Tribunal is illegal, says Milosevic

THE HAGUE, JULY 3. Facing his prosecutors alone, the former Yugoslavian President, Mr. Slobodan Milosevic, on Tuesday refused to enter a plea to war crimes charges, telling the U.N. tribunal that his trial was aimed at covering up Western crimes in his country.

The Chief Judge, Mr. Richard May, who repeatedly admonished Mr. Milosevic that this was not the time for speeches, entered a plea of innocent to the four charges against the accused: deportation, a crime against humanity; murder, a crime against humanity; murder, a crime against the laws or customs of war; and persecution on ethnic or religious grounds, a crime against humanity.

Mr. May adjourned the proceedings until a procedural hearing the last week of August. Mr. Milosevic was indicted in May 1999, the first head of state ever charged with war crimes by a U.N. court. Mr. Milosevic appeared calm and controlled during the 12-minute arraignment. He stood flanked by two security guards as the three judges entered the chamber and spoke firmly as Mr. May asked if he wanted to reconsider his decision to appear without counsel. ``I consider this tribunal false tribunal and indictments false indictments,'' Mr. Milosevic replied. ``It is illegal, being not appointed by U.N. General Assembly. So, I have no need to appoint counsel to illegal organ.''

Asked if he wanted the court to read the entire, 51- page indictment, Mr. Milosevic snapped: ``That's your problem.'' Mr. May then asked him to enter a plea. Instead, Mr. Milosevic said in Serbo-Croatian: ``This trial's aim is to produce false justification for the war crimes of NATO committed in Yugoslavia.''

The judge then repeated his request. ``I have given you my answer,'' Mr. Milosevic replied. He began to speak about ``this so-called tribunal'' when the judge cut him off and entered an innocent plea on his behalf. ``As I have said, the aim of this tribunal is to justify the crimes committed in Yugoslavia,'' Mr. Milosevic (59), responded. ``That is why this is a false tribunal, and illegitimate.''

The charges against Mr. Milosevic involve only offences committed by his forces in Kosovo during the crackdown against ethnic Albanians there two years ago. The United States and its allies have accused him of orchestrating the decade-long wars throughout the Balkans, and the tribunal hopes to indict him by October for offences in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The crackdown on Kosovo ended after a 78-day NATO bombing campaign, which forced Yugoslav troops and police to hand over the province to the United Nations and a NATO-led peace-keeping force.

Mr. Milosevic has consistently maintained that his actions were to save his country from Western domination and that the world has ignored NATO's ``crimes,'' including the bombing of civilian targets in and out of Kosovo. Mr. Milosevic, who was ousted from power in October, was transferred to U.N. custody on Friday by the pro-democracy Government of Yugoslavia's Republic of Serbia, and is now being held in a Dutch prison. He was arrested in Yugoslavia on April 1, after a chaotic stand-off with police.

Mr. Milosevic's claim that his only crime was to stand up against NATO is unlikely to win points with the court. He is gambling that it will bolster his reputation among his own people.

Mr. Milosevic acknowledged the authority of The Hague tribunal when, as President of Serbia, he signed the 1995 Dayton accords ending the war in Bosnia. The agreement committed his Government to cooperate with the U.N. court. The U.S. has provided evidence concerning Mr. Milosevic to the U.N. war crimes tribunal and is prepared to provide additional information, according to the U.S. State Department.

Mr. Milosevic's extradition enraged his followers back home and led to a crisis in the pro-democracy Federal Government of Yugoslavia, which is made up of two republics - Serbia and the much smaller Montenegro.

The Yugoslav President, Mr. Vojislav Kostounica and politicians from Montenegro opposed the extradition, which was carried out unilaterally by the Government of Serbia.

Huge protests by Milosevic supporters followed in the capital city of Belgrade. But in Kosovo, ethnic Albanians greeted his arraignment with satisfaction. ``It is way too late, but better late than never,'' said Mr. Faton Aliu, who watched Mr. Milosevic's defiant appearance from a Pristina tea house. ``It is over for him now.''

- AP

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