An Investigation Long Gone

Three years after the abduction of 19 passengers from train no. 671 in Strpci (18 Moslems and a Croat), Serbian and Montenegrin authorities have still not made public the results of the inquiry. Latching onto the government's utter silence about the incident, the Montenegrin opposition asked for the formation of a parliamentary committee to gather information about the kidnapping of the passengers two years ago. The committee has been trying very hard to establish adequate cooperation with state institutions, and even obtain certain authorities from the investigating commission. The first question to Dragisa Burzan, chairman of the committee and social-democratic deputy in the Montenegrin parliament, is how successful were the efforts and what were the difficulties.

BURZAN: There was never a genuine and comprehensive cooperation between the committee and the state organs. The communication was civil, but only in individual cases. Generally speaking, the state institutions' replies to the committee were always late and contained inadequate information, even less than what the public was told by the newspapers. Many individuals even declined to answer our questions, although they were obliged to do so.

Those responsible for the human rights situation, the human rights minister for example, and all of the ranking officials you can think of did not know who conducted the investigation, or - perhaps - thought that was of no importance to the committee. I am talking about replies written over a year after the incident.

VREME: You did, however, get some information about how the investigation was being conducted. How do you assess the investigation?

Yes, we were told something, but all that was official information existing outside the files of secret services. The Serbian public prosecutor was kind enough to give us access to the entire investigating documentation. As far as the inquiry itself is concerned, the committee has adopted an official stand at its last session, stating that so many errors had been made in its very concept that there never really was an investigation in the true meaning of the word. I don't want local institutions to think I am blaming them. The entire responsibility rests on the Serbian and Montenegrin state leadership for handing the investigation over to local authorities, whose capacity is insufficient to deal with such a complex matter.

What exactly did the police refuse to investigate in direct connection to resolving the case ?

I don't know whether they refused to or not. However, it is a fact that substantial evidence and a number of testimonies had been ignored. A number of indications suggesting the identity of the kidnappers were left unprocessed. Not to mention the fact that the list of kidnapped individuals is incomplete, as there is one name missing from the list which was made public. The investigation is officially and technically still in progress, but it effectively grinded to a halt in June 1993.

The Uzice police were informed about the occupation of the Strpci railway station and so was the dispatcher in Pozega while the kidnapping was still in progress. Are there any documents about this in the files, and what would have happened had the police reacted immediately ?

The police were informed about the kidnapping while it was taking place, perhaps about half an hour after it had started. What could they do ? That's a question for the experts. In my opinion, they could have done a number of useful things which might have saved the day.

According to some testimonies, Milan Lukic was one of the kidnappers. He lives in Visegrad today, although he was arrested and held in custody after charges had been pressed ?

According to statements made by Mr. Lilic, Lukic was one of the kidnappers. However, he personally never gave the committee any evidence to support that theory. It is up to the police to establish the addresses of potential kidnappers.

Are you saying that the Montenegrin police have not disclosed all the evidence they came across during the investigation. As you said, you gave them information on the identity of six kidnappers, based on testimonies made by witnesses. Are you able to shed some more light on that particular issue?

No, I cannot make any comments on that. All I can say is that what I told the committee is generally in accord with what you are saying. The situation is, however, slightly different with the Montenegrin police. Let me explain. Then interior minister and the Montenegrin president claim that the police had been involved in an operative action directly linked with the kidnapping. The details of that action were never disclosed to the committee. That wouldn't be particularly worrying if I didn't have reliable information that it included a number of details interesting for the committee's work.

What should finally be done to make the authorities say the truth about the kidnapping?

We in Montenegro are doing what we can - exerting political pressure on the authorities. I also wish to point out the difference between responsibility and guilt. The authorities are generally responsible for conducting an adequate investigation. It is up to the others to run a check through the facts and take personal responsibility for the case. I personally have neither the competence nor the obligation to do so. As a deputy, I shall continue to object to the Assembly and the presidential structure. Times have changed to a great extent. Let's hope that conditions for a proper investigation will soon be created in Bosnia. Many individuals will have to reveal some details in The Hague, while Belgrade still faces sanctions if doesn't do something about respect for human rights. All that is not enough, but it is necessary to obtain the final answer to questions regarding the fate of the kidnapped and the identity of the abductors. The hope that there is an answer is actually hope that the time of fascism will come to an end. For our part, we will continue to press for the forming of an investigative parliamentary commission, and we shall exert all-round political pressure in that sense. We will also ask for access to secret service files.