Case No.: IT-01-47-PT

IN TRIAL CHAMBER II

Before:
Judge Wolfgang Schomburg, Presiding
Judge Florence Ndpele Mwachande Mumba
Judge Carmel Agius

Registrar:
Mr. Hans Holthuis

Decision of:
05 September 2002

PROSECUTOR

v

ENVER HADZIHASANOVIC
MEHMED ALAGIC
AMIR KUBURA

____________________________________

DECISION ON MOTION OF MEHMED ALAGIC TO VARY THE CONDITIONS OF HIS PROVISIONAL RELEASE

____________________________________

The Office of the Prosecutor:

Mr. Ekkehard Withopf

Counsel for accused:

Ms. Edina Residovic and Mr. Stéphane Bourgon for Enver Hadzihasanovic
Ms. Vasvija Vidovic and Mr. John Jones for Mehmed Alagic
Mr. Fahrudin Ibrisimovic and Mr. Rodney Dixon for Amir Kubura

Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina:

Mr. Sahbaz Dzihanovic, Deputy Minister of Justice
Mr. Tomislav Limov, Deputy Minister of Interior

 

THIS TRIAL 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 1991 ("Tribunal"),

BEING SEISED of the "Motion of Mehmed Alagic to Vary the Conditions of his Provisional Release" ("Motion") dated 12 August 2002 and filed confidentially on 13 August 2002, in which Mehmed Alagic ("Accused") seeks a change in the terms and conditions of his provisional release, as detailed in the Decision Granting Provisional Release to Mehmed Alagic, 19 December 2001 ("Provisional Release Decision") at paragraph 4,

NOTING that the Prosecution does not oppose the variation of the terms of the provisional release as requested by the Defence1,

NOTING that the Motion seeks that paragraph 4(c) of the Provisional Release Decision, which requires that the accused "remain within the confines of Sanski Most"2, be varied in order for the Accused to travel to Sarajevo to receive medical treatment,

NOTING that two medical reports were attached to the Motion, which detail the Accused’s medical condition, and state that certain medical examinations that can only be done in Sarajevo need to be undertaken,

NOTING that the Defence proposed the following terms and conditions for the variation of the terms of provisional release, as currently defined in 4(c) of the Provisional Release Decision: (a) To remain in the confines of Sanski Most. Alagic is permitted to travel to Sarajevo for the necessary specialist medical treatment, referred to in Dr. Djumisic’s reports of 22 July 2002. Alagic must notify the Trial Chamber (and provide the Prosecution with a copy of the notification) of the duration and purpose of any such trip, three days before its commencement, except in an emergency; (b) all other conditions to remain as set out in the [Provisional Release] Decision; and (c) Alagic will abide by any other conditions imposed by the Trial Chamber,

CONSIDERING that the Motion can be characterised as a request on humanitarian grounds not violating the terms and conditions of the Provisional Release Decision, and specifically Order 4(g), due to the concrete and exceptional circumstances of the request,

NOTING that such a request is not unprecedented before the Tribunal, and that in previous cases, when sufficient medical documentation has been provided, such a request has been granted,3

CONSIDERING the variation of terms and conditions proposed by the Defence, and that the Prosecution had discussed the terms and conditions for the variation of protective measures with the Defence prior to the filing of the Motion and raised no objections to the Motion,

CONSIDERING that the Accused has complied with all terms and conditions of his provisional release, as evinced by the reports filed by the Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina each month with the Trial Chamber,

CONSIDERING FURTHER that the Accused has stated his intention to continue to comply with all terms and conditions for provisional release imposed by the Trial Chamber, including inter alia to return to the Tribunal at such time and on such date as the Trial Chamber may order, not to have any contacts whatsoever or in anyway interfere with victims or potential witnesses or otherwise interfere in any way with the proceedings or the administration of justice, not to discuss his case with anyone including the media, other than his counsel and immediate members of his family, and to comply strictly with any requirements of the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina to enable them to comply with their obligations under the order for provisional release and their guarantees,

PURSUANT TO Rule 54 and Rule 65 of the Rules,

HEREBY GRANTS the Motion, and

ORDERS that the continued provisional release of Mehmed Alagic be conditional upon his continued compliance with the terms and conditions of the Provisional Release Decision, which remain in effect with the exception of 4(c), which is hereby varied to read:

"To remain within the confines of Sanski Most, or travel to the town of Sarajevo for the necessary specialist medical treatment, pursuant to the following terms and conditions:

  1. the Accused, after consultation with the Prosecution, shall notify the Registrar three days prior to the commencement of any trip to Sarajevo, and

  2. in cases of emergency, such prior notice shall not be necessary; however, the Registry and the Prosecution shall be notified as soon as possible of the Accused’s presence in Sarajevo for emergency medical treatment."

 

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

________________________________
Wolfgang Schomburg
Presiding Judge

Dated this fifth day of September 2002,
At The Hague
The Netherlands

[Seal of the Tribunal]
1. Prosecution's Response to "Motion of Mehmed Alagic to Vary the Conditions of his Provisional Release," 14 Aug. 2002 (filed confidentially).
2. The Trial Chamber takes note of the fact that the Provisional Release Decision inaccurately stated "Sarajevo", and that this error was corrected via a fax from the Trial Chamber to the co-counsel for the Accused on 8 January 2002, which stated, "we apologise for this typographical error. General Alagic's residence is in Sanski Most and not Sarajevo".
3. See, e.g. Prosecutor v. Milan Simic, Case No. IT-95-9-PT, Decision on the Application of the Accused Mr. Milan Simic to Leave his Residence for Medical Reasons, 17 Apr. 1998; Prosecutor v. Milan Simic, Case No. IT-95-9-PT, Decision on the Application of the Accused Mr. Milan Simic to Leave his Residence for Medical Reasons (2), 8 May 1998; and Prosecutor v. Milan Simic, Case No. IT-95-9-PT, Decision on the Application of the Accused Mr. Milan Simic to Leave his Residence for Medical Reasons (3), 29 Jul. 1998.