Cerkini lawyer: Conditions for bailing Thaci and others have been met

On Monday, the defence of former Kosovo president Hashim Thaci, along with his co-accuseds, is expected to file a motion for the collapse of some of the points of the indictment at Specialised Chambers in The Hague.

In this process, the lawyer licensed at the Special Court, Artan Cerkini, stressed that this procedure represents a new and important step for the justice system involving Kosovo citizens.

He added that, although Specialised Chambers de jure are considered part of Kosovo's judicial system, the procedures being conducted there are essentially different from those applied in the Republic of Kosovo.

After this procedure, the prosecution concludes its presentation, presents all documentary evidence, and listens to all witnesses. Only after this phase is defence given the opportunity to file a motion for the collapse of the indictment, arguing that the prosecution's evidence does not meet the standard needed to convict defendants about the relevant points of the indictment,” Cerkini said in RTK.

He further clarified that at this stage, the court could decide to dismiss certain charges or all. If any point of the indictment falls, it will no longer be treated in the process. But if some charges remain in force, then the defence will have the opportunity to present anti-trial efforts to bring them down during the final phase of the trial.

Cerkini declared that all legal conditions for the bail of former President Hashim Thaci and his co-members have already been met.

In addition, Cerkin stressed that the detention measure is the strictest form for ensuring the defendant's presence in a criminal procedure, and that there are softer options to be taken into account, especially in the advanced stages of the process.

I think that all legal conditions for parole have now been met, because detention is the strictest measure for ensuring the defendant's presence in criminal procedure. Besides detention, other alternative measures exist. The more the procedure advances, the more security measures have to be eased,” said Cerkini.

According to him, the Prosecution's main argument for keeping in custody has been the risk of influence on witnesses, but this base no longer exists.

The only argument of the Prosecution has been for defendants to be detained because of the risk of influence on witnesses. There is no such danger now, because the Attorneyate has finished her case and her witnesses have been heard. As a result, there is no longer any chance of being influenced by prosecution witnesses,” he added.

Lawyer Cerkin stressed that for these reasons detention has had to be replaced with easier security measures, such as home arrest.