Demand to Montenegro over 'Vilina Vlas' facility: Education Union must not cooperate with those who deny crimes

(Patria) - Non-governmental organizations Center for Civic Education (CGO) from Montenegro and the Association for Social Research and Communication (UDIK) from Bosnia and Herzegovina yesterday sent an initiative to the Education Union of Montenegro to cease cooperation and withdraw the rehabilitation center 'Vilina Vlas' near Višegrad from the offer of the travel agency 'Prosvjeta', which is founded by this Union.

Educators have the opportunity to vacation with their families in several facilities in Montenegro and the region. Providing affordable vacations, including installment payments, as well as offering free vacations by the Education Union, represents an important form of support for employees in education.
However, CGO and UDIK believe that the choice of facilities must also be aligned with fundamental ethical principles, a culture of remembrance, and the obligation to respect victims of war crimes.

The spa resort 'Vilina Vlas', located about 5 km from Višegrad, was a place of detention, torture, and rape of non-Serb civilians during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the same time, it was the headquarters of Milan Lukić's Serbian formation 'Osvetnici' (Avengers).
A 1994 report by a special United Nations Committee indicates that around 200 women were raped in that facility during 1992. Some of them were killed, and some committed suicide. In that facility, 17 citizens of Bosniak nationality from the village of Sjeverin near Priboj were also abused and tortured in October 1992 by Milan Lukić and members of the Serbian formation 'Osvetnici'. In one of the judgments of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, this facility is referred to as a 'rehabilitation center turned into a women's camp to which women and girls were brought and systematically abused'.

Unfortunately, only one of the perpetrators was finally prosecuted, Željko Lelek, who was definitively sentenced to 16 years in prison for crimes against humanity, including sexual violence committed at 'Vilina Vlas', while others were mostly convicted for other crimes they committed in Višegrad and its surroundings.

'Vilina Vlas' continued to operate as a rehabilitation center and spa after the war. However, at the facility itself, nor in its official presentation, is there any information about the war crimes that occurred there, nor a memorial plaque indicating the suffering of the victims. Thus, the authorities in that Bosnian entity are consciously and systematically trying to erase facts, and the denial and normalization of crimes are further deepened through tourist promotion without context and reverence. Many guests who come to this facility today do not know that they are sleeping in rooms and on beds where mass rapes and murders took place thirty years ago. The media have reported that there is no place or room in the hotel 'Vilina Vlas' that has not been a scene of crime, with the only changes being painted walls and replaced mattresses.

Such practices have been publicly condemned by the regional REKOM Reconciliation Network, emphasizing that it is a matter of silencing crimes and erasing victims from public space. The Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina also reacted, stressing that places of suffering must not be presented as tourist destinations without the truth about what happened there.

The Education Union, as an organization with significant social responsibility, must consider the ethical implications of its decisions and partnerships. Sending educators, who may include survivors of war trauma, family members of victims, or citizens who expect a responsible attitude towards the past, to a facility that symbolizes systematic sexual violence and crimes against humanity represents a serious moral and reputational risk. Such cooperation can also be interpreted as implicit support for revisionist policies and denial of crimes, which is incompatible with the values of a democratic society.

It is important to emphasize that the offer for 'Vilina Vlas' is not available on the official website of the travel agency 'Prosvjeta', but, according to available information, is given upon request, which raises questions about transparency in work and communication with members, as well as suspicion of conscious concealment of this cooperation.

We remind that the Pension and Disability Insurance Fund of Montenegro terminated its contract with the rehabilitation center 'Vilina Vlas' in March this year, following the initiative of CGO and UDIK, as well as significant media interest in Montenegro and BiH. Therefore, CGO and UDIK call on the Education Union to act immediately in the same way, guided by the principles of responsibility and respect for victims, and to establish clear criteria for the selection of tourist facilities in the future that include respect for the dignity of victims of war crimes and a responsible attitude towards the past.

The termination of cooperation would be a sign of a responsible attitude towards the past and consistent respect for victims of war crimes, but also confirmation that the Education Union and the agency 'Prosvjeta' act in accordance with the ethical principles they should also convey to younger generations.