| Press Advisory |
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| (Exclusively for the use of the media. Not an official document) |
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The Hague, 26 May 2009
VE/MOW/PA370e
Vojislav Šešelj Contempt Trial To Begin 29 May
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| Vojislav Šešelj |
The trial of Vojislav Šešelj for contempt of court will begin on Friday, 29 May 2009 at 14:15 in Courtroom I.
Šešelj, the leader of the Serb Radical Party is on trial before the Tribunal for alleged crimes committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia between 1991 and 1994.
The additional charges of contempt are related to the disclosure of the name and other personal details of three protected witnesses in Šešelj’s war crimes trial.
Šešelj is alleged to have authored a book in which the information was published, along with other material such as excerpts of the written statement of one of these witnesses, the disclosure of which was prohibited.
Trial Chamber II issued its Order in lieu of a contempt Indictment on 21 January 2009. At the initial appearance held on 6 March 2009 Šešelj pleaded not guilty.
The Tribunal regards the safety of witnesses and the integrity of confidential materials as essential elements in the rule of law. Several persons who have attempted to interfere with the judicial process by revealing confidential information or endangering witnesses have been prosecuted.
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The full text of the Decision and Order is available at:
http://www.icty.org/x/cases/seselj/tdec/en/090121.pdf
An information sheet on this contempt case is available at:
http://www.icty.org/x/cases/contempt_seselj/cis/en/cis_seselj_contempt_en.pdf
Courtroom proceedings can be followed on the Tribunal’s website at www.icty.org
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International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
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