Vasic: The unfounded detention of Milosavljevic and Zaric is a clear message to all Serbs who want to return to Kosovo

Lawyer Dejan A. Vasic, who represents the Serbs facing proceedings for alleged war crimes in Kosovo, says that many of them are being held in custody even though there are conditions for them to be released pending trial.

Vasic, speaking to Kosovo online, states that the cases of his clients, Serbian returnees Gavrilo Milosavljevic and Zarko Zaric, can be an indicative response to why this is the case.

As he emphasizes, by detaining them, they are prevented from living with their families on their property in Kosovo, sending a clear message to everyone considering returning to think carefully about it. Vasic highlights that Zarko Zaric returned to the village of Ljubozda six or seven years ago and has never left since, becoming one of the most beloved residents, even among the Albanians.

"Ljubozda is exclusively populated by the Albanians, and Zarko was, for a time, the only Serb living there. In the meantime, he was arrested by the Kosovo Police, and charged with war crimes, and all the villagers in this village can testify that he did not work during the war, did not harm anyone, and no one in that village has anything bad to say about him. In the meantime, his house was robbed, the perpetrators have not yet been found, and Zarko is still in custody in the Grdovac prison," Vasic says for Kosovo Online.

Another example of unjust detention, the lawyer highlights, is the case of Gavrilo Milosavljevic, who has been trying since the war, with the help of international missions and the Red Cross, to find the remains of his mother, who was brutally murdered shortly after the war.

According to Vasic, even though he had not found the body, Milosavljevic managed to declare his mother dead in the end and finally gain ownership of her apartment, where he planned to come with his wife and daughter.

At that moment, Vasic emphasizes, when he was supposed to be issued a property ownership document, he was arrested.

"What is indicative here, and what conclusions can we draw after such cases, will be clear to everyone," Vasic says.

According to him, there is no response from the international community to the arrests and unfounded accusations against the Serbs. Unfortunately, he does not expect there to be any.

"If the international community could ever do anything, it would have done so in these past twenty-five years. The international community, as a term itself, doesn't mean much and doesn't signify anything. It's a group of people who do something, or rather, nothing. From that perspective, none of us has ever harbored great hopes for the international community to help," Vasic says.

On the other hand, he points out, that the message that Pristina is trying to send to returning Serbs in Kosovo with such actions is clear.

"As for the returnees themselves, they have drawn their conclusions. If someone like Gavrilo Milosavljevic, one of the most amiable people you could ever meet, or someone like Zarko Zaric, who is the most beloved resident of Ljubozda despite being a Serb, if they are where they are, then anyone considering a return will think twice about it," Vasic concludes.