Lawyer: Šešelj did not accept court's conditions

Lawyer: Šešelj did not accept court's conditions

THE HAGUE -- Vojislav Šešelj remains in detention after a deadline expired for him to accept the conditions set out by the Hague Tribunal (ICTY) for his provisional release.

This is according to Belgrade-based laywer Toma Fila, who in a statement for Tanjug noted that Šešelj declaring his acceptance of the condition was demanded by the Serbian government so it would providing guarantees to the court.

On Tuesday, an internal memorandum of the court that Tanjug had access too said that Šešelj had stated he "had no intention of making a written declaration on weather he would respect the conditions for his provisional release," and that he told a tribunal representative in a telephone conversation that he "already said what he had to say about the matter in his previous written statement."

"There is no special procedure in such cases, and if there is no answer from the accused, then he is considered to have rejected the conditions attached by the Tribunal," Fila, who defended several accused Serbs before the Tribunal, said earlier on Tuesday.

The three-day time frame, in which Šešelj should have given his consent in writing and a legally binding form that he accepts the Tribunal's conditions, expired on Monday.

As a condition for the provisional release until the delivery of a judgment, the Tribunal ordered that Šešelj be placed in home confinement, in contravention of Rule 65 (B) titled “Provisional Release” which the Tribunal invokes.

The Trial Chamber requested that Šešelj states his commitment to respect the conditions: surrender his passport to the Serbian authorities, be escorted by the police when traveling for medical...