Srebrenica Memorial Center condemns police questioning of 26 current and former employees

The Memorial Center strongly condemned the actions of the police and the Prosecutor’s Office in Bijeljina, describing them as the most extensive action to date targeting individuals associated with the institution.

"The simultaneous arrest and questioning of more than half of the people from Srebrenica who have been engaged with the Memorial Center at different times cannot be considered routine procedure. The scale, manner and timing of this action indicate a serious form of institutional pressure and intimidation," the statement said.

They expressed particular concern that the police action is being carried out immediately after the presentation of the annual Report on Genocide Denial.

They believe that the sequence of events raises suspicions that repressive mechanisms are being used against an institution and individuals who document genocide denial, protect facts established by final judgments of international and domestic courts, and advocate for human rights.

The Memorial Center said the action is not targeting only its associates, but also human rights defenders, researchers, returnees, witnesses and members of the Bosniak community in Srebrenica who work to preserve the culture of remembrance and protect the dignity of genocide victims.

They recalled that the Memorial Center is a public institution of Bosnia and Herzegovina whose operations are subject to regular financial and institutional oversight, and that information about its work is available to the competent authorities.

"There is no justified reason for the mass questioning by police of individuals whose engagement with the Memorial Center was lawful, documented and institutionally recorded," they stressed.

The Memorial Center also expressed concern over the possibility that documents containing the personal data of current and former associates may have been unlawfully removed from the institution and made available to third parties.

Should such suspicions be confirmed, they believe responsibility should be established for the unlawful processing and distribution of personal data, as well as for any potential threat to the safety of people covered by the police action.

They called on the Institution of the Human Rights Ombudsman of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Agency for Personal Data Protection of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the OSCE Mission, the Delegation of the European Union, the Office of the High Representative and other international actors to monitor the case and request that the competent authorities explain the legal basis, proportionality and purpose of the action.

The Memorial Center announced that it would use all available legal remedies to protect the institution, its employees and associates.

"We will not accept the abuse of police and judicial powers aimed at intimidating human rights defenders and the Bosniak community in Srebrenica, nor attempts to restrict the work of an institution whose legal and moral duty is to preserve the truth about the genocide," they said.