Yesterday, the non-governmental organizations Centre for Civic Education (CCE) from Montenegro and the Association for Social Research and Communication (UDIK) from Bosnia and Herzegovina submitted an initiative to the Education Trade Union of Montenegro, calling for the termination of cooperation and the removal of the “Vilina Vlas” rehabilitation centre near Višegrad from the offer of the “Prosvjeta” travel agency, established by this Trade Union.
Education workers have the opportunity to spend holidays with their families in several facilities in Montenegro and the region. Providing affordable holidays, including payment in instalments, as well as free holidays offered by the Education Trade Union, represents an important form of support for employees in education. However, CCE and UDIK believe that the choice of facilities must also be aligned with fundamental ethical principles, a culture of remembrance, and the obligation to respect victims of war crimes.
The spa rehabilitation centre “Vilina Vlas”, located about 5 km from Višegrad, was, during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a site of detention, torture and rape of the non-Serb population. It also served as the headquarters of Milan Lukić and the Serb paramilitary unit “Avengers”. A 1994 report by a United Nations Special Committee indicates that around 200 women were raped in this facility during 1992. Some of them were killed, while others took their own lives. Seventeen Bosniak civilians from the village of Sjeverin near Priboj were also abused and tortured in this facility in October 1992 by Milan Lukić and members of the Serb paramilitary unit “Avengers”. In one judgment of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, this facility is described as “a rehabilitation centre turned into a women’s camp, to which women and girls were brought and systematically abused”. Unfortunately, only one of the perpetrators has been convicted by a final judgment: Željko Lelek, who was sentenced to 16 years in prison for crimes against humanity, including sexual violence committed in “Vilina Vlas”, while others were mostly convicted for other crimes committed in Višegrad and the surrounding area.
After the war, “Vilina Vlas” continued to operate as a rehabilitation centre and spa resort. However, neither the facility itself nor its official presentation contains any information about the war crimes committed there, nor is there any memorial to mark the suffering of the victims. In this way, the authorities in that entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina are consciously and systematically attempting to erase the facts, while the denial and normalization of crimes are further deepened through tourist promotion stripped of context and respect for the victims. Many guests who stay in this facility today are unaware that they are sleeping in rooms and beds where mass rapes and murders were committed thirty years ago. Media have reported that there is no place or room in the “Vilina Vlas” hotel that was not a crime scene, and that the only changes are freshly painted walls and replaced mattresses.
This practice has also been publicly condemned by the regional RECOM Reconciliation Network, which stated that it amounts to the silencing of crimes and the erasure of victims from public space. The Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina also spoke out, stressing that sites of suffering must not be presented as tourist destinations without the truth about what happened there.
The Education Trade Union, as an organization with significant social responsibility, must take into account the ethical implications of its decisions and partnerships. Sending education workers, among whom there may be survivors of war trauma, family members of victims, or citizens who expect a responsible attitude towards the past, to a facility that symbolizes systematic sexual violence and crimes against humanity represents a serious moral and reputational risk. Such cooperation may also be interpreted as implicit support for policies of revisionism and denial of crimes, which is incompatible with the values of a democratic society.
It is important to emphasize that the offer for “Vilina Vlas” is not available on the official website of the “Prosvjeta” travel agency but, according to available information, is provided upon request. This raises questions about transparency in operations and communication with members, as well as suspicion of the deliberate concealment of this cooperation.
We recall that the Pension and Disability Insurance Fund of Montenegro terminated its contract with the “Vilina Vlas” rehabilitation centre in March this year, following an initiative by CCE and UDIK, as well as significant media interest in Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Therefore, CCE and UDIK call on the Education Trade Union to act in the same manner without delay, guided by the principles of responsibility and respect for victims, and to establish clear criteria for the future selection of tourist facilities, including respect for the dignity of war crime victims and a responsible attitude towards the past.
Terminating this cooperation would be a sign of a responsible attitude towards the past and consistent respect for victims of war crimes, as well as confirmation that the Education Trade Union and the “Prosvjeta” agency act in accordance with the ethical principles they should also pass on to younger generations.
Centre for Civic Education (CCE)
Association for Social Research and Communication (UDIK)