[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 59 (Tuesday, April 24, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E624]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


      MARKING TWENTY YEARS SINCE THE START OF THE BOSNIAN CONFLICT

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                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 24, 2012

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, this month marks 20 years since 
the start of the tragic conflict in Bosnia-Herzegovina. In remembrance, 
11,541 red chairs lined the main street of Sarajevo during the first 
week of April, one for every man, woman and child killed in the 
beautiful Bosnian capital of Sarajevo when it was a city under siege by 
militant Serb forces in the surrounding suburbs and hillsides.
  Like the memorial in Srebrenica commemorating the genocide three 
years later in which 8,000 people, mostly men and boys, were 
slaughtered by forces under the same overall command, the chairs were a 
sober reminder of how horrific and senseless the violence in Bosnia 
truly was. They are also a reminder of the international community's 
complicity in these crimes by its own inaction, when it had the means 
to intervene and save lives.
  The result of the delayed response to aggression against Bosnia 
plagues the people of that country today. The realities of the 
conflict, including the ethnic cleansing, were accommodated by 
compromises in the Dayton Agreement needed to restore peace. While 
necessary then, today these compromises have allowed political leaders 
like Milorad Dodik in the entity of Republika Srpska to block at will 
progress on reforms needed for the county's stability, prosperity and 
integration. While I welcome positive developments which have taken 
place in Bosnia in recent months, above all the formation of a new 
government, it remains disappointing that movement forward is so 
painfully slow. The people of Bosnia, regardless of their ethnicity, 
certainly deserve better.
  Today those responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity and 
genocide continue to be prosecuted at the International Criminal 
Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, located in The Hague, or in the war 
crimes courts of the countries concerned. This effort is important and 
warrants international support until the last crime is prosecuted.
  Justice alone, however, cannot bring closure to Bosnia's war victims. 
That is why I introduced a few weeks ago H.R. 4344, which among other 
actions supports the work of the International Commission for Missing 
Persons in locating and identifying persons missing as a result of 
conflicts and supporting the investigation of genocide and mass 
atrocities. It is also why I now repeat my call made last year for a 
permanent memorial to be established at the site of the Omarska 
concentration camp in northeastern Bosnia, so that the survivors of the 
crimes associated with the ethnic cleansing of that region of the 
country may also have a place to remember those lost. Such memorials 
also serve as bulwarks against forces which try to excuse, minimize and 
even deny the crimes that took place.
  As Chairman or Co-Chairman of the Helsinki Commission for most of the 
20 years since the Bosnian conflict erupted, I have chaired dozens of 
hearings and introduced numerous pieces of legislation which have 
helped to document the atrocities, shape policy responses, and assist 
in post-conflict recovery. I have also visited the country on numerous 
occasions. I can assure the people of Bosnia that I and my colleagues 
on the Helsinki Commission will continue to work for their human rights 
and the democratic, prosperous future they deserve.

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