The Office of the Prosecutor:

Counsel for the Republic of Croatia:

Mr. David B. Rivkin, Jr.
Mr. Lee A. Casey
Mr. Darin R. Bartram

Counsel for the Accused Dario Kordic:

Counsel for the Accused Mario Cerkez:

Mr. Bozidar Kovacic

The Appeals Chamber of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991 ("International Tribunal");

NOTING the Order to the Republic of Croatia for the Production of Documents, issued by Trial Chamber III on 4 February and filed on 5 February 1999 ("Order");

NOTING the Notice of State Request for Review of Order to the Republic of Croatia for the Production of Documents, filed ex parte the Defence for Dario Kordic and Mario Cerkez ("Defence") by Counsel for the Republic of Croatia on 11 February 1999 ("Request for Review"), whereby the Republic of Croatia seeks the review by the Appeals Chamber of the Order and requests that its execution be suspended pending the resolution of said review;

NOTING the Appeals Chamber’s Scheduling Order of 17 March 1999, in which the Office of the Prosecutor ("Prosecution") and the Defence were declared to be at liberty to file written submissions before the Appeals Chamber by 24 March 1999, addressing, inter alia, whether the issues raised by the Request, as set out in the Scheduling Order, are issues of general importance relating to the powers of the International Tribunal within the meaning of Sub-rule 108(bis);

NOTING the Response to Notice of State Request for Review of Order to the Republic of Croatia for the Production of Documents, filed by the Office of the Prosecutor on 24 March 1999 ("Response"), and the absence of any such submissions filed by the Defence;

NOTING that the Prosecution in the Response, inter alia, expresses its position, in view of the experience concerning the issuance and enforcement of binding orders by the International Tribunal over the past eighteen months, that it is in favour of appellate consideration of the questions of law, process and procedure in relation to this matter;

NOTING ALSO that the Prosecution in its response, in part, opposes the Republic of Croatia’s request to suspend the execution of the Order, and that it in this respect seeks, inter alia, an order directing the Republic of Croatia immediately to undertake, or continue, serious and bona fide efforts to identify and collect all documents responsive to the Order, and that all such documents and information be produced and placed with the Registry of the Tribunal by deadline established by the Order, or with "such reasonable extension as the Trial Chamber SsicC may see fit to allow";

CONSIDERING that review and suspension of the execution of the Order is being sought pursuant to Sub-rules 108bis(A) and (C) of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the International Tribunal ("Rules"), which provide as follows:

(A) A State directly affected by an interlocutory decision of a Trial Chamber may, within fifteen days from the date of the decision, seek a review of the decision by the Appeals Chamber if that decision concerns issues of general importance relating to the powers of the Tribunal.

(C) The Appeals Chamber, if it considers the request for review admissible may, if it deems it appropriate, suspend the execution of the impugned decision.

FINDING that the Republic of Croatia clearly is directly affected by the Order;

CONSIDERING that the Order was issued pursuant to a confidential and ex parte procedure, through which the Republic of Croatia was afforded no opportunity to be heard prior to the issuance of the Order;

RECALLING the Judgement on the Request of the Republic of Croatia for Review of the Decision of Trial Chamber II of 18 July 1997, issued by the Appeals Chamber in the Prosecutor v. Tihomir Blaskic, Case No. IT-95-14-AR108bis, on 29 October 1997 (Judgement of 29 October 1997");

RECALLING ALSO the Decision on the Notice of State Request for Review of Order on the Motion of the Prosecutor for the Issuance of a Binding Order on the Republic of Croatia for the Production of Documents and Request for Stay of Trial Chamber’s Order of 30 January 1998, issued by the Appeals Chamber in the same case, on 26 February 1998;

FINDING that the Order concerns issues of general importance relating to the powers of the International Tribunal within the meaning of Sub-rule 108bis(A) in that it raises questions regarding the meaning and intent of Article 29 of the Statute of the International Tribunal;

FINDING it to be in the interest of justice that the Order be suspended pending the Appeals Chamber’s review of the Order;

GRANTS the request of the Republic of Croatia for the Appeals Chamber to review the Order;

AND SUSPENDS the execution of the Order pending the outcome of this review.

Done in both English and French, the English text being authoritative.

________________________________

Gabrielle Kirk McDonald
Presiding Judge

Dated this twenty-sixth day of March 1999
At The Hague,
The Netherlands.