July 11 – International Day of Remembrance for the Srebrenica Genocide
Today, we remember one of the darkest chapters of European history after World War II. In July 1995, over 8,372 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were systematically murdered by Bosnian Serb forces in and around the UN safe area of Srebrenica. They were fathers, sons, students, and neighbours. Ethnic nationalism had turned faith into a death sentence, and the international community watched, stood by, and failed.
That is what Srebrenica was: not a tragedy of war but a calculated, systematic campaign to erase a people from European soil, simply because they were Bosnian Muslim. The most brutal act of anti-Muslim violence in modern European history was a genocide born of dehumanising ideologies of ethnic purity that cast their poisonous shadows still into our time.
The Srebrenica genocide is not only a dark chapter in Bosnia and Hercegovina‘s history; it is a European trauma. It shows us where hatred nationalism, ethnic division, and deliberate misinformation can lead when democracies are weak, international institutions stay paralysed, and solidarity fails.
Volt Europa stands for a Europe of remembrance rooted in the understanding that with remembering there comes responsibility. As such, we acknowledge Europe’s responsibility not only to learn from its past, but to actively stand for justice, reconciliation and peacebuilding. This means:
🔹 full recognition of the Srebrenica genocide by all EU member states,
🔹 a strong European culture of remembrance that embraces Srebrenica as part of our shared history,
🔹 political education and awareness about the Balkan wars of the 1990s,
🔹 combating historical revisionism, hate speech, and ethnic nationalism both online and offline,
🔹 justice for survivors and victims’ families including support for international courts and civil society initiatives.
Even today, 30 years later, families are still burying their loved ones. In 2025, five more victims will finally be laid to rest at the Potočari Memorial Center, after being identified through DNA. The lesson of the Srebrenica genocide must not only be a “never again”; it must be a call to action today. For a society that protects diversity. For politics that defend human rights. For a Europe that never looks away again!
Image source: The Guardian
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