Not all perpetrators have been held accountable for the crime in Štrpci, 18 Bosniaks killed

(Patria) - On this day thirty-two years ago, the abduction of civilians in Štrpci took place. This heinous crime was committed by members of Serbian paramilitary units, under the command of Milan Lukić, with logistical assistance from the state of Serbia, when they abducted a group of passengers from train 671 at the Štrpci station in Bosnia and Herzegovina. On that occasion, eighteen Bosniaks, one Croat, and one unidentified person were abducted and subsequently killed. To date, the remains of four victims have been found. Most of those killed were citizens of Serbia or Montenegro.

For this war crime, Nebojša Ranisavljević and Mićo Jovičić were first convicted. In 2002, the court in Bijelo Polje sentenced Ranisavljević to fifteen years in prison. In 2016, Jovičić pleaded guilty before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and was sentenced to five years in prison. Both have already served their sentences.

At the end of 2019, the Prosecutor's Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina filed an indictment against Hague convict Milan Lukić, whom the ICTY sentenced to life imprisonment for war crimes in Višegrad, but not for the murders of civilians in Štrpci. In October 2022, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina sentenced seven former members of the Second Podrinje Brigade of the VRS for participation in the abductions and murders. Thus, Obrad and Novak Poluga, Petko Inđić, Radojica Ristić, Dragan Šekarić, Oliver Krsmanović, and Miodrag Mitrašinović were each sentenced to thirteen years, while Luka Dragičević was acquitted. The verdict was fully upheld by the Appellate Chamber of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2023.

In February 2023, the Higher Court in Belgrade sentenced Gojko Lukić, Duško Vasiljević, Jovan Lipovac, and Dragana Đekić to a total of thirty-five years in prison at first instance. The accused Ljubiša Vasiljević died in July 2021. In October 2023, the Appellate Court in Belgrade overturned the first-instance verdict, and a new trial is ongoing. Jovan Lipovac died in February last year before the retrial began. Also in October 2023, the Appellate Chamber of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina upheld the verdict sentencing former commander of the Intervention Platoon of the Višegrad Brigade of the VRS, Boban Inđić, to fifteen years in prison.

On this anniversary as well, we express regret over the manner in which the Serbian authorities treat the victims of this war crime and their family members. After the shamefully low sentences were handed down, a new blow came for the injured parties when the Appellate Court overturned the first-instance verdict. This prolonged the agony of the families and extinguished hope for justice. We appeal to all authorities who have the power to expedite this trial, to put an end to the denial of the crime and the torture of the families of the killed. Serbia could and should show good will in the process of confronting the past by recognizing the killed as civilian victims of war and providing their families with appropriate financial compensation.

We remember the killed civilians of the abduction in Štrpci: Adem Alomerović, Džafer Topuzović, Esad Kapetanović, Favzija Zeković, Fehim Bakija, Fikret Memović, Halil Zubčević, Ilijaz Ličina, Ismet Babačić, Jusuf Rastoder, Muhedin Hanić, Nijazim Kajević, Rasim Ćorić, Rifet Husović, Safet Preljević, Senad Đečević, Šećo Softić, Toma Buzov, and Zvjezdan Zuličić, states the announcement from the Association for Social Research and Communications (UDIK) – Sarajevo, the Center for Democracy and Transitional Justice (CDTP) – Banja Luka, and Women's Voice – Priboj.