BEFORE THE TRIAL CHAMBER

Before:
Judge Liu Daqun, Presiding
Judge Maureen Harding Clark
Judge Fatoumata Diarra

Registrar:
Mr. Hans Holthuis

Order of:
25 October 2001

PROSECUTOR

v.

MLADEN NALETILIC aka "TUTA"
and
VINKO MARTINOVIC aka “STELA"

___________________________________________________________

ORDER RE-STATING THE PRINCIPLES ON THE PRESENTATION OF DOCUMENTS AND OTHER EVIDENCE ITEMS

___________________________________________________________

The Office of the Prosecutor:

Mr. Kenneth Scott

Counsel for the Accused:

Mr. Kresimir Krsnik, for Mladen Naletilic
Mr. Branko Seric, for Vinko Martinovic

 

TRIAL CHAMBER I, SECTION A ("the Chamber") of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1992 ("the Tribunal"):

NOTING that as early as on 24 July 2001, the Registry transmitted the "Memorandum on the Handling of Exhibits in Case N. IT-98-34-PT" to the parties by which the parties in this case were informed about the administrative procedure of submitting documents or other evidence items;

NOTING the Chamber’s oral order ("the Order’) for the efficient administration and fairness of the proceedings on 12 September 2001, setting out detailed instructions as to how documents that are intended to be used by a party during direct or cross-examination should be submitted to the Chamber;

CONSIDERING that at all times, a witness has to be treated fairly and respectfully during cross-examination and that the party cross-examining a witness is under particular obligation to duly inform the witness which particular document and relevant part of the said document is being referred to and to be discussed;

FOR THE FOREGOING REASONS

ORDERS that the following principles, as already adopted by the Order of 12 September 2001, are adhered to by all parties when presenting documents or other evidence items to the Chamber:

  1. The official languages of the Tribunal are English and French. All documents or other exhibits presented to a witness during direct or cross-examination shall be in at least one of the official languages when presented to the Chamber;
  2. Such documents or other items shall already be pre-numbered by the Registry. The party making use of the document or other item is responsible for having documents and other evidence items correctly numbered in co-operation with the Registry before making use of the document or other item in the courtroom;
  3. The number of the document presented shall be announced to the Chamber and the other parties;
  4. A copy of the document presented shall be distributed by the party intending to use it to the Chamber, the Legal Officer and the other parties before the document is being discussed;
  5. The witness is to be given a copy, if possible in his or her native language, before he or she is examined in chief or in cross on the document;
  6. The interpreters shall be provided with a copy of the document before the party starts to quote from a document. Before quoting, the party referring to a document shall point out clearly to the interpreters the page and paragraph of the document concerned. Since interpretation is provided with regard to B/C/S and the two official languages of the Tribunal, three sets of documents have to be distributed to the interpretation booths;

REMINDS parties that in the interest of an expedient and fair trial, the Chamber will, from the day this order enters into force, only allow a party to use documents or other evidence items in the course of the direct or cross-examination of a witness if the Chamber is satisfied that the party complied with these principles.

 

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

Dated this twenty-fifth day of October 2001,
At The Hague,
The Netherlands

Judge Liu Daqun
Presiding Judge

[Seal of the Tribunal]