No one ever answered, and who should I trust? Me, personally, to no one and never. I can only believe whoever and if he allows that memorial - that we and our children can someday come and bow to the victims and study the Fatiha (prayer). At least they and we deserved it. Then one could see a little repentance.
With those words Hava Bosnia She told "Vijesta" what she thought about erecting a memorial to the victims of the Deportation of Bosnian refugees from Herceg Novi in 1992, when her husband was also taken. Esad. He and at least 66 other, mostly Bosniak, refugees from Bosnia and Herzegovina, who came to Montenegro fleeing the war, were illegally arrested by the Montenegrin police and handed over to the enemy - the Bosnian Serb army, which liquidated most of them. Only 12 managed to survive in the concentration camps. At least 33 refugees of Serbian nationality were also deported for forced mobilization. No one was responsible for the deportation of civilians...
The initiative to erect a monument and proclaim Remembrance Day was submitted for the first time in 2011 by the non-governmental organizations Action for Human Rights (HRA), Center for Civic Education (CGO) and Center for Women's and Peace Education - Anima to the leaders of the then Government and Municipality of Herceg Novi . They repeated it every year, but it has not been accepted until today.
"Imagine, you run away from the war somewhere you trust, you report regularly to the Red Cross, not suspecting that they will help the villains to pick them up and kill them. But why won't they raise that memorial? Because they know the shame and the crime they committed," said Bosno, who now lives in Sweden.
He hopes to erect a memorial to the victims Hazbija Begić, whose husband asim also perished.
"The emptiness that my sons and I feel cannot be compensated for by anything. It is unfortunate that no one was held accountable for the crimes committed in Montenegro and Herceg Novi".
She reminds that her husband's body has not yet been found and that they have "no place where they can go to worship him".
"Do you know what that means? Do you know how that feels? What is that pain? A monument in Herceg Novi would be a place where Montenegro would wash away its honor to some extent, and give all the families of those killed hope for a better future," said Hazbija Begić.
They expected more from the new government
Answering the question whether she is disappointed with the way the authorities treat the war crime, and thus with the submitted initiative, the executive director of HRA Tea Gorjanc Prelevic points out that after the change of government in 2020, they expected much more:
"Representatives of the new authorities acted only on a symbolic level".
She reminded that on the thirtieth anniversary of the crime, the Minister of the Interior Filip Adzic and the Director of Police Zoran Brđanin apologized to the victims, and four ministers attended the anniversary celebration - Adžić, then Minister of Justice Marko Kovač, former minister without portfolio Adrian Vuksanovic and the then Minister of Labor and Social Welfare Admir Adrović.
The following year, the then Prime Minister also appeared at the meeting Dritan Abazovic.
"However, these are still unofficial memorial gatherings organized by us from non-governmental organizations, without monuments and an official day of remembrance, which should be established by the state," said Gorjanc Prelevic.
She pointed out that many representatives of the state cared about "words".
"In 2021, we also heard from the then President of the Parliament of Montenegro, Aleks Bečić, as he expresses regret for the crimes against Bosnian-Herzegovinian refugees and emphasizes that "condemnation of crimes and reverence for the victims are the only way to heal the wounds of the past", and yet, neither he nor the Democrats advocated the establishment of a Day of Remembrance for victims of deportation , although at the time we asked him for support. Minister Adžić verbally supported the erection of the monument and the establishment of a day of remembrance, but after that neither he nor the URA did anything to make it happen," claims Gorjanc Prelević.
She pointed out that the NGO will repeat the initiatives to the authorities by the end of this month, both in Herceg Novi and at all levels.
At the time of the deportation of the refugees, the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) was in power, and its recent leader Milo Djukanovic he was prime minister then...
Program associate at the Center for Civic Education (CGO) Damir Suljević he told "Vijesti" that the government's attitude towards this war crime must be different:
"But, at the same time, it should be pointed out that in the last few years, a certain shift has been achieved in the part that refers to the political recognition of this crime".
Recalling that since 2021, the commemoration, which is organized every year in Herceg Novi by an NGO, has been attended by a police official, ministers and the prime minister, Suljević emphasizes that two years after the public promise of the former minister of the interior that he would advocate for the erection of a memorial plaque, there is no information that did he do anything about it.
"The attitude towards this crime must be followed by more concrete actions and a synchronized attitude of the decision-makers. There must be a majority understanding in all government structures about its nature and the minimum that must be done in order to honor the victims and ensure justice, but also to establish a culture of remembrance in our society that is based on clearly proclaimed democratic principles and values," said Suljević.
The victims don't care who is in power when there is no progress
Gorjanc Prelevic assessed that the families of the victims do not care who is in power until there is some important progress in dealing with this crime.
"As paradoxical as it may be, the most important concrete gesture - the court settlement on the compensation of damages with around 200 family members - took place during the time of the DPS. It is also true that after that, during the same government, the criminal proceedings were "buried" in accordance with the political thesis that Montenegro did not officially participate in the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina and that therefore its officials cannot be held responsible for the extradition of refugees to one of the warring parties. in that conflict. During the DPS there was no talk of an apology, a monument or a day of remembrance".
No one was convicted of deportations. By the decision of the High Court in Podgorica in 2012, which was confirmed by the Court of Appeal, nine former members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and State Security were acquitted of crimes against civilians...
Gorjanc Prelevic assessed that the real democratic change would be seen if we would now move from words to actions, if something concrete would be done to build a monument, establish a day of remembrance and review the processing of that case and adopt a law that treats all civilian victims of war equally :
“We expect some of that to happen by the 32nd anniversary, which we'll mark in May. We are all transient, even politicians. The only important thing is the path we establish, the hope we systematically plant for new generations. If we really don't want the repetition of wars and crimes, as we all like to say, then we will really face those for whom we are responsible and do everything we can to trace the future in the direction of peace".
He notes that this requires that the crimes be condemned, but also that they not be forgotten, that their victims not be forgotten, that there be a monument that honors them and that remains as a warning that nothing similar happens again.
After litigation that lasted almost four years, in December 2008, Montenegro reached a court settlement with 200 members of the victims' families and several survivors. Due to the illegal actions of the Montenegrin police, the state paid a total of 4.135.000 euros in compensation to the families.
Damir Suljević emphasized that he will publicly insist on the demands until they are fulfilled:
"It is to be expected from the responsible decision-makers that they are already familiar with these requests and that they do not have to be sent directly to them again, but their true will to adequately address issues like these, and not to calculate with them through the prism of party points and votes, is questionable , as has been the case so far".
He emphasized that, when it comes to war crimes committed in Montenegro, there is an indisputable need to establish a more responsible state system and a culture of remembrance so that they never happen again.
"This crime, however, unlike others committed on the territory of Montenegro, also had the active involvement of state authorities, which is why it must be accompanied by a special sensibility," said Suljević.
Milatović's apology and possible review of the case
Suljevic said that the president's apology Jakov Milatović on behalf of the state of Montenegro represents a responsible approach to this issue and that it should be followed by other holders of the highest state positions.
"Acknowledging the crime through an apology to the victims and victims' families is an important step in this complex process."
In August of last year, Milatović, on behalf of the state, apologized to the families of victims of the crime of deportation. He did so during a meeting with representatives of non-governmental organizations dealing with war crimes and Alen Bajrović, whose father he is Osman died in 1992. Bajrović's body was never found...
Suljević emphasizes that this must be followed by procedures that would fully satisfy justice, then by programs to teach young people about the events of the 1990s, which the CGO has been working on for years, and which, he said, it emphasized through its recommendations for Montenegro and Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic.
"I would like to remind you that, among other things, she emphasized the policies of inclusive memorialization, which is lacking in our country. The legislative and executive authorities, as well as the judiciary, are responsible for this."
Gorjanc Prelević said that Milatović's statesmanship gesture was a very pleasant surprise and one to respect.
"None of us at that meeting expected that. It was a moment to remember, just like the one when the Director of the Police Administration and the Minister of Police apologized for that crime at a meeting in Herceg-Novi. I only hope that the "Europe Now" Movement will also recognize the importance of the monument and the day of remembrance for Montenegro's democratic path towards the European Union".
Gorjanc Prelevic reminded that she is the supreme state prosecutor Milorad Marković said in a recent interview that the State Prosecutor's Office will analyze and review all old cases regarding the omissions made there.
"The EU expert Mauricio Salustro recommended Montenegro to do it ten years ago, as he criticized the actions of the state prosecution and the courts in the case of Deportation".
She emphasized that for the last nine years this was an obligation according to the Strategy for the Investigation of War Crimes, and something they did not do either Milivoje Katnic ni Vladimir Novović as chief special prosecutors.
"The Supreme State Prosecutor is authorized to ensure this, and it remains to be seen whether Milorad Marković will be the one to do it," said Gorjanc Prelević.
SDT "Vijesti" did not answer whether there is a plan to review the Deportation case.
Clear recommendations of the Council of Europe
Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatović stated in a letter sent to Prime Minister Milojko Spajić last week that she believes that Montenegro has the potential to lead by example and be a positive force in the region in dealing with the past.
Among other things, she recommended to Montenegro to end impunity for war crimes by effectively implementing the Strategy for War Crimes from 2015, to allocate sufficient resources to the Special State Prosecutor for dealing with war crimes cases, and to prescribe clear deadlines for action. This, as she stated, should also include certain steps for the processing of cases that the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Courts handed over to Montenegro in 2020. It was also recommended that the state execute requests for extradition related to war crimes from other countries in the region or ensure that suspects are prosecuted before Montenegrin courts in accordance with the obligation to extradite or prosecute under international law.
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