PARLIAMENT OF SERBIA ADOPTS SREBRENICA DECLARATION
Srebrenica Declaration Ends Years of Genocide Denial by Serbian Politicians
After 13-hours of fierce debate, the Parliament of Serbia has passed a landmark declaration condemning the 1995 Srebrenica crime as determined by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) which classified the massacre as Genocide. In a historic move, 127 of the 173 lawmakers voted in favor of the Srebrenica Declaration.
"The parliament of Serbia strongly condemns the crime committed against the Bosnian Muslim population of Srebrenica in July 1995, as determined by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling," the declaration says.
The ICJ judges cleared Serbia of direct responsibility for the systematic killings of 8,000 and ethnic cleansing of 30,000 Bosniaks, but said Belgrade was responsible for doing nothing to prevent the Genocide. It also blamed Belgrade for providing financial, moral, logistical, and military support to the Bosnian Serb forces commanded by General Ratko Mladic - who is accussed of masterminding the 1995 Srebrenica Genocide.
Fifteen years after the Genocide, the remains of 6,186 Srebrenica victims have been exhumed from 80 mass graves and identified through DNA analysis. The overall high matching rate between DNA extracted from these bone and blood samples leads ICMP to support an estimate of close to 8,100 individuals missing from the fall of Srebrenica.
Meanwhile, relatives of the Srebrenica Genocide victims lost on appeal in their attempt to sue the United Nations for responsibility.
"The immunity from prosecution guarantees that the UN is not thwarted in the execution of its duties as a result of court cases being instigated against it, possibly for no other reason than to frustrate the UN's work... It is in the best public interest that the UN can avail itself of its duties untroubled," the Dutch civil court said in its ruling.
The lawyers representing "Mothers of Srebrenica" have announced their intention to move the case in front of the European Court of Justice:
"The decision whether the UN’s immunity should prevail above such fundamental rights ultimately lies with the European Court of Justice. The UN has repeatedly stated to be bound to human rights, but apparently deems itself not bound in this particular matter and has not even appeared in the proceedings. The political question remains: How long can the UN retain its credibility, striving to protect human rights but at the same time disregarding them itself?"
In the spring of 1992 the Bosnian Serb Army, remnants of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and paramilitary forces carried out systematic attacks and widespread ethnic cleansing of the Bosniak civilian population of the Podrinje - the Drina Valley region of Eastern Bosnia where Srebrenica is located. In the course of these attacks on Podrinje, at least 11,391 Bosniaks had been killed in 1992, while approximately 100,000 Bosniaks living in area had been expelled from their homes same year. Thousands of refugees sought shelter in Srebrenica only to find themselves trapped in a crowded ghetto with unbearable living conditions.
From 1992 to 1995, Serb forces constantly attacked Bosnian Muslim villages around Srebrenica. Bosniak refugees were particularly vulnerable as they were frequently the target of artillery attacks from militarized Serb villages around Srebrenica such as Kravice, Ratkovići, Dučići, Fakovići and Brađevina. The Serbs around Srebrenica never demilitarized despite of being required to do so under the terms of the 1993 demilitarization agreements.
In 1992 alone, Serb forces torched hundreds of Bosnian Muslim villages around Srebrenica and neighboring municipalities (districts) - Bratunac, Vlasenica, Rogatica, and Visegrad.
In July 1995 the Bosnian Serb army staged a brutal takeover of Srebrenica and its surrounding area, where they proceeded to perpetrate genocide. Over a period of several days the Bosnian Serb soldiers separated Bosniak families, forcibly expelled 30,000 people in a massive campaign of ethnic cleansing and systematically murdered at least 8,372 boys, men, and elderly in fields, schools, and warehouses throughout the local area.
The 1995 Srebrenica Genocide was the singe worst massacre in Europe since the Holocaust.
After 13-hours of fierce debate, the Parliament of Serbia has passed a landmark declaration condemning the 1995 Srebrenica crime as determined by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) which classified the massacre as Genocide. In a historic move, 127 of the 173 lawmakers voted in favor of the Srebrenica Declaration.
"The parliament of Serbia strongly condemns the crime committed against the Bosnian Muslim population of Srebrenica in July 1995, as determined by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling," the declaration says.
The ICJ judges cleared Serbia of direct responsibility for the systematic killings of 8,000 and ethnic cleansing of 30,000 Bosniaks, but said Belgrade was responsible for doing nothing to prevent the Genocide. It also blamed Belgrade for providing financial, moral, logistical, and military support to the Bosnian Serb forces commanded by General Ratko Mladic - who is accussed of masterminding the 1995 Srebrenica Genocide.
Fifteen years after the Genocide, the remains of 6,186 Srebrenica victims have been exhumed from 80 mass graves and identified through DNA analysis. The overall high matching rate between DNA extracted from these bone and blood samples leads ICMP to support an estimate of close to 8,100 individuals missing from the fall of Srebrenica.
Meanwhile, relatives of the Srebrenica Genocide victims lost on appeal in their attempt to sue the United Nations for responsibility.
"The immunity from prosecution guarantees that the UN is not thwarted in the execution of its duties as a result of court cases being instigated against it, possibly for no other reason than to frustrate the UN's work... It is in the best public interest that the UN can avail itself of its duties untroubled," the Dutch civil court said in its ruling.
The lawyers representing "Mothers of Srebrenica" have announced their intention to move the case in front of the European Court of Justice:
"The decision whether the UN’s immunity should prevail above such fundamental rights ultimately lies with the European Court of Justice. The UN has repeatedly stated to be bound to human rights, but apparently deems itself not bound in this particular matter and has not even appeared in the proceedings. The political question remains: How long can the UN retain its credibility, striving to protect human rights but at the same time disregarding them itself?"
In the spring of 1992 the Bosnian Serb Army, remnants of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and paramilitary forces carried out systematic attacks and widespread ethnic cleansing of the Bosniak civilian population of the Podrinje - the Drina Valley region of Eastern Bosnia where Srebrenica is located. In the course of these attacks on Podrinje, at least 11,391 Bosniaks had been killed in 1992, while approximately 100,000 Bosniaks living in area had been expelled from their homes same year. Thousands of refugees sought shelter in Srebrenica only to find themselves trapped in a crowded ghetto with unbearable living conditions.
From 1992 to 1995, Serb forces constantly attacked Bosnian Muslim villages around Srebrenica. Bosniak refugees were particularly vulnerable as they were frequently the target of artillery attacks from militarized Serb villages around Srebrenica such as Kravice, Ratkovići, Dučići, Fakovići and Brađevina. The Serbs around Srebrenica never demilitarized despite of being required to do so under the terms of the 1993 demilitarization agreements.
In 1992 alone, Serb forces torched hundreds of Bosnian Muslim villages around Srebrenica and neighboring municipalities (districts) - Bratunac, Vlasenica, Rogatica, and Visegrad.
In July 1995 the Bosnian Serb army staged a brutal takeover of Srebrenica and its surrounding area, where they proceeded to perpetrate genocide. Over a period of several days the Bosnian Serb soldiers separated Bosniak families, forcibly expelled 30,000 people in a massive campaign of ethnic cleansing and systematically murdered at least 8,372 boys, men, and elderly in fields, schools, and warehouses throughout the local area.
The 1995 Srebrenica Genocide was the singe worst massacre in Europe since the Holocaust.
posted by Srebrenica Genocide at 9:34 PM
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