Billboard glorifying convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic erected in Rogatica

The public glorification of the convicted war criminal in this municipality contrasts sharply with the ongoing efforts of families still searching for the remains of victims killed under his command. Court-established facts document a systematic campaign of persecution and forced displacement targeting Bosniaks in Rogatica, forcing thousands to flee under extreme violence and fear. Civilians were detained in multiple facilities across the municipality, including the Veljko Vlahovic secondary school and the Rasadnik agricultural complex.

Up to 1,100 Bosniak residents of Rogatica were imprisoned in the secondary school, where they endured beatings, torture, and sexual abuse, with numerous men systematically taken out and executed. Inmates at the Rasadnik facility similarly faced severe physical abuse, forced labor, and murder. Among the documented atrocities, one of the deadliest occurred on August 15, 1992, when 24 Bosniak civilians, including four minors, were removed from Rasadnik and killed.

Data from the Missing Persons Institute of Bosnia and Herzegovina indicates that 435 victims have been exhumed across the Rogatica area, while approximately 300 individuals remain missing. Relatives continue a multi-year search involving institutional appeals, DNA sample submissions, and visits to exhumation sites in the hope of recovering enough remains to properly bury their loved ones.