MILOSEVIC TRIAL DELAYED DUE TO ILLNESS
By: Andy Wilcoxson (slobodan-milosevic.org webmaster)  - July 17, 2002 

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (slobodan-milosevic.org) - The Hague Tribunal Wednesday ordered a delay in Slobodan Milosevic's trial for health reasons, a spokesman said, citing the former Yugoslav president's high blood pressure.

It was the third time the trial of President Milosevic has been interrupted because of his ill health since it opened in February. He suffered two bouts of flu and high fever, setting back the trial schedule by a month so far.

Spokesman Christian Chartier cited "high blood pressure and altering his medication" as reasons for the adjournment of proceedings until Monday.

Earlier this month, the tribunal ordered a full medical exam for Milosevic, which Chartier said would likely be completed soon but remain confidential.

President Milosevic has objected to the medical exams saying, "I am not going to accept any kind of examinations by any kind of commission if my own doctor who treated me over the past few years is not on that same commission."

Tribunal doctors have been accused of incompetence in the past.

Dr. Milan Kovacevic, a former director of the Prijedor hospital, suffered a slow and painful death while in the Tribunal's custody. Initially the tribunal's medical staff tried to claim that he had died suddenly of a heart attack. Later, when confronted with the evidence that this was not the case they corrected themselves and admitted that he had in fact died slowly from a ruptured aorta in the abdomen.

In another case Bosnian-Serb General Djordje Djukic died from pancreatic cancer. Doctor Slobodan Ivkovic, who looked after General Djukic during his last days, said that "inadequate treatment and therapy during his time in prison and hospital brought on a sudden deterioration in the General's health" and added that General Djukic received salted, greasy food which "third and fourth year medical students know that patients operated on for cancer of pancreas must not eat."