27 years since the abduction of journalists Slavuj and Perenic: The search for truth continues

On the road between Velika Hoca and Zociste, at the site where journalists of Radio Pristina Djuro Slavuj and Ranko Perenic were last seen 27 years ago before all traces of them disappeared, journalists, colleagues, and family members gathered today to demand that the fate of the two media workers be clarified and that those responsible be brought to justice.

Carrying photographs of the abducted journalists and a banner in Serbian and Albanian reading “Return our colleagues”, those gathered by the memorial plaque dedicated to Slavuj and Perenic reiterated their determination not to abandon the pursuit of justice. Representatives of the OSCE also attended the commemoration.

Ivana Vanovac, President of the Association of Journalists of Kosovo and Metohija, emphasized that twenty-seven years is a long time to repeat the same story, but that all journalists know the importance of perseverance once a story begins—especially in order to achieve results.

“Even if we risk being considered tedious by the public, by international representatives, or by the judiciary, we will take that risk and continue to repeat the same sentence and the same demand that we have been voicing for years: our colleagues disappeared here. Our colleagues—seventeen in total—have gone missing across Kosovo over the years, and we insist that, after more than a decade, investigations must be launched and the perpetrators brought to justice. We say this now, and we will say it as many times as necessary,” Vanovac stated.

She thanked the OSCE representatives who attended the commemoration.

“Thank you to the OSCE Mission, which in previous years was in fact the only one to approach this issue with seriousness and provide support. Among the seventeen missing are Serbs, Albanians, and international journalists, and that is why I appeal that this engagement continue—so that one day we may finally be able to say: we know where our colleagues are, and we know who will be held accountable,” Vanovac underlined.

Petar Zivkovic, a member of the Board of the Association of Journalists of Serbia (UNS), vowed to continue working to uncover those responsible.

“I would first ask myself and you: what are we doing here? We are doing what our two colleagues, Djuro and Ranko, were doing on August 21, 1998—seeking answers. And we will continue to do the same until those questions are answered, hoping that our message, our appeal, and our demand will eventually ‘return’ our colleagues,” Zivkovic said.

Zivojin Rakocevic, President of the Association of Journalists of Serbia, stressed that abandoning the pursuit of truth must never be an option.

“This is an entire human lifetime, and in that lifetime there has not been a single micron of justice in this case. As time passed, the plight of Slavuj and Perenic became entwined with that of other colleagues and journalists in Kosovo and Metohija. The figure of seventeen abducted, killed, and missing Serbian, Albanian, and international journalists is the largest number of media workers missing or killed on European soil—until the tragedy in Ukraine. The essence of our gathering is the message of families, victims, colleagues, and professionals: the message of truth. We must never, not for a single moment, think that we can abandon the search for truth,” he stressed.

He recalled appeals made to every possible domestic and international institution to take action in the case.

“We ourselves searched the streams and ravines here after being told their car had been seen in this area. But we found nothing. The conspiracy of silence means the criminals are still here, that those who abducted them are here, watching us. They demolished this memorial plaque eight times, and we rebuilt it nine times. In that process there was despair, and a resignation that nothing would ever change. But our repeated message has always been: we seek them and will continue to seek them for as long as we live. Then something happened that renewed and encouraged us. After many years, a boy appeared here—Matija, the grandson of Ranko Perenic. At that moment we understood that when we can no longer speak from this place, our colleagues, our truth, and our profession will still have someone to search for them. This place has become a symbol, and from here, regardless of their disappearance, freedom begins,” Rakocevic said.

The gathering was secured by the Kosovo Police and KFOR.

Ranko Perenic and Djuro Slavuj disappeared on August 21, 1998, near Velika Hoca while on assignment.

In 2012, a memorial plaque was placed near the abduction site as a reminder against forgetting. It has since been destroyed eight times. The plaque bears an inscription in Serbian and Albanian: “Here, on 21 August 1998, our colleagues, journalists, were abducted. We demand them.”