Families of the slain Serbs in Livadice: We will never forget, but for us, there is no justice

A memorial service was held at the Church of St. Petka in Laplje Selo near Gracanica for the 12 slain Serbs, who were killed 23 years ago in a bomb attack on the "Nis Ekspres" bus in the village of Livadice near Podujevo.

After the memorial service, a remembrance was held at the grave of one of the victims, Mirjana Dragovic. Mirjana's sister, Jelena Stojanovic, stated that years passed, and the families still did not have answers to the question of who and why had done this.

"I often wonder how patient we are as a people, how much we can endure and bear. The only thing that gives me an answer is faith and hope. We don't know where we get such a big heart to hope that we can stay here. It is certain that we will not forget our Mirjana, all those who were killed, kidnapped. We will not allow their names to be forgotten, and their voices unheard. Every day is a new memory and a new struggle," Stojanovic said.

Gordana Djoric, who was on one of the buses that day, said that the event was always in her memory.

"That will deeply remain with us who experienced that tragedy, who saw the dismembered bodies of our fellow citizens, the injured. It is deep within me, and I am sure in others who experienced it. There is not a day that we do not remember that case. There is also bitterness because those who committed the crime have not been punished, but they are somewhere among us. During the trial, that man turned towards us, and I still remember his cynical smile, it haunts me. Injustice affects us daily. For us, there is no justice from the international community, nor from the Kosovo institutions, nor from those who should find and punish those who committed that crime, as well as all other crimes from 1999 onwards," Djoric said.

Lawyer Zivojin Jokanovic emphasized that this event was one in a series of hundreds of crimes committed against the Serbs that remained unresolved.

"We have over 900 different incidents that remain unclarified, one of the most heinous being Livadice. No less alarming are the cases of the harvesters in Staro Gracko, the murder of Popovic from Klina, the attack on boys in Gorazdevac... The only resolved crime that has received a judicial conclusion is the murder of Dimitrije Popovic. In the case of Livadice, we had an identified perpetrator, who was found based on a cigarette butt, through DNA analysis. This is the most reliable means of identification. Why did the investigation stop? The perpetrator was convicted, but in a strange procedure, the case was suspended and he was acquitted due to lack of evidence. This is the first case that was closed in such a gruesome manner," Jokanovic said.

Officials from local authorities, as well as Assistant Director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Igor Popovic, attended the memorial service alongside the family of the deceased Mirjana Dragovic, who emphasized that the Livadice crime had left a pain in their hearts.

"Twenty-three years after the tragic event, we are still waiting for justice for the people who, a year and a half after the end of the armed conflict in Kosovo and Metohija, wanted to visit the graves of their loved ones on All Souls' Day, hoping that some peace had been achieved and that it was safe. Unfortunately, a terrorist attack occurred. Despite the presence of numerous international community forces and security capacities who promised to find the perpetrators, to this day we have not seen any of them punished, except one who was acquitted. We call and appeal for justice, for the case that was suspended due to alleged lack of evidence to be reopened and for those responsible to be punished. Instead, we see Serbs being portrayed as terrorists for defending their right to live in the environment where they were born. We call on the international community and local institutions to use their capacities to find those responsible for the terrorist attack instead of persecuting Serbs," Popovic said.

In the terrorist attack on the "Nis Ekspres" bus on February 16, 2001, in Livadice, 12 Serbs were killed, and 43 were injured. Florim Ejupi was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the bombing, as his DNA was found at the location where the bomb was detonated. However, he was acquitted by the EULEX court due to lack of evidence.