Archival rescue 70 ~ Iraq ABC

An ABC transcript relating to Private Kovco and Juso Sinanovic's body swap, archives 68 and 69.

Bosnian man's body returned home following defence bungle
Josie Taylor
PM - Friday, 12 May , 2006 18:34:00 ABC

MARK COLVIN: The family of the Bosnian carpenter whose body was mistakenly flown to Australia from Iraq say the Australian Government never contacted them throughout their ordeal.

Juso Sinanovic died of a brain haemorrhage in Baghdad nearly one month ago.

His 21-year-old daughter Jasmina says that during that time, no one from the Australian Government or the Defence Force made contact with her family.

In an interview with a Melbourne based investigative journalist, Jasmina Sinanovic said her father's funeral could now be held, after his body finally arrived in Bosnia.

Josie Taylor reports.

JOSIE TAYLOR: Very early this morning, on a crackly phone line from Sarajevo, 21-year-old Jasmina Sinanovic spoke for the first time to an Australian about her father's death.

She said the sole reason carpenter Juso Sinanovic left home to work in Iraq, was to provide for his children.

Jasmina Sinanovic spoke to investigative journalist Tess Lawrence, from Melbourne's community radio station RPH.

JASMINA SINANOVIC: He was a nice person, he was kind, he just wanted to help everybody, and the only reason he went to work in Iraq was just to get a better future for us, for his kids, and that's the only reason because all his life the only thing that he was doing, everything that was doing was just for us and because of us.

JOSIE TAYLOR: But while he was working as a carpenter for Halliburton subsidiary Kellog Brown and Root, Juso Sinanovic died of a brain haemorrhage.

Instead of his body being returned straight home for a Muslim burial, in Kuwait it was mistaken for that of Australian solider Private Jacob Kovko and flown to Australia.

Jasmina Sinanovic says that bungle has caused her family immense distress.

JASMINA SINANOVIC: They took the body and they transported it to Australia. It was really, really hard for us. It's hard to explain the feelings, the emotions, that all this time that we have been through is very hard.

You just don't have any kinds of words to express what you are feeling. It's very hard and painful.

JOSIE TAYLOR: The 21-year-old says the company that employed her father in Iraq has been in constant contact with her family, and sent an employee to speak to the family personally.

But she told Tess Lawrence, at no stage has the family heard from Australian authorities.

JASMINA SINANOVIC: No, nothing. They didn't contact us at all, nobody. Even the ambassador or… nobody.

TESS LAWRENCE: Nobody has called you?

JASMINA SINANOVIC: If you can believe, nobody.

TESS LAWRENCE: Am I the first person that's called you?

JASMINA SINANOVIC: Yes, you are.

In some way I was surprised when I heard that you say that you are from Australia, because nobody called us, nobody contacted us, so we didn't expect anybody to.

JOSIE TAYLOR: Jasmina Sinanovic said her father's body has now arrived back in Bosnia, and a funeral service will be held as soon as possible in her father's home town of Jurjevic.

MARK COLVIN: Josie Taylor.

A spokesman for the Defence Minister Brendan Nelson told PM that a senior defence official was in constant contact with Bosnian officials in Australia throughout the process of repatriation.