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Wednesday January 9, 10:23 PM UN judge wants quick Kosovo trial for still-defiant Milosevic A UN judge pushed for a quick trial when former Yugoslav strongman Slobodan Milosevic goes to court for atrocities in Kosovo next month, ordering the prosecution to limit witnesses and court time. Presiding judge Richard May also cut off an ever-defiant Milosevic, in his last pre-trial appearance, when he again tried to attack the UN tribunal as illegal and biased. Judge May cut Milosevic's microphone several times after the former Yugoslav strongman charged that "the aim of the trial underway is to reverse the scene, the culprit and the accused to justify the crimes committed during the NATO agression against my country." He reminded the defendant that the hearing was strictly meant to iron out procedural details before scheduled start of the Kosovo trial on Febuary 12. "You will have the opportunity to outline your defense in trial. Now is not the time for speeches," May said. Milosevic, 60, in his fifth appearance before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), has been charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity in the 1998-1999 Serb crackdown on ethnic Albanians in the Serbian province of Kosovo. He is to face a second trial concerning war crimes in Bosnia and Croatia when the Kosovo case is finished, after a legal battle in which the court rejected the prosecution's bid to hold one single trial against Milosevic. Strains emerged again Wednesday when the prosecution presented a witness list and a general timetable for its case. Clearly showing his discontent, Judge May told bluntly told prosecutors: "We have in mind a shorter case". The court cut the number of live witnesses to be called by the prosecution to 90, out of 110 it proposed. May also said he might trim the number of written statements to be admitted during the case. "You should be able to get through your case by recess," in the beginning August, May told deputy prosecutor Dirk Ryneveld. The former Yugoslav president has been in custody in The Hague for six months and has consistently refused any cooperation with the court, questioning its legality and refusing to mount a defense or read any court documents. On Wednesday, he again watched with disdain, a small smile playing around his lips. Dressed smartly in a dark blue suit with a light blue shirt and striped tie, Milosevic glanced dismissively at his watch or drank a glass of water. The court cut his microphone several times to interrupt his monolgues and tell Milosevic, the first head of state to be tried for war crimes, to focus on the case at hand. This repeated a pattern of events seen at Milosevic's four earlier court appearances. The former president insists the UN court was created illegally and says his trial dealing with alleged atrocities in Kosovo is part of an international conspiracy to cover up crimes by NATO during bombing raids on Serbia in the same period. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Send FREE video emails in Yahoo! Mail! http://promo.yahoo.com/videomail/ ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9WB2D Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
