080911ED

Page 1570

1 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Cepic, we're going to allow it, but confine

2 it to this request that you made, that is questions relating to the Lukic

3 family, which did arise yesterday. If you seek to go beyond that, then

4 that falls within the parameters of the ruling that I just gave. You

5 would then have to call your own witness. But I'm not certain whether

6 he's immediately available.

7 Mr. Alarid?

8 MR. ALARID: I was actually going to speak on an unrelated

9 matter, Your Honour, given the --

10 JUDGE ROBINSON: Okay. Let us conclude this first.

11 MR. ALARID: Yes.

12 JUDGE ROBINSON: Let me hear from the court deputy about the

13 availability.

14 [Trial Chamber and court deputy confer]

15 JUDGE ROBINSON: He's expected in 30 minutes, so we'll start the

16 other witness, then, yes.

17 And now Mr. Alarid.

18 MR. ALARID: Your Honour, I do want to raise just some overall

19 general concerns with the Chamber with regards to sort of how the trial

20 is progressing as well as sort of the way this trial is manifesting in

21 motion, yet we're still doing a large amount of preparation.

22 The OTP has had eight filings this week. Three of the motions

23 came with over a hundred pages and are deadlines to file responses to

24 these and what's most prejudicial, Your Honour, is these motions involve

25 the addition of nine new witnesses, changes on the witness list, things

Page 1571

1 like that. We're really having a hard time keeping up at this point

2 considering the voluminous nature of the filings, the addition of new

3 information, the constant disclosure of new information that involves

4 mostly B/C/S and untranslated materials, and we really feel that at this

5 juncture there is a real threat of prejudice to the Defence considering

6 the way the pace of the trial is actually very fast combined with the

7 fact that we're still having to deal with I think what are essentially

8 pre-trial issues during the trial, and we were wondering if the Court

9 would entertain a one-week recess so we can -- so we can answer all

10 these. I mean a lot these are going to come due at the end of next week

11 considering the two-week deadline for ordinary filings.

12 JUDGE ROBINSON: But this overlaps with a motion that is in front

13 of me from you.

14 MR. ALARID: Yes.

15 JUDGE ROBINSON: To amend the trial sitting schedule so that we

16 would sit for four days.

17 MR. ALARID: And I'm trying to find a solution, Your Honour, to

18 our --

19 JUDGE ROBINSON: Well, let us see if we can find a solution to

20 that, because that may resolve if not wholly, then partially the problem

21 you have.

22 I'm to ask the Prosecutor how he responds to the motion for trial

23 sittings of four days a week.

24 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, the Prosecutor is preparing a written

25 response that we intended to file today, but I can certainly address it

Page 1572

1 now, and I guess one of the suggestions that I might put forward is that

2 some of these motions, it may be more expedient and may involve less time

3 of -- less of Mr. Alarid's time, some of these motions might be able to

4 be dealt with in oral argument, taking five minutes to discuss the

5 issues, present the positions to the -- Your Honours, and then it could

6 be decided sometime afterwards. So that might save some time and ease

7 the burden on Mr. Alarid if the Court wants to consider that.

8 With respect to Mr. Alarid's motion, we are of course

9 endeavouring to comply with it -- the Chamber's rulings in the Pre-Trial

10 Chamber. We anticipate that we will be able to although there are some

11 difficulties. With respect to whether the trial schedule should be

12 reduced to four days, I feel that's a matter for the Chamber's

13 discretion. I don't have any personal knowledge of the workload of the

14 Defence so I wouldn't want to comment on it. So all I would say is that

15 we're prepared to go forward with the schedule, but we will trust in the

16 Chamber's discretion on what it deems is the fairest way to proceed.

17 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Cepic.

18 MR. CEPIC: [Interpretation] Your Honour, we agree that there's a

19 fast tempo for these proceedings, and we have nothing against the

20 request, and it is a privilege on behalf of Mr. Domazet to be able to

21 address this Trial Chamber. I think he'll be able to tell you more.

22 He's catching a plane, and he considers that his presence here is not

23 absolutely necessary. So could you give Mr. Domazet a chance to address

24 the Trial Chamber, please.

25 JUDGE ROBINSON: Yes, but to address me on what? If he wishes to

Page 1573

1 leave, he may leave.

2 MR. CEPIC: [Interpretation] Thank you. [In English] Thank you

3 very much, Your Honour.

4 [Trial Chamber confers]

5 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, your mike.

6 JUDGE ROBINSON: At the end of the first break or the beginning

7 of the second session we'll give a decision on the Defence application

8 for a four-day sitting.

9 Call the witness.

10 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, just prior to calling the witness, if

11 you recall the Chamber also deferred to today its decision on certain

12 excerpts from section 3 of Prosecution Exhibit 96, that is to do with the

13 paramilitary groups. I'll just remind the Chamber of that. Maybe

14 perhaps sometime today we could come back to that. The specific clips

15 that I'm seeking -- or that I'm suggesting were implicated during the

16 cross-examination were clips 29, 32, 34, and 36.

17 And, Your Honour, the Prosecution's next witness will be led

18 by -- or questioned by Mr. Ossogo, and it's VG-58.

19 JUDGE ROBINSON: We'll give a ruling on your application relating

20 to the clips later today.

21 Did I see the hand of Mr. Lukic, Milan Lukic? What is it that

22 you wish to say?

23 THE ACCUSED M. LUKIC: [Interpretation] Yes. I would like to ask

24 the Trial Chamber because this is a protected witness, and Mr. Domazet

25 has nothing to do with the next witness, that he leave the courtroom or

Page 1574

1 I'll leave the courtroom. The next witness is coming in. Domazet isn't

2 his counsel, so I don't see the purpose for his remaining in the

3 courtroom.

4 JUDGE ROBINSON: This is rather strange. You're making a request

5 for Mr. Domazet to leave the courtroom? You have become a counsel?

6 THE ACCUSED M. LUKIC: [Interpretation] If he's not a counsel for

7 the next witness and if he's not my Defence counsel, I don't see the

8 purpose of him remaining in the courtroom if the witness coming is indeed

9 a protected witness. I apologise, but that's what I think.

10 JUDGE ROBINSON: Well, who requires Mr. Domazet to stay? I don't

11 require him to stay. I've told him he can leave. He's perfectly free to

12 leave. Nothing that I've said indicates [Realtime transcript read in

13 error "entitles"] that he should stay. It's entirely a matter for him.

14 Mr. Domazet, very quickly.

15 MR. DOMAZET [Interpretation] Your Honour, as quick as I can.

16 I've been informed that Mr. Vasiljevic will be here again and that my

17 presence is necessary, so I have a plane ticket this evening instead of

18 Saturday and I'm due to leave. Now, in view of the present situation and

19 the fact that Mr. Vasiljevic will be just asked a few questions, I really

20 don't see the need for me to be present. You can go ahead without me.

21 So I was just going to request that I be allowed to leave the courtroom

22 so that there's no need for a reaction of this kind on the part of

23 Mr. Lukic.

24 JUDGE ROBINSON: Yes. You are excused if you wish, Mr. Domazet.

25 Let us get on with the work of the trial. Call the witness.

Page 1588

1 with you?

2 A. Yes. They checked my ID as well as my husband's.

3 Q. You were with your husband. Were you with other people also?

4 A. My children were there.

5 Q. Since this Mr. Momir Mioskovic was your neighbour, did you ever

6 see White Eagles in his house at one point in time?

7 A. I saw outside the door, beneath the vine there.

8 Q. What were they doing?

9 A. They were sitting there on several occasions drinking.

10 Q. They were wearing weapons -- carrying weapons?

11 A. Yes.

12 Q. How were they dressed? Did they have uniforms?

13 A. They were in uniform.

14 Q. Could you describe these uniforms for us, please?

15 A. Yes, I can. These were camouflage uniforms. They had caps on

16 their shoulders.

17 Q. What colour were these uniforms?

18 A. They were military uniforms.

19 Q. Among these White Eagles were you able to recognise anyone at one

20 point in time?

21 A. Yes.

22 Q. Give us the names of the people you recognised.

23 A. Milan Lukic, Sredoje Lukic.

24 Q. Did you know Mitar Vasiljevic?

25 A. Mitar Vasiljevic, yes.

Page 1589

1 Q. How did you know him?

2 A. I knew him because he worked at the Hotel Panos.

3 Q. Did you go to this Hotel Panos?

4 A. Yes.

5 Q. Did Mitar Vasiljevic ever enter into your own house?

6 A. Yes.

7 Q. What did you do when he arrived into your house, and why did

8 he -- why had he come?

9 A. He was looking for gold -- or, rather, first he asked us to turn

10 over a rifle, then he asked for gold, and when we had none of that, he

11 asked for money.

12 Q. Was he alone or were there other people with him?

13 A. Yes, there was Milan Lukic, Sredoje Lukic, and Jovisa Planojevic.

14 Q. These people you just mentioned, Sredoje Lukic, Milan Lukic, and

15 Jovisa Planojevic, did they -- did you open the door for them, or did

16 they break into the house or enter in another way?

17 A. Yes. Mitar kicked the door in.

18 Q. Were you alone in your house?

19 A. I was there with my two children.

20 Q. You told us about gold. Did you give them what they wanted?

21 A. Yes.

22 Q. Later on after this incident, after the fact that this group

23 broke into your house, what did you do with your children? Did you leave

24 the house or did you stay in the house?

25 A. He told us that we should wait for him there, that he would kill

Page 1590

1 my children unless we stayed there waiting for him. However, he never

2 showed up at the house any more.

3 Q. Was your husband with you?

4 A. No.

5 Q. Were you afraid?

6 A. Well, yes.

7 Q. Did you hide?

8 A. Throughout at that time I never dared to enter my home. I once

9 did, and I found that a bag of flour had been thrown on the floor, and

10 some of my belongings were strewn around, and that was the last time I

11 went into my house.

12 Q. I will now like to talk about Sadija Dedic, Witness.

13 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Could we please move into private

14 session?

15 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Very well.

16 JUDGE ROBINSON: Yes.

17 [Private session] [Confidentiality partially lifted by order of Chamber]

18 THE REGISTRAR: Your Honours, we're in private session.

19 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation]

20 Q. Witness VG-58, did you know Sadija Dedic?

21 A. I did. I'd often go to her place for a cup of coffee.

22 Q. Where did she live?

23 A. She lived at Seganje next to Momir Mioskovic. First there was

24 Ibrahim Dedic's house then Sadija Dedic and then Rasim Dedic's house.

25 They were all in one courtyard.

Page 1591

1 Q. Did you know her husband?

2 A. Yes, Latif.

3 Q. You're mentioning Latif. That was her husband's name?

4 A. That's right, yes.

5 Q. Did you know what happened to Sadija Dedic?

6 A. Yes, I do.

7 Q. Can you tell the Trial Chamber?

8 A. It was like this: It was sometime around 9.00 or half past 9.00,

9 (redacted) There's a shed up by

10 the road and then there's an iron gate, and there's some concrete there

11 and steps and an entrance, and I heard and saw the gate opening. It was

12 roughly opened, and they entered the house.

13 There were four or five of them. I didn't count them properly

14 because it was dark. I recognised Milan Lukic there, Sredoje Lukic,

15 Jovisa Planojevic, Mitar Vasiljevic. And there was someone else there,

16 but I wasn't able to recognise them.

17 They entered the house, and they asked Sadija for her valuables.

18 However, while they were opening the door Latif escaped to the bathroom.

19 There's a bathroom on the right-hand side, and he jumped out of the

20 window, and they kept asking Sadija for money and for her valuables, her

21 gold. She gave what she had and said she had nothing else, but they kept

22 asking her for more.

23 There was a lot of commotion, a lot of noise, and I saw -- well,

24 it went on for quite a long -- well, there was a burst of gunfire shortly

25 afterwards, and then they left. The door banged shut, and the car door

Page 1592

1 was slammed, and they went off towards the bus station and the centre of

2 town.

3 Q. Thank you. You said that you heard shots. (redacted)

4 (redacted)

5 A. That's right. I was not even a metre away from the house. I was

6 in the Sadija Dedic courtyard. Sadija Dedic's courtyard.

7 Q. Did you recognise the person who shot that burst of gunfire?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. Who was it?

10 A. Milan Lukic.

11 Q. Could you tell us how he was dressed when he did this, if you

12 know?

13 A. Yes, I can do that. He was wearing a black -- black overalls,

14 and on his head he had a sort of sock. You could just see his eyes. And

15 he had gloves on too. And he had a rifle on him, the short one.

16 Q. You're saying that he had some kind of sort of sock on his head?

17 So how were you able to identify him?

18 A. I recognised his voice, because he was the one screaming at

19 Sadija most. He shouted out "Not Rozaje. He's not in Rozaje. Give me

20 some more gold and money."

21 Q. Apart from this voice that you heard and that you recognised as

22 being Milan Lukic's, are there other features that really struck you and

23 that could really support the fact that you recognised Milan Lukic?

24 A. I'm sure I recognised him. You know what? Let me put it this

25 way, let me tell you this way. Your Honours, he went with Behija

Page 1593

1 Biscanka's car, in her car, and he was the only person who drove that

2 car.

3 Q. You are saying that he was driving Behija's car. What make was

4 this car, and what colour was this car?

5 A. A Passat, red in colour.

6 Q. Were there any other colours of the same make around and the same

7 colour in Visegrad or any other -- that you could have seen?

8 A. No.

9 Q. Is this a new car or a secondhand car or an old car?

10 A. It was a new car.

11 Q. You said that this car belonged to a lady called Behija. Did you

12 know this lady?

13 A. Yes, I did.

14 Q. How did you know her?

15 A. She had a shop by the bridge, and I would meet her there quite

16 often, and that's how I knew her. The Rzava bridge.

17 Q. Did you know how this car ended up in Milan Lukic's hands, who

18 was driving it since it used to belong to this lady Behija?

19 A. Yes, yes. I did know that, because the woman was very rich. She

20 lived a comfortable life, and I heard that Milan Lukic killed her. And

21 he was the only one who drove that car. Nobody else drove it.

22 Q. Let's return to what happened in the Dedic household. You said

23 that Mr. Dedic escaped through a window?

24 A. Yes.

25 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Ossogo.

Page 1594

1 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] [No interpretation].

2 JUDGE ROBINSON: How long did you plan to spend on this witness?

3 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Your Honour, we plan on about two

4 hours. A viva voce witness, as you see, and we had earmarked about two

5 hours for this witness.

6 JUDGE ROBINSON: As they say in track and field athletics, you

7 must pick up the pace.

8 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honour. I'll try to

9 be like Husain Bolt, just as fast.

10 JUDGE ROBINSON: Perhaps faster.

11 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honour.

12 Q. Witness VG-58, could you tell us whether Mr. Dedic came back

13 after he escaped his house and after his wife was murdered?

14 A. He came in the morning. Well, I entered the house first and then

15 he came.

16 Q. What happened to Sadija's body?

17 A. When I went into the house I saw her turned this way. She had

18 turned herself around, and her brain was spattered all over the house.

19 By the door there was a hole this big from the impact from when the rifle

20 hit.

21 Q. Thank you. I would now like to talk about Rasim Dedic. Did you

22 know Rasim Dedic?

23 A. Yes, I did know him.

24 JUDGE ROBINSON: We need to go back to public session.

25 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] I was about to ask for it. Thank

Page 1595

1 you, Your Honour.

2 [Open session]

3 THE REGISTRAR: Your Honours, we are back in open session.

4 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation]

5 Q. Do you know what happened to Mr. Rasim Dedic?

6 A. Yes, I do. I don't remember what day it was, but it was 1.00 in

7 the afternoon. They killed him in his own house.

8 Q. Do you remember the year this happened?

9 A. I can't remember what year it was or the date.

10 Q. Was it after Sadija was killed?

11 A. Three days after Sadija.

12 Q. And Sadija Dedic was killed after he had moved to Seganje, is

13 that it?

14 MR. ALARID: Objection, leading.

15 JUDGE ROBINSON: Yes. Reformulate.

16 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation]

17 Q. Witness VG-58, you said that Rasim Dedic's murder occurred a few

18 days -- three days after Sadija Dedic was killed, after Sadija Dedic was

19 killed. Do you remember when?

20 A. Yes, three or four days. I can't remember exactly when. I think

21 it was sometime in June anyway, but when exactly I really can't remember.

22 I can't remember the date.

23 Q. Do you remember in what year this happened? You seem to remember

24 the month. Could you please tell us the year it happened.

25 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Ossogo, you might consider that --

Page 1596

1 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Yes, Your Honour.

2 JUDGE ROBINSON: I think --

3 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] 1992, in June.

4 JUDGE ROBINSON: The incident of Rasim Dedic, which is not in the

5 indictment, does not mean it's not relevant, it has its own relevance,

6 but perhaps you can deal with matters like that very quickly.

7 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Absolutely, but this witness needs

8 to be told about the events along a time line in order to know what

9 happened. Some other witnesses don't need this, but this witness needs

10 to be told about the chronology of the event -- of the events, needs to

11 be led in some way.

12 JUDGE ROBINSON: Please proceed.

13 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Yes, Mr. President.

14 JUDGE ROBINSON: I'm sorry, Mr. Ossogo, it's time for the break.

15 We'll take the break.

16 --- Recess taken at 3.46 p.m.

17 --- On resuming at 4.15 p.m.

18 JUDGE ROBINSON: Yes, Mr. Ossogo. Ever mindful, I hope, of the

19 need to pick up the pace.

20 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Absolutely, Your Honour. Yes, I'm

21 mindful of that.

22 Q. VG-58, Witness VG-58, we are now going to deal with an incident

23 that took place in the area of Bikavac. Do you remember the fire that

24 happened in that area?

25 A. Yes.

Page 1597

1 Q. Could you please describe the events for us. Could you tell us

2 what you saw.

3 A. Yes. I was nearby, about five metres away, maybe even closer,

4 and I'm going to describe where I was. It was towards evening. I don't

5 know exactly what the time was. There were quite a lot of women there

6 and children, too, young girls, not to enumerate them at all. They were

7 at Meho Aljic's house, quite a lot of them. And then a red Passat turned

8 up. Milan Lukic was there, Sredoje Lukic, too, Mitar Vasiljevic, Jovisa

9 Planojevic, and there were some others, but I didn't know those others.

10 They forced the people into Meho Aljic's house, and I saw it all.

11 I saw them telling the people to go into the house. Milan Lukic said,

12 "Come on. Let's get as many people in as possible," from Zupa, Gostilja,

13 Velika and Mala, Zlijeb and so on, all these different places, but it's

14 called Zupa, actually. And they forced all people into the house, and by

15 that time it was already dark.

16 From behind Meho Aljic's house I heard some banging like a

17 hammer, a strong object, the banging noise, and the door shut suddenly.

18 And then not 10 or 20 minutes later they got back into the car and left

19 and the house burst into flames. They put some petrol on it, and I heard

20 and saw that there were tracer bullets. They shot tracer bullets into

21 the house. And anyway, it all caught fire and was set alight.

22 Q. Thank you, Witness VG-58. Let's return to the individuals you

23 saw. You told us that you saw Milan Lukic, Sredoje Lukic, Mitar

24 Vasiljevic, and Jovisa Planojevic. What was Milan Lukic doing exactly?

25 What was his role within this group of people?

Page 1598

1 A. It was like this: He had a short rifle. I don't know what the

2 name of that kind of rifle is, but anyway, he pushed the people into that

3 house with that rifle and managed to do that. They all went into the

4 house, and then they set fire to the house. And a little while after

5 that, the car left and the house was ablaze. You could hear screams like

6 the screams of cats. It was just terrible.

7 Q. What did Sredoje Lukic do, because you saw him as well.

8 A. Yes, he was there too. He did the same. He was busy pushing the

9 people into the house, all of them in that group. There were some other

10 people, too, in that group of theirs, but I couldn't recognise the

11 others.

12 MR. CEPIC: Your Honour, with your leave.

13 JUDGE ROBINSON: Yes, Mr. Cepic.

14 MR. CEPIC: I think that the previous question was leading

15 question. Thank you.

16 JUDGE ROBINSON: If it was, only marginally so. Let's proceed.

17 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation]

18 Q. Witness, you were describing what Sredoje Lukic was doing.

19 A. Yes.

20 Q. How was Milan Lukic dressed?

21 A. He had black overalls, one piece, black one-piece on him, and he

22 had -- you know, what they put that -- the thing you put for the rifle,

23 for putting the bullets into, and he had a knife and a short rifle.

24 Q. What about Sredoje Lukic?

25 A. They were dressed the same.

Page 1599

1 Q. In your view, these two individuals you recognised amongst others

2 where the house of Meho Aljic was on fire, were these two individuals the

3 same as the one that you identified for the Chamber earlier on and are

4 here with us in this courtroom?

5 MR. ALARID: I would object to the characterisation of

6 identification. I don't believe there was an identification.

7 JUDGE ROBINSON: Proceed. That's a matter on which the Trial

8 Chamber will make a determination as to the weight.

9 Do you have the same point, Mr. Cepic?

10 MR. CEPIC: Your -- Your Honour, just to add something related to

11 the previous identification, who's wearing the blue jacket and who's

12 wearing the grey jacket, for the record. With your leave.

13 JUDGE ROBINSON: You're asking me?

14 MR. CEPIC: No, no, just for the record, to put in the record,

15 because the witness described one of the accused.

16 MR. GROOME: Your Honour --

17 JUDGE ROBINSON: I'm not going back to it. I've told counsel

18 that he can come back to that. Let us be orderly.

19 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honour.

20 Q. VG-58, did you get my question? Can you answer my question?

21 A. Could you please repeat the question?

22 Q. Yes. I was asking you the following: During the fire at Bikavac

23 you've just described, you identified Milan Lukic and Sredoje Lukic,

24 among others. These two individuals, are they here in this courtroom

25 today?

Page 1600

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. I'd like to return to something you said. You said that women

3 and children were gathered together. You said that Milan Lukic brought

4 all these people together, if I remember correctly. Were there also men

5 within that group?

6 A. I didn't see any.

7 THE INTERPRETER: "I did not see," said the witness.

8 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation].

9 Q. Could you give us a ballpark figure of the number of people being

10 gathered in this group?

11 A. Roughly over 60.

12 Q. You said that you were close by, that you were about five metres

13 away from the house of Meho Aljic. Do you remember roughly where you

14 were standing?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. Where were you in respect to the house of Mr. Meho Aljic? Were

17 you behind the house, in front of the house, next to the house?

18 A. In front of the house.

19 Q. Were you able to identify other houses nearby next to the house

20 of Mr. Aljic, houses whose owners you know?

21 A. Yes. Yes. I know Dervo from Zlijeb, a house below the road.

22 VG-114, Sumbula Pecikoza.

23 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] Your Honour, could we move into

24 private session for this part of my examination.

25 JUDGE ROBINSON: Yes.

Page 1601

1 [Private session] [Confidentiality partially lifted by order of Chamber]

2 (redacted)

3 (redacted)

4 (redacted)

5 (redacted)

6 (redacted)

7 Q. Witness, I'm now going to show you a picture, and on that picture

8 you will be able to show us the house where the fire took place, and you

9 will be able to tell us as well where you were. I'm going to ask the

10 registrar to display Exhibit 175.10 on the 65 ter list. It's part of

11 exhibit -- or of 00175.

12 Whilst the document is being brought up on our screens, I'd like,

13 Witness VG-58, I'd like to ask you whether you were able to recognise

14 anyone in that group of people that had been brought together.

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. Could you please give us the names of those whom you recognise?

17 A. Meho Aljic's sister-in-law Suhra, with a baby; Tija Spoljan, her

18 daughter-in-law with two children from -- then Tija Ceric's [phoen]

19 daughter, and her daughter's daughter and a baby.

20 Q. You've just given us the names of a number of people you

21 recognised and who were pushed into the house of Meho Aljic. We now have

22 the photograph on our screens, but I don't think it's working properly.

23 You mentioned VG-114. Was VG-114 amongst those people in that

24 group?

25 A. Yes.

Page 1602

1 MR. ALARID: And I object to the leading nature of the question,

2 Your Honour.

3 JUDGE ROBINSON: I don't see anything leading in that. Proceed.

4 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation]

5 Q. You told us that the house burnt down. Could you tell us who set

6 fire to the house?

7 A. Milan Lukic, Sredoje Lukic, Jovisa Planojevic, Mitar Vasiljevic.

8 Q. How did they set fire to the house? What did they use to set

9 fire to the house?

10 A. They used petrol to light the fire, as well as bullets that were

11 fired from a rifle.

12 Q. You were in front of the house of Meho Aljic. Could you tell us

13 how long it all lasted? You said that you heard screams for a while.

14 How long did it last?

15 A. It lasted perhaps half an hour.

16 Q. After this half hour could you still hear screams coming from the

17 house?

18 A. Yes.

19 Q. You said that there were children, young children, babies. Were

20 you able to see how many babies there were?

21 A. Yes. I wasn't able to see how many children there were, but

22 there were many.

23 (redacted)

24 (redacted)

25 (redacted)

Page 1603

11 Page 1603 redacted. Private session.

Page 1604

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9 (redacted)

10 Q. Thank you. There was this fire in this house, the fire you saw.

11 Do you know what the perpetrators, Milan Lukic, Sredoje Lukic,

12 Vasiljevic, do you know what they did afterwards?

13 A. Yes. They took the car and got out of the driveway onto the

14 street leading from Banpolje toward the town, toward the hotel in

15 Bikavac. Milan Lukic took two girls and got them into a van. I wasn't

16 able to see who was driving the van, but they drove them away toward the

17 town.

18 Q. You said that they took a car. What colour was that car?

19 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Cepic.

20 MR. CEPIC: Your Honour, we just heard that witness mentioned

21 just Milan Lukic and now in question we have plural.

22 JUDGE ROBINSON: That's quite so, Mr. Ossogo. The previous

23 evidence was that Milan Lukic took two girls and got them into a van.

24 But then she said, but they drove them towards the town.

25 So, Witness, how many persons took the two girls and put them

Page 1605

1 into the van and drove them towards the town?

2 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] All of them were there. Nobody had

3 left earlier or later. They got into the car. I wasn't able to see who

4 was at the wheel. I was only able to see Milan Lukic forcing them onto a

5 van.

6 JUDGE ROBINSON: Do you know who else got into the car? Did you

7 see Milan Lukic go into the car? Did you see Milan Lukic go into the

8 car?

9 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I saw him push them into a van. I

10 saw him do that personally, but I don't know who the driver was.

11 JUDGE ROBINSON: And do you know who else got into the car apart

12 from the two girls?

13 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes. Those who were part of the

14 group did.

15 JUDGE ROBINSON: And who was part of the group? Are you able to

16 name them?

17 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Yes. Milan Lukic, Sredoje Lukic,

18 Jovisa Planojevic, Mitar Vasiljevic.

19 (redacted)

20 (redacted)

21 (redacted)

22 (redacted)

23 (redacted)

24 (redacted)

25 (redacted)

Page 1606

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22 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation]

23 Q. Witness VG-58, after these events, after the perpetrators had

24 left, what did you do, because you were hiding in a place where you saw

25 all these events. What did you do then?

Page 1607

1 A. I was there until VG-114 went past.

2 Q. Was VG-114 alive? Did VG-114 survive the fire?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. Do you know if other people survived this fire in Bikavac?

5 A. No.

6 (redacted)

7 (redacted)

8 (redacted)

9 (redacted)

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Page 1608

11 Page 1608 redacted. Private session.

Page 1610

1 Q. Ma'am, isn't it true that you lost or -- many family members in

2 this war in Visegrad?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. And for the first time in your statement in April of 2008 you

5 mention the belief that your mother, as well as other family members,

6 were in this house on Bikavac; correct?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. And at no time prior to April 2008 did you mention this suspicion

9 that your mother and sisters were in this house in Bikavac. Isn't that

10 true?

11 A. I didn't even mention my father. My father was detained in the

12 school building on Pionirska Street.

13 Q. And isn't it true that after the war the names of Milan Lukic,

14 Sredoje Lukic, and Mitar Vasiljevic were talked about amongst the

15 refugees from Visegrad?

16 A. I don't know who talked about what. I only know who did what.

17 Q. And it's because you're saying you're an eyewitness and recognise

18 these gentlemen at many stages in your time in Visegrad. Isn't that

19 true?

20 A. Yes.

21 Q. Now, on the date of the Bikavac fire, you're indicated and you

22 drew on the map that you were five metres from the fire the whole time.

23 Is that true?

24 A. Yes. I didn't measure the distance, of course, but it was

25 roughly that, and I swear to God. I'm not going to lie.

Page 1611

1 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Alarid, just to let you know, the Prosecutor

2 took 90 minutes in his examination-in-chief, and that's about the time

3 that you will have as a maximum. Of course, you don't have to use it.

4 MR. ALARID: Your Honour, I'll try not to.

5 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone.

6 MR. ALARID: I'll try not to, Your Honour.

7 Q. Now, during this time that you indicate that just Milan Lukic,

8 Sredoje Lukic, Mitar Vasiljevic, and one other individual,

9 Mr. Planojevic, was at the scene?

10 A. Yes.

11 Q. You didn't describe what Mitar Vasiljevic was wearing. What was

12 he wearing? And how did you know who he was?

13 A. I know for sure. He wore the black overall. He had gloves on

14 his hands, a rifle in his hands, a knife at his belt, a bullet belt

15 across his chest and a cap on his head, something like a sock or stocking

16 or something like that.

17 Q. Was the stocking pulled down over his face?

18 A. Yes, but you could see his eyes.

19 Q. And so you know Mitar Vasiljevic enough that you would recognise

20 him from his eyes alone?

21 A. Yes, that's right. I can recognise him now too.

22 Q. Ma'am, I put to you that you were offered a photograph of Mitar

23 Vasiljevic and you were not able to name him.

24 A. I recognised him. I'm not going to lie. I've come here to tell

25 the truth. I'm not ashamed. So if I recognised somebody, I say so. And

Page 1612

1 I'm not afraid of anyone either. I just fear God.

2 Q. But in your statement --

3 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Ossogo.

4 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] If the counsel could please specify

5 when this photograph was shown to the witness - I believe that it was in

6 the Vasiljevic case - so that the witness can locate herself in time.

7 JUDGE ROBINSON: She seemed to have been aware of it, but, yes,

8 Mr. Alarid.

9 MR. ALARID:

10 Q. I put to you that it was attached to your 14, 15 of May, 2000,

11 statement tendered to the OTP investigators. Do you recall giving this

12 statement?

13 A. Yes.

14 Q. Now, before we move on to that statement, though, I would like to

15 take your attention to April of this year where you filed clarifications

16 to the 2000 statement totaling 52 paragraphs, and it was given over three

17 days, the 17th, the 19th, and the 20th of April, 2008. Do you recall

18 this statement?

19 A. Yes, I do. May I ask you a question?

20 JUDGE ROBINSON: Witness, you can't ask him a question. That's

21 not permitted. Please be patient, just answer the questions.

22 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Very well.

23 MR. ALARID:

24 Q. Can I ask now, this was a clarification of an approximately

25 eight-page statement you'd given in 2002. Can you tell us, though, why

Page 1613

1 it took three days to generate these clarifications?

2 A. I don't know.

3 Q. Now, in the statements you indicated -- do you recall giving a

4 statement in July of 1992?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. And that was to the Ministry of the Interior in Sarajevo. Isn't

7 that true?

8 A. Yes.

9 MR. ALARID: I'd like the court usher, please, to bring up

10 1D10-1570, which is the English version. B/C/S version is 1D10-1574.

11 For the witness, please.

12 Q. Before your testimony today -- or have you been given an

13 opportunity to review the 1992 statement? Ma'am, did you have an

14 opportunity to review the 1992 statement?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. And so do you recall that in that statement you had never

17 mentioned Milan Lukic, the Bikavac fire, the fact that you were present

18 at that fire at all?

19 A. I always mentioned, and I stand that -- and I stand by that, and

20 I'm not afraid.

21 Q. Now, isn't it true that in the 1992 statement, the only time --

22 you never mentioned Mitar Vasiljevic?

23 A. He did the most evil. Him, Lukic.

24 JUDGE ROBINSON: Witness, that wasn't the --

25 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Milan Lukic, Sredoje --

Page 1614

1 JUDGE ROBINSON: Please just listen to me. The question that

2 counsel is asking, counsel is saying that in your 1992 statement, you

3 never mentioned Mitar Vasiljevic.

4 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I saw him in all the incidents, in

5 every incident, and even if I didn't write that, I've come here to tell

6 the truth, and I'm not afraid of doing so.

7 MR. ALARID:

8 Q. Well, in your 2000 statement given to the Office of the

9 Prosecutor for the ICTY, you indicated that Mitar Vasiljevic was the one

10 that first arrested your husband. Isn't that true?

11 A. Yes.

12 Q. However, in your July 1992 statement, you indicated that your

13 husband was arrested by Dragan Tomic while he was in the village of

14 Prelovo trying to return home. Isn't that true?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. Yet in your 2000 statement you indicate that Mitar Vasiljevic

17 came in to your house to arrest him. Isn't that true?

18 A. Yes. He was looking for him and went to Osavo [phoen] where he

19 was, and Milan Lukic looked for me at Bikavac and Seganje and everywhere.

20 Q. But, ma'am, do you see the discrepancy? In one statement, the

21 most recent after the incident, you state that your husband was arrested

22 by the chief of police, Dragan Tomic, on his way back home from Prelovo,

23 and in 2000, eight years later, you indicate that Mitar Vasiljevic

24 arrested your husband after kicking in the door and demanding gold at

25 your home. Can you explain that discrepancy?

Page 1615

1 A. You know what? If I -- if I didn't write in something, had you

2 experienced and lived through what I had lived through, you wouldn't have

3 been able to even write a third of what I've written.

4 Q. Ma'am, isn't it just true that you want revenge of the local

5 Visegrad residents who you believe are responsible for these tragedies

6 through hearsay and speaking with other people?

7 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Ossogo.

8 MR. OSSOGO: [Interpretation] I disagree with this

9 mischaracterisation of the client's motives saying that she wants

10 revenge. I don't think this has any relevance to the case.

11 JUDGE ROBINSON: [Microphone not activated] ... that's my view,

12 he's perfectly entitled to put it. And she can answer it.

13 Are you here to get revenge, Witness?

14 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] No.

15 JUDGE ROBINSON: She has answered. Let's move on.

16 MR. ALARID:

17 Q. Now, in your 1992 statement you do indicate that there -- the

18 Uzice Corps were doing the robbing. However, in the 1990 -- or excuse

19 me, in the year 2000 statement you now name it as the locals Mitar

20 Vasiljevic, Sredoje Lukic, Milan Lukic, and your neighbour. Who's that?

21 What's his name, ma'am?

22 A. To answer your question, the Uzice Corps, the White Eagles, did

23 not slaughter and kill people as much as these people did and slaughtered

24 too. So I think that should now be clear to you, that everything's clear

25 to you now.

Page 1616

1 Q. But I would put to you that in your 1992 statement you indicated

2 that the Uzice Corps are the ones that came to your home looking for your

3 husband and took away your television, video recorder, cassette player,

4 kitchen knife, and gold jewellery, and that as they left they set fire to

5 Kemal Hurem's shop and cafe and those belonging to Subasic and others.

6 A. Not only Kemal Hurem's house but the whole hill was ablaze.

7 Q. And so what you're saying now is the Uzice Corps caused all that

8 fire and destruction.

9 A. I didn't even mention the Uzice Corps.

10 Q. In 1992 you did.

11 A. You know what? I don't want anybody to provoke me or me to

12 provoke anyone. I come here to tell the truth.

13 JUDGE ROBINSON: Mr. Alarid, there's a way in which you

14 cross-examine when you are cross-examining on previous statements, which

15 I think is not entirely satisfactory. You ask a question of the witness

16 to indicate that the witness is not saying something that was in a

17 previous statement, but you don't put the statement -- the statement is

18 not put in evidence so that we can see it. It is left -- it is left

19 hanging in the air.

20 MR. ALARID: And, yes, Your Honour. When I ask that they be put

21 up --

22 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone, please.

23 MR. ALARID: Excuse me. The statements are doing that same

24 flashing thing that we were having trouble with the photograph on the

25 e-court, and so I actually wanted to go paragraph by paragraph in a very

Page 1617

1 controlled manner and do that for the Court, Your Honour, and of course I

2 would be tendering the statements as evidence at the tail end of them,

3 all the statements so the Court can do their own compare and contrast as

4 to the changing statements.

5 JUDGE ROBINSON: But the proper way to do it, in my view, is to

6 really put the statement in front of the witness and have the

7 statement -- have the witness look at it and get her disagreement or

8 agreement as to whether it bears out your proposition.

9 MR. ALARID: I agree with you completely, Your Honour. I'm

10 just -- I'm kind of flustered by the e-court problems that we're having

11 right now since they are blinking on and off. And, Your Honour, I'm not

12 sure when the break is, but that would be essential to clear this problem

13 up so the witness could see it.

14 JUDGE ROBINSON: The break is at 25 minutes to 6.00.

15 [Trial Chamber and registrar confer]

16 [Trial Chamber confers]

17 JUDGE ROBINSON: There's a technical matter - well, I hope it's

18 only technical - that I want to have clarified with the court deputy.

19 Court deputy.

20 [Trial Chamber and registrar confer]

21 JUDGE ROBINSON: Well, there is a technical problem. The

22 statement on the e-court does not stay permanently, it blinks. It

23 appears to be -- I don't have it. Yes, it doesn't stay on. It blinks.

24 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, if I might be of assistance to the

25 Court. If Mr. Alarid tells us -- the witness can see it fine, it's just