NGOs call for Renewal of Proceedings in RTS Case

Non-governmental organizations from Serbia fully support the request by Žanka Stojanović and the Association of families of victims of the NATO bombing of the Serbian TV headquarters (RTS) in 1999, for the renewal and extension of court proceedings regarding the death of 16 RTS workers that the families believe were sacrificed by the state and military authorities of Serbia. The request was submitted to the Special prosecutor’s office for organised crime in Belgrade.

The request was made on the basis of new evidence which was submitted by Žanka Stojanović and the Association of victims’ families to the prosecutor’s office for organised crime, as well as on the basis of evidence that the Belgrade Municipal Court failed to consider during the trial of the former RTS director, Dragoljub Milanović, and which was published in the book Silence in Aberdareva Street. The request was made also on the basis of evidence that the families believe is in the possession of the Ministry of Defence of Serbia.

Non-governmental organisations call on the Ministry of Defence to disclose to the families and general public all the documents related to the case of the bombing of RTS building. The minister of defence, Dragan Šutanovac, has already promised to disclose those documents to the public. The only documents and evidence that have been presented to the public however were those which had been given to the minister and Ministry of Defence by Žanka Stojanović and the Association of victims’ families.

Humanitarian Law Centre, Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, Youth Initiative for Human Rights, Women in Black and YUKOM believe that the Association of victims’ families rightfully demand to see all the documents of the file 466/2001, archived by the Legal department of the Ministry of Defence, its Secretariat and Civilian defence sector, especially in view of the conversation held with minister Šutanovac and the promise he gave to the victims’ families on October 5th 2007.