Soldiers without Walkie-Talkies

Although some Prosecution witnesses previously said that they had seen indictee Najdan Mladjenovic in Hranca village in May 1992 and that he had had a walkie-talkie, Defence witness Jovan Zivanovic said that the Army did not buy those devices.
 
“Even if somebody had a walkie-talkie, its range was a couple of kilometres, so communication between Hranca village and Bratunac could hardly have been established,” said Zivanovic, who was mobilised by the Territorial Defence Headquarters in Bratunac on April 17, 1992.  
 
He explained that the Headquarters possessed a radio communication device, but they did not have the conditions to use it.
 
The Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina charges Najdan Mladjenovic with having commanded the attack on Hranca village on May 3, 1992, when several Bosniak civilians were killed and captured, and ordered others to set their houses on fire.
 
According to the Prosecution’s charges, six days later Mladjenovic commanded an attack on Glogova village and issued an order to kill more than 20 local Bosniak residents. Mladjenovic is on trial together with Savo Zivkovic, who is charged with having participated in the attacks and deportation of civilians from those villages, as well as destruction of their property.
 
The indictment alleges that Mladjenovic was Commander of the Territorial Defence in Bratunac, to which Zivkovic belonged too.
 
Witness Zivanovic said that he had known Mladjenovic from before the war and that he was a good man and householder, adding that he did not know Zivkovic.
 
“Mladjenovic was not member of the Territorial Defence. I did not see him in any of the companies. I never heard that he committed any crimes,” Zivanovic said.
 
The witness said that the Territorial Defence Headquarters used to receive orders from the Crisis Committee. When asked by Prosecutor Ozrenka Neskovic whether the Crisis Committee ordered the Territorial Defence Headquarters to attack Glogova village, he said that he did not know.
 
“I was neither present in Glogova nor participated in it. I only heard what happened there,” Zivanovic said.