ŽUPLJANIN: TUZLA PENITENTIARY SHATTERS LAST ILLUSIONS OF JUSTICE FOR SERB VICTIMS

BANJA LUKA, AUGUST 5 /SRNA/ – The decision to allow the minster woman, Elfeta Veseli, to use prison leave and other out-of-prison privileges since 2024 is irrefutable proof that the Tuzla Penitentiary authorities have, in the most blatant manner, shattered the last illusions of law and justice for Serb victims, Slobodan Župljanin, the head of the Association of Republika Srpska Patriots, told SRNA.

Župljanin said that, unfortunately, this is only one part of integrated system created in the FBiH, which demonstrates the continued injustice inflicted upon Serb victims. "It could be said that those who committed crimes against Serbs receive a double reward. First, they are not prosecuted for years, and when they finally are, they receive minimum sentences. Then, those sentences are effectively individualized through prison and out-of-prison privileges that are hardly distinguishable from living in freedom," Župljanin said. He recalled that Elfeta Veseli, who committed a brutal crime over the young, innocent boy Slobodan Stojanović, received a minimum sentence and was later granted privileges "as if she had been a humanitarian worker during the war". "This is an insult not only to Serb victims and their families, but also to global justice-believing public. This is part of a policy of demonizing Serbs and reversing the victim - perpetrator roles. The perpetrator is given the status of a victim, while the victim disappears from the reach of law and justice. That is unacceptable and must be changed," Župljanin said. According to him, the situation can only change if the authorities of Republika Srpska begin acting proactively and effectively. "That is why we call on the judicial authorities, the police and the Prosecutor's Office of Republika Srpska to immediately initiate criminal proceedings before the courts of Republika Srpska and bring those responsible for these monstrous crimes to justice in Republika Srpska. They have the legal, moral and, above all, human right to do so. The crime was committed on the territory of Republika Srpska, and there is substantial evidence and numerous facts that were not examined during the previous proceedings and should be established before the courts of Republika Srpska," Župljanin stressed. He added that a criminal complaint should be filed without delay, an indictment issued, an arrest warrant published, and the convicted person arrested and prosecuted in Republika Srpska. "Anything less amounts to tacit support for those in the FBiH who are responsible for this and who are, in the most blatant way, mocking Serb victims," Župljanin said. The Tuzla Penitentiary confirmed to SRNA that the moinster woman, Elfeta Veseli, who was convicted of the murder of the boy Slobodan Stojanović, has been using out-of-prison privileges since September 2024. Veseli was initially sentenced by the Court of BiH to 10 years in prison for the brutal killing of Slobodan Stojanović. The Appellate Division of the same court later increased the sentence to 13 years' imprisonment after reclassifying the offense as a war crime against the civilian population. She has been in custody since September 2016, and her full sentence is scheduled to expire in 2029.