Posted on 10/07/2011 8:31:35 AM PDT by Ravnagora
PRIZREN, KOSOVO — The death of a key witness in Germany in the war crimes trial of one of Kosovo’s most powerful politicians has cast doubt on the effective prosecution of the case and threatens to derail local and international efforts to establish the rule of law here.
Intimidation, fear, clan loyalties and a culture of silence have long impeded the development of a functioning justice system in Kosovo, analysts say, and the death is seen as a major setback.
The witness, Agim Zogaj, 53, a former commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army who kept meticulous diary notes of alleged war crimes, was found dead last week, hanging from a tree in a park in the Western German city of Duisburg.
Mr. Zogaj was said by his family to have been under witness protection from the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, or Eulex, for his testimony against Fatmir Limaj. Mr. Limaj is a lawmaker in Kosovo’s governing party and a top former commander with the Kosovo Liberation Army and is seen by many Kosovars as a hero of the country’s liberation.
In September, a Eulex judge placed Mr. Limaj under house arrest for one month while awaiting trial on war crimes charges of killing and torturing Serbian and Albanian prisoners in the central Kosovo village of Klecka. Mr. Zogaj was the commander responsible for the security of camps in the village, and many of the charges are based on his witness statements.
The police in Duisburg officially ruled the death a suicide after the autopsy last week, and Mr. Zogaj was buried in Prizren on Monday.
Afrim Zogaj, 46, spoke of “huge psychological pressure” on his brother. “It’s not possible that he killed himself,” he said, “and if he did, he was forced to do it.”
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(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Ping!
And to think some stupid Freepers around here thought that this stuff wouldn’t happen because these Albanians are just innocent victims fighting for freedom and never did anything to anyone.
Wesley Clark should take note.
So where is Jamie Shea and the neo-liberal mouth pieces to condemn this as an act of genocide?
Oh that’s right, these are Albanians killing other Albanians, whoops! Can’t cover that.
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