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| Vojislav Seselj, Serbian Nationalist, Is Acquitted of War Crimes by Hague Tribunal | Vojislav Seselj, Serbian Nationalist, Is Acquitted of War Crimes by Hague Tribunal |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| THE HAGUE — A United Nations tribunal on Thursday acquitted a Serbian nationalist, Vojislav Seselj, of war crimes and of crimes against humanity for his role in the Balkan wars of the 1990s, igniting a celebration by his followers and outrage among relatives of the victims. | |
| “It was the only possible verdict,” Mr. Seselj said in a defiant news conference in Belgrade, where he had gone for cancer treatment in 2014 and stayed on. “When I went to The Hague, I knew they could not prove any crime. There, I broke all the false accusations.” | “It was the only possible verdict,” Mr. Seselj said in a defiant news conference in Belgrade, where he had gone for cancer treatment in 2014 and stayed on. “When I went to The Hague, I knew they could not prove any crime. There, I broke all the false accusations.” |
| To those representing the victims, the acquittal was as gut-wrenching as it was surprising. “This verdict is offensive and shocking, and the process of reconciliation among people and neighboring countries will be devastated,” said the Croatian foreign minister, Miro Kovac, in a statement. “All those in the world who incite war, calling for ethnic cleansing and a policy of forced changes to internationally recognized borders were given a moral blank check with this verdict.” | To those representing the victims, the acquittal was as gut-wrenching as it was surprising. “This verdict is offensive and shocking, and the process of reconciliation among people and neighboring countries will be devastated,” said the Croatian foreign minister, Miro Kovac, in a statement. “All those in the world who incite war, calling for ethnic cleansing and a policy of forced changes to internationally recognized borders were given a moral blank check with this verdict.” |
| The acquittal by a three-judge panel came one week after the same court, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, convicted the former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic of genocide and 10 other counts of grave crimes. | The acquittal by a three-judge panel came one week after the same court, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, convicted the former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic of genocide and 10 other counts of grave crimes. |
| Serge Brammertz, the chief prosecutor, who had asked for a 28-year sentence, sounded shocked. “Of course, we and many victims are absolutely not satisfied with this outcome,” he said by telephone. An appeal was likely, he said. | Serge Brammertz, the chief prosecutor, who had asked for a 28-year sentence, sounded shocked. “Of course, we and many victims are absolutely not satisfied with this outcome,” he said by telephone. An appeal was likely, he said. |
| Mr. Seselj, 61, a lawyer famous for his fiery and irreverent speeches, during the war mobilized a well-known group of volunteer fighters known as Seselj’s Men. Although not a military leader, as the head of Serbia’s ultranationalist Radical Party he was accused of inciting his followers to kill and commit other crimes as they joined the fighting and ethnic cleansing campaigns in Croatia, Bosnia and the Serbian province of Vojvodina between 1991 and 1993. | Mr. Seselj, 61, a lawyer famous for his fiery and irreverent speeches, during the war mobilized a well-known group of volunteer fighters known as Seselj’s Men. Although not a military leader, as the head of Serbia’s ultranationalist Radical Party he was accused of inciting his followers to kill and commit other crimes as they joined the fighting and ethnic cleansing campaigns in Croatia, Bosnia and the Serbian province of Vojvodina between 1991 and 1993. |
| At the height of the campaigns, in 1992, more than 45,000 people died, a large part of the more than 100,000 killed in the former Yugoslavia in the early ’90s. | |
| Mr. Seselj was charged with three counts of crimes against humanity and six of war crimes in the ethnic cleansing for his role in mobilizing and motivating his followers. The charges included participating in a “joint criminal enterprise” to create a so-called Greater Serbia that led to the forcible transfer of tens of thousands of civilians; torture, sexual assaults, beatings and other physical abuse of detained non-Serbs; the destruction of homes, religious sites and cultural institutions; and hate speech. | Mr. Seselj was charged with three counts of crimes against humanity and six of war crimes in the ethnic cleansing for his role in mobilizing and motivating his followers. The charges included participating in a “joint criminal enterprise” to create a so-called Greater Serbia that led to the forcible transfer of tens of thousands of civilians; torture, sexual assaults, beatings and other physical abuse of detained non-Serbs; the destruction of homes, religious sites and cultural institutions; and hate speech. |
| But the majority on the three-judge bench found that Mr. Seselj, who acted as his own lawyer, was primarily pursuing a political project and was not an accomplice to any of those crimes. Even though he provided money and weapons to his volunteer fighters, the judges said he had not ordered, aided or abetted crimes because the fighters were under the command of Serbian military and police forces. | But the majority on the three-judge bench found that Mr. Seselj, who acted as his own lawyer, was primarily pursuing a political project and was not an accomplice to any of those crimes. Even though he provided money and weapons to his volunteer fighters, the judges said he had not ordered, aided or abetted crimes because the fighters were under the command of Serbian military and police forces. |
| The presiding judge, Jean-Claude Antonetti of France, who during the trial was often a target of taunts and insults from Mr. Seselj, said that the defendant’s incendiary speeches, calling for killing and revenge against his enemies, were “meant to boost the morale” of his followers, but were not crimes. | The presiding judge, Jean-Claude Antonetti of France, who during the trial was often a target of taunts and insults from Mr. Seselj, said that the defendant’s incendiary speeches, calling for killing and revenge against his enemies, were “meant to boost the morale” of his followers, but were not crimes. |
| Another judge, Flavia Lattanzi of Italy, issued a lengthy dissent, taking issue with the majority on nearly all the counts. She said Mr. Seselj had aided and abetted the crimes as charged, because he provided moral and material support to his volunteer force. | Another judge, Flavia Lattanzi of Italy, issued a lengthy dissent, taking issue with the majority on nearly all the counts. She said Mr. Seselj had aided and abetted the crimes as charged, because he provided moral and material support to his volunteer force. |
| Prime Minister Tihomir Oreskovic of Croatia denounced the acquittal as “a shameful slap to the victims.” | Prime Minister Tihomir Oreskovic of Croatia denounced the acquittal as “a shameful slap to the victims.” |
| He said Mr. Seselj “did not show remorse for the wrongs committed against the victims in Vukovar,” referring to a city in eastern Croatia, along the border with Serbia, that was decimated during the 1990s war. He added that the tribunal’s failure to “recognize the criminal enterprise in Croatia” means that “the fascist politics of Greater Serbia went unpunished.” | He said Mr. Seselj “did not show remorse for the wrongs committed against the victims in Vukovar,” referring to a city in eastern Croatia, along the border with Serbia, that was decimated during the 1990s war. He added that the tribunal’s failure to “recognize the criminal enterprise in Croatia” means that “the fascist politics of Greater Serbia went unpunished.” |
| After the prime minister spoke, the Croatian government barred Mr. Seselj from entering the country, news agencies reported. | After the prime minister spoke, the Croatian government barred Mr. Seselj from entering the country, news agencies reported. |
| William Schabas, a professor of international law at Middlesex University, said: “The judgment tells us that it is not the extreme nationalism of Serbia that was on trial. It presents Seselj as an ideologue and a demagogue, but he is a secondary figure. He is not commanding the troops.” | William Schabas, a professor of international law at Middlesex University, said: “The judgment tells us that it is not the extreme nationalism of Serbia that was on trial. It presents Seselj as an ideologue and a demagogue, but he is a secondary figure. He is not commanding the troops.” |
| Mr. Seselj, a former deputy prime minister of Serbia and onetime ally of the former Serbian president, Slobodan Milosevic, surrendered to the tribunal in The Hague in 2003. He quickly became notorious for his loutish outbursts, going on a long hunger strike at one point and disrupting the proceedings with exceptional demands and long speeches. | Mr. Seselj, a former deputy prime minister of Serbia and onetime ally of the former Serbian president, Slobodan Milosevic, surrendered to the tribunal in The Hague in 2003. He quickly became notorious for his loutish outbursts, going on a long hunger strike at one point and disrupting the proceedings with exceptional demands and long speeches. |
| The long delays in Mr. Seselj’s case, to a large extent the result of his machinations, caused profound embarrassment for the tribunal. In addition to his obstructions, however, there was also a lengthy dispute among the judges that led one of them to be removed, for apparent bias, further delaying his trial. | The long delays in Mr. Seselj’s case, to a large extent the result of his machinations, caused profound embarrassment for the tribunal. In addition to his obstructions, however, there was also a lengthy dispute among the judges that led one of them to be removed, for apparent bias, further delaying his trial. |
| During his 11 years in detention, he was tried and convicted three times for contempt of court, for writing about protected prosecution witnesses. An arrest warrant is still pending for three of his associates, who are accused of intimidating and bribing witnesses who later retracted or changed their statements. | During his 11 years in detention, he was tried and convicted three times for contempt of court, for writing about protected prosecution witnesses. An arrest warrant is still pending for three of his associates, who are accused of intimidating and bribing witnesses who later retracted or changed their statements. |
| He was not present in the courtroom on Thursday. In Serbia, Mr. Seselj and his followers celebrated the acquittal and expected it would be a boost for his Serbian Radical Party in next month’s elections. But analysts do not expect the party to fare well, as the appeal of nationalism has faded and many people want to join the European Union. | He was not present in the courtroom on Thursday. In Serbia, Mr. Seselj and his followers celebrated the acquittal and expected it would be a boost for his Serbian Radical Party in next month’s elections. But analysts do not expect the party to fare well, as the appeal of nationalism has faded and many people want to join the European Union. |
| As a lawyer and politician, Mr. Seselj became known for his fierce intelligence. He was jailed for two years, in 1984, for advocating that Yugoslavia be replaced by a Serb-dominated entity. He helped establish the Serbian Radical Party in 1990, as Yugoslavia was falling apart, and resisted moves by Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Slovenia to declare independence. He was seen in many quarters as even more extreme, and a more skilled demagogue, than Mr. Milosevic, who died in prison in The Hague in 2006. | |
| On Thursday, Mr. Seselj said he would charge the tribunal $16 million in lawyer’s fees and damages. The tribunal has said there is no provision for reimbursement. | On Thursday, Mr. Seselj said he would charge the tribunal $16 million in lawyer’s fees and damages. The tribunal has said there is no provision for reimbursement. |