Serbia's police close military-style youth camp

Serbia's police have closed a veterans' camp on Mt. Zlatibor, which provided training for 14-year-old children, being called into potential child concerns and abuses.

Serbian Minister of Internal Affairs Nebojsa Stefanovic said on Friday that the camp led by Serbian and Russian veterans providing military training for young people and adults was closed Thursday evening.

“We issued an order to close the camp due to possible child abuse and breaking public order”, Stefanovic said.

Serbian association participating in armed conflicts in former Yugoslavia, O USYU, hosted the Patriotic Youth Champion in Zlatibor, which opened on August 9th and had to last until August 18th.

At this camp, children and adults dressed in uniforms, ages 14 to 23, have received military training, including quick aid and survival skills by Russian and Serbian veterans.

Russian international television network RT has published a short video from the camp.

UOSYU President Zelko Vukeliq said police came Thursday evening, after 22, and asked that Zlatibor's camp be released, but said they did not disclose a written order.

“We told them that it is not fair to come so and that we have not violated any law”, Vukelj told BIRN, adding that there were no weapons in the camp and that children were being trained with plastic weapons.

Milan Stamatovic, chairman of the Catita municipality, in which the camp was held, told BIRN that the negative image of the camp was created “for political reasons”.

“They removed the children as if they had been the biggest enemies”, Stamatovic, leader of Serbia's far-right party, the Party of Health, said.

Last year, such a camp was organised in Rousseau as well by the same association.