#WeRemember: The Killing of Prisoners of War at Ovčara

This Wednesday, November 20, 2024, the Humanitarian Law Center (HLC) commemorates the victims of the crime committed at the Ovčara farm near Vukovar. On this day 33 years ago, members of the local Territorial Defense (TO) and Serbian volunteers under the command of the Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA) killed 265 Croatian civilians and prisoners of war.

As soon as they took control of Vukovar on November 20, 1991, members of the JNA removed the wounded, the sick, civilians, and members of the Croatian armed forces from the Vukovar hospital and transported them to the hangars at the Ovčara farm, located about five kilometers southeast of Vukovar. In the presence of members of the JNA Military Police, the Croatians detained at Ovčara were beaten, abused, and humiliated by members of the Vukovar TO and the “Leva Supoderica” paramilitary unit. In the evening, on the orders of Colonel Mile Mrkšić, JNA troops withdrew from Ovčara, leaving the detainees at the mercy of the Vukovar TO and the “Leva Supoderica” unit. During the night of November 20/21, 1991, the detainees were taken from the hangar in groups of 10 to 20 people to the Grabovo site, where they were executed in front of a pre-dug mass grave. The victims killed at Ovčara included wounded members of the Croatian armed forces, as well as civilians, including two women and three minors: Ružica Markobašić (32), who was heavily pregnant at the time, Janja Podhorski (60), Dragutin Balog (17), Igor Kačić (16), and Tomislav Baumgertner (17).

From the mass grave at the Grabovo site, 200 bodies were exhumed, and 193 victims were identified. The remains of 17 victims were found in nearby graves. The remains of the remaining 48 victims have yet to be discovered.

After capturing Vukovar, the JNA detained many members of the Croatian forces and civilians, who were transferred to the territory of Vojvodina and held in camps in Serbia for periods ranging from several days to several months.

For the crimes at Ovčara, based on individual criminal responsibility, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) sentenced Colonel Mile Mrkšić of the JNA to 20 years and Major Veselin Šljivančanin of the JNA to 10 years in prison. In Serbia’s judicial system, a trial lasting 14 years prosecuted only the direct perpetrators for the killing of at least 200 prisoners of war at Ovčara. A total of 24 members of the Vukovar TO and the “Leva Supoderica” paramilitary unit were indicted, of whom 11 were convicted with final sentences ranging from two to twenty years in prison. Of the remaining defendants, nine were acquitted, two were granted the status of cooperating witnesses, and two passed away during the trial.

After the final verdict in the trial conducted in Serbia, the Humanitarian Law Center (HLC), on behalf of the families of those killed at Ovčara, filed lawsuits seeking compensation for the deaths of their loved ones and represented the victims in years-long proceedings. Eleven cases were concluded in favor of the plaintiffs, who were granted the right to compensation. This marked Serbia’s formal acknowledgment of its responsibility for the crime at Ovčara.

Despite being convicted of having done nothing to stop or prevent the torture of prisoners, even though he was responsible for their safety, Veselin Šljivančanin has undergone social and political rehabilitation in Serbia. He has published books, made public appearances as an analyst, and served as a member of the Main Board of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS).

State officials and institutions in Serbia must stop offering public support to war criminals and instead prosecute the responsible JNA officers and do everything in their power to find the missing persons.

To locate the 48 missing persons, it is essential to open the archives of the Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA) and gather information from members of the military and paramilitary units and other individuals who were familiar with the events at Ovčara and who may have information that could point to the locations where the victims’ remains were hidden. Serbia has a legal and moral duty to do so for the victims and their families and has no excuse not to fulfill this obligation.

Additional sources:

Case: Mrkšić et al., ICTY

Case: Ovčara (Miroljub Vujović i drugi)

Case: Ovčara IV (Damir Sireta)

Case: Ovčara V (Petar Ćirić)

Dossier: “Camps for Croats in Serbia”

Digital narrative: “Camps for Croats in Serbia”

Video: “Camps for Croats in Serbia”