Letter to the world on the occasion of the 30th commemoration of the Genocide in Srebrenica

Marking the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, the Reisul-ulema of the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Husein Kavazović, addressed a letter to religious leaders and officials worldwide, translated into several international languages:

Dear citizens of Europe and the world,

I am addressing you as the religious leader of the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also as a guardian of the memory of those whose lives were extinguished in one of the darkest wars and crimes of modern history. I am also speaking with a deep sense of responsibility, because the way we remember and teach about the committed crime defines the boundary between civilization and its downfall.

The thirtieth anniversary of the Genocide in Srebrenica, which we are marking these days, is not only a moment of remembrance but also a moment of confronting truth and responsibility. Nearly three decades have passed since 8,372 men and boys were killed before the eyes of the world, solely because of their name. This crime, legally recognized as genocide, does not belong only to the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It belongs to the collective consciousness of humanity, because when justice is extinguished somewhere, the ground slips away beneath the feet of all who believe in the dignity of human life.

We are grateful to all those who, in the United Nations General Assembly in May of last year, supported the Resolution on the Genocide in Srebrenica, declaring July 11 as the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Genocide in Srebrenica, as well as to those who recognized the importance of preserving the historical truth about what happened in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 1990s. The adoption of this Resolution represents a step toward justice, but its true strength lies in what follows. Confronting the truth must not be a sporadic act, but a lasting obligation for institutions, legislative bodies, and educational systems. The Genocide in Srebrenica must not be reduced to a historical footnote; it must become a fundamental lesson taught in schools and universities, both in Bosnia and Herzegovina and across Europe and the world. Only through education, and only through a clear understanding of how these crimes came about, can we build societies that will not allow them to happen again.

Today, as we witness attempts to deny the Genocide and glorify the perpetrators, the responsibility does not lie only with the survivors, nor only with Bosnia and Herzegovina. It belongs to all who believe in the universal values of truth and justice. Every act of denial is not just a moral insult to the victims - it is a threat to peace and stability, because the relativization of crimes always prepares the ground for their repetition. That is why the international community must not remain silent in the face of those who seek to falsify history and undermine the foundations of justice.

The memory of the Genocide in Srebrenica must not remain just an annual commemoration; it must be built into the very foundations of society - through educational programs that will pass on the truth to future generations, through laws that will prevent its denial, and through institutions that will ensure crimes are never relativized or justified. If we want a world where justice and peace are not fleeting ideals but lasting values, we must build them on a truth that is never questioned.

Srebrenica is not just the past - it is a warning we must not ignore.

Forgetting is not only an injustice to the dead - it is a threat to the living.

Truth is not a burden - it is the only path toward a more just and safer world.

If we learn the lessons from the genocide in Srebrenica, perhaps the victims will not have died in vain.

Perhaps their innocent sacrifice will light the way toward a better future for all of us.

With respect,

Reisu-l-ulema Husein ef. Kavazović