New in the "Testimonies" edition:
Srebrenica - from Denial to Confession

Prepared and edited by Sonja Biserko

06/08/2005

The book attempts to provide an in-depth insight into the context of the Srebrenica massacre, the biggest atrocity and the most monstrous crime committed over the 1991-99 wars in the territory of ex-Yugoslavia. The Srebrenica massacre took place four years after the outbreak of Yugoslav wars. From the very beginning in 1992 the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina was genocidal, since the official Belgrade's policy implied ethnic cleansing. The ethnic cleansing was the principal objective of the Bosnian war, rather than its consequence. The international community - that has already witnessed mass murders, maltreatment, destruction of cultural monuments, plunder, massive dislocations of people, etc. - did nothing to prevent it. Western governments even avoided calling it by its proper name - genocide.

From the moral point of view, the Srebrenica massacre was not only a watershed in the Bosnian war, but also a symbol of the West's indifference. The Srebrenica massacre was a crucial point that made the Western civilization to resume its fundamental values based on anti-fascism.

By presenting the chronology of the Srebrenica crime, this book at the same time contributes to facing up the past and catharsis of the side that has committed genocide. Though this is about a long and painful process, one should not lose hope about its successful outcome.

HCHRS