Former Prisoner Describes Abuse and Torture in Bileca

Duka, the former Bileca police commander, Vujovic, the former chief of the Bileca public safety station, and Ilic, a former police officer, have been charged with war crimes in Bileca. Nedjeljko Kuljic, since deceased, was also charged under the same indictment.

Vujovic and Duka have been charged with enabling and organizing the detention of Bosniak and Croat civilians in Bileca, where detainees were killed, tortured and abused. Ilic has been charged with participating in their abuse.

State prosecution witness and former Bileca detainee Srecko Kljunak testified at today’s hearing.

“Nedeljko Kuljic and Novak Radovanovic tortured me the most. They shortened my life by ten years,” Kljunak said.

Kljunak’s testimony ended on May 26, 1992, because he said he had “holes in his memory.”

Responding to questions from the defense, Kljunak confirmed having given a statement to members of the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) while under strong therapy. He said he was examined for six or seven hours and that the SIPA investigators spoke more than him. He said he hadn’t understood much of what they were saying and hadn’t read his statement.

Kljunak also said he didn’t remember the differences between his SIPA statement and the one he gave to the Bosnian state court.

At the last hearing, Kljunak said a police officer tried to attack him with a knife. According to Kljunak, defendant Miroslav Duka kicked the knife out of the police officer’s hand and slapped him. In his statement to SIPA, Kljunak said Duka hit him in the stomach after having kicked the knife out of the police officer’s hand.

At this hearing he said that after he disarmed the police officer, Duka told him to go into the room they slept in.

“I don’t remember what I said. I was under therapy…I remember he pushed me away. He may have hit me, I really don’t remember,” Kljunak said, when asked by the prosecution to explain the differences between his statements.

Kljunak said defendant Goran Vujovic questioned him at the police station in Bileca on his alleged abandonment of military positions.

He said he saw Vujovic again in the old prison building half a year later.

“He came once in order to ask how we were doing. He brought us canned food and cigarettes,” Kljunak said.

The trial will continue on September 29.