Personal testimony · KP Dom Foča · April 20, 1992 – October 23, 1993
"Now you will kill your neighbor": Protected Witness 119 on the Nights in KP Dom Foča
A protected witness, known to the Court of BiH only by the designation FWS-119, described life for prisoners in KP Dom Foča, where Serb forces held non-Serb civilians from April 1992 to October 1994. According to his testimony, the guards called out prisoners by name every evening, and many did not return. Deputy warden Savo Todović and guard commander Mitar Rašević were convicted by final judgment before the Court of BiH, and warden Milorad Krnojelac before the ICTY.
Where and when
Kula
- Date
- April 20, 1992 – October 23, 1993
- Coordinates
- 44.22° N · 17.96° E
KP Dom Foča
From April 1992 to October 1994, Serb forces held non-Serb civilians in the Kazneno-popravni dom (KP Dom) in Foča. According to the indictment, at least 700 prisoners passed through the prison during that period. Witness FWS-119 estimates the number of people detained at the same time at around 500.
Savo Todović was deputy warden of KP Dom from April 1992 until at least August 1993. Guard commander Mitar Rašević commanded at least 37 guards. Guards under Rašević's command selected prisoners from lists compiled by Todović and took them to rooms where they were beaten, tortured, and in some cases killed. According to the indictment, torture led to 26 deaths between June and August 1992. Between June and December 1992, Serb forces killed more than 200 prisoners in KP Dom.
Arrival at the prison
Witness FWS-119 was brought to KP Dom Foča on 20 April 1992, after Serb forces attacked his village and captured its unarmed residents. According to his own testimony, he remained in the prison until 23 October 1993 – eighteen months.
Roll calls every evening
Before the Court of BiH, the witness described the nights in KP Dom. According to his testimony, prisoners were taken away every evening between 17:30 and 22:00, called out by name. On Vidovdan, 28 June 1992, about 50 new people were brought in. The witness believes that the bodies of those killed were thrown into the Drina. The hardest month, in his words, was August 1992, when there were the most removals and beatings.
The witness also described an event of 17 September 1992: seven or more men were taken away after they had "voluntarily" signed up to pick plums.
The names the witness spoke
According to the testimony, Savo Todović said to one of the prisoners, Ibrahim Šandal: "Now you will kill your neighbor." Ibrahim Šandal, as the witness stated, died in the camp.
Sulejman Čelik was, according to the testimony, beaten after he complained to visitors from Novi Sad. His remains were later found during an exhumation.
Among the prisoners who were taken away or killed, the witness also named Avdo Hodžić, Suad Borovina, Rasim Kajgana, Džemal Vahida, Refik Veiz and Murat Crneta.
Hidden from the Red Cross
At the end of June 1993, a delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross visited KP Dom for the first time. According to the testimony, about 20 prisoners were hidden from the delegation, among them Aziz Torlak. A few days later, on 7 July 1993, Aziz Torlak was taken away, allegedly for an exchange.
Transfer to Kula
On 23 October 1993, the witness was transferred from KP Dom to the Kula prison near Sarajevo, where he spent ten months.
Verdicts
On 17 September 2003, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) sentenced the warden of KP Dom, Milorad Krnojelac, to 15 years in prison.