Čemerno Case: New Witnesses Contradictory Testimonies, No Recordings from Investigations

(Patria) - The trial of Hadžić Džemal and others in the Čemerno case continued with the cross-examination of prosecution witness Halid Spahić, whose protection measures were lifted at his request.
Most defense attorneys had no questions for this witness, who stated at the previous hearing that he had not read the statement he gave during the investigation in 2017 because he was in a hurry as his sick wife was in the car, and that he returned later after a call from the Prosecutor's Office and signed a new document, which he also did not read.

This witness told attorney Dražen Zubak that he has known Nusret Bešlija since birth and that he was not in front of the school in Korita on June 9, 1992, nor did he participate in the Čemerno operation.

He also stated that Hamdija Spahić does not belong to the Spahić lineage nicknamed Karabeg and that he did not see him in front of the school in Korita on June 9, 1992.
All attorneys objected to the legality of submitting the records of this witness's testimony to the court file, and it was reiterated that this witness was not recorded either, and that a court decision cannot be based on this testimony.
Prosecutor Vladimir Simović then read the testimonies of witnesses who had died, and the same objections were repeated regarding the submission of records to the court file. Simović read the testimony of Aćim Bunjevac, who stated that Čemerno had strategic importance, as these positions could control Vareš, Breza, Ilijaš, Visoko...

Defense attorneys asked questions they would have sought answers to if the witness were alive. Given that Bunjevac stated at the end of his testimony that he "responsibly claims that the Muslims had no reason to attack Čemerno," most attorneys were interested in why he said that when it is known and established that 122 mm howitzers were placed on the Čemerno plateau from which civilian targets were fired upon.

He recounted that on June 10, 1992, he was on guard duty towards the village of Mahmutovića Rijeka, about 200 meters from the first houses. That morning, according to the record, gunfire began from the direction of Korita, after which he heard screams and saw smoke. After half an hour, when silence fell, Bunjevac, as he stated, headed towards the village, where he saw "a mass of killed villagers."
At this hearing, two investigation records from witness Petar Rašević, who has since passed away, were read.

In a statement from 1993, the witness recounted that on the day in question, he was heading to the kitchen in Čemerno where he worked, when he was met with gunfire from all sides at the door.
He stated that he immediately woke the soldiers who were sleeping in his house and went to Stana Damjanović to inform her to wake the soldiers who were with her.

In another statement given in 2004, he did not mention soldiers, which the defense attorneys pointed out in their questions.
Witness Rašević stated that he saw that the entire crew on the cannons in the village was killed, and that, as he continued through the village, he saw killed people.

The testimonies from 1993 and 2004 are almost contradictory, and the attorneys pointed out that Rašević also gave different statements in the media and that he was involved in propaganda about what happened at Čemerno.

These two witnesses were also not recorded, and given that they were victims, it was obligatory to record them during the investigation.

The next hearing is scheduled for August 29.