War Reports/Analyses by Academics etc. in Yugoslavia

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---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 5 May 1999 07:23:11 +0200
From: Dusan Pajin <dpajin@f.bg.ac.yu>
To: agfrank@chass.utoronto.ca

To ANDRE GUNDER FRANK
from Dusan Pajin


Serbian Anthropological Society and Belgrade City Library

(abstracts from the scientific conference held on April 26th)

COLLATERAL VICTIMS

Associate Professor Marija Djuric Srejic
President of Serbian Anthropological Society
E-mail: marijads@eunet.yu

	After the Second World War, European and even American intellectual circles
did not remain silent about the war; on the contrary, a large number of
individuals raised a warning voice, the United Nations was founded and
later, many anti-war organisations. Nevertheless, the fact that wars
continued to be waged, as Umberto Eco says, shows that the words of
intellectuals were not heeded. There were not enough of them, and they did
not have a sufficiently large historical space. The bombardment of
Yugoslavia by the NATO forces is at least the eighth in the series of wars
that have been launched, incited or financed by the USA in the past 50
years, and is yet another indicator that in present-day society, the
condemnation of every form of violence is only an illusory, declarative act,
and that in practice, aggression is still the means for accomplishing
military, political and economic supremacy. All that is required is to
convince the public that the reasons for waging war are justified and, if
possible, that the aims are humanitarian. It is particularly desirable that
they should be in the domain of human rights.

	The protests over the military aggression against Yugoslavia held in the
Western countries, indicate that the Western media have not altogether
succeeded in explaining the motives of this war, which have surpassed the
logic of national forces. Also, pictures of the devastation which, despite
ideological and factographical censorship, sometimes, do reach those media,
are gradually eroding the belief of people in the moral and every other
justification of this aggression.

	The Western public describes the direct civilian victims as “collateral
damage”, a term that already sounds disgusting. We ask ourselves what
expression will be used to explain and encompass the complexity of the
suffering that has been caused by these bombings.

	As a scientific society that upholds an inter-disciplinary approach to the
study of man in his physical and spiritual integrity, the Serbian
Anthropological Society felt it was necessary to initiate a gathering at
which experts would point to the complexity of the catastrophe that has
befallen us from the aspect of different scientific disciplines, to a whole
range of suffering which, besides direct, also has extremely long-term and
diverse effects. This gathering is an appeal to the Western public, and its
aim is to point to at least some of the indirect suffering our population is
being subjected to, so carelessly described as “collateral damage” or “side
effects”.

*
	The number of civilian victims of this war is far greater than the “over
five hundred dead and several thousand wounded,” as recently stated by the
Federal Information Ministry. The figures do not apply for those people who
are already suffering or will inevitably suffer from war effects that do not
involve the direct action of bombing civilians and civilian facilities. Will
our colleague, a doctor who fled from Croatia to Bosnia as a refugee, then
again fled Bosnia and came to Serbia as a refugee, and ultimately, several
days after the beginning of the bombardment of Yugoslavia, committed
suicide, ever be counted as a war victim?

	Since March 24th, the inhabitants of Yugoslavia have had to face the acute
danger of losing their lives and, in this respect, health care has become
secondary, both from the point of view of patients who are preoccupied with
surviving in conditions of war, and from the aspect of the state, whose
primary concern is to provide the needs of the most vulnerable segments of
the community. In a small survey we conducted among patients with
cardiological diseases, we noted that of the 40 respondees, 32 were
suffering from intensified heart trouble, but that only three of them had
visited a doctor, whereas the remaining patients had dealt with their
worsening condition on their own, by increasing the doses of therapy
prescribed to them earlier. The Director of the Oncological Clinic in
Belgrade, Prof. Nikola Mitrovic, recently stated that since the bombing
started, the number of out-patients had declined from 700-1,000 per day, to
200 patients per day and he sent out an appeal to patients to keep coming
for diagnostic tests and not to interrupt their therapy because of the war,
as this would drastically increase the death rate among patients with
malignant diseases. There are about 150,000 cases of malignant tumours in
Serbia today. The average number of cured patients so far, was about 50%. If
the current practice continues, with only one fifth of all patients
continuing regularly to come for treatment, 60,000 people will not be cured.
Also, of the 30,000 newly diagnosed malignant cases registered in Serbia,
the lives of 24,000 of them will be in danger.

	According to the statement of Prof. Darko Plecas, Head of the Fertility
Department in the Belgrade Clinic Centre’s Gynaecological Clinic, since the
bombing started the numbers of miscarriages and premature births, perinatal
morbity and morality have increased, while the number of hospitalised women
patients has decreased by two thirds. Surgical operations are performed only
in emergencies, puerperium has been reduced only to two days. The Department
for Sterility and Endocrinology are not working, and the Obstetrics
Department is currently located in an epidemiologically unsuitable place.

In the Gastroenterology Department of the Clinic Center of Serbia, since
bombing started the number of out-patients had declined from 25 to 5 per
day, the number of impatiens word from 40 to 15 and number of ultrasound
examinations from 120-150 to 16 per day.

	At this point in time, it is not possible to clearly estimate the
consequences of this ongoing war on people’s health, and especially not
those which will manifest themselves in the coming years. The number of
civilian casualties in the NATO agression is more than the “over 500 killed
and several thousand wounded,” as it said in the statement of the Yugoslav
Ministry for Foreign Affairs. This refers only to the immediate victims, to
the number of civilians directly killed by the bombs or killed under the
debris of the destroyed buildings. The people who are suffering or who will
die, due to the consequences of the NATO bombing, have not been taken into
account. However, the data on the visible and dangerous effects of the
economic sanctions which the UN Security Council imposed against our country
in 1992, was presented at a conference on April 7th 1994, sponsored by the
Federal Ministry for Labour Health and Welfare and some other organisations.
I will cite some examples:

1. The total number of children who died in the Pediatric and Surgical
Departments of the University Clinic Hospital for Children in Belgrade, in
1993, was 141, which is 61 more than in 1991.
2. The mortality rate in the Clinic Centre of Serbia increased in 1992/1993
from 1.8% to 2.5% (i.e. by 40%).
3. The number of deaths from communicable diseases, e.g. AIDS
(enterocollitis, dysentry, TB, encephalitis, measles…) increased from 191
(in 1989) to 271 (in 1993). In Kosovo and Metohia, the number of epidemics
of infectious diseases increased from 2 in 1991, to 41 in 1993 (20 times over).
4. The number of people who became ill due to hydric epidemics (caused by
the inadequate bacteriological quality of water) in the entire territory of
Yugoslavia, increased from 889 (in 1990) to 8,080 (in 1993).
5. In the obstetrics departments of hospitals in Central Serbia, case
fatality rates due to hospital infections increased from 2.5% (in 1989) to
17.8 % (in 1992).
6. On the territory of Belgrade, by 1993 the availability of medical staff
qualified in children’s health care decreased by 12.5%, and by 24.9% in
adult health care. The number of undernourished school children dramatically
increased from 4.7% in 1989, to 9.4% in 1993. Due to problems connected with
the supply of medical materials, the number of laboratory diagnostic
procedures dropped by 36.03% and the taking of X-rays by 63.15%. In the
domain of physical medicine, the number of therapeutic and diagnostic
procedures decreased by 45.11%.
7. In the Institute of Gynaecology and Obstetrics at the Belgrade Clinic
Centre, the number of pregnant women with imminent miscarriages increased
from 360 in 1989, to 549 in 1993. The number of women in a state of imminent
premature delivery increased from 79 to 222, and the number of intrauterine
growth retardation increased from 93 to 191. In the same department, the
usage of disinfectants fell from 1,256 lit. (in 1989), to 432 lit. (in 1993).
8. The systematic medical examination of Belgrade University students
indicated a significant increase of anemia (from 3.4% in 1989, to 36% in
1992). In 1993, the number of registered cases of scabies increased
sevenfold, compared to 1989.
9. In Belgrade, the hospitalisation rate of people aged 60 years and over,
fell by 32.4%, with a significant increase in the mortality rate in
hospitals: from 74 to 96.6 per 1,000 hospitalised patients.
10.  The Institute of Oncology and Radiology of Serbia announced that 2,600
more patients died in the period from May 1992 to June 1993, than in the
corresponding periods prior to the imposition of the economic sanctions.
Also, due to the lack of early detection of malignant diseases, 55,000
patients will not survive a period of 5 years.
11.  In the Institute for Cardiovascular Diseases in the Belgrade Clinic
Centre, the percentage of pacemaker implantations dropped by 36.2%  in 1993,
in comparison to 1992.
12.  Referring to life threatening late diabetic complications, the Diabetic
Centre of the Institute for Endocrinology in the Belgrade Clinic Centre
announced that the incidence of amputation as the outcome of treatment of
foot gangrene increased more than tenfold in the first six months of 1993,
compared to 1992.



POLLUTION IN THE CONDITIONS OF THIS WAR – DANGER OF AN ECOLOGICAL CATASTROPHE

Professor  Predrag Polic
Chemical Faculty, University of Belgrade

	Polluting substances endanger the population directly through several
mediums: air, water and food, but one should not neglect the indirect
influence stemming from the chemical transformation of pollutants (which can
result in the increase or in the reduction of their toxicity), as well as
from the fact that they tend to accumulate (most often in geological
formations or in the biosphere). Because of NATO’s military actions in
Yugoslavia the most acute problem is air pollution, in view of the fact that
the pollutants spread quickly through the air, that it is impossible to
protect the population swiftly and efficiently and because it largely
depends on the weather. For example: Belgrade would have experienced a major
ecological disaster on April 18 this year, had the wind been blowing from
the east-northeast. All the toxic substances from the Pan~evo industrial
zone (phosgene, vinyl-chloride), harmful and poisonous products of burning
fuel, but also many other substances, would have been blown right into
Belgrade. Luckyly, the wind was westerly, at times strong, and rain also
helped in the reduction of air pollution (including phosgene hydrolysis,
yielding carbon dioxide and hydrochloric acid). However, it is almost
impossible to evaluate the qualitative and quantitative aspects of downwind
pollution because of rinsing (and pollution of soil, water and plant life),
as well as because of indirect influences caused by chloridisation and other
chemical reactions. The next day, which was sunny, certainly contributed to
various photochemical reactions, especially in higher layers of the
atmosphere, and the spreading of toxic substances towards the east was
certainly not limited only to Serbia’s territory. The wind blowing from the
west definitelly would not be an “ally” of the capital in the event of a
hydrofluoric acid emission from Baric, especially if the fact is taken into
consideration that gas-masks provide no protection against this toxic
substance. With pollution which results from the burning of fuel one should
primarily pay attention to the products of incomplete combustion – the
highly toxic carbon monoxide, aldehydes (which take part in photochemical
reactions), soot (which adsorbs extremely dangerous polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons) and other substances. Heavy metals are also extremely
dangerous, such as mercury which in its methylated form (the most toxic) can
be transported for thousands of miles. One should also not rule out the
possibility of the use of defoliants, used in the Vietnam war, such as
“dioxine” (2,3,7,8-tetrachloro-dibenzo-p-dioxine), both in phase one (air
raids) and in the event of a ground intervention. When we consider the
radioactive pollution of the air and the use of 30mm anti-armour ammunition
made with so-called depleted uranium, which is flammable and upon impact
turns into a quite mobile aerosol, besides alpha radiation, we must not
forget the chemical toxic qualities of uranium. One should probably not even
mention the consequences of the eventual targeting of nuclear facilities at
the “Vinca” institute, but this pollution would certainly spread into all
spheres – air, water, soil and the biosphere.
	Water pollution is a less acute, but not a potentially less dangerous
problem. One should certainly not underestimate the pollution of rivers with
oil and its derivatives, as well as the potential pollution with acids,
alkalies, ohenoles and suchlike. But oil flows away, acids and alkalies are
quickly diluted, phenoles hydrolise, etc. The pollution of underground
waters is much more dangerous, since they have a very limited capacity for
self-purification (this is why “Makis“ and many other wells are in great
danger, because pollutants reach underground waters both from the surface
and by infiltarting through the bank sediments of polluted rivers). It
should also be remembered that rivers, although they flow, are being
self-purified by their bottom sediments, therefore toxic substances
accumulate and, if not degraded, can be released (mobilised) again if there
is a change in the physical and chemical properties of the water – ionic
forces, pH, redox potentials, the presence of complexing agents (including
natural ones – humic substances, which can increase or reduce both the
mobility and the toxicity of polluting substances). Artificial accumulations
on large rivers are in special danger because the process of sedimentation
is increased due to the slowing down of the flow of the river – this is
especially related to the \erdap accumulations. It is a fact that here also,
just like in the case of air pollution, state boundaries do not exist – a
dramatic pollution of practically any river in Serbia will almost certainly
affect (in several days, months or years) the neighbouring “downstream”
countries.
	Technological backwordness of our industry (and infrastructure as a whole)
will inflict catastrophic consequences to both underground and surface
waters. Namely, the use of polychlorinated biphenyles (PCB) in transformer
stations (cancer inducing substances which were banned in the world decades
ago) – means that destroying any transformer station, whether it is a part
of an energy producing section in some of the already destroyed oil
refineries, a transformer station in any industrial plant, or in the
transmitting tower at Mt. Avala, will cause a spill of these substances, and
it is a known fact that one litre of pyralene (PCB) pollutes one billion
litres of water. One should also bear in mind that even in those facilities
where pyralene was replaced by permitted liquids, the PCB was, in most
cases, not destroyed (neutralised) but only stored somewhere in the factory
yard, where the barrels are again exposed to potential destruction.
	Finally, the consequences of the chemical pollution of food is most easy to
control, therefore the danger to the population in this case is greatly
reduced, especially if we speak about final products. However, agricultural
products can be contaminated by polluted water, atmosphere precipitation and
by all the toxic substances mentioned above.




CONSEQUENCES OF WAR ON CHILDREN IN SRJ


Professor Ivan Ivic
President of Council for Children Rights


Children suffering from NATO aggression are both short and long-term.
Short-term, children are exposed to traumatic experiences, primarily to
psychotraumatic experiences (fears, etc). 
In this paper we are going emphasize the long-term effects that war has on
psychological health and psychological development of children.
We have to remind ourselves that by attacking SRJ, all newer international
documents which were referring to children have been violated: UN Convention
of Children Rights, Education for All (which is coordinated by UNESCO,
UNICEF and Worlds Bank), UNESCO’s Education for the XXI century, UNESCO’s
program for Construction of The Peace Culture. The present situation which
came as a result of war, made executing of Yugoslav plan Activity for
Children which was passed by Federal Government of Yugoslavia and helped by
UNESCO absolutely impossible.
How was this violation of very important international documents committed?
Shortly: by imperilment of conditions for children’s development and by
creating endangering environment which is most likely to lead to long-term
consequences.
The following facts testify to this:
	
a) All rights of the whole population of children in SRJ, i.e. 2 600 000
children are violated. The difference is only in level of violation for
different children and different rights.
· Children lives are endangered (there are already 30 children who were
killed in this war and this number increases every day).
· Health and physical development of large number of children is endangered
(more about this in the special supplement).
· All children are exposed to traumatic experiences which will, in case that
war continues most probably lead to long-term consequences. Basic stress
agents are: sudden and dramatic disturbance of the environment; destructive
surrounding for children’s development; total disturbance of normal life
routine (schools stopped working, bombing is going on every night, normal
rhythm of sleeping is being disturbed, days and nights are spent in shelters
and basements); intensive fears (numerous strong alarms that signalize
danger from the air attacks are present every day; strong bomb explosions,
sights of massive distractions, fearful pictures of human suffering and
ruination on TV, very distressed adults and dramatic changes of their
behavior, separation from fathers who are mobilized, abandon one’s usual
surrounding, etc.). Testimonies of parents, teachers, psychologists, etc.
say that more sensitive and unstable children have already shown serious
behavior disorders. Unfortunately we can expect even more sever disorders
and mass long-term consequences.

a) Destruction of the country’s economical potentials evokes beginning of
mass poverty. 30% of families in SRJ had lived in state of poverty even
before the war began. Now this percent is on the increase. This is one of
the main causes of the long term effect that war has on the mental health
and mental development of children.
 
b) Certain categories of children are being specifically affected by the
state of  war. Work of organizations which help handicapped children and
children  with special needs have been disturbed (and there are 175-200 000
children who have these problems). Number of prematurely born babes
increased and resources for their protection decreased. Preadolescent and
adolescent groups are disorientated in regard of values. This is because
they have accepted universal adolescent culture, culture that came from the
same countries that are now attacking their own homeland. Young people are
unable to see any prospective for themselves.
 
c) Children in SRJ are denied right to education despite Convention of
Children Rights, and plan Education for All which prescribed it. When the
war began all educational institutions stopped working (because it was very
dangerous to gather a large number of children during bombing at the same
place). For approximately 1 450 000-1 500 000 pupils and students the whole
school year is in disorder. (There are 150-200 000 children who are in
preschools, 850-880 000 in primary schools, 330-370 000 in high schools and
approximately 130 000 young people who are studying at the SRJ
universities). This radical disturbance of educational process has very
negative influence on children especially because it leaves them in
something we could call vacuum. At the same time the surrounding is very
disarranged and destructive.
 
d) In the last decade many programs and projects started in Yugoslavia
(mostly in NGOs organization). Quite a number of these projects were
concerned with education for peace, tolerance and peaceful conflict solving
strategies. Brutal aggression made all that senseless. UNESCO’s program for
Peace Culture Construction became absolutely absurd in situation where all
that was shown (very forcefully) to young people in Yugoslavia was model of
aggressive behavior. In one word, all the efforts for building peace culture
were annulled.


INVISIBLE DESTRUCTION OF MIND



Professor Zarko Trebješanin
president of Union of psychologists of Yugoslavia



	The war that NATO leads against Yugoslavia is characterized not only by
striking inequality of strengths but also by arrogant demonstration of
high-developed technology for destruction and murdering from the safe
distance. Consequences of the destruction are visible and really frightful,
but that is to be told by someone else. I am skilled to talk about that
invisible destruction, about destruction of psychological life, about murder
of hope and personality.
	Everybody is struck by this invisible destruction. This refers not only to
the army but also to the civilians who are, because of their helplessness
usually even more liable to effect of stress. Among civilians older
children, women, older people, disabled and sick persons, and handicapped
children are those who are especially sensitive and exposed to psychological
injuries.
	Psychological consequences of war are direct, instant but also indirect and
long-term.
	Each sound of alarm, explosion nearby, each fire and ruination evoke stress
and bigger or smaller fear. If the stressor has prolonged activity he can
also cause nervousness, anger and aggressiveness or anxiety, disorientation,
depersonalization, depression, despair and apathy. Psychologically and
emotionally less stabile persons are lacking capacity to endure the state of
war, alarms, going to shelters, catastrophic rumors, etc. These persons are
under great risk of surviving psychological breakdowns, attacks of anxiety
and panic, and in some cases some of reactive neuroses can develop.
	Apart from these temporary, direct reactions, prolonged remaining in
stressful situation lead to chronic worry, insomnia and psychological
exhaustion. As it is already known, the onset of many psychological
disorders and the loss of psychological equilibrium are not to be seen so
frequently until the end of the war. It is only then that the latent
pathologic processes become visible. Usually, that is the period when ego
defenses collapse and war neuroses, phobias and psychosomatic diseases develop.
	In this paper I would like to lay stress upon baleful influence of this war
on personality and its values. As its proclaimed goal NATO has protection of
human rights and basic principles of western civilization with special
emphasis laid upon democratic values. However, by its aggression sever
damage was made not only to development of Yugoslav democratic institutions
but also to that human, psychological foundation which democratic relations
and social institutions are based upon. Just when democratic conciseness and
democratic orientation of personality had begun to develop amongst people in
this country, bombs started falling destroying all that and for a longer
period of time, too.
	In a defensive war like this one is, strengthening of collectivism is
logical and psychologically absolutely expected phenomenon. Being in front
of the external enemy will homogenize the imperiled population, reactivate
authoritative conciseness and undemocratic orientation. It is hard to
imagine that personality traits, values and attitudes like tolerance,
open-mindedness, anticonformism, individualism, openness towards the world,
etc. could be developed during the war and even after it. And these are
precisely the traits and the values upon which democratic orientation and
democratic behavior is being built. It is not hard to anticipate development
of xenophobic tendencies, intolerance of political differences. On the other
hand, strengthening of traditional patriarchal values, cult of leader,
collectivism and discipline, black and white thinking, conservatism and many
other traits, attitudes and values of an authoritative conciseness are also
expected as outputs of this war. In conclusion, I am afraid that this crude
demonstration of force will radically extinguish hopes that people have in
rule of right and ruin fate in peaceful way of problem solving. At the same
time it can establish force as the only efficient way of solving problems,
i.e. conflicts.


THE (AB)USE OF FORENSIC MEDICINE

Professor Dusan Dunjic
Institute for Forensic Medicine

The effort to ensure convincing evidence regarding many deaths caused by
human rights violations entails adequate and reliable documentation. Due to
the lack of appropriate forensic documents, many cases of human rights
violations have remained unsolved, and the perpetrators of the crimes have
not been brought to justice. Suffice it to mention the genocide against the
Serbs, Jews and Roma in the concentration camp of Jasenovac and other camps
throughout the fascist Independent State of Croatia, during the II World War.

The international community’s adoption of a “protocol” is only the first
step in ensuring the objective presentation of the results of expertises.
However, it is also important to note how such an adopted document is
applied in other countries and by domestic experts. Indeed, if it is applied
as such, why are the obtained results not adequately validated by the
international community?

An evident example of double standards in the presentation and acceptance of
results of such expertises, using the standard and internationally accepted
protocol, can be seen on the basis of the most recent events in Kosovo and
Metohija, following the discovery of a large number of victims on the
Glodjane and Racak sites.

In the first case (Glodjane), an expertise was carried out on the victims of
ethnic Albanian separatism, who were caught by terrorists of the KLA,
tortured and murdered on the territory of the village of Glodjane near
Decani, in the period from April to the end of August 1998.  Most of them
were Serbs of various ages (the majority older than 50 years), of both
sexes, several were Catholic Albanians and some were Albanians loyal to the
Yugoslav state in which they live, and two were Roma.

Following the discovery of the site of the mass crime, near the village of
Glodjane, a team of medical experts from the Faculty of Medicine in Belgrade
started work on the very spot where the bodies were discovered. The entire
procedure was conducted according to the Republic of Serbia’s Criminal Law
and Law on Criminal Procedure, under the immediate supervision of the
Investigating Judge of the District Court in Pec (which has jurisdiction
over this area). All the work was public and on several occasions, reporters
from numerous foreign and domestic radio and TV broadcasting stations
visited the expert team, as did the OSCE representatives who were present in
Kosovo and Metohija at that time (representatives of the USA, Germany,
Russia, Greece, Great Britain), as well as many Yugoslav experts.  All the
details of the investigation were shown to these representatives, Neither
then, nor later, did they have any objections regarding the work of the team.

The results of the investigation unquestionably indicated that at least 40
persons had been killed on this site. The majority of the bodies had wounds
inflicted by firearms and injuries from blunt, mechanical objects.  The
forensic identification in a number of cases was difficult owing to
progressive decay, but despite this 12 persons were identified.

The expertise revealed the great importance and role of forensic medicine in
the timely verification of crimes against humanity, bearing many features of
the crime of genocide for national and/or religious motives, as demonstrated
by the perpetrators of these acts: the terrorist organisation of Kosmet
Albanians, otherwise known as the “KLA”.

Finally, all the results of the expertise were presented to the Yugoslav
public and to foreign experts (the expert team from Finland as the EU
representatives for Kosovo and Metohija, and the experts from Belarus. So
far, there have been no objections to the expert team’s work but the
international community (primarily the EU) did not raise its voice to
condemn this evident crime against our people, both in terms of
international standards and according to Yugoslav law.

Throughout its work in the field and during the expertise in Djakovica, the
team was under the continual protection of the police, so as to be free to
do its work. The reason for armed police protection lay in the fact that the
terrorist organisation of the Kosmet Albanians, the so-called “KLA”, was
constantly carrying out individual attacks against smaller groups of
civilians, members of the police and the army. A large number of people were
killed or seriously injured in these attacks, in the meantime.  In the
majority of cases, forensic specialists from Pristina immediately performed
autopsies on the victims, and in three cases they were joined by a forensic
team from Belgrade.

As circumstances underwent a significant change and the terrorist attacks
intensified (at the end of October, in November and December 1998), the
number of murdered and missing people increased. Thus, the victims from
Glodjane were forgotten, as were more than 200 persons (most of them Serbs
and loyal Albanians, Catholic Albanians and Roma) who went missing on the
territory of Kosovo and Metohija during 1998.

The case of the village of Racak was the logical outcome of the individual
and sum total of the preceding mass killings of civilians and the members of
the Republic of Serbia’s law enforcement bodies, committed by the terrorist
organisation of Kosmet Albanians known as the “KLA”, and as a result of the
double standards of the international community in “validating the victims”.

If one leaves aside the reasons for which the Racak case was constructed, we
observe a situation in which an attempt was made to manipulate the forensic
specialists who were supposed to provide evidence of a massacre or to refute
such claims.  In order to ensure an objective presentation of the victims
from Racak, the Yugoslav government received experts from Finland, who were
to join the expert team from Yugoslavia (consisting of the foremost forensic
experts in our country) and two independent experts from Belarus.

Autopsies were performed on the Racak victims in Pristina, and this is the
first time, as far as we know, that an expertise was conducted
simultaneously by expert teams from three countries. The professional part
of the work was conducted in such a way that the Yugoslav pathologists
performed the autopsies, while the other two teams had their own observers
who made out reports independently, each for their own teams. At the end of
each autopsy, the teams agreed on their conclusions.  At the same time, a
video recording was made of the entire procedure. In this way, the
conclusions were in accord: on the cause of death; the conclusion referring
to the means with which wounds were inflicted; whether all the injuries were
inflicted while the victims were alive, and whether any were inflicted after
death (and, if so, what had caused them); whether there were traces of gun
powder explosion around the wounds on the bodies (distance).

In the course of our work, the Finnish team was in direct contact with the
OSCE and EU verifiers.  However, towards the end of our work, it was
announced that William Walker (the head of the Kosovo Verification Mission)
refused to acknowledge the professional standards of the work of the Finnish
team, and only recognised those of the Hague Tribunal investigators. Of
course, this did not influence our work and we all completed the autopsies
together.  Cooperation among the members of all three teams was excellent.
The expert team from Finland (headed by Dr.Helen Ranta, a forensic
stomatologist) wished to remain consistent in its standards and decided to
publish the results of its examinations after all the analyses were
finished.  One should emphasise that this procedure is in full accordance
with professional rules.  It should be added that directly before beginning
the expertise, the Yugoslav pathologists took samples from the hands on all
the bodies, to find out whether there were traces of gun powder explosion on
them. Criminological technicians confirmed the presence of traces of gun
powder explosion on the hands of 37 out of the 40 examined bodies. The
discovery of traces of gun powder explosion indicates that directly before
death, these people had handled firearms.

As soon as the autopsies were completed and agreement was reached on the
conclusion after each autopsy, in keeping with the Yugoslav law, the expert
teams from Yugoslavia and Belarus sent their conclusions in a written report
to the Investigating Judge.  Thus, after the autopsies were done, the
Investigating Judge of the Pristina District Court, Danica Marinkovic,
received our findings and conclusions for each individual case.  With this,
our function as forensic specialists was completed.

Was there a massacre in the village of Racak, or not? A valid reply to this
crucial question could only come from the investigating bodies and on the
basis of the forensic experts’ findings.  Indeed, on the basis of the
completed autopsies and additional tests that were conducted, we established
the following facts:
- all the dead had sustained wounds exclusively from firearms (one, two or
more);
- the bodies bore no traces of other injuries (from blunt or sharp objects
and suchlike);
- except in two cases where doubt was expressed about the presence of gun
powder explosion (which was tested), all the other wounds did not bear
traces of gun powder explosion, which undoubtedly leads to the conclusion
that they were all inflicted from a distance;
- all the wounds had occurred before death, except in six cases where traces
of the activity of large and small animals on the bodies, occurring after
death, were discovered;
- the wounds were localised in different parts and sides of the bodies and
had been inflicted from different directions;
- the wounds on the bodies were acompanied by corresponding damage to the
clothing on the bodies, which indicates that the clothing on the bodies had
not been changed;
- the bodies were clothed in different kinds of civilian clothing, but it is
characteristic that they all had two or three pairs of trousers on them, and
several pairs of socks (if they had been sitting indoors why had they been
wearing so much clothing, unless they had spent a long period outdoors);
about ten of them were found to be wearing identical long, dark grey,
military underpants, black, rubber military boots of foreign make; money,
knives and other items.  A number of the younger persons (aged between 18
and 25 years) were wearing identical black trousers and short, black leather
jackets. (Later we received information that they were members of the
terrorist organisation’s “special police” and that this was their “uniform”.)

Therefore, all these facts led the investigating bodies to conclude that 
this concrete case did not involve a “massacre” in the village of 
Racak, but a legitimate battle of the authorities against terrorists (and
what are armed civilians if not terrorists?).

	On March 17th 1999, the head of the expert team from Finland, submitted the
report on the results of their expertise, in Pristina. The results of their
team were almost in every respect identical to our findings and conclusions.
However, in a separate report made out for the press conference in the OSCE
(KVM) mission in Pristina, the head of the Finnish team literally wrote the
following:

	“These comments are based on the medical examinations conducted by the EU
team of pathologists …The comments represent the personal views of the
author, Dr. Helen Ranta, and should not be interpreted in any way as the
authorised communication of the Department for Forensic Medicine of the
University of Helsinki, or the EU expert team of pathologists…”

	In her comments, Helen Ranta also concluded the following:

	“…There were no indications that these people had been anything else but
unarmed civilians…”

	The events in Racak were described as a “massacre”.

	However, this conclusion does not fall within the competence of the EU team
of pathologists or any other persons who took part individually in the
examination of the bodies.  The term “massacre” cannot be based only on
medical evidence…it is more appropriate for criminal investigators to use
this term, in order to initiate legal procedure… 

Without going into the “personal comments” of the forensic 
stomatologist, these two examples clearly demonstrate the place, importance
and role of forensic medicine in ascertaining material evidence regarding
human rights violations, indicate the double standards applied in the
evaluation of our findings, and also point to the enormous responsibility of
doctors in giving their “personal comments” and, the tragic consequences
which the prejudiced (William Walker) elaboration of incorrect conclusions
by politicians can have.


MEANINGLESS OF THE BOMBARDMENT IN HISTORY

Dr. Predrag Markovic
Institute for Contemporary History

History of the Belgrade and Serbian people is permeated with  war and
bloodshed. Ironically, Belgrade is the first  capital city in Europe that
has been bombed in the 20th century (and hopefully the last one).  On July
28,  1914  bombs fired on  Belgrade from Austro-Hungarian river boats marked
the beginning of the First World War, almost a week  before the start of the
operations elsewhere. Belgrade was bombed throughout 1914 and 1915. 
	However, the 20th  century introduced a new  conception of the bombing
campaigns. Since introduction of the canons in the army arsenals,
bombardment of the cities was purposed either to make breach in the city
walls, (as in Constantinople), or to be demonstration of power (like in
numerous colonial wars). In the 20th century, bombardment of the cities was
designed to  terrorize and demoralize civilian population. 
	The development of the aviation  made possible air raids. Mass air raids
were tested in Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) by Luftwaffe. Public opinion
reacted strongly against it , especially in artistic and intellectual
circles (Gernica), but  democratic governments, did not.  
	In the Second World War, Belgrade did not avoid the fate of many cities in
occupied Europe. In April 1941, Luftwaffe grounded this city. Furthermore,
Allies heavily bombed Belgrade, on Passion Sunday 1944. Very few German
soldiers died,  unlikely hundreds of civilians. Such “ collateral damage”
was rather common in those days. Some French ports were completely
destroyed, but German garrisons in this towns were unharmed. Even in Germany
itself,  when military capacity is concerned, bombing campaigns were
spectacularly ineffective until the last year of the war. The most terrible
bombing,  that of Dresden in Spring 1945, is characteristic case of the
absurdity: whole city has been burned, in spite of the fact that there was
no German army, only civilians and refugees. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were
also victims of the first Cold War tensions. Namely, according to recent
studies, real purpose of their annihilation was to  impress Soviets, and to
probe the most expensive weapon in previous history (over $2  billions was
spent, which was  fore example, more than complete Japanese military
production in 1941).
	Bombing campaigns did not prevent final victory of Vietcong. They did not
overthrow Saddam Hussein either. They are by no means beneficial for the
Kosovo refugees , let alone   entire Yugoslav population, that suffers
regardless political and national belonging. 
	Therefore,  stories about “collateral damage” and “collateral victims”  is
supreme cynicism. Indeed, CIVILANS ARE  REAL TARGET of each bombing campaign. 



DESTRUCTION OF CULTURAL MONUMENTS

Marko Omcikus

Republic Institute for protection of Cultural Monuments 

>From the very beginning of bombarding until now more than once have bombs
fallen in the mere vicinity of the monastery Gracanica. As a consequence
there is a damaged facade on the church, cracked dormitories and destroyed
objects of agricultural economy. Two of the missiles have fallen very close
to the Pec patriarchy. Permanent bombarding of Kursumlija damaged and
statically jeopardized three churches: Sv.Nikola, Sv.Bogorodica (12.
century), Sv.Marko -their environs are rather demolished as well. From the
beginning the monastery Rakovica near Belgrade has been a target several
times as well. As the consequence windows and roofs are broken, the static
firmness of the church and dormitories are seriously damaged, as well as the
buttress, while its fall would provoke sliding of soil towards the church
entrance and all objects inside. Due to the close explosion near the
monastery Novo Hopovo in Fruska Gora, flying buttress in the church is being
destabilized. Also a bomb fell near the monastery Vrdnik in Fruska Gora.
Drastic is an example of cracked and statically destabilized cryptic church
Sv.Petka in Vranje.

Towns Pristina, Prizren, Djakovica and many others in Kosovo and Metohija
are being systematically bombarded and their city cores are being destroyed
with all its ambient, cultural, historic values. Cities in Serbia are the
permanent target of NATO bombs, and buildings of extinguished architectural
values are being selected, some of these having the status of cultural
monuments. An example is the Royal Airforce Command building in Zemun, in
the very core of the city, an authorial work of Dragisa Brasovan. Another
work of the same author, building of Banovina in Novi Sad was also directly
struck. The building of MUP in Belgrade, is an authorial work of Iva Antic.

The demolition of bridges in Novi Sad is the barbarity of its kind. The
bridge which directly connected the center of Novi Sad with Petrovaradin
fortress, or just Petrovaradin, didn't have any strategic value, because its
construction could bear only pedestrians and easy vehicles. On the other
hand, it had vast cultural value, thanks to it Novi Sad with Petrovaradin
represented a unique cultural area and undivided cultural structure:
museums, museum belongings, galleries, art workshops, institutions for
protecting monuments and others, which were situated on both sides of
Danube; this means that the only strategy concerning this bridge was
exclusively of cultural value. Not even the certain elements of this
cultural structure in Novi sad were spared: Museum of Vojvodina and Archive
of Vojvodina were damaged, and the building of Banovina was directly hit, as
mentioned earlier.

Bombs are striking village areas with their dwellings and economic objects
built in the spirit of national tradition. One missile fell in an immediate
nearness of ethno-museum in Sirogojno (luckily it didn't explode). According
to the latest information bombs are falling all over Novi Pazar. Let me
remind you the whole area is proclaimed the world's cultural and natural
heritage by UNESCO.

Permanently bombing occurs, and among the targets of cultural heritage,
there are some belonging to ambient cultural entity. The precision of
missiles showed by the technology of killing, proves that even the
"imprecise" impacts are part of this precision. The case with Aleksinac, the
train in Grdelicka gorge, the group of Albanian refugees, and striking the
centers of Pristina, Prizren and Djakovica, are obvious examples that
targets are not only military goals and economy objects, but civilians as
well, civilian objects and cultural inheritance.

When it comes to monasteries and medieval churches, a conclusion that they
are not damaged or with some insignificant ravages, would be wrong.
Actually, afterwards consequences are to be seen. The vicinity from 200 m t
2 km causes concussions that endanger static of an object; especially when
we talk about missiles with cumulative power. Not only are these objects
endangered, but the future of frescoes is in question too. Sonic vibrations
divide fresco material from the main wall, so that it can cause the whole
fresco or its parts fall apart even after several years. Also the chemical
processes during the explosions may seriously jeopardize pigments of frescoes.

We are most susceptible when it comes to medieval heritage, but beside
monasteries there are masterpieces of urban and natural architecture, which
represent most of the monumental fond built up in the latest two centuries.
Some examples were previously mentioned: Brasanov's buildings in Zemun and
Novi Sad, buildings in Nemanja's street and Street of Knez Milos in
Belgrade. But some masterpieces were demolished in the center of Nis, and
some other cities, but we still don't have the precise information.

When we talk about the cultural heritage, definitely we can say that it is
on the target list of NATO aggressors, just as the National library was in
1941. by Hitler's Germany. The difference is that this time the tactics are
not the same, because at the turn of this century that wouldn't be popular
with the worldwide public opinion, because other libraries, universities and
monasteries in Europe shared the same destiny; but with "diluted" demolition
and "missed" hits the same goals are being achieved, and the whole damage so
far isn't any smaller comparing to the National library.

With  this report we cannot say that this sad balance is completed, because
so far we don't have at our disposal all the information from the terrain.
Also it is very hard to ascertain what and how hard damage is done when it
comes to the future static stability of medieval monasteries and churches,
especially the frescoes in them. The permanent bombing with no evident end,
with all effects on cultural heritage, more and more stabilizes our belief
that it is definitely aimed at our culture, history and remembrance of our
people, with the final goal of ceasing and forgetting the cultural map of
Europe and the world.



Prof. Dusan Pajin,
M. Popovica 28/14, 
11070 Novi Beograd
Yugoslavia

Tel: +381 11 133-888 - Fax: +381 11 636-386
Email: dpajin@f.bg.ac.yu
Home Page - http://dekart.f.bg.ac.yu/~dpajin/
WWW Painting Exhibition- http://afrodita.rcub.bg.ac.yu/~dpajin/exhibit/