Croatian Association of Prisoners in Serbian Concentration Camps
Encyclopedia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n jails and prison camps during the Croatian War of Independence
Croatian War of Independence
The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between forces loyal to the government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia —and the Serb-controlled Yugoslav People's Army and local Serb forces, with the JNA ending its combat...
. The organization was founded in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
in 1995 and began its work that same year . Its offices are located on Ban Jelačić Square
Ban Jelacic Square
Ban Jelačić Square is the central square of the city of Zagreb, Croatia, named after ban Josip Jelačić. The official name is Trg bana Jelačića...
.
In 2006 the association was admitted to the World Veterans Federation
World Veterans Federation (WVF)
The World Veterans Federation is the world's largest international veteran organisation. The federation currently consists of 170 veterans organizations from 93 countries representing some 25 to 30 million veterans worldwide....
. Its president is Danijel Rehak.
The organization helps raise monuments, commemorates anniversaries relating to the war and also helps publish related books. In 2004 the association opened a centre in Borovo Naselje
Borovo Naselje
Borovo Naselje is a Vukovar borough located on the right bank of the Danube river in the Croatian region of Slavonia, 4 kilometers northwest of Vukovar town centre; elevation 90 m. The economy is based on rubber and shoe industries...
whose aim is to research war crimes committed during the war. The centre was opened by deputy prime minister Jadranka Kosor
Jadranka Kosor
Jadranka Kosor is a Croatian politician and former journalist. She is the current Prime Minister of Croatia, having taken office on July 6, 2009, following the sudden resignation of her predecessor Ivo Sanader. She is Croatia's first female Prime Minister since independence.-Early life:Jadranka...
and parliamentary speaker Vladimir Šeks
Vladimir Šeks
Vladimir Šeks is an influential Croatian politician, a member of the Croatian Democratic Union . He has been a representative in the Croatian Parliament since the nation's independence, and has held the posts of the Speaker of the Parliament as well as Deputy Prime Minister of the Government.Šeks...
. Jadranka Kosor also served as the minister of Family Affairs, War Veterans and Intergenerational Solidarity
Ministry of Family Affairs, War Veterans and Intergenerational Solidarity
Ministry of the Family, Veterans' Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity is a ministry of the Croatian Government which is split into several directorates:*Directorate for Family...
, a ministry the association works closely with .
According to the Societies data, a total of 8,000 Croatian civilians and POWs (a large number after the fall of Vukovar
Battle of Vukovar
The Battle of Vukovar was an 87-day siege of Vukovar in eastern Croatia by the Yugoslav People's Army , supported by various paramilitary forces from Serbia, between August and November 1991. Before the Croatian War of Independence the Baroque town was a prosperous, mixed community of Croats,...
) went through Serb prison camps such as Sremska Mitrovica camp
Sremska Mitrovica camp
Sremska Mitrovica prison is the biggest prison in Serbia, consisting of two facilities. It is situated in Sremska Mitrovica, Vojvodina province....
, Stajićevo camp
Stajicevo camp
The Stajićevo camp was an agricultural farm in Stajićevo near Zrenjanin, Serbia where Croatian prisoners of war and civilians were kept by Serbian authorities. The camp also acted as a transit facility where prisoners were taken before being moved to the Sremska Mitrovica camp...
, Niš camp and many others where many were heavily abused and tortured. A total of 300 people never returned from them.
A total of 4570 camp inmates have started legal action against former Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
(now Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
) for torture and abuse in the camps.