LIVE Bloody borders testimonies (32)

From Croatia to Bosnia,

The main respondent is a 28 year old man from Morocco. He reports that on the 7th of November he was pushed back from Croatia to Bosnia together with a person from Morocco, a person from Tunisia and a person from Sudan. The group crossed the border the previous night and reached the Croatian village of Vrhovine in order to get on a train. The respondent states that, while waiting for the delayed train, they were approached by two officers dressed in civilian clothing, a man and a woman, who confirmed their identities by showing their police badges and guns to the group. The two officers asked for the documents of the group’s members and after making sure that they did not have them they started asking questions about the route taken by the group. The officers told them to wait there as a car would soon arrive to bring them to the police station in order to verify the group members’ identities and later bring them to the camp. Whilst waiting at the train station, another two police officers arrived, one in civilian clothing and the other in a blue uniform who, based on his description, could be identified as a member of national Croatian Police.
After waiting for an hour and a half the respondent recalls that a white police van arrived, the group entered the van and in half an hour they were actually brought to the border with Bosnia. The officers told to the group “Bosnia! Go! Go!”. The respondent states that he told to one officer, in English, that his Sudanese friend wanted to apply for asylum but the officer ignored the request. After being forced to go back to Bosnia the group found another path and crossed the border again. This time they were apprehended by the police as they were in the forest. The respondent states that as the police caught them again, more violence was involved. The officers stole one person’s phone and were physically violent with the Sudanese person, kicking him repeatedly in the stomach until he vomited.
1
After the second pushback, the group returned to Bihać on foot, walking for 20 kilometers.

overview

4 people ,

from Morocco, Tunisia, Sudan,

aged 28.