JURIST - Paper Chase: Croatia lawmaker convicted of war crimes in death of Serbian civilians

[JURIST] Croatian parliament member Branimir Glavas [TrialWatch backgrounder] was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison [Javno report] for the killing of Serbian civilians during the Croatian war of independence [GlobalSecurity backgrounder]. Glavas stood accused of ordering the torture and death of Croatian Serbs in the town of Osijek in 1991, a charge he denied. As a safety precaution, Glavas was not in court to hear the verdict. His son was present and, like his father, blamed Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader [Javno report] for the trial and verdict. Glavas is the first Croatian lawmaker to be sentenced for war crimes related to the Croatian war of independence.

In 2008, Glavas had his parliamentary immunity stripped [JURIST report] after winning re-election in November 2007. That 2007 victory restored the immunity that the Croatian Parliament had originally taken away in 2006 after he was arrested [JURIST report] and an investigation began into his potential role in war crimes committed during the Croatian war for independence.

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