Vares Wartime Rape Trial Starts

Basic and Sijak are charged with the rape of a Bosnian Croat woman at the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina prison located in the basement of the “Sumarstvo” building in Vares, on January 25, 1994.

According to the indictment, on the day Witness A came to visit her imprisoned brother, two unknown persons entered the office, one carried a knife, and the other army blankets, and were followed by both the indictees.

"Basic and Sijak put an adhesive tape on her mouth, rolled up the upper part of her clothes by force, removed the lower part, and raped her,” said the prosecutor Mirko Lecic, stressing that she was first raped by Basic, and then Sijak, and then by the two unknown persons.

After the rape, says the indictment, Basic threatened the woman:  “You will never see your brother again if you tell anyone about this. I am not Tito’s agent – I leave no traces behind.”

The indictment alleges that Basic was Chief of the State Security Service Section in Olovo and Sijak was military policeman in the 122nd Light Brigade of Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina at the time.

Prosecutor Lecic said, that in the course of the evidence hearing, he would examine three experts regarding the trauma left on Witness A by sexual abuse.

Witness A requested that during her testimony the public is excluded.

Fahrija Karkin and Kerim Celik, defence lawyers of the indictees did not state their opening remarks, saying they would do so when the prosecution had finished its evidence hearing.

The trial is set to resume on February 27.