Meta removes Facebook ads with convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic after Detektor report

“Our relevant teams reviewed the ads and removed those that violated our policies,” Meta said in response to an inquiry from Detektor.

Among the paid content identified by Detektor was an advertisement from the “Vozd” page, launched on August 31, directly promoting a T-shirt featuring Mladić’s image. Another Facebook ad was posted by the “Povest Srba” (History of Serbs) page, which presented Mladic’s biography through the lens of personal tragedy, including the death of his daughter, while describing him as a general.

This portrayal shifts the focus away from the fact that Mladic was convicted of genocide and other war crimes toward a narrative about his private life, BIRN BiH reported.

Among the ads that appeared on Facebook and Instagram was also one from the “Otacastvo” page, which used Mladic’s image to sell T-shirts. The page removed the ad itself after being contacted by Detektor.

“Otacastvo” said it offers around 30 different designs, not only T-shirts featuring Mladic’s image.

“I am not sending any message to buyers or anyone else. A T-shirt is a piece of clothing that people choose according to their taste. There is no message being sent to buyers, nor are any victims being belittled,” “Otacastvo” said in its response.

Similar ads have appeared in the past. In November 2021, an advertisement from the “Crvena Pravda” page was active, questioning the acceptance of the decisions of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

In response to Detektor, “Crvena Pravda” said that before publishing the post in question, it was aware that Mladic was facing proceedings for various crimes with which he was charged, but said it did not recognize the Hague Tribunal because it considered it a political institution.

“As for his responsibility for any crimes committed while he was commander of the Army of Republika Srpska, we do not question it if it has been established by an impartial domestic court. We emphasize that we sympathize with the pain of the families of all innocent victims of the war in BiH, regardless of their religious or ethnic affiliation,” said the response signed by Jovan Zivanovic.

He added that Mladic should not be viewed solely through the lens of crimes for which he could be held responsible, but in the broader context of events in the former Yugoslavia during the 1990s.

The post was active from November 13 to 15, 2021, during which time it received between 10,000 and 15,000 views.

Ratko Mladic, the former commander of the Main Staff of the Army of Republika Srpska, was sentenced to life imprisonment in June 2021 for the genocide in Srebrenica, the persecution of Bosniaks and Croats, the terrorizing of Sarajevo residents, and the taking of UNPROFOR personnel hostage. He died on August 27 while in custody in The Hague.