Karadzic Trial Coverage Praised

Commentators in former Yugoslavia have singled out the objectivity and balance of IWPR's reporting of two key recent developments in the region - the start of the trial of the former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and the early release from prison of one his former allies, Biljana Plavsic.

The Karadzic trial officially started on October 27 with the opening brief of the prosecution. The accused - who is representing himself - refused to attend the proceedings because he claimed he hadn't had enough time to prepare his case. He had demanded an extra ten months to work on his defence, but the request was turned down by both the trial and the appeals judges.

"IWPR articles on the start of Karadzic's trial are very interesting, informative and provide a comprehensive overview of the case." Dragana Erjavec, a Sarajevo-based reporter

Because the proceedings couldn't continue without Karadzic's presence in court, the trial has been adjourned until March 1, 2010. In order to prevent further delays, the judges recently appointed a stand-by counsel who will take over Karadzic's defence if he fails to appear in court in March.

In addition to the coverage of the proceedings against Karadzic, IWPR published analysis of new developments in this case, as well as problems related to it, such as the self-representation of the accused.

"IWPR articles on the start of Karadzic's trial are very interesting, informative and provide a comprehensive overview of this case. I particularly like the fact that in every article IWPR has a few paragraphs about the indictment, and thus reminds the readers of the main charges against Karadzic," said Dragana Erjavec, a Sarajevo-based reporter with the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN.

Slobodan Beljanski, a lawyer from Novi Sad, said IWPR has been covering Karadzic's trial "correctly", informing readers of the range of expert opinion on all relevant legal issues.

"Your articles [on the Karadzic case] are full of information and very objective," Beljanski said.

Separately, IWPR reporter Rachel Irwin has written at length about her personal impressions as a reporter covering the Karadzic trial.

"In writing about proceedings at the tribunal, I've spent much time listening to harrowing witness testimony, sifting though massive legal documents, and watching theatrical courtroom sessions," she wrote.

"Yet the spectacle outside the building that day was like nothing I've seen before. It was a combination of media frenzy and the frustrations of those who had waited years to see Karadzic stand trial.

"Covering proceedings at the tribunal has made me think a lot about how people deal with the past and what the term justice actually means.

"It is still a question I grapple with on a daily basis, but I've come to believe that justice is not only about seeking and presenting the truth, but about acknowledging how those truths - which are often unthinkably cruel - have affected human beings."