Stories about Human Shields

Testifying at the trial for crimes in the Vogosca area, a State Prosecution witness says that he heard that some persons, who stayed in “Planjina Kuca” in 1992, did not survive.

Nebojsa Berovic, who lived in Svrake at the beginning of the war, said that, in mid-1992 some local residents from that area used to go to “Planjina Kuca” in order to sleep in it during the night.
 
“I do not know why it happened, but I know that those people went to that house in order to sleep there. They would go back home in the morning,” he said, adding that his house was in the vicinity of “Planjina Kuca”.
 
Berovic said that he heard that one part of those persons left that area, while the others were exchanged. 
 “Only later I found out that they did not survive,” he said.
 
Branko Vlaco is on trial for crimes committed in the “Planjina Kuca”, “Bunker”, “Kod Sonje” and “Nakina Garaza” facilities. He is charged, in his capacity as Manager of those facilities, with having established a system for punishment of detained civilians. According to the charges, detainees were abused, forced to perform hard labour and used as human shields. Many of them were killed at those locations, while tens are still missing.
 
Witness Berovic said that he had never been given tasks related to “Planjina Kuca” facility, adding that he was deployed to Zuc Hill.
 
When asked by Prosecutor Munib Halilovic if he knows that detainees were taken to Zuc, the witness said that he heard something about it, because various stories were told about human shields in that period.
 
Responding to a question by the Defence on whether he had heard of indictee Vlaco, the witness answered affirmatively, adding that two men named Branko Vlaco lived in the Vogosca area.
 
He said that he heard that the Muslim population in that area armed itself at the beginning of the war.
 
“I once saw a waste truck in our neighbourhood. It went to the place where rubbish had never been disposed. Later on I found out that the truck brought weapons,” Berovic said.
 
When asked by the Trial Chamber if he knew anything about the arming of the Serb civilian population, the witness said that it was not known to him.
 
The trial is due to continue on September 25.