To mark the 30th anniversary of the genocide against Bosniaks in Srebrenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in a dignified, visible, and impactful way, a group of NGOs in North Macedonia is organizing a series of cultural, informational, and educational events throughout July.
One of the events is a debate titled “A Lesson from Srebrenica: From Hate Speech to Genocide,” which will take place on July 2 at 7:00 PM at the InnoX – Innovation Center on the city square in Skopje.
“The denial of the Srebrenica genocide and hate speech still live among us – on social media, in comments, and in public forums. Silence is no longer an option. Together with young people, experts will talk about the dangers of genocide denial and spreading hatred in public spaces. We will discuss how hate speech leads to violence, why it is important to name genocide for what it is, and the role of education, youth, and civil society in fighting denial and relativization,” say the organizers.
According to the event program, a short documentary on Srebrenica prepared by the Srebrenica Memorial Center will first be screened. This will be followed by a 20-minute talk by communication expert, author, and professor Dr. Sead Džigal, and a presentation by Despina Kovačevska, a media monitoring specialist from the Metamorphosis Foundation.
In February 2010, the Macedonian Parliament adopted a Declaration in support of the European Parliament Resolution on Srebrenica, which was passed on January 15, 2009.
Key Facts about the Srebrenica Genocide
30 years ago, in July 1995, units of the Army of Republika Srpska, under the command of Hague-convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić, committed genocide against Bosniaks in Srebrenica by attacking the UN-protected enclave.
The Hague Tribunal, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and courts in Serbia and Croatia have so far sentenced 54 individuals to a total of 781 years in prison, including five life sentences – for genocide, crimes against humanity, and other atrocities committed in Srebrenica in July 1995.
8,372 people were killed, and tens of thousands of women, children, and the elderly were deported or forced to flee into the surrounding forests.
So far, 6,751 victims have been buried at the Srebrenica-Potočari Memorial Center, while around 250 others were buried in local cemeteries based on the wishes of surviving family members.
The victims come from various municipalities, most notably from Srebrenica, Bratunac, Vlasenica, Zvornik, and Milići.
Victims have been discovered at 150 different locations, including 77 mass graves. The youngest victim buried in Potočari is newborn Fatima Muhić, and the oldest is Šaha Izmirlić, born in 1901.
More than a thousand victims of the genocide are still unaccounted for.
