Cablegate: Cygool: Human Rights Abuses in Bosnia-

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

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SIPDIS

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DEPT FOR EUR, L, IO, HA/MLA/POMETTO; USVIENNA FOR USDEL CSCE

E.O. 12356: N/A
TAGS: PREF PHUM HR PHUM HR PHUM HR PHUM HR BK
SUBJECT: CYGOOL: HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN BOSNIA-
- HERCEGOVINA - CASE OF S.M., MUSLIM MALE

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INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY
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1. (LOU) THIS IS ONE IN A SERIES OF REPORTS ON
SPECIFIC AND GROSS HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN BOSNIA AND
HERCEGOVINA (B-H). ON OCTOBER 27, THE EMBASSY
RECEIVED AN EIGHT-PAGE LETTER IN CROATIAN, ADDRESSED
TO PRESIDENT BUSH, FROM SAID MUMINOVIC, A MUSLIM
REFUGEE FROM BRCKO, BOSNIA. IN THE LETTER, MUMINOVIC
DESCRIBED IN DETAIL HIS INTERNMENT IN THE BRCKO CAMP
IN NORTHERN BOSNIA. HE WROTE THAT HE HAD BEEN
INTERNED FOR SEVERAL DAYS BEGINNING MAY 5. BELOW IS
AN INFORMAL TRANSLATION OF THE SIGNIFICANT PARTS OF
MUMINOVIC'S LETTER. HE DESCRIBES HIS DETENTION AND
HOW HE WITNESSED FOUR EXECUTIONS. HE APPEALS FOR THE
U.S. TO "DO SOMETHING." END INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY.

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DETAILS OF THE CASE
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2. (U) BEGIN TRANSLATION:

MR. PRESIDENT OF THE USA:

SINCE I AM AN EYEWITNESS, I WANT TO GIVE MY STATEMENT
ABOUT THE MASSACRE IN BRCKO...

THE YUGOSLAV ARMY OCCUPIED THE GREATER PART OF BRCKO
ON MAY 1, 1992. THE CITIZENS WERE UNPREPARED FOR THE
SERBIAN OCCUPATION BECAUSE YUGO ARMY REPRESENTATIVES
HAD PROMISED OVER THE RADIO SECURITY AND PEACE JUST
THREE DAYS BEFORE THE OCCUPATION. I WAS AT HOME WITH
MY WIFE AND TWO UNDERAGE DAUGHTERS.

FOR FIVE DAYS WE WERE CLOSED INSIDE OUR HOME,
LISTENING TO THE SHOOTINGS AND THE GRENADES WITH
WHICH THE CITY WAS BEING SYSTEMATICALLY DESTROYED.
HIDDEN BEHIND OUR WINDOWS, WE WATCHED THE ARRIVAL OF
TANKS AND BUSES FULL OF BLOOD-THIRSTY CHETNIKS FROM
NEIGHBORING BIJELJINA, WHICH WAS ALREADY OCCUPIED,
AND WHERE 1,000 MUSLIMS HAD BEEN KILLED.

ON MAY 5 A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE YUGO ARMY IN A RADIO
BROADCAST INSTRUCTED THE CITIZENS IN MY PART OF THE
TOWN TO GO TO THE ARMY BARRACKS, FROM WHERE THE YUGO
ARMY WOULD ORGANIZE AN EVACUATION TO A SAFER PLACE.
FROM THE EXPERIENCES OF BIJELJINA, ZVORNIK, FOCA,
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VISEGRAD, SREBRENICE, AND OTHER BOSNIAN CITIES, WE

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ACTION EUR-01

INFO LOG-00 AID-01 AMAD-01 CA-02 CIAE-00 HA-09 INRE-00
INR-01 IO-19 ADS-00 NSAE-00 OIC-02 RP-10 SR-00
/046W
------------------8011F4 301527Z /38
P 301531Z NOV 92
FM AMEMBASSY ZAGREB
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2875
INFO AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
AMEMBASSY ANKARA
AMEMBASSY ATHENS
AMEMBASSY BONN
AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS
AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST
AMEMBASSY LONDON
AMEMBASSY MADRID
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
AMEMBASSY PARIS
AMEMBASSY ROME
AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE
AMEMBASSY VIENNA
USMISSION GENEVA
USMISSION USNATO
USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
USMISSION USVIENNA
USIA WASHDC 2514
USEC BRUSSELS
WHITE HOUSE WASHDC 1127
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DIA WASHDC
JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J-5/J-2//

LIMITED OFFICIAL USE SECTION 02 OF 04 ZAGREB 02532

DEPT FOR EUR, L, IO, HA/MLA/POMETTO; USVIENNA FOR USDEL CSCE

E.O. 12356: N/A
TAGS: PREF PHUM HR PHUM HR PHUM HR PHUM HR BK
SUBJECT: CYGOOL: HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN BOSNIA-
- HERCEGOVINA - CASE OF S.M., MUSLIM MALE

KNEW THAT THE SERBS HAD SPECIAL GROUPS USED TO
MASSACRE CIVILIANS. THESE GROUPS OF LUNATICS AND
PSYCHOPATHS GO FROM APARTMENT TO APARTMENT, CELLAR TO
CELLAR, AND, HIDDEN BEHIND THICK WALLS, COMMIT CRIMES
AGAINST THE POWERLESS CIVILIANS. UNDER THESE
CIRCUMSTANCES, GOING TO THE YUGO ARMY BARRACKS SEEMED
LIKE A BETTER CHANCE TO LEAVE THIS TOWN IN WHICH ONE
COULD ALREADY SMELL DEATH.

UPON OUR ARRIVAL AT THE BARRACKS, WE REALIZED WE WERE
ALL IN A TRAP BECAUSE THERE, TOGETHER WITH THE
REGULAR ARMY, WERE CHETNIKS AND OTHER SERBIAN REFUSE.
THEY OFFERED TO GIVE US RIFLES IF WE WOULD FIGHT
AGAINST OUR OWN PEOPLE FOR THE SERBIAN CAUSE. THE
MUSLIMS AND CROATS SILENTLY REFUSED. OUR WIVES AND
CHILDREN WERE PUT ON A BUS AND WERE TAKEN TO AN
UNKNOWN DESTINATION.

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AT GUNPOINT, WE MEN WERE ALSO PUT ON A BUS. WE WERE
TAKEN TO ONE OF BRCKO'S PLACES OF EXECUTION, A
PHYSICAL EDUCATION HALL IN THE CENTER OF THE TOWN.
WE NOTICED, FROM THE PUDDLES OF BLOOD ON THE FLOOR,
THAT THE EXECUTIONS HAD ALREADY BEGUN. FOR THE
COUPLE HUNDRED OF US WHO WERE LOCKED UP, THE LONG
HOURS OF TORTURE BEGAN. DURING THIS TIME, VARIOUS
PEOPLE IN UNIFORM LOOKED US OVER, EXPECTING TO FIND
CERTAIN IMPORTANT PEOPLE AMONG US. ALONG WITH THE
USUAL WEAPONS IN THEIR BELTS, THESE UNIFORMED PEOPLE
ALSO CARRIED BIG KITCHEN KNIVES. WE KNEW THEIR
PURPOSE AND EXPECTED THE WORST.

THE TORTURE STARTED WITH ORAL THREATS. THE SERBS
WOULD SING SONGS DEDICATED TO DRAZA MIHAJLOVIC, THE
CHETNIK LEADER IN WORLD WAR TWO. SOME OF US,
THREATENED BY EXECUTION, HAD TO LEARN THE SONGS BY
HEART. THE SERBS ENJOYED OUR FEAR AND MADE FUN OF
US. THEN THEIR BEARDED LEADER STARTED TO RECITE THE
ORTHODOX LORD'S PRAYER. WE HAD TO LISTEN TO IT WHILE
STANDING AND THEN END HIS CLOSING WORDS WITH AMIN
(THE ORTHODOX AMEN).

NEXT THE SERBS STARTED SLAPPING US, HITTING US WITH
BOXES AND FEET. WHEN THIS ENDED, THEY TOOK FOUR OF
US OUT FOR EXECUTION. WE WERE SELECTED BY RANKO
CESIC, KNOWN PREVIOUSLY AS A CRIMINAL AND A VIOLENT
PERSON. I TRIED TALKING TO THE SERBS, EXPLAINING
THAT I HAD COME TO THE BARRACKS WITH MY WIFE AND
CHILDREN AFTER HEARING THE APPEAL OVER THE RADIO, BUT
THEY DID NOT CARE. THEY PUT ONE OF US (KIBE - A
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SOCCER JUDGE) AGAINST THE WALL AND RANKO CESIC SHOT

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ACTION EUR-01

INFO LOG-00 AID-01 AMAD-01 CA-02 CIAE-00 HA-09 INRE-00
INR-01 IO-19 ADS-00 NSAE-00 OIC-02 RP-10 SR-00
/046W
------------------801218 301528Z /38
P 301531Z NOV 92
FM AMEMBASSY ZAGREB
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2876
INFO AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
AMEMBASSY ANKARA
AMEMBASSY ATHENS
AMEMBASSY BONN
AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS
AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST
AMEMBASSY LONDON
AMEMBASSY MADRID
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
AMEMBASSY PARIS
AMEMBASSY ROME
AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE
AMEMBASSY VIENNA
USMISSION GENEVA
USMISSION USNATO
USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
USMISSION USVIENNA
USIA WASHDC 2515
USEC BRUSSELS
WHITE HOUSE WASHDC 1128
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DIA WASHDC
JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J-5/J-2//

LIMITED OFFICIAL USE SECTION 03 OF 04 ZAGREB 02532

DEPT FOR EUR, L, IO, HA/MLA/POMETTO; USVIENNA FOR USDEL CSCE

E.O. 12356: N/A
TAGS: PREF PHUM HR PHUM HR PHUM HR PHUM HR BK
SUBJECT: CYGOOL: HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN BOSNIA-
- HERCEGOVINA - CASE OF S.M., MUSLIM MALE

HIM IN THE BACK WITH A MACHINE GUN.

LOOKING AT THE HOLES IN HIS BACK, MY WHOLE LIFE
PASSED IN FRONT OF MY EYES. I THOUGHT I WOULD NEVER
SEE EITHER MY CHILDREN OR MY FAMILY AGAIN AND THAT
ALL THAT WAS HAPPENING TO ME WAS DEFINITELY NOT A
DREAM BUT A HORRID REALITY. MY EYES CLOSED, I LOST
CONSCIOUSNESS, AND MY BODY CRUMBLED ONTO PIECES OF
GLASS. MY FAINTING AWAKENED A BIT OF HUMANITY IN THE
SERBS' LEADER. HE ORDERED THEM TO BRING ME BACK TO
THE HALL, WHERE I COULD REST A LITTLE. ONE OF THE
SERBS TOOK SATISFACTION IN REMOVING MY GLASSES AND
BREAKING THEM.

THE OTHER THREE MEN WERE KILLED IN THE MOST CRUEL
MANNER. FIRST THEY WERE BEATEN IN AN ANOTHER ROOM
AND LEFT TO RECOVER A LITTLE. THEN THEY WERE TAKEN
TO A COURTYARD WHERE WE HEARD THE WORST SOUNDS THAT A
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HUMAN THROAT CAN PRODUCE. WE HEARD THE DULL SLASHES
OF KNIVES CUTTING INTO HUMAN FLESH. THEN THE THREE
MEN WERE HELD BY THEIR LEGS AND BEATEN WHILE AGAINST
THE WALL OF THE BUILDING WHERE WE WERE IMPRISONED.
WITH ABOUT TWENTY MORE SHOTS, THE SERBS ASSURED THE
THREE MEN'S DEATH.

THE NEXT AFTERNOON, FOUR OF US MANAGED TO GET SOME
SYMPATHY FROM ONE OF THE SERBIAN POLICEMEN. HE LET
US GET ON A BUS GOING TO BIJELJINA, ON WHICH THERE
WAS A GROUP OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN. FROM THERE I
LUCKILY MANAGED TO ESCAPE, EVEN FROM BIJELJINA, WHERE
THE SERBIAN AUTHORITIES STILL TAKE PEOPLE FROM THEIR
HOMES, USUALLY DURING THE NIGHT, WHO NEVER RETURN. I
MANAGED TO GET TO THE FREE PART OF CROATIA THROUGH
HUNGARY AND SLOVENIA.

ALL THAT I HAVE WRITTEN HERE CAN BE CONFIRMED BY
THREE OTHER WITNESSES WHO ALSO MANAGED TO ESCAPE FROM
THAT HELL. I THINK WE WERE LUCKY THAT WE WENT
THROUGH ALL THIS IN THE FIRST DAYS OF THE SERBIAN
OCCUPATION, WHILE THE SERBIAN KILLING MACHINERY WAS
NOT SO WELL DEVELOPED YET. I DO NOT KNOW THE DESTINY
OF THE OTHERS WHO REMAINED THERE. A FEW GYPSIES
ACCEPTED THE SERBIAN OFFER TO JOIN THEIR ARMED FORCES
AND THUS SAVED THEIR NECKS FROM THE CHETNIKS...

I AM NOT SUCH A GREAT WITNESS SINCE I WITNESSED ONLY
FOUR KILLINGS, OF WHICH THREE INDIVIDUALS I KNEW
PERSONALLY. THAT IS MORE THAN ENOUGH FOR ME TO
DISCOVER EVIL AND HELL.
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ACTION EUR-01

INFO LOG-00 AID-01 AMAD-01 CA-02 CIAE-00 HA-09 INRE-00
INR-01 IO-19 ADS-00 NSAE-00 OIC-02 RP-10 SR-00
/046W
------------------801225 301528Z /38
P 301531Z NOV 92
FM AMEMBASSY ZAGREB
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2877
INFO AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
AMEMBASSY ANKARA
AMEMBASSY ATHENS
AMEMBASSY BONN
AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS
AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST
AMEMBASSY LONDON
AMEMBASSY MADRID
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
AMEMBASSY PARIS
AMEMBASSY ROME
AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE
AMEMBASSY VIENNA
USMISSION GENEVA
USMISSION USNATO
USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
USMISSION USVIENNA
USIA WASHDC 2516
USEC BRUSSELS
WHITE HOUSE WASHDC 1129
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DIA WASHDC
JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J-5/J-2//

LIMITED OFFICIAL USE SECTION 04 OF 04 ZAGREB 02532

DEPT FOR EUR, L, IO, HA/MLA/POMETTO; USVIENNA FOR USDEL CSCE

E.O. 12356: N/A
TAGS: PREF PHUM HR PHUM HR PHUM HR PHUM HR BK
SUBJECT: CYGOOL: HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN BOSNIA-
- HERCEGOVINA - CASE OF S.M., MUSLIM MALE

FOR GOD'S SAKE, DO SOMETHING.

3. (LOU) (SIGNED)
SAID MUMINOVICH
MUSALES BB,
53000 POREC, CROATIA.

END TRANSLATION.

NEITZKE

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