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Gasal et al: Witness Again Fails to Appear

Gasal i ostali

08 September 2010  The trial of four indictees charged with crimes committed against Bosnian Croats from Bugojno continued with the presentation of material evidence by the Defence teams for the first and second indictees, as witness Sabahudin Gazic again failed to appear in court.

The Defence for indictee Enes Handzic continues to insist on having the witness testify before the Court, saying it “will not give up on his testimony”.
 
“This witness is very important for us. I would like to examine him in the courtroom and confront him with another witness. He is obviously hiding. (...) I propose that the Court decide how to proceed with the trial, while, in the meantime, I will try to get in touch with the witness,” Fahrija Karkin, Defence attorney for the third indictee, said.  
 
The Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina has charged Enes Handzic, Nisvet Gasal, Musajb Kukavica and Senad Dautovic with crimes committed against Croats who were detained in various buildings in Bugojno area during the course of 1993 and 1994.
 
The indictment alleges that Gasal and Kukavica were responsible for the functioning of the “Iskra” detention camp, while Handzic, former Assistant Commander for Security with the 307th Brigade of the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina, ABiH, and Dautovic, former member of the Joint ABiH Command in Bugojno, are charged with participation in the capture of civilians in Bugojno and the drawing up of plans for this action.  
 
Witness Sabahudin Gazic failed to appear at the hearing held on August 25 this year, when the Court said it would try to hand deliver the summons to him via the State Investigation and Protection Agency, SIPA.
 
In November 2008 Gazic testified for the Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He said he used to work as “commander of guards” in the “Vojin Paleksic” school building, where Croats were detained, during the course of the summer of 1993.
 
At this hearing Gasal’s Defence presented several pieces of material evidence “in an attempt to prove who was actually responsible for the prisoners”.  
 
“We herewith present an approval issued by the Security Service with the 307th ABiH Brigade which says that the captured members of the Croatian Defence Council were allowed to leave the prison complex in order to maintain their hygiene,” Mirza Kovac, Gasal’s Defence attorney, said, presenting 15 pieces of evidence which were accepted by the second indictee’s Defence as well.  
 
The third indictee’s Defence did not want to present evidence prior to the examination of witness Gazic, while the fourth indictee’s Defence is due to start its presentation of evidence at the next hearing, scheduled for September 22.