Former Yugoslavia: We will never forget the Srebrenica genocide!

Source: Women In Black -Belgrade

July 10 2021

We will never forget the Srebrenica genocide!

Statement WIB-Belgrade

On 10^th July 2021, on the 26^th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, Women in Black held a protest under the slogan “We will never forget the Srebrenica genocide” in Republic Square in Belgrade.

In mourning and silence, the scenic action “Srebrenica – the name of genocide” was performed, consisting of the following elements:
• Srebrenica - the name of genocide – observing international court rulings, rebellion against the shameful renaming of genocide - central banner.
• 8372 - bringing to the public stage the number of people killed in genocide is respect for court-established facts. In this way, we symbolically inscribe in the collective memory what is denied / falsified / played down by the majority public of Serbia - the scale of the genocide in Srebrenica.
• Solidarity - Srebrenica - Women in Black - installing a symbolic / living memorial is a continuation of the construction of a monument to the victims of genocide, after our long-standing requests to approve the construction of a permanent monument to the victims of the Srebrenica genocide in Belgrade were rejected.
• The factual truth about the genocide - which most people in Serbia do not want to see, know about or accept - ghostly figures denounce a society of moral breakdown, a community of zombies; instead of silence and complicity, they express sympathy and solidarity with the victims by disclosing long-known facts - this part of the action was carried out by seven activists completely wrapped in black tulle, which they unfolded by presenting information about the Srebrenica genocide on the public stage.
• Installation of the Flower of Srebrenica - a symbol of mass suffering of people, the petals of this flower represent July 11^th, 1995; it is a symbol of the joint struggle for the dignity of the victims of genocide
• Installing a symbolic memorial: the figure 8372 is engraved on the stone - as a sign of non-violent rebellion against the denial of the genocide in Srebrenica.

• The Srebrenica genocide was carried out with the direct support of the Serbian regime.
• The Srebrenica genocide took place from 11^th to 22^nd July 1995.
• 8,372 Bosniak men aged between 12 and 77 were killed in the genocide.
• Sites of mass executions: Jadar, Cerska, Tiš?a, Grbavci, Orahovac, Pilica, Branjevo.
• Over 20,000 members of Serb armed formations took part in the genocide.
• The remains of the killed were found in over 60 mass graves.
• All buses for deportations were from Serbia: “7thJuly”-Šabac, “Strela”-Valjevo, “Raketa”-Užice ...

Even before the arrival of Women in Black, Republic Square was occupied by a large number of members of pro-fascist organizations. Women in Black reported the action to the police on June 25^th, 2021. However, over 70 fascists constantly obstructed the action with insults, threats, and the like. They were carrying many pictures and flags with the image of the Hague convict Ratko Mladic, flags with skulls and other fascist symbols. Among them was Simo Spasi?, president of the Association of Missing Kidnapped Serbs. We immediately asked the police when that rally was reported, the police did not know or did not want to tell us, which led us to the conclusion that there is a direct connection between the regime and the hooligan / pro-fascist groups. Everything the said fascist group did was carried out without adequate police intervention.

Throughout the action, the fascists shouted, yelled, hollered death threats over a megaphone, chanting:

  Ratko Mladi?, Serbian hero
  Srebrenica – is not genocide
  Whores in Black
  Ustasha cunts
  Staša Ustasha
  Staša, I’ll run you over by car!
  Staša, I’ll kill you!
  Staša, who’s going to bury you?
  Staša, you whore
  Staša, don’t cry too much in the embassy tonight. Cry, but not much.
  Staša, Gargamel
  Get lost from Serbia
  Fuck you in the mouth
  You black whore
  Why don’t you talk about Serbian victims?
  Whore, where are Serbian victims?
  Poor thing, motherfucker Ustasha
  Whores, fagots, you fucked up Serbia
  My Mladi?, your problem is that you are a Serbian hero
  Radovan Karadži?, Radovan Karadži?
  Oh Serbia, our mother, don’t grieve, just call, all the falcons will give their lives for
  Montenegro, stay with us forever
  Serbia, Russia, never Yugoslavia
  Serbia, Russia, we don’t need a union
  Long live Serbia!
  Srpska, Serbia, never the Federation
  Ustashas
  Srebrenica, is not genocide, is not genocide!
  General, at your command, we shall fly like bullets!
  Brace up, brace up, Chetniks, there will be a mighty fight!
  Hurl bombs Chetniks!
  From this victory of ours the sun of freedom is being born!
  From Topola, from Topola, all the way to Ravna Gora, all are guards, all are guards of General Draža, and patrols, and patrols of Kalabi? Nikola, reconnaissance, reconnaissance of Pavle ?uriši?, the vanguard, the vanguard of Voivode ?uji?, and ambush, and ambush of Ra?i?, all of them
  Draža is alive, he hasn’t died, as long as there are Serbs and Serbia
  Long live, long live, the kingdom of Serbia
  Women in Black are pre-war, war, and post-war mongers. They didn’t lose anyone. None of their folk was killed, etc.

Also, the fascists played songs over loudspeakers glorifying war criminals, denying the verdicts of the Hague Tribunal, mocking the victims, etc.
While Staša Zajovi? was giving a statement to the media, most members of fascist groups swarmed in that place, creating strong physical pressure, repeating the open threats to Staša Zajovi? mentioned above.
The protest was covered by the media, and it took place with great police security.

The protest was attended by seventy-odd activists from Belgrade, Novi Sad, Leskovac, Vlasotince, Kraljevo, Zrenjanin, Novi Pazar, Niš, Pan?evo.

https://balkans.aljazeera.net/news/balkan/2021/7/10/beograd-zene-u-crnom-stajanjem-u-tisini-obiljezile-26-godisnjicu-genocida
https://www.danas.rs/drustvo/performans-zena-u-crnom-o-srebrenici-na-trgu-desnicari-skandiraju-ratku-mladicu/
https://rs.n1info.com/vesti/performans-zena-u-crnom-o-srebrenici-na-trgu-desnicari-skandiraju-ratku-mladicu/

On July 11, a group of about 20 Women in Black activists visited the Poto?ari Memorial Center, where they attended the burial / funeral of the remains of those killed in the Srebrenica genocide.