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CNN Live Today
Historic Day at The Hague
Aired December 17, 2002 - 10:12 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: An interesting story of two women on the international stage. First, former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, she became a witness earlier today, and she delivered testimony in the trial of the so-called "Iron Lady of the Bosnian War." Former Bosnian Serb President Biljana Plavsic, she is awaiting sentencing at the war crimes tribunal at The Hague. And as we understand it, she has just finished testifying on her own behalf.
Our Christiane Amanpour is there with the latest on that.
Christiane, hello.
CHRISTIAN AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, hello.
Well, indeed, Madeleine Albright became the first such U.S. government official, former secretary of state, to testify at this tribunal.
Just as quickly, first, let's get to Biljana Plavsic, who took the witness stand, or rather on the dock here, today. She is the only Bosnian Serb wartime leader to have pleaded guilty. For the first time in her own words, we heard her admit to crimes against humanity, to being involved in deporting non-Serbs from the areas of Bosnia. She admitted guilt, she said she was remorseful. She said even back in those early days when people would come to her and tell her members of the international community, or journalists or other officials that there were terrible crimes committed by the Bosnian Serb leadership, she said she refused to investigate, she refused to accept it; in fact, she denied it and did not believe it was possible.
Now, of course, she says, she admits to her role in the leadership during the Bosnian-Serb genocidal campaign in Bosnia in the early '90s.
Now Madeleine Albright came to testify because this is not a trial, but a sentencing hearing. Madeleine Albright said it was Biljana Plavsic's goal after the war that enabled her to testify at this tribunal. Because after the war, Plavsic broke with those radical Bosnian Serbs, like Kardic (ph), Radic (ph), all those names we've heard for so many years, and she started to cooperate with the United States and the international community.
So Albright saying that although, yes, before that, she had been responsible for horrendous crimes, afterwards she became an ally of the West.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MEDALEINE ALBRIGHT, FMR. U.S. SECY. OF STATE: The reason that I spent time talking with her and dealing with her, is that she was the vehicle in Republica Serbka (ph) for making sure that the Dayton Accords were carried out. That's what we were interested in, that's what the international community was interested in, and she stood up for that, at times when that was very difficult, at times when there were those who wanted to destroy the Dayton Accords.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AMANPOUR: So having plead guilty to one count of persecution. which involves ethnic cleansing, which is a crime against humanity, Plavsic now awaits her sentence, which will be handed down in the new year. The maximum sentence is life imprisonment, but many of these witnesses who came today have come in part to express the fact that because of her cooperation, perhaps she might not get the full sentence, a lesser number of years detention.
Back to you, Daryn.
KAGAN: Christiane, it just strikes me as unusual to see a woman in this role as being on trial and sentenced for war crimes.
AMANPOUR: Well, I must say, it struck me today that the three principle characters court were all women. The chief prosecutor at the tribunal who indicted Biljana Plavsic, a woman. Biljana Plavsic, the only female indicted amongst about 100 others who've been indicted over the last years; she's the only woman.
And of course Madeleine Albright is not only the only woman to have come to testify for Mrs. Plavsic, but the most senior U.S. official to have done so in this whole tribunal, which has been in existence since 1993. So it was a very interesting, dramatic and really history-setting day today.
KAGAN: And thank you for bringing it to us, from The Hague. Christiane Amanpour, appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired December 17, 2002 - 10:12 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: An interesting story of two women on the international stage. First, former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, she became a witness earlier today, and she delivered testimony in the trial of the so-called "Iron Lady of the Bosnian War." Former Bosnian Serb President Biljana Plavsic, she is awaiting sentencing at the war crimes tribunal at The Hague. And as we understand it, she has just finished testifying on her own behalf.
Our Christiane Amanpour is there with the latest on that.
Christiane, hello.
CHRISTIAN AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, hello.
Well, indeed, Madeleine Albright became the first such U.S. government official, former secretary of state, to testify at this tribunal.
Just as quickly, first, let's get to Biljana Plavsic, who took the witness stand, or rather on the dock here, today. She is the only Bosnian Serb wartime leader to have pleaded guilty. For the first time in her own words, we heard her admit to crimes against humanity, to being involved in deporting non-Serbs from the areas of Bosnia. She admitted guilt, she said she was remorseful. She said even back in those early days when people would come to her and tell her members of the international community, or journalists or other officials that there were terrible crimes committed by the Bosnian Serb leadership, she said she refused to investigate, she refused to accept it; in fact, she denied it and did not believe it was possible.
Now, of course, she says, she admits to her role in the leadership during the Bosnian-Serb genocidal campaign in Bosnia in the early '90s.
Now Madeleine Albright came to testify because this is not a trial, but a sentencing hearing. Madeleine Albright said it was Biljana Plavsic's goal after the war that enabled her to testify at this tribunal. Because after the war, Plavsic broke with those radical Bosnian Serbs, like Kardic (ph), Radic (ph), all those names we've heard for so many years, and she started to cooperate with the United States and the international community.
So Albright saying that although, yes, before that, she had been responsible for horrendous crimes, afterwards she became an ally of the West.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MEDALEINE ALBRIGHT, FMR. U.S. SECY. OF STATE: The reason that I spent time talking with her and dealing with her, is that she was the vehicle in Republica Serbka (ph) for making sure that the Dayton Accords were carried out. That's what we were interested in, that's what the international community was interested in, and she stood up for that, at times when that was very difficult, at times when there were those who wanted to destroy the Dayton Accords.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AMANPOUR: So having plead guilty to one count of persecution. which involves ethnic cleansing, which is a crime against humanity, Plavsic now awaits her sentence, which will be handed down in the new year. The maximum sentence is life imprisonment, but many of these witnesses who came today have come in part to express the fact that because of her cooperation, perhaps she might not get the full sentence, a lesser number of years detention.
Back to you, Daryn.
KAGAN: Christiane, it just strikes me as unusual to see a woman in this role as being on trial and sentenced for war crimes.
AMANPOUR: Well, I must say, it struck me today that the three principle characters court were all women. The chief prosecutor at the tribunal who indicted Biljana Plavsic, a woman. Biljana Plavsic, the only female indicted amongst about 100 others who've been indicted over the last years; she's the only woman.
And of course Madeleine Albright is not only the only woman to have come to testify for Mrs. Plavsic, but the most senior U.S. official to have done so in this whole tribunal, which has been in existence since 1993. So it was a very interesting, dramatic and really history-setting day today.
KAGAN: And thank you for bringing it to us, from The Hague. Christiane Amanpour, appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
