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''This article refers to [[genocide]] during the 1992-1995 [[Bosnian War]]. Other cases of genocide in the same region during World War II are covered in other articles.'' |
''This article refers to [[genocide]] during the 1992-1995 [[Bosnian War]]. Other cases of genocide in the same region during World War II are covered in other articles.'' |
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[[Image:MassGraveNearSrebrenicaGenocideVictims.jpg|thumb|right|250px|One of 550 exhumed [[mass grave]]s with Bosniak victims near Srebrenica]] |
[[Image:MassGraveNearSrebrenicaGenocideVictims.jpg|thumb|right|250px|One of 550 exhumed [[mass grave]]s with Bosniak victims near Srebrenica]] |
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[[Image:Potocari2006.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[Burial]] of 505 identified Bosniak civilians ([[July 11]] [[2006]])]] |
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The term '''Bosnian Genocide''' is used to refer either to [[Srebrenica massacre|the genocide]] committed by Serb forces in [[Srebrenica]] in [[1995]], in a limited legal sense, with the specific intent ''(dolus specialis)'' to destroy Bosniaks in the area<ref>Staff. ''[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/1907122.stm Bosnian genocide suspect extradited]'', [[BBC]], [[2 April]] [[2002]] </ref> or to the [[crimes against humanity]] and [[war crimes]] during the 1992-1995 [[war in Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnian War]]<ref>[http://www.sense-agency.com/en/stream.php?sta=3&pid=9273&kat=3 SERBIA FOUND GUILTY OF FAILURE TO PREVENT AND PUNISH GENOCIDE]</ref>, to describe the [[ethnic cleansing]] [[campaign]] and [[persecution]] conducted by Serb, and to a lesser extent Croat secessionist [[authorities]] ([[Republika Srpska]] and [[Herzeg-Bosnia]]<ref name="ICTY: Kordić and Čerkez verdict - IV. Attacks on towns and villages: killings - C. The April 1993 Conflagration in Vitez and the Lašva Valley - 3. The Attack on Ahmići (Paragraph 642)">{{cite web|url=http://www.un.org/icty/kordic/trialc/judgement/kor-tj010226e-5.htm#IVC3|title=ICTY: Kordić and Čerkez verdict - IV. Attacks on towns and villages: killings - C. The April 1993 Conflagration in Vitez and the Lašva Valley - 3. The Attack on Ahmići (Paragraph 642)|}}</ref>) in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] on political, racial and religious grounds in the context of a widespread attack on the Bosniak [[civilian]] population. Of the 97,207 documented casualties in Bosnian War, 83 percent of civilian victims were Bosniaks. <ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/06/21/europe/EU-GEN-Bosnia-War-Victims.php Research shows estimates of B&H death toll inflated] - IHT: The Bosnian Book of Dead</ref> <ref>[http://www.birn.eu.com/en/88/10/3377/ Bosnia's Book of Dead] - BIRN Report</ref> <ref>[http://www.slobodnaevropa.org/article/2007/06/14/16bae15b-e476-4aa5-aced-0222f9c86073.html] - RFE: Svaka žrvat ima svoje ime</ref> <ref>[http://www.birn.eu.com/en/88/10/3377/ Bosnia's Book of Dead] - BIRN Report</ref>The term is used by academics<ref>Nobles News Bosnian Genocide Survivor Addresses Nobles Class; Date: 3/6/2007 [http://www.nobles.edu/home/news_item.asp?id=378&zzSec=school]</ref><ref>[http://www.opendemocracy.net/globalization-institutions_government/icj_bosnia_serbia_4392.jsp Open Democracy - Martin Shaw: The International Court of Justice: Serbia, Bosnia, and genocide]</ref><ref name=UCR>University of California Riverside, Bosnian Genocide In the Historical Perspective, [http://www.honors.ucr.edu/Courses/hnpg036p.htm]</ref><ref>World Science: Dump the “ethnic cleansing” jargon, group implores; May 31, 2007 |
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Special to World Science [http://www.world-science.net/exclusives/070525_ethnic-cleansing.htm] </ref><ref>The 32nd annual European Studies Conference - Panel 20: Toward Understanding the Bosnian Genocide (Thursday, 4 October 2007) [http://www.unomaha.edu/esc/ESC-07program.pdf]</ref> and [[human rights]] institutions.<ref>Save Darfur: Genocide Survivors to Light Olympic Torch for Darfur [http://www.savedarfur.org/page/content/about_torch/]</ref><ref name=HRW>Human Rights Watch, Milosevic to Face Bosnian Genocide Charges, [[11 December]] [[2001]] [http://hrw.org/english/docs/2001/12/11/bosher3415.htm]</ref><ref>Missouri Humanities Council - Prijedor: Lives From the Bosnian Genocide, October 2007 [http://www.mohumanities.org/E-News/Oct07/prijedor.htm]</ref> |
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The Higher Regional Court of Dusseldorf, in September 1997, handed down a genocide conviction against Nikola Jorgić, a Serb from the [[Doboj]] region who was the leader of a paramilitary group located in the Doboj region. He was sentenced to four terms of life imprisonment for his involvement in genocidal actions that took place in regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, other than Srebrenica. |
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The term '''Bosnian Genocide''' is used to refer either to the 1995 [[Srebrenica massacre]]<ref>Staff. ''[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/1907122.stm Bosnian genocide suspect extradited]'', [[BBC]], [[2 April]] [[2002]] </ref> or to [[crimes against humanity]] and [[war crimes]] by Bosnian Serb forces during the 1992-1995 [[war in Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnian War]].<ref>[http://www.sense-agency.com/en/stream.php?sta=3&pid=9273&kat=3 SERBIA FOUND GUILTY OF FAILURE TO PREVENT AND PUNISH GENOCIDE]</ref><ref name="ICTY: Kordić and Čerkez verdict - IV. Attacks on towns and villages: killings - C. The April 1993 Conflagration in Vitez and the Lašva Valley - 3. The Attack on Ahmići (Paragraph 642)">{{cite web|url=http://www.un.org/icty/kordic/trialc/judgement/kor-tj010226e-5.htm#IVC3|title=ICTY: Kordić and Čerkez verdict - IV. Attacks on towns and villages: killings - C. The April 1993 Conflagration in Vitez and the Lašva Valley - 3. The Attack on Ahmići (Paragraph 642)|}}</ref> |
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In 2001 the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]] (ICTY) |
In 2001 the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]] (ICTY) judged that the 1995 [[Srebrenica massacre]] was genocide.<ref>The [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]] found in [http://www.worldlii.org/int/cases/ICTY/2001/8.html Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Trial Chamber I - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2001) ICTY8 (2 August 2001)] that genocide had been committed. (see paragraph 560 for name of group in English on whom the genocide was committed). It was upheld in ''[http://www.worldlii.org/int/cases/ICTY/2004/7.html Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Appeals Chamber - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2004) ICTY 7 (19 April 2004)]''</ref> |
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On [[February 26]], [[2007]] the [[International Court of Justice]] (ICJ), in the ''[[Bosnian Genocide Case]]'' upheld the ICTY's earlier finding that the Srebrenica massacre constituted genocide:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/02/26/international/i033600S38.DTL&type=politics|title=Courte: Serbia failed to prevent genocide, UN court rules|date=[[2007-02-26]]|publisher=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> |
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Prior to the ICJ judgement, the term has been used by various academic institutions<ref name=UCR>University of California Riverside: [http://www.honors.ucr.edu/Courses/hnpg036p.htm HNPG 036P (or 033T) |
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History: Bosnian Genocide In the Historical Perspective]</ref> and human rights organizations<ref name=HRW>[[Human Rights Watch]]: [http://hrw.org/english/docs/2001/12/11/bosher3415.htm Milosevic to Face Bosnian Genocide Charges] [[11 December]] [[2001]]</ref>. These are typically based on the disproportionate number of Bosniaks civilians killed during the war (some 55,000 civilians were killed during the fighting, of which 85% were [[Bosniaks|Bosnian Muslims]]).[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_in_Bosnia_and_Herzegovina#Casualties] |
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{{quote|In this case, having identified the protected group as the national group of Bosnian Muslims [Bosniaks], the Trial Chamber concluded that the part the VRS Main Staff and Radislav Krstić targeted was the Bosnian Muslims of Srebrenica, or the Bosnian Muslims of Eastern Bosnia. (...) The size of the Bosnian Muslim population in Srebrenica prior to its capture by the VRS forces [Army of Republika Srpska] in 1995 amounted to approximately forty thousand people. This represented not only the Muslim inhabitants of the Srebrenica municipality but also many Muslim refugees from the surrounding region. Although this population constituted only a small percentage of the overall Muslim population of Bosnia and Herzegovina at the time, the importance of the Muslim community of Srebrenica is not captured solely by its size (...) The Court sees no reason to disagree with the concordant findings of the Trial Chamber and the Appeals Chamber.}} |
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==Controversy== |
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ICJ President [[Rosalyn Higgins]] noted that there is a lot of evidence to prove that [[crimes against humanity]] and [[war crimes]] had been committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina such as widespread killings, the siege of towns, mass [[rape]]s, [[torture]], [[deportation]] to [[concentration camp|camps]] and detention centers. The International Court of Justice does not have [[jurisdiction]] over them, because this case deals ''"exclusively with genocide in a limited legal sense and not in the broader sense sometimes given to this term".''<ref>{{cite web|year=|url=http://www.sense-agency.com/en/stream.php?sta=3&pid=9273&kat=3|title=Sense Tribunal: SERBIA FOUND GUILTY OF FAILURE TO PREVENT AND PUNISH GENOCIDE}}</ref><ref>ICJ: Bosnian Genocide Case: Summary of the Judgment of 26 February 2007 [http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/index.php?sum=667&code=bhy&p1=3&p2=2&case=91&k=f4&p3=5]</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/02/26/international/i033600S38.DTL&type=politics|title=Courte: Serbia failed to prevent genocide, UN court rules|date=[[2007-02-26]]|publisher=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> |
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There is a significant disagreement between the Bosnian and Serbian side about the possibility or scope of genocide in Bosnia during the Bosnian War that has made this a controversial and contentious issue. The Bosnian side claims that the Srebrenica massacre was just one instance of what was a broader genocide committed by Serbia.<ref name=ICJ1>van den Biesen."Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, General Concluding Observation". International Court of Justice. [[24 April]] [[2006]], para. 1-12. [http://www.icj-cij.org/icjwww/idocket/ibhy/ibhyframe.htm] </ref> Some commentators believe that the Srebrenica massacre was not genocide. Typically, they cite that women and children were spared and that only military age men were targeted<ref>The Politics of the Srebrenica Massacre, Z Net, 7 July 2007, by Edward S. Herman [http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?ItemID=8244]</ref><ref>"The real story behind Srebrenica", ''Globe and Mail'', July 14, 2005. [http://www.mail-archive.com/serbian_way@antic.org/msg00008.html]</ref>.<ref>ICTY, ''Prosecutor vs Krstic, Trial Chamber Judgement'', Case No. IT-98-33-T, paras 43–46. [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/jug33-e.htm]</ref> |
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On July 12, 2007, the [[European Court of Human Rights]] confirmed the Dusseldorf court judgment against Nikola Jorgić for the genocide in Doboj. |
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== International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia == |
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==Individuals accused of genocide== |
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In 2001 the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]] (ICTY) judged that the 1995 [[Srebrenica massacre]] was genocide.<ref>The [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]] found in [http://www.worldlii.org/int/cases/ICTY/2001/8.html Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Trial Chamber I - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2001) ICTY8 (2 August 2001)] that genocide had been committed. (see paragraph 560 for name of group in English on whom the genocide was committed). It was upheld in ''[http://www.worldlii.org/int/cases/ICTY/2004/7.html Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Appeals Chamber - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2004) ICTY 7 (19 April 2004)]''</ref> In the unanimous ruling "Prosecutor v. Krstić", the Appeals Chamber of the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia|International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)]], located in [[The Hague]], ruled that the Srebrenica massacre was [[genocide]]<ref>ICTY "Prosecutor v. Krstic" [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/Appeal/judgement/krs-aj040419e.pdf]</ref>, the Presiding Judge Theodor Meron stating: |
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'''Accused by the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia]]:''' |
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::''By seeking to eliminate a part of the Bosnian Muslims'' [Bosniaks]'', the Bosnian Serb forces committed genocide. They targeted for extinction the forty thousand Bosnian Muslims living in Srebrenica, a group which was emblematic of the Bosnian Muslims in general. They stripped all the male Muslim prisoners, military and civilian, elderly and young, of their personal belongings and identification, and deliberately and methodically killed them solely on the basis of their identity.''<ref>ICTY; "Address by ICTY President Theodor Meron, at Potocari Memorial Cemetery" The Hague, 23 June 2004 [http://www.un.org/icty/pressreal/2004/p860-e.htm]</ref> |
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*[[Slobodan Milošević]] (accused of genocide or complicity in genocide in territories within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including: [[Bijeljina]], [[Bosanski Novi]], [[Brčko]], [[Ključ]], Kotor Varoš, [[Prijedor]], [[Sanski Most]] and [[Srebrenica]] <ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Slobodan Milošević - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/mil-ai040421-e.htm]</ref>; died during the trial) |
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== International Court of Justice == |
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*[[Radovan Karadžić]] (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including but not limited to: Bijeljina, [[Bratunac]], [[Bosanski Šamac]], Brčko, [[Doboj]], [[Foča]], [[Ilijaš]], [[Ključ]], Kotor Varoš, Bosanski Novi, Prijedor, [[Rogatica]], Sanski Most, Srebrenica, [[Višegrad]], [[Vlasenica]], [[Zavidovići]] and Zvornik.<ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Radovan Karadžić - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/kar-ai000428e.htm]</ref>; remains at large) |
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[[Image:Public hearing at the ICJ.jpg|thumb|Public hearing at the ICJ.]] |
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*[[Ratko Mladić]] (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, includingin Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Prijedor, Sanski Most, Srebrenica, Banja Luka, Bosanska Krupa, Bratunac, Vlasenica and Zvornik.<ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Ratko Mladić - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/mla-ai021010e.htm]</ref>; remains at large) |
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On [[February 26]], [[2007]] the [[International Court of Justice]] (ICJ), in the ''[[Bosnian Genocide Case]]'' upheld the ICTY's earlier finding that the Srebrenica massacre constituted genocide:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/02/26/international/i033600S38.DTL&type=politics|title=Courte: Serbia failed to prevent genocide, UN court rules|date=[[2007-02-26]]|publisher=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> |
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*[[Momčilo Krajišnik]] (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including but not limited to: Bijeljina, Bratunac, Bosanski Šamac, Brčko, Doboj, Foča, Ilijaš, Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Bosanski Novi, Prijedor, Rogatica, Sanski Most, Višegrad, Vlasenica, Zavidovići and Zvornik <ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Momčilo Krajišnik - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/kra-1ai000321e.htm]</ref> <ref>ICTY: Judgment - Momčilo Krajišnik [http://www.un.org/icty/krajisnik/trialc/judgement/kra-jud060927e.pdf]</ref>) |
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ICJ President [[Rosalyn Higgins]] noted that there is a lot of evidence to prove that [[crimes against humanity]] and [[war crimes]] had been committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina such as widespread killings, the siege of towns, mass [[rape]]s, [[torture]], [[deportation]] to [[concentration camp|camps]] and detention centers. The International Court of Justice does not have [[jurisdiction]] over them, because this case deals ''"exclusively with genocide in a limited legal sense and not in the broader sense sometimes given to this term".''<ref>{{cite web|year=|url=http://www.sense-agency.com/en/stream.php?sta=3&pid=9273&kat=3|title=Sense Tribunal: SERBIA FOUND GUILTY OF FAILURE TO PREVENT AND PUNISH GENOCIDE}}</ref><ref>ICJ: Bosnian Genocide Case: Summary of the Judgment of 26 February 2007 [http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/index.php?sum=667&code=bhy&p1=3&p2=2&case=91&k=f4&p3=5]</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/02/26/international/i033600S38.DTL&type=politics|title=Courte: Serbia failed to prevent genocide, UN court rules|date=[[2007-02-26]]|publisher=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> Moreover, the Court found that "Finds that Serbia has not committed genocide" nor "conspired to" or "incited the commission of genocide". It did however, find that Serbia had failed "to take all measures within its power to prevent genocide in Srebrenica" and to comply fully with the ICTY.[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bosnian_Genocide_Case#Verdict] |
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*[[Biljana Plavšić]] (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including but not limited to: Bijeljina, Bratunac, Bosanski Šamac, Brčko, Doboj, Foča, Ilijaš, Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Bosanski Novi, Prijedor, Rogatica, Sanski Most, Višegrad, Vlasenica, Zavidovići and Zvornik<ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Biljana Plavšić - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/kra-cai020307e.htm]</ref>; genocide charges were withdrawn, with the accused pleading guilty to [[crimes against humanity]]<ref>ICTY: Biljana Plavšić Plea agreement [http://www.un.org/icty/krajisnik/trialc/plea-300902e.pdf]</ref><ref>ICTY: Biljana Plavšić judgment - [http://www.un.org/icty/plavsic/trialc/judgement/index.htm]</ref>) |
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== German courts == |
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*[[Radislav Krstić]] (Srebrenica) |
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During the late 1990s the German courts handed down custodial sentences to several individuals who were found guilty by the German courts of participating in genocides in Bosnia. |
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*[[Vidoje Blagojević]] (Srebrenica) |
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*[[Milomir Stakić]] (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in [[Prijedor|Prijedor Municipality]]<ref>ICTY: THE PROSECUTOR OF THE TRIBUNAL AGAINST MILOMIR STAKIC - FOURTH AMENDED INDICTMENT [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/sta-4ai020410e.htm]</ref>) |
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*[[Momir Nikolić]] |
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*[[Dragan Obrenović]] |
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*[[Stojan Župljanin]] |
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*[[Momir Talić]] |
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*Simo Drljača (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in [[Prijedor|Prijedor Municipality]]; killed by NATO forces during the arrest attempt) |
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*[[Milan Kovačević]] (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in [[Prijedor|Prijedor Municipality]]<ref>ICTY: First Amended Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/kov-1ai980623e.htm]</ref>; died during the trial) |
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'''Accused by the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina:''' |
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The Higher Regional Court of Dusseldorf, in September 1997, handed down a genocide conviction against [[Nikola Jorgić]], a Bosnian Serb from the [[Doboj]] region who was the leader of a paramilitary group located in the Doboj region. He was sentenced to four terms of life imprisonment for his involvement in genocidal actions that took place in regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, other than Srebrenica.{{Fact|date=November 2007}} |
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*Milorad Trbić <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Trbić case: Charged with genocide pursuant to Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) in conjunction with the killing members of the group, causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group, deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part, imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=47&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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== European Court of Human Rights == |
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[[Image:European Court of Human Rights.jpg|222px|thumb|right|European Court of Human Rights building in [[Strasbourg]]]] |
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In 2007 the [[European Court of Human Rights]] (ECHR) in the ''Jorgić v. Germany'' case (Application no. 74613/01), reviewed the German courts judgements against Jorgić. While rejecting Jorgić's appeal, they highlighted that the German courts ruling in the 1990 had interpreted the German domestic law on genocide more broadly than the more recent rulings by the ICTY and the ICJ. |
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*Miloš Stupar <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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The ECHR concluded that the German court had ruled that the "intent to destroy" also included "meant destruction of the group as a social unit in its distinctiveness and particularity and its feeling of belonging together; a biological-physical destruction was not necessary. It concluded that the applicant had therefore acted with intent to destroy the group of Muslims in the North of Bosnia, or at least in the Doboj region."<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 18</ref> Under the wider definition that the German judiciary upheld the [[ethnic cleansing]] carried out by Jorgić was a genocide because it was an intent to destroy the group as a social unit. At the time Jorgić committed his acts in 1992 a majority of scholars took the view that genocidal 'intent to destroy a group' under German law mean the killing of members of the group, but a considerable number of scholars were of the opinion that the notion had a wider meaning encompasing destruction of the group as a social unit.<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany § 36 butt also §§ 18,47,99,103,108</ref> |
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*Milenko Trifunović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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The ECHR noted that this wider interpretation of genocide has since been rejected by international courts considering similar cases. In the case of ''Prosecutor v. Krstić'' ([[2 August]] [[2001]]) the ICTY ruled "customary international law limits the definition of genocide to those acts seeking the physical or biological destruction of all or part of the group. Hence, an enterprise attacking only the cultural or sociological characteristics of a human group in order to annihilate these elements which give to that group its own identity distinct from the rest of the community would not fall under the definition of genocide."<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 42 citing Prosecutor v. Krstic, IT-98-33-T, judgment of 2 August 2001, §§ 580</ref> On [19 April] 2004 This was upheld on Appeal "The Genocide Convention, and customary international law in general, prohibit only the physical or biological destruction of a human group. ... The Trial Chamber expressly acknowledged this limitation, and eschewed any broader definition. ..." although like the lower court, the appeal court also ruled that ethnic cleansing might with other evidence lead to an inference of genocidal intent.<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 43 citing the judgment of 19 April 2004 rendered by the Appeals Chamber of the ICTY, IT-98-33-A §§ 25,33</ref> In 14 January 2000 the ICTY ruled in the ''Prosecutor v. Kupreškić and Others'' case that the [[Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing]] campaign in order to expel the Bosnian Muslim population from the region, was [[persecution]], not genocid per se<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 44 citing Prosecutor v. Kupreskic and Others (IT-95-16-T, judgment of 14 January 2000), § 751</ref> The ECHR noted and quoted the opinion of the International Court of Justice ruling in the [[Bosnian Genocide Case]] that ethnic cleansing was not in its self genocide.<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany] §45 citing Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro ("Case concerning the application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide") the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found under the heading of "intent and 'ethnic cleansing'" § 190</ref> |
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*Petar Mitrović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Brano Džinić <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Aleksandar Radovanović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Slobodan Jakovljević <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Miladin Stevanović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Velibor Maksimović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Dragiša Živanović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Branislav Medan <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Milovan Matić <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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'''Accused by the German courts:''' |
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[[Image:Srebrenica Potocari Memorial 2.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Srebrenica, the Memorial]] |
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*Nikola Jorgić |
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The ECHR also noted that in the [[21 century]] "Amongst scholars, the majority have taken the view that ethnic cleansing, in the way in which it was carried out by the Serb forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to expel Muslims and Croats from their homes, did not constitute genocide. However, there are also a considerable number of scholars who have suggested that these acts did amount to genocide"<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 47</ref> |
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*Novislav Đajić |
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*Maksim Sokolović |
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==Plea agreements== |
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The ECHR having reviewed the case and the more recent international rulings on the issue the ECHR ruled that "The Court finds that the [German] courts' interpretation of 'intent to destroy a group' as not necessitating a physical destruction of the group, which has also been adopted by a number of scholars ..., is therefore covered by the wording, read in its context, of the crime of genocide in the [German] Criminal Code and does not appear unreasonable",<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany § 105</ref> so " In view of the foregoing, the [ECHR] concludes that, while many authorities had favoured a narrow interpretation of the crime of genocide, there had already been several authorities at the material time which had construed the offence of genocide in the same wider way as the German courts. In these circumstances, the [ECHR] finds that [Jorgic], if need be with the assistance of a lawyer, could reasonably have foreseen that he risked being charged with and convicted of genocide for the acts he had committed in 1992.",<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 113</ref> and for this reason the court rejected Jorgic assertion that there had been a breach of Article 7 (no punishment without law) of the [[European Convention on Human Rights]] by Germany.<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 116</ref> |
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'''Individuals accused by ICTY of genocide in which such charges were withdrawn, with the accused pleading guilty to |
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==US resolution 199== |
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[[crimes against humanity]]:''' |
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[[Image:Omarska2.jpg|thumb|200px|'''[[Omarska camp]]''' detainees]] |
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On [[June 27]] [[2005]], the [[United States House of Representatives]] passed a resolution (H. Res. 199 sponsored by Congressman [[Christopher Smith]] and Congressman [[Benjamin Cardin]]) commemorating the 10th [[anniversary]] of the Srebrenica massacre. The resolution was passed with overwhelming majority of 370 - YES votes, 1 - NO vote, and 62 - ABSENT.<ref name=Post>Washington Post. "Votes Database: Bill: H RES 199" [[27 June]] [[2005]] [http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/109/house/1/votes/322/]</ref> The [[Resolution (policy debate)|resolution]] is a bipartisan measure commemorating [[July 11]], [[1995]]-2005, the tenth anniversary of the [[Srebrenica massacre]]. |
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*[[Momir Nikolić]] |
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The resolution states that ''"the policies of [[aggression]] and [[ethnic cleansing]]<sup>[[Bosnian Genocide#Notes|1|2]]</sup> as implemented by Serb forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina from 1992 and 1995 with the direct support of [[Serbia]]n regime of Slobodan Milosevic and its followers ultimately led to the displacement of more than 2,000,000 people, an estimated 200,000 killed, tens of thousands [[rape]]d or otherwise [[torture]]d and [[abuse]]d, and the innocent [[civilians]] of Sarajevo and other urban centers repeatedly subjected to shelling and [[sniper]] attacks; meet the terms defining the crime of genocide in Article 2 of the [[Convention on the Prevention and Punishment]] of the Crime of [[Genocide]], created in Paris on December 9, 1948, and entered into force on January 12, 1951."''<ref name=Res199>US House of Representatives, "Resolution 199 (H. Res. 199): Srebrenica Genocide". [[27 June]] [[2005]]. [http://srebrenica-genocide.blogspot.com/2006/02/us-resolution-199-srebrenica-genocide.html] </ref> |
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*[[Dragan Obrenović]] <ref>ICTY: Plea agreement - The Prosecutor v. Dragan Obrenović [http://www.un.org/icty/obrenovic/trialc/plea_030520.htm]</ref> |
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*[[Biljana Plavšić]] <ref>ICTY: Biljana Plavšić Plea agreement [http://www.un.org/icty/krajisnik/trialc/plea-300902e.pdf]</ref><ref>ICTY: Biljana Plavšić judgment - [http://www.un.org/icty/plavsic/trialc/judgement/index.htm]</ref> |
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==Individuals convicted of genocide== |
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==List of persons indicted on charges of genocide in Bosnia by various other courts== |
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===International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia=== |
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'''Convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia:''' |
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As of [[9 May]] 2007 the ICTY had passed legally binding verdicts against six people indicted for genocide and crimes committed in Srebrenica since 1993. Trials against seven indictees are ongoing, and three are still to start.<ref name="reverse">[http://www.birn.eu.com/en/82/15/2839/ ICTY: Blagojevic Acquitted of Complicity in Genocide] Balkan Investigative Reporting Network</ref> |
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*[[Radislav Krstić]] |
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====Individuals convicted of genocide==== |
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*[[Vidoje Blagojević]] |
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'''Convicted by the German courtes:''' |
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*[[Radislav Krstic]] (Srebrenica) In [[1998]] Krstic was indicted for [[War Crime]]s by the ICTY in [[The Hague]] in connection with the [[massacre]] of 8,100 [[Bosniaks|Bosniak]] men and boys on [[July 11]], 1995 during the [[Srebrenica massacre]]—[[Europe]]'s worst atrocity since [[World War II]]. On [[August 2]], [[2001]], Krstic became the first person convicted of [[genocide]] by the Tribunal, and was sentenced to 46 years in prison. He was only the third person ever to have been convicted under the [[1948]] Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. |
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*[[Vidoje Blagojevic]] (Srebrenica) is a former commander of the Bratunac Brigade of the Republika Srpska Army. He was captured on [[August 10]], [[2001]] and soon interred at the ICTY at the Hague. Blagojevic was tried along with [[Dragan Jokic]]. Both pleaded not guilty. In January 2005 Blagojevi while he was acquitted of the charge of extermination as a crime against humanity,he was found guilty of the five other charges, including complicity in [[genocide]] and [[war crime]]s. He was sentenced to 18 years in prison. On [[May 9]] 2007 the ICTY's appeals court reversed the genocide conviction and reduced his sentence to 15 years which he is currently serving in prison<ref name="reverse">[http://www.birn.eu.com/en/82/15/2839/ ICTY: Blagojevic Acquitted of Complicity in Genocide] Balkan Investigative Reporting Network</ref> |
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*Maksim Sokolović |
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====Plea agreements==== |
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*Nikola Jorgić |
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'''Convicted by the [[European Court of Human Rights]]:''' |
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Individuals indicted by ICTY for genocide in which such charges were withdrawn, with the accused pleading guilty to |
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[[crimes against humanity]]:''' |
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*Nikola Jorgić (convicted of genocide in [[Doboj]] region<ref>[http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/view.asp?item=54&portal=hbkm&action=html&highlight=&sessionid=1448788&skin=hudoc-en European Court of Human Rights] - [http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/view.asp?item=1&portal=hbkm&action=html&highlight=Jorgic%20%7C%20v.%20%7C%20Germany%20%7C%20Judgmen&sessionid=1597754&skin=hudoc-en Jorgic v. Germany Judgment], July 12th 2007.</ref>) |
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[[Momir Nikolic]] was indicted by the Prosecutor of the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia]] (ICTY) [[March 26]], 2002 charged with [[genocide]] or alternately [[complicity in genocide]] and [[persecution]]s, and [[Violations of the Laws or Customs of War]]. He was arrested by [[SFOR]] on [[April 1]], 2002 and transferred to ICTY custody the following day. Nikolic made his initial appearance on April 3, 2002, pleading not guilty on all counts. A [[plea agreement]] was reached on [[May 7]], 2003, and Nikolic pleaded guilty to Count 5 of the indictment - [[Crimes against humanity]]. |
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==German prosecutions== |
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[[Dragan Obrenovic]]<ref>ICTY: Plea agreement - The Prosecutor v. Dragan Obrenovic [http://www.un.org/icty/obrenovic/trialc/plea_030520.htm]</ref> was indicted by the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]] in [[The Hague]] on On [[November 1]], [[1998]] for complicity in genocide, extermination, persecution, and two counts of murder. <ref>http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/obr-ii010409e.htm "Initial Indictment of Dragan Obrenović " ICTY Case IT-01-43</ref> On [[April 15]], 2001 he was arrested by [[SFOR]] personnel,<ref>http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/04/15/warcrimes.arrest/index.html "Bosnia genocide suspect held"</ref> and was transferred that same day to the Hague, he entered not-guilty pleas across the board at his arraignment on the 18th.<ref>http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=166068&apc_state=henitri2001 "Obrenovic Pleads Not Guilty"</ref> On [[May 20]], [[2003]], Obrenovic entered a plea agreement with the ICTY prosecutor's office. He pled guilty to one count of persecution, and in exchange for truthful allocution to his role in the [[Srebrenica Massacre]] and his testimony against his co-accused (his indictment was to be joined with that of four others on [[May 27]]) he was promised a reduced sentence. On [[December 10]], [[2003]] Obrenović was sentenced to 17 years in prison, with 969 days credit for time served.<ref>http://www.un.org/icty/transe60-2/031210IT.htm "Trial of Dragan Obrenović "</ref> He is currently serving out his sentence in [[Norway]] and will be eligible for release in April of 2018. |
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During the late 1990s the German courts handed down custodial sentences to several individuals who were found guilty by the German courts of participating in genocides in Bosnia. Two of theses cases were cited in the judgement handed down by the ICTY against [[Radislav Krstić]] in the ''Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstić'' case, when considering whether the Srebrenica massacre met the [[United Nations]] [[Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide]] requirement of "[[Genocide#In part|in part]]".<ref>[http://www.worldlii.org/int/cases/ICTY/2001/8.html Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Trial Chamber I - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2001) ICTY8 (2 August 2001)], The [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]], paragraph 589. citing Bavarian Appeals Court, ''Novislav Đajić'' case, [[23 May]] [[1997]], 3 St 20/96, section VI, p. 24 of the English translation. Paragraph 589: |
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[[Biljana Plavsic]] The ICTY indictment charged her with, two counts of genocide, five counts of crimes against humanity, and one count of war crimes. She voluntarily surrendered to the ICTY on [[January 10]], [[2001]], and was provisionally released on [[September 6]]. On [[16 December]], [[2002]] she plea bargained with the ICTY to enter a guilty plea to one count of [[crime against humanity|crimes against humanity]] for her part in directing the war and targeting civilians and expressed "full remorse" in exchange for prosecutors dropping the other charges. She was later sentenced to 11 years in prison, and started here sentence on [[26 June]] [[2003]]. She is currently serving her sentence at the women's prison '''Hinseberg''' in [[Örebro]], [[Sweden]]. |
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:Several other sources confirm that the intent to eradicate a group within a limited geographical area such as the region of a country or even a municipality may be characterised as genocide. ... Two Judgements recently rendered by German courts took the view that genocide could be perpetrated within a limited geographical area. The Federal Constitutional Court of Germany, in the Nikola Jorgic case, upheld the Judgement of the Düsseldorf Supreme Court, interpreting the intent to destroy the group "in part" as including the intention to destroy a group within a limited geographical area. In a Judgement against Novislav Đajić on [[23 May]] [[1997]], the Bavarian Appeals Chamber similarly found that acts of genocide were committed in June 1992 though confined within the administrative district of Foca. |
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</ref> |
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===Novislav Đajić=== |
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====Other outcomes and pending cases==== |
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[[Novislav Đajić]] was indicted in Germany for participation in genocide, but the Higher Regional Court failed to find that there was sufficient certainty, for a criminal conviction, that he had intended to commit genocide. Nevertheless Đajić was found guilty of 14 cases of murder and one case of attempted murder.<ref>[http://www.trial-ch.org/en/trial-watch/profile/db/legal-procedures/novislav_djajic_135.html Novislav Djajic], [http://www.trial-ch.org/en/about-us/goals-and-activities.html TRIAL (Track Impunity Always)]</ref> At Đajić's appeal on [[23 May]] [[1997]], the [[Bavaria]]n Appeals Chamber found that acts of genocide were committed in June 1992, confined within the administrative district of [[Foča]].<ref>[http://www.worldlii.org/int/cases/ICTY/2001/8.html Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Trial Chamber I - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2001) ICTY8 (2 August 2001)], The [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]], paragraph 589. citing Bavarian Appeals Court, ''Novislav Djajic'' case, [[23 May]] [[1997]], 3 St 20/96, section VI, p. 24 of the English translation.</ref> |
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;Indicted to stand trial before the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia]]: |
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===Nikola Jorgić=== |
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*[[Slobodan Milošević]] (accused of genocide or complicity in genocide in territories within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including: [[Bijeljina]], [[Bosanski Novi]], [[Brčko]], [[Ključ]], Kotor Varoš, [[Prijedor]], [[Sanski Most]] and [[Srebrenica]] <ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Slobodan Milošević - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/mil-ai040421-e.htm]</ref>; died during the trial) |
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The Higher Regional Court ([[Oberlandesgericht]]) of Dusseldorf, in September [[1997]], handed down a genocide conviction against [[Nikola Jorgić]], a [[Serb]] from the [[Doboj]] region who was the leader of a paramilitary group located in the Doboj region. He was sentenced to four terms of [[life imprisonment]] for his involvement in genocidal actions that took place in regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, other than Srebrenica;<ref name=Jorgic> Oberlandesgericht Dusseldorf, "Public Prosecutor v Jorgic", [[26 September]] [[1997]] (Trial Watch ''[http://www.trial-ch.org/en/trial-watch/profile/db/legal-procedures/nikola_jorgic_283.html Nikola Jorgic]''</ref> On [[12 July]] [[2007]], [[European Court of Human Rights]] dismissed [[Nikola Jorgic]] appeal.<ref>[http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/view.asp?item=54&portal=hbkm&action=html&highlight=&sessionid=1448788&skin=hudoc-en European Court of Human Rights] - [http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/view.asp?item=1&portal=hbkm&action=html&highlight=Jorgic%20%7C%20v.%20%7C%20Germany%20%7C%20Judgmen&sessionid=1597754&skin=hudoc-en Jorgic v. Germany Judgment], July 12th 2007.</ref><ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/07/12/europe/EU-GEN-European-Court-Bosnia-Genocide.php Europe's human rights court upholds life term for Bosnian Serb convicted of genocide] - AP, July 12th, 2007.</ref> |
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*[[Radovan Karadzic]] (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including but not limited to: Bijeljina, [[Bratunac]], [[Bosanski Šamac]], Brčko, [[Doboj]], [[Foča]], [[Ilijaš]], [[Ključ]], Kotor Varoš, Bosanski Novi, Prijedor, [[Rogatica]], Sanski Most, Srebrenica, [[Višegrad]], [[Vlasenica]], [[Zavidovići]] and Zvornik.<ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Radovan Karadžić - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/kar-ai000428e.htm]</ref>; remains at large) |
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In 2007 the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the ''Jorgić v. Germany'' case (Application no. 74613/01), reviewed the German courts judgements against Jorgić. While rejecting Jorgić's appeal, they highlighted that the German courts ruling in the 1990 had interpreted the German domestic law on genocide more broadly than the more recent rulings by the ICTY and the ICJ. |
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*[[Ratko Mladic]] On [[July 24]], [[1995]] (amended on 10 October 2002), was indicted by the Prosecutor [[ICTY]] and accused accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, includingin Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Prijedor, Sanski Most, Srebrenica, Banja Luka, Bosanska Krupa, Bratunac, Vlasenica and Zvornik.<ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Ratko Mladic - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/mla-ai021010e.htm]</ref>. He remains at large. |
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The ECHR concluded that the German court had ruled that the "intent to destroy" also included "meant destruction of the group as a social unit in its distinctiveness and particularity and its feeling of belonging together; a biological-physical destruction was not necessary. It concluded that the applicant had therefore acted with intent to destroy the group of Muslims in the North of Bosnia, or at least in the Doboj region."<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 18</ref> Under the wider definition that the German judiciary upheld the [[ethnic cleansing]] carried out by Jorgić was a genocide because it was an intent to destroy the group as a social unit. At the time Jorgić committed his acts in 1992 a majority of scholars took the view that genocidal 'intent to destroy a group' under German law mean the killing of members of the group, but a considerable number of scholars were of the opinion that the notion had a wider meaning encompasing destruction of the group as a social unit.<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany § 36 butt also §§ 18,47,99,103,108</ref> |
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*[[Momcilo Krajisnik]] was indicted by the ICTY and accused of [[genocide]], complicity in genocide, [[crimes against humanity]] (namely extermination, murder, persecution, deportation, and forced transfer), and various [[war crime]]s, in relation to acts committed in 1992 in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]].<ref>ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Momcilo Krajisnik - Amanded Indictment [http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/kra-1ai000321e.htm]</ref> He was arrested on [[April 3]], [[2000]] by [[SFOR]], and is in custody at the detention unit of the ICTY in the [[Netherlands]]. After the death of [[Slobodan Milošević]], Krajišnik is the highest-ranking politician on trial at the ICTY. On [[27 September]],[[2006]], Krajisnik was convicted of the following crimes against humanity: extermination, murder, persecution, deportation, and forced transfer. He was acquitted of the charges of murder as a war crime, genocide, and complicity in genocide. He was sentenced to 27 years imprisonment. <ref>ICTY: [http://www.un.org/icty/krajisnik/trialc/judgement/kra-jud060927e.pdf Judgment - Momcilo Krajisnik]</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5384092.stm Bosnia Serb jailed for war crimes], BBC News, 27 September, 2006</ref> |
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The ECHR noted that this wider interpretation of genocide has since been rejected by international courts considering similar cases. In the case of ''Prosecutor v. Krstić'' ([[2 August]] [[2001]]) the ICTY ruled "customary international law limits the definition of genocide to those acts seeking the physical or biological destruction of all or part of the group. Hence, an enterprise attacking only the cultural or sociological characteristics of a human group in order to annihilate these elements which give to that group its own identity distinct from the rest of the community would not fall under the definition of genocide."<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 42 citing Prosecutor v. Krstic, IT-98-33-T, judgment of 2 August 2001, §§ 580</ref> On [19 April] 2004 This was upheld on Appeal "The Genocide Convention, and customary international law in general, prohibit only the physical or biological destruction of a human group. ... The Trial Chamber expressly acknowledged this limitation, and eschewed any broader definition. ..." although like the lower court, the appeal court also ruled that ethnic cleansing might with other evidence lead to an inference of genocidal intent.<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 43 citing the judgment of 19 April 2004 rendered by the Appeals Chamber of the ICTY, IT-98-33-A §§ 25,33</ref> In 14 January 2000 the ICTY ruled in the ''Prosecutor v. Kupreškić and Others'' case that the [[Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing]] campaign in order to expel the Bosnian Muslim population from the region, was [[persecution]], not genocid per se<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 44 citing Prosecutor v. Kupreskic and Others (IT-95-16-T, judgment of 14 January 2000), § 751</ref> The ECHR noted and quoted the opinion of the International Court of Justice ruling in the [[Bosnian Genocide Case]] that ethnic cleansing was not in its self genocide.<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany] §45 citing Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro ("Case concerning the application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide") the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found under the heading of "intent and 'ethnic cleansing'" § 190</ref> |
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*[[Milomir Stakic]] (Prijedor). In ICTY indictment began on [[16 April]] 2002 Stakic was charged with genocide, or alternatively complicity in genocide, murder as a crime against humanity, extermination , murder as a violation of the laws or customs of war, persecutions, deportation, and inhumane acts.<ref>http://www.un.org/icty/stakic/trialc/judgement/index.htm Prosecutor v. Milomir Stakic: Judgement] Paragraph 499</ref> On [[31 July]] 2003 he was found not guilty of genocide, complicity in genocide,<ref>http://www.un.org/icty/stakic/trialc/judgement/index.htm Prosecutor v. Milomir Stakic: Judgement] Paragraphs 560,561</ref><ref>Staff. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3112427.stm Bosnian Serb gets life sentence],BBC, [[31 July]], 2003.</ref> or forcible transfer (a crime against humanity). He was found guilty of: extermination, (a crime against humanity); murder, (a violation of the laws and customs of war); and persecutions (crimes against humanity, incorporating murder, and deportation both of which were also crimes against humanity). He was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 20 years.<ref>[http://www.un.org/icty/pressreal/2003/p774-e.htm ICTY Press Release WS / P.I.S. / 774e] 31 July 2003</ref> |
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The ECHR also noted that in the [[21 century]] "Amongst scholars, the majority have taken the view that ethnic cleansing, in the way in which it was carried out by the Serb forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to expel Muslims and Croats from their homes, did not constitute genocide. However, there are also a considerable number of scholars who have suggested that these acts did amount to genocide"<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 47</ref> |
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===State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina=== |
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;Indicted to stand trial before before the [[State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina]] ([[State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina#War Crimes Chamber Project (WCCP) and the Registry for War Crimes and Organized Crime (the Registry)|War Crimes Chamber]]): |
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The ECHR having reviewed the case and the more recent international rulings on the issue the ECHR ruled that "The Court finds that the [German] courts' interpretation of 'intent to destroy a group' as not necessitating a physical destruction of the group, which has also been adopted by a number of scholars ..., is therefore covered by the wording, read in its context, of the crime of genocide in the [German] Criminal Code and does not appear unreasonable",<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany § 105</ref> so " In view of the foregoing, the [ECHR] concludes that, while many authorities had favoured a narrow interpretation of the crime of genocide, there had already been several authorities at the material time which had construed the offence of genocide in the same wider way as the German courts. In these circumstances, the [ECHR] finds that [Jorgic], if need be with the assistance of a lawyer, could reasonably have foreseen that he risked being charged with and convicted of genocide for the acts he had committed in 1992.",<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 113</ref> and for this reason the court rejected Jorgic assertion that there had been a breach of Article 7 (no punishment without law) of the [[European Convention on Human Rights]] by Germany.<ref>ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 116</ref> |
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*Milorad Trbić <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Trbić case: Charged with genocide pursuant to Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) in conjunction with the killing members of the group, causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group, deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part, imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=47&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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===Maksim Sokolović=== |
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*Miloš Stupar <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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On [[29 November]] [[1999]], the Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht) of Dusseldorf condemned [[Maksim Sokolović]] to 9 years in prison for aiding and abetting the crime of genocide and for grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions.<ref>Trial watch ''[http://www.trial-ch.org/en/trial-watch/profile/db/legal-procedures/maksim_sokolovic_139.html Maksim Sokolovic]''</ref> |
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==Controversy== |
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*Milenko Trifunović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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[[Image:Srebrenica Potocari Memorial 2.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Srebrenica, the Memorial]] |
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*Petar Mitrović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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There is a significant disagreement between the Bosnian and Serbian side about the possibility or scope of genocide in Bosnia during the Bosnian War that has made this a controversial and contentious issue. |
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*Brano Džinić <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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The Bosnian side claims that the Srebrenica massacre was just one instance of what was a broader genocide committed by Serbia.<ref name=ICJ1>van den Biesen."Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, General Concluding Observation". International Court of Justice. [[24 April]] [[2006]], para. 1-12. [http://www.icj-cij.org/icjwww/idocket/ibhy/ibhyframe.htm] </ref> |
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*Aleksandar Radovanović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Slobodan Jakovljević <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Miladin Stevanović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Velibor Maksimović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Dragiša Živanović <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Branislav Medan <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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*Milovan Matić <ref>The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?opcija=predmeti&id=22&jezik=e]</ref> (in trial) |
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The International Court of Justice veered away from the factual and legal findings of the ICTY Appeals Chamber in the ''Duško Tadić case''. In the judgment delivered in July 1999, the Appeals Chamber found that the [[Army of Republika Srpska]] was "under overall control" of [[Belgrade]] and the [[Yugoslav Army]], which meant that they had funded, equipped and assisted in coordination and planning of military operations. Had the International Court of Justice accepted this finding of the Tribunal, Serbia would have been found guilty of complicity in the Srebrenica genocide. Instead it concluded that the Appeals Chamber in the Tadić case "did not attempt to determine the responsibility of a state but individual criminal responsibility". Paradoxical as it may be, the outcome of this legal suit filed back in March 1993 arrived too early for Bosnia and Herzegovina. Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić, accused of Bosnian genocide are not arrested yet. Slobodan Milošević died during the trial and three trials of former Serbian officials have just started. <ref>SENSE Tribunal: ICTY - THE MISSING LINK: [http://www.sense-agency.com/en/stream.php?sta=3&pid=9279&kat=3]</ref> |
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'''Accused by the German courts:''' |
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The allegations about the ICTY Prosecution agreement with Belgrade authorities by which the transcripts of the meetings of Supreme Defense Council remained not disclosed to the public and the International Court of Justice appeared immediately after the International Court of Justice delivered its judgment in the Bosnia Herzegovina Vs. Serbia and Montenegro case. [[Geoffrey Nice]], who was lead counsel for the prosecution at the Slobodan Milošević trial, notes in his letter that [[Carla Del Ponte]] personally agreed to a ‘deal’ with the Belgrade authorities to ‘protect’ the documents of the Supreme Defense Council relating to the role of Serbia in the wars in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Those documents remained under seal. The public and the International Court of Justice thus had no access to them.<ref>SENSE Tribunal: Del Ponte Denies Alleged "Deal" with Belgrade [http://www.sense-agency.com/en/stream.php?sta=3&pid=9511&kat=3]</ref> |
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*Nikola Jorgić |
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*Novislav Đajić |
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Some commentators believe that the Srebrenica massacre was not genocide. Typically, they cite that allegedly women and children were spared and that only military age men were targeted<ref>The Politics of the Srebrenica Massacre, Z Net, 7 July 2007, by Edward S. Herman [http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?ItemID=8244]</ref><ref>"The real story behind Srebrenica", ''Globe and Mail'', July 14, 2005. [http://www.mail-archive.com/serbian_way@antic.org/msg00008.html]</ref> which is not supported by evidence, because children were targeted too, and many women were raped according to ICTY finding.<ref>ICTY, ''Prosecutor vs Krstic, Trial Chamber Judgement'', Case No. IT-98-33-T, paras 43–46. [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/jug33-e.htm]</ref> |
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*Maksim Sokolović |
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==Opinions== |
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===US resolution 199=== |
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[[Image:Omarska2.jpg|thumb|200px|'''[[Omarska camp]]''' detainees]] |
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On [[June 27]] [[2005]], the [[United States House of Representatives]] passed a resolution (H. Res. 199 sponsored by Congressman [[Christopher Smith]] and Congressman [[Benjamin Cardin]]) commemorating the 10th [[anniversary]] of the Srebrenica genocide. The resolution was passed with overwhelming majority of 370 - YES votes, 1 - NO vote, and 62 - ABSENT.<ref name=Post>Washington Post. "Votes Database: Bill: H RES 199" [[27 June]] [[2005]] [http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/109/house/1/votes/322/]</ref> The [[Resolution (policy debate)|resolution]] is a bipartisan measure commemorating [[July 11]], [[1995]]-2005, the tenth anniversary of the [[Srebrenica massacre]]. |
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The resolution states that ''"the policies of [[aggression]] and [[ethnic cleansing]]<sup>[[Bosnian Genocide#Notes|1|2]]</sup> as implemented by Serb forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina from 1992 and 1995 with the direct support of [[Serbia]]n regime of Slobodan Milosevic and its followers ultimately led to the displacement of more than 2,000,000 people, an estimated 200,000 killed, tens of thousands [[rape]]d or otherwise [[torture]]d and [[abuse]]d, and the innocent [[civilians]] of Sarajevo and other urban centers repeatedly subjected to shelling and [[sniper]] attacks; meet the terms defining the crime of genocide in Article 2 of the [[Convention on the Prevention and Punishment]] of the Crime of [[Genocide]], created in Paris on December 9, 1948, and entered into force on January 12, 1951."''<ref name=Res199>US House of Representatives, "Resolution 199 (H. Res. 199): Srebrenica Genocide". [[27 June]] [[2005]]. [http://srebrenica-genocide.blogspot.com/2006/02/us-resolution-199-srebrenica-genocide.html] </ref> |
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===Vladimir Srebrov=== |
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Srebrov, co-founder of the Serbian Democratic Party, claimed that the party intended to exterminate the [[Bosniaks|Bosniak]] population of Bosnia after it had come to power.<ref name=Kulenovic> Kulenovic, Adil. "Interview with Vladimir Srebrov, a founding member of the [[Serb Democratic Party]]". Vreme Magazine. [[30 October]] [[1995]]. [http://www.barnsdle.demon.co.uk/bosnia/sebrov.html]</ref> He was imprisoned by the Serb side during the war. |
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==References== |
==References== |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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{{linkfarm}} |
{{linkfarm}} |
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*[http://www.yale.edu/gsp/former_yugoslavia/index.html Yale University] - Bosnia Genocide Studies Program |
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*[http://www.aegistrust.org/ Aegis Trust (genocide prevention trust)] An independent international organisation dedicated to eliminating genocide |
*[http://www.aegistrust.org/ Aegis Trust (genocide prevention trust)] An independent international organisation dedicated to eliminating genocide |
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* [http://www.rewardsforjustice.net/english/warcrimes/index.cfm?page=Karadzic Radovan Karadzic $5 million Reward] - The U.S. Government is offering $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Radovan Karadzic |
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* [http://www.rewardsforjustice.net/english/warcrimes/index.cfm?page=Mladic Ratko Mladic $5 million Reward] - The U.S. Government is offering $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Ratko Mladic |
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*[http://www.genocidewatch.org/eightstages.htm Genocide Watch - The Eight Stages of Genocide] |
*[http://www.genocidewatch.org/eightstages.htm Genocide Watch - The Eight Stages of Genocide] |
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*[http://www.ess.uwe.ac.uk/comexpert/ANX/VIII-07.htm#III.A.68 The Annexes - Prison camps] |
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*[http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/mla-ai021010e.htm Mladic Indictment] |
*[http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/mla-ai021010e.htm Mladic Indictment] |
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*[http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/kar-ai000428e.htm Karadzic Indictment] |
*[http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/kar-ai000428e.htm Karadzic Indictment] |
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*[http://srebrenica.brightside.nl/srebrenica/ Srebrenica - a 'Safe haven'] Netherlands Institute for War Documentation, Srebrenica - a 'Safe haven', an extensive Dutch government report on events in eastern Bosnia and the fall of Srebrenica. |
*[http://srebrenica.brightside.nl/srebrenica/ Srebrenica - a 'Safe haven'] Netherlands Institute for War Documentation, Srebrenica - a 'Safe haven', an extensive Dutch government report on events in eastern Bosnia and the fall of Srebrenica. |
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*[http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa008&articleID=00017173-6251-14E3-A1A983414B7F0000&pageNumber=2&catID=4 Missing No Longer - International commission forges ahead to identify genocide victims], ''[[Scientific American]]'', [[1 August]] [[2006]] |
*[http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa008&articleID=00017173-6251-14E3-A1A983414B7F0000&pageNumber=2&catID=4 Missing No Longer - International commission forges ahead to identify genocide victims], ''[[Scientific American]]'', [[1 August]] [[2006]] |
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*[http://www.ppu.org.uk/genocide/g_bosnia.html Genocide-Bosnia] at Peace '' |
*[http://www.ppu.org.uk/genocide/g_bosnia.html Genocide-Bosnia] at Peace ''Pleddge Union Information'' website |
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[[Category:Genocide]] |
[[Category:Genocide]] |
Revision as of 16:41, 13 December 2007
This article refers to genocide during the 1992-1995 Bosnian War. Other cases of genocide in the same region during World War II are covered in other articles.
The term Bosnian Genocide is used to refer either to the genocide committed by Serb forces in Srebrenica in 1995, in a limited legal sense, with the specific intent (dolus specialis) to destroy Bosniaks in the area[1] or to the crimes against humanity and war crimes during the 1992-1995 Bosnian War[2], to describe the ethnic cleansing campaign and persecution conducted by Serb, and to a lesser extent Croat secessionist authorities (Republika Srpska and Herzeg-Bosnia[3]) in Bosnia and Herzegovina on political, racial and religious grounds in the context of a widespread attack on the Bosniak civilian population. Of the 97,207 documented casualties in Bosnian War, 83 percent of civilian victims were Bosniaks. [4] [5] [6] [7]The term is used by academics[8][9][10][11][12] and human rights institutions.[13][14][15]
The Higher Regional Court of Dusseldorf, in September 1997, handed down a genocide conviction against Nikola Jorgić, a Serb from the Doboj region who was the leader of a paramilitary group located in the Doboj region. He was sentenced to four terms of life imprisonment for his involvement in genocidal actions that took place in regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, other than Srebrenica.
In 2001 the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) judged that the 1995 Srebrenica massacre was genocide.[16]
On February 26, 2007 the International Court of Justice (ICJ), in the Bosnian Genocide Case upheld the ICTY's earlier finding that the Srebrenica massacre constituted genocide:[17]
In this case, having identified the protected group as the national group of Bosnian Muslims [Bosniaks], the Trial Chamber concluded that the part the VRS Main Staff and Radislav Krstić targeted was the Bosnian Muslims of Srebrenica, or the Bosnian Muslims of Eastern Bosnia. (...) The size of the Bosnian Muslim population in Srebrenica prior to its capture by the VRS forces [Army of Republika Srpska] in 1995 amounted to approximately forty thousand people. This represented not only the Muslim inhabitants of the Srebrenica municipality but also many Muslim refugees from the surrounding region. Although this population constituted only a small percentage of the overall Muslim population of Bosnia and Herzegovina at the time, the importance of the Muslim community of Srebrenica is not captured solely by its size (...) The Court sees no reason to disagree with the concordant findings of the Trial Chamber and the Appeals Chamber.
ICJ President Rosalyn Higgins noted that there is a lot of evidence to prove that crimes against humanity and war crimes had been committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina such as widespread killings, the siege of towns, mass rapes, torture, deportation to camps and detention centers. The International Court of Justice does not have jurisdiction over them, because this case deals "exclusively with genocide in a limited legal sense and not in the broader sense sometimes given to this term".[18][19][20]
On July 12, 2007, the European Court of Human Rights confirmed the Dusseldorf court judgment against Nikola Jorgić for the genocide in Doboj.
Individuals accused of genocide
Accused by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia:
- Slobodan Milošević (accused of genocide or complicity in genocide in territories within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including: Bijeljina, Bosanski Novi, Brčko, Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Prijedor, Sanski Most and Srebrenica [21]; died during the trial)
- Radovan Karadžić (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including but not limited to: Bijeljina, Bratunac, Bosanski Šamac, Brčko, Doboj, Foča, Ilijaš, Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Bosanski Novi, Prijedor, Rogatica, Sanski Most, Srebrenica, Višegrad, Vlasenica, Zavidovići and Zvornik.[22]; remains at large)
- Ratko Mladić (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, includingin Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Prijedor, Sanski Most, Srebrenica, Banja Luka, Bosanska Krupa, Bratunac, Vlasenica and Zvornik.[23]; remains at large)
- Momčilo Krajišnik (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including but not limited to: Bijeljina, Bratunac, Bosanski Šamac, Brčko, Doboj, Foča, Ilijaš, Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Bosanski Novi, Prijedor, Rogatica, Sanski Most, Višegrad, Vlasenica, Zavidovići and Zvornik [24] [25])
- Biljana Plavšić (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in several municipalities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, including but not limited to: Bijeljina, Bratunac, Bosanski Šamac, Brčko, Doboj, Foča, Ilijaš, Ključ, Kotor Varoš, Bosanski Novi, Prijedor, Rogatica, Sanski Most, Višegrad, Vlasenica, Zavidovići and Zvornik[26]; genocide charges were withdrawn, with the accused pleading guilty to crimes against humanity[27][28])
- Radislav Krstić (Srebrenica)
- Vidoje Blagojević (Srebrenica)
- Milomir Stakić (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in Prijedor Municipality[29])
- Momir Nikolić
- Dragan Obrenović
- Stojan Župljanin
- Momir Talić
- Simo Drljača (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in Prijedor Municipality; killed by NATO forces during the arrest attempt)
- Milan Kovačević (accused of genocide and complicity in genocide in Prijedor Municipality[30]; died during the trial)
Accused by the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina:
- Milorad Trbić [31] (in trial)
- Miloš Stupar [32] (in trial)
- Milenko Trifunović [33] (in trial)
- Petar Mitrović [34] (in trial)
- Brano Džinić [35] (in trial)
- Aleksandar Radovanović [36] (in trial)
- Slobodan Jakovljević [37] (in trial)
- Miladin Stevanović [38] (in trial)
- Velibor Maksimović [39] (in trial)
- Dragiša Živanović [40] (in trial)
- Branislav Medan [41] (in trial)
- Milovan Matić [42] (in trial)
Accused by the German courts:
- Nikola Jorgić
- Novislav Đajić
- Maksim Sokolović
Plea agreements
Individuals accused by ICTY of genocide in which such charges were withdrawn, with the accused pleading guilty to crimes against humanity:
Individuals convicted of genocide
Convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia:
Convicted by the German courtes:
- Maksim Sokolović
- Nikola Jorgić
Convicted by the European Court of Human Rights:
German prosecutions
During the late 1990s the German courts handed down custodial sentences to several individuals who were found guilty by the German courts of participating in genocides in Bosnia. Two of theses cases were cited in the judgement handed down by the ICTY against Radislav Krstić in the Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstić case, when considering whether the Srebrenica massacre met the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide requirement of "in part".[47]
Novislav Đajić
Novislav Đajić was indicted in Germany for participation in genocide, but the Higher Regional Court failed to find that there was sufficient certainty, for a criminal conviction, that he had intended to commit genocide. Nevertheless Đajić was found guilty of 14 cases of murder and one case of attempted murder.[48] At Đajić's appeal on 23 May 1997, the Bavarian Appeals Chamber found that acts of genocide were committed in June 1992, confined within the administrative district of Foča.[49]
Nikola Jorgić
The Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht) of Dusseldorf, in September 1997, handed down a genocide conviction against Nikola Jorgić, a Serb from the Doboj region who was the leader of a paramilitary group located in the Doboj region. He was sentenced to four terms of life imprisonment for his involvement in genocidal actions that took place in regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, other than Srebrenica;[50] On 12 July 2007, European Court of Human Rights dismissed Nikola Jorgic appeal.[51][52]
In 2007 the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in the Jorgić v. Germany case (Application no. 74613/01), reviewed the German courts judgements against Jorgić. While rejecting Jorgić's appeal, they highlighted that the German courts ruling in the 1990 had interpreted the German domestic law on genocide more broadly than the more recent rulings by the ICTY and the ICJ.
The ECHR concluded that the German court had ruled that the "intent to destroy" also included "meant destruction of the group as a social unit in its distinctiveness and particularity and its feeling of belonging together; a biological-physical destruction was not necessary. It concluded that the applicant had therefore acted with intent to destroy the group of Muslims in the North of Bosnia, or at least in the Doboj region."[53] Under the wider definition that the German judiciary upheld the ethnic cleansing carried out by Jorgić was a genocide because it was an intent to destroy the group as a social unit. At the time Jorgić committed his acts in 1992 a majority of scholars took the view that genocidal 'intent to destroy a group' under German law mean the killing of members of the group, but a considerable number of scholars were of the opinion that the notion had a wider meaning encompasing destruction of the group as a social unit.[54]
The ECHR noted that this wider interpretation of genocide has since been rejected by international courts considering similar cases. In the case of Prosecutor v. Krstić (2 August 2001) the ICTY ruled "customary international law limits the definition of genocide to those acts seeking the physical or biological destruction of all or part of the group. Hence, an enterprise attacking only the cultural or sociological characteristics of a human group in order to annihilate these elements which give to that group its own identity distinct from the rest of the community would not fall under the definition of genocide."[55] On [19 April] 2004 This was upheld on Appeal "The Genocide Convention, and customary international law in general, prohibit only the physical or biological destruction of a human group. ... The Trial Chamber expressly acknowledged this limitation, and eschewed any broader definition. ..." although like the lower court, the appeal court also ruled that ethnic cleansing might with other evidence lead to an inference of genocidal intent.[56] In 14 January 2000 the ICTY ruled in the Prosecutor v. Kupreškić and Others case that the Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing campaign in order to expel the Bosnian Muslim population from the region, was persecution, not genocid per se[57] The ECHR noted and quoted the opinion of the International Court of Justice ruling in the Bosnian Genocide Case that ethnic cleansing was not in its self genocide.[58]
The ECHR also noted that in the 21 century "Amongst scholars, the majority have taken the view that ethnic cleansing, in the way in which it was carried out by the Serb forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to expel Muslims and Croats from their homes, did not constitute genocide. However, there are also a considerable number of scholars who have suggested that these acts did amount to genocide"[59]
The ECHR having reviewed the case and the more recent international rulings on the issue the ECHR ruled that "The Court finds that the [German] courts' interpretation of 'intent to destroy a group' as not necessitating a physical destruction of the group, which has also been adopted by a number of scholars ..., is therefore covered by the wording, read in its context, of the crime of genocide in the [German] Criminal Code and does not appear unreasonable",[60] so " In view of the foregoing, the [ECHR] concludes that, while many authorities had favoured a narrow interpretation of the crime of genocide, there had already been several authorities at the material time which had construed the offence of genocide in the same wider way as the German courts. In these circumstances, the [ECHR] finds that [Jorgic], if need be with the assistance of a lawyer, could reasonably have foreseen that he risked being charged with and convicted of genocide for the acts he had committed in 1992.",[61] and for this reason the court rejected Jorgic assertion that there had been a breach of Article 7 (no punishment without law) of the European Convention on Human Rights by Germany.[62]
Maksim Sokolović
On 29 November 1999, the Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht) of Dusseldorf condemned Maksim Sokolović to 9 years in prison for aiding and abetting the crime of genocide and for grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions.[63]
Controversy
There is a significant disagreement between the Bosnian and Serbian side about the possibility or scope of genocide in Bosnia during the Bosnian War that has made this a controversial and contentious issue. The Bosnian side claims that the Srebrenica massacre was just one instance of what was a broader genocide committed by Serbia.[64]
The International Court of Justice veered away from the factual and legal findings of the ICTY Appeals Chamber in the Duško Tadić case. In the judgment delivered in July 1999, the Appeals Chamber found that the Army of Republika Srpska was "under overall control" of Belgrade and the Yugoslav Army, which meant that they had funded, equipped and assisted in coordination and planning of military operations. Had the International Court of Justice accepted this finding of the Tribunal, Serbia would have been found guilty of complicity in the Srebrenica genocide. Instead it concluded that the Appeals Chamber in the Tadić case "did not attempt to determine the responsibility of a state but individual criminal responsibility". Paradoxical as it may be, the outcome of this legal suit filed back in March 1993 arrived too early for Bosnia and Herzegovina. Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić, accused of Bosnian genocide are not arrested yet. Slobodan Milošević died during the trial and three trials of former Serbian officials have just started. [65]
The allegations about the ICTY Prosecution agreement with Belgrade authorities by which the transcripts of the meetings of Supreme Defense Council remained not disclosed to the public and the International Court of Justice appeared immediately after the International Court of Justice delivered its judgment in the Bosnia Herzegovina Vs. Serbia and Montenegro case. Geoffrey Nice, who was lead counsel for the prosecution at the Slobodan Milošević trial, notes in his letter that Carla Del Ponte personally agreed to a ‘deal’ with the Belgrade authorities to ‘protect’ the documents of the Supreme Defense Council relating to the role of Serbia in the wars in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Those documents remained under seal. The public and the International Court of Justice thus had no access to them.[66]
Some commentators believe that the Srebrenica massacre was not genocide. Typically, they cite that allegedly women and children were spared and that only military age men were targeted[67][68] which is not supported by evidence, because children were targeted too, and many women were raped according to ICTY finding.[69]
Opinions
US resolution 199
On June 27 2005, the United States House of Representatives passed a resolution (H. Res. 199 sponsored by Congressman Christopher Smith and Congressman Benjamin Cardin) commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide. The resolution was passed with overwhelming majority of 370 - YES votes, 1 - NO vote, and 62 - ABSENT.[70] The resolution is a bipartisan measure commemorating July 11, 1995-2005, the tenth anniversary of the Srebrenica massacre.
The resolution states that "the policies of aggression and ethnic cleansing1|2 as implemented by Serb forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina from 1992 and 1995 with the direct support of Serbian regime of Slobodan Milosevic and its followers ultimately led to the displacement of more than 2,000,000 people, an estimated 200,000 killed, tens of thousands raped or otherwise tortured and abused, and the innocent civilians of Sarajevo and other urban centers repeatedly subjected to shelling and sniper attacks; meet the terms defining the crime of genocide in Article 2 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, created in Paris on December 9, 1948, and entered into force on January 12, 1951."[71]
Vladimir Srebrov
Srebrov, co-founder of the Serbian Democratic Party, claimed that the party intended to exterminate the Bosniak population of Bosnia after it had come to power.[72] He was imprisoned by the Serb side during the war.
References
- ^ Staff. Bosnian genocide suspect extradited, BBC, 2 April 2002
- ^ SERBIA FOUND GUILTY OF FAILURE TO PREVENT AND PUNISH GENOCIDE
- ^ "ICTY: Kordić and Čerkez verdict - IV. Attacks on towns and villages: killings - C. The April 1993 Conflagration in Vitez and the Lašva Valley - 3. The Attack on Ahmići (Paragraph 642)".
{{cite web}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=
(help) - ^ Research shows estimates of B&H death toll inflated - IHT: The Bosnian Book of Dead
- ^ Bosnia's Book of Dead - BIRN Report
- ^ [1] - RFE: Svaka žrvat ima svoje ime
- ^ Bosnia's Book of Dead - BIRN Report
- ^ Nobles News Bosnian Genocide Survivor Addresses Nobles Class; Date: 3/6/2007 [2]
- ^ Open Democracy - Martin Shaw: The International Court of Justice: Serbia, Bosnia, and genocide
- ^ University of California Riverside, Bosnian Genocide In the Historical Perspective, [3]
- ^ World Science: Dump the “ethnic cleansing” jargon, group implores; May 31, 2007 Special to World Science [4]
- ^ The 32nd annual European Studies Conference - Panel 20: Toward Understanding the Bosnian Genocide (Thursday, 4 October 2007) [5]
- ^ Save Darfur: Genocide Survivors to Light Olympic Torch for Darfur [6]
- ^ Human Rights Watch, Milosevic to Face Bosnian Genocide Charges, 11 December 2001 [7]
- ^ Missouri Humanities Council - Prijedor: Lives From the Bosnian Genocide, October 2007 [8]
- ^ The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia found in Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Trial Chamber I - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2001) ICTY8 (2 August 2001) that genocide had been committed. (see paragraph 560 for name of group in English on whom the genocide was committed). It was upheld in Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Appeals Chamber - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2004) ICTY 7 (19 April 2004)
- ^ "Courte: Serbia failed to prevent genocide, UN court rules". Associated Press. 2007-02-26.
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(help) - ^ "Sense Tribunal: SERBIA FOUND GUILTY OF FAILURE TO PREVENT AND PUNISH GENOCIDE".
- ^ ICJ: Bosnian Genocide Case: Summary of the Judgment of 26 February 2007 [9]
- ^ "Courte: Serbia failed to prevent genocide, UN court rules". Associated Press. 2007-02-26.
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(help) - ^ ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Slobodan Milošević - Amanded Indictment [10]
- ^ ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Radovan Karadžić - Amanded Indictment [11]
- ^ ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Ratko Mladić - Amanded Indictment [12]
- ^ ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Momčilo Krajišnik - Amanded Indictment [13]
- ^ ICTY: Judgment - Momčilo Krajišnik [14]
- ^ ICTY: The prosecutor of the tribunal against Biljana Plavšić - Amanded Indictment [15]
- ^ ICTY: Biljana Plavšić Plea agreement [16]
- ^ ICTY: Biljana Plavšić judgment - [17]
- ^ ICTY: THE PROSECUTOR OF THE TRIBUNAL AGAINST MILOMIR STAKIC - FOURTH AMENDED INDICTMENT [18]
- ^ ICTY: First Amended Indictment [19]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Trbić case: Charged with genocide pursuant to Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) in conjunction with the killing members of the group, causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group, deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part, imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group [20]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [21]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [22]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [23]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [24]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [25]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [26]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [27]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [28]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [29]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [30]
- ^ The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina - Mitrović and others (Kravice) - Accused of the criminal offence of genocide in violation of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CC BiH) [31]
- ^ ICTY: Plea agreement - The Prosecutor v. Dragan Obrenović [32]
- ^ ICTY: Biljana Plavšić Plea agreement [33]
- ^ ICTY: Biljana Plavšić judgment - [34]
- ^ European Court of Human Rights - Jorgic v. Germany Judgment, July 12th 2007.
- ^ Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Trial Chamber I - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2001) ICTY8 (2 August 2001), The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, paragraph 589. citing Bavarian Appeals Court, Novislav Đajić case, 23 May 1997, 3 St 20/96, section VI, p. 24 of the English translation. Paragraph 589:
- Several other sources confirm that the intent to eradicate a group within a limited geographical area such as the region of a country or even a municipality may be characterised as genocide. ... Two Judgements recently rendered by German courts took the view that genocide could be perpetrated within a limited geographical area. The Federal Constitutional Court of Germany, in the Nikola Jorgic case, upheld the Judgement of the Düsseldorf Supreme Court, interpreting the intent to destroy the group "in part" as including the intention to destroy a group within a limited geographical area. In a Judgement against Novislav Đajić on 23 May 1997, the Bavarian Appeals Chamber similarly found that acts of genocide were committed in June 1992 though confined within the administrative district of Foca.
- ^ Novislav Djajic, TRIAL (Track Impunity Always)
- ^ Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic - Trial Chamber I - Judgment - IT-98-33 (2001) ICTY8 (2 August 2001), The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, paragraph 589. citing Bavarian Appeals Court, Novislav Djajic case, 23 May 1997, 3 St 20/96, section VI, p. 24 of the English translation.
- ^ Oberlandesgericht Dusseldorf, "Public Prosecutor v Jorgic", 26 September 1997 (Trial Watch Nikola Jorgic
- ^ European Court of Human Rights - Jorgic v. Germany Judgment, July 12th 2007.
- ^ Europe's human rights court upholds life term for Bosnian Serb convicted of genocide - AP, July 12th, 2007.
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 18
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany § 36 butt also §§ 18,47,99,103,108
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 42 citing Prosecutor v. Krstic, IT-98-33-T, judgment of 2 August 2001, §§ 580
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 43 citing the judgment of 19 April 2004 rendered by the Appeals Chamber of the ICTY, IT-98-33-A §§ 25,33
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 44 citing Prosecutor v. Kupreskic and Others (IT-95-16-T, judgment of 14 January 2000), § 751
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany] §45 citing Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro ("Case concerning the application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide") the International Court of Justice (ICJ) found under the heading of "intent and 'ethnic cleansing'" § 190
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 47
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany § 105
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 113
- ^ ECHR Jorgic v. Germany. § 116
- ^ Trial watch Maksim Sokolovic
- ^ van den Biesen."Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, General Concluding Observation". International Court of Justice. 24 April 2006, para. 1-12. [35]
- ^ SENSE Tribunal: ICTY - THE MISSING LINK: [36]
- ^ SENSE Tribunal: Del Ponte Denies Alleged "Deal" with Belgrade [37]
- ^ The Politics of the Srebrenica Massacre, Z Net, 7 July 2007, by Edward S. Herman [38]
- ^ "The real story behind Srebrenica", Globe and Mail, July 14, 2005. [39]
- ^ ICTY, Prosecutor vs Krstic, Trial Chamber Judgement, Case No. IT-98-33-T, paras 43–46. [40]
- ^ Washington Post. "Votes Database: Bill: H RES 199" 27 June 2005 [41]
- ^ US House of Representatives, "Resolution 199 (H. Res. 199): Srebrenica Genocide". 27 June 2005. [42]
- ^ Kulenovic, Adil. "Interview with Vladimir Srebrov, a founding member of the Serb Democratic Party". Vreme Magazine. 30 October 1995. [43]
See also
- Genocides in history
- Bosnian War
- Command responsibility
- Srebrenica Massacre
- Army of Republika Srpska
- Bosniaks
- Republika Srpska
- International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
- Bosnian genocide case at the International Court of Justice
External links
- Yale University - Bosnia Genocide Studies Program
- Aegis Trust (genocide prevention trust) An independent international organisation dedicated to eliminating genocide
- Radovan Karadzic $5 million Reward - The U.S. Government is offering $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Radovan Karadzic
- Ratko Mladic $5 million Reward - The U.S. Government is offering $5 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Ratko Mladic
- Genocide Watch - The Eight Stages of Genocide
- The Annexes - Prison camps
- Mladic Indictment
- Karadzic Indictment
- Milosevic Indictment
- Radoslav Brđanin judgement about ethnic cleansing in Banja Luka
- Krajisnik Indictment
- Bosnian Genocide
- Srebrenica - a 'Safe haven' Netherlands Institute for War Documentation, Srebrenica - a 'Safe haven', an extensive Dutch government report on events in eastern Bosnia and the fall of Srebrenica.
- Missing No Longer - International commission forges ahead to identify genocide victims, Scientific American, 1 August 2006
- Genocide-Bosnia at Peace Pleddge Union Information website