Dear Excellencies,
After eleven and a half years of detention Vojislav Šešelj, who is charged with crimes against humanity and violations of the laws or customs of war in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Vojvodina by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia was the first war crimes indictee (defendant) who was unconditionally released on temporary freedom.
On behalf of the victims of the aggression against the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and genocide against its citizens, in the name of many Americans and Canadians, friends of the truth about the aggression and genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina and friends of justice for the victims of these crimes on behalf of numerous organizations for protection of human rights and freedoms in North America, the Institute for Research of Genocide Canada {IGC} sends you a letter of protest on the occasion of improper release of indicted war criminal Vojislav Šešelj.
His release was lost for international justice, an insult and humiliation of the victims, an attack on truth and justice and fully rendered senseless labor and fall of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Šešelj’s liberation causes new fear among the surviving victims, victims who were twenty years ago survived the genocide now re-experiencing same fear. Spectacular Party ideologists of evil, hatred, manufacturers of nationalist chaos in the name of Greater Serbia at the expense of the destruction of the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina and larger number of people the Bosnians, again is producing hatred on religious and ethnic grounds and reforming idea of fascist Large Serbia. We remind you that Šešelj before his departure to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, has announced that he is going there to crush the International Criminal Tribunal, and he succeeded.
We consider scandalous in the Šešelj trial for the replacement of the Trial Chamber, led by Alfonso Orie and Judge Jean-Claude Antonetti, which happened in 2006 after his hunger strike, as well as the infamous decision of the Appeals Chamber to allow Šešelj to defend himself. The hunger strike, revealing the names of protected witnesses, failure to comply with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, his curses and insults, and then his release from custody, Šešelj uses all this for a re-birth national fascist ideology and to give new hope to criminals to continue the genocide, not only in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but around the world. With these procedures from the basic mission of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia to bring truth and justice to the victims and facilitate the process of reconciliation and dialogue, will not be fulfilled.
Starting with a shameful decision of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia who sent Šešelj to his freedom, tramples the rights to truth and justice, humiliates victims of aggression and genocide, were the criminals still walk free and rewarded. Public invite you to prevent the collapse of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Jugosalviju to stop the destruction of truth and international justice, stop defeating evil and to put criminal back to prison. You have to prevent the big fear among victims. Replace commitment to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia to fulfill its obligation, which is based on bringing justice and a warning to future generations that crime does not pay and that they will be sanctioned.
Be warned that war crimes inductee Vojislav Šešelj after the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, which was temporarily released due to serious illness, violates the conditions of release, because after returning to Belgrade again invoked the policy of hatred and discord in order to create a Greater Serbia, also extreme nationalist and fascist politics that was the cause of aggression and genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Stop re-invocations of chaos, the brutalizing of truth and justice, the return of hatred on ethnic and religious grounds, and restore hope to the people and civilization able to win justice and truth over evil.
Your inaction in this extremely serious case can have unforeseeable consequences for peace, dialogue, tolerance. The fact is that even after so many years of war and Šešelj ‘s extradition to The Hague, you have not convicted him of war crimes. We consider this a major setback of international law and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
Recalling that there is still no legal, judicial, social condemnation of the fascist idea of a Greater Serbia, which has mobilized masses of people to the greatest crime after the Holocaust in Europe, and that is the aggression and genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Regretting that international and national courts adjudicate only the guards, not the creators of these ideas and crime, IGC on behalf of victims and witnesses of aggression and genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina is requesting that the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina urgently send protest notes to the competent authorities in terms of re-detention of Vojislav Šešelj.
At the same time, IGC urgently ask that the President of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Theodor Meron, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the special reporter on the independence of judges and lawyers at the United Nations Gabriele Knaul and political leaders of all members of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Bosnia and Herzegovina urgently seek to use all means, that war crimes indictee Vojislav Šešelj is send back to prison, to prevent its public fascist activity. Vojislav Šešelj’s place in the prison of historical oblivion not rallies. Those who allow it are close to the ideas of fascism and deserve condemnation.
Politics and ideology of a Greater Serbia, which reinstated temporarily, released of war crimes indictee Vojislav Šešelj has contributed to the incredible evil, material destruction, killing people. Starting from the fact that Šešelj ‘s pathology can be converted into pathologization of whole societies and countries in the region, IGC supports the initiative by the European Parliament in Strasbourg to adopt a resolution to condemn the behavior of war crimes indictee Vojislav Šešelj after his provisional release. IGC will also ask the Canadian Parliament and the US Congress and Senate to adopt similar resolutions.
Professor Emir Ramic
Emir Ramic
Chairman of the Institute for Research of Genocide, Canada
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