Trials held at the Tribunal are open to the public, and may be viewed from public galleries of the courtrooms.
Trials held at the Tribunal are open to the public*,and may be viewed from public galleries of the courtrooms. The trials may also be followed on monitors in the Tribunal's lobby. There can be several trials held in the Tribunal's three courtrooms each working day.
*Closed sessions that may take place during a hearing are not open to the public.
Upon arrival at the ICTY, all visitors must show photo identification (for example, a passport or a driver's license). At this time, the security officers at the front entrance will provide you with a pass to enter the courtroom. You will then go through a security check, including a metal detector.
No food, drinks, cameras, cell phones, audio recorders and other electronic equipment are permitted in the public galleries of the courtrooms. Lockers for cameras, mobile telephones or other electronic equipment in the security booth at the front entrance, but the number of these lockers is limited.
The Tribunal does not allow filming or photographing anywhere on its premises. You are, however, welcome to visit our photo gallery.
As in many national jurisdictions, a visit to a court of law is subject to certain rules.
Attending the hearings
Before entering the courtroom, you will be subject to another security check, including passage through a metal detector.
Inside the courtroom, visitors are asked to follow certain rules of decorum. Everyone in the courtroom, including those in the public gallery, will be asked to rise when the usher announces the entrance of the judges, and you will remain standing until the judges have taken their seats. This procedure is repeated when the session adjourns. Although there is no formal dress-code for visitors, we kindly ask that you dress appropriately. Persons wearing provocative clothing or displaying potentially disruptive or offensive insignia or images will not be allowed to enter the building. Please note that the Presiding Judge may order the removal of a person from the public gallery in the event of any disruption. While on the premises, visitors are kindly asked to follow the instructions of the Tribunal’s security officers. Children under the age of 16 are not permitted in the courtroom galleries.
Courtrooms are generally open from 09:00 to 19:00 hours and sit in two sessions. The first session runs from 09:00 to 13:45 hours and the second session from 14:15 to 19:00 hours. The Tribunal offers simultaneous interpretation of its proceedings in English, French, and Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian, and, in appropriate cases, in Albanian and Macedonian. Headsets are available.
Group visits
The Tribunal also welcomes group visits and makes special arrangements accordingly. We can organise lectures and discussions with Tribunal representatives, according to your group’s interests.
If you are planning a group visit, we recommend that you contact us at least six weeks before the expected date of your visit. You will need to provide a list of all the visitors’ names and passport numbers to our office at least one week before the visit. For practical reasons the number of visitors per group should not exceed 25 persons and they should not arrive at the Tribunal before 09:30 hours. Please note that a group visit will last a minimum of two and a half hours.
Once in the building, visitors who are part of a group visit are asked to follow the same rules as everyone else.
To organise a group visit, please contact:
Jan Kralt
Communications Section, Documentation Unit
Tel: +31 (0)70 512 5285
E-mail: kralt.icty [at] un.org
Group visits from the former Yugoslavia
In an effort to bring our work closer to the peoples most affected by it, the Tribunal encourages visits from the former Yugoslavia. We invite students, legal professionals, journalists or any other group interested in visiting the Tribunal to contact the ICTY’s Outreach Programme, which has offices in The Hague and in the former Yugoslavia.