The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, became the first Mayor of a global city to visit the Srebrenica Memorial Center in Bosnia & Herzegovina to pay his respects on behalf of Londoners, ahead of the anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide.
The Mayor met with Dr. Emir Suljagić, executive director of the centre and a survivor of the massacre, and spoke to families of the victims of the genocide – the Mothers of Srebrenica – as he passed on his condolences.
In July 1995, more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys were killed, and more than 30,000 Bosniak Muslim women, children, and older people were forcibly moved from the region. This was the biggest genocide on mainland Europe since the Holocaust.
Today Sadiq became the first Mayor of London and the first Mayor of a global city to ever visit the Srebrenica Memorial Center, and the most senior UK politician to visit in more than 10 years.
At a time of growing divisions around the world and hatred spread widely on social media, museums and memorial centres like the Srebrenica Memorial Center have an important role to play in teaching us all about the past, ensuring that lessons are learnt and preventing future atrocities. Last year, the Mayor visited Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum and Memorial in Poland to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
While in Bosnia & Herzegovina, the Mayor also met with Bosniak member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dr. Denis Bećirović, and Mayor of Sarajevo Samir Avdić and Prime Minister of Sarajevo Canton Nihad Uk to discuss the importance of remembrance and the challenges both countries face.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “It is an honour, but also incredibly humbling, to be here in Bosnia and Herzegovina ahead of the anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide. Thirty-one years ago, more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys were murdered and more than 30,000 Bosniak Muslim women, children, and older people were forcibly moved in one of the darkest episodes of Europe’s recent history. It was a shocking and horrific moment and I’m here on behalf of Londoners to pay my respects. As global tensions continue to escalate and divisions within our society increase, it’s never been more important to learn the lessons of history and remember that we have more in common than that which divides us.”
Julian Reilly, British Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina, said: “I am delighted to welcome the Mayor of London to Bosnia and Herzegovina. His visit to Srebrenica is an important opportunity to honour the victims of genocide, pay tribute to survivors and reaffirm the enduring importance of remembrance, dignity and truth. At a time of political uncertainty, the Mayor’s visit also sends a wider message of support for a sovereign, multi-ethnic Bosnia and Herzegovina in which all communities can prosper. As the leader of one of the world’s most diverse cities, his engagement highlights the value of cooperation across communities and our shared commitment to building a more stable, inclusive and successful future for all citizens of this country.”
Dr Emir Suljagić, Director of the Srebrenica Memorial Center, said: “Srebrenica is neither a symbol nor a metaphor. Srebrenica is the place where genocide was committed, and a fact that cannot be changed by political campaigns, propaganda or denial. The Memorial Centre exists to preserve the truth, the names of the victims and the evidence of the crime, precisely because we know that forgetting is never accidental. At a time when historical revisionism is being used ever more openly as a political tool, the visit of the Mayor of London, Sir Sadiq Khan, represents a clear affirmation that facts remain stronger than attempts to deny them. Here, we are not only defending the memory of the victims; we are defending the right of future generations to learn history based on facts, not lies.”
Dr Waqar Azmi OBE, the Chair of Remembering Srebrenica UK, said: “Sir Sadiq Khan’s visit to the Srebrenica Memorial Complex at Potočari is a profoundly important act of remembrance and solidarity. Paying respects to the victims of the Srebrenica genocide, who were murdered in the biggest genocide on European soil since the Second World War, sends a powerful message that we will never forget where hatred, dehumanisation and division can lead. At a time when communities in Britain are increasingly concerned by rising hatred, polarisation and attempts to sow fear and mistrust between neighbours, this high-level political visit not only demonstrates the Mayor of London’s commitment to rejecting those forces but UK’s ongoing commitment to Bosnia and Herzegovina.”
Akeela Ahmed MBE, CEO of British Muslim Trust, said: “The Srebrenica Memorial Complex reminds us of the true horrors that people are capable of inflicting on one another when hate succeeds. The atrocities committed in the Bosnian War must never be forgotten – we have a duty to keep their memory alive and to learn the lessons of history. At a time when hate incidents in the UK are on the rise, mosques are attacked, Muslims are assaulted in our streets, and more than half of British Muslims have experienced prejudice in the last year, it is crystal clear that the battle against those who seek to divide us is far from won. Sir Sadiq Khan’s visit to Potočari is therefore both extremely important and most welcome.”
