The Hague marks 31 years since Srebrenica genocide under Dutch peacekeepers’ watch

On Saturday, 31 years later, The Hague commemorated the Srebrenica genocide. At a ceremony on Lange Voorhout in the city center, The Hague Mayor Jan van Zanen and Bosnian Ambassador Almir Šahović honored the victims and survivors of the genocide. “The trauma of Srebrenica lives on,” Van Zanen said. “Sometimes visibly. Often not.”

This year’s commemoration focused on the women of Srebrenica. Organizers said women have played an important role in preserving the memory of the genocide and shaping the “culture of remembrance” around Srebrenica.

The ceremony took place as the remains of 10 recently identified victims were buried at the memorial cemetery in Potočari, eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, near Srebrenica.

The Srebrenica genocide took place in July 1995 after Bosnian Serb forces led by General Ratko Mladić captured the Bosnian Muslim enclave of Srebrenica. The enclave had been designated a U.N. safe area and was protected by Dutch Dutchbat peacekeepers. About 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men were killed after the enclave fell. The search continues for the remains of about 1,000 victims.

On Saturday, van Zanen highlighted the stories of Alma and her daughter Hanna, who continue to carry the effects of the genocide. Alma was 14 years old when her father was killed in Srebrenica. Her daughter Hanna honors her grandfather and other victims by wearing hockey jersey No. 11.

“She plays hockey in a shirt with the number 11 on the back, in memory of her grandfather and all the other victims of the largest genocide in Europe since World War II,” Van Zanen told the crowd.

“Because the stories of the dead and their relatives, and of everyone else who ended up in the hell of Srebrenica, should be an inseparable part of our shared consciousness,” Van Zanen emphasized.

Van Zanen added that The Hague municipality will continue efforts to preserve the memory of the victims. A permanent monument is planned at the former International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia site in the city.

A memorial marker was unveiled there last year while plans for the permanent monument continue. Earlier Saturday, a new piece of natural stone was placed at the site. The location now contains 31 stones, representing "one stone for every year that separates us from the genocide,” Van Zanen said.

In 2021, the United Nations War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague upheld the life sentence of former Bosnian Serb military commander Ratko Mladić for his role in the genocide. The tribunal rejected his appeal and upheld his convictions for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity committed during the 1992–1995 Bosnian War.