Precautionary Measures After the Praljak Case: Radovan Karadžić's Verdict Without Direct Broadcast

THE HAGUE, (Patria) - The pronouncement of the appeals judgment in the case of the Prosecutor v. Radovan Karadžić before the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (Mechanism) is scheduled for Wednesday, March 20, 2019, at 2:00 p.m. in Courtroom I of the Mechanism's branch in The Hague. 

The Mechanism announced that, for operational reasons, the broadcast of the Appeals Chamber's judgment via the internet will be transmitted with a 30-minute delay.

"Accredited representatives of the media who wish to record the pronouncement of the judgment may do so from the media centre in the World Forum building or from the hall of the Mechanism building with a 30-minute delay. Media representatives accredited for access to the courtroom or the hall of the Mechanism building may follow the pronouncement of the appeals judgment live. All accredited media representatives who wish to enter the Mechanism's hall to follow the proceedings live will be able to do so. Please note that any recording of the live broadcast inside the Mechanism building is strictly prohibited."

In the World Forum building, however, the pronouncement of the appeals judgment will be broadcast with a 30-minute delay. 

Although the Mechanism did not provide a detailed explanation as to why the broadcast of the judgment will be delayed by 30 minutes, it is assumed that this was done due to the events during the pronouncement of the judgment for the Hague six Jadranko Prlić, Berislav Pušić, Valentin Ćorić, Milivoj Petković, Bruno Stojić, and Slobodan Praljak on November 29, 2017, when Praljak, after being sentenced to 20 years in prison, drank poison from a vial he held in his hand. The pronouncement of the judgment was then interrupted, and Praljak died.