Page 17924
1 Tuesday, 29 March 2005
2 [Open session]
3 --- Upon commencing at 2.15 p.m.
4 [The accused entered court]
5 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Mr. Registrar, could you call
6 the case, please.
7 THE REGISTRAR: [Interpretation] Thank you, Mr. President. Case
8 number IT-01-47-T, The Prosecutor versus Enver Hadzihasanovic and Amir
9 Kubura.
10 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Thank you, Mr. Registrar.
11 Could we have the appearances for the Prosecution, please.
12 MR. MUNDIS: Thank you, Mr. President. Good afternoon, Your
13 Honours, counsel and everyone in and around the courtroom. For the
14 Prosecution, Daryl Mundis, assisted by Andres Vatter, our case manager.
15 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Mr. Mundis, thank you.
16 Could we have the appearances for Defence counsel, please.
17 MS. RESIDOVIC: [Interpretation] Good day, Your Honours. For the
18 Defence of General Hadzihasanovic, Edina Residovic, lead counsel, Stefane
19 Bourgon, co-counsel, and Alexis Demirdjian, legal assistant.
20 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Thank you.
21 And could we have the appearances for the other Defence team,
22 please.
23 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation] Good day, Your Honours. On
24 behalf of Mr. Kubura, Rodney Dixon, Fahrudin Ibrisimovic and our legal
25 assistant Nerman Mulalic.
Page 17925
1 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] We will now resume with the
2 hearings on the 29th of March, 2005, after having had a UN holiday. Our
3 witness has been waiting since Thursday. We will call him back into the
4 courtroom. Could the usher please bring the witness into the courtroom.
5 [The witness entered court]
6 WITNESS: VAHID KARAVELIC [Resumed]
7 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Good day, General. Just before
8 you entered the courtroom I was saying that we will now be resuming with
9 your examination, I will take this opportunity to greet everyone present,
10 Mr. Mundis, defence counsel, the accused, and everyone else in and around
11 the courtroom.
12 We will be continuing with the examination-in-chief. I think
13 Mr. Bourgon concluded his examination-in-chief on Thursday so I will now
14 give the floor to defence counsel for Mr. Kubura who will now be
15 conducting their examination-in-chief.
16 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you, Mr. President. We
17 will probably conclude our examination-in-chief by --
18 THE INTERPRETER: The interpreter did not hear Mr. Ibrisimovic.
19 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation] Could Mr. -- could General
20 Karavelic have a look at his report, please.
21 Examined by Mr. Ibrisimovic:
22 Q. General, could you please have a look at the part of the
23 report 476 to 479, paragraphs 476 to 479, which concern the 7th Muslim
24 Brigade. In your report, you said that the 7th Muslim Brigade was
25 established by order from the Supreme Command Staff on the 19th of
Page 17926
1 November, 1992. Is that correct?
2 A. Yes.
3 Q. In your report, you said that it was formed in the way that other
4 brigades were formed. It was mobilised in the same way that other
5 brigades were mobilised. It had similar or identical problems to those of
6 other brigades. However, that's not what I'm interested in. That is
7 already contained in the report that has been admitted into evidence.
8 What I'm interested this is the following: When it was formed in
9 November 1992, the brigade already had the title the 7th Muslim Brigade.
10 That was the name of the brigade. Is that correct?
11 A. That's what it says in the documents, yes.
12 Q. So by order of the Supreme Command Staff that name was given to
13 the brigade?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. General, on the basis of the documents that you reviewed, are you
16 aware of the fact that brigades that had such names existed in other ABiH
17 corps?
18 A. Yes, I'm aware of that. And in the course of the war, all ABiH
19 corps had at least one Muslim brigade.
20 Q. Do you know whether the 7th Muslim Brigade was the first one in
21 the ABiH that was given that name, that was designated as the Muslim
22 brigade, or was there some other such brigade in some other corps?
23 A. I'm not certain, but I think that the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade
24 was the first one that had such a name and it was formed in that way in
25 the ABiH, although there were probably other smaller units in corps that
Page 17927
1 perhaps had such a name, but I don't think there were any other brigades
2 with such a name before.
3 Q. In your report, it says that the first such brigade with such a
4 name was formed within the 5th Corps as the 101st Brigade?
5 A. If that's what it says in my report, then perhaps I have made a
6 slip, because the report was drafted on the basis of the documents I had,
7 so in that case it's correct.
8 Q. Would you have a look at footnote 107 which is on page 73 of your
9 report. Some brigades are referred to which were parts of other corps.
10 The 1st Podrinje Muslim Brigade, the 243 Muslim Light Brigade, the
11 1st Muslim Mountain Brigade, the 17th Muslim Brigade, et cetera.
12 A. Everything that is stated in the footnote is correct.
13 Q. General, do you know whether such brigades, called Muslim
14 brigades, existed as anti-fascist brigade in the course of the Second
15 World War too?
16 A. As far as I know, on the basis of the history I have studied, yes,
17 such brigades did exist and were part of the coalition fighting against
18 fascism. They were part of the anti-fascist coalition.
19 Q. A witness testified here, Professor Sehic, a professor of history,
20 who in fact confirmed that and said that in the Second World War several
21 brigades existed that were called Muslim brigades, and he mentioned the
22 16th Muslim Brigade which was the largest such brigade.
23 A. I think that that is correct. And as far as I know, such units in
24 the fight against fascism were very prominent units, units that had been
25 remarked and that were much appreciated, if I may put it that way, by the
Page 17928
1 political and military leadership and the anti-fascist coalition, and
2 their contribution to the fight against fascism was immense.
3 Q. I would say that the tradition of such brigades was preserved
4 after the Second World War within the framework of the former Yugoslavia?
5 A. I think that he is correct when he said that. According to what I
6 know, that is correct. And all nations and peoples in the former
7 Yugoslavia had the right to preserve their heritage and these traditions
8 from the peoples' liberation war.
9 Q. Mr. Karavelic, you were the commander of the 1st Corps at one
10 point in time in the course of the war. In the 1st Corps, was there a
11 brigade that was called a Muslim brigade?
12 A. In the 1st Corps of the ABiH, there was a plan to establish one
13 such unit at least. However, for various reasons, we didn't succeed in
14 doing so immediately. But this was only done at the beginning of 1994,
15 and one such brigade was formed at that point in time which was part of
16 the 1st Corps of the ABiH.
17 Q. Could you now clarify something for me: If there's an order from
18 the Supreme Command Staff and the brigade is called the 7th Muslim Brigade
19 or the 101st Muslim Brigade - it's not really important - can the brigade
20 commander or anyone else influence the name? Can he have it changed if
21 the command issues an order and says that the brigade should be given a
22 certain name?
23 A. The brigade commander and people further up the chain of command
24 can only make suggestions to change the name of a brigade. They can do
25 nothing more. The Supreme Command gives brigades their names.
Page 17929
1 Q. On the basis of the documents that you reviewed, Mr. Kubura
2 arrived in 7th Muslim Brigade towards the end of December 1992, and at the
3 beginning of 1993 he arrived there first as the assistant chief for
4 operations and training. He later became the Chief of Staff. And when he
5 was in that position, could he have had any influence, could he have
6 suggested that the name of the brigade be changed?
7 A. I can give you a broad answer. But very briefly my answer would
8 be, no, he could have no influence on the name of the brigade.
9 Q. I'm asking you this because Mr. Kubura arrived in the 7th Muslim
10 Brigade when it had already been established by order from the Supreme
11 Command Staff.
12 A. Yes, that's correct.
13 Q. Thank you. In the documents you have, could you have a look at
14 paragraph 477, in fact, in your report, where reference is made to
15 Mr. Kubura. We know from the documents that he was first the assistant
16 Chief of Staff, operations and training, in the December, 1992.
17 A. Yes. That's what it says in the documents.
18 Q. By order dated March 1993, Mr. Kubura became the Chief of Staff of
19 the 7th Muslim Brigade?
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. In August 1993, Mr. Kubura became the commander of the 7th Muslim
22 Brigade?
23 A. Yes.
24 Q. Mr. Karavelic, in the documents that you had at your disposal, did
25 you find any reliable evidence or any facts or anything else pointing to
Page 17930
1 whether Mr. Koricic, the commander of the 7th Muslim Brigade, left that
2 brigade and went abroad?
3 A. In all the documents that I had at my disposal, and they're right
4 behind me, and in many other documents that I had access to, I don't
5 believe that I came across any document that referred to this subject
6 among those documents.
7 Q. You didn't find a document that would say that this in fact
8 happened on the 1st of April, 1993?
9 A. No.
10 Q. General, in the documents that you saw, did you come across any
11 evidence pointing to the fact that Mr. Kubura was authorised to represent
12 the command of the 7th Muslim Brigade, Mr. Koricic? Is there any such
13 document and did you come across such a document?
14 A. In accordance with my previous answer, I think that in this case
15 too my answer would be the same. I didn't come across any documents that
16 referred to him representing the commander of the 7th Muslim Brigade.
17 Q. In the documents that you saw, did you come across any in which
18 Asim Koricic was authorised by his superior command to be absent from the
19 brigade?
20 A. I also -- I don't think that I saw any such documents either.
21 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation] Mr. President, on page 7, line 12, it
22 should say Koricic, and according to the transcript it says Karadzic.
23 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Yes. Karadzic.
24 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation]
25 Q. General, could you explain to us the procedure that is followed if
Page 17931
1 Koricic was appointed as the brigade commander. When the brigade
2 commander has to be absent for various reasons, what is the procedure that
3 is followed in accordance with military regulations?
4 A. According to the service regulations of the JNA, or rather
5 according to the provisions of those regulations that were adopted by the
6 ABiH, I think that when it's not possible for the brigade commander to
7 perform his duties, when it's not possible for any brigade commander to
8 perform his duties, the superior is duty-bound to draft a document, or
9 rather an order, in which the next person in the chain of command is
10 designated as the commander or perhaps some other officer so that this
11 officer can perform those duties for a certain period of time.
12 I think that if the period of time is a two-month period, then the
13 deputy or Chief of Staff has to perform those duties, if the deputy isn't
14 present, and it's not even necessary to draft any orders with regard to
15 that matter. However, if the period of time is over two months, then the
16 superior is duty-bound to draft an order on representing the brigade
17 commander for a certain period of time. Up to six months at the most.
18 This period of time can be up to six months at the most. But the superior
19 can extend this six-month period of time for another six months. But only
20 on one occasion.
21 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation] Mr. President, to facilitate
22 this and to obtain some clarifications from the General, I would like the
23 witness to have a look at document P243. We have a sufficient number of
24 copies for everyone here.
25 This is P243. It's a decree of law on the ABiH dated the 1st of
Page 17932
1 August, 1992.
2 Q. General, have a look at Article 78, please of this decree.
3 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation] It's page 17 in the English
4 version.
5 Q. Have you found Article 78?
6 A. Yes.
7 Q. It says that an officer who is temporarily unable to perform his
8 duties is a signed representative.
9 A. Yes.
10 Q. In paragraph 3, it says being represented in accordance with one
11 and two can -- Article 1 and 2 can go on for about six months and, if
12 another officer takes such a decision, this period of time can be extended
13 to one year from the date on which the duty is assumed, or such duties are
14 assumed. That means that the Superior Command has to regulate this matter
15 by issuing an order on representing a commander if the commander of the
16 unit is absent. In this case, we're referring to brigade commander. Is
17 that correct?
18 A. Yes. I think that that is quite correct.
19 Q. In the same article it says that this period of time can be
20 extended for another six months and in accordance with an order from a
21 superior officer, from a Supreme Command Staff. Is that correct?
22 A. Yes.
23 Q. When reviewing these documents, you didn't come across an order
24 regulating the situation had he Mr. Koricic left the brigade and when
25 Mr. Kubura was appointed as the representative of the brigade commander in
Page 17933
1 accordance with an order that had been issued?
2 A. I've already said that I didn't come across any such documents.
3 Q. Let's just clarify something. You didn't find a document stating
4 that Mr. Koricic was authorised to be absent from the brigade and you
5 didn't come across any documents in which an order was issued stating that
6 Mr. Kubura would be representing the brigade commander, nor did you come
7 across any documents stating when Mr. Koricic left the 7th Muslim Brigade.
8 A. That's quite correct.
9 Q. Please have a look at, in the same series of documents, the rules
10 of service in the ABiH, Article 14. In the Bosnian version it's page 50;
11 in the English version, it's page 39. It says that if a unit -- it refers
12 to cases when units are suddenly left without a superior officer.
13 General, have you found the article?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. "If a unit is left without a superior officer," have you found
16 that?
17 A. Yes.
18 Q. Could you just clarify the following situation: If a unit is
19 suddenly left without a commander, there's a situation when units
20 suddenly -- is suddenly left without a commander. For example, a
21 commander dies or is killed.
22 A. I think that this article refers to extraordinary circumstances,
23 if the brigade commander is killed or dies or if he is captured,
24 et cetera. So it concerns unexpected events. And then the second person
25 in the chain of command has the duty to assume the duties of the brigade
Page 17934
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12 Blank page inserted to ensure pagination corresponds between the French and
13 English transcripts.
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15
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17
18
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Page 17935
1 commander, or rather he has to command with the brigade. He has to
2 continue commanding the brigade. But the superior has to regulate this
3 situation by issuing an order as soon as possible.
4 Q. But this does not concern the situation that existed between
5 Mr. Koricic and Mr. Kubura in the 7th Muslim Brigade?
6 A. I wouldn't be able to place that within the context of this
7 article.
8 Q. Thank you very much. And now when we see that Mr. Kubura was
9 first assistant commander for operations and training and then an order
10 was issued in March pursuant to which he was appointed the Chief of Staff,
11 and in the indictment it is stated that Mr. Kubura represented a commander
12 as of the 1st of April.
13 My question to you is as follows: Would it be possible for
14 anybody to perform the same -- the two sets of duties in the same brigade
15 at the same time?
16 A. As I was studying documents, I also looked at the order pursuant
17 to which Amid Kubura was appointed the Chief of Staff at the same time he
18 was the deputy commander of the 7th Muslim Brigade. Pursuant to that
19 order, Brigadier Kubura had already been given two duties to perform,
20 irrespective of the fact that they may be integrated, conditionally
21 speaking, into one position or one set of duties.
22 Any further assignments, building on an already existing,
23 complicated position in my view is unacceptable for the following reason:
24 If somebody performs the duties of the commander of the 7th Muslim
25 Mountain Brigade and, if it was Brigadier Kubura, that means that he had
Page 17936
1 three sets of duties, which is unacceptable, according to any principles
2 of or doctrines of any of the militaries of the world.
3 Q. Thank you very much. As you were studying this documentation, you
4 saw that Mr. Kubura did not have any idea as to when Mr. Koricic might
5 return to the brigade?
6 A. I didn't come across any sources that would confirm that he did
7 have any knowledge as to that fact.
8 Q. His status as an officer in the 7th Muslim Brigade was finally
9 resolved when he was appointed a commander of the 7th Muslim Brigade which
10 was on the 6th of August, 1993; is that correct?
11 A. In legal terms, this would be the date when he was factually
12 appointed the commander of the 7th Muslim Brigade. However, at the same
13 time, this is the moment when the new Chief of Staff was appointed as well
14 as the deputy commander and other officers. Pursuant to this particular
15 order, he was appointed a commander of the 7th Muslim Brigade, but he was
16 also relieved of his former duties of the Chief of Staff and the deputy
17 commander of that brigade, and this is correct.
18 Q. This is precisely what I was going to ask you. Mr. Kubura was the
19 Chief of Staff until the 6th of August, 1993 when he was appointed the
20 commander of the 7th Muslim Brigade.
21 A. From my point of view, I believe that this is exactly what
22 happened. And as I'm looking at the situation from the point of view of
23 legal aspects, I would say that this is correct.
24 Q. At the moment when the brigade was given a new commander, when the
25 new commander was appointed, and that was in August 1993, wasn't
Page 17937
1 Mr. Kubura in the position to take the brigade over from somebody else
2 should there have been a handover from some previous commander?
3 A. Under all -- any circumstances, the answer would be yes, unless
4 the previous commander was either killed or captured.
5 Q. And now I would like to ask you about the events in the villages
6 of Miletici and Maline. Could you please look at paragraph 691 of your
7 expert report.
8 When it comes to Miletici, you said that you didn't find any
9 documents or evidence that would point to the presence of the 7th Muslim
10 Brigade on that particular day in Miletici, hence there is no
11 responsibility on the part of Mr. Kubura for the events in Miletici, and
12 you agreed with Mr. Reinhardt who confirmed that.
13 A. Yes. This may be seen in my paragraph 691. I have not come
14 across any relevant documents that would speak to the contrary.
15 Q. Did you find any documents among the documents that you studied,
16 pointing to the fact that the 7th Muslim Brigade or its command or the
17 battalion in Travnik requested any report on the events in Milici in 1993?
18 A. I don't think so.
19 Q. Could you please look at paragraph 721 of your report. When it
20 comes to the village of Maline, my question is the same: Among the
21 documents that you studied, did you find any evidence pointing to the fact
22 that the 7th Muslim Brigade was in Maline in June 1993?
23 A. Like in the previous case, the -- my answer is the same. I did
24 not find any relevant documents pointing to that fact.
25 Q. Your position is identical as the position of the military expert
Page 17938
1 Mr. Reinhardt who says that he did not find any relevant documents
2 pointing to the presence of the 7th Muslim Brigade on that particular day
3 in the village of Maline?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. Did you find any documents pointing to the fact that the
6 7th Muslim Brigade, its command or its battalions are requested to send
7 any reports on the events in Maline in June 1993?
8 A. I don't think so.
9 Q. Thank you very much. General, can we please move on to the part
10 of your report talking about the events in Vares in November 1993 starting
11 with paragraph 833 of your report.
12 I will not repeat your words. Could you please look at
13 paragraph 834 and your conclusion with regard to the responsibility of
14 Mr. Kubura, with regard to the events in Vares in 1993.
15 You're saying that he did everything else -- everything possible
16 to prevent his subordinates from plundering?
17 A. Yes. This is what it says in paragraph 848.
18 Q. As you were studying the documents that you had at your disposal,
19 did you also study the report sent by General Alagic dated 8 November
20 1993. This is P449 in which it says as follows: "The plunder by all of
21 the formations that were present was prevented by the urgent intervention
22 of the OG East of the 7th Muslim Brigade and the Ministry of the
23 Interior." [As interpreted]
24 A. I believe that I read this document.
25 Q. Does this document point to the fact that the 7th Muslim Brigade
Page 17939
1 did their utmost to prevent plundering in November 1993 in Vares?
2 A. Yes, that is the case.
3 Q. Did you take into account the report by General Divjak dated
4 17th of November, 1993? This is P450. I repeat the date is 17 November
5 1993, although in the documents that you have it is obvious that the
6 7th Muslim Brigade left Vares much earlier.
7 In this report it says as follows: The units of the second corps
8 are in Vares, about 300 troops are there. And individual plunder in Vares
9 started once these units entered the town of Vares. And this report was
10 sent to the 3rd Corps for their information.
11 A. I believe that I read this document and I'm aware of its contents,
12 and I believe that this is the truth of the matter, if I may say so.
13 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation] Mr. President, on line -- on
14 page 14, line 21, it should read: "OG Bosanska Krajina and military
15 police and the 7th Muslim Brigade." This is just for the record.
16 Q. Finally I would like to ask you, General: Do you know Mr. Kubura?
17 A. Yes, I do.
18 Q. Were you his superior at any point in time?
19 A. I was his second in command.
20 Q. Did you have any dealings with Mr. Kubura at that time?
21 A. Yes. He was the -- one of the commanders on the strength of the
22 1st Corps. He was the commander of the 1st Muslim Brigade.
23 Q. And what experiences did you have with Mr. Kubura? How did you
24 perceive him at the time?
25 A. I apologise that I will maybe sound subjective. This is not any
Page 17940
1 kind of bias on my part, but I would like to say that he is a man who has
2 a lot of military experience; a man who has very high moral standards and
3 moral integrity; a man who makes a distinction between the good and the
4 evil; he is a patriot; he has a very broad understanding of society and
5 all the problems in Bosnia-Herzegovina. I'm saying this on purpose
6 because Bosnia-Herzegovina is a very complex society.
7 He always had very correct and very proper views of the society of
8 Bosnia-Herzegovina and Bosnia-Herzegovina as an entity. He was a very
9 diligent, very hard working person. And so on and so forth.
10 Q. And what about the unit that was under his command in the
11 1st Corps?
12 A. I can say only this: I should only have been so lucky to have
13 established that unit even sooner.
14 Q. Thank you very much.
15 MR. IBRISIMOVIC: [Interpretation] Mr. President, we don't have any
16 more questions for this witness.
17 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] I'm going to give the floor to
18 the Prosecution for their cross-examination. Cross-examination by
19 Mr. Mundis.
20 MR. MUNDIS: Thank you, Mr. President.
21 Cross-examination by Mr. Mundis:
22 Q. Good afternoon, General.
23 A. Good afternoon.
24 Q. For the record, sir, my name is Daryl Mundis and along with my
25 colleagues here today we represent the Prosecution in this case.
Page 17941
1 I have two other points I would simply like to clarify with you
2 before I begin. And the first is, sir, we did briefly meet when you
3 testified in the Galic case for the Prosecution. I don't know if you
4 remember, but I was in fact one of the Prosecutors in that case and we
5 did, on that occasion, meet very briefly in Mr. Stamp's office. And I
6 would also like to draw your attention to the fact that I believe it was
7 in the early summer of 2004, pursuant to an order of the Trial Chamber,
8 that the Prosecution call some additional witnesses in this case. I did
9 speak with you briefly on the telephone at which point in time you
10 informed me that you had been approached by Madam Residovic, and we then
11 terminated that phone conversation. But I just wanted to put that on the
12 record.
13 Before I commence with my questioning, sir, I would simply like to
14 indicate to you that my intention is not in any way to confuse you. And
15 if you don't understand any of the questions that I ask you, please feel
16 free to tell me that and I will rephrase the question so that you
17 understand exactly what it is that I'm asking you. Do you understand
18 that?
19 A. Yes.
20 Q. Now, sir, I take it from the comments that you told the Presiding
21 Judge when you first began testifying more than a week ago that this is
22 actually the first time you've testified as an expert witness. Would that
23 be correct?
24 A. Yes.
25 Q. And General, just to avoid any confusion, when you testified for
Page 17942
1 the Prosecution in the Galic case, you were testifying as a fact witness,
2 that is, to things that you observed or things that you did as the
3 1st Corps commander. You were not testifying as an expert in that case.
4 A. Precisely so.
5 Q. I would like to focus first, sir, on the methodology, that is, the
6 means by which you produced the report that we have before us in the
7 current proceedings.
8 I believe in paragraph 8 of your report, you indicated that you
9 were first approached by the Defence for General Hadzihasanovic in May
10 2004. Would that be correct?
11 A. Yes.
12 Q. And you were still at that point in time on active duty in the
13 ABiH?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. And, sir, at what point in time do you consider -- or were you
16 actually retained by the Defence for General Hadzihasanovic? That is,
17 when did you first agree to undertake this assignment as an expert?
18 A. I have already answered that. In legal terms I was still a member
19 of the BiH army, although my retirement was already in the pipeline and it
20 was just a matter of procedure and formality when I would stop wearing the
21 uniform. And this is just an addition to my previous answer. And after
22 the initial contacts in May 2004, very soon after that, at a second
23 meeting, I confirmed to Mrs. Residovic that I would, indeed, take on the
24 challenge.
25 Q. And, sir, approximately when was that second meeting where you
Page 17943
1 agreed to take on the challenge?
2 A. Very soon. Maybe 10 or 15 days later.
3 Q. So that was either also in May 2004 or sometime in early June
4 2004, to the best of your recollection?
5 A. Yes, let's say so.
6 Q. And what, sir, was your official retirement date from the army?
7 A. According to the documents, it was on the 31st of August, if I'm
8 not mistaken.
9 Q. Now, sir, at the time that you accepted, as you put it, the
10 challenge -- and I know how much work goes into producing these reports,
11 at the time you accepted this assignment or challenge to serve as an
12 expert for the Defence, did you, in your mind, have any doubt as to the
13 innocence of the two accused in this case?
14 A. I would sooner say that I did not have any doubts, but I can't
15 actually say either yes or no, because I did have certain doubts. My
16 position was rather neutral. I accepted this challenge because I wanted
17 to see what I would come across and, through my hard work and through my
18 analysis of the documents, I came up with my expert report.
19 I don't know to this very day whether these two are guilty or not.
20 I'm just trying to show you through the documents and to explain to the
21 Trial Chamber the military steps and the military actions, the actions and
22 steps of a commander in the given circumstances that prevailed at the
23 time. I'm trying to explain why things were done in a certain way and not
24 in another way, whether things should have been done in that particular
25 way, and how things were being done at that time, without any documents,
Page 17944
1 without any orders, because they were just done as a result of the
2 situation that prevailed at any given moment.
3 Q. General, at paragraph 8 of your report, you write that you were
4 asked to --
5 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Mr. Bourgon.
6 MR. BOURGON: [Interpretation] Thank you, Mr. President. I would
7 kindly ask the witness to repeat the beginning of his answer, which is on
8 page 16, line 13. It would be very good for the witness to repeat the
9 answer in his own language, because the answer did not come out very
10 clear.
11 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Mr. Mundis, could you please
12 repeat your question. Could you maybe rephrase it? Can you put it in
13 such a way so as to avoid any confusion? This question is on page 16,
14 line 13.
15 MR. BOURGON: [Interpretation] Mr. President, just the very
16 beginning of the witness's answer, the rest is clear. However, the first
17 two sentences, I don't think that what is recorded in the transcript
18 really represents what he said in his own language.
19 MR. MUNDIS: Mr. President, page 16, line 13, according to the
20 English transcript, is Mr. Ibrisimovic's direct examination. I'm not sure
21 exactly what question, if it's simply the previous question...
22 MR. BOURGON: [Interpretation] Excuse me, Mr. President. My
23 LiveNote was a bit delayed, so I don't have the same page number and the
24 same line number. It is page ...
25 MR. MUNDIS: If it is simply the preceding question, I can
Page 17945
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Page 17946
1 certainly rephrase that question.
2 Q. General, let's go back to the question you had just answered and
3 let me try this in a slightly different way.
4 At the time you began or you were retained to produce your expert
5 report, did you have any beliefs with respect to whether the two accused
6 in this case were guilty or innocent of the charges in the indictment?
7 A. Now I'm more confused by this question than I was by your previous
8 one. I was informed of the main elements and facts of the indictment.
9 However, I did not give myself the right, nor did anybody ask me to do
10 that, nobody ever instructed me as to whether I should form an opinion of
11 their responsibility.
12 And my answer would be that I took on this challenge to see, since
13 my retirement was already in the pipeline and I was supposed to leave the
14 BiH army and this was a transition period for me and this was a new
15 engagement, something that would fill that transition period. And this
16 gave me an opportunity to see what it was like to be an expert. I just
17 was curious to see what I would come across. I came across a host of
18 documents, and based on all these documents and my conversations with some
19 other professionals, I drafted my report, and my answer would continue
20 along the lines of the answer already given to you.
21 Q. Let me ask you a couple of follow-on questions, sir. Page 21,
22 line 4 you say: "I was informed of the main elements and facts of the
23 indictment." And my question to you, sir, is, at any point in time while
24 you've been engaged in this process of producing and writing your report,
25 did you actually read the full text of the indictment against the two
Page 17947
1 accused?
2 A. I did read it.
3 Q. Now, sir, you write at paragraph 8 in your report that you were
4 asked to replace another former ABiH general who had been retained by the
5 Defence in 2002, but who was no longer available due to personal reasons.
6 Again, this comes from paragraph 8 of your report.
7 A. Yes.
8 Q. Can you tell us, sir, the name of your former colleague that was
9 initially retained and whom you replaced?
10 A. General Sead Delic.
11 Q. And sir in paragraph 10 of your report, you indicate that you
12 requested to meet with the former military expert.
13 Before I get to that I believe the transcript, line 6, page 22, it
14 says General Sad Gailic. Can you please spell the name of the initial
15 expert retained by the Defence for the transcript.
16 A. S-e-a-d D-e-l-i-c.
17 Q. Thank you.
18 Now, sir, let's turn to paragraph 10 of your report where you
19 state that you requested to meet with the former military expert, Sead
20 Delic who had been retained by the defence. My first question is: Did in
21 fact you meet with General Sead Delic?
22 A. Yes, I did meet with him. I saw him or had contact with him on a
23 number of occasions. And he had already done some of the work, in terms
24 of taking or gathering correct information from the census, the population
25 census, from 1990, and I came across a lot of errors, as I had to do that
Page 17948
1 part of the work again.
2 Q. Now, General, you said you met with him on a number of occasions.
3 Can you give us a rough approximation as to how many times you met with
4 General Sead Delic?
5 A. I think that we saw each other about twice, and we spoke to each
6 other over the phone between five and ten times.
7 Q. And, sir, --
8 A. And I even asked him to bring me his book, which he brought to my
9 office later on, a book that he had published two or three years before
10 then.
11 Q. Do you recall, sir, the title of that book or the subject matter
12 of that book?
13 A. That book was, in fact, his master thesis that he defended at the
14 university of political science, the faculty of political science. And
15 the title of the book -- or the book was in fact about the role of all
16 international bodies that were present in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the
17 course of the war. And I can't remember the title of the book now, but I
18 do have it at home.
19 Q. Now, sir, at the time -- in mid-2004 when you took over this
20 assignment from General Sead Delic, had he commenced drafting a report?
21 A. Part of it, yes. I'd say that he had started working on a minor
22 part of it.
23 Q. And as part of your preparations for taking over this assignment,
24 did he provide you with his -- the part that he had written? Or did you
25 read it or review it, or in any way incorporate his work into this report
Page 17949
1 that you've produced?
2 A. Yes. But because the questions were subsequently amended, most of
3 what he had done was just irrelevant. And there was a very small part
4 that had to do mostly with the calculating of the movement of a population
5 in Central Bosnia. This is the part that I used to a certain extent,
6 although I had to make certain changes.
7 Q. Let me turn now, sir, to paragraph 15 of your report in which you
8 state that the cut-off date for new material that you reviewed was
9 17 December 2004. I simply want to clarify with you whether you reviewed
10 any of the trial transcripts or exhibits that were admitted after the
11 17th of December 2004.
12 A. Are you asking me whether I had a look at such documents or rather
13 whether I read such documents?
14 Q. I'm asking you, sir, let me be more precise. I'm asking you
15 whether you relied on any of the testimony that was given after the 17th
16 of December, 2004, or you relied on any of the documents that were
17 admitted into evidence after 17 December 2004 in producing the report.
18 A. I read most of the transcript of the military expert, General
19 Reinhardt. I read quite a large part of the transcripts of the -- the
20 testimony of certain witnesses. I'm not sure whether that was up until
21 the 17th of December or after the 17th of December. I couldn't provide
22 you with a precise answer to that question.
23 Q. Let me ask you this then, sir. In paragraph 15 of your report,
24 you indicate that the cut-off date for new material that you reviewed was
25 17 December 2004. And my question is, if that statement, in paragraph 15,
Page 17950
1 which you also referred to in paragraph 21, you refer to 17 December
2 December 2004 -- if in fact that was the cut-off date for the material
3 that you reviewed. Whether you read the material after that date or not
4 is a different question. But my question is, the evidence that was
5 presented up until the 17th of December, 2004 seems to be what you're
6 telling us is the cut-off date.
7 A. I don't think so. I also read the summary reports of witnesses
8 after the 17th of December, too.
9 Q. Okay. Well, let me ask you this: With respect -- and again you
10 might want to note in paragraph 21 of your report, you make reference to
11 the testimony of 98 Prosecution witnesses and 26 Defence witnesses. And
12 my question, sir, is: Did you read the transcripts of the testimony of
13 those 98 Prosecution witnesses and 26 Defence witnesses?
14 A. I read in detail Reinhardt's five-day report. And, as I have just
15 said, I read summary reports, the most important parts that had been
16 extracted from the witnesses' testimony. But I did not read in detail
17 transcripts of the testimony of all the witnesses.
18 Q. And these summary reports, who produced them?
19 A. The office -- Mrs. Residovic's office, I believe, and
20 Mr. Ibrisimovic's office.
21 Q. With respect to General Reinhardt's five-day testimony, you read
22 the full transcripts of those five days?
23 A. Yes. And there were about 150 pages of that testimony, I think.
24 From Monday to Friday.
25 Q. And, sir, what language were the transcripts, these 150 pages,
Page 17951
1 what language did you read them in?
2 A. I read General Reinhardt's testimony, or the transcript of his
3 testimony in English, whereas I read the testimony of other witnesses in
4 the Bosnian language.
5 Q. And, sir, when you say "I read the testimony of other witnesses in
6 the Bosnian language", are you talking about the summaries that were
7 produced by the attorneys for the Defence?
8 A. That's probably what it was. I'm not sure.
9 MR. MUNDIS: Mr. President, I note the time. This might be an
10 appropriate spot for the first technical break.
11 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Very well. We'll have our
12 technical break now. It's 3.30. We will resume at about five to 4.00.
13 --- Recess taken at 3.30 p.m.
14 --- On resuming at 3.55 p.m.
15 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Mr. Mundis.
16 MR. MUNDIS: Thank you, Mr. President.
17 Q. General Karavelic, before the break we were talking about the
18 transcript and summaries of testimony that you reviewed in preparing your
19 report and I do have a few follow-up questions, just so that we're clear
20 as to what testimony or transcripts you looked at.
21 You told us, sir, that you read the trial transcripts of the
22 Prosecution expert General Klaus Reinhardt and other than that you read
23 summaries. And my question, sir, is: Other than General Reinhardt's
24 testimony, transcript testimony, did you read the full transcripts of any
25 of the other witnesses, whether Prosecution or Defence?
Page 17952
1 A. I didn't read the full transcripts of the witnesses.
2 Q. Now, these summaries, can you tell us approximately how long the
3 summaries were of the witnesses that you did review?
4 A. Well, altogether the transcripts consisted of about 100 or 150
5 pages.
6 Q. Now, sir, when you use the word "transcript" - or at least it's
7 translated to me as "transcript" - are you talking now about the summaries
8 that were produced by the Defence?
9 A. Not the original transcript, such as in the case of General
10 Reinhardt. I'm referring to the summaries.
11 Q. So the summaries produced by the Defence of the 98 Prosecution
12 witnesses and 26 Defence witnesses ran to about 100 or 150 pages of
13 summarised testimony. Is that your recollection?
14 A. I mentioned a number, but I can't really confirm that, because
15 there were a lot of documents that I read and then there were these
16 documents that have been registered. I read them over a long period of
17 time, but there were a lot of pages. There was a lot of material that
18 related to the summaries. I read a lot.
19 Q. But again you told us that the summaries were 100 to 150 pages, is
20 that, to the best of your recollection, how much material you read with
21 respect to these summaries?
22 A. Well, that would be my assessment.
23 Q. You told us, sir, that the summaries were produced by the
24 attorneys. Do you have any further elaboration as to who produced these
25 summaries or how -- for example, who gave them to you?
Page 17953
1 MR. BOURGON: [Interpretation] Your Honour.
2 THE WITNESS: I don't know who made them. All I know is that I
3 read them.
4 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Mr. Bourgon.
5 MR. BOURGON: [Interpretation] Thank you, Mr. President. The
6 witness never said the summaries were prepared by the Defence. I would
7 like that to be clear for the transcript. They weren't prepared by
8 Defence counsel.
9 Thank you, Mr. President.
10 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Mr. Mundis, you have heard what
11 Defence counsel has just said. They said that Defence counsel did not
12 prepare the summaries.
13 MR. MUNDIS: If you give me a moment, Mr. President, I believe the
14 witness said they were prepared by the advocates. I asked him -- again,
15 my transcript is -- the time 15:28:31 seconds. I asked these summary
16 reports, who produced them. And the witness's answer was: "The office,
17 Mrs. Residovic's office, I believe, and Mr. Ibrisimovic's office." But I
18 will ask a follow up question.
19 Q. You've said, sir, that you don't know who produced the summaries;
20 is that correct?
21 A. I don't know.
22 Q. Who gave you the summaries?
23 A. I think that I received them in the office, from the team.
24 Q. And when you say "in the office," what office are you referring
25 to?
Page 17954
1 A. I'm referring to Mrs. Residovic's office.
2 Q. And, sir, when you say "from the team", who are you referring to?
3 A. To a number of individuals working on General Mustafa Polutak [as
4 interpreted].
5 Q. And General Mustafa Polutak was or is an investigator working for
6 the Defence team of General Hadzihasanovic; isn't that correct?
7 A. I can't confirm that. I had contact with him, but as to what he
8 does, I don't know. I assume that that is the case.
9 Q. Sir, where did you physically prepare this report and review these
10 documents? Did you work from an office at home? Where did you
11 physically produce this report and review the numerous documents?
12 A. Mostly I worked at home with my assistants and I would go to
13 Mrs. Residovic's office as well, most frequently, and I would spend days
14 reading documents that they gave to me. And I spent less time in
15 Mr. Ibrisimovic's office.
16 Q. Let me return for a moment to the testimony, the trial transcript
17 evidence of General Klaus Reinhardt. But before I do that, sir, let me
18 ask you this: You told us on the first day of your testimony that among
19 the different courses you attend were some that were held in Garmish; is
20 that correct?
21 A. Yes.
22 Q. And those courses in Garmish in Germany were at the George C.
23 Marshall Center run by the United States Armed Forces; is that correct?
24 A. Yes.
25 Q. Did you at any point in time, while you were a student at the
Page 17955
1 George C. Marshall Center in Garmish, meet General Klaus Reinhardt?
2 A. I don't know whether I did, but that's possible.
3 Q. Okay. Now, earlier, sir, you told us that - and this was at 1529
4 hours earlier this afternoon - there were about 150 pages of that
5 testimony, referring to General Reinhardt's five-day testimony. Are you
6 sure that it was 150 pages?
7 A. I'd sooner say there were far more pages, but the number of pages
8 was about identical to the number of pages that my report has -- or rather
9 about twice as long as my report. I'd say though far more pages.
10 Q. Let me ask you this, because I checked during the break, sir, and
11 General Reinhardt's testimony -- which occurred from 3 through 7 May 2004
12 in English runs to 544 pages. Is it possible, sir, that you read 544
13 pages of testimony of General Reinhardt, in English?
14 A. In my previous answer, I was thinking of one binder, but in fact
15 there were two. In one binder there was three days of his testimony, and
16 in the other binder, two days of his testimony. And I read most of it,
17 not to say 100 percent.
18 Q. Okay. Now, let's return, sir, to the summaries of the other
19 witnesses. Do you recall, sir, or do any names stick out in your memory
20 as to any of the other witnesses who testified and whose summary of
21 evidence you recall reading?
22 MR. MUNDIS: Perhaps before you answer that, Mr. President we
23 might want to go into private session in the event that any of the
24 witnesses were protected.
25 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Yes, Mr. Registrar, let's go
Page 17956
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Page 17957
1 into private session.
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Page 17958
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23 [Open session]
24 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] We're in open session.
25 THE REGISTRAR: We are back in open session, Mr. President.
Page 17960
1 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] At home I read about the Sefer
2 Halilovic case, because of my possible engagement in that case. And I was
3 sitting at my computer and I was following the entire case, and I would
4 download those things that could be downloaded. I was also reading papers
5 every day, and I cut out those articles that referred to the work of the
6 Tribunal. I compiled all of that and I came up with my expert report.
7 MR. MUNDIS:
8 Q. Okay. Now, General, you've made reference to the Halilovic case,
9 and my question is focussed precisely on this trial, that is the case
10 against General Enver Hadzihasanovic and Brigadier Amir Kubura. Did you
11 also follow these court proceedings on the Internet? Did you listen to or
12 observe or watch witness testimony being broadcast over the Internet in
13 this trial?
14 A. Only partly. Not all of this. Not all of it.
15 Q. Can you recall or give us more specifics as to how frequently you
16 watched these proceedings and/or which witnesses testified or which events
17 were being described during the time periods you followed the proceedings
18 over the Internet?
19 A. Again, it's very difficult for me to give you a precise answer.
20 When I log on my computer, the connection breaks up. By the time I log on
21 again, I get a different witness. My computer is very slow. And it was
22 my -- I derived satisfaction from following these cases. And I also
23 wanted to do it for several reasons, for a number of reasons, and I really
24 wouldn't be able to give you any exact number. I might be mistaken. I
25 can't rely on my memory for that, I'm afraid.
Page 17961
1 Q. With respect to the frequency, sir, can you tell us on average,
2 did you follow the proceedings once a day, once a week, once a month?
3 Were there certain proceedings that you followed more intensely than
4 others?
5 A. In very simple terms, I log on and whatever happens, I follow it.
6 I just come across things that are on-line at the time and I read things,
7 I listen to things, that's what I do.
8 Q. Do you recall or do you have a list of any of the documents that
9 you downloaded from the Internet with respect to this case?
10 A. I would have to go back home. I would have to look at all the
11 papers that still remain that have not been destroyed or shredded in the
12 meantime, and only then would I be able to give you a more precise answer
13 to that question.
14 Q. General, I would like to turn now to the exhibits and other
15 documents that you have reviewed. If you could please turn to
16 paragraphs 21 and 22 of your report, I have a few questions.
17 In paragraph 21, you make reference to 939 exhibits introduced by
18 the Prosecution, more than 1.640 exhibits presented by the Defence for
19 General Hadzihasanovic and 26 exhibits presented by the Defence for
20 Brigadier Amir Kubura. And in paragraph 22 you say: "I have read all of
21 the above material, from which I selected that which I found to be
22 relevant to the issues which I was asked to address."
23 And my question, sir, is: Did you read all of these exhibits as
24 described in paragraph 21? Or did you review them and only read those
25 which you believed were most important?
Page 17962
1 A. I would really like to be very precise in my answer; however, my
2 answer would be, yes, I read most of it. I read two-thirds of it. Some
3 of the things I just reviewed, I skimmed through, as I believed that this
4 was not important. But I can't tell you exactly how much of that material
5 I only reviewed. It's impossible.
6 Q. In undertaking, sir, the exercise with respect to these exhibits,
7 did anyone in any way suggest to you which exhibits were more important
8 than others, or did anyone assist you in prioritising these exhibits?
9 Than others? Or did anyone assist you in prioritising these exhibits?
10 A. I was told how many documents there were presented by either the
11 Defence or the Prosecution and I was told that I was supposed to read all
12 of these documents. And it was up to me to read all of them, after having
13 been faced with the questions that I was supposed to answer. It was up to
14 me to decide whether some of them were relevant or not. I had my own way
15 of prioritising documents which I focussed on in the light of some
16 particular questions. For example, I singled out some seven or eight
17 documents issued by the Republika Srpska army or by the HVO, just by way
18 of example, which sent each of the documents and directly cooperated in
19 terms of assisting each other with logistics, with artillery support, with
20 taking over each other's lines and so on and so forth.
21 I can even tell you which documents I am referring to when they
22 were produced when they can be located. This is the type of lists I had
23 when I was drafting my report. This is the way I singled out some of the
24 documents for which I deemed that they were of relevance for my report.
25 Q. But just so we're clear then, General, you personally determined
Page 17963
1 which documents were important and which weren't. No one assisted you in
2 identifying or prioritising the exhibits that you were provided with?
3 A. I didn't have anybody working directly on that. However, I had
4 contacts with some people that I worked with and some of them would, from
5 time to time, draw my attention to a particular document that they
6 believed was of particular importance.
7 Q. Now, sir, can you tell us who these people were that you worked
8 with who would from time to time draw your attention to particular
9 documents? Who were you referring to?
10 A. Again, the answer is the same as was -- to one of your previous
11 questions, the person in question is General Mustafa Polutak.
12 Q. Other than General Mustafa Polutak, did anyone else draw your
13 attention to any particular documents from among the exhibits that you
14 were provided with?
15 A. I had a lot of conversations with Mrs. Residovic, Mr. Ibrisimovic,
16 Mr. Bourgon. However, I can't pinpoint anything and say that anything was
17 of particular importance.
18 Q. Let me move on to a slightly different but related subject, which
19 is also set forth in paragraph 21 of your report. You state: "I have
20 also relied on proposed exhibits by the Defence for General Enver
21 Hadzihasanovic and the Defence for Brigadier Amir Kubura."
22 And my question to you, sir, is: Do you have a list of the
23 proposed exhibits that you relied upon in producing your report?
24 A. Are you referring to the list of these documents?
25 Q. Well, let me try to rephrase this. Sir, in paragraph 21 of your
Page 17964
1 report you make a distinction between the 939 exhibits introduced by the
2 Prosecution, the more than 1640 exhibits presented by the Defence for
3 General Hadzihasanovic and 26 exhibits presented by the Defence for
4 Brigadier Amir Kubura and then go on to say: "In addition, I have also
5 relied on proposed exhibits by the Defence for both accused."
6 And my question is: With respect to the proposed exhibits, do
7 you have a list of those documents that you relied upon in producing this
8 report?
9 A. Again, I cannot be precise in my answer. I know that we spoke
10 about these documents, but I can't give you their list. I don't have such
11 a list. And for these documents here, all of them, the three figures that
12 you have mentioned, I have a list of those documents.
13 Q. So that we're clear then, you have a list of the exhibits up until
14 17 December 2004 that you relied upon in producing your report, but you do
15 not have a list of other proposed exhibits that were provided to you and
16 which you relied upon in producing your report; is that correct?
17 A. More or less correct. I did talk about some documents that could
18 be called or that could fall into that category. However, I can't confirm
19 that these were those documents. I don't have a list of these documents
20 nor do I know whether they have been tendered into evidence. I don't have
21 such a confirmation.
22 Q. General, do you have a list of all the documents that you reviewed
23 or read in producing this report? Do you have like a master list of all
24 the documents that you looked at, whether they were provided to you, or
25 whether you downloaded them, or whether you clipped them out of a
Page 17965
1 newspaper? Do you have any such master list of the material that you
2 relied on in producing this report?
3 A. The documents that I am pointing to at the moment -- and let me be
4 clear: All the documents that were registered with the court and which
5 were represented by any of the sides, I have a list of those documents.
6 As for the other things which were the product of my resourcefulness, my
7 downloading them or cutting them out or obtaining them from any other
8 source, no, I don't have such a list. I never compiled such a list. In
9 my footnotes, you can find the additional things that I used. I believe
10 that my footnotes may partially answer your question. However, besides
11 the documents that are behind me and the footnotes, I don't have any other
12 lists of the documents that I used for my report.
13 Q. Okay. Let me turn now, sir, to the assistance that you received
14 in producing this report. You told us, on Monday of last week, that is
15 the 21st of March, 2005, page 44, lines 4 through 11, that you relied upon
16 three assistants. You indicated a typist, someone who helped you with
17 computer graphics, and it's unclear from the transcript what role was
18 played by the third person. And I'm wondering if you can tell us what
19 type of assistance the third person provided to you.
20 A. The key personnel was the guy called Faris Fadzan, who was in
21 charge of my annexes or, in other words, he was in charge of computer
22 work, because I am not very well versed in computers.
23 The second person -- do you want names?
24 The second person was the typist, but it was not always the same
25 person. For the most part, it was one person. And the third person was
Page 17966
1 the person who drew up all the topographic maps. That was the person who
2 drew up topographic maps using geographic maps, not the computer. It was
3 not the computer plotting of topographic maps. Their names are Faris
4 Fadzan, Alma Kadric, and Midhat Sarac. Midhat Sarac is an expert for
5 drawing topographic maps. Faris Fadzan is an expert in IT, and Alma
6 Kadric, who was my typist throughout most of my work.
7 Q. And can you tell us, sir, who these three individuals were
8 employed by in assisting you in these capacities?
9 A. I employed them. Because within of them is also retired and the
10 other two worked outside their working hours mostly during the weekends.
11 Q. Now sir also on the 21st of March 2005, that is the first day of
12 your testimony a week ago yesterday, page 44, lines 9 through 11, you
13 said: "I also received a lot of assistance from many other individuals in
14 terms of using documents from the archives of the federation army,
15 et cetera, et cetera."
16 Can you elaborate upon that answer that you gave? What did you
17 mean by "using documents from the archives of the federation army"?
18 A. Let me give you an example. I wanted on two or three occasions to
19 look at the zones of responsibility of various corps and how they changed
20 over time. And this could not be found on any of the existing maps. Then
21 I asked for some topographic maps from the archives of the BiH army and I
22 did that through General Polutak. I consulted these topographic maps and,
23 after that, I used the information that I obtained from those topographic
24 maps in order to compile my annexes.
25 Q. Sir, other than topographic maps, did you make any requests for
Page 17967
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Page 17968
1 documents from archives of the ABiH or from any other Bosnian government
2 archives?
3 A. I did not request any particular documents. Mustafa Polutak was
4 the one who had the list of documents that were registered with the
5 Tribunal. And I did not find it necessary. For example, when it comes to
6 the questions put to me by Mr. Ibrisimovic, I asked -- I was asked whether
7 there was an order for the replacement or appointment of Brigadier Kubura.
8 And my answer was there isn't. On some occasions I double-checked that
9 with some other persons. I received the same answer, and I was able to
10 close the door on such a particular question. I did not need to look any
11 further. I had my answer.
12 Q. And when you say that you double-checked information with other
13 persons, can you tell us, if you recall, the identity of any of these
14 persons and where they were employed?
15 A. Most often those were people who were retired a long time ago, or
16 recently I also spoke to some of the active servicemen and so on and so
17 forth. I would ask them whether this or that brigade was really
18 established at a certain time or was it just something that existed on
19 paper. This is more or less the subjects that I discussed with them. For
20 example, I would ask them what the situation was in Vitez in June 1993.
21 I'm just giving you examples. I had such conversations with people, but
22 these conversations were simply my conversations with these people, and I
23 cannot use their names to tell you this or that person told me this or
24 that.
25 However, based on the -- these conversations and all the things
Page 17969
1 that we have mentioned, I was able to compile my expert report that I
2 totally stand by.
3 (redacted)
4 (redacted)
5 (redacted)
6 (redacted)
7 (redacted)
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15 (redacted)
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18 (redacted)
19 [Private session]
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25 (redacted)
Page 17970
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Page 17974
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9 (redacted)
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23 (redacted)
24 (redacted)
25 [Open session]
Page 17975
1 THE REGISTRAR: [Interpretation] We are now in open session,
2 Mr. President.
3 MR. MUNDIS:
4 Q. Let me ask you now, sir, about the specific assignment that you
5 received in producing this report. Again, a week ago yesterday on the
6 21st of March, 2005, at page 47, lines 10 through 13, you told us that
7 shortly after you accepted this assignment, you were provided with the
8 first version of the questions that you were asked to answer.
9 Do you remember testifying about that eight days ago?
10 A. Yes, I remember that.
11 Q. Now, sir, I believe you've told us earlier this afternoon that you
12 accepted this assignment to produce this report some time in May or June
13 2004; is that correct?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. Can you give us a rough approximation of the time period that you
16 received the first version of the questions that the Defence asked you to
17 answer?
18 A. I could put it in my own words. After I accepted this challenge,
19 I was immediately presented with a draft of the questions and of the
20 chapters that my predecessor, General Sead Delic, had already formulated
21 to a certain extent. However, at the same time I was immediately told
22 that there would be corrections. But I was told there was a lot of
23 material, a lot of questions that would not be changed, and I was told
24 that I could start working immediately, which I did.
25 I can't say when exactly, but in two cases, and to a certain
Page 17976
1 extent in the third case too, questions were amended in July or August
2 there were amendments. I think the first time I was asked was in
3 September. I was asked to provide a rough sketch so that I could speak to
4 Mr. Stefane when he came to Sarajevo, or perhaps it was in October. I
5 can't provide you with an exact date now. And then all these
6 shortcomings, errors were removed, corrections were made and then 15 or 20
7 days later Stefane would come to Sarajevo again and more corrections were
8 made, and we continued to work in this way until we established the date,
9 the 17th of December. And then by February of this year the final version
10 was to be provided. I amended my report three or four times, at least.
11 Added to it. Transformed certain thoughts, et cetera, et cetera. The
12 work that requires continual effort, it's necessary to focus on such work,
13 to ensure that the report satisfies certain criteria.
14 Q. An General, when you make reference in your last answer to
15 Mr. Stefane, or Stefane, you're in fact referring to Mr. Bourgon, are you
16 not?
17 A. Yes.
18 Q. Can you recall, sir, -- can you recall, General, in what way the
19 questions were amended? Or do you have, perhaps, a copy of the original
20 questions that you were asked?
21 A. I have nothing here apart from my report.
22 Q. Do you have any recollection as to how the questions were amended
23 or how they evolved over time, if you can just give us some general -- a
24 general overview or specifics, if you can recall specific examples.
25 A. Well, for example, in the case of mobilisation, I would set up how
Page 17977
1 the rules governed mobilisation in the JNA and, as usual, I prepared this
2 in a very broad and general sense and then it was necessary to whittle it
3 down. And I think that I provided about 200 pages. The report I provided
4 consisted of about 200 pages and then I had to cut it down to down to 130
5 or 150 pages.
6 Q. I take it, sir, from this answer that the questions were amended
7 in such a way so that you could focus your attention and, thus, reduce the
8 length of your report? Is that a fair overall summary?
9 A. Well, roughly speaking, that would be my viewpoint.
10 Q. I would like to turn your attention and our focus now, sir, to the
11 accused General Enver Hadzihasanovic. In order to prepare your report, it
12 was necessary for you to gather some information about the professional
13 experience and background of General Hadzihasanovic. Isn't that the case?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. Can you tell us, sir, how you went about doing that? What were
16 the sources of that information, who you spoke to, or what documents you
17 reviewed, in terms of reaching conclusions about the experience and
18 professional background of General Hadzihasanovic?
19 A. Well, it was simply not necessary for me to consult anyone. I
20 knew everything, but perhaps I had to consult someone to make sure that I
21 hadn't made any mistakes when it came to his biography. Perhaps I had to
22 consult Mustafa Polutak, et cetera, because I knew at least 90 per cent of
23 Mr. Hadzihasanovic's biography from before.
24 Q. Okay. General, you indicate in paragraph 345 of your report that
25 General Hadzihasanovic did not complete what the English translation says
Page 17978
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25
Page 17979
1 is "the JNA school for generals." And I'm wondering if you can give me
2 the formal name of that school or academy.
3 A. I think the name is school of war. Perhaps General Hadzihasanovic
4 will laugh. The war academy or the school of war.
5 Q. Clearly there are a number of different military schools and
6 academies at various levels. To the best of your recollection, the
7 academy that would be the school or the training ground for promotion to
8 the rank of general within the JNA was called the school of war, or the
9 war academy?
10 A. I think that's correct. If not, it's something like that. The
11 name resembles that name.
12 Q. Did you ever attend that school yourself?
13 A. No.
14 Q. Now, you told us that you knew about at least 90 per cent of
15 General Hadzihasanovic's biography from before. Where did that 90
16 per cent that you knew from before come from? Where did that knowledge
17 that you had about his background come from?
18 A. Well we spent four or five months together in the course of the
19 summer of 1992. We slept in the same place, in the operation centre every
20 day, in the General Staff of the ABiH.
21 Q. Well, let me ask you, sir: If you were aware or if you can
22 confirm some of the following information about General Hadzihasanovic's
23 professional background. Were you aware, sir, or did you know that he had
24 commanded a military police company in the JNA from 1975 to 1980?
25 A. I'm not sure whether he was in command of a military police
Page 17980
1 company, but he was in command of a military police battalion.
2 Q. Okay. That actually came later. But he was, in fact, the
3 commander of a military police battalion in the JNA, wasn't he?
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. And do you know if, prior to that, he had been the deputy
6 commander of a military police battalion? And prior to that, he'd been
7 commander of a military police company?
8 A. We consider everything below the level of battalion to be
9 unimportant, so I can't remember. Had I wanted to, I could have
10 remembered that and I could have had such precise information, but I
11 cannot now claim whether he was or wasn't, and what he was.
12 Q. Did you know, sir, that he'd also commanded a motorised brigade in
13 the city of Sarajevo immediately prior to the outbreak of the war?
14 A. I think it was a mechanised brigade.
15 Q. Okay. Do you remember which brigade it was?
16 A. The Lukavac brigade which is based in Lukavica in the immediate
17 vicinity of the town of Sarajevo.
18 Q. Which is at Lukavica barracks?
19 A. Yes.
20 Q. Which we heard much about during the Galic trials, I'm sure you
21 will appreciate.
22 Let me ask you this, sir: You've told us, again on Monday, the
23 21st of March, that you first met General Hadzihasanovic in June or July
24 of 1992. Is that correct?
25 A. Yes.
Page 17981
1 Q. There's a reference in the transcript on the 24th of March, 2005,
2 that I believe is unclear and I'm going to ask you this so that we can
3 clarify what I think is a discrepancy in the transcript. Because on
4 page 14 of the transcript of 24 March, 2005, at lines 22, 23, the
5 transcript says, quoting yourself, General: "I know General
6 Hadzihasanovic from the JNA." And my question is: Did you actually know
7 him during the time the both of you were in the JNA, or did you only meet
8 him later?
9 A. I'm not sure that I knew him personally at the time that the JNA
10 existed, but I had heard of him. Perhaps that's why some confusion has
11 arisen. I didn't personally know General Hadzihasanovic at the time the
12 JNA existed but I had heard about him. I think the first time we actually
13 met each other tete-a-tete was in fact in June or perhaps in July 1992.
14 Q. Then you told us, sir, in the autumn of 1992, when you were
15 appointed the deputy commander of the 1st Corps, General Hadzihasanovic
16 was the Chief of Staff of the 1st Corps of the ABiH.
17 A. Yes.
18 Q. And as such, you were his immediate superior? Would that be
19 correct?
20 A. Our superior was the corps commander, but more or less it would be
21 the case.
22 Q. And in late 1993, following the time period General Hadzihasanovic
23 commanded the 3rd Corps, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Main Staff
24 of the ABiH.
25 A. Yes.
Page 17982
1 Q. Can you describe for us, sir, what type of professional
2 relationship, if any, existed between the Chief of Staff of the Main
3 Staff, and the commander of the 1st Corps, that is, the position that you
4 yourself held in late 1993?
5 A. The corps commander was directly subordinated in the chain of
6 command to the commander of the General Staff of the BiH army. In terms
7 of the relationship, the Chief of Staff of the General Staff, which was
8 General Hadzihasanovic's position, did not have anything to do with corps
9 commanders. In that respect, there is no subordination relationship.
10 However, there is a line of operative work, a line of cooperation,
11 between the General Staff and the corps staff. The Chief of Staff of the
12 General staff, which was Hadzihasanovic's position, is in some -- in some
13 way was subordinated to my Chief of Staff. However, this was not a chain
14 of command and it was not strict subordination. This was professional
15 subordination or operative subordination. I don't know whether I was
16 clear enough.
17 Q. Well, let me ask you, sir, in a more direct way: Was General
18 Hadzihasanovic, at the time he was Chief of Staff of the Main Staff of the
19 ABiH at the end of 1993, your superior?
20 A. My superior was the commander of the General Staff of the BiH
21 army, and I reported directly to him on all the issues which prevailed in
22 my corps. The commander of the General Staff of the BiH army had his
23 deputy, who was either Jovo Divjak or Siber, or so on and so forth. The
24 Chief of Staff was the third or even the fourth person in that chain.
25 General Hadzihasanovic, as the chief of the General Staff, if you
Page 17983
1 are looking at that as a whole body, the whole General Staff and its
2 function as the Chief of Staff, in a certain way he was my superior.
3 However, it was not in the true military sense that he was my superior.
4 Save for, in those situations, when the commander was absent and when his
5 deputy was absent, there could be a very short interval during which the
6 commander of the General Staff could authorise him to act on his behalf
7 and to issue orders to the corps commanders.
8 Q. Thank you, sir.
9 MR. MUNDIS: Mr. President, I note the time. It might be a few
10 minutes early, but I would respectfully ask that we take our second
11 technical break at this point in time.
12 I will also inform the Chamber and my learned colleagues that I do
13 anticipate that we will be completed with our cross-examination by the
14 conclusion of today's court day.
15 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] We're going to make a break. It
16 is 20 past 5.00 and we will resume around ten to 6.00.
17 --- Recess taken at 5.20
18 --- On resuming at 5.58 p.m.
19 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Mr. Mundis, you have the floor.
20 MR. MUNDIS: Thank you, Mr. President.
21 Q. General, I'm going to turn now to a few questions that I have
22 concerning the accused Brigadier Amir Kubura. And you told us earlier
23 this afternoon that you knew Brigadier Kubura from prior to the war and I
24 would ask you some follow-up questions about that. I believe you told us
25 that he was the commander of the 1st Muslim Brigade of the 1st Corps. Is
Page 17984
1 that correct?
2 A. A. I don't know if I said that I knew him from before the war.
3 I don't know whether I said that. And as for the second part of your
4 question, the answer is yes.
5 Q. Okay. Let me ask you this, then, General, so that we're very
6 clear: Do you recall when was the first time, if ever, that you've met
7 Amir Kubura face to face?
8 A. I believe that this was during the war. When I met him for the
9 first time I wouldn't know. I can't be sure of the time. In any case, I
10 heard of him when he was in the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade. And when he
11 was reassigned to the 1st Corps of the BiH army, I believe that by then I
12 had already seen him several times.
13 Q. Okay. And sir, can you tell us approximately when it was that
14 Amir Kubura was reassigned to the ABiH 1st Corps?
15 A. I believe that this was in March 1994. I'm not sure though.
16 Q. And, sir, you told us that you had heard of him when he was in the
17 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade. Do you recall what you might have heard of
18 him when he had commanded that brigade?
19 A. Nothing special. I heard of many officers in the 5th Corps. I
20 heard of many of them and I did not see many of them until the end of the
21 war or even after the end of the war. So I can't say that it was either
22 positive or negative. I just heard of him. I don't know whether I saw
23 him first in Zenica when we went there for our debriefing. I don't know.
24 I can't be sure of that. In any case, I'm sure that I met him before he
25 before he joined my corps.
Page 17985
1 Q. Sir, I believe there might be an error in the transcript.
2 Page 56, line 14, which should be on the screen in front of you. I would
3 ask you if you could read that line to yourself and if you have anything
4 that you want to correct about page 56, line 14 I would invite you to do
5 so.
6 A. Shall I correct myself?
7 Q. If there is anything that is incorrect about page 56, line 14, I
8 would invite you to tell us.
9 A. I don't see a mistake there. I don't know what I'm supposed to
10 correct, as much as I can read English.
11 Q. I asked you, sir, if you recall what you might have heard of him
12 when he had commanded that brigade, referring to Brigadier Amir Kubura and
13 the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade and you said: "Nothing special. I heard
14 of many officers in the 5th Corps." Was the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade
15 part of the 5th Corps?
16 A. No. I just mentioned the 5th Corps by way of example. The
17 5th Corps, throughout the war, was cut off from the main body of the BiH
18 army, so I heard of many officers from the 5th Corps and I did not see
19 many of them until the end of the war. And I mentioned the 5th Corps only
20 by way of example.
21 Q. Now, sir, in order to produce your report and the section or the
22 paragraphs that relate to Brigadier Kubura and the 7th Muslim Mountain
23 Brigade, can you tell us, sir, what material you reviewed concerning the
24 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade?
25 A. Materials, documents, everything that has been recorded and that
Page 17986
1 was registered by this Tribunal. Everything that is here behind me.
2 Q. Now, sir, in your report -- again paragraph 477. My learned
3 colleague, Mr. Ibrisimovic, asked you some questions about that paragraph.
4 I would ask you if you could, please, to turn to paragraph 477. And I'm
5 specifically interested, sir, in the last two sentences of that paragraph
6 that begin with the phrase "On 12 March 1993". Do you see that sentence,
7 sir?
8 A. Yes.
9 Q. You go on to write: "Brigadier Kubura was appointed Chief of
10 Staff by the SVK."
11 Did you see a document dated 12 March 1993 that appointed
12 Brigadier Kubura Chief of Staff of the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade?
13 A. I think so. If you're referring to the 12th of March, I don't
14 know why. But in any case, I mentioned that in my report based on the
15 document that I had at my disposal.
16 Q. Now, General Karavelic, do you have that document with you in the
17 courtroom, in one of the binders behind you perhaps?
18 A. If this document has been registered here with the Court, it
19 should be there.
20 Q. Well, let me ask you, sir, if you can take a moment to see if it's
21 in one of the binders behind you, the 12 March 1993 document. Perhaps
22 with the assistance of the usher, if that document could be placed on the
23 ELMO. Is that the document, sir, that you relied upon? Perhaps if the
24 usher could move that up just a little bit up or perhaps zoom out. That's
25 fine. Stop, please.
Page 17987
1 Sir, is this in fact the document that you relied upon in reaching
2 the conclusion that Brigadier Kubura was appointed Chief of Staff on the
3 12th of March, 1993?
4 A. I believe so.
5 Q. Can you please -- I believe it is under number 2, in the first
6 section, can you read out that sentence relating to Mr. Kubura.
7 A. In 477, my paragraph 477?
8 Q. No, sir. In the document. The reference in the document to
9 Mr. Kubura.
10 A. Under 2: Kubura Nazifa Amir, born 4 March 1964. To the
11 establishment post of the Chief of Staff and at the same time deputy
12 commander.
13 Q. So, sir, based on this document that you have before you,
14 Brigadier Kubura was appointed Chief of Staff of the 7th Muslim Mountain
15 Brigade and, at the same time, deputy commander of the 7th Muslim Mountain
16 Mountain Brigade. Is that right?
17 A. Yes.
18 Q. And, sir, in your report at paragraph 477, there is no reference
19 to him being appointed deputy commander of the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade
20 at the same time he was appointed Chief of Staff of that brigade. Is that
21 right? Your report doesn't mention that fact.
22 A. That is true. But it went without saying, because it is the
23 document that is important. In -- and my expert report is not important
24 in that sense. In my thinking, this was understood. But in any case it
25 is the way you have said it.
Page 17988
1 Q. Now, General, you testified in response to some earlier questions
2 and having had reference to the Rules of Service of the ABiH, and I would
3 like to ask you if you could repeat for us the role of a deputy commander
4 of a brigade when the commander of the brigade is absent.
5 A. If there is a deputy commander, as a separate position, unlike in
6 this case of Amir Kubura, if they are two persons, one who is the Chief of
7 Staff and the other who is the deputy commander, then it is the deputy
8 commander who acts on behalf of the brigade commander in his absence.
9 In the spirit of my answer given to Mr. Ibrisimovic's question,
10 since these two positions are held by one person, one officer, then this
11 also arises in the second case. In the first case, however, if the deputy
12 is the one who acts on behalf of the commander, then it is logical that in
13 addition to acting in respect of one of his establishment posts, he also
14 acts in respect of another establishment post which is the brigade
15 commander. In the second cases, the two positions were held by one
16 person, which was Amir Kubura. It would not have made any sense for him
17 to act in respect of another position on top of the two positions that he
18 already held.
19 Q. Now, let me ask you this, though, and let's focus on the situation
20 as it existed in the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade in the time period
21 March/April 1993, so that we're clear that's what we're talking about.
22 As of the 12th of March 1993 Amir Kubura was appointed Chief of
23 Staff and deputy commander of the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade. True?
24 A. I'm afraid I didn't understand your question. I apologise.
25 Q. Based, sir, on the document that you have to your right on the
Page 17989
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Page 17990
1 projection machine, on the 12th of March, 1993 Sefer Halilovic, on behalf
2 of the Supreme Command Staff, appointed Amir Kubura to be Chief of Staff
3 and deputy commander of the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade.
4 A. Yes.
5 Q. Now, and as you put in your report, on the 6th of August, 1993,
6 there is a different document which appoints Amir Kubura to be the
7 commander of the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade.
8 A. Yes.
9 Q. Now, sir, during the period between 12 March 1993 and 6 August
10 1993, when Brigadier Kubura was the Chief of Staff and deputy commander of
11 the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade, during that time period, 12 March through
12 6 August 1993, when the commander of the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade, Asim
13 Koricic, was not able to perform his duties as commander, who would be
14 commanding the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade?
15 A. In the Yugoslav People's Army all the rules say as follows: The
16 brigade commander or the corps commander, it really doesn't matter what
17 the unit level is, every commander commands his unit no matter where he
18 is.
19 I apologise for saying this, but just to illustrate this. The
20 commander can be on the moon, abroad, in his own country, anywhere outside
21 his brigade, he still remains its commander. There are several ways how
22 the command and control role can be exercised. It can be through one's
23 presence, or in the absence of that particular person, via telephone, via
24 fax communication and so on and so forth. These are all the ways how the
25 control and command function can be exercised. And this person remains in
Page 17991
1 the position until the moment he is either relieved or abandons his
2 duty in another way.
3 This was the case in the JNA. I was in the situation on a number
4 of occasions when my superior was not in Ljubljana and I was the battalion
5 commander in Ljubljana. I did something on his behalf. He would ask me,
6 Why you did that? No matter where I am, I'm still the commander, and
7 you're not supposed to do anything on my behalf if I don't tell you to do
8 that. For practical reasons, I'm telling you how it was in the JNA.
9 For somebody not to be a commander, he has to be officially
10 relieved of his duties by his superior.
11 Q. I completely understand what you're saying, sir, but the fact is,
12 during a wartime situation, if the commander is killed, taken prisoner of
13 war, or simply flees the country, someone has to be in command at all
14 times. Would you agree with that as a matter of principle?
15 A. You're absolutely right. But, we're talking about a certain
16 period, the period that I was referring to.
17 Q. Yes. I'm, again, focussing on the period between the 12th of
18 March and the 6th of August, 1993, when Amir Kubura was formally appointed
19 the commander and Asim Koricic was formally relieved of command as the
20 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade.
21 During that period, between the 12th of March and the 6th of
22 August, 1993, if Asim Koricic left Bosnia and went to a third country,
23 whether it was with permission or without permission, Amir Kubura was
24 responsible for exercising command authority over the 7th Muslim Mountain
25 Brigade. Do you agree with that or not?
Page 17992
1 A. I can't fully agree with what you're saying.
2 Q. Again, let me put this as a hypothetical to you. Between the
3 12th of March and the 6th of August, 1993, the commander of the 7th Muslim
4 Mountain Brigade, the formally designated commander of the 7th Muslim
5 Mountain Brigade, leaves Bosnia and does not return prior to the end of
6 the war. Does that person, who is outside of Bosnia, they might retain
7 the formal position of commander until they are relieved, but in their
8 absence someone must be in command of the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade.
9 A. This is close to being the case, but it cannot be completely so
10 because it goes against the things that I explained to you, in terms of
11 what the procedure is, if that is the case. Then one might ask the
12 question, why the order was issued on the first of August -- that is on
13 the 6th of August, 1993, why was it that the order was issued at that
14 moment, because that situation could have continued without the order.
15 But it couldn't continue for several reasons. This should have
16 been done at a much sooner and certainly no later than two months after
17 the departure of the brigade commander. The order that was issued in
18 August should have been issued earlier, appointing Amir Kubura to the
19 position of the brigade commander and giving him the authority. I
20 apologise. If Amir Kubura were to ask for his legal entitlements that
21 arise from the position of the commander of the 7th Muslim Mountain
22 Brigade for the period from the 12th of March to the 6th of August, he
23 would not be able to exercise those rights, because legally he was not in
24 that position at the time.
25 Q. That is most likely the case, sir. But my point is simply that
Page 17993
1 during that period someone had to be in command of the 7th Muslim Mountain
2 Brigade. In the absence of the commander, if he's gone, someone must be
3 in charge.
4 A. Generally speaking you're absolutely right because the brigade is
5 a living organism. A brigade are people. It is not a vehicle that you
6 can just turn the engine off and you abandon it in the middle of the road.
7 You have to work with people. And obviously what Amir Kubura did was what
8 was supposed to be done and he did it and continued doing it. However, if
9 I had been in his shoes, I would have pestered my superior and I would
10 insist on him dealing with my status. I would have wanted things to be
11 legal.
12 Q. Well, let me put to you, sir, that Asim Koricic left Bosnia on
13 April 1st, meaning that the two-month period would have expired on
14 June 1st, 1993. And in the event, in the event Mr. Kubura began pestering
15 his commander to raise this issue with the Supreme Command Staff, that
16 during the first two weeks of June 1993 the 3rd Corps commander might
17 have been preoccupied with events going on in the Bijela valley. Would
18 you agree with that?
19 A. I did not study other reasons why this was the case, why wasn't
20 Brigadier Kubura appointed. However, what you have just mentioned may be
21 part of the reasons. But I can't be sure of that. Because I don't know
22 what was the key reason for which Amir Kubura was not appointed, either
23 the acting commander or the commander, immediately by way of an order.
24 Q. But again, sir, my only point is: Between the 12th of March and
25 the 6th of August, 1993, if the 7th Muslim Mountain Brigade commander left
Page 17994
1 Bosnia, Amir Kubura as the deputy commander would be the de facto
2 commander of that brigade.
3 A. If I may give you an assumption, a hypothetical situation. I'm
4 not saying for a moment that this was indeed the case. This was just a
5 hypothetical situation. Kubura already held a certain establishment
6 position in that same brigade. He had his tasks and duties that arose
7 from the position to which he had been appointed. I don't want to go
8 through the list of all of these tasks and duties.
9 Now the time came for him to do something else, a third set of
10 duties, because there was nobody else to take them over. However, if I
11 had been in his shoes, I would have perhaps thought that this same brigade
12 commander could have contacts with other officers in my brigade with
13 battalion commanders. How was I supposed to be sure that he didn't have
14 such contacts? There was no way for me to be sure of that. And I'm just
15 assuming that. This is just a hypothetical situation. But this
16 assumption suffices.
17 I could give you some other hypothetical thoughts which compel a
18 person to do things as best as he can. This was the time of war and it
19 would have been really bad if Amir Kubura had said, I don't want to lead
20 this brigade. He would have transpired as a coward who didn't have the
21 courage to lead his men. He probably did ask for his status to be
22 resolved and it wasn't done. What could he have done in that position?
23 In his shoes, what would I have done? Maybe I would have insisted
24 even more on my requests being resolved. But it still remains
25 questionable whether this would have been done. The time went on. The
Page 17995
1 brigade had to live, it had to perform his duties. I'm just trying to
2 look at the situation from the military point of view. And as for the
3 legal weight of a certain situation, I cannot go into that. It is not my
4 place to be the judge of that.
5 Q. Well, I'm going to move on, General. But my point was precisely,
6 I believe, what you were trying to make at the end, that is from a
7 military point of view, leaving aside all the legal niceties, from a
8 purely military point of view, someone is always in command of every unit.
9 A. Broadly speaking that conclusion is correct. That there are many
10 other arguments that we must bear in mind, and I could pose the following
11 question if I may. Why was it only on the 6th of August that Amir Kubura
12 was appointed as brigade commander? And what if up until the 6th of
13 August, 1993, the General Staff or corps commander didn't think that he
14 was mature enough or capable to be the brigade commander. What if they
15 thought he wasn't up to the task. What if that was the reason and he
16 wasn't appointed as brigade commander until the 6th of August? But it
17 turns out that he was de facto the brigade commander, and he was
18 responsible for the brigade and the reason for which he wasn't appointed
19 as brigade commander was, perhaps, the fact that someone assessed that he
20 wasn't up to the task of commanding a brigade.
21 Q. Let me move on. Paragraph 477, the final sentence of your report,
22 you write in reference to 6 August 1993: "Before this date, he had served
23 as an acting commander of the brigade."
24 My question to you, sir, is: When did he start serving as an
25 acting commander of the brigade prior to the 6th of August 1993?
Page 17996
1 A. From a legal point of view, according to my assessment, according
2 to my understanding, this could only have been during the first two months
3 which was covered by the rules of service. And afterwards, he wasn't
4 legally covered.
5 Q. Okay. And what period are you talking about when you say in your
6 report he had served as an acting commander of the brigade? What time
7 period are you referring to?
8 A. Well I'm referring to the two months, from the 1st of April and
9 onwards.
10 Q. And what do you base that on? What material have you reviewed or
11 what person you consulted with? What do you base that on?
12 A. It's based on documents that don't state otherwise and it's based
13 on the rules of service in the JNA. I didn't find any documents that
14 stated the contrary.
15 Q. Let me move on to some general points with respect to your report.
16 In paragraph 499, I'd ask you if you could, sir, to please turn to
17 paragraph 499. Let me ask you, sir -- do you have paragraph 499 in front
18 of you?
19 A. Yes.
20 Q. You write in this or paragraph sir, and I'm quoting: "The only
21 way to assess how both commanders reacted to certain events during this
22 period is to look at what happened through their eyes, taking into
23 consideration the prevailing circumstances at the time."
24 This would seem, General, to imply that a subjective and not an
25 objective approach is taken by yourself, in terms of writing this report.
Page 17997
1 A. When I wrote this -- I'll provide you with another example. I
2 meant that if I had been in Amir Kubura's position, or rather I asked
3 myself, If I had been in Amir Kubura's position, what would I have done?
4 And I said I would probably have done something very similar, if not
5 exactly the same thing. If I had been the Chief of Staff or the deputy,
6 which was Kubura's case, and my brigade commander left, then as the next
7 most senior officer, I would have had to perform my duties. I wouldn't
8 have had the right to sit down and say the brigade's life will now end
9 because I would then have suffered other legal consequences. The life and
10 the activities of the brigade must continue.
11 If I had said I won't perform these duties, and if I abandoned the
12 duties I had been assigned, I would have suffered far more serious legal
13 consequences. I couldn't do this. All I could do is act as Kubura did,
14 to continue working and to ask, at the same time, to have my status
15 regulated, because he had no other solution. He had no better solution.
16 As to why they waited until the 6th of August, 1993 to resolve the matter,
17 that's something I can't comment on. That's another matter.
18 Q. I appreciate, General, that answer, but I have moved on to part 4
19 of your report and my question is a more general one, based on what you
20 wrote in paragraph 499. And my question is, to the extent you can render
21 your opinion on this as the author of the report, did you take a
22 subjective approach, that is, viewing the events as they happened through
23 the eyes of the two accused? Or did you attempt to take an objective
24 approach?
25 A. Even now I ask myself how I could have assessed this differently.
Page 17998
1 As to whether I was being more subjective or more objective, I don't know.
2 All I can say, that I really tried to avoid being subjective. I don't
3 know whether I fully succeeded in doing that. Someone else should say.
4 Q. But in paragraph 499 you state: "In my opinion, the only way to
5 assess how both commanders reacted is to look at what happened through
6 their eyes."
7 And so my question isn't so much whether your report is objective,
8 but whether the methodology that you used relates to taking a subjective
9 approach, based on what you wrote in paragraph 499.
10 A. I don't know if there's some confusion with regard to the term,
11 but in this paragraph I wanted to refer to all the events that took
12 place. When I said to look at things through their eyes, that means
13 placing myself in their position, in their shoes during that period of
14 time, in order to have the best possible understanding of the situation at
15 that period of time, during that period of time. And in the belief that
16 that would enable me to be as objective as possible, because I wanted to
17 depict the reality and all the difficulties that existed at that time,
18 that caused all the commanders at all levels very serious problems. That
19 was my purpose. However, if one claims that the methodology appears to be
20 a subjective methodology, well, that is not something I would agree with.
21 Q. Thank you, General.
22 MR. MUNDIS: The Prosecution has no further questions,
23 Mr. President.
24 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Thank you, Mr. Mundis.
25 It's 20 to 7.00 now. Will Defence counsel prefer to wait until
Page 17999
1 tomorrow for their re-examination?
2 MR. BOURGON: [Interpretation] Thank you, Mr. President. With the
3 Chamber's leave we would rather wait until tomorrow to commence our
4 examination. I think I will need an hour and a half and it would be
5 preferable to start tomorrow so as to avoid breaking up our
6 re-examination.
7 JUDGE ANTONETTI: [Interpretation] Very well. We will then
8 continue with your re-examination tomorrow.
9 We will now adjourn, but before we do so, General, you should be
10 back in the courtroom at 9.00 tomorrow morning. The hearing will be held
11 in the morning tomorrow at 9.00. I invite everyone to return for the
12 hearing at 9.00 tomorrow.
13 --- Whereupon the hearing adjourned at 6.40 p.m.,
14 to be reconvened on Wednesday, the 30th day of
15 March, 2005 at 9.00 a.m.
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