The Association for Social Research and Communication (UDIK) reminds the public of the 28th anniversary of the suffering of Sarajevo civilians who were killed on February 05, 1994 at Markale (marketplace) by the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) during the siege of the Sarajevo in the Bosnian war.
The first massacre occurred between 12:10 and 12:20, on February 05, 1994 when a 120 millimeter mortal shell landed in the center of the crowded marketplace. Rescue workers and United Nations personnel rushed to help the numerous civilian casualties, while footage of the event soon made news reports across the world. 68 people were killed and 144 more were wounded.
The Markale massacre is a proof of the inhumanity, brutality and absurdity of the entire war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Markale is the paradigm of all Serbian crimes in the siege of Sarajevo. The war crime happened right there because Markale was a gathering place for all citizens, civilians, different ages, different professions, different ethnicities and genders. For that reason, the pain is even worse. The enemy killed not only the citizens, but also the multiculturalism of Sarajevo.
It is a sad fact that the Markale massacre is commemorated only in Sarajevo. In the other entity there is silence and ignorance. Only truth, which is bitter in this case, can make progress in the reconciliation process. Not for us, but for future generations. This is how a democratic society based on trust and mutual respect is built. Marking the anniversary of the Markale massacre should be and remain a true act of the fight against inhumanity, but also the forgetting of all the evil that happened during the siege of Sarajevo.
