WASHINGTON D.C., July 9, 2015 - The Voice of America hosted a panel discussion in Washington, D.C. marking the 20th anniversary of the genocide in Srebrenica, Bosnia. The event, titled "Bosnia: 20 Years After Srebrenica," examined events of that time both in historical terms and in the context of the country's journey toward ethnic reconciliation, and economic and democratic development.
In
the program's opening remarks, VOA Acting Director Kelu Chao emphasized the
importance of VOA broadcasting in the region saying: "Credibility is the biggest
asset of VOA's Bosnian Service. This is particularly important in countries such
as Bosnia -- a country deeply divided along ethnic lines and struggling to
address the many challenges steaming from war in the 1990s."
Bosnian
Service Chief Dzeilana Pecanin Allison moderated the panel, composed of Stephen
Rapp, U.S Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues, head of the Office of
Global Criminal Justice at the U.S. Department of State; Kurt Volker, Executive
Director of the McCain Institute for International Leadership and former
Ambassador to NATO; and Professors Daniel Serwer of Johns Hopkins School of
Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and (via Skype) Tanya Domi of Columbia
University's School of International and Public Affairs.
Despite Russia's veto Wednesday of a U.N. draft
resolution that would have condemned the 1995 massacre as a "crime of genocide,"
Ambassador Rapp emphasized, "This is not a subject to dispute. It has been
legally established. Not just by the ICTY but also by the International Court of
Justice."
Ambassador
Volker provided modern day context on the importance of discussing the
Srebrenica massacre by comparing it with today's conflicts in Ukraine and other
regions, asking: "What is it about us that has changed with these events that we
are not outraged and called to action today in these cases [Libya, Syria, and
other war-torn countries] as we were, rightfully, in the case of Srebrenica?
That's an important question."
In
his remarks, Professor Serwer underlined the need for continuous Western
engagement in Bosnia amid renewed calls for partition along ethnic lines. "When
I see forces in Bosnia trying to erase the word genocide from its history, I see
the continuing of the war-time struggle" he said. Professor Serwer thanked VOA
for its continuous presence in Bosnia, "for all these years of devotion to what
they do and do so well."
Distinguished
audience members at the event included the Ambassador of Albania to the U.S.,
Floreta Faber, and Ambassador of Montenegro to the U.S., Srdjan Darmanovic.
Representing the Embassy of Kosovo was Counsellor Sami Kastrati. Counsellor Emin
Cohodarevic represented the Embassy of Bosnia and First Counsellor Dusan Vujacic
attended from the Embassy of Serbia.
VOA's Bosnian Service has
been a leading multimedia international broadcaster since 1996 in the target
area, with a 17.4 percent weekly audience. The Service's programming focuses on
promoting peace and stability, ethnic reconciliation, regional cooperation and
NATO/EU integration. This panel was part of VOA's continuing efforts to serve as
a forum for exchange of information and meaningful debate on important
political, economic and social issues.
(VOA)
