Podgorica, (MINA) - The Center for Civic Education (CEO) has called on the Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office (SPO) to demonstrate determination and genuine will to bringing the perpetrators of the war crime in Kaludjerski laz, in which 21 people of Albanian nationality were killed, to justice.

The CGO recalled that on April 18 1999, six people were killed and five wounded in Kaludjerski laz, and that in the days that followed, 11 more were killed.

Maja Marinovic of this NGO said that during the NATO bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1999, about 100,000 refugees from the then Autonomous Province of Kosovo entered Montenegro seeking refuge from the war.

She said that although the majority crossed the border safely, in several cases the Yugoslav Army opened fire on refugees in the area of ​​responsibility of the Podgorica Corps, resulting in civilian casualties.

Marinovic said that the “Kaludjerski laz” case began with the indictment filed on July 30 2008 against eight members of the Yugoslav Army, and that it ended with the acquittal of all the accused.

“The Montenegrin judiciary has an obligation to thoroughly review this case, especially considering that the investigation was slow, ineffective and lacked the necessary determination”, Marinovic believes.

According to her, the Prosecutor’s Office must intensify activities that could lead to new indictments and the identification of those responsible.

“Progress in this case would be of key importance not only for justice for the victims, but also for strengthening trust in the institutions and Montenegro’s advancing under Chapter 23 (Judiciary and Fundamental Rights)”, stated Marinovic.