Trial against Goran Hadžić, charged with a criminal offence of associating for the purpose of committing criminal offences against values protected by international law referred to in Article 187, paragraph 1 of the Criminal Law Act.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Osijek County Court

Case file no.. K-57/95

Judges' panel: judge Dragan Poljak, presiding; judge Zora Majić, member; lay judges Antun Rakin, Marija Pilgermajer and Tomislav Pavlović, members

Indictment: no. KT-222/92 of 28 April 1993 issued by the Osijek County State Attorney's Office, amended at the main hearing held on 12 May 1999.

Criminal offence: associating for the purpose of committing criminal offences against values protected by international law referred to in Article 187, paragraph 1 of the Criminal Law Act

Defendant: Goran Hadžić, unavailable

Defence counsel: Boris Kunček, lawyer practicing in Osijek

Victims:

- killed: Ivica Prodanović, Đuro Kiš, Stevo Bačić, Ivo Valentić, Vlado Valentić, Ante Golek, Joso Medved, Franjo Fuček, Marko Knežević, Mara Knežević, Kata Tot, Anuška Horvat, Josip Prodanović, Jure Šarić, Josip Hodak, Stjepan Penjić, Seka Penjić, Francika Bogović, Pero Mamić, Mato Nađ, Marija Cerenko, Manda Banović, Betika Gotovac and Andrija Gotovac

- expelled: 98 Croats and other members of non-Serb ethnicity

VERDICT (SUMMARY)

On 12 May 1999, the Osijek County Court pronounced the verdict in which defendant Goran Hadžić was found guilty

that during 1991 and 1992 in his capacity as the president of the so-called Government of Serb Region Slavonija, Baranja and Western Sirmium, he, with his political and public activities, was instigating and inducing Serb population to get military organised and team up with the purpose of expulsion Serb population and elimination of all historical and cultural characteristics of all non-Serbs, Croats in particular,

and, in order to realize Hadžić's intentions, Jovan Rebrača, Mile Jajić, Savo Šarčević, Dušan Rebrača, Božo Vidaković, Dragan Čugalj, Savo Grnović and Dušan Vidović organised and gathered in the settlement Tenja, within the so-called Territorial Defence and other informal groups, acting in accordance with his (Hadžić's) guidelines, organised and carried out forced labour for Croats and members of other non-Serb population, restricted their freedom of movement, intimidated and threatened by death, plundered their property, destroyed Catholic church, planted explosives in Croats' houses,

and caused therefore killing of Croats (Ivica Prodanović, Đuro Kiš, Stevo Bačić, Ivo Valentić, Vlado Valentić, Ante Golek, Joso Medved, Franjo Fuček, Marko Knežević, Mara Knežević, Kata Tot, Anuška Horvat, Josip Prodanović, Jure Šarić, Josip Hodak, Stjepan Penjić, Seka Penjić, Francika Bogović, Pero Mamić, Mato Nađ, Marija Cerenko, Manda Banović, Betika Gotovac and Andrija Gotovac) and, by April 1992, expulsion of 98 Croats and non-Serb population,

therefore, he teamed up several persons into joint activities with the purpose of committing genocide referred to in Article 156 of the Criminal Law Act,

and thus he committed a criminal offence of associating for the purpose of committing criminal offences against values protected by international law referred to in Article 187, paragraph 1 of the Criminal Law Act.

The defendant was sentenced to 8 years in prison.

The Osijek County Court's verdict is available in Croatian here.