How far the investigation has moved and what has been discovered so far, i.e. who were the kidnapers, who is behind the abduction, where the kidnapped persons are and whether they are alive, is still not known. Dr Dragisa Burzan, president of the Montenegrin Parliament's Committee for the investigation of the abduction in Strpci, said at a press conference in Podgorica that the Committee's hands had been tied, simply because the relevant authorities had refused to cooperate. "We needed six months," said Burzan, "to get a permission to inspect the documentation of the authorities in Uzice, who were in charge of the investigation. We have obtained the permission, but we still do not know when we shall be invited and allowed to inspect the documentation."
Relatives of the abducted passengers in the meantime tirelessly knocked on the doors of republic and federal offices and engaged in hunger strikes in order to find the truth. When they were received by the president of Serbia, Slobodan Milosevic, in Belgrade on 5/25/93, he promised "to turn heaven and earth" and to reveal the truth about the destiny of their dearest. Serbian Minister for Internal Affairs, Zoran Sokolovic, asked even earlier (March 1993) in Prijepolje those same families "what kind of Ministers we would be if we couldn't find them?" Yugoslav Federation president, Zoran Lilic, expressed in Novi Pazar on 9/23/94 readiness to "gladly talk" about the case provided that the Montenegrin parliament's Committee sends him an official invitation.
What has prevented Milosevic from fulfilling his promise for two years? Indeed, what kind of Minister is Sokolovic? What does it mean when Lilic, as a federal president, does not feel obliged to respond to a Montenegrin Parliament's written request?
The tragedy in Strpci, as nothing else, has brought in question the very foundations of the local legal system and shown that in this state there are two kinds of citizens. The first kind are the citizens of Serbian and Montenegrin nationality and the second class citizens are everyone else. Since, it seems, the name of a "second class" nationality in the identity papers is enough to disappear without a trace. Jasmina Husovic, wife of abducted Rifat, said in the magazine "Liberal": "I have been given about DM20 by the state ... That is the price of a return ticket to Belgrade... Shame on the state and its president."
Although it is not known how far the authorities have got in their investigation of the abduction in Strpci, the families of the abducted and non-governmental organizations have been trying to shed some light on what happened in Strpci on 3/27/93. The Foundation for Humanitarian Law in Belgrade maintains, based on its investigation, that a group of armed men in uniforms with chetnik insignia had been in the train number 671 since Belgrade. Witnesses further claim that the conductor, escorted by two policemen, checked personal identification papers and wrote names on the tickets, which was justified by measures against smugglers. Engine driver, Zeljko Radojcic stopped the train in Strpci and the signal to stop was given by the Strpci station master, Slobodan Icagic. Apparently, no-one has questioned them so far. However, it has been said that Icagic claimed that a group of armed soldiers forced him to stop the train.
Podgorica weekly Monitor (8/26/94) stated that Ivica Martinovic from Vinkovci, at that time serving a year of mandatory military service at the barracks of the Yugoslav Army, "Stari aerodrom" [Old Airport], in Podgorica had also been abducted in Strpci.
Allegedly, he was abducted due to an "error", since he had a "checkerboard" [Croatian coat of arms] on his documents. He was released after less than 24 hours when it was found out that his father had died fighting against the Croatian army in Slavonia and Ivica Martinovic was returned to the barracks. In the same issue of Monitor we further found out that certain Milovan Tripkovic, who had taken a part in the abduction, had been, two months after the abduction, receiving medical treatment in Zemun hospital, so called komora. He claimed, according to Monitor, that an order for the "action" in Strpci had been faxed from Belgrade. Monitor then asked how come it had been impossible to obtain adequate statements from Martinovic, Tripkovic, Radojcic, Icagic, the train conductor and the policemen providing escort who had inspected passenger's papers and, according to the passenger's statements, had directly taken part in the abduction, and to get the investigation going.
Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs revealed, not long after the kidnapping that the link with the relevant authorities in the Republic Srpska (RS) had been established. A member of Slobodan Milosevic's staff, told one of the desperate mothers that Dr. Radovan Karadzic had promised that he would personally see that the whole case was resolved soon. Indeed, on 7/6/93 a statement by the RS government was received in Belgrade. The statement said that the RS Army smashed a paramilitary unit responsible for the abduction and that the forementioned unit had been manipulated and incited by foreign counterintelligence services. That was all. No names of culprits, no trial, and what is most important, no indication of what happened with the abducted passengers. Their relatives continued to visit, without results, different officials, and in the December of 1993 Montenegrin parliament formed the already mentioned bipartisan Committee. The above mentioned Dr. Burzan's statements say enough about the results of the Committee's work.
What can I say, the president looked worried and convincing and the audience left feeling hopeful. He left the impression that he personally will search heaven and earth. He left a deep impression on me. He did not say a single wrong word . He carefully listened to each one of the family members of the abducted, asked questions regarding the stories and facts put forward by the relatives, expressed anger after stupid replies from the police minister..."
(Natasa Kandic about the meeting with Slobodan Milosevic)
Bozidar Vucurovic, a poet and a mayor of Trebinje reacted to this Lilic's statement. "Remembering the Strpci case," he said, "Lilic reduced himself to a level of a police station chief and that is why many in the RS cursed him." Dr Konstantin Obradovic, an expert in international law, however thinks (Vreme 8/29/94) that according to the law, "certain Lukic" should have stood trial in the FRY. Namely, according to the Yugoslav Criminal Law, Yugoslav citizens cannot be extradited. Another question is to whom was "a certain Lukic" extradited. The RS has not been recognized even by the FRY and the only basis for extradition was their claim that "their judiciary will conclude the case."
It seems that the Federal president used the abduction in Strpci for his own political gain. A rift between Belgrade and Pale was growing in size at that time and the case was used as a way to spite Karadzic and his lot. This is confirmed by the fact that the abduction has not been mentioned later and that Lilic forgot to "gladly testify" before the Montenegrin parliament's Commission and convey his insights. Also, it became obvious that the Serb state east from the Drina river could not brush away the suspicion of being involved in the whole case.
What can be said in conclusion. Representative from the Democratic party in the Federal parliament, Miodrag Perisic, said regarding the second anniversary of the abduction in Strpci that "it is shocking" that there was a tacit agreement to keep the truth about the case away from the public. The leader of the Serbian Radical Party, Dr. Vojislav Seselj, in his style, accuses the League of Communists - Movement for Yugoslavia of organizing the abduction in cooperation with the Counterintelligence Service. Leading officials from the Socialist Party of Serbia, Borislav Jovic, Ivica Dacic and Goran Percevic refused to comment the case to the Belgrade news agency "Beta".
Mujo Bacic, whose son was among the kidnapped, said at the press conference in Podgorica:" It is hard for me that nothing is known about my (son's) destiny, whether he is alive or dead. I think now and then how I would be happy if instead of these anniversaries I could celebrate my grandchild's birthday. Many are together with us in our pain and sorrow, but the authorities do not understand. They say that Strpci is in another state although it is known that at the time Yugoslav Army controlled the territory of Bosnia-Hercegovina as far as 30 km from the border. This is undeniable truth which no-one is willing to admit."
RASTODER: Apart from the expressions of sympathy and numerous promises in the beginning, the Serbian and Montenegrin authorities, in spite of a multitude of reliable leads, until today have not done anything concrete to solve the case and hopefully save the lives of the abducted passengers. On the contrary, they have done everything in their power to hide and cover up the crime. This can be proven by numerous documents obtained by the relatives and several humanitarian organizations. Is it necessary to remind of the first information issued by the news agency "Tanjug", originating from unidentified sources in the RS army, according to which nine Serbs, two Croats and two foreigners were abducted in Strpci together with the muslims? It is obvious that from the start the goal was to "prove" that the abduction was not a genocidal crime but a plain terrorist attack. State authorities and even the Federal government have quoted this information. State controlled media later concocted monstrous stories about the abducted passengers, like the one published in "Pobjeda" on 3/5/93, according to which the abducted passengers were "close collaborators of the muslim forces in Bosnia."
VREME: Can you tell us more about the abducted passengers?
RASTODER: For the benefit of the public and the integrity of the abducted and their relatives I shall repeat these facts again. Abducted Ismet Bacic was on that fateful day on a way back from a business meeting, should I say, with Serbs, on the Zlatibor mountain, which had been arranged by his Kum [Best man, good friend] Boskovic, from Podgorica. Esad Kapetanovic was traveling from Belgrade, where he had worked, to Bijelo Polje in order to respond to a draft notice received by his parents. Ilijaz Licina, employed in Belgrade, intended to spend a weekend with his family in Lozna near Bijelo Polje. According to witnesses, he had a sack of flour and food with him. Similarly, Fehim Bekija, also employed in Belgrade, had decided to spend that weekend with his family as had Seco Softic and Jusuf Rastoder. Rifat Husovic was on the fateful day on his way back from a visit to Belgrade. Esad Djecevic, a minor was with him by chance. Halil Zupcevic, a refugee from Trebinje, was returning from Belgrade, where he had been trying to obtain an emigration visa, to Rozaje. He never made it back. Zvjezdan Zulicic, another refugee from Bosnia, with refugee status in Serbia where he played soccer for the team in Petrovac on the Mlava river [eastern Serbia] was on the way to visit his mother's relatives in Niksic. etc. etc. These are the so called "suspicious elements", actually innocent helpless men who were grabbed by somebody's dirty criminal hands. Naturally, according to somebody's orders.
VREME: The authorities claim that they are helpless because the abduction took place on the territory of another state?
RASTODER: Yes, and some international factors are beginning to accept this explanation. Putting aside the testimonies which point out that the abduction was prepared in the train, on the way from Belgrade to Strpci, where the "chosen" passengers were only taken off the train, the important and undeniable fact is that the train station in Strpci including everything around it, tracks, buildings and employees, was and remains the property of the ZTP-Belgrade [Rail Transport Company from Belgrade], i.e. the Republic of Serbia. This can easily be checked in the appropriate documents and is obvious from the fact that the station security was provided by the Yugoslav Army.
It is enough to mention that the investigation was interrupted and a certain Lukic extradited to Bosnian Serbs. This man was among the main suspects in the case. How can we interpret the fact that thousands of pages of the report by the Federal Commission for crimes committed on the territory of the former Yugoslavia do not mention even once the crime in Strpci?
VREME: How are the authorities treating the families of the abducted? Have the authorities helped them financially?
RASTODER: In stead of help to the families of the abducted workers and compatriots by the companies, mostly based in Belgrade, in which the majority of the abducted had worked, the termination of employment notices were sent to the families, ironically quoting failure to appear at work as a reason for firing!!! Consequently these families lost all means of social and financial security; also, legally, the rights of the abducted employees cannot be resolved until their destiny is known.
The help from the Montenegrin authorities amounted to a single payment of DM20 to each family. No-one has been responding to appeals and demands of the families of the abducted to be told about the destiny of their loved ones. On the other hand, specialists in the well known technique of "brain washing" have been bombarding the families with numerous confusing informations and provocations. Everything points that another crime is being committed, this time against the families of the abducted.