SPLIT, July 17 (Hina) - The trial of eight former Croatian military policemen, accused of war crimes against prisoners of war and civilians in Split's military prison Lora in 1992, on Wednesday saw the testimony of Tanja Belobrajdic,
an ex-wife of the first indictee and the prison's former warden, Tomislav Dujic, who is being tried in absence.
SPLIT, July 17 (Hina) - The trial of eight former Croatian military
policemen, accused of war crimes against prisoners of war and
civilians in Split's military prison Lora in 1992, on Wednesday saw
the testimony of Tanja Belobrajdic, an ex-wife of the first
indictee and the prison's former warden, Tomislav Dujic, who is
being tried in absence. #L#
Dujic and Belobrajdic joined the 72nd military police battalion in
early 1992, being among the last military police to leave Vukovar.
The witness worked as head of the battalion's duty service, which
was located at the city's barracks Dracevac.
She said that she had often visited the military-investigative
centre at Lora as she was the warden's wife, but the visits were of a
private nature. She saw the prisoners only in the area where they
were taken out for walks, and there were no civilians among them.
The witness said she had not heard anything about the events in
Lora, and was told about the attempted escape of two prisoners by
her husband.
"I later learned in the newspapers that those were Knezevic and
Bulovic (in the indictment, the two prisoners killed at Lora). I
cannot recall anything else," the witness said.
She dismissed claims by witness Mario Barisic, a former member of
the Sibenik military police's 72nd crime battalion, that he had
handed her a report about the prisoners being beaten with baseball
bats during their transfer from Split to Sibenik.
"I have no knowledge of the transfer of the prisoners, nor should I
have. If Croatian soldiers had been concerned, I would have
received a special report. I never talked to Barisic, but I saw him
on three occasions in the company of (former policeman) Milorad
Paic. They were inseparable... he never gave me any report, and
considering my position, I was not the person who he should have
given it to," she said.
"I have realised that Barisic mixes up people and events," the
witness said.
The witness said that the prisoners at Lora had been provided with
medical help. "The International Red Cross came and had no
objections," she said.
She denied that her husband had interrogated any prisoners or that
she attended any interrogation.
She said that there had been no traces of blood in her ex-husband's
office, nor had there been a regular or inductor phone.
The patrol which included Bajic, Banic and Bikic was the most
successful because they performed all the tasks other teams could
not handle, the witness said.
The court today also heard the testimony of Tadija Bokanovic, who
joined the military police in 1993. He said that he had not been at
Lora at the time the events described in the indictment took place,
and knew nothing about them except for what was published by the
media.
Former Lora prisoner Milosav Katalina was to testify at the trial
today, but despite a subpoena and a telegram, he failed to appear or
explain the reasons for his absence.
The trial resumes tomorrow.
(hina) rml