Manipulators and the Uninvited in Bijeljina

Mihajlovic, then a businessman, and the municipal government president as of 1994, stated that in late March 1992 Bijeljina was attacked by Muslim forces organised and armed by the SDA.He testified that the SDA leadership blocked the entire town by putting numerous road blocks and positioning snipers on rooftops.According to the indictment against Karadzic, the former Republika Srpska President, in early April 1992 Serb paramilitary forces, commanded by the unit of Zeljko Raznatovic-Arkan forcibly took over the power in Bijeljina killing 48 Muslims on that occasion.Mihajlovic called Raznatovic a “great manipulator”, while he presented the increased number of Muslims who were leaving Bijeljina as the result of arrival of Serb refugees from other parts of BiH and the inability of the authorities to control the situation and prevent incidents.The witness stated that he never either received or issued an order to deport the non-Serb population but contrary to that, the local authorities did everything to prevent the crimes.In corroborating that in 1995 in the centre of Bijeljina he saw Karadzic performing the tour of inspection of Raznatovic’s unit, Mihajlovic, however, stated that this was unplanned, and that Raznatovic, as a “skilful manipulator” used Karadzic’s stay in the town to “verify his stay at the front” near Sanski Most. Raznatovic, who was indicted by the ICTY for war crimes was killed in Belgrade in 2000.During the cross-examination, Prosecutor Catrina Gustafsson presented the witness with a video recording showing Karadzic handing over an award to Raznatovic after he finished a tour of inspection, implying that this indicates a pre-planned meeting.Mihajlovic further denied it, claiming that nobody could have known when Raznatovic would be in Bijeljina.The witness corroborated that in September 1992 three Muslim families were killed, in Bijeljina, stating that this “gruesome event was condemned by everyone in Bijeljina”, but he denied that the crime by “paramilitary units” had been “premeditated”.When asked if the “special police unit of Dusko Malovic” is marked as a perpetrator, the witness replied that it is, noting that this unit “was an outsider” and as such unrecognised by he Bijeljina authorities.In his reply to the Prosecutor, Mihajlovic corroborated that in 1994 “in co-operation with Arkan”, Vojkan Durkovic deported from Bijeljina the Muslims who volunteered to leave.”He also picked up those who refused to go, not only Muslims who volunteered to leave the town,” the witness said, noting that the authorities were against this and that on one occasion they ordered Durkovic’s arrest.He added, however, that Durkovic is still at large because “nobody ever reported” what he was doing.Karadzic, who is charged with persecution of Bosniak and Croat population throughout BiH, the Srebrenica genocide, terror over Sarajevo civilians, and taking of UNPROFOR troops hostage, will hear his next witness before the court on 21 March.