Savic: Deported for security reasons
07 October 2008 Two Prosecution witnesses speak about the participation of Momir Savic and "his army" in the crimes in Drinsko.
As indicated by Prosecution witnesses, indictee Momir
Savic, also known as "Vojvoda", ordered the residents of Drinsko village, near
Visegrad, to leave their houses in May 1992.
Some residents headed towards Visegrad, while others went to Dusce
village. After having been forced to leave this village, they were captured by
"Momir's army".
"In late May 1992 Momir Savic told us that we could not live in Drinsko
any more. He told us we should leave our homes by 12 o'clock. He also said that
some soldiers had come and he was not sure whether he would be able to control
them. He said that we should better leave for the sake of our own safety,"
Redjep Salic said.
The Prosecution charges Momir Savic, former member of the Republika
Srpska Army, among other things, with having participated in the deportation and
murder of Drinsko village residents, in Visegrad municipality, in the course of
1992. In May 1992 Savic "threatened the residents of Drinsko village, by telling
them that they would be killed unless they abandon their property. They did what
he told them to do."
"I have known Savic for a long time. We grew up together and we attended
the same school. He treated us, his neighbours, in a good manner before the war.
When I saw him in Drinsko in May 1992, he was dressed in camouflage uniform,"
Salic said. After having been deported, he and his family went to
Visegrad.
Salic said that "the command of Momir's army" was based in Drinsko,
adding that indictee Savic was known as "the Duke".
Second Prosecution witness Fatima Mujakic was also deported from Drinsko
on May 24, 1992. She left, together with her family and some village residents,
to Dusce and then to Bikavac but they had to leave that settlement soon.
"When we left Bikavac on May 27, 1992, heading towards the Lim river through
the woods, some soldiers, dressed in camouflage uniforms, met us on the bridge.
Momir and Dragan Savic, as well as Leka Tesevic, came there by cars. Then they
loaded us on a truck and transported us back to Drinsko," Mujakic said, adding
that she saw indictee Savic for the first time when they were on "the bridge
over Lim".
Mujakic was among 32 Drinsko residents, who were transferred to "Hasan
Veletovac" school building in Visegrad, where she stayed for four days before
being released.
The
trial is due to continue on Thursday, October 9.
Justice Report is a
specialist reporting agency focusing on war crimes trials taking place before
local courts; development of the local legal system; and efforts to come to
terms with the past.
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The opinions expressed in Balkan Insight are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network
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