Accountability in Serbia

Serbia’s parliament narrowly passed a resolution (as in by two people; of the 173 of 250 that voted, 127 were in favor) to apologize for the massacre of nearly 8,000 Bosnian Muslims by Bosnian Serb forces in July 1995.

The area in which the mass killing occurred was a UN “safe haven” that was under protection by Dutch UN forces. The Serb forces which carried out these atrocities, headed by General Ratko Mladic, were allied with the Serbian President of the time, Slobodan Milosevic.

Serbia’s parliament, or at least a majority of it, feels that “not everything was done to prevent the tragedy”. Even so, some survivors of the Srebrenica massacre, where this mass killing took place, remain unappeased until the capture of now fugitive general Mladic.

            It seems the main conflict rests upon an issue of pride. Those in favor say it will “lift the burden off future generations” while those in opposition say that it is a “[shameful] mark on the future generations that they will never wash away”.

The resolution does not define the massacre as genocide, although it could be, and, although there is upset over the inaction of the UN troops present in Serbia at the time, The Hague Appeals Court affirms the UN’s immunity from prosecution, deeming this “essential for it to be able to carry out its duties around the world”.

Although it has been long in coming, it is good to see nations taking accountability for acts against humanity and taking steps towards a more accountable, conscientious world community; a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.