A chilling account of alleged abuse inside Lipjan Prison has emerged during the war-crimes trial of former prison guard Boban Toniq, as a witness described beatings, dragging of prisoners and systematic mistreatment of Albanian detainees during the Kosovo war.
Demir Limaj, appearing before the Special Department of the Basic Court in Pristina as an injured party, testified about what he said he and other Albanian prisoners endured after being transferred from Dubrava Prison to the Pristina Prison facility in Lipjan.
Limaj told the court that hundreds of prisoners were forced to pass through a corridor formed by guards and police officers at the prison entrance.
According to his testimony, prisoners were then subjected to severe physical violence.
“They beat us with rubber batons, wooden sticks and kicks until we fainted. Then they dragged us and put us into rooms,” Limaj testified.
He said the alleged violence was widespread among prison personnel and claimed that only a small number of guards did not participate.
“Out of all those guards, perhaps only two or three did not use violence. The others, all the way up to the prison director, used violence,” Limaj told the court.
Toniq denies the charges
According to the indictment filed by Kosovo’s Special Prosecutor’s Office, Toniq is accused of participating, together with other prison officials, in the systematic mistreatment and torture of Albanian prisoners during the 1998–1999 Kosovo war.
The prosecution alleges that detainees were subjected to beatings with rubber batons and metal rods, as well as kicks and punches, allegedly causing physical injuries, psychological trauma and severe fear.
The indictment further alleges that prisoners were deprived of food for days and threatened with death.
Toniq has denied the charges and pleaded not guilty, telling the court: “I do not accept guilt. I do not feel guilty.”
The case concerns the alleged conduct of Toniq while serving as a guard at Pristina Prison and its Lipjan facility. According to the indictment, one of the incidents occurred after Albanian prisoners were transferred from Dubrava Prison to Lipjan between May 24 and June 10, 1999, when prosecutors allege that guards formed a corridor and subjected prisoners to physical abuse.
Toniq remains legally presumed innocent unless and until his guilt is established by a final court judgment.
The testimony adds another disturbing account to the long-running effort to establish responsibility for alleged wartime abuses against Albanian prisoners in Kosovo.
