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INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE TO DEFEND SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC
ICDSM Sofia-New York-Moscow www.icdsm.org 23 February 2005
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Third (final) Announcement
I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e
The Hague Proceedings against Slobodan Milosevic: Emerging Issues in
International Law
The Hague, Saturday, 26 February 2005
Golden Tulip Bel Air hotel, Johan de Wittlaan 30
Conference admission is 10 EUR (payable at the entrance only). Admission for
media representatives is free.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The Press Release below contains the Timetable and titles of
the contributions of the participants who finally confirmed their arrival
and communicated the titles to the Organizational Committee. The last news
we declare with pleasure is participation of Professor Bhim Singh, Senior
Advocate at the Supreme Court of India. Participation of one of the legal
associates of President Milosevic (Dr Branko Rakic or Mr. Dragoslav
Ognjanovic) who will give remarks about the course of the defense case is
also expected. Due to these facts, the Timetable will be a subject of minor
last minute changes.
Copies of the contribution of Dr Alexander Mezhyaev (Russia) "The process
against Slobodan Milosevic at the Hague Tribunal: some problems of the
International Law" will be available for the interested attendants.
It is expected that a delegation of the participants will meet President
Milosevic on Friday, 25 February afternoon.
The Conference is organized by the International Committee to Defend
Slobodan Milosevic (ICDSM) and Vereinigung für Internationale Solidarität
e.V. (Association for the International Solidarity)
Contact person: Vladimir Krsljanin, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] , tel.: +381
63 8862 301
Contact phone at The Hague: +31 (0) 622 733 213
PRESS RELEASE
I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e
The Hague Proceedings against Slobodan Milosevic: Emerging issues in
international law
Saturday 26 February 2005 - 13.30-19.00
Golden Tulip Bel Air Hotel, Johan de Wittlaan 30 - The Hague/NL
Press contact for interview requests until 25 February 2005:
Tel.: +31134673451
Fax +31134631951
gsm +31651262642
e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Conference Presidium:
Christopher Black (Chair), Professor Velko Valkanov, Dr Branko Rakic
Timetable:
14:00-14:40 Ramsey Clark (USA)
The right to a fair trial in international and comparative law
14:40-15:20 Professor Dr. Dr. h.c. Hans Köchler (Austria)
Global Justice or Global revenge? International Criminal
Justice and the Role of the United Nations Security Council
15:15-16:00 Tiphaine Dickson (Quebec)
Imposition of counsel at The Hague: Beyond the Star Chamber
16:00-16:20 Coffee Break
16:20-16:40 Professor Velko Valkanov (Bulgaria)
The foul foundations of the Tribunal
16:40-17:00 Dr. John Laughland (UK)
The Hague: Destroying the principles of Nuremberg
17:00-17:20 Professor Aldo Bernardini (Italy)
International law turned upside down: Yugoslavia crisis and President
Milosevic's case
17.20-17:40 Christopher Black (Canada) A laywer's remarks on the Milosevic
trial
17:40-18:00 Coffee Break
18:00-19:00 Panel Discussion
Panelists: Christopher Black, Tiphaine Dickson, Dr. John Laughland, Dr.
Branko Rakic as well as other speakers
Language: English
Conference admission: 10 EUR.
Admission for media representatives is free
Interview application until 25 February, 2005 via mediacontact:
Tel.: +31134673451
Fax +31134631951
gsm +31651262642
e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE TO DEFEND SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC
ICDSM Sofia-New York-Moscow www.icdsm.org 8 February 2005
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Second Announcement
I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e
The Hague Proceedings against Slobodan Milosevic: Emerging Issues in
International Law
The Hague, Saturday, 26 February 2005
Golden Tulip Bel Air hotel, Johan de Wittlaan 30
Conference admission is 10 EUR. Admission for media representatives is free.
Conference Presidium: Christopher Black (Chair), Professor Velko Valkanov,
Dr Branko Rakic
Timetable:
14:00-14:30 Ramsey Clark (USA) - keynote address
14:30-15:00 Professor Hans Koechler (Austria)
15:00-15:30 Tiphaine Dickson (Quebec)
15:30-16:00 Dr Branko Rakic (Serbia)
16:00-16:20 Coffee Break
16:20-16:40 Professor Velko Valkanov (Bulgaria) - keynote address
16:40-17:00 Dr John Laughland (UK)
17:00-17:20 Professor Aldo Bernardini (Italy)
17:20-17:40 Christopher Black (Canada)
17:40-18:00 Coffee Break
18:00-19:00 Panel Discussion
Panelists: Tiphaine Dickson, Christopher Black, Dr
John Laughland, Dr Branko Rakic
*Notes: Each of the speeches ends with five minute discussion. The only
language of the speeches and discussion will be English. Presence of Dr
Alexandar Mezhyaev (Russia) has not yet been confirmed. In the case of his
absence, copies of his paper will be available. If the conditions will
allow, it is expected that speakers meet President Milosevic on Friday, 25
February afternoon.
The exact titles of the contributed papers and topics for the panel
discussion will be communicated in the third (final) announcement, which
will be issued on 15 February.
The Conference is organized by the International Committee to Defend
Slobodan Milosevic (ICDSM) and
Vereinigung für Internationale Solidarität e.V. (Association for the
International Solidarity)
Organizational committee: S. Bahlo, P. Betscher, T. Dickson, Ch. Grbic, K.
Hartmann, W. van der Klift, V. Krsljanin, B. Lisac, C. Schuetz
Contact person: Vladimir Krsljanin, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] , tel.: +381
63 8862 301
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INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE TO DEFEND SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC
ICDSM Sofia-New York-Moscow www.icdsm.org 19 January 2005
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First Announcement
I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e
The Hague Proceedings against Slobodan Milosevic:
Emerging Issues in International Law
The Hague, 26 February 2005
The idea of international law - in particular international criminal law -
is undeniably appealing to jurists and non-lawyers alike, as generations
have sought to establish a permanent criminal jurisdiction to prosecute war
crimes in the wake of the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials. Beyond the prosecution
of the crimes that are committed in war, however, the Nuremberg precedent
clearly articulates that the supreme international crime is the instigation
of a war of aggression. Indeed, the Nuremberg Tribunal held that:
"War is essentially an evil thing. Its consequences are not confined to the
belligerent states alone, but affect the whole world. To initiate a war of
aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime; it is the supreme
international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains
within itself the accumulated evil of the whole."
The ICTY, a Security Council institution, does not have the jurisdiction to
prosecute the "supreme international crime". Some argue that it in fact
legitimizes aggression, which can be exemplified by the serving of an
indictment against President Slobodan Milosevic at the height of the 1999
NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, contrary to international law. As the defence
phase of the proceedings continue to delve into the destruction of
Yugoslavia by Western interests, legal questions emerge which will be
discussed in this conference:
-The right to self-representation in international and comparative law;
-Joint criminal enterprise, tailor-made to convict and a tool of
de-nazification
-What is "relevant" testimony in a political prosecution?
-War crimes prosecutions by the Security Council: justifying aggression,
eliminating national sovereignty
-Self-determination and self-defense of Yugoslavia under international law
-"Equality of arms": what is left after The Hague?
-Armed conflict under international law and in the Milosevic case
-Effect of media coverage and lobbying on the right to a fair trial
-Misuse of genocide charges and trivialization of Nuremberg precedent and
Holocaust
-Denying the right to defend oneself - stepping on the fundamentals of law
-The right to a fair trial in international and comparative law: has it been
respected in the Milosevic case?
-How can the Hague be judged, and who will judge it?
After the presentation of the invited contributions, the conference will end
with a panel discussion.
The list of speakers include:
- Ramsey Clark, former US Attorney General (USA) - keynote address
- Professor Velko Valkanov, Chairman of the Bulgarian Human Rights
Committee (Bulgaria) - keynote address
- Professor Aldo Bernardini, international law, Teramo University (Italy)
- Dr Branko Rakic, international law, Belgrade University, legal associate
to President Milosevic (Serbia)
- Tiphaine Dickson, international criminal lawyer, legal spokesperson of
the ICDSM (Quebec)
- Christopher Black, international criminal lawyer, Chair, Legal Committee
of the ICDSM (Canada)
- Dr John Laughland, author of the book: "The International Criminal
Tribunal: Guardian of the New World Order" (UK)
- Dr Alexandar Mezhyaev, international law, Kazan (Russia)
The Conference will take place in the Golden Tulip Bel Air hotel, Johan de
Wittlaan 30 (close to the ICTY) from 1:30-7:00 pm. Conference admission is
10 EUR.
Organized by the International Committee to Defend Slobodan Milosevic
(ICDSM) and
Vereinigung für Internationale Solidarität e.V. (Association for the
International Solidarity)
Contact person: Vladimir Krsljanin, Secretary of the ICDSM, e-mail:
[EMAIL PROTECTED] , tel.: +381 63 8862 301
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URGENT FUNDRAISING APPEAL
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After the Hague Tribunal declared war against human rights and
International Law by banning President Milosevic's right to self-defense,
our activities for his liberation and for the restoration of his freedom and
for the national sovereignty of the Serbian people need to be reorganized
and intensified.
We need professional, legal work now more than ever. Thus, the creation of
conditions for that work is the imperative at this moment.
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The petition of 100 lawyers and law professors from 18 countries,
and other related activities of the ICDSM Legal Committee, produced a public
effect incomparable to any other previous action by the ICDSM.
President Milosevic has the truth and law on his side. In order to use that
advantage to achieve his freedom, we must fight this totally discredited
tribunal and its patrons through professionally conducted actions which
would involve the Bar Associations, the European Court, the UN organs in
charge and the media.
Our practice has shown that ad hoc voluntary work is not enough to deal
properly with these tasks. The funds secured in Serbia are still enough only
to cover the expenses of the stay and work of President Milosevic's legal
associates at The Hague (one at the time). The funds secured by the German
section of the ICDSM (still the only one with regular contributions) are
enough only to cover minimal additional work at The Hague connected with
contacts and preparations of foreign witnesses. Everything else is lacking.
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3000-5000 EUR per month is our imminent need.
Our history and our people oblige us to go on with this necessary action.
But without these funds it will not be possible.
Please organize urgently the fundraising activity
and send the donations to the following ICDSM accounts:
Peter Betscher
Stadt- und Kreissparkasse Darmstadt, Germany
IBAN: DE 21 5085 0150 0102 1441 63
SWIFT-BIC: HELADEF1DAS
or
Vereinigung für Internationale Solidarität (VIS)
4000 Basel, Switzerland
PC 40-493646-5
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All of your donations will be used for legal and other necessary
accompanying
activities, on instruction or with the consent of President Milosevic. To
obtain
additional information on the use of your donations or to obtain additional
advice on the most efficient way to submit your donations or to make bank
transfers, please do not hesitate to contact us:
Peter Betscher (ICDSM Treasurer) E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Phone: +49 172 7566 014
Vladimir Krsljanin (ICDSM Secretary) E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Phone: +381 63 8862 301
The ICDSM and Sloboda need to address governments, international human
rights and legal organizations, and to launch legal proceedings. The ICDSM
plans a legal conference at The Hague. Sloboda has just sent to the
patriotic
factions in the Serbian Parliament an initiative to adopt a parliamentary
Resolution
against the human rights violations by the Hague Tribunal and to form an
international team of experts to make an extensive report on these
violations which would be submitted to the UN.
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For truth and human rights against aggression!
Freedom for Slobodan Milosevic!
Freedom and equality for people!
On behalf of Sloboda and ICDSM,
Vladimir Krsljanin,
Foreign Relations Assistant to President Milosevic
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SLOBODA urgently needs your donation.
Please find the detailed instructions at:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/pomoc.htm
To join or help this struggle, visit:
http://www.sloboda.org.yu/ (Sloboda/Freedom association)
http://www.icdsm.org/ (the international committee to defend Slobodan
Milosevic)
http://www.free-slobo.de/ (German section of ICDSM)
http://www.icdsm-us.org/ (US section of ICDSM)
http://www.icdsmireland.org/ (ICDSM Ireland)
http://www.pasti.org/milodif.htm (ICDSM Italy)
http://www.wpc-in.org/ (world peace council)
http://www.geocities.com/b_antinato/ (Balkan antiNATO center)
Serbian News Network - SNN
news@antic.org
http://www.antic.org/
