Graciela Gatti Santana, President of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, at the commemoration of the Srebrenica genocide victims, reminded attendees of the verdicts delivered by the Hague Tribunal for the Srebrenica genocide and stressed the need to maintain a culture of remembrance and confrontation with the past.

Santana began by recalling all the verdicts for the Srebrenica genocide thus far.

“It must be borne in mind that justice for crimes under international law is linked to broader objectives that go beyond accountability. The Security Council, upon establishing the Hague Tribunal, expressed the belief that the formation of the International Criminal Court would contribute to maintaining and restoring peace in the region. Justice, while fundamentally important, is just one link in that process,” she said.

However, Santana acknowledges that there are still those who deny the genocide in Srebrenica.

“The reality is, at the very least, sometimes discouraging. Twenty-nine years after the genocide in Srebrenica, genocide denial, historical revisionism, and the glorification of convicted war criminals continue and enjoy support. Such occurrences are devastating for the victims and serve to perpetuate enduring patterns of national tensions, harming the entire region. These voices of hatred must be stopped,” she emphasized.

Today, at the collective funeral, another 14 victims of the Srebrenica genocide will be laid to rest in the valley of white tombstones, where they will find eternal peace.