S/1994/674/Add.2 (Vol. IV)
27 May 1994
Final report of the United Nations Commission of Experts
established pursuant to
security council resolution 780 (1992)
Annex VIII - part 1/10
Prison camps
Under the Direction of:
M. Cherif Bassiouni
Chairman and Rapporteur on the Gathering
and Analysis of the Facts, Commission of Experts
Established Pursuant to Security Council Resolution 780 (1992)
Principal Legal Analyst:
Eric J. Krauss, IHRLI Staff Attorney
William B. Schiller, IHRLI Director of Research
Contributors:
Patsy Campbell, IHRLI Staff Attorney
Mirande Dupuy, IHRLI Staff Analyst
Richard R. Danis, Jr., IHRLI Staff Attorney
Georgann M. Grabiec, IHRLI Staff Attorney
Christine Matthews, IHRLI Staff Analyst
Marcia L. McCormick, IHRLI Staff Attorney
Suzan Ozturk, IHRLI Staff Attorney
John Stompor, IHRLI Staff Analyst
Stacey White, IHRLI Staff Analyst
and
The Staff of the International Human Rights
Law Institute, DePaul University
This report on detention facilities, attempts to identify and provide relevant information concerning all alleged detention facilities (camps) within the territory of the former Yugoslavia. This study is not designed to classify detention sites based on their prosecutorial potential, but is intended to provide a description and analysis of the detention facilities reported to have existed.
The report is divided into two sections. The first section is the summary and analysis. The summary and analysis discusses the methodology of the report and provides the total number of reported detention facilities in the territory of the former Yugoslavia. The total number of detention facilities is also broken down by geographic region. In addition, the summary and analysis discusses patterns, trends and commonalities which have manifested themselves in the various reports of detention facilities.
The analysis by geographic location in Section II below, divides detention facilities by their location, i.e, whether they were located in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Croatia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), or Slovenia. Within those locations, it further breaks down reported facilities by the county or region in which they were located. The 1991 population and ethnic distribution figures are also provided for each county or region, as well as other background information.
To analyse the contents of the database for this report, all documents in the International Human Rights Law Institute (IHRLI) documentation centre were first reviewed to identify those reports containing allegations of detention facilities within the territory of the former Yugoslavia. After initial review, the documents were organized geographically by county or region and then analysed. Relevant information pertaining to alleged detention facilities was then gleaned, and individual geographic reports were thereafter prepared, containing information, wherever available, identifying: 1) the name, location, dates of operation, and physical description of alleged detention facilities; 2) information concerning command and control, including the identities and ethnicity of commanders and guards, and any other groups or individuals reported to be involved in the camp operation; 3) information pertaining to prisoners, including their ethnicity, civilian or military status, subsequent transfers, and total reported prisoner population; 4) the treatment of prisoners, including, maltreatment or good treatment, food, hygiene, toilet and medical facilities, sleeping accommodations, and other conditions.
The main criterion for determining whether a site would be deemed a detention facility for purposes of this report, depended mainly upon whether persons were alleged to have been held against their will, and whether the detention site appeared to have been established as a result of the armed conflict between the warring factions identified.
In some instances, the existence of certain detention facilities were well documented and independent sources corroborated reports of those alleged facilities. In other instances, only uncorroborated claims or corroborated reports by non-neutral sources were received. Those claims were included in the report and are indicated as such.
It is significant to note that a wide variety of sources were utilized in this report. It should also be noted that the Commission had no basis to confirm the information contained in that source material. To make a qualitative assessment of the information contained in this report, efforts were therefore made to confirm or corroborate allegations of camps wherever possible. To this effect, it is indicated in each camp report whether: 1) the existence of the detention facility was corroborated by multiple neutral sources; 2) the existence of the detention facility had been corroborated by a neutral source; 3) whether the existence of the detention facility had been corroborated by multiple sources, none of which were neutral; or 4) whether the existence of the detention facility had not been corroborated by multiple sources.
Since the armed conflict in Slovenia in June 1991, the warring factions have operated a variety of detention facilities (camps). It appears that as the situation in the former Yugoslavia disintegrated and war erupted, detention facilities came into existence in increasing numbers. A large number of camps came into existence in Croatia after the beginning of hostilities in September 1991. The greatest number of camps came into existence in BiH in the period after April 1992. It appears that many of the camps appearing in this report are now closed.
The reports reviewed allege a total of 960 reported places of detention in the territory of the former Yugoslavia. Of those 960 alleged places of detention, 466 (48.5 per cent) were reportedly operated by Bosnian Serbs or forces of FRY; 121 (12.6 per cent) by Bosnian Croats or the Government of Croatia and the Croatian Army; 84 (8.8 per cent) by the Government and Army of BiH or Bosnian Muslims; 32 (3.3 per cent) jointly by Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats; 9 (.9 per cent) as private prisons, individuals or groups; 4 (.4 per cent) by the Government or armed forces of Slovenia; and 244 (25.4 per cent) by unidentified forces.
As the above statistics and following discussion indicate, the number of camps and reported violations in camps controlled by the Government of BiH and its army are the fewest among the warring factions, irrespective of the ethnic or religious background of the detainees held. The number of reported violations by the Croatian Government, the Croatian Army, and the Croatian Defence Council is larger, particularly against Serbs in Krajina and in eastern and western Slavonia and against Muslims from BiH in Herzegovina. The period of time during which those camps were operated in each of these contexts is relatively limited. The two warring factions identified above are, however, reported to have committed far fewer numbers of violations than those committed by the Serb forces and those working on their behalf, whether in Croatia or BiH. Camps operated by Serbs in BiH are by far where the largest numbers of detainees have been held and where the harshest and largest number of violations occurred.
The information concerning the number of prisoners includes a wide range of estimates. It appears that none of the detaining powers involved in the conflict made a concerted effort to identify and maintain records of the number of individuals they detained. If they have done so, such information was not made available.
The camps reported range in size from small detention and screening centres that temporarily housed a few prisoners, to camps that housed large numbers of prisoners. The duration of their operation varied from days to months. The vast majority of places used to detain prisoners were pre-existing structures, such as penitentiaries, municipal buildings, administrative offices, schools, sports arenas, factories, warehouses, mines, farms and private homes, hotels, restaurants, and apartments. In a very few examples, camps were reported to have been newly constructed for the purpose of detaining prisoners.
Due to a lack of information, it was generally very difficult to determine the command and control in the camps. The information, when available, was usually limited to individual camps at a very immediate and local level. The extent to which superior or central authorities had control in the operation of camps was usually unknown.
Some reports describe a situation whereby camps were maintained and operated by a mix of military personnel, former army officers and soldiers, various paramilitaries, local volunteers, members of civilian police forces, or politicians. There were also many reports of situations where there was movement in and out of camps by visitors, including local civilians, paramilitary forces, and the army, who perpetrated abuses upon the prison population.
Most detainees appeared not to be prisoners of war, but, rather, civilians. POWs and civilian prisoners were detained together, and prisoners from the conflict were sometimes mixed in with the common criminal population of a penitentiary. Often, civilians were arrested and detained for the purpose of collecting prisoners for exchange.
There is little to suggest a legitimate purpose for the internment of so many non-combatant civilians by the various authorities and forces concerned. There is much to suggest that such internment was wholly illegitimate and intended to serve the geopolitical and military objectives of the detaining powers.
The parties to the conflict acknowledged and agreed on a number of occasions to the valid effect of those aspects of international humanitarian law relating to the treatment of prisoners of war, civilians and others detained by the parties to the conflict.
Under the law of armed conflict, prisoners of war are considered to be in the hands of the detaining power. The detaining power, therefore, is responsible for the treatment given prisoners of war irrespective of the individual responsibilities that may exist. The same holds true for the treatment of civilians detained.
It appears that little or no effort was made by any of the detaining powers to provide the judicial or administrative bodies required by law to identify, record, and determine the status of prisoners of war and internees.
Parties to the conflict appear to have considered the detention of those thought to be potentially capable of fighting as a legitimate activity. There are many instances of detention apparently based upon the suspicion of hostile activity against the detaining power.
Prisoners were commonly subjected to the most inhumane treatment imaginable. Mass executions, torture, rape, and other sexual assaults were frequently reported. Those in control of the apprehension and detention of prisoners were often reported to have stolen prisoner belongings. Guards and soldiers frequently humiliated those detained. Sometimes prisoners were placed in dangerous situations and used in military operations, such as mine clearing. There were also reports of reprisal killings carried out upon innocents detained in a number of camps.
The ethno-religious aspects of the conflict appear to have translated directly into prisoners suffering actively adverse distinctions based on nationality, religious belief, and political opinions.
The patterns and violations in the camps appear to differ to some extent, depending on the controlling authority, the purpose of the camp, and the camp commander.
The conditions in most camps were generally described as very poor. The camps commonly lacked sufficient heat, light, food, and water. Lack of hygiene was pervasive. Little or no medical attention was prevalent and a total lack of security for the prisoners was apparent. In fact, it was reported that those in control of camps often allowed drunk soldiers and others access to abuse the prison population.
Wounded and sick prisoners were often maltreated and/or left to suffer, although many wounded and sick prisoners were treated to some extent.
The following section of this summary and analysis is divided by location, and contains various observations relating to certain patterns and commonalities in the detention facilities reported. For a more detailed breakdown of individual regions and camps, see Section II below, which contains a geographical listing and full analyses of the individual detention facilities reported.
The reports reviewed alleged a total of 677 camps within BiH. Among those camps, 333 (49.2 per cent) were alleged to have been controlled by Bosnian Serbs; 83 (12.2 per cent) by Bosnian Muslims; 51 (7.5 per cent), by Croats; 31 (4.6 per cent) by both Croats and Muslims; 5 (.7 per cent), by private parties; and 174 (25.7 per cent) by unidentified forces.
The reports indicate that Bosnian Serbs operated numerous camps where grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and other violations of international humanitarian law, including killing, torture, and rape occurred on a large scale. Those camps were mostly in BiH and predominantly held Bosnian Muslims, but also Bosnian Croats and a small number of Serbs.
The reports indicate that Bosnian Serbs used camps in BiH to facilitate territorial and political control of geographic regions and to expel and eliminate other ethnic and religious populations from that area. In essence, the Bosnian Serb forces, including former Yugoslav National Army (JNA) officers and soldiers, paramilitary units, police forces, civilians, and the political leadership of the Serbs of BiH, apparently with a significant degree of participation by and cooperation with the Serbs and Montenegrins of FRY, incorporated and exploited the detention of civilians as an integral aspect of their campaign of «ethnic cleansing». While armed, uniformed soldiers of the forces opposed to the Serbs were incarcerated in significant numbers, the vast majority of those imprisoned by Serbs in BiH appear to have been civilians.
Groups of camps appear to have been established and operated in clusters in various geographical areas and were frequently part of a network. Prisoners were frequently moved from one facility to another. Different facilities often appeared to have separate purposes, such as mass killing, torture, rape, and exchange of and detention of civilian prisoners.
The Bosnian Serb implementation of practically identical strategies and tactics for the conquest of territories and subsequent detention of non-Serb populations suggest an overall plan devised prior to the conflict and carried out locally. There seems to be a similarity in the structure of camps which might suggest a degree of pre-planning before the war was started. The notion of clusters of camps, triage camps, distribution camps, older persons and women and children held in established minimum security facilities, and men of fighting age held in established maximum security facilities, suggests such a plan. The similarities of the allegations of camp usage also strongly suggests that a plan did exist and was carried out across the board geographically. Reports suggest a common method of initial apprehension and identification of those non-Serbs detained for ultimate disposition (either long-term detention, deportation, or execution). A common plan is also suggested by the implementation of a system whereby prisoners were detained, classified, and subjected to similar types of abuse ( e.g., it was often reported that intellectuals, politicians, police, and the wealthy were regularly tortured and killed in certain camps). There is also a similiarity in the command and control of the camps, whereby there was a mix of civilian, political, JNA, paramilitary, and local Serb reservists and civilians involved in camp operations. With regard to practical aspects of camp operation, large suitable facilities appear to have been selected and prepared, to some extent, in advance. Whether a plan was established by the military, police, or politicians, is something that could not be ascertained.
The method by which the campaign of «ethnic cleansing» was carried out ensured that, comparatively, the most brutal and inhumane treatment of those detained occurred within the geographic arc following the Sava and Drina Rivers of the former Yugoslavia. See examples, camps in Prijedor, Visegrad, Zvornik, Brcko and Foca, and Bijeljina. For, it is within this region of BiH that the Serbs required absolute control in order to establish a separate nation with contiguous borders and an uncompromised geographic link with Serbia and Montenegro. That control required the subjugation, if not the disappearance of the non-Serb populations of the area. In large part, that subjugation and elimination was accomplished by wholesale detention of those populations in various places of detention.
Commonly, Serb forces reduced the opposition of a county area and upon conquest of the territory of that BiH county (opstina) immediately began to round up the non-Serb population. It sometimes occurred that the entire population of a town or village was gathered together so that the Serb and non-Serb populations could be separated and dealt with accordingly. During the rounding-up process, members of the population were frequently tortured, raped, and killed. Sometimes, the local population would be interned in different locations. Other times, after an initial round of apprehension, non-Serbs would be released and weeks later re-apprehended and placed in various camps to be either killed or moved out of the area.
Frequently, the religious, political, civic, professional, and business leaders of the non-Serb population were immediately identified for detention and for the worst abuses. Often on the captors' side, local civil servants, political leaders, and particularly the police, participated or were involved in the rounding-up process. Prisoners were also often forced to surrender their money and valuables to their captors.
It was often reported that men between the ages of 18 and 60 were separated from women, children, and elderly men. Apparently, men between the ages of 18 (or younger) and 60 were considered to be of fighting age, constituting a class of quasi- prisoners of war or perhaps legitimate internees because of their potential for hostility. However, rarely did reports include any information to suggest that those considered capable of fighting had ever actually committed hostile acts or had organized to do so. In fact, many Muslim villagers simply surrendered the weapons they had upon an initial demand by the Serb forces in the region. After that surrender, the villagers were in many cases detained. The reports indicate that in many instances, men between the ages of 18 and 60, were ultimately transferred to heavily guarded larger camps where killings or torture were prevalent.
A large number of Bosnian Serb places of detention appear to have been used as short term detention facilities before transfer or transport of prisoners out of the area.
Smaller camps, in many cases, housed prisoners temporarily until the captors divided the prisoners into groups and transported them to the larger camps. The prisoners were often packed into buses, trains, and lorries, and were subjected to physical and mental abuse. During transport, and upon arrival at their new camps, prisoners were also reported to have been killed at random and denied food, water, and access to toilet facilities. The prisoners were on occasion transported by automobile to camps by locals, or were marched under armed guard.
Detainees were sometimes transported from camps within a given region to camps in another region because of overcrowding, anticipated International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) inspections, visits by the media, exchange of prisoners, and as a result of triage for unlawful purposes.
Very few camps appear to have been actually constructed for the purpose of detaining captured prisoners or interning the civilian population. The vast majority of the sites used for detention were pre-existing facilities. Some of those facilities were modified in order to create more secure camps. For example, electric and barbed-wire fences were sometimes reported to have been installed around a number of buildings.
Bosnian Serbs were also reported to have maintained Muslim «ghettos» in certain towns and sometimes used villages as camps to detain a large group of captives. See examples, Trnopolje camp in Prijedor, Es Naselje in Brcko, and Brezovo Polje in Brcko.
There is little to suggest that captured uniformed combatants were treated with the respect required by the law of armed conflict. Those prisoners who had in fact committed hostile acts against the Serbs were frequently punished. The punishments included severe mental and physical abuse and often execution.
Those women and children detained were also subjected to the worst kinds of abuse, including rape and other sexual assaults. *1 There are reports of many detention facilities in existence for the sole purpose of holding women and girls for rape and sexual entertainment. There are also numerous allegations of rape at camps wherever women and girls were held. Captors reportedly raped female prisoners in front of other prisoners. Those who resisted, were often reportedly killed or otherwise brutalized, often in the presence of others. There were also reports of the sexual abuse of men, as well as castration and mutilation of sex organs.
Elderly persons detained often suffered the same level of abuse as the others. This indicates that the captors spared no group from detention and maltreatment.
There were reports that certain individuals were spared detention and abuse, because of the intervention of influential Serbs in the area or because they were somehow able to bribe their way out of detention. There were also instances of local Serbs risking their own lives to help Muslims and Croats escape detention in various Serb camps in BiH.
There were also reports of Serbs who were detained in Serb- controlled facilities. In those cases, the prisoners had usually refused to participate in the conquest of a region or in the activities of «ethnic cleansing». Those imprisoned Serbs were treated as poorly as the other prisoners.
A large number of the Bosnian Serb-controlled camps appear to have served as screening stations for the purposes of interrogation and decisions as to how individual prisoners would be disposed of. Interrogation almost always consisted of questions relating to military and strategic information (including the location and possession of weapons), political affiliation, and political belief. Captors also interrogated detainees concerning the personal wealth and family connections of other detainees. Interrogations were commonly accompanied by brutal conduct and humiliation and, in some cases, by torture and killing. Confessions were often forcibly extracted from prisoners and used as a reason for their detention and treatment. The forced confessions on many occasions described some sort of offence or hostile act.
Reports indicate that upon arrival at the larger camps, prisoners were regularly subjected to random beatings. Reprisals appear to have been carried out against the prisoner population for Bosnian Serb setbacks in battle. Such reprisal activities included beatings, severe torture and killings. Apparently, one motivation for the punishment of inmates was retribution for supposed Serb casualties suffered in battle.
The type and amount of torture, abuse and maltreatment visited upon the prisoners detained in Bosnian Serb camps was of a great magnitude. Not only were prisoners physically abused, but they were also commonly humiliated, degraded, and forced to abuse one another. In several instances, prisoners were reported to have been forced to inflict injury upon each other, sometimes as entertainment for the guards. Humiliation often involved behaviour contradictory to the prisoners' religious background. Prisoners were also subjected to mental abuse and humiliation, including barrages of ethnic slurs.
Several Bosnian Serb controlled camps served as places of mass and continuous killing and execution by various means. Such camps also maintained large populations of prisoners for considerable periods of time. Other camps housed large numbers of prisoners but were not the site of a great number of killings.
At the larger camps, prisoners were reported to have been killed on a daily basis. In some cases, their bodies were left to rot on the camp grounds, or were loaded by prisoners and hauled away by truck to various destinations. The bodies were also reportedly disposed of in mass graves abutting the camps and thrown into rivers, lakes, ravines, mine shafts and mining pits, and other local venues. *2 Bodies were also reported to have been incinerated or dismembered.
Prisoners who were targeted for torture or death at the larger camps often included prominent members of the community who were wealthy, educated or politically influential. Guards often were reported to have information identifying which prisoners fell into those categories.
The conditions in the places of detention were almost uniformly harsh. There was consistently a lack of food, insufficient access to toilets and beatings accompanying toilet- use, little drinkable water supply, an absence of soap and infrequent opportunities to bathe or change clothes, inadequate bedding, and often little protection from the natural elements.
Prisoners in some camps were reported to have suffered from dysentery and lice epidemics. Medical attention was, for the most part, non-existent at the camps. In some instances, inmates with medical training, treated fellow prisoners. However, due to an absence of supplies and facilities, such treatment was very primitive.
In the larger camps, male prisoners were often reported to be packed tightly into the detention facilities, so that they had no room to lie down or sit, or sometimes even to breathe. The prisoners were in many cases forced to urinate and defecate in containers and on the floors of the rooms in which they were accommodated.
Prisoners were often reported to have been subjected to abuse during meals, and, at best, were given one meal per day consisting of small portions of soup or bread. In some reported instances where food was delivered to a camp by the ICRC, the food was not distributed to prisoners, but was instead diverted to Bosnian Serb guards or forces.
There appears to have existed a certain degree of acknowledgement by Bosnian Serb authorities that camps were maintained. The camps appear to have been maintained and operated by a mix of former JNA officers and soldiers, Bosnian Serb Army personnel, various Serb paramilitaries, local volunteer Serbs, local impressed Serbs, members of the various Serb police forces and at least some Montenegrins. There also exists information that civilian Serb politicians were intimately involved with the operation of such places of detention.
Bosnian Serb authorities often expressed the belief that the above-described detention facilities were legitimate. The reasons stated included the necessity of protecting civilians from the dangers of combat, interning those who threatened the security of the detaining forces and detaining those responsible for criminal activity.
It is interesting to note that in at least one Serb-run camp, Batkovic, Bijeljina, the local Serb population was reported to have become aware of the situation inside the camp and demanded that the prisoners there be treated better. Conditions for the prisoners were reported to have subsequently improved.
The BiH Government and Muslim forces and Bosnian Croat forces were also reported to have detained thousands of soldiers and civilians in BiH. At one point, because of an alliance between the two parties, they both imprisoned Serbs. A significant number of camps were reported to have been operated jointly by Croat and BiH forces. After that alliance disintegrated, both sides were reported to have imprisoned each others' soldiers captured in battle, and large numbers of civilians of their opponents' ethnicity.
There are indications that BiH forces and Bosnian Croats to some extent reacted to the method of warfare and «ethnic cleansing» initiated by Bosnian Serbs by taking up similar methods of warfare. This included the indiscriminate detention of civilians, rather than maintaining methods of behaviour required by the international law of armed conflict. There seemed to be elements of revenge for past imprisonment of Muslim and Croat civilians. Also, the idea existed, perhaps, that if one held a significant number of the «enemy» prisoner, the «enemy» would be more likely to treat its own prisoners well so as to avoid the impulse for reprisals by the other side.
Both BiH forces and Bosnian Croats are reported to have interned civilians for the purpose of exchange for members of their own forces and populations held by the other two parties to the conflict. There also seems to be rather isolated attempts at smaller scale «ethnic cleansing».
The BiH and Muslim forces were reported to have imprisoned a number of individuals who resisted military service. Some of those persons were tried and convicted of criminal offences, and others were sent to the front to dig trenches. The BiH authorities also arrested people for possession of weapons. In Kladanj, Serbs were said to be imprisoned for the purpose of protecting them against retaliation by the local Muslim population. In Zenica, the BiH captors reportedly established a tribunal to determine the status of those imprisoned as either military or civilian.
The treatment of prisoners in Bosnian Muslim run camps was in some cases reported to be brutal and degrading. That treatment was often reported to include violent interrogations and beatings. Reports of forced same-sex sexual acts between prisoners also exist. Drunk guards were reported to have abused detainees, and civilians were allowed access into camps to beat and harass prisoners. Personal vendettas were also allowed to be consummated against prisoners of war. The killing of prisoners was not uncommon. There were also reports the Bosnian Muslim forces used prisoners as human shields.
There were reports of Bosnian Muslim-run brothels and rape camps. A number of reports also alleged the operation of private prisons controlled by various Bosnian Muslim forces or individuals. The BiH Government, in fact, acknowledged the existence of such Muslim private prisons and officially deplored them.
Reported conditions at most BiH and Muslim camps, were generally described as being no better than the vast majority of other places of detention in the former Yugoslavia.
In Bihac, BiH forces were reported to have imprisoned captured soldiers and supporters of leader Fikret Abdic. Likewise, the forces of Fikret Abdic reportedly maintained a camp to hold captured BiH forces and civilians deemed in opposition to Abdic's authority.
Bosnian Croat forces were also reported to have maintained camps in areas under their control imprisoning both Bosnian Muslims and Serbs. While there is at least one report of a «death camp» run by Bosnian Croats in Orasje, killing of prisoners, though not uncommon, was on a scale much lower than that apparently perpetrated by the Bosnian Serbs.
The Bosnian Croat camps were reported to have been maintained by both military and paramilitary forces. The forces of the Republic of Croatia and Bosnian Croat forces apparently cooperated in the detention and transfer of prisoners.
The Bosnian Croats were said to have apprehended a significant numbers of individuals to hold for the purpose of prisoner exchanges. Other prisoners were supposedly held to protect them from the dangers of combat. Men were also imprisoned who were considered to be of fighting age. In addition, there appeared to be some attempts to expel non-Croat populations from some areas, such as in Vitez. Some persons there were arrested for so-called security reasons and for possession of weapons.
In at least one site, the Central Mostar Prison, it was reported that Croats divided their prisoners into five categories: Serb combatants; enemy collaborators; prisoners held for purposes of exchange; civilians accused of common crimes; and Croatian soldiers serving time for disciplinary infractions.
Bosnian Croat captors reportedly maltreated a significant portion of those detained. Allegations of beatings, rape, and theft of prisoners' personal belongings were rather common. The prisoners were also reported to have been used as human shields. The litany of abuses perpetrated in those camps was much like the abuses perpetrated in the other camps in the former Yugoslavia.
Of the reports of 677 camps alleged in BiH, 381 were corroborated (i.e., reported by a neutral source or multiple neutral sources) and 296 were uncorroborated (i.e., reported either by multiple non-neutral sources, or not corroborated by a neutral source). The following is a numerical breakdown of the camps reported to have existed in BiH:
| Banja Luka | Total camps: 9 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 7 | 2 | |
| Bihac | Total camps: 14 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | 2 | |
| Muslims | 4 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 5 | ||
| Bijeljina | Total camps: 12 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 7 | 1 | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | 1 | |
| Bileca | Total camps: 9 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 6 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Bosanska Dubica | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 4 | ||
| Bosanska Gradiska | Total camps: 6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 5 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Bosanska Krupa | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | 5 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Bosanski Brod | Total camps: 8 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Croats | 1 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 3 | 1 | |
| Bosanski Novi | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 5 | 1 | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Bosanski Petrovac | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Bosanski Samac | Total camps: 6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 4 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Bratunac | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Brcko | Total camps: 34 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 26 | 4 | |
| Unknown | 2 | 2 | |
| Breza | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 3 | ||
| Bugojno | Total camps: 12 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 3 | 1 | |
| Croats/Muslims | 1 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 2 | 3 | |
| Busovaca | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Cajnice | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 3 | 1 | |
| Capljina | Total camps: 6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 3 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 1 | 1 | |
| Cazin | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Celinac | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 3 | 1 | |
| Citluk | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Derventa | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | 2 | |
| Doboj | Total camps: 13 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 8 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 4 | ||
| Donji Vakuf | Total camps: 5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 3 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Foca | Total camps: 15 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 7 | 5 | |
| Unknown | 1 | 2 | |
| Fojnica | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | 1 | |
| Gacko | Total camps: 15 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 10 | 3 | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Glamoc | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs/Montenegrins | 1 | ||
| Gorazde | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 3 | ||
| Gornji Vakuf | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Gradacac | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | 3 | |
| Grude | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats/Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Han Pijesak | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Jablanica | Total camps: 5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 2 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Jajce | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Kakanj | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Kalesija | Total camps: 5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | 2 | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Kalinovik | Total camps: 5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Kiseljak | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 4 | 1 | |
| Kladanj | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats/Muslims | 1 | ||
| Kljuc | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 3 | 1 | |
| Konjic | Total camps: 29 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 6 | 5 | |
| Croats/Muslims | 4 | 12 | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Kotor Varos | Total camps: 9 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | 7 | |
| Kressevo | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 3 | ||
| Kupres | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Laktasi | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Listica | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats/Muslims | 1 | ||
| Livno | Total camps: 10 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Croats | 3 | ||
| Unknown | 3 | 3 | |
| Ljubinje | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Ljubuski | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Croats | 1 | 1 | |
| Lopare | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Lukavac | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Maglaj | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Modrica | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | 2 | |
| Mostar | Total camps: 15 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | ||
| Muslims | 2 | 1 | |
| Croats | 5 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 1 | 3 | |
| Mrkonjic Grad | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Nevesinje | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Odzak | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 2 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Olovo | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Orasje | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Croats | 1 | 1 | |
| Posusje | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Prijedor | Total camps: 36 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 28 | 8 | |
| Prnjavor | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Prozor | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 3 | 3 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Rogatica | Total camps: 12 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 3 | 8 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Rudo | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Sanski Most | Total camps: 10 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 8 | 2 | |
| Sarajevo | Total camps: 91 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 7 | 20 | |
| Muslims | 11 | 18 | |
| Croats | 1 | 1 | |
| Croats/Muslims | 7 | ||
| Unknown | 11 | 13 | |
| Private | 2 | ||
| Sekovici | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 3 | ||
| Sipovo | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | ||
| Skender Vakuf | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Sokolac | Total camps: 8 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 3 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | 4 | |
| Srebrenica | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Stolac | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | 3 | |
| Tesanj | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Teslic | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | 3 | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Titov Drvar | Total camps: 6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 3 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Tomislavgrad | Total camps: 9 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 3 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 3 | 1 | |
| Travnik | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | 2 | |
| Trebinje | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Tuzla | Total camps: 15 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 3 | ||
| Croats/Muslims | 1 | ||
| Private | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 5 | 5 | |
| Ugljevik | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | ||
| Vares | Total camps: 5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Croats | 2 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Velika Kladusa | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Visegrad | Total camps: 21 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | 17 | |
| Private | 2 | ||
| Visoko | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 2 | 3 | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Vitez | Total camps: 8 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Croats | 2 | ||
| Unknown | 5 | ||
| Vlasenica | Total camps: 12 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 4 | 3 | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 4 | ||
| Zenica | Total camps: 16 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 2 | ||
| Croats/Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 5 | 8 | |
| Zepce | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 2 | ||
| Zvornik | Total camps: 28 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 23 | 3 | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
The reports reviewed alleged a total of 201 camps within Croatia. Among those camps, 77 (38.3 per cent) were alleged to have been controlled by Bosnian Serbs; 70 (34.8 per cent) by Croats; 1 (.5 per cent) by Bosnian Muslims; 1 (.5 per cent) by both Croats and Muslims; 1 (.5 per cent) by Slovenians; 51 (25.4 per cent) by unidentified forces.
As armed conflict erupted between Croatians and Serbs in Croatia, the detention of combatants and civilians reached a large scale. Ultimately, at least several thousand Croatians and Serbs had been imprisoned in Croatia from the end of 1991 to the present.
Most of the places of detention in Croatia were maintained by Croatians or Serbs. There are, however, a significant number of reported detention facilities where it was unclear who maintained control.
The reports indicate that Croatian forces captured and detained both Serb combatants and Serb civilians. As the conflict progressed, it appears that the Croatians began to capture and detain Serb civilians for the purpose of later exchanging them for Croats held prisoner.
Some cooperation appeared evident between the Croats of the Republic of Croatia and the Croats of the Republic of BiH. At one point, at least, Bosnian Croat forces were apparently able to transfer prisoners from the Bosanski Brod and Odzak areas of BiH to Slavonski Brod in Croatia. Some of those prisoners were later transferred back to places of detention in the territory of BiH. Others were apparently transferred to places of detention elsewhere in Croatia.
The Croats appear to have used numerous sites to detain and interrogate Serbs for short periods of time and maintained only a few places for long term detention.
It was reported that the Croatian camps were often divided into three blocks. The first block consisted of former JNA members who surrendered without a struggle. The second block consisted of elderly persons and the third block was reported to have consisted of military police, volunteers, and individuals identified by the Croats as «Cetniks».
In Pakrac, Croats were alleged to have maintained two «death camps» for the elimination of captured Serbs. This was the only allegation of Croats operating a place of detention for the purpose of large-scale execution. However, there were numerous allegations of Croatian mistreatment of prisoners in other places of detention, as well as numerous allegations of killings.
The reported maltreatment inflicted upon prisoners in Croat- controlled detention facilities consisted mainly of indiscriminate beatings, some rapes, public humiliation, and forced appearance on television. Electric shock and forced same- sex sexual acts were also alleged as common methods of torture and abuse.
Those who were reported to have controlled and maintained the Croatian places of detention were the Croatian armed forces, local police forces and some paramilitary groups.
Camp conditions were generally poor. However, in at least one instance at Gospic Prison, it was reported that Croatian captors attempted to improve conditions when notified of an ICRC visit.
There were also Serb controlled places of detention in Croatia which were reported to have consisted mainly of pre- existing facilities. However, the Serbs apparently found it necessary to erect a few camps in order to effectively detain their captives. The Serb camps in Croatia held both civilians and prisoners of war.
Prior to the war in BiH, Serb captors in Croatia transferred some prisoners to the Manjaca camp in Banja Luka, Bosnia. Later, after fighting started in BiH, Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats were reported to have been held at Serb camps in Croatia.
Those reportedly responsible for the operation and maintenance of Serb-controlled camps in Croatia were a mixture of JNA officers and soldiers, SAO Krajina police forces, Serb Territorial Defence units and various paramilitary forces.
Maltreatment of prisoners was commonly attributed to the Serb controlled camps in Croatia. Camp commanders appear to have been well aware of the abuse that took place and often allowed Serb civilians and paramilitaries access to the prisoners in order to abuse them. In at least one case, Bosnian Serbs reportedly travelled to Knin, Croatia to participate in the abuse of Bosnian Croats and Muslims held there.
There are a number of reports that the guards in Serb camps consumed drugs and alcohol and in an intoxicated state subjected prisoners to different types of maltreatment.
As with other detaining powers, the Serbs in Croatia were reported to have attempted at times to deceive visitors interested in the condition of camps. For example, places of detention and the prisoners themselves were cleaned up before a visit and prisoners who appeared to be in satisfactory condition were shown off, whereas those who showed physical signs of maltreatment were hidden.
There were also reports of prisoners coerced to appear on Belgrade television to describe their supposed offences against Serbs.
Of the reports of 201 camps alleged in Croatia, 100 were corroborated (i.e., reported by a neutral source or multiple neutral sources) and 101 were uncorroborated (i.e., reported either by multiple non-neutral sources, or not corroborated by a neutral source). The following is a numerical breakdown of the camps reported to have existed in Croatia:
| Beli Manastir | Total camps: 6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 4 | 1 | |
| Benkovac | Total camps: 5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 5 | ||
| Bjelovar | Total camps: 6 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 3 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Daruvar | Total camps: 8 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | ||
| Croats | 4 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | 1 | |
| Djakovo | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Drnis | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Dubrovnik | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Dvor | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Glina | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Gospic | Total camps: 5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Croats | 2 | 2 | |
| Gracac | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Grubisno Polje | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Imotski | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Ivanec | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Karlovac | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 2 | ||
| Knin | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 4 | 3 | |
| Korenica | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Kostajnica | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | 1 | |
| Kutina | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Metkovic | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Nasice | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Nova Gradiska | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | 1 | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Novska | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Ogulin | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | ||
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Osijek | Total camps: 14 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 2 | 4 | |
| Croats | 2 | 3 | |
| Unknown | 3 | ||
| Otocac | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Pakrac | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | 2 | |
| Croats | 1 | 2 | |
| Slovenians | 1 | ||
| Petrinja | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Podravska Slatina | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Pula | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Rijeka | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 2 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Sibenik | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Muslims | 1 | ||
| Croats | 2 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 2 | 1 | |
| Sinj | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Sisak | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 3 | ||
| Slavonska Pozega | Total camps: 5 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 2 | 2 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Slavonski Brod | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | 2 | |
| Croats/Muslims | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 3 | ||
| Slunj | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Split | Total camps: 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 3 | ||
| Vinkovci | Total camps: 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Varazdin | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Vojnic | Total camps: 3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Vrbovec | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Vrginmost | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 1 | ||
| Vukovar | Total camps: 44 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs | 7 | 27 | |
| Croats | 9 | ||
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Zadar | Total camps: 7 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 3 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 3 | ||
| Zagreb | Total camps: 8 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Croats | 2 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 5 | ||
The reports reviewed alleged a total of 71 camps within FRY. Among those camps, 56 (78.9 per cent) were alleged to have been controlled by Bosnian Serbs or forces of FRY; and 15 (21.1 per cent) by unidentified forces.
A combination of JNA personnel, police forces and Serb paramilitaries, reportedly operated and maintained the camps in FRY.
A significant number of Croats, probably at least several thousand, were reported to have been captured by Serb forces in Croatia and transferred to what is now known as FRY. The majority of those imprisoned in various prisons and camps in FRY were apparently captured at the battle of Vukovar in approximately November 1991.
Those captured were a mix of soldiers and civilians. Apparently, the Serbs first regarded their Croat prisoners as insurgents and rebels and later, as the independence of Croatia was recognized, to a certain extent regarded their captives as prisoners of war. It was also reported that when the Republic of Croatia was internationally recognized, Croat prisoners in FRY were severely beaten as a result.
It was reported that Serb authorities tried and convicted a number of Croat prisoners for various offences. Those prisoners were often transferred to other detention facilities. Serbs also commonly transferred other prisoners between detention centres.
Treatment of prisoners at the FRY camps was commonly reported as very poor. Violent interrogation, and reports of beatings and sadistic treatment of prisoners were common. For example, it was reported that prisoners were forced to participate in various «games», the rules of which inevitably led to the abuse of the participants. It appeared that Serb authorities in FRY transported local Vukovar Serbs to FRY in order to identify certain prisoners and participate in their maltreatment. Personal vendettas were allowed to occur. Drunk guards were also reported to have inflicted great harm upon those imprisoned. There were also reports of women who were held and exploited for sexual purposes.
Living conditions for the prisoners were also reported as very poor. Common complaints included a lack of food, insufficient access to toilet facilities, and an inadequate opportunity to bathe and change clothes. Facilities were often cold and damp, and inmates were often left without sufficient bedding. The wounded and sick often suffered without adequate medical care.
It appears that the majority of Croat prisoners in FRY were exchanged by late summer of 1992.
It was also reported that prisoners captured in BiH were transported to camps in FRY. A number of the Bosnian Muslims held in such camps were reportedly captured around Visegrad and Bosanski Samac.
A number of Bosnian refugees in Montenegro, from Foca, were reportedly arrested by FRY police forces, held in various prisons, and later turned over to Serbs maintaining camps in Foca where they were then imprisoned. It was also reported that a significant number of Muslim prisoners held in Bileca, were transferred to a camp in Subotica.
Upon investigation by third party teams, certain alleged concentration camps for Muslims in FRY were found to be refugee centres where living conditions were poor.
Of the reports of the 71 camps alleged in FRY, 42 were corroborated (i.e., reported by a neutral source or multiple neutral sources), and 29 were uncorroborated (i.e., reported either by multiple non-neutral sources, or not corroborated by a neutral source). The following is a numerical breakdown of the camps reported to have existed in FRY:
| Kosovo | Total camps: 1 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs/FRY | 1 | ||
| Montenegro | Total camps: 9 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs/FRY | 5 | 1 | |
| Unknown | 1 | 2 | |
| Serbia | Total camps: 27 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs/FRY | 13 | 13 | |
| Unknown | 1 | ||
| Vojvodina | Total camps: 25 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Serbs/FRY | 10 | 13 | |
| Unknown | 2 | ||
| Unidentified Locations in FRY | Total camps: 9 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | |
| Unknown | 9 | ||
The reports reviewed alleged a total of seven camps within Slovenia. Among those camps, three (42.9 per cent) were alleged to have been controlled by Slovenian forces and four (57.1 per cent) by unidentified forces.
As the various conflicts in the former Yugoslavia erupted and unfolded, detention of soldiers and civilians reportedly became commonplace. In June and July 1991, Slovenian forces reportedly captured and imprisoned a few hundred soldiers of the JNA and some civilian personnel of SFRY, including internal police, for a short period of time after Slovenia declared its independence on 25 June 1991.
The Slovenes reportedly held the prisoners in various places including mining facilities and a penitentiary. The captors allegedly subjected the prisoners to beatings, verbal humiliations, and threats. Since the prisoners' release and the subsequent conflicts in Croatia and BiH, there were no reports concerning detention in Slovenia.
Of the reports of the seven camps alleged in Slovenia, six were corroborated (i.e., reported by a neutral source or multiple neutral sources) and one was uncorroborated (i.e., reported either by multiple non-neutral sources, or not corroborated by a neutral source). The following is a numerical breakdown of the camps reported to have existed in Slovenia:
| Slovenia | Total camps: 7 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Run by | Corroborated | Uncorroborated | ||
| Slovenians | 2 | 1 | ||
| Unknown | 4 | |||
Banja Luka County is in the north-west quarter of BiH. According to the 1991 census, it had a population of 195,139. Bosnian Serbs comprised the majority at 54.8 per cent, 14.9 per cent were Bosnian Croat, 14.6 per cent were Bosnian Muslim, 12 per cent described themselves as «Yugoslavs», and the remaining 3.7 per cent were classified as «others».
Manjaca camp: The existence of this detention facility as well as the alleged number of individuals hereby detained has been corroborated by multiple sources, among them: the ICRC, the US Department of State and the UK Defence Debriefing Team.
Location: According to reports, the Manjaca camp was located approximately 25 kilometres south of the city of Banja Luka. Manjaca is the name of a mountain and there is no village by that name. *3 The camp was reportedly located in a mountainous area controlled by Serbian forces, on or near an unidentified former JNA base which had been a farm and had later been used as a training facility. *4 Tanks, rockets and other military equipment were reported just below the site. *5
Description of the Manjaca camp: Reports describe the Manjaca facility as consisting of one section of a large farm which was surrounded by a fence and used as the camp. *6 An ex- prisoner at the camp provided a diagram of the grounds and stated that the camp was located in a former JNA training area. He added that the camp itself was a former military cattle farm, a section of which had been fenced off for use as the camp. *7
The camp's perimeter is described as forming an area of approximately 240 by 260 metres. *8 According to reports, the Manjaca camp was surrounded by a single fence and divided into two sections by a central fence. *9 These fences were reported as being between two and three metres high. *10 An ex-prisoner who was transferred to the camp in 1992 reported that while the camp was divided into two separate sections, one was not used until August 1992. *11
There were reportedly three detention buildings in each section of the camp *12 which were described as unheated, former livestock stables arranged in two rows of three. *13 These structures appeared to be more or less the same size which was estimated in different reports as 80 by 12 metres, *14 60 by 18 metres, *15 and 70 by 20 metres. *16 Each of the six structures reportedly had six stalls, three on each side of a corridor. *17
Several reports estimate that each of the main structures housed between 600 and 700 prisoners. *18 One report stated that between 600 and 650 prisoners were accommodated internally in each structure in three rows of 200. *19 Another report stated that detainees occupied a space, approximately 6.5 feet by 30 inches, in six long rows of approximately 80 persons per row. It was also reported that there was a walkway, approximately two feet wide between the rows and that the estimated total occupancy per stable was 500 persons. *20
One subject reported that each of the camp's two sections had a separate entrance with a gate guarded by soldiers. *21 Another subject described two gates into the camp, one on the north-western, and another on the south-western side of the camp. *22 Reports also describe an unknown number of guard dogs tied to a post near the north-western gate *23 and patrolling the periphery of the camp's centre. *24
According to the reports reviewed, mines were laid between the two fences surrounding and separating the sections of the camp. *25 One subject described a one-metre-wide strip of mined earth which separated the two rows of stables and encircled the entire camp. *26 Another subject described a three metre mined section of earth, running from one end of the camp to the other, effectively dividing the camp structures into two groups. According to the subject, an unidentified male prisoner was killed by an explosion when he ventured too close to the centre mine strip. *27 It was also reported that mines had been placed in a one metre wide strip of earth immediately inside the fence separated from the camp's interior by a single strand of wire suspended one metre off of the ground. *28
One subject reported that the interior fence had signs posted to warn of the minefield. *29
Reports also describe two smaller sheds which served as kitchens in each of the prison sections. *30 One report describes high roofed shelters which were used as the food preparation and serving and eating area. *31 Another report said that one of the camp's sections had a small building used for storing food taken from relief organizations and for torturing inmates. *32
Reports describe a camp building where prisoners were taken for torture, calling it the Samica(meaning single cell). *33 One subject reports that the Samica was located approximately 50 metres from the barn where he was held. *34 Another subject similarly reported that on 28 August 1992, he witnessed prisoners being beaten in an area that was used for solitary confinement of prisoners, about 100 metres from the barn. *35
The area outside the camp compound: One subject described the area to the east of the fenced in compound as containing another seven buildings which were used by the camp administration. Each of those buildings were reported to be approximately 12 metres by 50 metres in size. According to the description, the buildings on the outside of the camp included a doctor's office and a structure utilized by Serbian police interrogators. *36 Three of the buildings on the outside of the camp were reportedly used as housing for the camp's guards. *37 One of the buildings was reportedly occupied day and night by approximately 10 soldiers from a nearby tank unit, which one source believed was a security reinforcement. *38 One subject reported that there was also a building which was used for food storage and as a medical clinic for prisoners and guards. *39
Another report describes buildings as being located in the western section outside the camp, including a hospital, sleeping accommodations for the guard force, a large administration building, and a gatehouse and checkpoint at the entrance to the fenced area. *40
One former prisoner said that 20 soldiers/camp guards were permanently quartered in a building called the «Krug» (circle), located outside the camp compound. The subject said that the same building contained a kitchen and a canteen where the guards ate three times a day. Two female cooks from Banja Luka reportedly cooked for the guards and two prisoners were reportedly detailed daily to clean their quarters and assist in the kitchen. *41
Guards were reportedly posted outside the fence surrounding the camp. *42 Reports also describe bunkers immediately outside the camp's perimeter. One subject described the bunkers as having wooden walls with one metre high earthen mounds containing openings to accommodate small arms. Another subject described several ground level bunkers. *43 Manned watchtowers were also reported in the area outside the camp. *44 One subject described four guardhouses inside and outside the camp. One of these guardhouses was said to be a 10 metre high watchtower. *45
Number of prisoners: Reports indicate that during its peak operation period, the Manjaca camp held approximately 3,700 prisoners. The ICRC reported that from mid-July 1992, approximately 3,600 persons were detained at the Manjaca camp and had been regularly visited and registered. *46 The ICRC specifically reported in mid-August 1992 that there were 3,737 prisoners visited at Manjaca on 14-16 July 1992, 28 July 1992, and 12-14 August 1992. *47 A CSCE Mission to the Manjaca camp reported that on 30 August 1992, there were 3,640 prisoners at the facility. *48
Other reports estimate a higher number of prisoners at Manjaca. Some sources state that the camp held approximately 4,000 Bosnian Muslim males. *49 One subject who was transferred to the camp from Omarska camp in Prijedor, estimated that the camp contained about 5,500 prisoners. *50 Another report, citing estimates by refugees from the Kozarac area, claimed the number of prisoners at Manjaca at 8,000. *51
Reports indicate that prior to mid-June 1992, the Manjaca camp had a lower prisoner population, which rose dramatically in early-August 1992. It was also reported that in order to accommodate the influx of prisoners from Omarska camp in Prijedor and other detention facilities in August 1992, a second compound of the Manjaca camp was opened. One subject estimated that when he arrived at Manjaca in mid-June, the camp had a population of 1,700 male prisoners, and that on 23 August 1992, the camp held 4,500 prisoners. *52 Another subject who was detained at the camp in 1992 stated that prior to August 1992, the camp held a total of 1,759 prisoners and that after August, and the opening of the second compound, an additional 1,710 prisoners were brought in. *53
Sex and age of the prisoners: Most reports indicate that the camp contained male prisoners of all ages but mostly between the ages of 18 and 60. *54 However, there are allegations that in the early spring of 1992, a small number of women were held at the camp and raped.
Ethnicity of prisoners: Manjaca's prison population was in most reports described as predominantly Bosnian Muslim and Croatian. Some subjects estimated the prisoner population at Manjaca at approximately 80 per cent Bosnian Muslim and 20 per cent Croatian. *55 One report estimated the camp's population at 96.4 per cent Muslim, 3.4 per cent Croatian and .01 per cent Serbian. *56
At one point, several Serbians from north-western Bosnia were reportedly detained at the camp for several days because they refused to go to the war front. Each of the men was reportedly older then 45 years of age. The men reportedly slept in a separate room but received the same food as the other inmates. *57
Status of prisoners: Reports indicate that the majority of the prisoners at the Manjaca camp were civilians. CSCE mission member John Zerolis, a U.S. Foreign Service officer assigned to the US Embassy in Zagreb, inspected the Manjaca camp and reported that he observed several thousand prisoners, none of whom were wearing any type of uniform. He stated that he was told by the prisoners that they were non-combatants and that they had been arrested from their homes. *58 The CSCE Mission further reported that the vast majority of the Manjaca's prisoners claimed to be civilians or were arrested at their homes for no apparent reason except as an integral part of «ethnic cleansing» operations. *59 One subject who was held at the camp said that Manjaca was not a POW camp as claimed by Serbian authorities and that an estimated 95 per cent of the prisoners there were civilians. *60
According to a report of the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights,
«the administrators of this [Manjaca] facility who are officials of the army of the Bosnian Serbs, maintain that the prisoners are prisoners of war. However, other observers consider that most of them probably never bore arms, and were detained simply because their age and Muslim ethnic origin made them potential combatants in the eyes of the Serbian authorities.» *61
The leader of Merhamet, the Muslim charitable organization in Banja Luka, reportedly stated that most prisoners at Manjaca had no connection with the military clashes. *62
One unidentified subject who was transferred to Manjaca from another detention facility reported that he saw several Imams at the camp. He did not know their names but said that they were from Prijedor and Kozarac. *63
Organization of prisoners: Reports indicate that Manjaca's prisoner housing was allocated according to place of prisoner origin. For example, an ex-prisoner stated that prisoners were assigned to buildings by region (Doboj, Grapska; Kljuc; Prijedor; and Sanski Most). He said that he was housed in the building designated for all those from his north-west BiH municipality. *64 Another ex-prisoner stated that one side of the camp was filled with men from Kljuc, Sanski Most and Prijedor. He said that there was one stable in his part of the camp which was filled with men from Sana (i.e. Sanski Most), and that another contained prisoners from the Kozarac and Prijedor area. *65 A third ex-prisoner reported that he was in a section of the camp with 186 prisoners who had been accused of possessing arms and 50 others who did not have documents and were put in with that group. He said that most of the people in his area of detention were from Sanski Most. *66
According to one report, there were a number of Muslim prisoners who were responsible for order and smooth operation of the camp. The prisoners called them the «camp commanders». They reportedly slept together with the other prisoners on the concrete floor and were not permitted to leave the camp. Their function was reportedly to maintain a liaison with the administration office and with the medical office, to supervise the Bosnian cooks and the «trustees», *67 and to present any problems to the camp commander. It was also alleged that these individuals cooperated with the Serbs and caused the death of at least one Bosnian Muslim prisoner. *68
Prison ledger: An ex-prisoner stated that a prison ledger contained the names of every prisoner and the various categories to which he was assigned. Specifically, the subject reported that the prisoners' disposition was noted in the last column of the ledger and that if this was written in pen, as opposed to pencil, it was irrevocable. The subject said that those who had «VIZ» (Military Investigation Centre) written in pen after their name always disappeared. *69
Dates of operation/camp opening: According to reports, the Manjaca camp was first used as a prisoner of war camp in the summer and autumn of 1991. Croatian soldiers were reportedly held there during the war. However, since the early spring (April or May) of 1992, the same facility was reportedly used to hold both Croat and Muslim prisoners and it was believed that most of those individuals were civilians. *70 According to reports, Manjaca's prisoner population rose dramatically in early August, 1992, when an estimated 1,200 to 1,800 prisoners were transferred there as a result of the Omarska camp's closure.
Visits to Manjaca by outside organizations: From mid-July 1992 until its closure in December 1992, Manjaca was closely monitored by the ICRC and other organizations. As a result, it is possible to get a fairly clear picture of the camp's conditions and the number of prisoners held there during that time.
ICRC monitoring of the Manjaca camp: the ICRC reported that about 3,600 persons detained at Manjaca had been regularly visited, registered, protected, and assisted by the ICRC from mid- July 1992. *71 However, the ICRC noted that it was refused access to Manjaca and Trnopolje from 18 to 26 August 1992. *72
Reports indicate that after the ICRC's first visit on 14 July, Manjaca's conditions improved, and there was more food and fewer beatings at the camp. *73 However, one ex-prisoner said that much of the food was diverted there from ICRC deliveries. He added that a half- hour before each visit, a senior guard would inform the Manjaca prisoners of the pending visit and state that if the prisoners complained about conditions, they would be punished. *74 Another ex-prisoner stated that prior to a 13 August 1992 ICRC visit to the camp, prisoners were instructed to tell the ICRC that they were treated well. The ex-prisoner noted that some prisoners did manage to tell the representatives about ill-treatment, despite the fact that each ICRC representative was accompanied by two Serb soldiers. *75
One ex-prisoner who had been transferred to Manjaca from another detention facility said that food and conditions improved considerably at Manjaca after the ICRC visit. He said that winter clothing and boots were also issued as the weather turned cold and the first snow arrived in November. He said that the ICRC was present everyday between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.. He also said that the ICRC visited on Tuesdays and came with search lists. *76
Amnesty International reported that ex-prisoners stated that beating ceased for the first visit of the ICRC to the camp in mid- July, but that prisoners were systematically beaten the day after the departure of the delegation. *77 Helsinki Watch quoted an ex- prisoner who had been detained at the camp from 6 August to 1 September 1992 as saying that after the ICRC visit in mid-July, conditions in the camp improved but that beatings continued. *78
Sources also reported that although the camp was under ICRC supervision during the day, the Serbs beat the prisoners at night when the ICRC workers left. It was also reported that on one occasion trucks arrived in the middle of the night and took away 300 prisoners who were later replaced by 300 new inmates so the ICRC would not become suspicious. *79
The ICRC reported that it conducted the following activities at the camp from 14 July 1992 to 18 December 1992: *80
Visits to Manjaca by other organizations and individuals: In addition to the ICRC, other organizations and individuals visited and monitored the Manjaca camp.
On 19 July 1992 (on the occasion of the first ICRC inspection), one reporter was said to have made the first western press visit to Manjaca. The reporter said that he was unable to enter the camp but that eight interviewees were marched in formation into a small plaza near the camp entrance. He described the prisoners as wearing prison uniforms and appearing pale, weary, and under duress. When interviewed in the presence of army guards, the prisoners expressed little criticism for their captors and made only a few indications of mistreatment. The reporter said that during that visit he was told by the deputy commander of the Bosnian Serbian Army's Krajina corps at his nearby headquarters that: «We are concealing nothing». However, the reporter noted that former prisoners interviewed away from the camp described a regime where beatings were routine. *83
A chapter of Caritas from Banja Luka reportedly visited the Manjaca camp on approximately 17 August 1992. Thereafter, other relief agencies visited. One ex-prisoner said that prior to the visits, food was moved from the kitchen used by the guards and camp administration and put into the kitchen used for feeding prisoners. *84
The Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, Mr. Tadeusz Mazowiecki, was reported to have attempted to visit the Manjaca camp during the last week of August 1992. The mission arrived at the camp and was informed by the officer in charge that 3,000 prisoners of war were being held there. The mission, however, was denied permission to visit the camp. The officer said that the prisoners were «tired of being visited by international missions» and that it was too late in the day for a visit (it was reportedly more than an hour before sunset). The officer thereafter indicated that he could not allow the prisoners to be seen because the mission had not requested permission from the central authorities to enter the «Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Hercegovina». The mission failed to see the prisoners at the camp but said that it was provided with information, including photos by a person who it said had visited the camp a few weeks earlier. The mission said that there were signs of malnutrition and in some cases torture. A man also informed the Special Rapporteur that a man detained at the camp had recently been taken to a hospital and weighed only 34 kilograms. *85
The CSCE Thomson Mission reportedly visited the Manjaca camp on 30 August 1992. *86 And, according to a Helsinki Watch report, that organization visited the camp on 13 December 1992. *87
Release of prisoners/camp closing: The Manjaca camp was reportedly closed on 18 December 1992 after the above-mentioned series of prisoner releases performed under the auspices of the ICRC. *88 The following organized prisoner releases took place at Manjaca:
Control of the Manjaca camp: Reports describe the Manjaca camp as being under the control of the Bosnian Serb Army. *96 One report generally described the camp as being under the control of the «army». *97 An ex-prisoner stated that the camp was under the control of Bosnian Serb irregulars calling themselves «Marticevci». Their headquarters were reported to be in Banja Luka. *98
Guards at the Manjaca camp: *99 Soldiers and guards at the Manjaca camp reportedly referred to themselves as «Marticevci». *100 Several reports also stated that the guards referred to each other by Muslim names to hide their identities. *101 According to one ex-prisoner, the guards used code names to conceal their identities. He added that none of the guards were from the same region as the prisoners. *102 Another subject said that military police guards were used on the perimeter area of the camp and that these guards were assigned to the camp from either Prijedor or Kljuc. *103
One subject who was transferred to Manjaca from another detention facility said that the guards at Manjaca wore a mixture of JNA uniform, with some wearing the «cetnicka kapa», and others wearing headbands. The subject also reported guards wearing the «White Eagles» badge of the Arkan Tigers paramilitary group. *104
According to reports, there were approximately 50 soldiers assigned as guards at the camp. *105 One subject, who was imprisoned at Manjaca for several months, reported that the overall camp personnel at no one time exceeded 60. *106
A subject who was transferred to the camp from another detention facility, reported that the guard force at Manjaca worked a 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. shift during the time he spent there until November 1992. The subject also reported that a shift consisted of 30 guards. He added that, unlike Omarska where the guards were drawn from the immediate area and arrived and departed on a daily basis, the guards at Manjaca were largely from outside the Manjaca area including Kljuc and Sanski Most. *107 The subject said that the guards lived in accommodation outside the fenced area of the camp in the remaining sheds and barns, and that they were replaced every seven days by a new batch of guards. He reported that the guards were armed with automatic rifles, pistols, and clubs. *108
Another subject reported that buses brought in numbers of guards to the camp on a rotating basis. He said that there were 15 guards on duty at a time and that the guard force changed every two hours. He said that the guard force was comprised of soldiers from the Kljuc and Sanski Most areas. *109
It was also reported that 20 soldiers/camp guards were permanently quartered in a building called «Krug» (circle), located outside the camp compound. According to one subject, the guards were changed every two weeks. The subject added that the guards wore JNA field uniforms. *110
One ex-prisoner who was transferred to Manjaca from another detention facility, said that the «police» at Manjaca were mobilized and rotated every month and that camp duty was regarded as their leave period from the front line. He said that when the «police» knew that they had to return to the front line they took it out on the prisoners. *111
Many of the camp's prisoners were transferred to Manjaca from other camps.
Banja Luka in April/May 1992: One subject reported that he was arrested by Serbian forces in Banja Luka in April 1992 and was sent to the Manjaca camp where he was held for a number of days. He said that he had been accused by his captors of participating in subversive activities. *112
Gornja Sanica in May/June 1992: On 28 May 1992, 135 male prisoners from Gornja Sanica were reportedly taken by trailer truck to Manjaca *113 from a transit camp in a school approximately two kilometres west of the Gornja Sanica village centre. *114 It was similarly reported that in Gornja Sanica on 31 May 1992, Bosnian Muslim males between the ages of 18 and 60 were taken to the town's only school and as large groups were formed, were moved out. According to one subject, some of the males were taken to the city of Kljuc for one day, then to Sitnica for five days, and then to the Manjaca camp. *115
Doboj in May 1992: It was reported that 240 Muslim prisoners were brought to Manjaca from Doboj in May 1992. *116
Stara Gracka in June 1992: One subject reported that on 7 June 1992, 224 BiH Muslims were transferred from Stara Gracka to the Manjaca camp. *117
Stara Gradiska in May/June 1992: One subject reported that prisoners were transferred from the Stara Gradiska camp to Manjaca in May or June of 1992. The subject said that Yugoslav soldiers escorted them during the transfer and beat them severely. *118 Other reports describe the transfer of prisoners from Stara Gradiska in June 1992. On 12 June 1992, a prisoner was reportedly transferred from a camp at Stara Gradiska to Manjaca. *119 It was also reported that 450 prisoners were brought to the camp from Stara Gradiska in mid-June 1992. *120
Bosanska Dubica City Jail in late June 1992: One subject reported that he was held at the Bosanska Dubica city jail for interrogation. He said that he was held at the jail until he was transferred with 46 prisoners to Manjaca. The subject stated that nine of those transferred were considered to be Muslim extremists. *121
Kljuc in June/July 1992: One subject reported that between June and July 1992, approximately 1,300 prisoners were brought to Manjaca from a camp in Kljuc. *122 Additional reports describe the transfer of prisoners from a sports hall in Kljuc to Manjaca. One subject reports that approximately 120 men from the village of Kamicak, near the town of Kljuc on 31 May 1992 and loaded into three coaches and taken to Kljuc. After being beaten and detained in an unidentified sports hall there, the subject stated that on an unspecified date, they were forced to march 25 kilometres to the Manjaca camp, escorted by armed soldiers. He said that the prisoners were marched through an unidentified Serbian village and abused by the villagers. He stated that once the prisoners arrived at the Manjaca camp, the soldiers beat them systematically at the entrance. *123 It was also reported that on 27 June 1992, between 110 and 120 persons were transferred from a detention facility in a sports hall in the town of Kljuc to the Manjaca camp. A subject said that upon arrival at Manjaca, they were stripped naked and their belongings were taken away. He added that they were then beaten for five hours in front of a barn with at least 10 guards present at a given time. *124
Sitnica in June 1992: Other reports describe the transporting of prisoners from a sports hall or other detention area in the village of Sitnica, in June of 1992. On 31 May 1992, people from the village of Vrhpolje were reportedly taken to the neighbouring village of Kamicak where 80 of the men were separated from the women and abused for two days while their village and parts of Kamicak were destroyed. Thereafter, it was reported that the prisoners were taken by bus to the village of Sitnica where they were held in a sports hall with about 350 other persons. The prisoners were reportedly held at Sitnica for about seven days after which they were forced to march 14 miles to the Manjaca camp. *125 One subject also reported that on 7 June 1992, prisoners arrived at Manjaca after being transferred by bus from Kljuc to the town of «Sitnice» where, after being abused and initially held for one week, they were forced to walk another 20 miles to Manjaca. *126
Camp in Sanski Most in July 1992: One subject said that were taken from their homes in Kljuc on 27 May 1992 and were first held in Sanski Most for 12 days. He said that thereafter, six covered trucks, each packed with 150 people or more were transferred to Manjaca. He said that 18 people died on the way as a result of asphyxiation since there was not enough air to breathe. *127
Other reports describe the transport of inhabitants from Sanski Most to the Manjaca camp on 7 July 1992. *128 In one report, a subject stated that on 7 July 1992, he and approximately 600 other men originating from the village of Sanski Most were taken from a large indoor gymnasium at a school in the district of Narodni Front where they had been detained for 42 days. The men were loaded onto trucks and relocated to the Manjaca camp. According to the report, each truck held approximately 160 men who were crammed into the vehicles. As each man entered the truck he was reportedly beaten severely by armed military escorts with police batons. The subject reported that by the end of a nearly six hour journey to Manjaca, 20 prisoners had died from dehydration, heat stroke, or severe injuries. *129 A subject reported that in July 1992, 1,000 to 1,100 Muslims were transported from a camp in Sanski Most and 100 from Prijedor. *130
Another subject reported that on or about 14 July 1992, all of the prisoners held at a gymnasium in Sanski Most were transferred to Manjaca via four large livestock transport trucks with trailers. He said that the prisoners were loaded onto the trucks with their hands tied behind their backs and that the convoy was guarded by military police who were identifiable by their belt buckles. He added that the civilian police handed over accountability lists to the military police and that one trailer had a regular JNA soldier armed with an assault rifle. He reported that conditions on the truck were very bad and that approximately 18 prisoners died en route to the Manjaca camp. He added that the corpses were left on the trucks. *131
Omarska camp, Prijedor in August 1992: There are numerous reports describing a mass transfer of prisoners from the Omarska camp to the Manjaca camp on or about 6-8 August 1992. Another transfer of the remaining prisoners at the Omarska camp was also reported at the end of August.
One document purportedly sent to the United Nations by the Banja Luka City Council, stated:
«On 7 August 1992 we had received a report that about 35 buses, filled with camp inmates, who were simply hidden by the police, [were] moved from their location in Omarska camp to another area, this time going towards Manjaca.» *132
Below are summaries of reports which allege that there was a mass transfer of prisoners from the Omarska camp to Manjaca during the period of 6-8 August 1992. There was also a smaller transfer of Omarska prisoners to Manjaca in late August 1992. Most of the early-August reports describe prisoners jammed onto buses on a hot summer day, with the heat turned up and the windows sealed shut. The reports also describe physical abuse, men dying from the heat and lack of water, and cases of killing of prisoners en route and upon arrival at Manjaca. *133 The reports vary as to certain details, but appear to establish that such a mass transfer of prisoners did occur:
«During the ride we had to sing Serbian songs. We got nothing to drink and we had to keep the windows closed. Furthermore, the Serbian soldiers also beat us during the ride. They stopped at every inn; the soldiers went off and drank . . . Before arriving in the camp we stopped, eight persons were brought out of the bus and knifed by the Serbian soldiers . . . One of the prisoners died in the bus because he couldn't stand the heat and thirst». *144
One subject said that on 6 August 1992 he was transferred with several other prisoners to the camp at Manjaca. He recalled that after his departure, some 180 prisoners remained at Omarska. He reported that en route to Manjaca, 18 prisoners were killed and another 12 were killed in front of the Manjaca camp upon arrival. He said that the prisoners were escorted by members of the irregular police called «Martic's Unit» and two camp guards from Omarska. *145
A subject who was held at the Omarska camp from late May 1992, reported that he was transferred to the Manjaca camp in August 1992 with an estimated 184 remaining men at Omarska. *146
Jajce and Kotor Varos in October 1992: A subject who had been at Manjaca from June through the end of 1992, stated that 100 persons were transported to the camp from Jajce and that 300 others were brought in from Kotor Varos. *147
Intake procedures: Prisoners were reportedly brought to the Manjaca camp at night by closed freight trucks and buses. The vehicles were reportedly parked on the outside corner of the camp and were guarded until daylight, when the passengers were unloaded and processed into the camp. *148 Thereafter, the prisoners were reportedly in-processed, accompanied by searches and beatings. *149
One subject who was transferred from Omarska to Manjaca in early August 1992 stated that he and the other prisoners had to sleep in the buses during the first night at the camp. He stated that they were next brought to a field and that a person whom he identified as the camp commander brought a list of names. The subject stated that those prisoners who were called had to stay on their knees, head down, for hours before being brought to their housing. *150
Another subject who was included in the transfer from Omarska to Manjaca in early August stated that Manjaca camp officials had what appeared to be a computerized list of the incoming prisoners' names when they arrived. He stated further, that 2,000 of the prisoners were admitted and that an additional 300 were taken elsewhere. The subject said that the remaining prisoners later concluded that those 300 prisoners were all residents of Kozarac. *151
Abuse and killings during intake: One subject who arrived at the Manjaca camp from an area in western BiH in early 1992, said that en route to their detention building, prisoners were forced to pass one-by-one through a double row of guards who beat them as they passed. *152 Another subject reported that on 7 July 1992, he and other prisoners were beaten as they exited buses upon their arrival at Manjaca from another camp in Sanski Most. *153
A subject who had been at Manjaca from June through the end of 1992 reported that on the evening of 19 July 1992, 1,200 Muslims from the Omarska area were brought into Manjaca by bus and parked outside the perimeter. The next morning the captives were unloaded and formed into groups for processing. The subject reported that 24 of the prisoners were attacked with knives and killed. He said that the corpses were loaded onto trucks and taken away. *154
One subject who was transferred from Omarska in August 1992, reported that after spending the night on the buses, three prisoners were called out by the guards, who ordered them to kneel down. The guards thereafter slit the prisoners' throats. The subject reported that the camp commander arrived thereafter and stopped further killings. *155
Likewise, a subject who was reportedly transferred from Omarska in August 1992 stated that after their arrival, they spent the night on their buses. During the night he said that 15 men were called outside and killed with bayonets. He said that in the morning, a Montenegrin man who he identified as the camp commander, arrived and stopped further killings. *156
Another subject who had been transferred from Omarska to Manjaca in August 1992, reported that the first group of prisoners were kept in buses overnight. He reported that on the following day, six of the prisoners in the group were killed by guards who had escorted them from Omarska. He said that these men had been owners of enterprises who had held positions of responsibility. He described the killing of one man who was called by guards from about 10 metres away, made to kneel and had his throat cut. *157 Likewise, one subject who was transferred to Manjaca from the Omarska camp (this appears to have occurred in early August) reported that when the prisoners came to Manjaca, eight to 10 men had their throats cut in front of his eyes. *158
One subject reported that during his transfer from Omarska in early August 1992, the prisoners were made to stay on the buses until 7:00 the following morning. He added that they were ill-treated and that nine prisoners were taken off the bus by guards and beaten to death. He identified four of these men and stated that they were killed for no apparent reason other than the fact that they had raised their heads. According to the subject, the first of the identified individuals was beaten to death after first begging to be killed swiftly. Subject said that after beating this victim to death, guards urinated on the body. The subject also described and identified another prisoner who was stabbed to death after looking out of the bus window. *159 The subject stated that the prisoners were thereafter called out of the buses by name and formed into groups of 100. He said they were marched into barns outside of the fenced camp area where they were made to strip naked and adopt the Islamic position of prayer and shout blasphemies. He added that their clothing was searched and items such as razor blades and toothbrushes were confiscated. *160
One subject who was transferred to Manjaca from Omarska in early August stated that on the morning of 7 August, the guards at Manjaca called out the names of about eight prisoners who were taken from the buses and shot or beaten and slashed to death. He stated that several prisoners inside the bus were able to peek through the curtain and witnessed the killings. He stated that once removed from the buses, the prisoners were seated on the ground in two groups of 600 men each. Each group reportedly formed 60 rows of 10 men. According to the subject, there was no water and each prisoner was required to sit with his head between his knees. He said that the first 600-man group entered Manjaca at about 3:00 p.m. and that the second group followed two hours later. Once inside the camp, he stated that for the first time prisoners received medical attention. He added that those who were sick, very old, very young, or injured, were sent to Trnopolje in two buses. *161
One subject stated that after being transferred on buses from Omarska on an unspecified date, he and the other prisoners were given no water for 26 hours and no food for almost 40 hours. He added that after removal from the buses, some of the men were forced to crouch in a prayer position on the gravel for a few hours, and that those who did not crouch «properly» were hit with rifle butts. *162
Surrender of valuables during intake: In mid-June 1992, a group of 450 prisoners from Stara Gradiska were reportedly lined up along the road before entering the camp and were ordered to undress completely as the guards searched their personal belongings, reportedly taking all valuables from them including rings, watches, gold, money, etc. *163
One subject who was reportedly transferred along with other prisoners from Omarska in early August, 1992, said that once the prisoners were removed from their bus, they were registered and «robbed». *164
Camp conditions: Almost all sources confirm Manjaca's harsh conditions. According to a report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights:
«Despite being denied access to the Manjaca prison camp, the Special Rapporteur had received ample information about conditions there. Most sources give the number of detainees as being approximately 4,000 men who are housed in large, open buildings formerly used as stables. Physical conditions were especially bad during the first several months after the detention facility was opened. Evidence of serious malnutrition, harsh discipline, strictly rationed water, poor sanitation, overcrowding, lack of proper medical care and beating of prisoners has been received from a variety of credible sources. Physical conditions have improved somewhat since the camp began to be visited by international bodies in August». *165Another report by the Special Rapporteur states: «[C]onditions at the Manjaca camp before it was closed were reliably reported to have been extremely poor, with life-threatening neglect of prisoners, lack of food and inadequate hygiene». *166
Subjects who were transferred from Omarska in early August 1992 reported that conditions were difficult at Manjaca but were more bearable than they had been at Omarska. Some noted that this was especially true following the visit by the ICRC. *167 One subject who had been transferred from Omarska in early August 1992 commented that although they were housed in former stables at Manjaca, they were treated fairly during their stay there and were visited by the ICRC until the camp closed in mid-December. *168 Another subject who was transferred to Manjaca from Omarska in early August said that those prisoners who volunteered for work got better food and that guards sometimes beat prisoners but much less than at Omarska. *169
A subject who arrived at Manjaca in mid-July 1992 stated that he was told by other prisoners that during the three-month period prior to the ICRC's arrival at the camp, many prisoners were killed either individually or in groups and that they were buried in fields surrounding the Manjaca camp compound. *170
Meals/Nourishment: According to The Thomson CSCE report in September 1992:
«A major concern in this centre [Manjaca] involves the lack of proper nourishment provided to detainees until two to three weeks ago, which has resulted in seriously malnourished states. A majority of detainees exhibit obvious signs of cachexia, alopecia (hair loss), gross muscle wasting and `sunken eyes' and all have lost 10 to 40 kilos in weight during two to three months of detention. A meal was served during our visit, a thick bean soup and bread, and the authority and detainees all told us that more nourishing meals have been available during the past two weeks than formerly.» *171
According to reports, there were two meals served per day at the camp. *172 Reports described meals being served between 6:00 to 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. *173 The meals were said to improve after the ICRC visits in July-August 1992. *174
It was reported that food was prepared by prisoner-cooks in each of the two sections of the camp in three field kitchens standing outside the mess hall. *175 One subject confirmed that the prisoners worked in the kitchens. *176
Each housing building was reportedly divided into six groups which proceeded separately into the mess hall. Each building reportedly had one prisoner trustee (Poverenik) who was responsible for getting everyone out fast and for keeping order. *177
One subject who arrived from Omarska in early August 1992, stated that prisoners at Manjaca were taken one «hut row» at a time (approximately 200 prisoners) for eating and that prisoners were given 15 minutes to eat their meal. He estimated that it took about three hours per sitting. He said that the food upon his arrival was very poor but that it improved both in quantity and quality after the ICRC visited Manjaca on 25 August. *178
There were various descriptions of the content of meals served at the Manjaca camp. One kilogram of bread reportedly was divided between 40 prisoners for each meal. *179 For breakfast, a small jar of meat spread was reportedly divided between six prisoners. For dinner there was sometimes kasha, potatoes or rice. Tea was seldom served. *180
Likewise, a subject who was transferred to Manjaca from Stara Gradiska in May/June 1992, said that 30 prisoners split one loaf of bread, five tins of liverwurst for breakfast, and that each prisoner received 1/2 litre of tea. He said that for lunch the prisoners were given one kilo of bread per 30 prisoners with a helping of boiled potatoes or beans per prisoner. *181
Another subject who was held at the camp from May to November 1992 reported that in the morning each prisoner was given one cup of tea and that 30 prisoners shared one loaf of bread. The subject reported that at around 4:00 p.m., each prisoner received a slice of ham and bread and also one loaf of bread for every 30 prisoners. *182
It was also reported that: one loaf of bread was shared by 22 prisoners daily; *183 each prisoner's daily food ration consisted of two small slices of bread and a small quantity of tea daily (from June to November 1992); *184 in the morning the prisoners got a thin slice of bread and plain tea, and lunch consisted of another slice of bread and a small amount of cooked food, usually soup or gruel (in early August 1992). *185
One subject who was transferred from Omarska in early August said that upon his arrival at Manjaca the food was very poor. He added, however, that after the ICRC visited the camp on 25 August, the food improved both in quantity and quality with cocoa/milk and a tin of fish between two prisoners and a quarter of a loaf of bread for the first sitting. He said that for the second sitting the prisoners received a plate of stew of greater variety and substance than had been previously served. He added that every two weeks each prisoner was given a packet of 20 cigarettes and a half kilo of biscuits. *186 Another subject who was transferred from Omarska in early August said that about a month after his arrival the ICRC started feeding the prisoners, and they were given vitamin tablets. He alleges, however, that the camp guards stole much of their food. *187
Water: The Thomson CSCE Mission reported that in September 1992 there was no local water supply at Manjaca and that portable containers were trucked there regularly, permitting only «five litres of water per day» for each prisoner. The report said that this ration was to be used for consumption, personal washing, and laundry. *188
It was also reported that water had to be brought in daily by the prisoners in plastic containers from a lake located 600 metres from the camp. *189 Another subject who had been transferred to the camp from Omarska in early August and remained there for several days, reported that water was available from a cistern. *190
One subject reported that water was rationed and available only in small quantities at Manjaca. In the summer, only 10 litres of water was reportedly provided to each building with an estimated 700 prisoners. It was reported that two faucets were located in each section of the camp outside of the buildings, and that the prisoners were unable to get to the water since they were strictly forbidden to leave the buildings. Any prisoner who asked for more water reportedly received beatings. *191
Other reports varied as to the amount of water provided to Manjaca's prisoners. One subject reported that 60 litres of water was provided for all occupants of each stall between the periods including July through December 1992; *192 another subject who had been transferred to Manjaca from Omarska in early August estimated that the prisoners would get 3,000 litres of water for 2,000 men, working out to about one and a half litres of water for each man per day. He said that some of this water was used for ordinary cleaning. *193
Sleeping facilities: Reports describe conditions at Manjaca with men living in un-insulated cattle barns. Despite being cold, the prisoners stated that the conditions were much better than at Omarska. *194 Reports also stated that Manjaca's prisoners were forced to sleep on concrete floors. *195
One subject who was transferred to Manjaca from the Stara Gradiska camp in May or June of 1992 said that upon arrival the prisoners had to first clean manure from the sheds. He said that when they cleaned the sheds they were given straw to make themselves beds on the concrete floor. *196 A subject who had been transferred to Manjaca from Omarska in early August stated that wet grass was used as bedding rather than hay or straw and that they «would probably have been better off without it». *197
According to one report, in mid-June 1992, new arrivals slept on the concrete floor without blankets. For the next 15 days, three prisoners reportedly slept under one blanket. *198 Other reports in June and July 1992, said that four detainees were required to share each blanket. There was, however, reportedly some straw or ferns on the concrete ground where the prisoners slept. *199 Only after a ICRC visit in July 1992 did each prisoner receive his own blankets. *200
The CSCE Thomson Mission in August 1992 reported that detainees occupied a blanket-covered concrete or earth floored space, approximately 6.5 feet by thirty inches, in six long rows of approximately 80 persons per row. It said that there was a walkway, approximately two feet wide between the rows. The total occupancy per stable was estimated at 500 persons. *201
Medical treatment: The CSCE reported that at Manjaca
«[m]edical services are very basic, provided by detainee physicians, who have little with which to work. Drugs and other medical supplies are very limited, whereas medical records are scrupulously maintained. The `hospital ward' is housed in a small stable, accommodating approximately 15 ill or injured detainees on a concrete floor, with only a blanket each for comfort. We were told that the more seriously ill and injured were taken to the Banja Luka hospital for treatment.» *202
One subject reported that a Serbian medical doctor used to come once a week to the camp to «superficially» check sick prisoners. He said that no medicine was available for the prisoners. He also stated that there were three Muslim prisoners who were medical doctors and were permitted to move freely, when accompanied by a guard, to help prisoners. *203 Another subject reported that there was no medicine at the camp and that the only medical treatment was provided by two doctors who were themselves prisoners. *204
One subject who was transferred to Manjaca from Omarska reported that upon arrival at Manjaca, prisoners were taken 10 at a time into a room for a medical inspection. He said that the prisoners had to strip to their underwear and socks and that any belts, shoelaces, or documents were removed. The subject reported that despite having a «black back» from prior beatings and a stab wound in his side, he was admitted as having nothing wrong with him. *205
Electricity: One subject reported that there was no electricity in the camp. He also reported that he observed no generators and that the camp was in virtual darkness throughout the night. *206
Toilets: It was reported that each of the two camp sections had two latrines used by the prisoners. *207 It was also reported that «pit latrines» had been constructed in several locations of the camp, closed on three sides and apparently periodically treated with lime and regularly relocated. However, these latrines reportedly produced an «offensive» odor. *208
Hygiene: The September 1992 report of the Thomson CSCE Mission stated that a «portable shower» with privacy curtain, was brought to the camp every 15 days. But the report added that personal hygiene was seriously compromised at the camp. *209 One subject who had been transferred to Manjaca from Omarska in early August similarly reported that a bath was organized for the prisoners every 15 days and that the prisoners had about 60 seconds to wash. He added that the prisoners were allowed to wash out laundry every Sunday if there was water. *210 Another subject reported that he was unable to wash for three months. *211
Weight loss: It was reported that detainees at the Manjaca camp lost from 10 to 40 kilograms during two to three months of detention at the camp. *212 One subject reported that during his time at the camp between mid-June and mid-August 1992, he lost 37 kilograms. *213 Another ex-prisoner who was held at the camp for quite a few days from May to June of 1992, reported that he lost 17 kilograms. *214 Another ex-prisoner who was held from mid-June 1992 until mid-November 1992, stated that his weight dropped from 100 kilograms to 72 kilograms while in the camp and that his sight had been affected as a result of his diet there. *215
Prisoner routine: It was reported that the Manjaca camp was «run like a prison with very strict rules». According to one report, the prisoners were forced to get up at 5:00 a.m. and fold their blankets. *216 Further, the prisoners reportedly had to engage in very hard labor. *217 (For examples of forced labor see paragraphs 363 to 367, below.)
The Thomson CSCE Mission reported that they were advised by Manjaca's commander that detainees were permitted out of doors for up to several hours each day, and that some agreed to various types of outside work, «all according to the Geneva Conventions». The commander reportedly added that not all detainees took advantage of these opportunities. *218 One subject who had been transferred to Manjaca in early-August from the Omarska camp said that the prisoners were allowed to walk out of their stables only with the permission of the guards. Although he added that it wasn't very hard to get permission to visit other stables. *219
Forced labor: Forced labor was reported as a common practice at Manjaca. One report claims that prisoners worked under observation of armed guards and dogs. *220 One subject reported that prisoners were assigned to work 6-8 hours a day, six days a week. *221
There are reports that prisoners worked in the forest near the camp. *222 One subject reported that a group of 34 prisoners were expected to cut 40 cubic metres of wood daily and that each man received .5 kilograms of bread daily. The prisoners were also reported to have been beaten by the soldiers guarding them and were not allowed to tell the camp commander about the beatings. *223 Another ex-prisoner said that every day approximately 1,000 prisoners carried wooden planks measuring one metre long by one-half metre wide, up a hill to trucks to be loaded or unloaded. *224 One ex-prisoner reported that they were sent on forced labor details to cut wood to heat the offices and quarters of Serbian soldiers in Banja Luka. *225
One ex-prisoner who was transferred to Manjaca in May or June of 1992 said that when he first arrived at the camp the prisoners had to clean manure from the camp's sheds. He said that the guards also beat them. In addition, he reported they were forced to dig trenches around the camp and put up a barbed wire fence. *226
There are also reports that several prisoners were selected to provide labor at a military base near the camp. One ex- prisoner said that in late August 1992, approximately 80 tons of guns and grenades were unloaded over a 20-day period and placed in a warehouse. According to the subject, the warehouse was a concrete structure with a red-tiled peaked roof, located near the edge of the forest at the foot of a slope below the prison camp. Prisoners were reportedly not allowed to work at the base more than one day for security reasons. Subject said that prisoners were not abused there. *227 Another ex-prisoner reportedly did forced labor at the JNA base in Banja Luka. This subject claims that the prisoners built fences around the base and were often beaten during the day for not working fast enough. *228
Some reports stated that prisoners worked in the fields to harvest feed corn for the livestock, cleaned and cared for the animals, repaired vehicles and roads, and performed other strenuous labor at the camp. *229 Other prisoners were reportedly forced to dig potatoes and engage in other agricultural work, engage in heavy manual labor, and dig ditches for irrigation. *230 According to one ex-prisoner, when not working, they were confined to their sheds. *231
Abuse during detention: The Thomson CSCE Mission report stated that,
«[w]e are convinced that the authority has little sympathy for the detainees [at Manjaca] and that discipline in the centre has been maintained by extreme and unlawful measures. We witnessed the results of beatings with blunt instruments, and have good reason to believe that people who appear to have been innocent detainees were executed since late May 1992. . . . Detainees were reluctant to provide specific detail concerning atrocities, but hints were offered to that effect. There is also reason to believe that conditions are relatively improved since international delegations, the ICRC and the press have had ready access to this centre. The centre's military commandant stresses `work, order and discipline', and he undoubtedly does so very forcefully.» *232
Beatings and killings during detention: There are numerous allegations of deliberate and arbitrary beatings and killings of prisoners at the Manjaca camp. Below are representative examples of the types of atrocities reportedly committed at the Manjaca camp.
One subject stated that almost everyday in the late afternoon, six to eight «Marticevci» would come to the prisoner housing and pick from five to 10 prisoners to torture them in a building which the prisoners called Samica (meaning single prison cell). The subject was never personally beaten in this manner but reported that other prisoners were made to stand at the wall and were beaten with bats, rubber clubs, metal wires, electric cables, and other objects. According to the subject, prisoners were also kicked about the head and face when they were unable to walk. The subject said that some of these prisoners died and some were shot in the Samica. He stated that prisoners who were picked up after 8:00 p.m. were almost always beaten to death and did not return from the Samica. *233
A subject who was brought to Manjaca in late May 1992, stated that every night after dark, several guards would come to the barn with a list of names to remove approximately five to six prisoners whose names were on a list. Those prisoners were then taken to the Samica building which was approximately 50 metres from the barn where the subject was held. The subject stated that the prisoners in the adjacent barn could hear the screams of the prisoners while they were being tortured. He said that the prisoners on the lists were generally either people of standing or members of the Party for Democratic Action (SDA--Stranka Demokratske Akcije). *234
Another subject who was brought to the camp in early June said that every second day the camp guards beat him in the evening after the prisoners had gone to bed. He said that the guards walked past his housing stall and read out about 10 names. The prisoners followed the guards to a room near the kitchen, and each prisoner was beaten for 20 minutes to a half-hour. He said, «We were beaten until we fell over. It was best to stay up as long as you could. It was easier to take body blows than to be kicked.» It was also reported that one prisoner earned the nickname «rubber man» because he never let himself be knocked down. *235
One subject described beatings at the camp with high voltage wire. The subject said that once the prisoners fell, they were kicked until they died. *236
Another subject reportedly witnessed the guards at the camp shoot a man and then jump on his head. The prisoner decedent was not identified. The same subject also reported prisoners being forced into genital biting. *237
One report quotes a subject who said that prisoners at the camp were frequently beaten. He reportedly lost 11 teeth in three days due to beatings. He alleged that Serbian soldiers were «taking out» the skilled people and the «intellegentsia» from a list. He alleged that when a new group of prisoners arrived at the camp the soldiers selected 10 persons at random and cut their throats. *238
One subject who was transferred to the camp from Kljuc in late June 1992, said that on 27 August 1992, he was severely beaten. He said that on 28 August 1992, he witnessed the President of the Party for Democratic Action in Prijedor and two other men being killed. He said that the prisoners were beaten in an area that was used for solitary confinement of prisoners, about 100 metres from the barn. *239
Another subject, who was transferred from Omarska in August 1992 stated that by the time of his arrival, the killing of prisoners largely ceased at Manjaca. He added that beatings were confined to the body so that they would not be visible. Another subject who had been transferred from Omarska in early August said that the conditions at Manjaca were far better than those at Omarska, that there were no incidents of cruelty, and that the food was better. *240
One subject stated that during his nine-plus weeks at the camp, he counted 50 prisoners killed by beating, torture or shooting. *241
Another subject said that during his time at the camp from June to December 1992, nine detainees were killed. *242
One report described the discovery of 25 bodies of emaciated men, believed to be prisoners at Manjaca in August 1992. *243
Disposal of bodies: One subject stated that a civilian ambulance from Banja Luka marked with Red Cross signs was used to pick up dead bodies and transport them. He said that the van was always operated by civilian drivers. *244
One subject said that after the killing of 24 prisoners who had just arrived from Omarska on 20 July 1992, the corpses were loaded onto trucks and taken away. *245
One unidentified subject who was transferred to Manjaca from Stara Gradiska said that the bodies of the prisoners killed at the Manjaca camp were taken to Banja Luka by truck and placed into freezers there. *246
One subject who had been transferred from the camp from Omarska said that he did not personally know, but heard that bodies from Manjaca were thrown into the river Vrbas. *247
Local residents reportedly found the bodies of 25 prisoners near the camp in July 1992. *248
Torture during detention: One report quotes a subject who stated that every day guards took him and the other prisoners out of the stables at 7:00 a.m., and forced them to sit in the sun holding their heads down with their hands behind their backs. He stated that Serb guards forced them to stay in that position until 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. He added that Serb guards, soldiers and civilians came to beat them with bats, pieces of wood, metal bars, hoses, wire cables, and that they kicked them, and hit them in the kidneys, across the neck, back, and over the head. He stated that Serb civilians were let into the camp, including women and children, and that they spit on the prisoners, stone them and beat them with various objects. He stated that some of them even cut fingers from the prisoners' hands, leaving only three fingers (the Serb salute). *249
One subject who was held at the camp from approximately June 1992 to 15 September 1992 said that at Manjaca, a list of names would be read out by the Serbs and that the persons on the list would be tortured, some to death. He said that the accusations made against those persons were «vague misdemeanors». *250
One subject who was held at the camp from approximately June 1992 to mid-September 1992, stated that in one incident an Imam was given a half glass of water mixed with urine to drink. *251
Interrogation During Detention: One subject who was transferred from Omarska said that only those prisoners who were former policemen were subjected to interrogation. *252
One subject described his interrogation at Manjaca in mid- June, a few days after arrival. He was reportedly interrogated twice by the same official, dressed in a blue SUP uniform, who had interrogated him three weeks earlier in Stara Gradiska. Each interrogation reportedly lasted one to two hours and was conducted in a neutral manner with the same routine questions: whether he possessed a home or weapons; if he voted for an independent BiH in the recent referendum; if he was a member of a political party and; whether he wanted to return to his home after the war was over. *253
One report quoted a subject as saying that unidentified individuals came daily, taking people for interrogation and that many prisoners did not return. He stated that this went on for seven months. He identified a person who was a judge of the Regional Court in the subject's town of Sanski Most. The subject stated that this person was a Serb who along with others would interrogate approximately 100 persons daily. The subject further stated that prisoners were beaten and tortured to admit that they were part of a movement against the Serbs. *254
One subject stated that there were far fewer interrogations at the camp than at Omarska. *255
Rape during detention: Although most reports indicate that only males were held at the Manjaca camp, there are allegations by at least two women who say they were held at the camp and raped. One female subject *256 claimed to have been held at the camp for 16 days with her daughter and son. She reported that both she and her daughter were raped and tortured in different ways. *257 Another report described what appears to be the same woman *258 who was interrogated, tortured and, along with her daughter, raped by guards. The woman also said that she watched as guards questioned another mother and raped her daughter in front of other women held at the camp. The young girl reportedly died soon afterward. These rapes were reported to have occurred between 12 and 18 April 1992. *259 Another female subject, *260 said that she was held at Manjaca where she was raped. She was reported to be 25 weeks pregnant at the time of a subsequent examination. This report did not detail when the woman was alleged to have been held at the Manjaca camp. *261
It was also reported that during an unspecified time period, Bosnian Muslim men were forced to rape females as young as 15 years old at Manjaca. It was further alleged that in one case, a 14 year-old boy was forced to have sex with a 60 year-old woman. *262
Special treatment of Croat prisoners: One witness stated that Bosnian Croats were treated more poorly than were Muslims at the camp. He reported that Croats at Manjaca were under strict restrictions and could not move anywhere. It was also reported that each time Serbians forces were beaten in the battlefields, Serbs then took Croat detainees, broke their fingers and arms, and cut them repeatedly. *263
One subject stated that a Croatian prisoner of war was shot and killed by one of the guards/commanders in September 1992, during an interrogation in the Samica. *264
One subject alleged that on 17 October 1992, authorities at Manjaca reportedly loaded 120 Croat prisoners and took them to Zitnic (Croatia) where they were to be exchanged. The prisoners were reportedly forced to swallow large quantities of salt and were beaten with wooden clubs and forced to sing pro-Serbian songs. The prisoners were then taken to Knin and imprisoned in a building overnight where they were reportedly maltreated by persons with SAO Krajina insignia, members of the irregular police, and anonymous civilians (including women and young boys). The prisoners returned to the Manjaca camp on the following morning. *265
Other subjects reported a similar occurrence on 20 October 1992, when 120 Croatian prisoners at the camp were taken from Manjaca for an alleged prisoner exchange. *266 The reports said that Serbian soldiers escorting the buses forced the prisoners to lick and eat handfuls of salt and then refused them water. The reports said that the exchange did not take place and that the prisoners were placed in rooms in an unidentified military facility in Knin. The prisoners were then reportedly beaten and abused by irregular Serbian police and members of unidentified paramilitary forces and drunk civilians in Knin. On the following day the prisoners were reportedly returned to Manjaca. *267
Transfer of the Manjaca prisoner population to other camps: Reports indicate that prisoners held at the Manjaca camp were in some cases transferred to other detention facilities. The following reports detail such transfers.
Transfer to Batkovic and Kula camps in December 1992: According to the ICRC and other sources, an estimated 529 prisoners at Manjaca were transferred to the Batkovic camp in north-eastern BiH without the ICRC's permission on 13 December 1992. Helsinki Watch reported that on that date, it witnessed 500 men (including 319 Muslims, 180 Croatians and one German-- numbers reportedly given by Serbian authorities administering the camp), being taken away from Manjaca on buses marked «VRS» (Vojska Republike Srbije--Army of the Serbian Republic). According to reports, the ICRC discovered 401 of the above- mentioned prisoners at the Batkovic camp on 20 December 1992 and was ultimately informed that the remaining prisoners were awaiting a prisoner exchange at the Kula camp near the Sarajevo airport. *268
Transfer to Trnopolje Camp in August 1992: One subject who was brought to Manjaca from Omarska in early August 1992 stated that 140 prisoners *269 who were sick, very old, very young, or injured, were sent to Trnopolje in two buses after their intake at Manjaca. *270 Another subject who was transferred to Manjaca from Omarska in early August stated that after 15 days, some prisoners, mostly very old or very young men, were transferred from the camp to Trnopolje. The subject was reportedly among this group of more than 150 prisoners who boarded two buses and were taken to Trnopolje. *271 One subject reported that after he was brought to the Manjaca camp from Omarska in early-August, he was told that he had been found «not guilty» *272 and was thereafter transferred to Trnopolje. *273
Bistrica: The existence of this detention facility has been corroborated by a neutral source, namely the UK Debriefing Team. It is reported that Bistrica was a «temporary» or an «improvised» camp set up at some time before the 14- 15 December 1992 ICRC visit to Manjaca. The camp was reportedly part of a Serb ploy designed to mislead ICRC officials. It is reported that some 529 prisoners were moved to the new camp at Bistrica while it appeared that the Manjaca camp was being closed down. *274
The camp is not described, however the report locates the camp approximately 10 kilometres west of Banja Luka city. A map search identifies a village by the name of Bistrica in that locale.
Dubicka Gora: The existence of this detention facility has been corroborated by a neutral source, namely the US Department of State.
Reportedly a «sub-camp» of Manjaca, holding 300 to 400 men, *275 this camp is located approximately 15 kilometres from Manjaca toward Mrkonjic Grad and past the village of Stricici. Research of available maps does not reveal a Dubicka Gora, and also shows two Stricici within 20 kilometres of Manjaca on the road to Mrkonjic Grad.
According to prisoners at Manjaca, Dubicka Gora was considered to be a «hidden camp» where the treatment of prisoners was worse than at Manjaca. *276
One subject reports that prior to one of the ICRC visits (he thinks it was in July) *277 three named prisoners were removed to Dubicka Gora because their physical condition was so bad. According to the subject, the ICRC officials insisted on seeing these prisoners and the camp officials relented. While it is reported that ICRC representatives spoke privately with the men, it is not clear whether the alleged meeting was held at Dubicka Gora or Manjaca. *278 According to the subject, after the ICRC visit the men disappeared. *279
Mali Logor: (The existence of this detention facility has been corroborated by a neutral source, namely the US Department of State and the ICRC.) Reportedly a Serb-run detention camp situated in the Borik section of the city of Banja Luka, this camp was said to be located in a former JNA barracks. *280 The ICRC first visited the facility on 3 May 1993 and described the facility as a military prison. *281 The number of prisoners detained at this camp is not known. Torture was alleged to have occurred there. *282
Dates of this camp's operation are not reported. One subject reports that beginning in September 1992, uniformed «officials» apprehended non-Serbian residents (especially young Muslims who had refused mobilization) and sent them to Mali Logor, Manjaca, and to the Tunjice Prison. The subject reportedly could not determine from their uniforms if the «officials» were regular Serbian soldiers. He also reported that he heard from his wife that some of the Mali Logor prisoners were people who had been picked up at the city market and found to be without a permit to leave their houses. According to the subject, police frequently surrounded the market and checked permits. *283
Banja Luka Hospital: (The existence of this detention facility has been corroborated by a neutral source, namely the Helsinki Watch and the ICRC.) Reports describe a detention area for injured Muslim and Croat prisoners located in the Banja Luka Hospital. *284
There are no available dates of operation for this detention area. However, the ICRC reportedly first visited the hospital on 22 September 1991. *285 In late August 1992, six survivors of a regional skirmish *286 who had been captured by Serb forces, were reportedly brought to the Banja Luka hospital. The prisoners were detained at the hospital for approximately 25 days. *287
Reportedly in late August 1992, during the detention of Bosnian Muslim survivors of the skirmish, a single police officer guarded the room during each of three shifts per day. *288 However, when a named member of the Croatian army (HV,) from Croatia proper, was brought into the room in late August or September 1992, the number of guards was reportedly increased to four. *289
The detainees were reportedly beaten by members of the army, police, and unidentified Serbian patients. One subject claims that he was beaten more often than throughout his entire detention at Trnopolje camp. The subject reports that the guards let anyone into the room, even if they carried truncheons and cable wire. *290 This mistreatment was reportedly carried out with the knowledge and consent of the hospital staff and Serbian armed forces. *291
A member of the Croatian Army was reportedly brought to the detention area while the survivors of the area skirmish were held captive. According to the report he was badly beaten while in the hospital and died from injuries sustained during the beatings. *292
The ICRC reportedly visited the hospital on the 23rd day of the skirmish survivors' detention and registered the prisoners. *293 The ICRC representatives were not allowed to see the prisoners on their second visit the following day. Subjects believed that this was because of the Croat's beating. *294 After their 25th day of detention the skirmish survivors were reportedly taken to the Banja Luka police station where the prisoners gave their statements to a magistrate and were released to workers of the Muslim relief agency Merhamet. The men were eventually evacuated from BiH. *295
It was also reported that some injured prisoners from the Manjaca camp were sent to Banja Luka hospital. *296
City Hospital, Banja Luka: (It is unclear from the source information if a detention facility exited at each of two hospitals identified in Banja Luka. It is, for that matter, unclear if two hospitals existed in Banja Luka. The existence of at least one hospital and its use as a detention facility has been corroborated by a neutral source, namely the US Department of State.)
City Hospital in Banja Luka was reported to have detained injured Croatian POWs, during 1992. *297 The ICRC has only one listing for a detention area in a Banja Luka hospital *298, and it is unclear if City Hospital is another name for Banja Luka Hospital.
Reportedly, in early April 1992, following clashes between Croatian and Serbian forces in the villages surrounding Derventa, in northern Bosnia, injured Croatian soldiers captured in fighting were taken to the Banja Luka city hospital for treatment. *299
Prisoners were reportedly held in a special detention area on the third floor of the hospital, in a part of the building separate from the rest of the hospital patients who were Serbs. *300 It is reported that at least two guards were posted at the door. *301
The medical treatment given the Croatian soldiers reportedly was crude, despite the subject's belief that there was no apparent shortage of medical supplies in the hospital. The subject reported that one prisoner had two open bullet wounds which were stitched to control the bleeding, but that anesthesia was not administered prior to this procedure. *302
Paprikovac Optical Hospital: (The existence of this detention facility has been corroborated by a neutral source, namely the US Government.)
Located in the outskirts of Banja Luka City, the Paprikovac Optical Hospital was reportedly used by Bosnian Serbian forces as a military hospital. The hospital was also used as a detention area for wounded Bosnian Muslim and Croat prisoners. *303
Four survivors of the regional skirmish who were found separately and recaptured by Serb military forces were brought to Banja Luka. *304 These survivors were reportedly held at the surgical hospital between 24 and 27 August 1992, and then transferred to the Optical hospital, across town, where they remained until September. *305
Eighteen Muslim males were reportedly detained at the hospital during the period from 27 August through 16 September 1992. There were two other rooms accommodating four Muslims each. *306
The door to Room Number 11, wherein the skirmish survivors were housed, was reportedly always locked and the hallway wall of the room was made of translucent glass, permitting the guard stationed outside to see inside. *307
According to one report, wounded Serbian soldiers from elsewhere in the hospital, as well as guards, beat the prisoners daily. The prisoners were beaten with cable wires and police batons. *308 One of the survivors of the regional skirmish, a 16 year old Muslim student claims that he was beaten 20 times on his kidneys by the military police in attendance at the hospital. His weight was said to have dropped substantially. The youth claims he could identify the military commander of the hospital. *309
The prisoners' daily meal reportedly consisted of a slice of bread and some broth. They were given almost no pure water to drink, and were reportedly forced by the guards to drink urine regularly. *310
The subjects all had hospital discharge papers which stated that they had been treated for internal injuries and chronic heart diseases, however they claimed that they never received so much as an aspirin while in detention. *311
Duboki Potok: (The existence of this detention facility has not been corroborated by multiple sources.) Duboki Potok was reportedly a Serb-run rape camp located on Kozara Mountain, near the Mostanica Monastery. *312 There is no exact location information or description of the camp. A search of the available maps did not reveal a Duboki Potok, but a Mostanica Monastery is located about 15 kilometres north-east of the city of Prijedor, near the border between Bosanska Dubica and Prijedor counties.
Duboki Potok reportedly held women from Banja Luka and the surrounding villages. According to a report, the detained women were of no specific age group but the majority were of reproductive age. *313
There is no information on the dates of operation of this camp, however, according to one report, as of September 1992, there had been women held at the camp for over a year. *314
Novoselija: (The existence of this detention facility has been corroborated by a neutral source, namely the US Department of State.) Novoselija reportedly was a Serb-run camp in the village of Novoselija, approximately three to five kilometres south of Banja Luka. *315 There is no information on this camp regarding the dates of operation or number of prisoners, and there is no record of an ICRC visit to the facility.
Tunjice (Banja Luka Tunjice): (The existence of this detention facility has been corroborated by multiple sources including the ICRC.) Several sources report that a Serb-run concentration camp was established at Tunjice, apparently in an existing prison facility in Banja Luka. *316 The ICRC lists two facilities at Tunjice: the Tunjice Prison/Penitentiary which it first visited on 5 November 1992, and the Military Prison, which it first visited on 31 August 1993. *317
Karmina: (The existence of this detention facility has not been corroborated by multiple sources.) Reportedly, residents of Kozarac who fled the village during the Serb attack in late May 1992, were rounded up and detained in camps at Karmina, Omarska, and Trnopolje. *318 The camp Karmina, reportedly located in Serb- controlled BiH, is mentioned in only one document. A search of the available maps does not reveal this village.
Laktasi: (The existence of this detention facility has not been corroborated by multiple sources.) A rape/death camp by this name is reported to be located in Banja Luka County. *319
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