NOTING the Defence Motion to admit into evidence the statement of deceased witness Midhat Haskic filed on 18 December 1997,

NOTING the Decision of this Trial Chamber of 21 January 1998 in respect of the Defence’s objection in principle to the admission of hearsay evidence with no inquiry as to its reliability,

PURSUANT to Article 21(4)(e) of the Statute of the Tribunal,

PURSUANT to Rule 89 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence,

CONSIDERING the need for the proper administration of justice and the requirement of a fair trial,

CONSIDERING the exceptions to the principle of oral deposition of testimony and cross-examination admitted both in the national legal systems and precedents established by international jurisdictions, including those exceptions relating to the admission of statements of deceased witnesses,

CONSIDERING that the statement of witness Midhat Haskic, who has died of natural causes, was given under oath to the Prosecutor’s investigators and that the said statement was disclosed by her to the Defence on 11 October 1996,

CONSIDERING that the admission of that statement would not prejudice the opinion of the Trial Chamber in respect of the Defence assertion that the statement would establish that the village of Donje Veceriska was a legitimate military objective because it was defended, and that the Trial Chamber, in fact, reserves the right to determine in due time the probative value such evidence would merit,

DECIDES to admit into evidence, within the limits specified above, the statement of witness Midhat Haskic,

STATES that the Prosecutor must decide to present, should she so wish, her observations on the said statement or, should such be the case, request an inter partes hearing on that testimony.

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

(signed)
_________________________
Claude Jorda
Presiding Judge, Trial Chamber I

Done this twenty-ninth day of April 1998

At The Hague
The Netherlands