35 War-Crime Investigations in Trebinje

The Trebinje District Prosecution has opened 35 war-crimes investigations, but it is still uncertain when the indictments will be filed – says Srdjan Vukanovic, spokesperson of the District Prosecution.

A team for solving war crimes with the District Prosecution in Trebinje was established in April this year. So far, the team has completed eight cases. As said by Vukanovic, investigations have been discontinued in six out of the eight cases, one case has been referred to the Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, BiH and one indictment has been filed.
 
Vukanovic explained that, when the Team was formed, the Prosecution had 43 active cases and an obligation to solve 15 percent of the cases by the end of June 2015.
 
“By completing the eight cases, we have already fulfilled 19 percent of the obligation. We exceeded the agreed plan in half a year, so one cannot say that we have not achieved adequate results,” Vukanovic said.
 
As explained by Vukanovic, prior to the establishment of the Team, the Prosecution had more than 70 cases and five prosecutors.
 
“The problems we faced were recognised by the expert public. We received significant resources from the IPA funds in order to form a team for solving the cases, but also improve the material and financial support to our work,” Vukanovic said.
 
When asked when we could expect new indictments for war crimes, Vukanovic said that it was difficult to foresee or offer a specific date, adding that, only after the evidence that could make an individual a suspect had been collected, an indictment could be filed.
 
The District Prosecution in Trebinje is responsible for the processing of war crimes committed in the Eastern Herzegovina area, including Foca, Cajnice, Miljevina and Kalinovik.