The court of Bosnia and Herzegovina has upheld the indictment against Vojin Pavlovic, the leader of a Serbian extremist organisation in the country, for denying the Srebrenica genocide, the prosecutor's office confirmed on Monday. Pročitaj više

Pavlovic will stand trial in 2023 for “knowingly and intentionally” condoning and justifying the genocide of Bosniaks committed by Bosnian Serb forces in Srebrenica, eastern Bosnia, in July 1995, which was confirmed as genocide by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague and the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

He did this by giving speeches and organising the display of posters glorifying the perpetrators of the genocide. He is accused of inciting religious, racial and national hatred, discord and intolerance.

The denial of war crimes, including the crime of genocide, which has been confirmed by international and national courts, became a criminal offence in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2021 following amendments to the Criminal Code by the then High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Valentin Inzko.

Six months to five years for justifying the crime of genocide

The amendments to Article 145(a) of the Criminal Code provide for a prison sentence of three months to three years for those who publicly incite violence or hatred against a group of persons or a member of a group based on race, colour, religion, origin or national or ethnic affiliation.

Anyone who publicly condones, denies, grossly trivialises or attempts to justify the crime of genocide, a crime against humanity or a legally established war crime is liable to a prison sentence of six months to five years. If an offence is committed in a manner that may disturb public order and public peace, or if it is threatening, abusive or insulting, the offender is punished with a prison sentence of at least three years, according to the Criminal Code.

Despite these legal provisions and the repeated denial of the Srebrenica genocide, including by politicians such as the Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik, no one in Bosnia and Herzegovina has ever been found guilty of this crime.

The public prosecutor’s office previously justified this with alleged ambiguities in the law, namely the difficulty of proving the intention to incite violence and hatred.

Vojin Pavlovic from Bratunac near Srebrenica has for years led an organisation called Eastern Alternative, which advocates the secession of the Serbian entity Republika Srpska from Bosnia and Herzegovina, promotes Serbian nationalism and glorifies Russia.

In January of this year, another charge was brought against him for glorifying the Serbian military commander Ratko Mladic, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for war crimes.