Čemerno Case: Prosecutor Simović 'angered' Judge Kreho, will the Court of BiH introduce Hague rules for witness examination

(Patria) - After the summer break, the trial in the case 'Džemal Hadžić and others', better known as the 'Čemerno case', continued, in which eleven members of the police in the TO BiH are accused of crimes in this Ilijaš village.

At today's hearing, two witnesses gave statements, both participants in the operation at Čemerno, which, according to their accounts, was exclusively aimed at destroying howitzers that had been shelling surrounding towns and settlements.

The first witness requested that his name not be mentioned in public, due to, as he said, the fact that this testimony could endanger his family. In his responses to prosecutor Zorica Đurđević, who replaced prosecutor Vladimir Simović in this process, he explained that at the beginning of the war he was a member of the reserve police force and as such had a designated uniform and was armed with a 'Heckler'.

He said that after being expelled from the Srednje police station by the Serbian army and police, they formed a station in Ljubina, where they had no commanders, but arranged duties among themselves. When he heard that an operation was being prepared to destroy the howitzers at Čemerno, he volunteered, as did his colleagues from the reserve force, stating that no one had issued an order for this. He described how they arrived at the assembly point near the school in Korita and were met there by about twenty people, mostly police officers and locals.

He claims he did not see any members of military units on the side and only heard about them later. He said the weather was very bad, it was raining, and it was so dark that they had to hold onto each other on the way to Čemerno.

He also described the events in Čemerno itself. Shortly after they reached a clearing above the village, shooting broke out, and his group managed to break through to the howitzers. He saw the howitzers and a huge pile of crates with shells. It was planned to mine the howitzers, but the man carrying the cables fled, so they decided to push the howitzers down the ravine above which they were dug in. Suddenly, automatic fire was heard, and someone shouted, 'They killed a policeman!'

He approached and saw that his neighbor and school friend Velimir Vidaković had been hit.

'Velimir died in my arms. We improvised a stretcher and carried him towards Mahmutovića Rijeka. With me were Enes Durak, Mijo Milanović, Zemir Tabaković, and some others I don't remember. When we descended into the village, I took the watch off Velimir's hand and saw it was exactly 9 o'clock. I gave the watch to Enes Durak to give to Velimir's father' – concluded this witness.

The second prosecution witness was also a participant in the operation, Zemir Tabaković, who answered questions from prosecutor Vladimir Simović, who appeared in the courtroom after the break. He also said he was a member of the reserve police force and volunteered for the operation at Čemerno. He said he saw some unknown people in Korita but did not know who they were or where they were from, nor the purpose of their presence there.

Like the previous witness, he described the events at Čemerno in a similar manner, as both were in the same group that went directly to the howitzers, so they know nothing about the events in the village itself.

'Someone said we should set fire to the barn where the ammunition was stored, but we didn't do it because shooting started then, through which I heard someone saying 'don't shoot!'. I think it was the voice of Enes Durak, but I'm not sure' – said witness Tabaković, among other things.

This time as well, criticism from the presiding judge of the Trial Chamber, Minka Kreho, of the manner in which prosecutor Vladimir Simović examined witnesses was not absent. She warned him on several occasions not to suggest answers to witnesses but to ask them questions. Regarding the fact that prosecutor Simović bases all his questions on witness statements given years ago, Judge Kreho reacted by stating that the Trial Chamber will most likely introduce the practice and recommendation of the Hague Tribunal on this matter, after which this type of witness examination will not be possible.

Interesting was also the duel that followed between the prosecutor and the judge, when Simović, intending to show that his words were not understood, stated 'I'm not speaking Chinese', to which Judge Kreho replied: 'It would be better'. The interest of those present was also aroused by Simović's question to witness Tabaković: 'Was the fog really fog'?

The trial in this case began in March 2018.

(S.Spahić)