Remembering the Sjeverin Massacre Thirty-Four Years Later

Thirty-four years have passed since the abduction and murder of Bosniak civilians from Sjeverin. On October 22, 1992, a Serbian paramilitary group known as the Avengers stopped a passenger bus in the village of Mioce. Milan Lukic led the unit. The fighters abducted 16 Bosniak workers who were travelling to work. Another civilian, Sabahudin Catovic, was abducted from his home the night before.

The fighters transported the kidnapped civilians to the Vilina Vlas hotel in Visegrad. Inside the hotel, the soldiers severely beat and tortured the victims with wooden clubs. The paramilitaries then took the captives to the banks of the Drina River and killed them. All 17 victims were citizens of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. To date, authorities have found the remains of only one victim, Medredin Hodzic.

In 2005, the Belgrade District Court convicted four men for the crime. Milan Lukic, Oliver Krsmanovic, and Dragutin Dragicevic each received 20 years in prison. Dorde Sevic received a 15-year prison sentence.

Civil society organizations continue to call for justice and accountability. They urge Serbian authorities to recognize the victims as civilian victims of war and provide financial support to their families. Activists also demand more search efforts for the missing bodies and call on regional institutions to avoid business ties with war crime sites like the Vilina Vlas hotel.