DATE=8/9/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=BRITAIN / YUGO (L-O) CQ
NUMBER=2-265292
BYLINE=LAURIE KASSMAN
DATELINE=LONDON
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Two Britons and two Canadians charged with
attempted terrorism in Yugoslavia have pleaded
innocent in their preliminary hearing in a military
court in Belgrade. Correspondent Laurie Kassman
reports from London on British concerns they will
receive a fair trial.
TEXT: A lawyer for the British policemen told
reporters in Belgrade the Britons and the Canadians
had all entered a plea of not guilty in the
preliminary hearing. Now he says it is up to the
public prosecutor to decide whether to indict the men
on charges of spying and attempted terrorism.
Britain has demanded access to the detained Britons
and called for their immediate release. London also
wants formal notification of the reasons for their
detention.
The Foreign Office has warned Belgrade against using
the men for political propaganda.
The men were arrested last week without proper visas
in the Yugoslav republic of Montenegro. The Yugoslav
military there accused them of illegally entering
Yugoslavia and carrying military equipment intended
for terrorist activities. Montenegro, which has
distanced itself politically from Belgrade, does not
require visas for most foreign travelers, but the
central government still does.
The wires and other tools found in the car belonged to
the Canadian businessman who runs a construction
company in Kosovo. The two British policemen
traveling with him and his nephew are working in
Kosovo for the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe as police trainers.
/// OPT /// The detention of the four foreigners is
seen by many as an unexpected political boost for
President Slobodan Milosevic ahead of the September
presidential election. Balkans expert John Alcock of
Britain's Bradford University says he would not be
surprised if the Milosevic government detains the men
until after the elections, even if they are never
brought to trial.
/// ALCOCK ACT // OPT ACT ///
To gain the political capital, he (Milosevic)
does not necessarily need to put them on trial,
but to have them for awhile and present them for
evidence that Serbia is the result of an
international conspiracy to destabilize it.
Having exploited that capital, he can then
release them but he has then made his point for
the domestic electorate.
/// END ACT // END OPT ///
A lawyer for the detained British policemen says the
Yugoslav authorities could hold the men for up to six-
months while they investigate the charges. If
convicted they could face 15-year jail terms.
(SIGNED)
NEB/LMK/GE/RAE
09-Aug-2000 12:14 PM EDT (09-Aug-2000 1614 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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