July 2015 marks the 20th anniversary of the killings of around 8,000 Bosnian Muslims trapped in the United Nations “safe area” of Srebrenica. Termed a “genocide” by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, the Srebrenica massacre was the worst atrocity against civilians in Europe since the end of World War II.

On 1 July 2015, The Hague Institute and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum hosted a public panel on International Decision Making and the Srebrenica Genocide. The panel featured key policymakers and officials who discussed and reflected on the lessons-learned from the role of the international community in events leading up to the July 1995 massacre.Issues addressed during the panel included the establishment of UN “safe areas”, the UN mandate, the Dutch peacekeeping mission, and the role of the media.

Speakers

• Dr. Abiodun Williams, Welcome
  President, The Hague Institute

Panelists

• H.E. Mr. Yasushi Akashi
  UN Secretary-General Special Representative in former Yugoslavia, 1993-1997
• Mr. Joris Voorhoeve
  Minister of Defense of the Netherlands 1994-1998
• General Rupert Smith
  UNPROFOR commander in Bosnia 1995, Assistant Chief of Defense Operations 1992-1994
• Mr. Carl Bildt
  European Union Special Envoy to former Yugoslavia 1995
• Mr. Zlatko Lagumdzija
  Deputy Prime Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina 1992‐1994
• Mr. Muhamed Durković
  Srebrenica survivor who worked with international aid organizations inside the Srebrenica enclave during the war
• Mr. David Rohde, Moderator
  Journalist

Closing Remarks

• Mr. Cameron Hudson, Director of the Center for the Prevention of Genocide at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum

Related project

1 July 2015

Public Panel: International Decision Making and the Srebrenica Genocide