THE HAGUE, CRIME AND PUNISHMENT The verdict for Stanišić and Simatović can define the character of the war in BiH, restore dignity to victims, and preserve international law for Putin!

By: Rasim Belko

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Jovica Stanišić and Franko Simatović should have been sentenced to much heavier penalties. This is what Hague prosecutor Laurel Baig said in the January continuation of the appeal proceedings in the Stanišić-Simatović case. 

And indeed, if justice and fairness prevail, Stanišić, as the head of the State Security Service (“DB”) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Serbia, and Simatović, as an employee in the Second Administration of the DB MUP (commander of the Special Operations Unit - JSO), will be sentenced to penalties that will, to some extent, be a satisfaction to their victims. 

In the aforementioned continuation of the trial, prosecutor Baig stated: “The legal criterion has been resolved. They knew that crimes would be committed. They had concrete knowledge that crimes would be committed. They knew and were aware and knew of the intent. The Chamber found that they knew and were aware that Slobodan Milošević and other military officials of the JNA shared the same intent.” 

The trial of Stanišić and Simatović will provide the final answer as to whether Serbia was a participant in the Joint Criminal Enterprise or not. Earlier verdicts and what is publicly available absolutely support the thesis that the actions of Stanišić and Simatović are actually proof of Belgrade's obvious involvement in the war events in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Therefore, this case is so complex, and those who decide on justice in this case in The Hague are “walking on eggshells”. 

However, the summary of the verdict of June 30, 2021, stated: “The Trial Chamber is convinced that at least since August 1991, a joint criminal enterprise existed.” 

The same summary stated that the “common criminal purpose of this enterprise was the violent and permanent removal of the majority of non-Serbs”.

“This common criminal purpose was shared by certain high-level political, military, and police leadership in Serbia, in the Serbian autonomous regions of Krajina and Slavonia, Baranja and Western Srem, and in the Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was later renamed the Republika Srpska", the verdict summary stated.

The final verdict for Stanišić and Simatović will be the first for Serbian officials before The Hague and will seal the character of the war that ended SFR Yugoslavia. And that character will significantly change political and all other trends, especially in the relations between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. 

In the event of a guilty verdict, it will be proven that Serbia was an aggressor against Bosnia and Herzegovina, which will open old questions regarding the lawsuit against Serbia. Stanišić and Simatović were at the top of the planning and ordering system, and there is no doubt that, if interested, Bosnia and Herzegovina will have the opportunity to collect damages. However, interest is questionable, given that on the eve of the final verdict, there is barely any talk about it in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as we are offered a celestial spectacle. Whether everything is connected, we will see, but it is quite clear that disinterest produces bitterness. 

If, however, the verdict were to be acquittal, i.e., if a precedent were to occur, it would be a stain on the Tribunal at the end of its work. Insiders expect that, at the very least, the first-instance verdict will be upheld, and it is not impossible that it will be extended to some other counts, considering that the Red Berets were part of Serbian state security and committed terrible crimes in BiH. 

Nevertheless, the fact that this process has not received much attention from the top pro-Bosnian forces, just as they are indifferent to processes within BiH, perhaps we cannot solely blame the Hague judges and prosecutors. Much is also up to us, and sporadic interest has cost us so many times that we may have become accustomed to it. 

If there is justice, Stanišić and Simatović will face a much longer prison sentence than the one handed down in 2021. If it is according to the law, it will be clear to everyone what is already clear to most people in Bosnia - Serbia is an aggressor against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Otherwise, the international court and their justice will not pass the test, and that will be a serious blow considering the investigations into Putin's crimes in Ukraine. 

And there are few who will deny today that Russia is an aggressor against Ukraine. Although there are no verdicts to support this, we witness accusations of aggression and crimes on a daily basis, as well as the aid provided to Ukraine. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina was not helped during the aggression against its territory, so a verdict according to the norms of international law must be the minimum we will receive. The trial, which has lasted two decades, must not, for the sake of Europe's future, end with an acquittal or a masked verdict. 

The Hague has been walking on eggshells for too long, so the job must be finished as the rules define it, not as political lobbyists would like. Otherwise, there will be Putin and after Putin. Because we in Bosnia and Herzegovina can best testify that there are Milosevics after Milosevic. 

Defining the character of the war is a difficult task, but the arguments are simple, so we hope that the Hague judges will finally have the courage and rise to the level of international justice!