Former Heliodrom Prisoners Describe Abuse and Forced Labour at Puljic Trial

Mile Puljic, the former commander of the Second Battalion of the Second Croatian Defense Council Brigade, has been charged with allowing his subordinates to take detainees from the Heliodrom detention camp to locations where they performed forced labour and were used as human shields.

The state prosecution has accused Puljic of participating in a joint criminal enterprise which lead to enforced disappearances, detention, forced labour and the use of human shields from May 1993 to March 1994.

The indictment alleges that Puljic is responsible for the death of 11 Bosniak prisoners and the injury of 70 more, who were used as human shields, labourers, or were subjected to other types of abuse.

Camil Kukuruzovic, a former prisoner at the Heliodrom detention camp, testified at today’s hearing.

Kukuruzovic said he and other prisoners were taken to several locations to perform forced labour. He said they were often taken to Santiceva Street in Mostar, where they dug trenches, carried bags, moved division lines and carried out other tasks.

Kukuruzovic said he and three other detainees were once beaten up so badly they had to be sent to the hospital.

“They called us objects, while we addressed them as ‘Sir,’” Kukuruzovic said, adding that detainees were “treated as expendable.” Kukuruzovic said he heard that other detainees were wounded and murdered as well.

Vejsil Elezovic, another former Heliodrom prisoner, also testified at today’s hearing. Elezovic said while working on Santiceva Street in August 1993, he saw a prisoner named Dervo Colakovic get killed by a bullet that hit him in the head. He said he was also present when a prisoner named Osman Balavac was beaten up by “some people, who were allegedly his neighbours.”

He said other detainees told him about the murder of Afan Torlo and the wounding of others on Santiceva Street.

State prosecution witness Enes Hasanagic said he heard about Heliodrom prisoners being wounded and killed while performing forced labour. He said he saw other prisoners evacuate Dervo Colakovic after he had been shot. He said Colakovic was dead and covered in blood.

State prosecution witness and former Heliodrom prisoner Hamo Kukuruzovic said he once stayed at the central prison on Santiceva Street with a group of other prisoners for eight days in a row. He said Santiceva Street was the hardest location to work at.

“They didn’t even have to mistreat us when we were on Santiceva Street. Just being there was hard enough,” Kukuruzovic said.

The defense objected to the prosecution examining several witnesses on the same set of circumstances. The trial chamber agreed, and said twenty witnesses had already been examined regarding those same circumstances.

The trial will continue on September 2, when five witnesses will be examined.