We are saddened by the fact that the Council of Europe (CoE) failed to name July 11 as the Srebrenica Genocide Remembrance Day, but we came here to ask you to make that decision by the end of your mandate, Munira Subasic from the Mothers of Srebrenica and Zepa Enclaves Association told the CoE's Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland, on Thursday.

During a meeting between Jagland, Subasic and one other Srebrenica Association representative Kada Hotic, Subasic noted that memory of the Srebrenica genocide is necessary for Bosnia's common future with others and for Europe to protect itself from the evil that led to the genocide.

In April 1993, the UN had declared the besieged enclave of the eastern Bosnian town of Srebrenica a safe area under UN protection.

However, in July 1995, the Dutch battalion soldiers failed to prevent the town's capture by the Bosnian Serb forces and the massacre that followed.

More than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys were killed in the days following July 11, 1995, and so far the remains of more than 6,600 have been found and buried.

Subasic recalled that the European Parliament passed three resolutions on the Srebrenica genocide and that flags are lowered at half mast every July 11.

General Secretary Jagland said the Council of Europe is a much more complicated institution than the European parliament considering the number of member states including the Balkan states, noting that there is a procedure for adopting a decision on the Srebrenica Genocide Remembrance Day.

“We are Europeans according to our geographical position and we want to be a member of the EU. If a CoE member refuses to stand next to you in making this decision, ask them whether they are human, whether they want to continue the execution of genocide,” said Kada Hotic.

“We have survived an act of aggression by the people from our region who thought that Muslims in Bosnia should be eliminated. It was a fascist undertaking and we condemn all fascism,” said Hotic, pointing out that the marking of genocide as asked by the Mother of Srebrenica and Zepa should be a warning so that this kind of fascism never happens again.