ABUSES UPON NON-SERB CITIZENS OF BANJA LUKA

ZAGREB, May 1 (Hina) - The Croatian News Agency's (HINA) journalist made an interview with an eye-witness of many abuses committed over non-Serb population in Banja-Luka in the so-called Bosnian Krajina (northwestern Bosnia-Herzegovina), under control of Bosnian Serbs. The witness wanted to stay anonymous, because of the persecution undertaken by Bosnian Serb authorities. Here are some excerpts from the interview: According to the witness form that area, an obituary notice on the "tragical death" of wife and husband Mrs. Medina Batagelj and Mr. Radoslav Batagelj, published in a local paper of "The Serbian Voice" veiled a terrifying story of murder of these two persons. On April 21, 1994, Radoslav Batagelj of Slovene nationality and Catholic, and his wife Medina whose father was Moslem and mother Jew, were murdered brutally in their flat in 35 Vozdovacka street (Banja Luka's street that had been named after a famous Slovene writer, Ivan Cankar, but now renamed after Vozdovac, a section of Serbian capital of Belgrade). On early Thursday morning on April 21 unknown perpetrators entered their flat, abused and then slaughtered them. The murderers probably robbed as well the victims. Medina had attempted to escape through a window and balcony, but there she was murdered, her blood pouring along the facade of the building to create a pool on the pavement. Other eye-witnesses said that the big pool of blood had stayed on the pavement for almost three days. From the area of Banja Luka there are more and more reports on sacking of Croats from the so-called Serb army, earlier conscripted usually by force. After being dismissed from the army they are deprived of all rights, and together with families are forced to move from flats. They have to leave their houses or flats without getting compensation for the removal. One of such cases happened recently when a worker of the Banja Luka medical centre with her family was thrown out of a flat, and she and her husband with two children were left homeless. 011325 MET may 94