Kondic et al: Waiving Property in Favour of “Serb Republic”
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Zaim Smajic and Mimka Brkic, who appeared as Prosecution witnesses at the trial for crimes committed in Kljuc, spoke about the participation of the “Serb Army” in the murder of a young man in Vukovo selo and the mistreatment of civilians, as well their obligation to waive their property “in favour of the Serb Republic” in order to be able to leave the town.
“I remember that the Serb Army entered our village in late May 1992, while refugees from Sehici were in the village. They told us to leave our houses, promising they would do us no harm. We had to raise our hands up. One of the soldiers told us that they would kill all of us,” Brkic said.
This witness told the Court that an unknown soldier approached her brother Mehmed and hit him, “because he told him that he did not have weapons”. She said that the same soldier killed “young Cajic” a short time later.
Vinko Kondic, Bosko Lukic and Marko Adamovic are charged with having participated in organizing a group of people and abetting them to commit genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in the course of 1991 and 1992.
The indictment alleges that, on May 28, 1992 the Army and police “cleaned the villages”, including Vukovo selo, forcing the Muslim population to leave their houses, searching the houses and taking adult men to interrogations …During the course of those operations one person was killed in Vukovo selo.
“This soldier took a small knife, a piece of bread and an onion from Cajic’s pocket and told one person: ‘Commander, he stung me’. The other person said in a cold voice to kill him. The soldier did as he told him,” Brkic said.
She said a convoy of soldiers dressed in various types of uniform passed through Vukovo selo afterwards. She saw Marko Adamovic and “teacher Bosko” among them.
“They passed by us without saying anything. Adamovic was dressed in military uniform and armed,” Brkic said.
In mid September 1992 Brkic left Kljuc, accompanied by her mother and brother, because, as she said, they no longer felt free in the town.
“We were nobody. We had to waive our property to the Serb Republic and report to the police in Kljuc, saying that we were leaving. We went to the municipality, room number 17 and 18, and gave a statement alleging that we voluntarily waived our property,” Brkic said.
The second Prosecution witness, Zaim Smajic, left Kljuc in a similar way. “Fearing for his life”, he and his family ran away from the town and went to Vucije selo on May 27, 1992.
“When the soldiers came, they ordered us to stand, forming a line. One of them started beating Sefik Cajic. The soldier then addressed someone, calling him a ‘commander’. This person told him to kill him. I remember that he then shot him in the stomach,” Smajic said, adding that Cajic was “between 21 and 23 years old” at the time.
This witness explained that a person named Dusko Beric told them to make a white flag and move to Sehici.
“Residents of Vukovo selo could stay there. Us, refugees, had to go back to our homes. Me and my family joined a convoy and left Kljuc on September 25, 1992. Prior to that we had to pay the tickets for the convoy and waive our property in favour of Republika Srpska,” Smajic said.
The trial is due to continue on Monday, June 1.
