Important reforms are needed to support war crimes justice in domestic law to ensure successful prosecution of war crimes cases in Montenegro.
This is stated in the progress report, which was presented to the Security Council in December by the Prosecutor of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals of the United Nations (UN) in The Hague, Serge Brammertz, and which "Vijesti" had access to.
The report covers the period from May 16 to November 15, 2024.
“During the reporting period, the Prosecutor’s Office’s recommendation to amend the Criminal Procedure Code to enable the admission of Prosecution evidence was adopted. Discussions were held regarding additional reforms that would enable effective prosecution of conflict-related sexual violence cases and it was agreed that the Prosecutor’s Office would submit an appropriate proposal. The Prosecutor’s Office will continue to provide the requested assistance to ensure progress in these and other important areas,” the document states.
The mechanism was replaced in its work by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, and was established by the Security Council in 2010. It took over all the pending proceedings related to war crimes committed in the territories of Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia...
During the reporting period, the Prosecutor's Office received 427 requests for assistance in relation to crimes committed in the former Yugoslavia from four Member States and three international organisations. The authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina submitted 141 requests for assistance, thirteen from the United States of America, four from Serbia and two from Montenegro.
The report states that the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT) is currently working on three war crimes cases - one is in the investigation phase, one is awaiting confirmation of the indictment, and one is at trial.
“Two cases relate to crimes committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and one to war crimes committed in Croatia. During the reporting period, an indictment was filed against one suspect based on the investigation file submitted by the Prosecutor's Office,” the report states.
Again about Morinje, Bukovica and Kaluđerski laz
At the beginning of the month, the SDT announced that, on the orders of Chief Special Prosecutor Vladimir Novović, criminal cases regarding war crimes in Morinje, Bukovica and Kaluđerski laz and the deportation of refugees from Herceg Novi had been reopened.
Previously, four people were convicted in the Morinj case, while in the others - Deportation, Bukovica and Kaluđerski laz - all were acquitted.
The cases were assigned to special prosecutors who, according to their annual work schedule, are specialized in war crimes.
"Special investigation teams have been formed in the newly formed cases, in accordance with the Law on the Special State Prosecutor's Office, which will, among other things, analyze previously formed criminal cases regarding the same events in which criminal proceedings have been finally concluded, with the obligation to obtain new evidence, but also to search the database of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals," the SDT announced.
In the municipality of Kotor, in the town of Morinj, from October 3, 1991 to August 18, 1992, the JNA organized a Center for the Reception of Prisoners from Croatia, known as the “Morinj Camp”, where 292 people from the Dubrovnik region were detained in inhumane conditions. 169 prisoners testified about the inhumane treatment they received...
Positive steps have already been taken, and cooperation between the Prosecutor's Office and the SDT is at a very high level. The Mechanism's Prosecutor's Office hopes to be able to report in the future that concrete results are being achieved in the process of achieving justice for war crimes in Montenegro.
The case of the suffering of the Muslim population in the 90s in the villages of Bukovica, near Pljevlja, has been reopened. According to available data, from 1992 to 1995, six people were killed in Bukovica, two committed suicide due to torture, 11 were abducted, 70 were tortured, and around 270 were expelled...
In the case of the Deportation, in May 1992, according to available official documentation, the Montenegrin police illegally arrested at least 66, and according to unofficial data, more than a hundred civilians aged 18 to 66, who had fled to Montenegro from the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and handed them over as hostages to the Bosnian Serb army led by Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić to be used in the exchange of prisoners of war. At least 54 people were killed, while 12 survived severe forms of torture in the camps. The bodies of all the victims have not yet been found...
The crime called “Kaluđerski Laz”, after the name of one of the villages in which the crimes were committed, took place during the NATO intervention against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1999, on the territory of Kaluđerski Laz and surrounding villages, where there was no conflict. Members of the Yugoslav Army killed 22 and wounded seven civilians of Albanian nationality, who had crossed into Montenegro with the war-torn Kosovo...
The Brammertz report states that during the reporting period, the Prosecutor's Office continued to provide extensive support to the SDT in relation to two investigative files that the Prosecutor's Office had previously forwarded.
“The joint working group consisting of war crimes prosecutors and investigators from Montenegro and the Mechanism’s Office of the Prosecutor continued its work. During the reporting period, the Prosecutor’s Office provided direct support to the SDT in its work on the case by providing two legal and analytical memoranda, offering strategic advice for improving the case, and mediating in facilitating the cooperation of witnesses in their cases.”
Broad political support
The Hague states that the Prosecutor's Office will continue to provide the necessary assistance to the Special State Prosecutor's Office and looks forward to positive results.
The document presented by Brammertz states that during the reporting period, the prosecution continued discussions with the Montenegrin authorities. They recall that Brammertz visited Montenegro from 16 to 19 September 2024 and held meetings with President Jakov Milatović, Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister Ervin Ibrahimović, Minister of European Affairs Maida Gorčević, Minister of Justice Bojan Božović, Supreme State Prosecutor Milorad Marković and Special State Prosecutor Vladimir Novović.
“Prosecutor Brammertz acknowledged Montenegro’s new dynamic in relation to war crimes justice during the meetings. He acknowledged the Government’s overall approach to this important topic, which reflects broad political support. In addition, he expressed satisfaction with the excellent cooperation between the Prosecutor’s Office and the SDT,” the document states.
Brammertz is reported to have noted that there are now high expectations regarding the results of investigations and prosecutions, and expressed his belief that these expectations will be met.
“At all meetings, the Montenegrin interlocutors acknowledged the strong partnership between Montenegro and the Prosecutor’s Office. They reaffirmed Montenegro’s commitment to achieving justice for war crimes committed during the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia. In this regard, they welcomed the assistance provided by the Prosecutor’s Office to the Montenegrin authorities and expressed their desire for this cooperation to be further strengthened,” Brammertz’s report states.
The document states that, although the process of achieving justice for war crimes in Montenegro is only at its beginning, the Montenegrin authorities have accepted that much more needs to be done and have clearly committed to achieving greater accountability for war crimes.
“Positive steps have already been taken, and cooperation between the Prosecutor's Office and the SDT is at a very high level. The Mechanism's Prosecutor's Office hopes that in the future it will be able to report that concrete results are being achieved in the process of achieving justice for war crimes in Montenegro,” Brammertz concluded in the report.
Impunity for Croatian perpetrators, Bosnia lags significantly behind
The report states that over the past ten years, Croatia's cooperation with national judiciaries in the region on war crimes cases has significantly deteriorated. It also says that the Croatian judiciary's efforts have focused on prosecuting in absentia individuals of Serbian ethnicity.
“War crimes justice for victims of crimes committed by Croatian citizens residing in Croatia is largely stalled. In previous reports over the past few years, the Mechanism’s Office of the Prosecutor has highlighted the large number of outstanding requests for assistance that have been forwarded to the Croatian authorities. As a result, significant justice is not being delivered to Croatian victims, and Croatian perpetrators continue to enjoy impunity,” the document states.
The report states that the Prosecutor's Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina has a significant backlog of 231 cases that are in the pre-investigation or investigation stages, in which 337 suspects are known to live outside Bosnia and Herzegovina, mainly in Serbia and Croatia.
“In addition, in more than fifty cases pending before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, almost 80 defendants are known to live outside Bosnia and Herzegovina, again mainly in Serbia and Croatia. This amounts to a total of more than 400 persons suspected or accused of war crimes who are to be extradited to Bosnia and Herzegovina or prosecuted in the country where they currently live.”
It is stated that the Mechanism's Prosecutor's Office is working to facilitate the forwarding of these proceedings, especially key cases and files relating to senior and mid-level officials, for further processing to the competent prosecutor's offices where the suspects or accused reside.
Serbia: There is still a large gap in establishing accountability
The report states that, although the results have been limited over the past eight years, the Serbian War Crimes Prosecutor’s Office has demonstrated its ability to initiate proceedings against high- and mid-ranking officials and to establish successful cooperation with regional partners, particularly Bosnia and Herzegovina. “It is crucial that the Serbian authorities continue to build on these positive steps in order to begin to resolve this large backlog of cases, especially the more complex cases involving high- and mid-ranking officials residing in Serbia.”
It is stated that, in addition, there are more than a hundred cases that need to be forwarded from Bosnia and Herzegovina to Serbia for prosecution.
“The Prosecutor’s Office encourages the Serbian authorities to review and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of relevant practices and procedures. A significant gap in establishing accountability remains. Victims, the public and other stakeholders rightly expect to see concrete progress that demonstrates the will to fulfill the commitments undertaken under the National Strategy for Prosecution of War Crimes. The Mechanism’s Prosecutor’s Office hopes to be able to report on tangible results and more significant progress in future reporting periods,” the document states.
Bonus video:
