The Promotion of the “Vilina Vlas” Hotel Is a Shameful Act of Concealing a Crime

The promotion of the “Vilina Vlas” hotel in Višegrad at the Belgrade International Tourism Fair [19-22.02.2026] constitutes a shameful act and an insult to all those who value personal dignity and basic respect for victims of war crimes.

In 1992, women were detained and raped at the “Vilina Vlas” hotel. There are testimonies of survivors, reports by international bodies, and judicial proceedings documenting these crimes. Before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Željko Lelek was finally convicted of crimes against humanity committed in the Višegrad area, including the rape of a woman at the “Vilina Vlas” hotel.

During the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, women were raped in hotels, schools, and other public buildings throughout the country. “Vilina Vlas” has become one of the sites symbolizing such violence.

According to publicly available sources and testimonies, members of various paramilitary formations brought detained girls and women to the hotel and participated in their abuse, including members of the formation known as the “White Eagles.” It is publicly known that the founder and commander of this formation, Dragoslav Bokan, currently serves as President of the Managing Board of the National Theatre in Belgrade.

Symbols from the Second World War and the wars of the 1990s are re-emerging in public space. At concerts by Marko Perković Thompson in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Ustaša salute is chanted. It is particularly troubling that ministers of the Government of the Republic of Croatia attend these concerts. Among those present in Široki Brijeg was Marin Vukoja, a judge of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In such an atmosphere, advertising “Vilina Vlas” in Belgrade as a tourist destination means participating in the denial and concealment of crime. Tourism promotion cannot erase what happened, nor can it replace truth and accountability.

A society that turns sites of suffering into tourist attractions without clear acknowledgment of the crimes committed there accepts the suppression and erasure of violence against women.

The RECOM Reconciliation Network will not accept such denial and concealment of crimes.