[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]“We must live with each other not next to each other.” That was Joyce Watson AM’s message following her visit to Srebrenica.
A delegation of Assembly Members visited Bosnia-Herzegovina in August. It was organised by UK charity Remembering Srebrenica to commemorate the 21st anniversary of the genocide – the single greatest atrocity in Europe since the Second World War.
In July 1995 Bosnian Serb soldiers marched on the mountain settlement and systematically murdered 8,372 Bosnian Muslim men and boys.
At Srebrenica’s memorial-cemetery the politicians spoke with Nedzad Avdic. Seventeen years old at the time of the killings, Nedzad described how he was shot by soldiers and left for dead. He escaped and eventually returned to Srebrenica 12 years later. He visits the memorial most days, he said.
Mrs Watson said:
“Visiting Srebrenica, hearing the testimony of survivors like Nedzad and family members of victims, was an overwhelming experience. It is crucial that we remember the genocide – understand its causes, honour its victims and learn its lessons.
“Remembering Srebrenica has produced an education pack so that we as Assembly Members can promote knowledge of the conflict here in Wales, which we have all pledged to do.”
In 1992, following Bosnia’s declaration of independence from the disintegrating Yugoslavia, Bosnia Serb forces laid siege to the nation’s capital, Sarajevo. As the war escalated the Serb policy of ethnic cleansing forced many Bosnian Muslims towards Srebrenica, which was designated a safe area by the UN. In July 1995, however, Dutch peacekeepers failed to stop Serb forces moving into the area and murdering more than 8,000 male Muslims.
Reflecting on the conversations she had with survivors, the Mid and West AM added:
“I asked the people we spoke with, ‘Why?’. They described how Bosnia, an integrated and cohesive society, quickly collapsed into discrimination and hate, extremism and violence. We must be ever vigilant against these forces taking root in our own communities.”
The Wales delegation included Joyce Watson, former Deputy Presiding Officer David Melding and member for Newport West, Jayne Bryant.
Some senior Serb leaders have been convicted at The Hague International Criminal Court. In March this year Radovan Karadzic, leader of the Bosnian Serb forces, was found guilty of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, and sentenced to 40 years imprisonment.
More information about the project can be found on the Remembering Srebrenica website, www.srebrenica.org.uk.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
