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Srebrenica - A Call for Justice
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To: The President of the United States and other world leaders
SREBRENICA – A CALL FOR JUSTICE
As the tenth anniversary of the massacre at Srebrenica, Eastern Bosnia, approaches (July 11 1995), the two men suspected of being most responsible for this crime remain at liberty. Ratko Mladic, the former head of the Bosnian Serb Army is suspected of personally supervising the start of the Srebrenica massacre. Radovan Karadzic, the former civilian head of the Bosnian Serb Republic is suspected of masterminding the campaign of ethnic cleansing which brought death and destruction to Bosnia. Both men have been indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal. Their continued impunity brings shame on the international community, and makes a mockery of justice. We, the undersigned, call for Mladic and Karadzic to be brought to trial in the Hague without further delay. We understand that our request will be delivered to the President of the United States, and other world leaders, on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the massacre, July 11, 2005.
Sincerely,
The Undersigned
http://www.petitiononline.com/srebreni/petition.html
MOTHERS OF SREBRENICA WRITE TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
TO:
Congressman Christopher Smith Senator Gordon Smith
U.S. House of Representatives U.S. Senate
Fax No. (202) 255-7768 Fax No. (202) 228-3997
Tel. No. (202) 225-3765 Tel. No. (202) 224-3753
Dear Congressman Christopher Smith and Senator Gordon Smith,
Association of Mothers of Srebrenica and Podrinje write to thank you for
sponsoring S.RES 134 in the Senate and H.RES 199 in the House to mark the 10th
Anniversary of the Srebrenica Massacre and for the continuous support of the
American people for the independence and territorial integrity of Bosnia and
Herzegovina and the rights of all people living in Bosnia and Herzegovina
regardless of their ethnicity and religion.
These resolutions have global impact, beyond Srebrenica, on the rule of law and
freedom in the world. As such, it is important that the resolutions clearly
condemn Serbia and Montenegro as the aggressors and principal organizers,
initiators, and perpetrators of the war crimes and the genocide committed
against the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Therefore, we appeal that the
resolutions include stronger language indicating the responsibility of Serbia
and Montenegro for their aggression and role in the war crimes and the acts of
genocide against the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The involvement of Serbia and Montenegro as aggressors and perpetrators of the
war crimes and genocide against the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina are well
documented in proceedings of the lawsuit of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
against Serbia and Montenegro at the International Court of Justice in The Hague
and the proceedings at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former
Yugoslavia in The Hague. As recently as the first week of June 2005, TV
stations in Serbia and Montenegro and all over the world, showed video footage
of members of the Serbian State Security Forces executing citizens of the
Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Srebrenica. The footage is evidence in
the trial of the former president of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia
and Montenegro) - Slobodan Milosevic. On June 16, 2005, the Council of
Ministers of Serbia and Montenegro issued a statement blaming the regime of
former president Slobodan Milosevic, now on trial before the Hague Tribunal for
War Crimes in Former Yugoslavia, for the massacre in Srebrenica. With this
statement, the Council of Ministers of Serbia and Montenegro admitted the
responsibility of their nation for war crimes committed in Bosnia and
Herzegovina; regardless of regime changes, the responsibility for war crimes
committed remains with the nation - just as the Federal Republic of Germany was
responsible for the crimes committed by the Nazi regime during the World War II
and had to pay reparations to the victims of their aggression and the victims of
the Holocaust.
Before their aggression on the sovereign Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Serbia and Montenegro (rump of former Yugoslavia), were also aggressors in the
war against the Republic
of Slovenia in 1990 and the Republic of Croatia in 1991. The wars in these
three countries were not initiated by ethnic Serbs, as there were no “Slovenian
Serbs” in Slovenia, nonetheless there was still a war between “Serbs” and
“Slovenians.” Therefore, without the same aggression by Serbia and Montenegro
that took place in Slovenia and Croatia, there would have been no war in Bosnia
and Herzegovina. The United Nations Security Council Resolutions 752 and 757
from 1992 clearly stated that the rump Yugoslavia (which was constituted of
Serbia and Montenegro), was the aggressor in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was
based on these resolutions that the U.S. introduced economic sanctions against
Serbia and Montenegro.
It should also be recognized that the “Serb Republic” was created on the
territory of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina as the result of the
aggression, ethnic cleansing, and genocide initiated, perpetrated, and supported
by Serbia and Montenegro, against the Articles of the Geneva Conventions and
international laws that prevent changes of borders and changes of constitutions
of sovereign nations as the result of aggression. For these reasons, the U.S.
should not support provisions of the Dayton agreement that facilitate the
territorial division of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the creation of the “Serb
Republic.” For the reasons just stated above, the U.S. and the Free World
dissolved the Third Reich and the states that the Nazis created in occupied
Europe. Therefore, we appeal that the resolutions include a request for the
dissolution of the “Serb Republic” and the return of the legitimate constitution
of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina which was in place before the
aggression.
It is deplorable that Srebrenica is within the borders of the “Serb Republic,”
which was created as a result of the very genocide committed in Srebrenica. It
is important to note that the United Nations Security Council Resolution 819 on
April 16, 1993 that established the UN Safe Area in Srebrenica and Zepa is still
binding and has never been abandoned. Therefore, in current resolutions we
appeal that the U.S. supports Srebrenica victims by stating that Srebrenica
should be placed under UN authority until the “Serb Republic” is dissolved and
the legitimate prewar constitution of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina is
reinstated.
Again, we would like to commend the U.S. Congress for their efforts to sponsor
H.RES 199 and S.RES 134 to mark the 10th Anniversary of the Srebrenica Massacre.
Sincerely,
Zineta Mujic s.r. Ibran Mustafic s.r.
President President of the Executive Board
Mothers of Srebrenica and Podrinje Mothers of Srebrenica and Podrinje
(033) 432-970 (061) 170-803
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
June 20, 2005
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