ZAGREB, 8 Dec, 2021 - Organisations of the families of Srebrenica genocide victims sent an open letter to Croatian President Zoran Milanović on Wednesday calling on him to respect the decisions of his own country, whose institutions have explicitly condemned the genocide of Bosnian Muslims committed by Bosnian Serb forces in July 1995.

The association "Mothers from the Srebrenica and Žepa enclaves" and the Association of Genocide Victims and Witnesses said in the letter that in his recent statements Milanović had denied that the massacre of Bosniaks at Srebrenica, eastern Bosnia, was an act of genocide despite the fact that it was declared so by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), whose establishment and work was supported by Croatia.

"To our knowledge, Croatia still supports this court. It has never withdrawn its consent to cooperate with this court," the two organisations noted after Milanović said on Tuesday he did not consider court judgments as something that could not be questioned.

"No court judgment can be the Holy Scripture. ... 5,000 or 8,000  or 80,000 people is not the same. It's not the same whether it happens in gas chambers or whether it happens with machetes," Milanović said.

The two organisations noted that the International Court of Justice had also found the Srebrenica massacre to be an act of genocide and that the Srebrenica genocide had been condemned by a Croatian Parliament resolution.

"If you do not respect others, at least respect the decisions of the country that you represent," the letter said in conclusion.

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ZAGREB, 10 July 2021 - It is the shared duty of the entire civilised world to remember the victims of the genocide in Srebrenica and not to allow attempts at rewriting history to diminish that crime, senior EU officials said in a joint statement on Saturday.

In a joint statement issued ahead of the 26th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, in which Bosnian Serb forces killed more than 8,000 Bosniaks in July 1995, EU High Representative for Foreign Policy Josep Borrell and Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi said it was a duty to forever remember that tragedy.

"On Sunday, 19 more victims will be laid to rest. We honour their memory, and of all victims and those still missing. We share the grief of their families and of those who survived, whose lives have been impacted forever," the two EU officials said.

They noted that Europe has not forgotten its own responsibility for not being able to prevent the Srebrenica genocide, one of the worst crimes in Europe’s modern history.

"Srebrenica painfully reminds us all of the need to stand up firmly and decisively for peace, human dignity and all the values which underpin our Union. Serving justice and building a better society are the best ways of remembering those who were systematically and deliberately murdered. This is a necessary step to work for a better common future for all Europeans.

"There can be no impunity. Genocide is genocide, be it in Srebrenica or elsewhere. International courts, domestic courts in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in the neighbouring countries need to continue providing justice for all victims of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, as well as for their family members. Peace can only be built upon justice," the joint statement said.

Political leaders in the Western Balkans were called upon to lead by example in acknowledging what happened, honouring the victims and genuinely promoting reconciliation by confronting the roots of hatred that led to the genocide.

"There is no place in Europe for genocide denial, revisionism and glorification of war criminals, which contradict the most fundamental European values. Attempts to rewrite history are unacceptable," the EU officials said, alluding to Bosnian Serb officials who persistently deny that the genocide was committed in Srebrenica.

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ZAGREB, 8 June, 2021 - Wartime Bosnian Serb army commander Ratko Mladić was on Tuesday given a final verdict of life in prison for war crimes committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The information was conveyed to reporters in The Hague by Murat Tahirović, president of the BiH Association of Genocide Victims and Witnesses.

Tahirović was able to follow the announcement of the verdict in real time while reporters and most of the other audience followed it with a delay and without access to the courtroom.

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