/Reparations

Actions to Follow Apology

With regard to the statement made by the President of the Republic of Serbia, Tomislav Nikolić, in the “Interview 20” show on Radio Television Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Humanitarian Law Center (HLC) calls on President Nikolić, together with the other institutions concerned, to take concrete steps which will show that this symbolic act represents the beginning of an honourable and responsible stance by the state of Serbia when it comes to dealing with the legacy of crimes committed in the name of the Serbian people. This is the only way for President Nikolić to wipe away the justified suspicion that many people entertain relating to the honesty of his apology, which has been reinforced by repeated denial that genocide was committed in Srebrenica.


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Constitutional Complaint because of Failure to Investigate Crimes Committed against Bosniaks at the Šljivovica and Mitrovo Polje Camps

On 4 April 2013, the Humanitarian Law Centre (HLC) filed a Constitutional Complaint to the Serbian Constitutional Court (USS) on behalf of 78 Bosniaks, former inmates of the Šljivovica and Mitrovo Polje camps, and the families of those killed in these camps, after the Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor of the Republic of Serbia (TRZ) failed to carry out an adequate investigation into war crimes committed at these camps in 1995 and 1996. By omitting to do so, the rights of those concerned, guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia – the right to life, the right to inviolability of their mental and physical integrity, the right to equal protection before the law and the right to legal remedy – have been violated.


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Higher Court in Belgrade: State of Serbia Responsible for War Crimes in Kukurovići Committed in 1993

The Higher Court in Belgrade rendered a judgment establishing the responsibility of the State of Serbia for the war crime committed in the village of Kukurovići (the Municipality of Priboj) on February 18th, 1993. The Humanitarian Law Center (HLC) would like to stress that this is the first judgment to establish the responsibility of the state for a war crime committed by members of Serb forces on the territory of Sandžak during the nineties.


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Twenty Years Since the Kidnapping in Štrpci – Perpetrators Not Punished, Victims Not Recognized

On Wednesday, February 27th, 2013, it will be 20 years since 19 citizens of Serbia and Montenegro were kidnapped by the Republic of Srpska Army (VRS) from the train station in Štrpci (BiH, Republic of Srpska). Only Nebojša Ranisavljević has been convicted of this crime so far. The institutions in Serbia have not yet recognized the victims of this crime as civilian war victims.


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Kosovar Albanian awarded compensation for torture suffered in 1999

The Court of Appeals in Belgrade has delivered a judgement ordering the Republic of Serbia to pay 200,000 RSD to Sylejman Bajgora from Podujevo/Podujevë, in compensation for torture he  endured in 1999 at the hands of members of the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Serbia (the MUP of the RS). In the same judgment, the Court of Appeals upheld the trial court judgment turning down the compensation claim by Ekrem Nebihu from Glogogovac/Glogoc.


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General comment no. 3 UN Committee for the Prevention of Torture

The Committee against Torture, the United Nations treaty body entrusted with monitoring compliance with the Convention Against Torture as well as the interpretation of its provisions, adopted the General Comment No. 3, which defines the obligations of States towards torture victims. These include states obligation to ensure in its legal system that the victim of an act of torture obtains redress and has an enforceable right to fair and adequate compensation, including the means for as full rehabilitation as possible, guarantees of non-repetition, and right to truth. Although general comments are not legally binding, they exceed the advisory nature when dealing with the interpretation of international norms, and when determining the scope and content of certain articles of the Convention.


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The Coalition for Access to Justice greatly concerned over statements of current and former Presidents of Serbia regarding Srebrenica

The Coalition for Access to Justice has expressed great concern over the statements of Serbia’s current President Tomislav Nikolic, and its former President Boris Tadic, which deny the facts established by courts about the genocide in Srebrenica. The Coalition would like to direct the current and former Presidents’ attention to Serbia’s obligation as a member of the UN, of the Council of Europe and of the OSCE, to respect court verdicts, and to request that in their public appearances and statements they cease bringing  the Republic of Serbia into disrepute and doing harm to the process of reconciliation in the region.


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20 Years after the Crime in Sjeverin

The anniversary of the suffering of the victims from Sjeverin was observed on Monday, October 22nd in Priboj.


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Kidnapped Residents of Sjeverin not Recognised as Victims by the State of Serbia

The Municipal Administration in Priboj has dismissed the requests of three families of kidnapped residents of Sjeverin to be officially recognized as families of civilian victims of war in Serbia. The Humanitarian Law Center (HLC), which filed the lawsuit on behalf of the families of the kidnapped Sjeverin residents, filed a complaint with the Ministry of Labour, Employment, and Social Policy on October 17th, 2012 against the Administration’s decision, noting that it was in violation of the Constitution, laws, and international conventions protecting human rights and pointing out that claims filed by family members of the war crime victims from Sjeverin had been dismissed on the basis of criteria that are not applied in cases of victims of Serbian nationality. The HLC filed its complaints with the Ombudsman, Saša Janković.


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