20 years on: We must not forget the slaughter of Srebrenica
by Tim ATTWOOD for Forum for Cities in Transition
6 July 2015
I had the honour of meeting the inspirational justice advocate Amir Kulaglic, a survivor of the Srebrenica massacre in July 1995, at the Forum for Cities conference in Belfast in 2014.
Twenty years ago, more than 8,000 boys and men between the ages of 14 and 75 were murdered. Amir lost his father, his step-father, two uncles, two cousins, his brother-in-law and his father-in-law.
Despite his wrenching pain, he is an independent activist who speaks out for the victims of Srebrenica. He said many victims have never been found and the perpetrators not only walk free, but have active roles in the city government. He said, “There is still a war in people’s minds.”
After listening to victims’ campaigners Paul Gallagher and Alan McBride in Belfast, he was moved to say:
“You are not victims and survivors, you are victors.”