The Milosevic Mystery (UPDATED)

The NYT is now reporting that the autopsy of Milosevic has turned up a antibiotic that none of the doctors treating him had prescribed for him. In other words, the evidence from one of the autopsies suggests that Milosevic may not have died of completely natural causes. One of the local Dutch doctors has a theory that Milosevic was secretly poisoning himself to try to get transferred to Moscow for medical treatment.

UPDATE: AP is now reporting that the ICTY knew Milosevic was getting drugs from outside. Moreover, Milosevic’s son is now telling reporters that the tribunal “killed him.”

No one is really happy with this result and no one trusts anyone else. Moscow is actually demanding an independent autopsy. The murky nature of Milosevic’s death will no doubt feed conspiracy theories throughout the Balkans.

It is easy for us to dismiss such theories, largely because we in the West trust and believe the folks at the ICTY are trustworthy. The problem is that not everyone in the Balkans shares such faith in the ICTY. Just because the ICTY is international does not, at least in the Balkans, mean they can remain above suspicion (even when they should). To many Serbs, the ICTY is not an independent international institution meting out fair and neutral justice. To them, it is a anti-Serb institution set up by the great powers to punish Serbs. The mystery behind Milosevic’s death will only reinforce and further de-legitimize the ICTY.