The Institute for Research of Genocide Canada (IGC) has called on the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina to respond to the disgraceful and scandalous decision of the Mayor of Prijedor to finance the needs of convicted war criminals.
While the families of victims continue searching for the remains of their loved ones and unsuccessfully demand the construction of a memorial for the murdered children of Prijedor, the city administration is using public funds to finance housing for fugitive Ilija Zorić and medical treatment for the parents of Ljubiša Četić, both of whom were convicted by final and binding court judgments for the massacre in Zecovi. The payment decisions were signed by the Mayor of Prijedor, Slobodan Javor.
In a letter sent to the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Office of the High Representative, the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Ministry of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Prime Minister of Canada, members of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council, and the State Investigation and Protection Agency, the IGC called for an urgent reaction to what it described as an anti-civilizational, dehumanizing and institutional provocation by the city administration. If left unanswered, such actions could cause additional trauma to survivors of genocide in Prijedor.
The frustrated municipal authorities in Prijedor have never publicly acknowledged the actions of the wartime authorities nor expressed remorse for the suffering endured by thousands of Bosniaks and Croats, nor have they extended a hand of reconciliation. Instead, the authorities publicly humiliate organizations representing victims and witnesses of genocide and deliberately spread fear among the families of murdered and missing citizens of Prijedor.
At the same time, convicted war criminals move freely throughout the city and even occupy positions within local government. The authorities permit gatherings of fascist groups against whom the citizens of Prijedor and anti-fascists fought during the Second World War, while denying victims the right to remembrance, truth and justice.
The authorities also ignore the requests of representatives of the international community, who have clearly stated that discrimination based on ethnicity and religion must cease, that the truth about the genocide must be acknowledged, that perpetrators must be held accountable and justice served, and that the suffering of all victims from Prijedor must be commemorated equally, regardless of their ethnic background.
These and many other attacks on fundamental human rights and freedoms damage the reputation of both Prijedor and Bosnia and Herzegovina, undermine the foundations of democracy and seriously violate the basic principles of international law. No one has the right to deny genocide victims the right to remember the crime committed against them.
For the city administration of Prijedor, convicted war criminals appear to be treated as heroes and a protected category.
The IGC also reminded the public of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which prescribes a prison sentence of at least three years for individuals who grant privileges or financial assistance to persons convicted of war crimes. The mayor and the officials who signed these decisions should beheld criminally accountable, since such actions inflict additional pain on the families of victims.
The IGC continues its international campaign to ensure that victims of genocide in Prijedor are granted the right to dignified remembrance and commemoration, including the construction of an appropriate memorial as a warning about the horrors of genocide in Prijedor that must never be repeated.
In cooperation with American and Canadian human rights organizations, and through its International Expert Team, the Institute is working to ensure that the notorious concentration camps in Prijedor are officially marked as memorial sites for Bosniak and Croat victims, and that 31 May becomes a permanent date of remembrance of the Prijedor “White Armbands”, a symbol of one of the most rigid forms of fascist apartheid.
