Women in Black on Ratko Mladic conviction

Statement of Women in Black, Belgrade, 22/11/2017

Women in Black welcome the verdict of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. After decades of fleeing and hiding, the obstruction of the prosecution, the victims of the crime and their families have finally get justice.

Lifelong prison sentence is a appropriate for ultimate crimes committed under the command of Ratko Mladic.

Crimes for which Ratko Mladic was sentenced – genocide, crimes against humanity, including persecutions, extermination and murder, deportation and inhumane treatment, the terrorisation of civilians, attacks on civilians, are calling for deep thinking and reassessment, both at the individual level and at the level of societies.

This is particularly true for the current authorities in Serbia, whose current top officials were part of a policy that inspired and aided genocide. This fact makes them even more responsible at this moment.

We call on the authorities of Serbia to face the facts and finally stop denying crimes and genocide, to accept the decisions of the highest international judicial institutions – the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, as well as the recommendations of the European Parliament, the Council of Europe and other top international bodies and to act in accordance with them.