Vladimir Lazarević | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1949-03-23)23 March 1949 (age 76)[1] |
| Allegiance | SFR Yugoslavia (1972–1992) FR Yugoslavia / Serbia and Montenegro (1992–2005) |
| Branch | Land Forces |
| Years of service | 1972–2005 |
| Rank | Colonel General |
| Unit | Priština Corps, Third Army |
| Commands | Army of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (VJ) |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Order of Bravery Order of the War Flag |
Vladimir Lazarević (Serbian Cyrillic:Владимир Лазаревић, born 23 March 1949) is aSerbian formercolonel general of the Third Army Corps, and later the commander of the Priština Corps of theFederal Republic of Yugoslavia.
General Vladimir Lazarević was born 23 March 1949 in the village ofGrnčar in the municipality ofBabušnica,SR Serbia of theSFR Yugoslavia.[1][2] He graduated from theYugoslav People's Army's Military Academy in 1972 and the Command Staff Academy and the Army School of National Defence.[1] As commander, commander and chief of the different formations stationed inNiš,Prizren,Pristina,Belgrade andLeskovac.
During theKosovo War, Vladimir Lazarević was Chief of Staff of the Priština Corps in theArmy of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (VJ), before being made Commander of the Priština Corps on 25 December 1998 by Presidential Decree.[1][3] Under his command were five brigades, one military police unit and one aviation regiment.[4]
During the Kosovo War it is alleged by the ICTY and the Prosecution that he "planned, instigated, ordered, committed or otherwise aided and abetted in preparing the alleged crimes".[1][5] The indictment against Lazarević claims that he was part of "a joint criminal enterprise which had the aim, in addition to other objectives, to expel a major part of theKosovo Albanian civilians from the province in which they were living in order to maintain this province under Serb control."[1][5] The joint criminal enterprise was supposedly in existence from October 1998 until 20 June 1999.[1]
Lazarević hadde jure andde facto control over the units subordinated to him, including regular Army units, and from the beginning of April 1999.[5] Lazarević was significantly involved in the planning and execution of joint VJ and MUP operations from March to June 1999 in Kosovo that led to the systematic ethnic cleansing of the Albanian population.
Following the end of the Kosovo War and Yugoslavia'swithdrawal from Kosovo, Lazarević remained Commander of the Priština Corps,[2] he also remained a key supporter and ally of PresidentSlobodan Milošević.[2] He was awarded the Order of Bravery and Order of the War Flag for his role in the Kosovo War.[6] On 28 December 1999, Lazarević was appointed Chief of Staff of the Third Army and later the Commander of the Third Army on 13 March 2000.[1]
After thefall of Milošević and his government, Lazarević was promoted to the rank of Colonel General on 30 December 2000. In early 2002 he was appointed Assistant Chief of the General Staff of the Army. On 1 April 2002 by the decree ofVojislav Koštunica (then president of Yugoslavia), Lazarević was appointed to the position of chief of the ground forces.
In the 2003Parliamentary Election, Lazarević stood as a candidate for theSerbian Liberal Party.[7]
Vladimir Lazarević was initially indicted by theInternational Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia on 2 October 2003[5] on the basis of his 'individual criminal responsibility' (per Article 7, paragraph 1 of the ICTY Statute) due to his 'criminal responsibility as hierarchical superior' (per Article 7, paragraph 3 of the ICTY Statute) for the following crimes:[5][8]
Four counts of Crimes against humanity per Article 5 of the ICTY Statute:[5][8][9]
One count of violations of the laws or customs of war per Article 3 of the ICTY Statute:[5][8][9]
Lazarević was arrested and transferred to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia on 3 February 2005[8] following being at large for fifteen months and following consultations with Prime MinisterVojislav Koštunica where Lazarević agreed to hand himself over to the ICTY.[2][5] After agreeing to hand himself over to the Hague Tribunal, he was praised bySerbian Patriarch Pavle and Koštunica; Koštunica described his surrender as a "difficult decision in the interest of the homeland" and stated that "the General acting in line with a long-standing tradition of the Serbian army, namely, that our officers fight for the interests of the people and country until the bitter end".[10] On 7 February 2005 Lazarević pleaded not guilty to all charges against him by the ICTY before his trial opened on 10 July 2006.[9] The Prosecution's and Defence's closing arguments were presented between 22 and 27 August 2008.[8] On 26 February 2009 the Trial Chamber found Lazarević guilty of deportation, other inhumane acts including forcible transfer, he was to sentenced 15 years’ imprisonment.[8][9]
On 25 May 2009 both the Prosecution and the Defence filed their notices of appeal[8] and on 20 October 2009 Lazarević's Defence lodged an Appeal to the Hague Tribunal's Appeals Chamber.[9] An appeal was also lodged to have Lazarević provisionally released on 'Compassionate Grounds', however this was rejected by the Appeals Chamber on 17 May 2010.[9]
On 23 January 2014, Lazarević's sentence was reduced to 14 years on appeal.[11] He was granted early release, having served two thirds of his sentence, on 7 September 2015, effective 3 December 2015.[12][13]
He is married and has three sons and a grandson and granddaughter[needs update?].
