THE DUTCH PRESS REACTS TO SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC FREEDOM CENTER'S ACTIONS AGAINST KAY
Press Excerpts - October 12/13, 2004

MILOSEVIC TRIAL RESUMED
NRC Handelsblad (Excerpt) - October 13, 2004

...the Dutch lawyer of Milosevic Nico Steijnen announced that his client will file a complaint with the Dutch Bar Association against Kay. The complaint concerns, according to Steijnen, the breach upon the 'fundamental right' of Milosevic to conduct his own defence. Steijnen finds that Milosevic 'has defended himself in a brilliant way', since the process started on February 12, 2002. 'By his performance Milosevic has brought to panic the judges and prosecutors', Steijnen stated. This is 'the real reason for stripping my client from his right to defend himself''.


MUJEHADDIEN FOUGHT AT THE SIDE OF UCK; PROCESS AGAINST MILOSEVIC RESUMED AFTER A MONTH
Trouw (Excerpts) - October 12, 2004

AMSTERDAM - After a adjournment during a month yesterday before the Yugoslav-tribunal the process against Slobodan Milosevic has been resumed with the evidence of the German research journalist Franz-Josef Hutsch.

He was interrogated by Steven Kay, the British who, strongly against the will of Milosevic, was assigned to defend the former Serbian president.

Hutsch told inter alia about the time he passed in 1998/1999 with the Kosovar Liberation army (UCK). He stated that tens of foreign mudjehaddien, from among others Algeria and Saudi-Arabia fought alongside with the Albanian Kosovars. He also declared that the UCK was involved in drugs trafficking and slave trade . According to Hutsch the UCK tried to manipulate by all sorts of ways western media. So internal displaced Kosovars were kept detained under terrible conditions in the mountains, where the were showed to western journalists.

(Passage Omitted)

The testimony of Hutsch was the first session in the Milosevic trial after nearly an month.

Some weeks ago the judges decided to assign counsel to Milosevic due to the bad health condition of the former Serbian president. Physicians didn't hold him able to defend himself. The judges found Steven Kay prepared to act as counsel. Kay before has performed the task of amicus curiae in order to guarantee a fair trial.

Milosevic disagrees with the decision to deny him further opportunity to defend himself and refuses to communicate with Kay. Who got immediately problems with the calling of witnesses; many persons who were sought by Milosevic, don't want to be interrogated by Kay. This resulted eventually in the fact that, though the assignment of counsel was meant to make the process more expeditious, the process must be stopped in order to provide the opportunity to Kay to find a new strategy.

Simultaneously Kay appealed against his own assignment.

The appeal is still pending, but nevertheless the process yesterday proceeded. Kay says he could still 'go ahead' with witnesses. However, Serbian media yesterday stated that from the around 100 potential witnesses who has been approached by Kay, the very majority would refuse to come.

Yesterday Milosevic's Dutch lawyer, Mr. Nico Steijnen, announced that Milosevic files a complaint with the Bar Association against Kay. The complaint concerns the breach upon the 'fundamental right' of Milosevic to conduct his own defence, Steijnen stated."


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