Sarajevo, 2. i 3. maj 1992. godine. Žrtve, interpretacije, manipulacije
Authors:   Institute for Research on Crime Against of humanity and international law, University of Sarajevo, Karović-Babić Merisa 
Published: November 2023

Ignoring the historical context of the events in a city that had been under siege for nearly a month, the debates surrounding May 2nd and 3rd, 1992, which exclusively focus on the deaths of members of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) at various locations in the city, including Dobrovoljacka Street, continue without interruption. The citizens of Sarajevo killed during those two days are nowhere mentioned, and their memory is not included in the official memorialization of the city's siege. Furthermore, within the interpretation of the events on Dobrovoljacka Street, there is a noticeable continuous strategy aimed at connecting all the deceased JNA members at the end of April and the beginning of May with the events on Dobrovoljacka Street, effectively camouflaging the previous attacks on the city and the involvement of the JNA in them. Therefore, it was important for us in the first part of our work to point to documents from the Command of the 2nd Military District related to the participation of the JNA in digging artillery positions around the city, their role in the division of Sarajevo's districts along national lines, the relocation of weaponry to „safer areas“ where the Serbian population constituted an absolute ethnic majority, the initiation of the attack on the city, the first casualties in April, as well as the shelling and the burning of residential, cultural-historical, religious, economic, and other facilities in the city. All events that preceded the actual siege of Sarajevo, starting from the autumn of 1991, including the war in Croatia and the subsequent occupation of Bosnian cities, contributed to the perception of the JNA as an enemy force by the citizens of Sarajevo and all pro-Bosnian forces. The shelling of Sarajevo with weaponry and armaments previously positioned on the hills and mountains around the city, in particular, intensified the animosity towards the JNA from the citizens of Sarajevo. The main part of the work will address the chronological sequence of events in the city during May 2nd and 3rd, 1992, street battles in multiple locations in the city, including sites such as the JNA House, Marin Dvor, Skenderija, in front of the National Theater, UPI building, Workers' University Djuro Đakovic (now: Bosnian Cultural Center - BKC), Estrada café, in front of the Command of the 2nd Military District, and ultimately Dobrovoljacka Street. This section will also discuss all other locations where battles took place, as well as the shelling, infantry and sniper activities directed towards civilian objects in the city, which resulted in casualties among the civilian population. Numerous internet sources contain information about 42 JNA members who perished on Dobrovoljacka Street, and this number is always mentioned on the anniversary of the event. However, through a comparison with official sources, we have analyzed how many JNA members genuinely died on Dobrovoljacka Street, how many died at other locations where street battles took place during the city's attack, and how many names on the mentioned list have incomplete identities with unknown locations and times of death. Additionally, based on multiple primary historical sources and relying on the previously interpreted context of events in the city, the work will present the locations and identities of the killed members of the Territorial Defense of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as civilians who were killed in the city during May 2nd and 3rd, 1992. Various scientific methods were employed for this purpose, with an emphasis on analytical-documentary and comparative processing of primary and secondary sources of diverse origin, statistical data analysis, interview methods, particularly focusing on several target groups of interviewees crucial for the reconstruction and contextualization of these events. In the final chapter, we will address the (non-)prosecution of crimes, including the most serious crimes committed against the civilian population and civilian facilities in Sarajevo from April 5th to the beginning of May 1992.