Crime connot be forgotten

The perpetrators must be punished!

The tenth anniversary of the beginning of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 6th April 2002

Public announcement on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the beginning of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina:

"It has been ten years today since the war broke out in Bosnia and Herzegovina. On this occasion, activists of Women in Black Belgrade, The Center for Cultural Decontamination, Belgrade and Women to Women, Sarajevo wish to warn the public of the fact that the new authorities are doing their best to conceal the truth about what happened during that war or to ignore it, just like the previous regime did. If we really want to build a democratic and free society, then the fact that Slobodan Milosevic and his regime were directly responsible for the aggression and the war in BH must be accepted. Instead, the new authorities regard the perpetrators of horrendous crimes as victims of international relations who are being sheltered, and not as individuals who have been accused and persecuted by the Hague Tribunal. Even in cases where the accused were extradited, our authorities did not bring the accused before justice because they were suspected of committing atrocities, but rather justifying such acts as complying to the international community's conditions considering donations and loans to Serbia. We hereby warn that there is no consensus in Serbia to cover up crime! Crime cannot be forgotten and the perpetrators must be punished.

Therefore, we call upon the Federal and Republic authorities to:

• Stop viewing the past from the executor's perspective and to look at events through the victims' eyes
• Stop inflicting guilt feelings and shame upon the entire population by failing to distance themselves from the criminal Milosevic regime
• Unconditionally hand over all the suspects for war crimes as soon as possible, in order to fulfill historical justice and not because of financial assistance
• Help urgently establish institutions through which it will be possible to confront crime and moral responsibility
• Stop comparing Serbia with neighboring countries by measuring the number of deported suspects, but to boldly confront our own past, if they truly wish to achieve democracy and freedom.

Only in this way will justice and freedom be served."

On this occasion a protest rally has been planned for Saturday, 6th April 2002, at 12 p.m. on Republic Square, followed by an encounter with the women of Srebrenica at 1:30 p.m. at the Center for Cultural Decontamination, at 21 Bircaninova street.