Request for Delibasic's transfer to Mitrovica detention

Brkljac said at a news briefing that he filed a request to the Mitrovica Basic Court seated in Vucitrn that Delibasic should be examined by three physicians who are familiar with the history of his illness since his health is very poor.Brkljac said that he expects that the request for the transfer of former police chief in the Serb-majority part of Kosovska Mitrovica Dragan Delibasic will be accepted since his situation is the same as the one of (leader of the Citizens' Initiative 'Freedom, Democracy, Justice') Oliver Ivanovic.He said that Delibasic is charged with crimes that were allegedly committed in the territory of Kosovska Mitrovica, the same as Ivanovic, adding that the case is prosecuted by the Basic Public Prosecutor and the Basic Court in Mitrovica, so the question arises why he was placed in the Pristina custody.Brkljac underlined that Delibasic is discriminated on the basis of nationality, adding that no Albanian detainee, whose family is in the territory of Pristina, is placed in custody in Kosovska Mitrovica, while he is prosecuted in Pristina.He said that Delibasic's security is seriously threatened in Pristina, adding that he was verbally abused in the prison yard by Albanian detainees, including even death threats, after which he decided not to leave the unit he shares with three other detainees.The lawyer noted that for weeks the Pristina-based media were defaming Ivanovic and Delibasic describing them as the most dangerous offenders and war criminals.“A number of witness statements have appeared in the media convicting them of the crimes, even before the trials,” he said.Brkljac expressed hope that the EULEX pre-trial judge will take into account all the reasons and adopt Delibasic's request to be transferred to the Kosovska Mitrovica detention center.Leader of the Citizens' Initiative 'Freedom, Democracy, Justice' Oliver Ivanovic has been in detention since January 27, while former police chief in the Serb-majority part of Kosovska Mitrovica Dragoljub Delibasic has been in custody since February 4.The two were arrested on suspicion of involvement in an alleged war crime in 1999 and post-war incidents in 2000, including an aggravated murder, and for inciting to ethnically motivated murder.Serbian government provided guarantees that Ivanovic, Delibassic and two other Serbs would be available to the EULEX mission throughout their trials. Based on the guarantees, EULEX judge ordered release only of Zarko Veselinovic on February 28.Afterwards, Ivanovic went on a hunger strike on March 4, and when his health condition deteriorated seriously, the Review Panel found that there were no legal reasons to prevent Ivanovic from being transferred to the detention center in Kosovska Mitrovica, so the transfer took place on March 12.