[www.ANTIC.org] PETITION FOR HEALTH AND LIFE

[Vladimir Krsljanin]

c o u r t e s y   t r a n s l a t i o n   -TO THE SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS H.E. Kofi Annan -TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL OF THE UNITED NATIONS -TO THE "INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL FOR THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA" Mr. Claude Jorda, president Mr. Richard May, president of the Trial Chamber   D E M A N D to protect rights for health and life of Slobodan Milosevic                We draw attention of all people of good will, and of our colleagues - medical doctors in particular, the same way as to you - high officials of the Organization of United Nations and of the Tribunal at The Hague, that the different means of modern torture have been applied against Mr. Slobodan Milosevic, since the first day of his stay in the UN Detention Unit at The Hague. Mr. Milosevic faces different kinds of physical and psychological exhaustion aimed to worsen his already damaged health condition.             This torture started with strong light of the reflectors switched on during 24 hours in his prison cell, it continued with permanent video-camera monitoring of his prison cell, violating his privacy and basic human integrity. It is allowed to the representatives of the Prosecution to supply Mr. Milosevic with hundreds of thousand pages of text and more than thousand video and audio tapes, as well as to make last minute changes in the indefinite order of witnesses, whom Mr. Milosevic has to cross examine, which all requires from him enormous additional effort in the preparation for the process. Above all that, instead of four hours as reasonable length of daily proceedings, which would enable Mr. Milosevic with some time for preparation, as well as with time for daily walk in fresh air, regular meals and protection of general physical condition, the unbearable practice of daily proceedings lasting from 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. has been imposed again. If one has in mind that Mr. Milosevic is forced to be in the Tribunal building one hour before until one hour after the proceedings, and that the proceedings take place every working day, it becomes clear that he is deprived of all conditions necessary for protection of normal health condition.             The Trial Chamber at The Hague has been acquainted in detail with the health condition of Mr. Slobodan Milosevic, not only on the basis of the submitted previous medical documentation, but as well on the basis of findings of the medical check-up performed at The Hague by three medical doctors appointed by the Tribunal.              Bearing in mind the provisions of the UN General Assembly Resolution No. 3794 of December 18, 1982, which established the duty of medical doctors and other medical personnel to provide persons in prison or in detention "with therapy of the same quality and in accordance with the same norms as for the persons who are not in prison or in detention";             Recalling the Article 6 of the Codex of behavior of persons responsible for application of the law, adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 17, 1979, constituting the obligation of all courts, from which the Hague Tribunal can not be excluded, to take care about the complete protection of the health of persons under its jurisdiction, in this case of Mr. Slobodan Milosevic, and in particular to perform all necessary measures of medical care of the same quality and based on the same standards as for the persons who are not in detention or in prison;             Emphasizing the right for heath and right for life as basic human rights;             Remaining faithful to the Hypocrates oath to which we all as medicine doctors swore;   We demand:               1) To cease immediately the physical and intellectual exhausting that seriously damages the health of Mr. Slobodan Milosevic;             2) That Trial Chamber at The Hague determines such schedule of the process that would enable Mr. Milosevic with at least four days of recess after each two weeks of proceedings, as proposed by our colleagues who made check-up of Mr. Milosevic at The Hague;             3) That daily proceedings before the Trial Chamber should not be longer than four hours during a working day, so that besides of preparation for the next day proceedings, Mr. Milosevic would have time necessary for protection of his health condition (walk on fresh air, regular meals, regular sleep, physical exercises etc.). We also hereby require decrease of the amount of documentation supplied by the Prosecution, especially since it is in large part irrelevant for the role of Mr. Milosevic. The amount of documentation which has currently been submitted, contributes to physical and intellectual exhaustion of Mr. Milosevic, who is standing for his own case before the Tribunal's Trial Chamber;             4) To secure all necessary medical protection for Mr. Slobodan Milosevic, including regular check-ups by Yugoslav medical doctors of his own choice.               We, the undersigned medical doctors, consider that defense from freedom would be the most appropriate way to protect health and life of Mr. Slobodan Milosevic. In that sense, our demands 1) - 4) constitute only a minimum of preconditions to avoid further serious deterioration of his health and to avoid endangering of his life.  Done in Belgrade, October 2002                                         S i g n e d      b y: 1. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. SVETOLIK AVRAMOV, surgeon 2. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. VUKASIN ANDRIC, otorinolaringologist 3. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. VASO ANTUNOVIC, neuro-surgeon, Member of the Scientific Society of Serbia 4. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. MOMCILO BABIC, specialist in social medicine 5. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. JOVAN BUKELIC, neuro-psychiatrist, Ordinary Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the Serbian Physicians' Society 6. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. DRAGAN DELIC, infectologist 7. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. VASILIJE DRECUN, internist-pulmologist 8. LJUBOMIR DURKOVIC, MD, primarius, specialist in social medicine 9. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. DRAGOLJUB DJOKIC, specialist in social medicine 10. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. MIODRAG DJORDJEVIC, onco-epidemiologist 11. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. VLADIMIR DJUKIC, surgeon 12. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. SLAVICA DJUKIC-DEJANOVIC, neuro-psychiatrist 13. Professor Dr. Sci. Med.  MILOS JANICIJEVIC, neuro-surgeon, Ordinary Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the Serbian Physicians' Society 14. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. RATKO KALJALOVIC, infectologist, Ordinary Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the Serbian Physicians' Society 15. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. MIROSLAV KOVACEVIC, neuro-psychiatrist 16. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. GORAN LUKIC, internist 17. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. CASLAV MILIC, internist 18. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. SRECKO NEDELJKOVIC, internist-cardiologist, Ordinary Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the Serbian Physicians' Society 19. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. LAZAR RANIN, microbiologist 20. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. ZARKO RANKOVIC, infectologist 21. PERISA SIMONOVIC, MD, neuro-psychiatrist 22. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. VLADA SLAVKOVIC, internist 23. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. SVETOMIR STOZINIC, internist-cardiologist, Ordinary Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the Serbian Physicians' Society, Member of the National Bulgarian Medical Academy, Member of the Russian Medical Academy 24. SLAVICA TASIC, MD, MS, specialist in general medicine 25. Dr. Sci. Med. DRAGAN CANOVIC, surgeon 26. Professor Dr. Sci. Med. VOJISLAV SUVAKOVIC, infectologist, Ordinary Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the Serbian Physicians' Society     To join or help this struggle, visit: http://www.sps.org.yu/ (official SPS website) http://www.belgrade-forum.org/ (forum for the world of equals) http://www.icdsm.org/ (the international committee to defend Slobodan Milosevic)