Human Rights Action believes that an important verdict has been passed so as to deal with wartime past of Montenegro. If this verdict becomes final, it will finally be recognized that the war crimes in the “Centre for the reception of prisoners” in Morinj occurred, that the prisoners of war were tortured, contrary to international and domestic law, as well as the degrading treatment of prisoners of war and civilians in time of war and armed conflict. The trial was also important because it showed that the victims, in addition to those who were abusing them, remembered the guards too, Montenegrin citizens, who behaved humanely in such inhuman conditions, such as Mladen Prorocic, who was praised by several witnesses at the trial.

We hope that the verdict shall, at least to some extent, bring satisfaction to the victims. In addition to the consequences suffered due to time spent in the Morinj camp, the victims were also burdened by the fact that the State Prosecutor of Montenegro has not been interested for 15 years in great suffering they endured on the Montenegrin territory.

The question remains why haven’t yet been charged all of those indicated by the prisoners who participated in their systematic abuse, as well as those who were superior to direct perpetrators and as such were obliged to prevent and punish their crimes. Command responsibility did exist in domestic law in 1991, in the Criminal Code in the form of responsibility for failure to act, complicity and assistance in committing of war crimes.