The Aracinovo report
REPORT 
after the police raid in the village of Aracinovo, near  Skopje 

Skopje, 22 January, 2000. - Following the incident when three police officers of the Ministry of the Interior were killed at the entrance of the village of Aracinovo near Skopje, the police undertook a raid to discover the perpetrators, whereby there is information on excessive use of force and on overstepping of the legal authorizations. As a consequence of this raid, more than hundred persons were taken for interrogation, two persons are still in hospital due to serious injuries, another is dead, while two other persons are still confined to their bed due to the injuries.

The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights of the Republic of Macedonia obtained this information on basis of findings published in the media and also by making a fact-finding inspection of the site. During this inspection, many houses that had been raided previously by the police were visited. It was apparent that a great material damage had been done. There is still one intact bomb in a house (perhaps full of tear gas) that has not been removed, although the bomb was reported. During the visit to the village, several interviews were also made that give very clear picture about the police action. The statements given by the interviewed persons are as follows:

"My name is Nedzbija Feride, from the village of Aracinovo, wife of Nebija Jakup. That Friday police raided our house and mistreated my husband. They also beat my mother-in-law Nebija Tasim. Everything is in chaos and broken in the house, as a result of this police raid. The police officers performed the beating in front of the very children who, scared, were crying. The blood you see on the concrete was spilled by my husband Jakup, as a consequence of the beating. The officers were cursing, shouting nasty words from the gate. Now my husband is still in the hospital, having serious headache and broken jaw, while my mother-in-law is now in Skopje to calm down. My brother-in-law is scared to return fearing another arrest. I intend to file charges."

"I am called Rafis Emini. On Friday, the 14th of January, at 11:30 hours, I had guests here. I heard my children telling me that the police arrived. They called us to come out. The police officers pointed their automatic rifles towards us and ordered us to lie down. We lay down on the ground, while the police officers were stepping on us, hitting us with their boots on our heads and kicking us all over our bodies. The officers did not say anything. They were just beating us and cursing us. The yard became all spilled with blood. Then the women cleaned the yard so that the children would not see this. The women and children wept aloud. We were beaten before our very children. All our men were beaten. I was here with my three sons, and my three guests, one son of my brother and the wife of my son. We were six men altogether. My wife at that time was upstairs. The police officers brought my wife downstairs by pulling her hair and kicking her from behind and put her on the ground close to us. Then they stomped her on the back. During the raid, the police officers found one Albanian flag. One officer brought the flag close to me and made me open my mouth. The officer shouted: 'Eat it, this is not Albania, this is Macedonia'. He also cursed me. Two officers kicked me in my ribs. They put a towel on the barrel of the rifle and then put the rifle in my mouth. Then they took out the flag out of my mouth and burned it on the hand of my son. The flag was burnt on the hand of my sun. Then the officers entered inside and started breaking the windows, doors, they threw a hand grenade in the deep freezer where I keep 100 kg of meat. The police officers demolished the washing machine and the boiler. Then water started leaking and everything was made dirty. Then the officers visited my brother. They did not find anything. They arrested the son of my brother. Here is the child lying. The police raided everything: the straw in the bar, the garbage, the WC, they even dug holes in the garden. However, the police officers did not find anything. The politicians are only interested in their salaries and in their businesses and nothing else. I would like to file charges, but against whom? The day after, we found intact bomb in the basement. Here it is, for you to see it. The tear gas is still active. You can feel it for yourselves. Even the officers buried two other bombs in the farming land. We reported on this, but there is no one to come and dig them out. Maybe even there are some other explosives somewhere behind the closet, or in the attic, you just name it. But we do not know exactly where."

"My name is Jaija Ibraim (18 years old). It happened that very Friday, around 11:30 AM. Suddenly two masked police officers appeared. They started to shout. I lay down on the ground. So I was ordered. I, my mother and my smaller brother were the only ones present in the house. The police officers at once threw tear gas bombs. Four to five bombs. Then the officers searched everything and demolished all things in the house. The officers did not ask any questions. The just asked us if we had any arms. I replied that there was none. However, the officers started to kick me, to hit me with the butts of their rifles. I was beaten with whatsoever the officers could use. I do not know exactly. They took me in the police van and carried me to the police station. I do not know what police station this was. When I was pushed inside the first door, seven to eight masked police officers waited for me there. They put a black bag over my head and started beating me on the head and all over the body. I cannot remember exactly if they used clubs or something like that. I do not know how long I stayed there. Afterwards, I was taken by police van to the police station in Bitpazar. I had headache and could not breathe. From the very entrance of that police station, I was also beaten. The officers asked me who were my accomplices in the triple murder of the police officers. I replied that I did not do anything. I had all the time handcuffs on my hands. I cannot say precisely, but I think that around seven PM that day my brothers arrived who had been also wanted by the police. Then, I was interrogated for several hours. I was questioned by two police inspectors. They first asked me about my family, about the places we were that evening. They questioned me about everything. Even sometimes absurd questions were raised - about the war in Kosovo (I do not know anything about it), if we had refuges in our house, how many, from where, if I had any part in the war in Kosovo. I was released around 10 PM that night, when my brothers arrived to take me home. The officers apologized. They said that I was taken to the police station by mistake. And now, here I am lying, I cannot get up due to pains all over my body. I had initially so great pains that my folks wrapped me in hide. Afterwards, a private doctor treated my and gave me infusion. I do not have a certificate from the doctor."

"My name is Jaja Abdula, from the village of Aracinovo. I went to visit a fiend of mine. He is Rafiz Jaja. Just after five minutes, news came that police was coming. OK, it is the government, so let it come. I am not running away from the government. The police officers entered the yard with their rifles ready. We were called to go out, they intimidated us with being killed, then they ordered us to lie down. They stormed the house, used force against the women, and the children were screaming. They kicked us where they could. See my head and the very bruise I have from being kicked. They did not ask for our names and our occupation, they did not ask if we were guests... If I am the person that you want, then pull me aside and argue with me. But they beat us all, they gave us a hell of beating. Afterwards, they said they were sorry and directed us to the doctor's office. It is no excuse, when they ruined me, a man with a family of ten members. I did not visit the doctor. It was done here by ourselves... There was some private doctor. He gave an injection. See my body black as your coat. I did not request for a medical certificate. But I will do it. Recently I had two surgical operations. Hernia and appendix. I am seventy years of age. My ribs are broken. You can see here how my arm is all dark. I had never anything with the police. I was never taken to a court. And now I was beaten without making any problems, just for nothing. Provided I had made some wrongdoing, then perhaps this could have happened to me."

Based on the information in the media and the talks with the involved persons, the following oversteppings of legal and police authorizations are concluded:

1. Excessive physical force was used on many villagers without any need and without any basis that can be characterized as inhumane and degrading treatment banned both by the domestic and the international laws. In this context, the involved persons were also brutally insulted and intimidated.

2. The raids of the houses and of the other living premises were made without court order and without respect of the legal procedures and by applying force. Thereby, a significant material damage was made, thus violating the privacy and the inviolability of the home guaranteed both by the Constitution and by international law. Such oversteppings are illegal. What is even more concerning is the fact that this was not done to serve the purposes of a police investigation, rather it is unlawful, revengeful conduct of some members of the Ministry of the Interior.

The Helsinki Committee underlines the need for thorough investigation of such claims and those who have overstepped their authorizations should bear proper consequences. Appropriate responsibility should be also demanded from those who directed this police action. Certainly all legal authorizations should be used in order to bring the perpetrators of this crime before justice; however, there should be respect for the constitutional and legal norms.