The UN yesterday established an International Day of Remembrance of the massacre of 8,000 Muslim men by Bosnian Serb forces on July 11, 1995.
They refuse to qualify the Srebrenica massacre as “genocide” or the establishment of an International Day of Remembrance: several dozen pro-Serb demonstrators gathered Thursday in Montenegro, in front of the government headquarters, before the vote in the United Nations Assembly.
However, the UN adopted its resolution shortly after, with 84 votes in favor, 19 against and 68 abstentions.
The President of the Serbian Republic, Aleksandar Vučić, minimizes the significance of this vote by emphasizing that between the votes against and the abstentions, 107 states did not vote in favor of the resolution.
Paris pleads for reconciliation through its ambassador Nicolas de Rivière: “France calls on the political leaders of the countries of this region to live up to this requirement. It is up to us to look to the future, by making the creation of the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the Srebrenica Genocide an opportunity to work towards the reconciliation of memories on the basis of respect and solidarity with all the victims“said the diplomat.
On July 11, 1995, around 8,000 Muslim men and teenagers were massacred by Bosnian Serb forces, commanded by General Ratko Mladić.
Survivors and relatives of the victims welcome this decision by the UN to make July 11 a day of commemoration, while the Serbs believe that this choice will further distance the different peoples of Bosnia-Herzegovina from reconciliation.
Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik threatens to secede.