On July 8, more than 4,000 participants set off from Nezuk, near Tuzla, on the 100-kilometer march to Srebrenica. The “Peace March” is organized to honor the victims of the 1995 genocide committed in the area that was under the protection of the United Nations.
The participants will walk for three days on the same roads that the residents of Srebrenica used when they tried to cross to Tuzlla or Kladnje in July 1995.
The participants plan to arrive in Potocari on July 10, in order to attend the events marking the anniversary of the genocide and the collective funerals at the Memorial Center for Srebrenica in Potocari the following day.
The “Peace March” has been organized since 2005 and the number of participants has increased every year.
The purpose of this event is to build, improve and promote the culture of commemoration of the genocide against Bosniaks in Srebrenica.
During the three-day walk, participants will walk over 30 kilometers per day. The route is marked and participants are provided with water, food and medical assistance, if necessary.
In July 1995, Republika Srpska troops killed more than 8,300 Bosniaks in Srebrenica and surrounding towns.
In 2007, the International Court of Justice in The Hague issued a verdict stating that the Army of Republika Srpska committed genocide in Srebrenica in July 1995. Back then, Srebrenica was a UN protected area.
The same court found Serbia guilty of not preventing the genocide. The court also said that Serbia has violated the obligation to punish the perpetrators of the genocide.
Before this decision, several courts have sentenced more than 50 people to over 700 years in prison for genocide and war crimes in Srebrenica.
Among them are the former president of Republika Srpska, Radovan Karadžić, and the general commander of the then Serbian army, Ratko Mladić. Both have been sentenced to life imprisonment. /REL/
