More Proof of Srebrenica Manipulations
Srebrenica Manipulations: 954 Bosnian Muslim Fighters Killed Before the End of 1994 Listed as “Srebrenica Victims”
Association of Camp Prisoners from Republika Srpska (Serbian Republic in Bosnia) cites an example of Munira Subasic, President of the Bosnian Muslim Association of Srebrenica Women, who reported her son as one of Srebrenica Muslim victims. It was later discovered her son lives in United States under a new name.
By Boro Maric reporting from Banja Luka in Bosnia, Politika
Republika Srpska Veterans Association has reported on Wednesday they have the list of 954 Bosnian Muslim fighters, members of the Muslim army, who have lost their lives before the end of 1994 in the battles during the Bosnian civil war (1992-1995), but have nevertheless been listed as the Muslim victims of battle for Srebrenica, fought in July 1995.
The news about the list has triggered strong reactions in the Serbian republic in Bosnia.
On the one side, the information has thrown renewed suspicion at the report of Bosnia’s Commission that was supposed to determine the facts about Srebrenica events. The Srebrenica Commission was formed according to the order of former Bosnian High Representative from Great Britain, Paddy Ashdown, by the Government of Republika Srpska. On the other side, the list provided by the Serbian Veterans Association has reopened the issue of exaggerated numbers of Bosnian Muslims who have allegedly lost their lives in Srebrenica. The continuously overblown figures are constantly parroted both within the Bosnian Muslim circles of high officials and Muslim NGOs operating in Bosnia, and by the Hague Tribunal.
Muslim Commander and War Criminal, Naser Oric, Compiled the List Himself
“I can’t tell you who provided us with the list of 954 names. I can only say that these are the reports submitted to the Command of the Second Corps of the Bosnian Muslim army before the end of 1994, by the Muslim commander of 28th division stationed in Srebrenica, Naser Oric,” said the President of the Republika Srpska Veterans Association, Pantelija Curguz.
Beta news agency today reported that the President of the Camp Prisoners Association of Republika Srpska Branislav Dukic said that Serbian camp prisoners will demand the revision of the report submitted by the Srebrenica Commission. He said that Bosnian Serbs interned in the Muslim and Croat-run prison camps during the Bosnian civil war suspected the authenticity of the commission’s report from the very beginning.
Have Any Bosnian Muslims Died Before Srebrenica?
“We now have to ask if anyone lost his life in Srebrenica from 1992 until July of 1995 [for the duration of the civil war, before Srebrenica takeover]. Every single Muslim who died in Srebrenica during the entire war was listed as killed in July of 1995,” said Dukic, adding that the Association of the Camp Prisoners has been posing this question to both Paddy Ashdown and Carla del Ponte, but has never received a response.
As an example of manipulations with Srebrenica, Dukic mentioned the President of the Muslim Association of Srebrenica Women, Munira Subasic. He said that Subasic reported her son as killed in Srebrenica, while he was alive and well in United States, only living under a different name.
“Srebrenica Commission” Was Unaware of the List
Director of the board of Bosnia’s Missing Persons Commission and the president of the Srebrenica Commission whose report is now questioned, Milan Bogdanic, said that Srebrenica Commission was not aware of the list of 954 Bosnian Muslim fighters who died before July 1995, that the association had presented. He also claims Srebrenica Commission was not trying to assess the number of victims, but was working on putting together the list of missing persons.
“At the time when Srebrenica Comission was working, we had no knowledge about the information recently published by the Veterans Association. We have asked them for a copy of the list, so we can compare it to ours. I’ll repeat for the N-th time that we were not determining the number of the dead, but the number of missing and we came up with the final list of all the missing after comparing the data from various data-bases which together contained over 150 thousand of different names,” Bogdanic said.
Serbian Veterans Association’s Data Basis for the Serious Investigation
Speaking to the Politika reporter over the phone, head of the Republika Srpska Secretariat for Hague Tribunal Relations, Jovan Spajic said:
“We shall compare our lists and data with those of the Veterans Association. Given that the Bosnian Muslim Sarajevo center run by Mirsad Tokacha concluded that in 1995 6,975 Muslims lost their lives in Srebrenica, I’m convinced we have good foundations to start a serious investigation based on the data collected by the Veterans Association. If the list they have is correct, we shall inform the lawyers of the Serbs accused of Srebrenica ‘genocide’ in the Hague and the Hague Tribunal prosecutors.”
Ivanisevic: Muslim “Srebrenica Victims” Have Been Voting Since the End of War
According to Tanjug, Director of the Belgrade Center for Investigation of crimes committed over the Serbian people, Milivoje Ivanisevic said that no one should be surprised to learn that Bosnian Muslim politicians have been constantly inflating and manipulating the numbers of the Muslim victims, especially those in and around Srebrenica.
“Already next year, at the Bosnian Muslim elections held in 1996, more than 700 Bosnian Muslims from Srebrenica whose names were on the list of those killed in July 1995 showed up to cast their votes,” said Ivanisevic.
Cartoon by Cox & Forkum (USA)
Comments
The following is a correspondence I had with a member of a committee of refugees from Srebrenica and Zepa living in the United States.
At the above URL you will find my article on the Srebrenica "Massacre". But you probably already know it.
Empfaenger : /APC/EXYUGO/REFUGEES
Absender : mccartpg@SLU.EDU
Betreff : Appeal, Event: Srebrenica and Zepa
Datum : Mo 30.03.98, 21:48 (erhalten: 01.04.98)
Groesse : 6107 Bytes
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Dear Friends,
The people of Srebrenica and Zepa occupy a special place in the
chronicle of death and betrayal from the war in Bosnia and Herze-
govina. When their cities -- declared UN "safe areas" -- were at-
tacked in July of 1995, thousands of Muslim men and boys were
slaughtered in the worst act of genocide since the end of the se-
cond world war. Promised the protection of the United Nations, the
people of Srebrenica and Zepa received complicity and capitulation
at the hands of those who were pledged to defend them.
Today the survivors from Srebrenica and Zepa are waiting for ju-
stice and accountability. They are waiting for answers about their
loved ones killed and missing. They are waiting for the arrest and
prosecution of those who committed these genocidal crimes. They
are waiting for help and compensation for what they have lost.
Nearly 300 refugee survivors from Srebrenica and Zepa are living
now in St. Louis, Missouri. They have organized themselves into a
Committee of the Dispossessed and today issue a call for others to
join them in their appeal for justice and accountability. They
will convene a national gathering on the campus of Saint Louis
University on April 19, 1998 to offer survivor testimony and to
appeal for assistance in determining the fate of their loved ones,
to press for the arrest of indicted war criminals, and to receive
material and medical assistance for refugee survivors. Friends are
asked to mail, fax, or e-mail statements of support which will be
read at the national gathering. A copy of their appeal is attached
with contact information.
Some have said that it is best to forget, that the war is over,
and the past must be put behind us. Though the killing has stop-
ped, the fight for justice must continue. To forget, to fail to
remember is to dishonor the memory of the dead and missing. Please
support the appeal of the people of Srebrenica and Zepa: come to
St. Louis if you are able, contribute your ideas and statements of
support, and finally remember and help those who have lost so
much.
Sincerely,
Patrick McCarthy,
on behalf of the Committee of the Dispossessed from Srebrenica and
Zepa
Appeal from the Committee of the Dispossessed from Srebrenica and
Zepa
We are a community of three hundred refugee survivors from Srebre-
nica and Zepa living today in St. Louis, Missouri, among 8,000
displaced refugees from all parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina. We
appeal to our fellow citizens from Srebrenica and Zepa in other
parts of the United States and in Europe to join us in calling for
justice, accountability, and compensation.
We were promised the help and protection of the United Nations. We
gave up our weapons and our ability to defend ourselves in
exchange for the protection of Srebrenica and Zepa as "safe
areas". When our cities were attacked in July of 1995, thousands
of our fathers, sons, brothers, relatives and friends were slaugh-
tered without resistance or opposition from the United Nations who
had pledged to defend us, according to UN Resolution 836, by "all
necessary means, including the use of force." We were guaranteed
protection but instead our UN protectors were bystanders and ac-
complices to our genocide. We lost our homes, our possessions, and
most, importantly, our loved ones and friends.
Many of us who survived were imprisoned in Serbia after escaping
Srebrenica and Zepa. Officials of the United Nations High Commis-
sioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Red Cross in Belgrade promised
us special status after resettlement as refugees. More than two
years later we have received little or no help. For example, we
have received no systematic medical attention or treatment for war
trauma.
As victims of the worst genocide on European soil since the second
world war, we demand the following:
1. The immediate arrest and prosecution of those responsible for
the war crimes and genocide in Srebrenica and Zepa, including
Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadzic.
2. Information about those killed or missing in Srebrenica and
Zepa.
3. Material and medical assistance, including financial compensa-
tion for our loss.
We urge others from Srebrenica and Zepa to join our appeal and we
ask all people of good will to help us by sending us statements of
support to be used in furthering our appeal.
We will convene a national meeting in St. Louis, Missouri on Sun-
day April 19, 1998 to issue our call for justice and compensation.
For more information or to participate in this gathering, please
contact:
Safeta Ovcina (Bosnian Language)
314-481-7973
Patrick McCarthy (English language)
Saint Louis University
3650 Lindell Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63108
Tel. 314-977-3093 fax 314-977-3108
E-mail: mccartpg@slu.edu
For the St. Louis Committee of the Dispossessed from Srebrenica
and Zepa,
Alic Daut (Srebrenica)
Alic Sejdalija (Srebrenica)
Becirevic Alija (Srebrenica)
Becirevic Nedzad (Srebrenica)
Cavcic Esed (Zepa)
Halilovic Izet (Srebrenica)
Hodzic Seudin (Zepa)
Husic Mehmedalija (Srebrenica)
Husic Nedzad (Srebrenica)
Jasarevic Alija (Srebrenica)
Jasarevic Juso (Srebrenica)
Jasarevic Nedim (Srebrenica)
Jugovic Ahmo (Srebrenica)
Jugovic Amir (Srebrenica)
Karic Emsud (Zepa)
Karic Semso (Zepa)
Lemes Ramiz (Srebrenica)
Mehmedovic Fadil (Srebrenica)
Muratovic Ahmet (Srebrenica)
Muratovic Dzevad (Srebrenica)
Muratovic Refik (Srebrenica)
Muratovic Sefik (Srebrenica)
Osmanovic Ibro (Srebrenica)
Oric Huso (Srebrenica)
Ramic Azem (Zepa)
Ramic Hamdija (Zepa)
Ramic Hamzalija (Zepa)
Ramic Hasib (Zepa)
Ramic Mehmedalija (Zepa)
Ramic Sead (Zepa)
Ramic Semsudin (Zepa)
Salihovic Mirsad (Srebrenica)
Salihovic Sefik (Srebrenica)
Salkic Ramiz (Srebrenica)
Selimovic Osman (Srebrenica)
----------------
forwarded by PBD
++++++++++++++++++++++++
Empfaenger : /APC/YUGO/ANTIWAR
Absender : mccartpg@SLU.EDU
Betreff : Apr 19 (US): Srebrenica, Zepa
Datum : Mi 08.04.98, 05:32 (erhalten: 09.04.98)
Groesse : 2308 Bytes
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- PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENT/UPDATE -
Waiting for Answers, Calling for Justice:
A Forum for Refugee Survivors from Srebrenica and Zepa
Sunday, April 19, 1998 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Carlo Auditorium - Tegeler Hall
Saint Louis University 3550 Lindell Blvd.
* "The Betrayal of Srebrenica", Ms. Bianca Jagger, Human Rights
Activist
* "The Search for Answers: Antemortem Database Project", Ms. Sara
Kahn, Outreach Coordinator, Physicians for Human Rights, Tuzla
* "Calling for Justice: Campaign for Srebrenica in the United
Kingdom", Dr. Alison Snape, King's College, London, Organizer of
the Srebrenica Justice Campaign
* Testimony from Mirsad Salihovic, refugee survivor from Srebre-
nica
* Testimony from Amir Jugovic, refugee survivor from Zepa
The event is free and open to the public.
For more information, please contact Patrick McCarthy at 314-977-
3093 or by e-mail at mccartpg@slu.edu.
Background Information:
When the UN declared "safe areas" of Srebrenica and Zepa were at-
tacked in July of 1995, thousands of Muslim men and boys were
slaughtered in the worst acts of genocide since the end of the Se-
cond World War. Promised the protection of the United Nations, the
people of Srebrenica and Zepa received complicity and capitulation
at the hands of those who were pledged to defend them.
300 refugee survivors from Srebrenica and Zepa are now living in
St. Louis, Missouri, among a community of 10,000 refugees from all
parts of Bosnia-Herzegovina. They have organized themselves into a
Committee of the Dispossessed and today issue a call for others to
join them in their appeal for justice and accountability.
The survivors from Srebrenica and Zepa are waiting for answers
about their loved ones killed and missing. They are calling for
the arrest and prosecution of those who committed these genocidal
crimes. They are looking for help and compensation for what they
have lost.
To make a contribution to help refugees from Srebrenica and Zepa
now living in St. Louis, please make your checks payable to
CPPS/Resettlement Fund. Please note on the check, "Srebrenica and
Zepa". Checks may be sent c/o Patrick McCarthy, Saint Louis Uni-
versity, 3650 Lindell Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63108.
----------------
forwarded by PBD
++++++++++++++++++++++++
George Pumphrey
M.-Grünewald-Str. 13
D-53175 Bonn
Committee of the Disposessed
from Srebrenica and Zepa
c/o Patrick McCarthy
mccartpg@slu.edu
9. April 1998
Dear Committee,
Dear Patrick,
Your posting announcing the April 19 Srebrenica/Zepa Event in St.
Louis caught my eye. Having tried to follow the events surrounding
Srebrenica (and to a lesser extent) Zepa, the information you fur-
nished has helped me begin to fill an information gap in my at-
tempt to find a more complete answer to the question "What hap-
pened after Srebrenica was surrendered to the Serbian forces."
I am employed in the press office of the parliamentary group of
the PDS Party in the German Federal Parliament (Bundestag). But my
interest in Bosnia-Herzegovina and particularly the events around
Srebrenica is my personal political engagement. This is part of my
engagement in the struggle against manifestations of national
chauvinism and from my having been forced into exile (as a result
of this engagement). I can easily sympathize with the situation of
these men.
In your first posting (3.30. Event: Srebrenica and Zepa) I could
not oversee that you and I share a certain suspicion that there is
a bit of manipulation that has played a part in the predicament
that these men find themselves in. I think they may have been
pawns in a multi-sided game. Now that they have served their pur-
pose, there is a danger that they will simply be dropped and at-
tention will be directed toward the next crisis and more current
interests.
First of all I would be very appreciative if you would send me any
additional information material that your Committee is putting
out, as well as any speeches (and testimonies) published after the
"Forum for Refugee Survivors from Srebrenica and Zepa".
Secondly to help me in my research (and possibly of mutual advan-
tage to us both in our research), your appeal provoked questions
that I would like find answers to. Some of them are as follows:
++++++++++++++++++++++++
You have written that there are 300 Srebrenica refugee survivors
in St. Louis (among 10,000 from all over BH). Are there other re-
fugee survivors from Srebrenica and Zepa elsewhere in the US? Are
they also organizing? When did the Srebrenica refugee survivors
arrive in the US? All at one time? In waves? From what date to
what date?
Were there promises made to these refugees? What sort of help was
promised? By whom? What sort of medical attention have they been
receiving in the US? From where is the compensation you spoke of
supposed to come? Was it promised? By whom? At what point along
the way between Serbia and St. Louis?
You speak of their imprisonment in Serbia. How did they come to be
imprisoned in Serbia? With which group were they when they were
captured:
the group that left Srebrenica before it fell and who had to
break out of Serbian encirclement in trying to reach the
Muslim lines, (Tuzla or Zepa) or
the group that had stayed in Srebrenica and were taken pri-
soner by the Serbian military after the takeover and who was
bussed (or marched) to Serbian detention - as was also the
case of Imran Mustafic?
What proportion of their co-prisoners (in Serbia) were from
each of these groups? What proportion of the 2 groups makes
up the group brought to the US?
At which prison camps/prisons were they held in Serbia? How many
were held at the Sljivovica and Mitrovo Polje prison camps? How
many other escapees from Srebrenica and Zepa were imprisoned with
them? What happened to the others? Do they know that aside from
those brought to the US, other Srebrenica refugee survivor priso-
ners were taken to Australia, Italy, France, Ireland, Belgium and
Sweden? Do they know that 103 prisoners were sent against their
will to Australia? One of them, Osmo Zimic criticized the UNHCR,
"whose spokesman claimed that these soldiers demanded departure to
Australia and by no means return to Bosnia for they would alle-
gedly face criminal charges as deserters there." Zimic says this
is not true. Have they had a similar experience?
In 1996 the BH Embassy in Australia requested that the Internatio-
nal Tribunal (ICTY) in the Hague start an investigation on the de-
portation of 800 Bosniak prisoners from Serbia to Australia and
Europe in which the UNHCR supposedly assisted, rather than inclu-
ding these Bosniaks in the prisoner exchange. The principal wit-
ness for the prosecution is Osmo Zimic, BH Army Officer, one who
had been deported to Australia against his will.
Are the ex-prisoners in the US also part of these 800 prisoners
that, rather than be exchanged, were skirted out of the country?
Were they brought to the US directly from the prisons or did they
get to see their families first? If they were taken straight from
the prisons to the US, have they since had contact with their fa-
milies? (If not should I try to establish a contact for them? I am
not promising that I can, but I can try.) Have efforts been made
to have them reunited with their families in the States or back in
BH? (Many mothers, wives, sisters and friends of the missing men
of Srebrenica are still searching for news of their loved ones
missing since Srebrenica and Zepa fell. They cannot get any infor-
mation from the government in Sarajevo, even though the government
must know. Their regular demonstrations are beginning to take on
the aspect of the "Mothers from the Plaza de Maio" in Buenos Ai-
res.
Another group of (at least) 24 men was evacuated to Ireland by the
Red Cross just before Christmas '95. The men "med-evaced" to Du-
blin have been granted papers to remain in Ireland and are (were
in Jan. 96) lodged in the Cherry Orchard mental hospital on the
outskirts of the city. Among those in Irland is someone known as
"Nadzad" from Zepa and Safet Ilic from Srebrenica.
You speak of the Serbian Red Cross. From what point on have they
had contact with the Red Cross? In the case of Ireland, it was the
Red Cross itself, that organized the "med-evac" of the ex-priso-
ners to Ireland. How would they explain that the International
Committee of the Red Cross still claims to have no knowledge of
the whereabouts of the missing of Srebrenica, and even publicly
states that they believe them all to be dead? Do you have an ex-
planation for the fact that the UNHCR still carries you as mis-
sing, even though they are aware of where you and your comrades
are?
++++++++++++++++++++++++
I wish you success in your Forum, and hope that you will be able
to help me find not only some of the answers to the above questi-
ons but a more just solution to your predicament. I wish you
strength and perserverance in your endeavors.
Yours for Peace and Justice,
George Pumphrey
++++++++++++++++++++++++
Empfaenger : G.PUMPHREY@GEORGE.pds-online.de
Absender : MCCARTPG@SLU.EDU
Betreff : Re: Apr 19 (US): Srebrenica, Zepa
Datum : Sa 11.04.98, 23:38 (erhalten: 14.04.98)
Groesse : 1099 Bytes
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Dear Mr. Pumphrey,
Thank you very much for writing. I can see that you have a detai-
led knowledge of events surrounding the fall of Srebrenica and its
aftermath. You raise a number of important questions, some of
which I have the answers to and other which I will need to further
checking. I must beg you indulgence as at the moment I am not able
to provide a detailed or adequate response to your inquiry. I
will send you a more complete answer after our event is over and I
have more time.
We are still busy preparing for our program and we have also just
welcomed three new families from Srebrenica. In fact, I have just
this moment returned from bringing donated furniture to two of the
new families. The situation here is very difficult as we have so
many refugees from Bosnia and both the official agencies resett-
ling refugees and the few volunteers working us struggle to meet
the ever present demand for help.
Support like your's helps immeasurably to lift our spirits and gi-
ves us hope. With deep thanks for your interest, I am,
Sincerely,
Patrick McCarthy
++++++++++++++++++++++++
Empfaenger : G.PUMPHREY@GEORGE.pds-online.de
Absender : mccartpg@SLU.EDU (Patrick McCarthy)
Betreff : Response to your query
Datum : Mi 06.05.98, 17:03 (erhalten: 07.05.98)
Groesse : 10097 Bytes
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Dear George,
Please excuse the very long delay in responding to your questions
and to your statements of support and encouragement. I am afraid
that my time has been quite limited as I am spending every avai-
lable moment of my free time helping the six new families who ar-
rived here from Srebrenica in the last month. I hope that you can
understand our situation and the difficulties in keeping up.
I will try to respond as best I can now to your original questions
which I have bracketed in the message below:
[First of all I would be very appreciative if you would send
me any additional information material that your Committee
is putting out, as well as any speeches (and testimonies)
published after the "Forum for Refugee Survivors from
Srebrenica and Zepa".]
I will mail you the press reports from our meeting. We are also
planning a printed publication with the presentations and testimo-
nies which we hope to have ready by late spring or the early sum-
mer.
[You have written that there are 300 Srebrenica refugee
survivors in St. Louis (among 10,000 from all over BH). Are
there other refugee survivors from Srebrenica and Zepa el-
sewhere in the US?]
Yes, although we do not have detailed knowledge about their whe-
reabouts; some are in Arizona and Florida and probably other pla-
ces in the U.S. I assume that St. Louis has one of the largest
groups in one place but I don't have information to confirm that.
[Are they also organizing?]
To my knowledge, no, but again I am relying on anecdotal informa-
tion from refugees here. I think we can assume not because I do
regular searches of US and European news sources and have found no
information about organized efforts elsewhere in the US.
[When did the Srebrenica refugee survivors arrive in the US?
All at one time? In waves? From what date to what date?]
The first refugees from Srebrenica and Zepa arrived here in May or
June of 1996. That was a group of about 20-30 persons. Others have
arrived in small groups after that, up to as recently as last
week. These new families arrived directly from Bosnia (after li-
ving as displaced persons in Tuzla and Gradacac).
[Were there promises made to these refugees? What sort of
help was promised? By whom? What sort of medical attention
have they been receiving in the US? From where is the com-
pensation you spoke of supposed to come? Was it promised? By
whom? At what point along the way between Serbia and St.
Louis?]
According to the refugees I know, they were assured that they
would receive "special treatment", including systematic medical
screening and other forms of basic material support. In fact, the
opposite has occurred: no special attention has been given, no me-
dical or psychological services have been provided, and many are
struggling still with basic necessities.
It is our understanding that an office has been established in Sa-
rajevo (run or established by the European Union) to receive and
process compensation claims, based on Article VII of the Dayton
Agreement. I am skeptical that this will amount to anything. Also,
there is divided opinion among the refugees here about whether to
pursue compensation claims and what effect it might have on legal
ownership of property. People here do not want to participate in
legalized forms of their own "ethnic cleansing".
[You speak of their imprisonment in Serbia. How did they
come to be imprisoned in Serbia? With which group were they
when they were captured:
the group that left Srebrenica before it fell and who had
to break out of Serbian encirclement in trying to reach the
Muslim lines, (Tuzla or Zepa) or
the group that had stayed in Srebrenica and were taken
prisoner by the Serbian military after the takeover and who
was bussed (or marched) to Serbian detention - as was also
the case of Imran Mustafic?
What proportion of their co-prisoners (in Serbia) were from
each of these groups? What proportion of the 2 groups makes
up the group brought to the US?]
On July 11, 1995, when it became apparent that Srebrenica was fal-
ling to the Serbs, large groups of military and civilians orga-
nized themselves to flee. The largest group travelled west toward
Tuzla and a second, smaller group went east in the direction of
Serbia. It is my understanding that the group that went east were
captured in Serbia and imprisoned in Sljivovica and a second camp
(which may have been Mitrovo Polje). To my knowledge, none of the
men captured in Srebrenica and the surrounding areas survived
(except a very small number of persons). Many of the men held in
the Serbian camps were resettled in St. Louis (about 30-40 from
Srebrenica and Zepa). (The best available account of the fall of
Srebrenica and its aftermath is David Rohde's book "Endgame". Da-
vid has visited us twice in St. Louis and is now a reporter for
the New York Times. I can put you in touch with him if you like,
but you should look at his book if you have not already.)
[At which prison camps/prisons were they held in Serbia? How
many were held at the Sljivovica and Mitrovo Polje prison
camps? How many other escapees from Srebrenica and Zepa were
imprisoned with them? What happened to the others? Do they
know that aside from those brought to the US, other
Srebrenica refugee survivor prisoners were taken to Au-
stralia, Italy, France, Ireland, Belgium and Sweden? Do they
know that 103 prisoners were sent against their will to
Australia? One of them, Osmo Zimic criticized the UNHCR,
"whose spokesman claimed that these soldiers demanded de-
parture to Australia and by no means return to Bosnia for
they would allegedly face criminal charges as deserters
there." Zimic says this is not true. Have they had a similar
experience?
In 1996 the BH Embassy in Australia requested that the In-
ternational Tribunal (ICTY) in the Hague start an investi-
gation on the deportation of 800 Bosniak prisoners from
Serbia to Australia and Europe in which the UNHCR supposedly
assisted, rather than including these Bosniaks in the
prisoner exchange. The principal witness for the prosecution
is Osmo Zimic, BH Army Officer, one who had been deported to
Australia against his will.
Are the ex-prisoners in the US also part of these 800 pri-
soners that, rather than be exchanged, were skirted out of
the country? Were they brought to the US directly from the
prisons or did they get to see their families first? If they
were taken straight from the prisons to the US, have they
since had contact with their families? (If not should I try
to establish a contact for them? I am not promising that I
can, but I can try.) Have efforts been made to have them
reunited with their families in the States or back in BH?
(Many mothers, wives, sisters and friends of the missing men
of Srebrenica are still searching for news of their loved
ones missing since Srebrenica and Zepa fell. They cannot get
any information from the government in Sarajevo, even though
the government must know. Their regular demonstrations are
beginning to take on the aspect of the "Mothers from the
Plaza de Maio" in Buenos Aires.
Another group of (at least) 24 men was evacuated to Ireland
by the Red Cross just before Christmas '95. The men "med-
evaced" to Dublin have been granted papers to remain in
Ireland and are (were in Jan. 96) lodged in the Cherry
Orchard mental hospital on the outskirts of the city. Among
those in Irland is someone known as "Nadzad" from Zepa and
Safet Ilic from Srebrenica.
You speak of the Serbian Red Cross. From what point on have
they had contact with the Red Cross? In the case of Ireland,
it was the Red Cross itself, that organized the "med-evac"
of the ex-prisoners to Ireland. How would they explain that
the International Committee of the Red Cross still claims to
have no knowledge of the whereabouts of the missing of
Srebrenica, and even publicly states that they believe them
all to be dead? Do you have an explanation for the fact that
the UNHCR still carries you as missing, even though they are
aware of where you and your comrades are?]
-You final questions and statements can be confirmed and summari-
zed by saying that in fact, people were given false, misleading,
or partial information, including by the UNHCR staff in Belgrade
which processed them for resettlement here. I don't think it is a
major issue for surviving "men" to find their families or to be
able to contact them. The obvious problem is with "women" who have
no information about "missing" fathers, sons, brothers, and hus-
bands. Every Srebrenica family has missing male members of their
families who are not accounted for. Collectively, there are mas-
sive numbers of missing just from the refugee-survivors in St.
Louis. I assume this is the situation for other Srebrenica and
Zepa refugees in other parts of the world.
Let me add in closing that though our meeting was successful in
helping to publicize the problems faced by Srebrenica and Zepa re-
fugees and their continuing need for information and justice, it
also forced us to realize that most people would prefer to forget
about Srebrenica and the genocide which occurred there. Certainly
those in positions of power to arrest war criminals like Mladic
and Karadzic, or to adequately support exhumation and identifica-
tion work are not willing to act. We feel obliged to keep pressure
up in these areas, while supporting the practical needs of refu-
gees here. We will not forget and we will not cease our efforts
until more is done.
I greatly appreciate your interest and support for our efforts. I
hope I have adequately addressed your questions. Please feel free
to follow-up with any ideas you might have for additional action
we might take on behalf of the people of Zepa and Srebrenica.
I will do my best to respond in a timely way.
With very best wishes,
Patrick McCarthy
Posted by: George Pumphrey | October 14, 2007 09:52 PM
Thank you, George - very instructive and significant in learning to discern between the emotion-loaded stories composed to trigger a desired response (and money) and simple facts pointing to a whole other set of conclusions.
As grave as these accusations are (though without a shred of evidence to back them up), I can't help finding the claim of Srebrenica Muslim "survivors" running to Serbia from Srebrenica, Bosnia, and then getting imprisoned there, but then being sent via Belgrade to States as Bosnian Muslim refugees and "Srebrenica survivors" absolutely hilarious.
Catching someone eyeball-deep in lies and pure ignorance could hardly get funnier than in this particular case. Well done.
Mr. Pumphrey's articles can be found at University of California at Berkeley OCF and GlobalResistance.com, among other places.
P.S. I'm glad Mr. Patrick McCarthy rushed to confirm the alleged Srebrenica survivors who ran to Serbia were mostly imprisoned in a fictional Sljivovica Camp (with the few possibly ending up in another non-existent "camp" - Mitrovo Polje). Jack Daniels Camp the Britons run is as bad as the Russian Vodka Camp, but none of them come close to the Serbian raki-camp, Sljivovica :-)))
Posted by: Svetlana | October 14, 2007 10:27 PM
Distorted facts labeled as truth only stand a chance of lingering on with the help of their powerful mentors whose interests are served by the falsehoods spun out of the pretend victims' imaginations. Those trying to push this kind of madness as truth should be assessed for possible delusional disorders.
Still, lack of real proof and solid evidence has to be compensated by the phony stories concocted to serve the cause of the mighty conquerors who have begun to wobble and sway under the burden of lies while standing on a sinking surface.
Posted by: Bozidar | October 15, 2007 03:23 AM
Just a little P.s. to my above message:
NEWS: DAILY BULLETIN
Washington Jan 19,1996 (Press TWRA) - US decided to accept 214 Bosniaks who, after the fall of Srebrenica and Zepa, had been detained in Serbian camps and give them refugee status. "It is horrible that those people besides being captured during the bloodshed in Srebrenica had to spend at least another two months in Serbian detention camps under dreadful condition", said State Department spokesman N. Burns. Burns emphasized that at least 8OO men out of 8O OOO people who have been expelled from their homes after the fall of Srebrenica and Zepa had been taken to Serbia. (end) S.K.
(The TWRA stands for the Third World Relief Agency, a Muslim agency that was definitely pro-Izetbegovic, but exactly for that reason a surprisingly good source of information.
George Pumphrey,
Berlin, Germany
Posted by: George Pumphrey | October 18, 2007 11:14 AM