Joint Statement by Civil Society Organisations and Individuals on the Attack on Vladimir Arsenijević in Belgrade and the Prevention of a Commemoration for the Victims of the Srebrenica Genocide

Civil society organisations and individuals from across the region strongly condemn the physical attack on writer and activist Vladimir Arsenijević, founder and Programme Director of Association KROKODIL, which took place this morning beneath Branko’s Bridge in Belgrade and prevented a memorial gathering from being held to mark the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica.

According to Arsenijević’s own account, a group of between 20 and 30 people was waiting for him at the location where the commemoration, organised by the “People Remember People” coalition, was due to take place. The attackers physically assaulted and threatened him and covered the area with messages glorifying Ratko Mladić, a convicted war criminal, and the Army of Republika Srpska, which perpetrated the genocide. As a result of the attack, the planned commemoration was cancelled for security reasons, meaning that the attackers achieved their immediate objective: they prevented citizens of Serbia from publicly and solemnly paying tribute to the victims of the genocide. According to prior announcements, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Serbia was also expected to attend the event, making this attack an assault on diplomatic and international efforts to deal with the past and promote reconciliation in the region.

The sight of an organised group lying in wait for and physically attacking someone merely because they intended to pay tribute to the victims of a massacre, while leaving behind messages glorifying war criminals, is a horrifying reminder of the methods employed by fascist Blackshirts who, in the period leading up to and during Hitler’s offensives in the Second World War, systematically assaulted and intimidated dissenters in the streets in an effort to purge the public space of disobedient voices before violence took complete control. The signatories to this statement believe that this parallel is not an exaggeration, but rather a grave warning that demands a broad public protest in support of civil society activists, including Arsenijević.

The signatories consider the attack on Arsenijević to be neither the first nor an isolated incident, but a direct consequence of decades-long policies of denial and relativisation of the Srebrenica genocide pursued by official institutions and the majority of media outlets in Serbia. The refusal to unequivocally recognise the genocide, coupled with the glorification of convicted war criminals and the absence of systematic condemnation of historical revisionism, creates an atmosphere in which violence against those who insist on the truth becomes possible and even expected.

Responsibility for this morning’s attack lies not only with the direct perpetrators, but also with the institutions that have tolerated and encouraged the narrative of denial for years, thereby sending the message that violence against defenders of a fact-based culture of remembrance will also go unpunished.

Preventing a peaceful commemoration for the victims of the Srebrenica genocide constitutes an attack not only on Arsenijević as an individual, but also on the right of the victims and their families to dignified remembrance, as well as on the fundamental principles of freedom of assembly and expression in Serbia. The presence of graffiti glorifying war criminals at the site of the planned commemoration is a clear symptom of the systemic denial of genocide taking place in Serbia with state support.

For decades, through the work of Association KROKODIL and his personal engagement, writer and activist Vladimir Arsenijević has created space for dialogue and cultural exchange both within the region and internationally. He has consistently worked to confront the legacy of the wars of the 1990s based on established facts. An attack on him is an attack on all of us engaged in the same work.

We call on:

  1. The competent institutions of the Republic of Serbia to urgently, thoroughly and transparently investigate the attack, identify and prosecute all those involved and those who ordered it, including any organisers and instigators.
  2. The state authorities to ensure the physical safety of Vladimir Arsenijević, as well as that of all activists who will gather this evening at Republic Square at an event organised by the Youth Initiative for Human Rights, and to publicly condemn the attack at the highest level.
  3. The highest-ranking officials of the Republic of Serbia to unequivocally and publicly recognise the genocide in Srebrenica, break with the practice of relativising the genocide and glorifying war criminals, and condemn every form of historical revisionism. Without such a break, attacks such as the one that occurred this morning will remain a foreseeable consequence rather than an exception.
  4. The institutions of the Republic of Serbia to include 11 July in the official calendar of commemorative dates, thereby contributing to building lasting peace through a fact-based culture of remembrance.
  5. Regional and international organisations, embassies and institutions of the European Union to condemn this attack, monitor developments and publicly highlight the responsibility of Serbian institutions for the atmosphere in which such attacks occur.
  6. The media and the public across the region not to allow the normalisation of violence and hate speech directed against those engaged in fostering a culture of remembrance and dealing with the past.
  7. We express our full solidarity with Vladimir Arsenijević, the “People Remember People” coalition of non-governmental organisations and activists, and all those who, despite threats and violence, continue to advocate for truth, justice and reconciliation in the region.
  1. Human Rights Action (HRA), Montenegro
  2. Documenta – Center for Dealing with the Past, Croatia
  3. Centre for Civic Education (CCE), Montenegro
  4. Bosniak Council in Montenegro, Montenegro
  5. Bosniak Forum, Montenegro
  6. Educo Plus, Montenegro
  7. Centre for Monitoring and Research (CeMI), Montenegro
  8. “Štrpci – Against Oblivion” Association, Montenegro
  9. Prima, Podgorica, Montenegro
  10. Walk with Us – Phiren Amenca, Montenegro
  11. Montenegrin LGBTIQ Association Queer Montenegro, Montenegro
  12. Association of Lawyers of Montenegro, Montenegro
  13. Alliance for Children and Youth “Kuća”, Montenegro
  14. Montenegro Media Institute (MMI), Montenegro
  15. Association Spectra, Montenegro
  16. Montenegrin Women’s Lobby (MWL), Montenegro
  17. 21 May, Montenegro
  18. NOVA Centre for Feminist Culture, Montenegro
  19. Women’s Rights Centre (WRC), Montenegro
  20. Montenegrin Society of Independent Writers, Montenegro
  21. Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR), Montenegro
  22. Centre for Development of Non-Governmental Organizations (CRNVO), Montenegro
  23. Empty Space, Montenegro
  24. Montenegrin PEN Centre, Montenegro
  25. Montenegrin Philological Society, Montenegro
  26. Center for Investigative Journalism of Montenegro (CIN-CG), Montenegro
  27. Juventas, Podgorica, Montenegro
  28. Civic Alliance, Podgorica, Montenegro
  29. Dina Bajramspahić, civic activist, Montenegro
  30. Jovana Marović, civic activist, Montenegro
  31. Aleksandar Saša Zeković, human rights and remembrance-policy activist, Montenegro
  32. Paula Petričević, civic activist, Montenegro
  33. Milena Bešić, civic activist, Montenegro
  34. Maša Elezović, civic activist, Montenegro
  35. Balša Brković, Montenegro
  36. Varja Đukić, actress, Montenegro
  37. Nikola Nikolić, writer, Montenegro
  38. Sead Šabotić, film director, Montenegro
  39. Dragana Tripković, writer, Montenegro
  40. Jelena Nenezić, actress, Montenegro
  41. Vasko Raičević, Faculty of Montenegrin Language and Literature (FCJK), Montenegro
  42. Mladen Ivanović, activist, Montenegro
  43. Dragan Prelević, lawyer, Montenegro
  44. Centar za demokratiju i ljudska prava (CEDEM), Montenegro
  45. Centre for training and education, Montenegro
  46. EXPEDITIO, Montenegro
  47. ŠkArt, Montenegro
  48. Jounalists’ Circle, Montenegro
  49. Neđeljko Rudović, journalist, Montenegro
  50. Željko Vušurović, dramaturg, Montenegro
  51. Velida Hodžić, activist, Montenegro
  52. Tanja Pavićević, journalist, Montenegro
  53. Milica Kankaraš Berber, musician and activist, Montenegro
  54. Branka Backović, Montenegro
  55. Ivan Blažević, European Fund for the Balkans (EFB)
  56. Initiative for a Croatia of Freedom, Croatia
  57. Solidarna Foundation, Croatia
  58. Pariter, Croatia
  59. Tena Prelec, University of Rijeka / BiEPAG, Croatia
  60. CROSOL – Croatian Platform for International Citizen Solidarity, Croatia
  61. Domino Association, Croatia
  62. Centre for Peace, Non-Violence and Human Rights Osijek, Croatia
  63. Association for Cultural Development “URK” / Močvara Club, Croatia
  64. Shadow Casters, Croatia
  65. Centre for Education, Counselling and Research (CESI), Zagreb, Croatia
  66. Rainbow Families, Croatia
  67. Youth Initiative for Human Rights, Croatia
  68. Marko Sjekavica, lawyer, custos and activist, Croatia
  69. Gordana Knežević Miličić, Croatia

 

  1. Maja Sever, journalist, Croatia
  2. Trade Union of Croatian Journalists, Croatia
  3. In Good Faith, Croatia
  4. Tanja Dabo, visual artist, Croatia
  5. Ivica Prtenjača, poet, Croatia
  6. NO SH/T Network, Croatia
  7. Rajko Grlić, film director, Croatia
  8. Goran Božičević, civic activist, Croatia
  9. Dijana Cetina Mlađenović, Croatia
  10. Adrijana Cvrtila, Croatia
  11. Mladen Majetić, Croatia
  12. Sanja Sarnavka, Croatia
  13. Ivica Buljan, theatre director, Croatia
  14. Centre for Nonviolent Action, Serbia
  15. Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR), Serbia
  16. Impuls, Tutin, Serbia
  17. Centre for Biopolitical Education, Serbia
  18. Marija Ratković, Serbia
  19. Elena Premate, Serbia
  20. Olivera Ilkić, Serbia
  21. Vesna Vučković, Serbia
  22. Saša Pernat, Serbia
  23. “Our World, Our Rules” Youth Association, Serbia
  24. Emilija Milenković, student and activist, Serbia
  25. Media Diversity Institute Western Balkans, Serbia
  26. European Fund for Balkan, Serbia
  27. Museum of 1990s, Serbia
  28. Aida Ćorović, activist, Serbia
  29. Branislav Dimitrijević, art historian, Serbia
  30. Vukan Simonović, journalist, Serbia
  31. Slobodanka Ast, journalist, Serbia
  32. Jelena Trpković, artist, Serbia
  33. Movement of Mothers of the Srebrenica and Žepa Enclaves, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  34. Association for Social Research and Communications (UDIK), Bosnia and Herzegovina
  35. Edvin Kanka Ćudić, activist, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  36. Nidžara Ahmetašević, journalist, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  37. Feđa Štukan, actor, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  38. Edina Hadžikadunić, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  39. Sabina Mujezinović, activist, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  40. Alma Šuman, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  41. Snježana Hadžić, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  42. Refika Dedić, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  43. Zinaida Dimitrijević, PhD, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  44. Miomirka Mila Melank, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  45. Fehma Osmanović, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  46. Igbal Memišević, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  47. Melisa Begagić, Bosnia and Herzegovina
  48. Humanitarian Law Center, Kosovo
  49. Liberal Alternative Institute, North Macedonia
  50. Valentina Samac, dramaturg and director, North Macedonia
  51. IUSTICOM
  52. Sadija Purković, Sweeden
  53. Tamara Kovačević, Slovenia

The list remains open for signatures…