NCJ Number
164239
Journal
Criminal Law Forum Volume: 7 Issue: 1 Dated: (1996) Pages: 179-212
Date Published
1996
Length
34 pages
Annotation
This brief argues that it is appropriate for an international tribunal to protect the anonymity of witnesses testifying in the case involving Dusko Tadic¦s alleged violations of international humanitarian law in the former Yugoslavia.
Abstract
The brief states that the tribunal should consider any witness¦s application for anonymity in view of previously considered principles and that such consideration is especially but not exclusively applicable to survivors of sexual assault. The anonymity of witnesses can be preserved to varying degrees and through different stages of the criminal justice process. Nondisclosure of the identity of witnesses to the public is compatible with this tribunal's rules and with established principles of criminal procedure in the courts of Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and United States. Nondisclosure of the identity of witnesses to the public is compatible with international standards for a fair trial, and nondisclosure of the identity of witnesses to the accused is compatible with the rules of the tribunal. Cases from other countries provide some guidelines regarding the factors that might be taken into account in balancing the rights of the accused against those of witnesses.