Proletarec. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1906-19??, 1946-05-29

OcKelele fldZd, NeW 1oh, ~ l.
Dear Mr.. Pribichevich:
am writing this letter On behalf of MI. Arthur Garfield Hays, the
Chairman of the Commission of Inquiry into the case of Daja Mi
hailovich.
The Commission, as you may have read in the papers, consists of
K. Fnleter and Theodore Kiendl. The purpose of the Commission will
be to take evidence imparhally o the subject of Mihailovich from
Amican personnel attached to both Tito and Mhailovich.
1t has been suggested that you might be willing to testify before
this Commission. The opening session o. Monday will be devoted to the
personnel of the American Military Mission to Mihalovch. The follow
ing sessions will be of a more general nature and if you AN make the
necessary arrangements I think it would be possible for you to give
your evidence n either Wednesday " Thursday.
The Yugoslav Embassy has been invited to have counsel N hand
to cross-examine witnesses and the Commission has committed itself to
conduct the proceedings in a completely juridicial manner SO that the
should be grateful if you could let US know by collect wire either
to Arthur Garfield Hays, 100 Broadway, New York City, or by collect
you will be able to appear.
Sincerely yours,
Committee for a Fair Trial for Draja Mihailovich' NN'
CThe above letter dated May 18th, 1946D
THE ANSWER
Press in y 3"srn ~ former V war corrpnenasn fr 1 TM "e AN, n%ef G.
sent the following reply to Mr.. David Martin, Secretary of the Com
mitee for Fair Trial for Draja Mihaiovtch, after receiving an invita-
ton to testify before their Commission of Inquiry:
Having come 70 town for the day, I wish ito thank you for the kind
letter you wrote ne O. behalf of Mr.. Arthur Garfield Hays, and re-
gret to feel it inappropriate to testify oil the Mihailovich case before
the Commission of Inquiry of the Committee For A Fair Trial For Draja
Mihailovich, The legal reasons are set forth below and I would be very
grateful to you if you would forward them to the five members of the
Commission of Inquiry. Nor would I have any objection to this letter
of mine being read aloud at any of the Commissions sessions. I myself
am taking the liberty of sending a copy of it to the State and War
Departments.
y In my legal opinion, as a Doctor of Laws and former practicing
lawyer, the position that Mihalovch should be tried by a international
tribunal is untenable, because,
a. Mihaiovich is being charged IS a Yugoslav citizen by
Yugoslav authorities for acts committed on Yugoslav soil against
the YugoslaV state or citizens;
b. No international tribunal, code O procedure exist for
trying internationally the citizens of Allied countries, charged
with acts against their own native lands or citizens, committed on
c) There is no precedent for a request to try Mihailovich
internationally Marshal Petain of France, for example, was sem
fenced to death by a French court for acts committed against the
French nation at a time when he had III officers and diplomats
attached to him; the U. Honor a admittedly not involved;
d. If nevertheless it is considered that some way should be
found to try Mihailovich internationally, this would create a prece-
dent whereby any citizen of any legally recognized foreign coun-
state r. citizens, could claim extraterritoraity and international
trial IN the ground that this o r that American officer or diplomat
done this or that good to the U. s-a principle unknown and in
acceptable in International o Criminal Law.
p In my legal opinion, the Yugoslav Government was correct and
duty-bound to decline the State Departments request that only those
cepted by the Yugoslav court, because:
az By thus phrasng its request, our Government put itself
int the position of a sympathizer rather than into that of ar
By No legally recognized Government is supposed to dictate
to its judiciary which evidence should and which should not be
accepted the less o if such a dictate would appear as the result
c Belgrade has a famous historic precedent for it's present
stand: when, on June %, 1914, the heir to the Austro- Hungarian
throne, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, was killed with his wife in
sarajevo, and the preliminary Austro- Hungarian investigation
Serbia, the Austro- Hungarian Government by a ultimatum de-
manded Of the Belgrade Government to permit Austro- Hungarian
judges to sit in with the Serbian judges O N the investigations and
trials of Serbian individuals and groups eventually involved in
the murder; which part of the ultimatum the Serbian Government
rejected faty and correctly, preferring val instead-although
the case of Vienna in r e Francis Ferdinand "a much stronger
atty of south-slav iudees nd thn ~ We ea raN 60 TO 1ne mnpartl-
"a that of the sovereingnity Of a small nation.
ID The stand taken by the British Government in re Mihan-
ovlch seems to M the only correct one legally.
81 In my legal opinion, the rejection by the Yueoslav Covarn
inent of the State Departments request does not mean hat first hand
American witnesses will n O be allowed to appear at the Mihailovicb
trial in Belgrade. When the trial opens, and the specific charges RI
made known, the Yugoslav tribunal may decide indenendentlv--an
l hope it win-that both the Prosecution and the Defense m av call
pro and con eyewitnesses from Yugoslava and abroad, whose testi-
nohS, IN INT courts eyes, may have direct o. important bearing upon
the charges and defense proffered. 1t would then be up to our State
Department to organize travel facilities fol all the Aneric.n ui+romo
desired, whether pro o con.
A I believe I possess important frsthand evidence in e Mibail-
owen, which l came across during the war as the chosen enrasant.+ye
OF IN entire American press in Yugoslavia and a. a war corresnonden
1or Time n Life magazines in the same country. AS Won NAV know
spent altogether about six months in Yugoslavia. covered several
nor miles behnd the German lines, especially in Bosnia an
Serbia and as once captured by the Germans, put up against tho ee