ICTY ACQUITS NASER ORIC OF THE MOST SERIOUS CHARGES

SEE NEW UPDATE:
Naser Oric was acquitted of all charges on appeal, read here.

FAIR DECISION in ORIC CASE, AT LEAST FROM THE BOSNIAK PERSPECTIVE

Naser Oric was found NOT GUILTY and therefore acquitted of any direct involvement in the mistreatment of about 15 Serb captives (of which about 5 died) and of responsibility for the "wanton destruction" of homes and property. But he was found GUILTY of failing to control and discipline men under his command.

The UN war crimes tribunal imposed a light two-year sentence on the commander of the Bosniak defenders of the Bosnian enclave of Srebrenica for failing to prevent murder and/or cruel treatment of about 15 Serb captives (about 5 of them died).

But the tribunal in The Hague ordered his immediate release since he has already been detained more than three years.

Naser Oric, 39, was acquitted of direct involvement in the murder of prisoners. He was acquitted of all charges related to the wanton destruction of Serb villages.

But the judges found he had closed his eyes to the mistreatment of captives and failed to punish their killers.

The incidents took place from December 1992 to March 1993 (before Srebrenica became "Safe Heaven"), when Serbian forces were ethnically cleansing, torturing, raping, and killing Bosniak population of Eastern Bosnia.

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"The accused was entitled to credit for the period of time he spent in custody since 10 April 2003 and the Judges therefore ordered that he be released as soon as the necessary practical arrangements have been made," the court said in a statement.

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Many of the 52 witnesses that the prosecution called were members of the Bosnian Serb Army who participated in the seige and massacre of over 8,100 Srebrenica Bosniaks.
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Correspondents say many Bosniaks regard Mr. Oric as a hero, and believe the decision to prosecute him was made to counter complaints by Serbs that the tribunal was biased against them.
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In court, Oric listened impassively as the lengthy verdict was read out.

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Serbian media falsely claimed that over 3,000 Serbs died around Srebrenica. However, the Research & Documentation Center (which aids ICTY war crime investigations) found that number to be 9 to 10 times lower. RDC concluded:

The allegations that Serb casualties in Bratunac, between April 1992 and December 1995 amount to over three thousand is an evident falsification of facts. Perhaps the clearest illustration of gross exaggeration is that of Kravica, a Serb village near Bratunac attacked by the Bosnian Army on the morning of Orthodox Christmas, January 7, 1993 . The allegations that the attack resulted in hundreds of civilian victims have been shown to be false. Insight into the original documentation of the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) clearly shows that in fact military victims highly outnumber the civilian ones. The document entitled “Warpath of the Bratunac brigade”, puts the military victims at 35 killed and 36 wounded; the number of civilian victims of the attack is eleven. [Read Full Report]

In fact, the International Court found that only 16 Serb were mistreated in the Naser Oric Case. Contrast that with over 8,000 slaughtered Bosniaks in Srebrenica, hundreds of thousands of Bosniaks who were ethnically cleansed from the area of Eastern Bosnia, and another tens of thousands missing in the area of Eastern Bosnia [RDC].

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In determining the sentence the Trial Chamber gave pivotal consideration to the general circumstances prevailing in Srebrenica and those particular to the accused and to the crimes committed. The judges described conditions in Srebrenica at the times of the crimes in 1992 and 1993 as abysmal. They noted that militarily superior Serb forces encircled the town and that there was an unmanageable influx of refugees there, as well as a critical shortage of food and the breakdown of law and order. The judges also noted that it was in these circumstances that Oric, then aged 25, was elected commander of a poorly trained volunteer force that lacked effective links with government forces in Sarajevo. His authority, they assessed, was scorned by some other Bosnian Muslim leaders and his situation became worse as the Bosnian Serb forces increased the momentum of their siege.

The judges found that there is no other case before the Tribunal in which the accused was found guilty of having failed to prevent murder and cruel treatment of prisoners in such a limited manner and in such abysmal personal and circumstantial conditions as in this case. Consequently, the sentence imposed reflects this uniquely limited criminal responsibility.

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The Tribunal's Trial Chamber II convicted Oric because he had reason to know about acts of murder and cruel treatment committed at the Srebrenica Police Station and a building behind the Srebrenica municipal building where Serb prisoners were kept between 27 December 1992 and 20 March 1993, and he failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent the occurrence of the crimes. The Trial Chamber acquitted the accused of a number of other alleged crimes.

The Trial Chamber, composed of Judge Carmel Agius (presiding), Judge Hans Henrik Brydensholt and Judge Albin Eser heard 80 witnesses. A total of 1639 exhibits were tendered into evidence.

Mr. Oric was found:

NOT GUILTY and therefore acquitted of:

Under Count 1: Failure to discharge his duty as a superior to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent the occurrence of murder from 24 September 1992 to 16 October 1992 pursuant to Articles 3 and 7(3) of the Statute, and failure to discharge his duty as a superior to take necessary and reasonable measures to punish the occurrence of murder from 24 September 1992 to 16 October 1992 and from 27 December 1992 to 20 March 1993 pursuant to Articles 3 and 7(3) of the Statute.

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NOT GUILTY and therefore acquitted of:
Under Count 2: Failure to discharge his duty as a superior to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent the occurrence of cruel treatment from 24 September 1992 to 16 October 1992 pursuant to Articles 3 and 7(3) of the Statute, and failure to discharge his duty as a superior to take necessary and reasonable measures to punish the occurrence of cruel treatment from 24 September 1992 to 16 October 1992 and from 27 December 1992 to 20 March 1993 pursuant to Articles 3 and 7(3) of the Statute.

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NOT GUILTY and therefore acquitted of:

Count 3: Failure to discharge his duty as a superior to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent or punish the occurrence of acts of wanton destruction of cities, towns, or villages, not justified by military necessity, pursuant to Articles 3(b) and 7(3) of the Statute.

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NOT GUILTY and therefore acquitted of:
Count 5: Wanton destruction of cities, towns, or villages, not justified by military necessity, pursuant to Articles 3(b) and 7(1) of the Statute.

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GUILTY of:

Under Count 1: Failure to discharge his duty as a superior to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent the occurrence of murder from 27 December 1992 to 20 March 1993 pursuant to Articles 3 and 7(3) of the Statute.

Under Count 2: Failure to discharge his duty as a superior to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent the occurrence of cruel treatment from 27 December 1992 to 20 March 1993 pursuant to Articles 3 and 7(3) of the Statute.

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Read ICTY Judgement: http://www.un.org/icty/pressreal/2006/p1094-e.htm

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Related: Naser Oric Trial Ends - Fairness Questioned

You might also be interested to read lengthy (but very interesting) IWPR piece: Oric Released Following Conviction

Oric's Two Years - By Human Rights Watch

Update: Naser Oric Welcomed Home