Radislav Krstic, former general of the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) and an associate of Ratko Mladic, who was sentenced to 35 years in prison for participating in the Srebrenica genocide by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), has admitted to the genocide against Bosniaks of Srebrenica after years of denying guilt. Additionally, Krstic expressed remorse for supporting and aiding the genocide, alongside his request for early release. However, associations representing genocide victims believe Krstic’s confession is insincere, similar to other Hague convicts like Biljana Plavsic and Dario Kordic, who “changed their tune” upon release and continued denying the crimes they committed. Yet, the victims’ associations indicate they might support his request if Krstic fulfills certain conditions.
“You have shown through your past actions how a soldier of the VRS should fight. You have completed all tasks so far very successfully,” Krstic stated in footage from October 1995, after the Drina Corps of the VRS, under Krstic’s command, participated in the killings of 2.000 Bosniaks in Pilica and Branjevo.
The tasks he mentioned were monstrous and unimaginable crimes, torture, and killings of Bosniaks in Srebrenica and its surroundings, as well as the genocide in which more than eight thousand people were killed. Due to his command responsibility, Krstic was sentenced to 35 years in prison. After his initial request for early release was denied in 2022, Krstic recently repeated his plea through his lawyer. In the letter, he admits to the genocide and expresses remorse for the crimes, making him the first official of RS to do so. Nevertheless, Krstic’s remorse and confession are met with caution at the Srebrenica-Potocari Memorial Center.
“We welcome the admission of guilt and urge the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) to conduct an interview with Radislav Krstic in light of this. However, we expect that as a result of his confession, Krstic will share all that he knows and still keeps silent about,” says Almasa Salihovic, spokesperson for the Srebrenica – Potocari Memorial Center.
In an interview, representatives from Srebrenica’s genocide victim associations recall their agreement with the court that no convict can be granted temporary freedom without their consent. Accordingly, they have specific demands.
“We, as genocide victims, ask Krstic to disclose the locations of mass graves, as graves were relocated up to 2008, and to name the criminals who worked with him, moved those graves, and participated in executions- criminals who remain at large,” says Munira Subasic, president of the Association Mothers of the Srebrenica and Zepa Enclaves.
Furthermore, genocide victims also demand that Krstic send the same letter to Aleksandar Vucic and Milorad Dodik, acknowledging that genocide was committed in Srebrenica, including to all countries that voted against the Genocide Resolution, which Krstic, in his statement, accepts. Additionally, his request to visit the Memorial Center and cemetery to pay respects to the genocide victims is unacceptable.
“He is forbidden to come here by the families, by the surviving families, and the souls of the dead cannot speak to convey all they endured and suffered from him and his atrocities,” stated Nura Begovic, president of the Citizens’ Association Women of Srebrenica.
“He participated in genocide, in killing, whether he personally killed or not, we don’t know, but he was involved. I cannot forgive him,” states Fadila Efendic, president of the Association Mothers of Srebrenica.
Researcher Jasmin Medic from the Institute of History at the University of Sarajevo (UNSA) believes that it is less important whether Radislav Krstic genuinely repents in the letter sent to the court and the public than that he does not deny the crime and genocide committed. This is especially important for future generations, he argues.
“He does not deny the genocide committed; he speaks of his own guilt, and this is undoubtedly a blow to all those who deny the genocide. This is a significant argument for those asserting that genocide was committed,” Medic adds.
It should be recalled that the website of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) published a submission in which Radislav Krstic’s lawyer filed a request for his early release, requesting that the letter of remorse be made available to the public.
