUDGE KWON: Yes, please continue.
23 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you.
24 Q. We agree, Mr. Gengo, that was President Radovan Karadzic speaking
25 there?
Page 29824
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. Now, in that clip, Radovan Karadzic is calling for an
3 international investigatory body to get findings; isn't that right?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. And he makes several other references which are along the lines
6 of the need to get an international commission to look into this
7 incident; correct?
8 A. Yes.
9 Q. And he makes no reference whatsoever to any mixed VRS/UNPROFOR
10 commission that might already have been formed in this clip?
11 A. Every incident that happened on the line caused representatives
12 of UNPROFOR and representatives of the brigade to came -- to come to the
13 scene, and that was the case in every incident that happened in the zone
14 of responsibility. Controls were stepped-up as soon as something
15 happened.
16 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to tender that clip, Mr. President.
17 MR. ROBINSON: No objection.
18 JUDGE KWON: Yes, it will be admitted.
19 THE REGISTRAR: As Exhibit P5974, Your Honours.
20 MR. GAYNOR: Your Honours, I note that it's just beyond 12.30.
21 JUDGE KWON: How much longer would you need?
22 MR. GAYNOR: Probably about three minutes.
23 JUDGE KWON: Then shall we continue --
24 MR. GAYNOR: Yes, certainly.
25 JUDGE KWON: -- and conclude your cross-examination.
Page 29825
1 MR. GAYNOR: Yes, certainly. I'd like to bring up an order from
2 President Karadzic dated the 7th of February. That's P846, please.
3 Q. As you can see, Mr. Witness, this document bears the stamp of the
4 Presidency of the Republika Srpska, I believe, as well as the signature
5 of Dr. Karadzic. In paragraph -- in the first paragraph we see that
6 Karadzic is saying:
7 "There is evidence that Serbs are not responding in equal measure
8 to Muslim artillery provocations - sometimes 20 to 30 or even 70 times
9 more."
10 Now, I put it to you, Witness, that that statement by
11 President Karadzic is not consistent with your assertion in paragraph 33
12 of your statement that it was the Muslims who kept attacking your
13 positions and to your position that SRK forces were firing back only when
14 fired upon in equal measure?
15 A. That's correct. In 1994 and 1995 -- lacked ammunition. The
16 Muslims had more and that's why they shelled us more. We had to be
17 economical with our ammunition because we did not have enough. Our
18 supplies had been depleted. That's why we did not respond in equal
19 measure to the fire opened by the opposing side. We didn't have enough
20 ammunition. At least that was the case in the zone of responsibility of
21 my battalion. I don't know about the others. Ammunition was expensive,
22 difficult to get by, and when -- we had to account for every single
23 round, every single bullet, let alone a shell.
24 Q. Mr. Gengo, you're aware that the president of the republic was
25 receiving constant supply of information from the VRS?
Page 29826
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. Well, then why would the president refer to in this document to
3 retaliation by the Serb side 70 times greater to incoming fire received
4 from the Muslim side?
5 MR. ROBINSON: Objection, Mr. President. That's calling for
6 speculation on behalf of the witness.
7 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] That's impossible.
8 JUDGE KWON: No -- let's put it differently. Witness answered
9 that the Serbs were retaliating or responding less than what they were
10 shelled.
11 Could you read out the first paragraph, Mr. Gengo. Could you
12 read aloud.
13 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] "There is evidence to the effect
14 that the Serbian side responds inadequately to the Muslim fire, sometimes
15 even 20 to 30 times more."
16 I don't know what this means. I'm really not clear. This is
17 absolutely impossible. We didn't have the necessary ammunition. We
18 could not do that.
19 JUDGE KWON: Would you like to continue?
20 MR. GAYNOR: Yes. Thank you, Mr. President.
21 Q. I'll wrap-up now, Mr. Witness. I've shown to you today a series
22 of documents from -- which contain records of what was said by
23 Colonel Cvetkovic, by the SRK command, by UNPROFOR, by the president of
24 the republic about this extremely serious incident. Not one of them
25 refers to an inspection of the 120-millimetre mortar guns at Mrkovici on
Page 29827
1 the 6th of February, 1994. Do you agree with that?
2 A. I do.
3 Q. And I further put it to you that this commission, insofar as it
4 did exist -- correction. I'll start again.
5 I'll put it to you, Mr. Gengo, that this commission did not
6 exist; and if it did, that it was essentially a sham.
7 A. I don't know if it was a sham or not. I only know that a
8 commission did arrive. There were two vehicles. I don't know on what --
9 on whose orders. The brigade command informed me that they would arrive.
10 I followed the orders and everything else was up to them. It was their
11 concern, not mine.
12 MR. GAYNOR: That's it for me. No further questions.
13 Q. Thank you, Mr. Gengo.
14 JUDGE KWON: Do you have re-examination, Mr. Karadzic?
15 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Well, I'm very satisfied with the
16 fact that the Prosecution does more than they can. They shouldn't do
17 more than they ought to. The questions have been so confusing and so
18 misleading on the witness that I should be given quite a lot of time to
19 put my additional questions to the witness.
20 JUDGE KWON: I asked it because of the -- only for the purpose of
21 scheduling matter. We'll take a break then for half an hour and resume
22 at ten past.
23 --- Luncheon recess taken at 12.40 p.m.
24 --- On resuming at 1.12 p.m.
25 JUDGE KWON: Yes, Mr. Karadzic.
Page 29828
1 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you.
2 Re-examination by Mr. Karadzic:
3 Q. [Interpretation] Mr. Colonel, sir, earlier today on page 31,
4 lines 16 through 21, you were asked whether you had controlled and how
5 you made sure that the number of collateral casualties was reduced. I'm
6 going to read to you what you said during your interview with the
7 Prosecutor. I would like to call up 65 ter 24035, which is the
8 transcript of that interview. It is on page 3539. We have it, yes,
9 3539. I apologise, page 11, 32 -- page 11, line 32. You were asked and
10 I'm going to read in English. It will be interpreted much better than
11 the other way around.
12 [In English] "Okay. So if you didn't know what was around their
13 fire points, how could you be sure that you weren't firing in the area
14 where there might be civilian targets?"
15 [Interpretation] Your answer was as follows:
16 [In English] "I couldn't be sure of that. I didn't know who was
17 there. So, the one who is firing from the other side should have thought
18 of the civilians over there. Because if it had been from my side, I
19 would done it in such a way."
20 [Interpretation] My question to you is this: This assumption of
21 yours, is it based on the fact that on the other side and there were
22 officers who had been through the same schools as you?
23 A. Yes.
24 MR. GAYNOR: Objection.
25 JUDGE KWON: That's leading.
Page 29829
1 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Well very well then.
2 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
3 Q. Can you then tell us based on which did you assume that they
4 would have done the same thing you would have done in terms of the
5 protection of civilians?
6 A. I assume that they knew that when a shell hit shrapnel dispersed
7 for about 50 metres around. And if they did not secure the civilians,
8 some of the civilians that found themselves in the area of fire may have
9 been harmed.
10 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Could I have page 13 in the same
11 document.
12 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
13 Q. On page 18 of today's transcript, lines 9 and 10, you were asked
14 whether you effectively exercised control over the battalion and whether
15 you were sure that mortars were not fired without your approval. And now
16 I'm going to remind you of your answer given to the Prosecutor during the
17 interview on line 10. The question was as follows:
18 [In English] "Was anyone in your battalion ever detained for
19 firing a projectile into the city of Sarajevo?"
20 [Interpretation] Answer:
21 [In English] "In my time, during my time there was no such lack
22 of discipline."
23 [Interpretation] Question:
24 [In English] "No, my question was: Was anyone in your battalion
25 ever detained for firing the projectile into the city of Sarajevo?"
Page 29830
1 [Interpretation] Answer:
2 [In English] [As read] "No. There was offence of that kind
3 during my time. If I had been -- if it had been, then he would have been
4 detained for sure."
5 [Interpretation] Do you still stand by that position?
6 A. Yes.
7 MR. GAYNOR: Can I just interrupt for a moment. The transcript
8 as far as the Prosecution is concerned at line 18 of page 13 that
9 Mr. Karadzic is reading from where it says "There was offence of that
10 kind" it's our position that that inaccurately omits the word "no." The
11 transcript should read: "There was no offence of that kind." I'm simply
12 saying that so that the record is clear.
13 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you.
14 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
15 Q. And now I would like to ask you to tell us where was the forward
16 command post Butile in respect of the zone of responsibility of your
17 battalion?
18 A. Butile? It's on a completely different side, in the Rajlovac and
19 Ilidza sectors.
20 Q. Thank you. I would like to ask you about that visit. Those who
21 visited you, were they the same people who were members of the
22 investigation commission?
23 A. People visited me all the time. I can't tell you how many times
24 a week, but they were always there. Whenever an incident occurred, they
25 came to inspect and to see what had happened.
Page 29831
1 Q. Thank you. So do you know that the investigation commission was
2 set up after the 6th and do you make a distinction between --
3 MR. GAYNOR: Objection. Once again, despite repeated instruction
4 from the Trial Chamber, Dr. Karadzic is using leading questions in
5 re-direct.
6 JUDGE KWON: Do you follow, Mr. Karadzic?
7 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Yes, Your Excellencies. I really
8 admit that my habits from cross-examination die hard. I'll have to
9 educate myself not to do that.
10 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
11 Q. Lieutenant-Colonel, sir, let me ask you this: Do you make a
12 distinction between an ad hoc inspection and a permanent investigation
13 commission?
14 A. I don't make any distinction. I didn't make any distinctions.
15 They came. They were in the vehicles. I don't know who they were. I
16 don't know when the commission was set up -- when it was supposed to be
17 set up. I really don't know. Commissions were always there. They came
18 frequently. I didn't get involved in any of the conversations with them.
19 Q. And can I now call up 65 ter 15575. Now it has a different
20 number because it has been admitted into evidence. Can we see it in
21 e-court, please.
22 You were asked, Lieutenant-Colonel, sir, about the tactics
23 applied by the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps, and with the help of this
24 document Mr. Gaynor wanted to obtain a confirmation that the
25 Sarajevo-Romanija Corps had offensive intentions and offensive
Page 29832
1 activities.
2 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Can we look at page 4, please.
3 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
4 Q. Could you please look at bullet point A where it says "tasks of
5 the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps." Are these offensive or defensive measures?
6 A. Defensive.
7 Q. Thank you. Could I please ask you to read the first sentence in
8 the following paragraph. Could you please read it out loud.
9 A. My vision is not that good. Can you do it.
10 Q. "By construct a grouping of the troops and with an appropriate
11 reinforcement with the reserve forces of the Main Staff of the VRS,
12 improve the operations, the tactical position, the Sarajevo sector."
13 Can you please tell us whether Zuc, Hum, and Mojmilo are areas
14 settled by Muslims or are these some other kind of features?
15 A. Zuc was inhabited by Serbs. They came under attack by Muslim
16 forces and then I would say that it was an elevation that was almost
17 empty.
18 Q. In the following paragraph it says [indiscernible] the Muslim
19 forces and capture the Hranjen and Podhranjen features. What are these?
20 A. This is wasteland. There was nobody there. Those were points
21 held by the Army of Republika Srpska and they wanted to link-up those two
22 areas because the line went --
23 JUDGE KWON: Just a second.
24 Have you finished your answer, Mr. Gengo?
25 THE WITNESS: [No interpretation]
Page 29833
1 JUDGE KWON: Mr. Karadzic didn't read out the sentence in full,
2 the first sentence. After that it continues to read like this, after
3 saying, "Improve the operations tactical positions in the region of
4 Sarajevo," the sentence goes on like this:
5 "Penetrate to the left bank of Misoca river, liberate the
6 villages of Zabrdje, Sokolje, Zuc, Hum, and Mojmilo."
7 Then I'd like to ask you what does this liberation mean?
8 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Is this a question for me?
9 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
10 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] This means to improve the tactical
11 position, to move one part of the line in order to conquer it, to take
12 that area, to improve one's defence position.
13 JUDGE KWON: You told us just now that it means to take that
14 area? So that's an offensive -- for the purpose of defence --
15 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] To improve one's positions. This
16 is the improvement of one's positions, not taking a town but improving
17 one's positions to improve one's defence abilities.
18 JUDGE KWON: So liberating what, Mr. Gengo?
19 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] One part of the line, one part of
20 the tactical position. In -- and this was carried out in the sectors
21 from which we were threatened. We had to liberate -- actually to -- we
22 had to prevent a situation where our population may have been threatened
23 from those --
24 THE INTERPRETER: There is a lot of background noise in the
25 courtroom so the interpreter could not hear the last part of the
Page 29834
1 witness's answer.
2 JUDGE KWON: What did you say? Your population may have been
3 threatened from where?
4 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] In the elevations that were
5 occupied by them, the population and the road were threatened. From
6 there and in order to improve that part of the position for our forces
7 had to take those positions in order to prevent the threat to our
8 population in Vogosca, and so on.
9 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
10 Yes, Mr. Karadzic.
11 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
12 Q. Lieutenant-Colonel, so can you tell the Trial Chamber where the
13 Misoca river is?
14 A. The Misoca river is in Ilijas. That used to be a military
15 warehouse in the past and it stored technical fuel.
16 Q. Thank you. There is a reference here to the liberation of
17 Zabrdje which is described as a village. Do you know who resided there?
18 A. Serbs did.
19 Q. Thank you. Is that a village where the president of the
20 Assembly, Krajisnik, was born?
21 A. Yes.
22 Q. What about the other features, Sokolje, Zuc, Mojmilo, Orahovica,
23 Hranjen, Podhranjen? Were those Muslim settlements or something else?
24 A. There was nobody there. It was a wasteland. Podhranjen was not
25 settled. It is a place in the direction of Gorazde.
Page 29835
1 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Can we now look at page 5.
2 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
3 Q. Please look at bullet point 4. Usually it is a decision by the
4 commander. Let me read it to you:
5 "I decided by engaging the main body of the corps in the decisive
6 defence, prevent the link up of the enemy forces from the Muslim part of
7 Sarajevo with the forces attacking along the valleys of the Neretva
8 river, Zujevina [phoen] river and the Bosnia river along the
9 following axis, Olovo, and so on, to stabilise the front line and fully
10 fortify the positions thus creating secure support points for the defence
11 of the Pretis, Orao, Famos industrial facilities and the TRZ and safely
12 hold the MOS in Sarajevo encircled."
13 Can you tell the Chamber how you understand this decision? Is
14 this a decision for defensive or offensive activities?
15 A. Defensive because it was not aimed at conquering Sarajevo but
16 preserving what we had.
17 Q. Thank you.
18 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Can we now go to page 7.
19 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
20 Q. Have a look at the first sentence. I'll read it out. It says:
21 "The focus of the attack should be in the Grbavica sector. The
22 Zeljeznica stadium and Sanac [phoen]."
23 It says carry out fortification work and so on and so forth. Is
24 this defensive or offensive action?
25 A. Defensive.
Page 29836
1 Q. Thank you. Let's see 5.2 now, it's been read out to you:
2 "The 1st Romanija Infantry Brigade defends its positions in the
3 zone of responsibility through a persistent and decisive defence, and in
4 co-operation with the 1st Sarajevo Mechanised Brigade and the Vogosca
5 Tactical Group in active combat, smash enemy forces in the region of
6 Colina Kapa-Ophodza-Orlovac and Grdonj and improve the tactical position
7 of the brigade. Put the Muslim forces under control in the urban part of
8 Sarajevo while constructing heavy fortification and setting up the
9 full-on obstructions in front of the forward line of defence using the
10 system of fire to prevent the enemy penetration into the defence zone."
11 Is this offensive or defensive action with fortifications and
12 with tactical improvements?
13 A. This is defensive measure taken to improve the tactical position
14 of our units in the area of defence.
15 Q. Thank you. Could you tell the Chamber what these features are
16 where your brigade is supposed to rout the enemy, Colina Kapa, Orlovac,
17 and Grdonj?
18 A. Well, these were deserted areas, hills. There was no one there.
19 There were hills that posed a threat to our positions, to our roads. So
20 there were no features of any significance so there -- there's footage of
21 the area and this can be seen in the footage, I think.
22 JUDGE KWON: When asked by Mr. Gaynor represented -- attorney
23 from the Prosecution you said you didn't participate in this and you
24 didn't know. Now how do you know that this was defensive?
25 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Well, I know these positions. I
Page 29837
1 observed these things when they took place, but my unit did not take part
2 in the events, in the operations. But I was aware of the situation.
3 JUDGE KWON: My apology. You didn't say you didn't know. I'm
4 reading that transcript again. Very well.
5 Let's continue, Mr. Karadzic.
6 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you.
7 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
8 Q. But, sir, is it clear, it says improve the tactical positions and
9 carry out fortification work. Someone with offensive operations, does
10 such a person engage in improving fortifications or is this defensive?
11 A. Well, if you want to mount a defence you carry out fortification
12 work. If you want to carry out an attack then you break through and try
13 to conquer areas. We never received such an order to go on Sarajevo.
14 Q. Thank you. Did we consider Sedrenik, Stari Grad, Bascarsija
15 Serbian parts of Sarajevo?
16 A. No, there were not many of our inhabitants down there. Mostly
17 there were Muslims in Bascarsija, Sedrenik, and in other parts. There
18 were some of our people who lived down there from Vucije Luke [phoen].
19 They had houses in Sedrenik. So that was their area, in fact.
20 Ninety-nine per cent of the area was inhabited by their people.
21 Q. Thank you. And when it says liberate Serbian parts of town, does
22 this refer to the core part of the town, the inner town in which the
23 inhabitants are mostly Muslims?
24 A. No.
25 Q. Sir, I'd like to conclude with this document --
Page 29838
1 JUDGE KWON: Let's continue. That was leading, though.
2 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you.
3 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
4 Q. The SRK and your brigade, where were they in contact with the
5 enemy and were there two types of front lines?
6 A. Yes. They were in contact with them in the area of Gorazde
7 towards the 81st Division and also in the direction of Sarajevo where
8 there was the 105th and the 110th Brigades, I think, facing us, also in
9 the outer ring in the Nisici area they were in contact with the 3rd Corps
10 and the 2nd Tuzla Corps. We were in contact with them there.
11 Q. Thank you.
12 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Could we have a look at page 6 very
13 briefly, please.
14 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
15 Q. At the top it says regroup the forces of the corps and carry out
16 with the Drina Corps an action, take control of the Zvijezda mountain,
17 liberate the route in Srednje Olovo, route the enemy in the Cemerska
18 mountain sector, and so on and so forth. Could you tell us where these
19 places are located? Was there a difference when it comes to tactics of
20 the SRK deployed against the external ring and deployed against the
21 internal ring?
22 A. This position is to the north above Ilijas and towards the Nisici
23 plateau. That's where the road led to Sokolac. That part was defended
24 so that the 1st Corps units and the 2nd and 3rd Corps units didn't link
25 up so that the inhabitants in Ilijas, Hadzici, Ilidza, Vogosca, and
Page 29839
1 Rajlovac would remain encircled. So we had to defend this position so
2 that the Muslim forces would not link up and they wouldn't cut off part
3 of the town inhabited by Serbs.
4 Q. Thank you.
5 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Could we have a look at page 14,
6 please, 6, item 5.
7 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
8 Q. I'll read out the sentence:
9 "Logistic support of prisoners of war is to be provided in
10 accordance with the Geneva Conventions."
11 Were you aware of the fact that this was the corps commander's
12 position?
13 A. Yes, I was.
14 JUDGE KWON: Yes, Mr. Gaynor.
15 MR. GAYNOR: Well, I'm just noticing another couple of leading
16 questions are infecting the re-direct again.
17 JUDGE KWON: I took it that -- just the witness confirmed that
18 it's written there. Let us continue. Let's conclude.
19 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you. Could we have a look at
20 P5969 very briefly, page 58.
21 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
22 Q. Page 58 -- on page 58 of today's transcript you were shown this
23 document and I would like to ask you about something that concerns
24 Mrkovici. Does it say that fire was opened from Mrkovici or that fire
25 was opened by them on Mrkovici? Let's have a look at it at the
Page 29840
1 beginning.
2 "The enemy:
3 "Infantry and sniper fire attacks in the sector of Hresa,
4 Faletici, Mrkovici, Azici, Nedzarici," et cetera.
5 This is the enemy taking action, and number 2, it says:
6 "Our forces:
7 "Fire was opened in response on observed enemy targets in the
8 area of the Vogosca Tactical Group, 120-millimetre mortar and
9 40-millimetre PAT anti-aircraft gun were used."
10 So does it say that fire was opened from Mrkovici or that that
11 was not the case? Where did you retaliate from?
12 A. 120-millimetre? No, I didn't have any such thing. From
13 Mrkovici, I can't really see where was opened from. If fire was opened
14 on Hresa, on Mrkovici, well, then I retaliated. But as for Vogosca, if
15 it was Vogosca, then they retaliated probably because I couldn't do
16 anything in Vogosca with a 120-millimetre mortar and a 40-millimetre PAT.
17 I didn't have any such weapons.
18 Q. Fire was opened from infantry and artillery from Mrkovici?
19 A. Sometimes they fired from tanks from the Ciglane area.
20 Q. Sir, today -- on the 5th of February, what did they use to fire
21 on Mrkovici and was there any retaliation, any response from Mrkovici?
22 A. No, not on the 5th of February.
23 Q. Thank you. When you asked about measures to reduce collateral
24 casualties, when using mortars, heavy-calibre weapons, did you have the
25 duty of observing fire that was opened?
Page 29841
1 A. If you could see where the hits landed.
2 Q. And now for my last question. After everything you heard, given
3 all the questions put to you and the documents you have seen, could you
4 tell us whether the Army of Republika Srpska fired a shell on Markale on
5 the 5th of February, 1994, from the area under your control?
6 A. I can claim with full responsibility that the VRS did not fire a
7 shell on the Markale Market.
8 Q. Thank you, sir.
9 Questioned by the Court:
10 JUDGE KWON: Well, this is not very important, but I'll put to
11 you, Mr. Gengo -- shall we upload the Exhibit P5968, 65 ter 15575,
12 English page 8. I remember B/C/S page was 6, if my memory was correct.
13 The middle of big paragraph it reads like this:
14 "And by using all available means exert strong pressure on the
15 Muslim forces in Sarajevo and liberate Debelo Brdo, Mojmilo, Colina Kapa,
16 Grdonj, Hum, Golo Brdo, Zuc, Vis, Mijatovica, Kosa, Sokolje and
17 Stupsko Brdo and penetrate deep into the region of Brekin [phoen] Potok
18 and Dobrinja ...," and then it reads like this:
19 " ... creating thus favourable conditions for the wider-scale
20 offensive activities by the forces of the corps and the reinforcement."
21 So my question for you, Mr. Gengo, is: What does this
22 wider-scale offensive activities mean?
23 A. It means wider activities on the positions.
24 JUDGE KWON: What activities?
25 A. Combat activities, improving the tactical position. In order to
Page 29842
1 move a line to fortify you have to get the enemy to move from a hill in
2 order to take it, in order to have a dominant position. So you had to do
3 this in order to dominate given part of town because when Muslim forces
4 attacked it was necessary to be able to mount a defence and prevent the
5 external ring from being penetrated.
6 JUDGE KWON: However, does General Galic not say "offensive
7 activities"?
8 A. Could I have a look at that document?
9 JUDGE KWON: I can't find the location in the B/C/S --
10 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] We have a hard copy. It's the
11 first paragraph in the B/C/S version and we do have a hard copy.
12 JUDGE KWON: "... creating thus favourable conditions for the
13 wider-scale offensive activities ..."
14 Did you find it?
15 A. Yes. I don't know what General Galic had in mind, but I know
16 what happened.
17 JUDGE KWON: Very well.
18 Unless --
19 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Could I just put another question
20 to the witness on the basis of your question?
21 JUDGE KWON: I don't think it's necessary. The witness answered
22 to the far --
23 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] It would be useful for the Chamber.
24 Perhaps you could ask the witness whether any of these hills were taken
25 by the Serbian army?
Page 29843
1 JUDGE KWON: It's not necessary, Mr. Karadzic.
2 Unless my colleagues have questions for you, Mr. Gengo, that
3 concludes were you evidence. On behalf of the Chamber, I would like to
4 thank you for your coming to The Hague to give it. Now you are free to
5 go.
6 [The witness withdrew]
7 JUDGE KWON: And who is the next witness, Mr. Robinson?
8 MR. ROBINSON: Stojan Dzino.
9 JUDGE KWON: Very well.
10 Let's bring in the next witness.
11 While we are waiting, Mr. Robinson, with respect to the accused's
12 motion for extension of word limit for request for review of Registrar's
13 decision on indigence, where the Defence requests an extension from 3.000
14 to 5.000 words to challenge the Registry's decision of
15 11th of October, 2012, on Mr. Karadzic's indigency, we will hereby grant
16 this request and order that his request for review of the Registry's
17 decision of 11th of October not exceed 5.000 words.
18 MR. ROBINSON: Thank you, Mr. President.
19 [The witness entered court]
20 JUDGE KWON: Would the witness take the solemn declaration.
21 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I solemnly declare that I will
22 speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
23 WITNESS: STOJAN DZINO
24 [Witness answered through interpreter]
25 JUDGE KWON: Thank you. Take a seat and make yourself
Page 29844
1 comfortable.
2 Yes, Mr. Karadzic.
3 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you.
4 Examination by Mr. Karadzic:
5 Q. [Interpretation] Good day, Mr. Dzino.
6 A. Good day.
7 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Could we see 1D1605 in the e-court
8 system, please. 6085, correction.
9 MR. KARADZIC: [Interpretation]
10 Q. Mr. Dzino, while we're waiting for that to appear, what rank did
11 you have when you left the army?
12 A. I had the rank of lieutenant.
13 Q. Thank you. Did you give the Defence team a statement?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. I have to remind you and remind myself that we should speak
16 slowly and pause between question and answer because the interpreters
17 might leave something important out, not through any fault of their own
18 but because of us. Is this a statement that you gave, the one on the
19 screen in front of you?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. Thank you. Did you sign the statement?
22 A. Yes, I did.
23 Q. Does this statement accurately reflect the questions -- the
24 answers you provided to the questions put to you?
25 A. Yes.
Page 29845
1 Q. Lieutenant, if I were to put the same questions to you today,
2 would the substance of your answers be the same?
3 A. Absolutely.
4 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Your Excellencies, I would like to
5 tender this statement into evidence pursuant to Rule 92 ter.
6 JUDGE KWON: Yes, Mr. Gaynor.
7 MR. GAYNOR: No objection to the statement.
8 There's no associated exhibits I understand.
9 MR. ROBINSON: That's correct.
10 JUDGE KWON: Yes, we'll give the number.
11 THE REGISTRAR: Exhibit D2387, Your Honours.
12 JUDGE KWON: Mr. Dzino, as you noted, your evidence in chief was
13 admitted in the form of writing, i.e., your statement, in lieu of your
14 oral testimony. Now you'll be further cross-examined by the Prosecution.
15 You understand that?
16 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Could I be allowed to read out a
17 brief summary, just one page?
18 JUDGE KWON: Oh, yes, I forgot that. Yes, please proceed.
19 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Thank you. I'll read it out in
20 English.
21 [In English] Stojan Dzino did his military service as a soldier
22 in 1992. Between March and May 1992, he was on guard duty in the village
23 of Bojnik, Rajlovac. In December 1992, he was a battalion commander in
24 the vicinity of Sarajevo. At the beginning of 1994, when the
25 3rd Sarajevo Brigade was established he was appointed assistant commander
Page 29846
1 for morale in the 4th Infantry Battalion.
2 As early as in 1991, Stojan Dzino already heard of the arming of
3 Muslims and the membership of many to the Patriotic League and the
4 Green Berets. In the summer and autumn 1991 it was noted that the SDA
5 leaders frequently visited Ahatovici. The situation at that time was
6 already tense. In March 1992, after the murder of a Serbian wedding
7 guest in Bascarsija night guards started begin organised in the different
8 settlements by the local population. These guards were operational until
9 the 29th of May, 1992.
10 By initiative of some Serbs, meetings were held in the local
11 community in the period from March to May 1992 to discuss the possibility
12 of restoring trust and peace in the settlements. The last meeting took
13 place at the end of May 1992, when Hasan Nujkic and two other men all
14 dressed in camouflage uniforms and wearing green berets called on all the
15 Muslims to leave the gathering, and they proceeded to do so. After this
16 last failed attempts to peaceful -- to a peaceful solution, the first
17 Muslim offensive was launched on the 29th of May, 1992, against Krstac
18 locality. Stojan Dzino and approximately ten men set out to Krstac where
19 they engaged the Muslims who retreated in the direction of Gornje Mioce
20 and his men took control of the ridge and held it until the end of
21 clashes.
22 On June the 2nd, 1992, another confrontation took place in which
23 several Muslims were captured and others killed. Stojan Dzino knew every
24 family in the area and he only recognised a negligible number of the
25 captured and killed Muslims. All the wounded captured Muslims were given
Page 29847
1 first aid and there was no maltreatment. In the zone of combat
2 operations in which he was, there were no dishonourable activities,
3 rapes, slaughters, maltreatment, et cetera.
4 With regards to the Butile barracks, the area in front of the
5 barracks was laid with mines towards the Serbian village of Osijek,
6 whereas towards Pasici and Bojnik there were no mines but a fence, but
7 the wire was broken in places so that there were various paths. Those
8 villages are Muslim.
9 Stojan Dzino has knowledge that the 1st Corps of the Army of BH
10 was under control of the Muslim authorities in the period from April 1992
11 to December 1995. The 1st Corps held positions in civilian zones. His
12 unit and the other units towards the city of Sarajevo as well as on the
13 outer ring had only defence tasks. The complete zone was in an
14 unfavourable position in relation to the enemy side. The distance
15 between the lines of separation ranged between 9 metres and to the
16 closest -- at the closest point and 100 metres at the greatest distance.
17 During all four years of the war, there were negligible movements of the
18 line to his unit's detriment.
19 Fire was never opened in the depth of territory against civilian
20 facilities. Neither he nor his unit, nor lower or superior commands,
21 ever harboured any intention to cause civilian casualties or terrorise
22 civilians in the area and under Muslim control, nor exert
23 psychological -- or exert psychological influence on them. His unit
24 never received any oral or written order from higher command or civilian
25 authorities to carry out attacks against civilians or means of public
Page 29848
1 transportation in the territory under Muslim control, nor did he ever
2 issue such order.
3 In the zone of responsibility of his brigade and as far as he is
4 aware, beyond it there were no paramilitary units. All independent units
5 were included in the command and control of the respective brigades.
6 There were very few members of his unit who were professional servicemen,
7 and those who were had been born in the area. The rest were mostly local
8 men and the commanding officers were mostly from the reserve. His unit
9 hardly volunteered into its ranks. Stojan Dzino categorically states
10 that in four years of warfare he never saw a professional sniper in his
11 unit or other units of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps.
12 On the contrary, they had intelligence that snipers in the unit
13 of 1st Corps of BH army were targeting civilians in the part of the town
14 under the control of Serbian authorities as well as those in the town
15 under Muslim control. Muslim forces also cut off water-supply to his
16 unit's zone of responsibility and re-supplied their units using
17 humanitarian aid convoys. Muslim forces would also frequently violate
18 cease-fire agreements. His unit co-operated extremely well with the
19 municipal civilian authorities. In Rajlovac there were no persecution
20 policy based on religious or ethnic ground.
21 [Interpretation] At this point in time I don't have any questions
22 for the Lieutenant and I hand him over to the other side.
23 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
24 Yes, I -- as I informed you, you'll be examined -- cross-examined
25 by Mr. Gaynor.
Page 29849
1 Yes, Mr. Gaynor.
2 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
3 Cross-examination by Mr. Gaynor:
4 Q. Good afternoon, Mr. Dzino. I'm here to ask you a few questions
5 on behalf of the Prosecution.
6 A. Good afternoon.
7 Q. First of all, in 1990 you were a resident in the municipality of
8 Novi Grad; is that right?
9 A. Yes.
10 Q. Specifically Mihaljevici?
11 A. Yes, yes.
12 Q. Were you a member of the Serb Democratic Party?
13 A. Yes.
14 Q. Did you stand for election -- in elections taken in 1990?
15 A. No, no.
16 Q. You were not a candidate for the Serb Democratic Party in any
17 elections in 1990?
18 A. No, no.
19 MR. GAYNOR: Could I call-up, please, 65 ter number 24029. This
20 document does not have an English translation at present, Mr. President.
21 We'll see in a moment that it is fairly self-explanatory. We will get an
22 English translation uploaded as soon as we can. I think if you go
23 halfway down or it can stop there.
24 Q. We can see that this is a list of candidates for the
25 Municipal Assembly of Novi Grad in Sarajevo. Do you agree with that?
Page 29850
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. Under the second list of candidates we see a list of candidates
3 for the Serb Democratic Party of Bosnia and Herzegovina; do you see that?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. Okay. Let's focus in on the name which is number 78 on the
6 right-hand side.
7 MR. GAYNOR: If we could zoom in on that, please, Mr. Registrar.
8 Q. Number 78 lists Dzino Stojan, a Serb from Mihaljevici; do you see
9 that?
10 A. This is not correct. Listen, this is a list. As a matter of
11 fact, I would like to know the date when this list was compiled or,
12 rather, when this was published in a newspaper. This must be a newspaper
13 or a magazine, is it not?
14 Q. The date at the top of the page is the 16th of November, 1990.
15 A. Listen, in order for the Serbian Democratic Party to run in
16 Novi Grad municipality, the Serbian Democratic Party -- not us on the
17 list. A hundred people had to be put forth in Novi Grad municipality,
18 present their IDs, and say that they are members because it would give
19 the Serbian Democratic Party the right to run in the elections. This is
20 not a list of candidates. This is a list of the 100 people who put their
21 names towards helping the Serbian Democratic Party to run in the
22 elections and to put forth some other candidates on its behalf. So this
23 is not the list of the candidates that were running in the election.
24 Q. You, nevertheless, accept that that is your name which appears on
25 a list which is described as a list of candidates for the SDS?
Page 29851
1 A. Listen, I was not on the list of candidates running for MPs in
2 Novi Grad municipality. It doesn't make sense for a list of future MPs
3 to contain the names of a hundred candidates. What I'm saying here, what
4 I'm telling you, is the truth and it is correct.
5 MR. GAYNOR: I'd like to tender that, Mr. President. We'll
6 upload an English translation as soon as we can.
7 JUDGE KWON: Yes, Mr. Robinson.
8 MR. ROBINSON: No objection.
9 MR. GAYNOR: Now I'd like --
10 JUDGE KWON: We'll mark it for identification.
11 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
12 THE REGISTRAR: As MFI P5975, Your Honours.
13 MR. GAYNOR:
14 Q. I'd like to turn to the origins of the Serb municipality of
15 Rajlovac. First, before we get there, as a member of the SDS you did
16 share the views of the SDS, did you?
17 A. Yes.
18 Q. Those views included defended the interests of the Serbian
19 people?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. Defending the territories of the Serbian people?
22 A. Well, what period of time are you referring to?
23 Q. Well, I'm referring to the period of time from 1990 all the way
24 up until 1995 for the purpose of that question.
25 A. Until the combat activities started, we did not need to defend
Page 29852
1 the territory of the Serbian people. It was only when we came under
2 threat that we started defending the Serbian territory. Before that,
3 Rajlovac municipality, where I resided was used by the larger
4 municipality Novi Grad, Sarajevo. In Rajlovac municipality, only
5 economic reasons were in place for Rajlovac municipality to separate from
6 Novi Grad Sarajevo municipality. Nobody thought of war at that time. In
7 Rajlovac municipality there were a lot of large companies that had large
8 profits. For example, I can tell you the names of all of them, but let
9 me give you just a few of them. The --
10 Q. Mr. Witness, Mr. Witness, can I suggest --
11 A. Did you not understand me?
12 Q. I understand you, Mr. Witness. Can I ask you to focus on the
13 questions which are put to you, and subject to a direction from the
14 Trial Chamber try and keep your answers a little shorter and more
15 focused. Is that okay?
16 A. Well, I didn't understand you then.
17 Q. Do you accept that preparations for the establishment of the Serb
18 municipality of Rajlovac started in around October 1991?
19 A. I really don't know when that happened. I'm not sure of the
20 time.
21 Q. Approximately what date would you say that the Serbian
22 municipality of Rajlovac was established?
23 A. I really don't know.
24 Q. The name of the municipality was the Serbian municipality of
25 Rajlovac, wasn't it?
Page 29853
1 A. I don't know, I really don't.
2 Q. Your evidence is that you do not know what the formal name of
3 the -- that the formal name of Rajlovac of the municipal entity that was
4 created was the Serbian municipality of Rajlovac. Is it your evidence
5 that you don't know that?
6 A. I wasn't -- I don't have a clue. I don't know whether the prefix
7 "Srpska" preceded the name. I was not interested in that. It was
8 Rajlovac municipality. It is possible. Now it has just occurred to me.
9 There was a stamp, but I don't know whether that was the full title
10 featured on that stamp. But if you say so, then I suppose you're right.
11 Q. It's not me testifying, sir. At paragraph 68 of your statement,
12 which is -- appears on page 18 you state:
13 "In the Serbian municipality of Rajlovac which is at the same
14 time the zone of responsibility of my brigade, there was no persecution
15 policy on religious or ethnic grounds."
16 You can consult the relevant page of your statement. My question
17 to you is: Why was it called the Serbian municipality of Rajlovac?
18 A. I apologise, I apologise. What paragraph are you referring me
19 to?
20 Q. Sixty-eight.
21 A. Prosecutor, sir, maybe we are talking at cross-purposes here.
22 When Rajlovac municipality was founded, I don't know whether it had the
23 prefix "Serbian" in its name. Later on it became commonplace. That's
24 why I used it. The way I understood your question was whether the prefix
25 "Srpski" was used from the very outset, from the moment when Rajlovac
Page 29854
1 municipality was established. Later on, especially during the conflict,
2 it became a common practice to call it the Serbian municipality of
3 Rajlovac.
4 Q. And why was it called the Serbian municipality of Rajlovac?
5 A. Well, I haven't a clue. I suppose because Serbs resided in that
6 municipality.
7 Q. Now, in your paragraph at -- statement at paragraph 6 you give
8 some figures from the 1991 census, and you say that there were 1.066
9 Muslims living in the local commune of Dobrosevici. That's paragraphs 5
10 and 6. Do you see that?
11 A. Yes.
12 Q. Of those 1066 Muslims, approximately how many were in Ahatovici
13 would you say?
14 A. A majority, perhaps a half, I don't know, or maybe even more than
15 half.
16 Q. Now, going back to paragraphs 68, you refer to a number of
17 non-Serb people living in the Serbian municipality of Rajlovac. And
18 before we get there, is it true that the village of Ahatovici was
19 encompassed within the territory of the Serbian municipality of Rajlovac?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. In paragraph 68 you note the existence of three Croatian families
22 and three individuals who were Muslims and you name those three
23 individuals in paragraph 68. Do you see that?
24 A. Yes.
25 Q. Now, my question to you is: What happened to the 1.066 Muslims
Page 29855
1 who lived in the Dobrosevici area before the war? Why were there only
2 three Muslims in the municipality -- Serbian municipality of Rajlovac by
3 the end of the war?
4 A. No, what I was talking about is not the Serbian municipality of
5 Rajlovac, but Dobrosevici local commune. Second of all, after the
6 4th of June, 1992, after fighting in Ahatovici, the Muslim population
7 surrendered to the Serbian military and the civilian population expressed
8 a wish to leave and go to Sarajevo and they left. And those were not
9 only three Croatian families, not the only three Croatian families.
10 Actually, there were a woman and her parents. Their family name was
11 Pasic. And those were not just the Rebo, Martinovic, Bosnjak families,
12 the names applied to several families and I don't know their
13 exact numbers. Almost all of them from those Croatian families stayed.
14 Younger people left because they were probably afraid they would be
15 recruited to the Army of Republika Srpska. Nobody actually touched them.
16 They left of their own free will. As for the Pasic family, that covers
17 several families who resided in some dozen houses. They left of their
18 own free will because of some problems. They resided above the Butile
19 barracks. Fire was opened from their houses at the barracks. I don't
20 know how they were moved into some dozen weekend cottages, but I know
21 that they left the area of their own free will and that they left in the
22 direction of Kiseljak. On several occasions I popped over and visited
23 them because they resided close to where I lived. Our relations were
24 good. I asked them if they needed anything. They lived there and they
25 enjoyed all the rights like any other citizen. They couldn't go to their
Page 29856
1 own houses. That was the only exception. They had to report to somebody
2 from the military police --
3 Q. Mr. Dzino --
4 A. -- I don't know who that was --
5 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] A correction in the transcript.
6 Let us clarify whether fire was opened from the barracks at those houses
7 or whether it was the other way around; i.e., whether fire was opened
8 from those houses at the barracks.
9 MR. GAYNOR: That can be corrected in re-direct I would suggest.
10 JUDGE KWON: Very much so. Please continue.
11 But Mr. --
12 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] No, the witness said that fire was
13 opened from the houses. I have an objection to the transcript. Why
14 don't you clarify with the witness now and ask him what he actually said?
15 JUDGE KWON: Transcription or transcript can be corrected later
16 on by -- if there's a proper request. I couldn't find the passage here
17 so that's why I suggested continuing with the evidence. I find the flow
18 of evidence very important.
19 Mr. Dzino, because what you are saying has to be interpreted in
20 two languages, please speak slowly. Do you understand that, sir?
21 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I do.
22 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Line 15, if I may be of assistance.
23 On line 15 the witness's words were misrecorded. That's on page 104.
24 JUDGE KWON: Very well. That will be checked against the
25 recording by the CLSS. Thank you.
Page 29857
1 MR. GAYNOR: Thank you, Mr. President.
2 Q. Witness, in your -- one of your answers you referred to the
3 Muslim civilians from Ahatovici surrendering to Serb forces. Can we
4 agree that that was in late May 1992?
5 A. I know the exact date.
6 Q. What is the exact date?
7 A. It started on the 31st of May and lasted until the 2nd of June.
8 Q. Thank you. Now, Their Honours have received evidence, the
9 citations are P2314, paragraph 46; and P2310, paragraphs 31 to 33. The
10 Judges have received evidence that hundreds of Muslim women, children,
11 and men from Ahatovici and its surrounding villages were detained in
12 several locations in Rajlovac following the take-over of Ahatovici by
13 Serb forces. Do you know anything about that?
14 A. I know that they were detained, but I don't know where nor how.
15 Not only were they detained, I would like you to show me a map. When we
16 are talking about Ahatovici, there's only the Ahatovici local commune
17 which was inhabited by Muslims. The extremists who wanted to engage in
18 fighting were in Ahatovici. The lower-lying areas, I'm speaking off the
19 top of my head, it would be best to see the map then you would understand
20 what I'm talking about. I don't know how things transpired. In any
21 case, those people did not engage in major fighting. They surrendered.
22 And I know for a fact that some of the men, for example, the
23 Gacanovici [phoen] family asked their neighbours to drive them to some --
24 Revo [phoen]. They never arrived in Rajlovica. As for the civilians
25 from Ahatovici, more specifically the villages in Ahatovici which
Page 29858
1 composed one-third of the local commune, they were indeed taken to
2 Rajlovac.
3 Q. And are you aware that many were treated to beatings? They were
4 kept in inhumane conditions. Several were beaten to death according to
5 the evidence the Trial Chamber has received. Have you heard anything
6 about that?
7 A. I'm sorry that that happened. I really was not in Rajlovac at
8 the time, nor do I know what happened there, and if what you're saying
9 indeed did happen I'm very sorry.
10 JUDGE KWON: Mr. Gaynor, just one or two questions. We need to
11 rise at 2.30.
12 MR. GAYNOR: Certainly. We can stop there. Thank you,
13 Mr. President. It's -- this is an appropriate place to stop as far as my
14 planning is concerned. Thank you.
15 JUDGE KWON: Thank you.
16 We'll rise today and we'll continue tomorrow at 9.00.
17 --- Whereupon the hearing adjourned at 2.28 p.m.,
18 to be reconvened on Wednesday, the 7th day of
19 November, 2012, at 9.00 a.m.
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