Celebrations to commemorate the founding of the Republika Srpska (January 9)

The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) calls on the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Christian Schmidt, to put an end to the celebrations to commemorate the founding of the Republika Srpska (January 9) and to sanction these activities, as they have to be seen as a celebration and praise of the genocide and the crimes against humanity committed there: “The Republika Srpska is trying to use the celebrations to commemorate its founding to present itself as an independent state. For the descendants of the victims, this is just as much a slap in the face as it is for international justice. After all, both the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the International Court of Justice in The Hague had unequivocally stated that the army and the police forces of the Republika Srpska were responsible for the genocide crimes of Srebrenica and for the crimes against humanity committed in large parts of the country. Now, the High Representative should take action and demand enforcement of the laws he himself had initiated in July 2023,” explained Jasna Causevic, STP expert on genocide prevention and the Responsibility to Protect.  

Back then, the survivors and descendants of the victims had high hopes that concrete steps would finally be taken – but neither the respective institutions nor the Office of the High Representative had done anything to actually implement these laws. “For the surviving victims, the failure to put an end to these celebrations is a clear signal that they cannot count on support from the international community – and that disrespect toward state institutions, and thus the undermining of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina through the Republika Srpska und Serbia, is simply being tolerated,” stated Belma Zulcic, Director of the Bosnian section of the Society for Threatened Peoples – adding that the High Representative must now follow up his announcements with actions. “This would be the only way to make sure that the international community, which is responsible for keeping the peace and for ensuring the survival of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, can retain its credibility.”

This call for a ban on celebrations of January 9 is also supported by Jasmin Medic – survivor of the crimes of Prijedor and, today, a research associate in modern history at the Institute of History in Sarajevo – whose father was taken from the Trnopolje concentration camp in August 1992 and executed along with more than 200 other Bosniak civilians. “Although the celebration is all about the unconstitutional day of the founding of the Republika Srpska, the government is once again proving – by continuing these events – that it willing to ignore the state institutions and to violate the Dayton Peace Accords. In this, it has been openly supported by the government of Serbia for 33 years, proving that Serbia has not given up its policy of division in dealing with Bosnia and Herzegovina. Those who continue to celebrate the day of the founding of the Republika Srpska are trying to get reactions to their provocations in order to justify the further escalation of their nationalism.”