The Hague, Netherlands — After two years, the prosecution in the war-crimes trial of former Yugoslavian leader Slobodan Milosevic finally rested its case Wednesday. But chief prosecutor Carla Del Ponte was in no mood to crack open any champagne.
“There is nothing to celebrate,” Ms. Del Ponte told a small group of journalists at the converted insurance building that serves as the headquarters for the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.
“It's a nightmare, this trial,” she said, referring to delays due to the illness of Mr. Milosevic, who periodically suffers from exhaustion, high blood pressure and flu.
Although 4½ years have passed since the tough-talking Swiss lawyer took over as the chief prosecutor from Canadian Louise Arbour, there remain a number of frustrations.
The Milosevic case has taken much longer than expected. There are doubts that the former Yugoslavian leader will be found guilty of genocide.
And perhaps more seriously, two of the prosecution's prime suspects, Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and General Ratko Mladic are still on the run, effectively thumbing their noses at the court, which costs the international community more than $200-million (U.S.) a year.
Even resting the Milosevic case after almost 300 days of court time did not come smoothly. Mr. Milosevic's latest illness and last weekend's resignation of the trial's presiding judge, Richard May, also for health reasons, prompted Ms. Del Ponte to end the prosecution's case with two days of testimony remaining, in an effort to move the trial forward.
Judges ruled Mr. Milosevic, who is acting as his own lawyer, has until June 8 to prepare his case and 150 days in which to present his defence.
But Ms. Del Ponte has no doubt that he will try to delay the proceedings further, although she insists there is no risk of a mistrial.
Despite her frustration, she expressed a grudging admiration for her adversary.
“He learned a lot in court. . . . As a professional, I appreciated his ability to cross-examine.”
Ms. Del Ponte is hoping that the trial will be over within a year, but her best guess is that the case will take at least another two years.
One of the problems in the Milosevic case is its sheer scope, which includes 66 separate counts of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide involving conflicts in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo.
“It's one of the most complicated cases ever,” said Eric Markusen, senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies and an expert on the Yugoslavian conflict.
“Genocide is the hardest crime to prove because you've got to show a specific intent to wipe out [a race or people],” said Reed Brody, senior counsel for Human Rights Watch. Getting that kind of documentary proof has proven extremely difficult, especially since the Yugoslav government has not been co-operative.
“I know that I don't have the smoking gun on the count of genocide,” said Ms. Del Ponte. “Of course, I'm convinced of the culpability of Milosevic for genocide . . . but it is different to have the evidence that can convince the judges.”
She also remains optimistic that Mr. Karadzic and Gen. Mladic will be arrested.
“After eight years as fugitives, they are experts in hiding. To arrest Karadzic and Mladic, you don't need 30,000 soldiers in uniform,” she said, adding that with the right intelligence information, they could easily be captured.
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